The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) http://www.tuaw.com The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/feedlogo.gif The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) http://www.tuaw.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Vista SP1 to support EFI booting standard - what does this mean for Boot Camp?]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/vista-sp1-to-support-efi-booting-standard-what-does-this-mean/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/vista-sp1-to-support-efi-booting-standard-what-does-this-mean/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/vista-sp1-to-support-efi-booting-standard-what-does-this-mean/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



Rounding up on 9 months of Vista being on the market, Microsoft is of course at work on Service Pack 1 which is slated for an early 2008 release. At the official Windows Vista blog, Brandon LeBlanc has offered extensive details on what the focus of Service Pack 1 is, and while much of it is targeted at businesses and independent software vendors, an interesting section outlining some of the fundamentals mentions that support for the EFI booting standard is on its way (under the Introducing Windows Vista Service Pack 1 section; there aren't any anchors I can link in this extensive post, so you'll have to search for that title or simply 'EFI').

In their hype and marketing for Boot Camp, Apple makes a pretty big deal about Intel-based Macs supporting EFI while "Windows XP, and even Vista, are stuck in the 1980s with old-fashioned BIOS" (check the sidebar of the Boot Camp page). So what could it mean if Vista catches up to the EFI bandwagon? I'm not quite sure yet. It could likely make the Boot Camp engineers' lives a lot easier, and while I know less about virtualization software like Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion, they might be able to sleep better at night as well. Ultimately, if EFI support in Vista makes it easier for Apple to support running Windows on a Mac, this could likely yield even more sales from swtichers - especially those who need Vista for things like work or gaming. As to speculation on whether this could bring some of the wilder stuff like running Windows apps in Mac OS X without the need for the Windows OS or virtualization tools, I'll leave that to the tin foil hat enthusiasts in the audience.

Thanks Adam

TUAWVista SP1 to support EFI booting standard - what does this mean for Boot Camp? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 30 Aug 2007 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Boot CampBootCampEFIvirtualizationVistaWindowsWindows VistaWindows XPWindowsVistaWindowsXpXPThu, 30 Aug 2007 19:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Planbook: Lesson planning for teachers, Mac style]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/planbook-lesson-planning-for-teachers-mac-style/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/planbook-lesson-planning-for-teachers-mac-style/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/30/planbook-lesson-planning-for-teachers-mac-style/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



In an education world where parents make all the decisions and administration knows less about teaching than the students, teachers can use all the help they get. While I wait for Assistants R Us to open in the Denver area so I can take some of the burden off my wife's high school English-teaching shoulders, educators of all kinds might be able to take some solace in Planbook from Hellmansoft. Designed and developed by Jeff Hellman, a 9th grade physics and science teacher, Planbook aims to do away with the clunky ways of writing lesson plans with paper by providing tools to plan, attach files, print, publish and search the digital way. Teachers can plan out lessons for one or multiple classes for the week, month or year, attach files the students will need for homework and publish it all to the web via FTP or to a local folder. Students, parents and administrators alike can then view the site, the daily lessons and download the files at their leisure. Still need paper versions? No sweat - Planbook can print out customized reports for students and administrators, great for handing out or posting in class.

Since I am the farthest thing from a teacher, my wife graciously offered to give this software a whirl and share her thoughts. To be honest, after a minute or two of poking around, she was absolutely thrilled. She was impressed with Planbook's feature set and how easy it was to start writing plans for multiple classes. She loved the publish-to-web idea since her school already provides some digital records for parents to check from home, but I am sad to report that there was one killer deal-breaker that took the bounce out of my wife's step - Planbook is Mac-only. Now my wife is a Mac user through and through, but her school lives in the Windows world making Planbook ineligible for consideration.

[Update: Jeff Hellman stopped by to comment that he's one step ahead of me; he actually is working on a Windows version and hopes to enter beta this weekend. This could certainly boost Planbook's appeal in Windows and mixed-OS environment and for teachers who live on both sides of that fence between the home and office.]

If you or your teaching friends are fortunate enough to work on the Mac side at school, I (via my wife) definitely recommend you take a look at Planbook. Even as a 1.0 product it sounds like Hellman has hit most of the large nails right on the head, and more interest and support can only make a good product get better over time. Check out the Planbook site for more information, including an example published Planbook, as well as IM support and a Yahoo! Groups link. Individual licenses are $30, while volume licenses begins at up to 10 teachers for $100, going all the way up to 65+ teachers for $300. As a bonus, the volume license allows teachers to use Planbook on both their home and work computers.

TUAWPlanbook: Lesson planning for teachers, Mac style originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 30 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>administrationeducationhigh schoolHighSchoolPlanbookteachersteachingwebThu, 30 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Librarian Pro: Keep track of your media and more on Mac and PC]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/librarian-pro-keep-track-of-your-media-and-more-on-mac-and-pc/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/librarian-pro-keep-track-of-your-media-and-more-on-mac-and-pc/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/librarian-pro-keep-track-of-your-media-and-more-on-mac-and-pc/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Watch out Delicious Library, you finally have some competition on the way. Koingo Software's upcoming Librarian Pro for Windows and Mac will bring some interesting new features to the media cataloging table. While its standard UI doesn't look quite as flashy as Delicious Library's (though it features a 'Gallery mode' that displays everything by cover art that the company hasn't posted a screenshot for), Librarian Pro allows users to catalog PC hardware and software in addition to books, movies, music and games. In fact, it can scan your hard drive (I assume both Macs and PCs) to automatically catalog your software. Users will be able to create smart collections for organizing their stuff any way they please, and Librarian Pro allows for multiple media databases to help keep different collections separate (say, one for your home stuff and another for your work-related books and software). Speaking of staying organized, Librarian Pro can also display a panel of contacts from Address Book to show you who borrowed what, when and how many.

Another cool new feature takes Amazon integration one step further by allowing you to shop the site from within Librarian Pro, immediately adding anything you purchase to your collection. Fortunately, Librarian Pro works with Amazon Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, German and France, and the database is fully UTF-8 compatible spanning both Mac and Windows systems.

Librarian Pro will be available for download and purchase on September 1st (I have no idea why they announced two days early) for $29.95, with a 15-day trial available to get your feet wet.

[Update: By the way, I forgot one thing: to help facilitate switchers, Librarian Pro can import from Delicious Library, DVDpedia, Bookpedia, CDpedia and Gamepedia.]

TUAWLibrarian Pro: Keep track of your media and more on Mac and PC originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Koingo SoftwareKoingoSoftwareLibrarian ProLibrarianPromanagementmediaWed, 29 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[TUAW Tip: endo's keyboard shortcuts rock]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/tuaw-tip-endos-keyboard-shortcuts-rock/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/tuaw-tip-endos-keyboard-shortcuts-rock/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/29/tuaw-tip-endos-keyboard-shortcuts-rock/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Hi, my name is David Chartier, and I'm an RSS-aholic.
[your collective response: Hi David]

The last time I refreshed my newsreader was... well, probably a minute or two ago, and then 30 minutes before that. You see, I'm obsessed with news, and I've been using some sort of a newsreader for around three or four years now. Since I began writing for TUAW and Download Squad, I've probably tossed my OPML (an exported list of your RSS feeds) into more newsreaders than I can imagine, and one of my greatest loves has always been Adriaan Tijsseling's endo, which we've mentioned a few times before on TUAW. While I typically use NetNewsWire as my main reader, I'm giving endo a thorough run-through again as it has really matured into a great, stable product, and it has a lot of pleasant surprises and unique features that make sifting through large amounts of feeds and headlines a pleasure. In fact, with how well things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if endo upset my newsreader balance, at least for my regular reading. See the rest of the post to find out why...

Continue reading TUAW Tip: endo's keyboard shortcuts rock

TUAWTUAW Tip: endo's keyboard shortcuts rock originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Aug 2007 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ectoendokeyboard shortcutsKeyboardShortcutsshortcutsWed, 29 Aug 2007 14:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Network Magic: Simplify Mac and PC networking]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/28/network-magic-simplify-mac-and-pc-networking/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/28/network-magic-simplify-mac-and-pc-networking/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/28/network-magic-simplify-mac-and-pc-networking/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



The Mac and PC networking challenge is legendary. If you have both on a home or work network, it can be an adventure to get these two machines to see each other, share files or printers. Fortunately, Pure Networks has an app for both Mac and PC called Network Magic which hopes to change all that, as it allows you to easily set up file and printer sharing, diagnose slow networks and more. It offers what looks like a simple interface for managing all this, though I should note that printer sharing only works with the list of printers that Apple officially supports and provides drivers for right in Mac OS X (i.e. - if you can plug a printer in and it works without having to install extra software). While the Windows version is a bit more powerful than the Mac component, folks who need to maintain a mixed network and are after the primary features mentioned here will likely be happy with Network Magic, though licenses are sold at a slight disadvantage for Mac users: packages of licenses begin at $29.99 for 3 PCs (5 PCs for $39.99, etc.), but it's $19.99 for each Mac you want to add to the package. Still, Network Magic looks like one of the easiest networking tools I've seen in a while, and perhaps if its popularity among Mac users grows over time, licensing can become more fair for both operating systems.


[via MacMinute]

TUAWNetwork Magic: Simplify Mac and PC networking originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Aug 2007 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>MacNetwork MagicnetworkingNetworkMagicOS XOsXprintersprintingsharingWindowsTue, 28 Aug 2007 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Maybe iMovie '08 isn't such a bad change after all]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/maybe-imovie-08-isnt-such-a-bad-change-after-all/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/maybe-imovie-08-isnt-such-a-bad-change-after-all/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/maybe-imovie-08-isnt-such-a-bad-change-after-all/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Many folks who were used to the array of features iMovie '06 offered were understandably upset when iMovie '08 uprooted just about everything they knew. After all, they had the figurative rug pulled out right from under them. Eric at no one sequel, however, doesn't see this as a bad thing. Eric's entire post is definitely worth a read, but to summarize: while iMovie '06 is a good product, it doesn't exactly live up to the Apple and iLife reputation of "just working." iMovie '06 users need to learn a little too much about video editing - time codes, time lines, "rendering", etc. - causing a significant portion of the public to avoid the practice altogether. I agree with Eric - perhaps it isn't Apple's job to bring pro features and workflows to the general user. Instead, maybe it's their job to to eliminate the need for those features to exist in the mind of said user, greatly simplifying the barrier to entry in video editing so that more can use these otherwise complicated tools.

By completely rethinking the practice of video editing and redesigning iMovie around the new paradigm, iMovie '08 could perhaps be the first product that really captures the attention of the larger mass that hasn't caught the bug yet (no pun intended). Sure iMovie is lacking a few features everyone can enjoy, such as a few effects and transitions, but users no longer need to learn what a 'timecode' is just to cut together the summer vacation or a cute puppy montage. It's just skim, click and drag and poof - a video.

Isn't that the way Apple products are supposed to work?

[via Daring Fireball]

TUAWMaybe iMovie '08 isn't such a bad change after all originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>iLifeiMovieusabilityvideo editingVideoEditingMon, 27 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST<![CDATA[New iPhone class action filed in NY over iPhone SIM lock-in, international roaming fees]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/new-iphone-class-action-filed-in-ny-over-iphone-sim-lock-in-int/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/new-iphone-class-action-filed-in-ny-over-iphone-sim-lock-in-int/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/27/new-iphone-class-action-filed-in-ny-over-iphone-sim-lock-in-int/#commentsFiled under: ,

You know what they say: let the good times class action lawsuits roll! Or something like that. The latest in what I'm sure is to be a long list of iPhone-related class action lawsuits was filed in New York today over the iPhone's SIM card lock-in, as well as what the plaintiff alleges is Apple withholding of information on roaming data charges. The plaintiff, Herbert H. Kliegerman, wants the iPhone unlock code, and he also wants to restrain Apple from selling iPhones without disclosing both that the included SIM cards are locked to AT&T, and that users could incur roaming data charges when traveling internationally. We have a PDF of the lawsuit (sent to us directly by the plaintiff), but considering the facts that:
  • Kliegerman's complaints seem to have much more to do with AT&T's practices than Apple's
  • US SIM cards, to my knowledge, are always locked to their particular provider, meaning travelers have always had to purchase some kind of other phone service or an international SIM
  • There's plenty of information available at AT&T's site about their international roaming practices, as well as extra plan options to provide for international calls and data usage
I don't think Kliegerman has much of a leg to stand on. Plus, he sent this to us himself, which reeks of digging for 15 seconds in the spotlight - but who am I to shoot down his hopes? Anyone, particularly those who travel and know more about US mobile phone company practices, care to place some bets as to how far he'll get with this?

TUAWNew iPhone class action filed in NY over iPhone SIM lock-in, international roaming fees originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ATTclass actionClassActioninternationaliPhonelawsuitsroamingMon, 27 Aug 2007 12:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Subsume: Facebook updates via Growl and Address Book]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/26/subsume-facebook-updates-via-growl-and-address-book/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/26/subsume-facebook-updates-via-growl-and-address-book/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/26/subsume-facebook-updates-via-growl-and-address-book/#commentsFiled under: ,

If you're looking for the 'next thing' with which to boost your Facebook ninja status, Subsume just might be it. Right now it's an alpha so it's a little rough around the edges, but it primarily displays updates from your Facebook friends with Growl, a TUAW favorite that allows applications to display useful popup alerts when something happens (your song changes in iTunes, new email arrives, a buddy goes offline, etc.). Setting up Subsume is easy, just like with any other app that hooks into Facebook; you're taken to a Facebook login that prompts you for your credentials (if you aren't logged in already), then Facebook asks you to authorize Subsume to display your info. At an interval that Subsume's site doesn't describe yet (remember: it's an alpha folks), the app will check your Facebook account for any status updates from your friends, then display them in Growl's handy, unobtrusive update alerts. For the Facebook obsessed, this could turn out to be a great app that keeps you on top of what's going on without having to keep some kind of a window always open and taking up space.

Subsume is provided as free for now at subsume.info. I should note that the developer, Jacob Jay, developers one of my favorite picture sharing utilities: PictureSync, which we've mentioned on TUAW a few times before.

TUAWSubsume: Facebook updates via Growl and Address Book originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 26 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>FacebookfriendsGrowlJacob JayJacobJayPictureSyncsocial networkingSocialNetworkingstatusSubsumeSun, 26 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Embed .Mac Web Gallery thumbnails in RapidWeaver pages]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/25/integrate-mac-web-gallery-thumbnails-rapidweaver/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/25/integrate-mac-web-gallery-thumbnails-rapidweaver/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/25/integrate-mac-web-gallery-thumbnails-rapidweaver/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

The new .Mac Web Galleries are great, but they unfortunately can only be built by iPhoto '08 and integrated into iWeb pages. Thanks to this RapidWeaver forum post from Günter, however, RW users have a trick for embedding those slick scrolling .Mac Web Gallery thumbnails into their pages. The trick more or less involves creating at least one or more .Mac Web Galleries, opening iWeb and using its new widgets feature to embed one of your galleries in an iWeb page, publishing to a folder and copying the specific piece of .Mac Web Gallery code out of that iWeb page and into a RapidWeaver Blocks page.

It isn't exactly pretty, but I think I know of a way to simplify this process, at least for some of you. The way I figure it, if you're already publishing an iWeb page to your .Mac account with your galleries embedded in them, you can just open your iDisk and drill down to Web/Sites, find the page you published with that gallery code and simply grab it from there. No publishing to a folder and creating more junk to manage and delete, since you're already publishing those pages and code somewhere.

As far as looking at the code on those pages, you can of course simply open them in a browser and use the View Source command, or you can find a text editor like TUAW favorite TextMate or even the free Taco HTML. For more questions on this you can try in the comments here since I know a good number of TUAW readers are also RapidWeaver lovers, but the original RapidWeaver support thread where I found this tip might be a better place if you want to get more thorough answers faster.

TUAWEmbed .Mac Web Gallery thumbnails in RapidWeaver pages originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 25 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>.Mac Web Gallery.macWebGalleryBlocksgallerieshtmlRapidWeavertacoTextMateSat, 25 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[TUAW Talkcast #4: Best of the week, more reader questions - available for download]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-week-download/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-week-download/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-week-download/#commentsFiled under:

The 4th edition of our new TUAW Talkcast went pretty well last night. We had a good turnout of readers joining in on the fun, and we all had a good time discussing things like imaginary iPhone feature updates, that quirky new Apple Keyboard and how well one can type on a glass display without buttons. We also fielded more questions from show participants such as Windows gaming on a Mac mini and how to truly delete images from iPhoto, and I must say: that question & answer segment is becoming one of my favorite parts of the show.

We did have a few issues with audio quality, as I think Gizmo was misbehaving a little, but I tried cleaning up as best I could. There's only so much magic software can work on quirky audio, even in Mac OS X. Since we are still navigating the TalkShoe waters however, we appreciate your patience while trying to iron out the kinks, and we'll gladly accept any advice on how to improve audio quality (though we're aware of the basics, such as using a headset instead of built-in MacBook mics, etc.).

We're also kicking around some ideas for a different day and time for the show in an effort to make it easier for more of you to join us. If you would prefer something other than 9:30 pm ET on Thursday nights, be sure to sound off in the comments.

For now though, TUAW Talkcast #4 is available for download. It clocks in at just under 37 minutes and 33.7 MB. You can pick up the 'cast from our RSS & iTunes feeds, via direct download here, or via download and streaming over at Talkshoe.

TUAWTUAW Talkcast #4: Best of the week, more reader questions - available for download originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 24 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>GizmoiPhoneTalkcastTalkShoeTUAW TalkcastTuawTalkcastFri, 24 Aug 2007 15:00:00 ESTTUAW Talkcast #4: Best of the week and reader questionsDavid Chartier, Dave Caolo, Erica Sadun, Mike Schramm36:52podcasts;Talkcast;TalkShoe;<![CDATA[Software bundle offered for school-bound Mac users]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/software-bundle-offered-for-school-bound-mac-users/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/software-bundle-offered-for-school-bound-mac-users/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/24/software-bundle-offered-for-school-bound-mac-users/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

If you're on your way back to school this year, or you know someone who is, a new MacToSchool software bundle could save you some cash. Featuring twelve apps ranging in appeal and actual usefulness, this bundle offers $300 worth of software for $49.95. Included in the MacToSchool package are apps like Clockwork, a simple desktop timer, WriteRoom, the popular full-screen text editor that helps you focus on your writing, a family history app, a calendar-based financial planner and more. Pencils Down - a test building app for teachers - is even included, making this package appealing to the other side of the education fence that, as the husband of a high school English teacher can attest to, often doesn't get the attention and discounts it deserves.

The typical price you would have to pay for even a few of these apps could easily add up to $50, so this could certainly be a valuable package. Each app at the MacToSchool.org site has a simple description page and a demo download so you can try everything before you buy, and there are also links to the orignal app developers' sites in case you need more info. Interestingly, this bundle was organized by the developers themselves in an effort to help spread the word about the utility of 3rd party software and to do something good for the education community.

The press release we received says 'limited time only' but makes no mention of when the deal will end, so my advice would be to act sooner rather than later if you're interested.

TUAWSoftware bundle offered for school-bound Mac users originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 24 Aug 2007 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>clockworkmacmac to schoolMacToSchoolmoros xOsXsoftwarewriteroomFri, 24 Aug 2007 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[TUAW Talkcast #4: Best of the Week & more - Join us tonight!]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-the-week-and-more-join-us-tonight/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-the-week-and-more-join-us-tonight/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/tuaw-talkcast-4-best-of-the-week-and-more-join-us-tonight/#commentsFiled under:

It's that time of the week again folks - the TUAW Talkcast is once again upon us! Our regular host Michael Rose is taking the week off, so I'll be taking the hosting reigns for the night. Join TUAW bloggers Dave Caolo, Erica "iPhone Pwner" Sadun, Mike Schramm and myself for a discussion on the week's big news, hopefully some live Ask TUAW where we field your questions and yet another trivia contest for a TUAW shirt! After the show is done, we'll open up the lines so everyone can chat before calling it a night.

To participate or listen in on our TalkShoe-powered Talkcasts, register (free) at TalkShoe.com. This will give you a pin you can use to call in with a regular or VoIP phone. If you want to text chat with us and other participants, you'll need to download and sign in with their java client as well. If you can't be with us tonight though, don't worry - as usual, we'll provide the recording for download and via our TUAW Podcast feed (RSS and iTunes) within a day or so.

It should be another good show tonight, so we hope to see you all there!

TUAWTUAW Talkcast #4: Best of the Week & more - Join us tonight! originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 23 Aug 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>podcastsTalkcastTalkShoeTUAW shirtsTuawShirtsThu, 23 Aug 2007 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Mailplane plug-in updated for iPhoto '08]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/mailplane-plug-in-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/mailplane-plug-in-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/mailplane-plug-in-updated-for-iphoto-08/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Mailplane, the email client that integrates Gmail with Mac OS X, has released v1.5 with an updated iPhoto plug-in that brings compatibility for the new iLife '08 version. This now makes Mailplane's iPhoto plug-in compatible with versions 5, 6 and the new 7, which I prefer calling iPhoto '08 to avoid version confusion. You can simply use the Check for Updates command from Mailplane's application menu, and the developer recommends everyone update even if they don't have the latest iLife; turns out the current beta version expires on August 30th. A separate new version with bug fixes and new features is 'coming soon.'

TUAWMailplane plug-in updated for iPhoto '08 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 23 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>GmailiPhotoiPhoto 08Iphoto08MailplaneThu, 23 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Greatascent: Highrise meets Address Book in web and desktop 2.0 harmony]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/greatascent-highrise-meets-address-book-in-web-and-desktop-2-0/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/greatascent-highrise-meets-address-book-in-web-and-desktop-2-0/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/23/greatascent-highrise-meets-address-book-in-web-and-desktop-2-0/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Web 2.0 is great and all, but I bought a Mac to utilize the power of Mac OS X and its software. While working in a browser certainly has its advantages, I believe that the sweet spot of getting work done shouldn't force the user into choosing between two appealing environments. The sweet spot of which I am speaking, of course, is integration and sync - the much sought-after, hard-to-find features that some companies offer with their products, while others at least leave the door open for enterprising 3rd parties to pick up the slack. Fortunately, one of the 'others' I speak of is 37signals with Highrise, their popular web-baesd contact and correspondence app, and the enterprising 3rd party in this case is Simon Menke, developer of Greatascent. This is one of the hands-down coolest plug-ins I've seen in a while that unites web 2.0 with what I like to call desktop 2.0 - the place where desktop apps can interact and sync with online services.

Greatascent, currently in a private beta, is a plug-in for Address Book (and soon other parts of Mac OS X) that serves as a middle man between the contacts on your Mac and those in Highrise. In its early beta state, Greatascent can pull down the contacts you're already working with in Highrise, but its real appeal is allowing you to drag and drop contacts from Address Book onto a new group that is added (pictured) to instantly sync them up to Highrise. Once synchronized, however, another gem of working in Highrise is brought to the desktop: from Address Book's File menu, you can select a Highrise contact and create a new Highrise note or task that is then synched up to the service. Read on after the jump for some screenshots and details of just how cool this plug-in can get.

Continue reading Greatascent: Highrise meets Address Book in web and desktop 2.0 harmony

TUAWGreatascent: Highrise meets Address Book in web and desktop 2.0 harmony originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 23 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Address BookAddressBookcontactscorrespondenceGreatascentHighrisenotestasksweb 2.0Web2.0Thu, 23 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Widget Watch: YouTube]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/widget-watch-youtube/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/widget-watch-youtube/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/widget-watch-youtube/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Before you say anything, I know - YouTube is the last thing you need to have lying around at the flick of a mouse or stroke of a key. I just couldn't stop myself from blogging this because it shot to the top of Apple's popular Dashboard widgets chart, and it really is well done. The YouTube Dashboard widget allows for searching YouTube, displaying Just Added, Most Discussed, Featured and Most Viewed videos, and you can even condense it for those times when you want to at least appear like you might be getting work done. Clicking a video opens a larger window in the Dashboard to watch it, and therein lies one catch. For some odd reason you aren't presented with YouTube's video controller; just a pause/play button. Another bummer is that you can't log into your own account to rate or mark videos as favorites, but if you're just looking for a quick window into YouTube that's easy to show and hide, this YouTube widget just might be your answer.

TUAWWidget Watch: YouTube originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 22 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>DashboardvideowidgetsYouTubeWed, 22 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Facebook Exporter updated for iPhoto '08]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/facebook-exporter-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/facebook-exporter-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/facebook-exporter-updated-for-iphoto-08/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Attention all ye Facebook and iPhoto users: you may feel free to begin using iPhoto '08, now that Facebook has updated their Facebook Exporter plug-in. We first found this plug-in back in March, and while I'm definitely not the most active Facebook user or photo uploader, I don't think anything else is new. However, I just noticed a really cool feature that allows you to click anywhere on an image in the well on the right to create an outlining box around it, allowing you to name or tag whatever you're highlighting.

Facebook Exporter for iPhoto is provided for free by Facebook.

TUAWFacebook Exporter updated for iPhoto '08 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 22 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>exportexporterFacebookiPhotoiPhoto 08Iphoto08plug insplug-insPlugInsWed, 22 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Get your Microsoft HD Photo plug-in for Photoshop]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/get-your-microsoft-hd-photo-plug-in-for-photoshop/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/get-your-microsoft-hd-photo-plug-in-for-photoshop/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/22/get-your-microsoft-hd-photo-plug-in-for-photoshop/#commentsFiled under: ,

With the speed of evolution in computing, standards and the web, have you ever wondered why we've been stuck with JPG as an image format for so long? Microsoft sure did, and after about 5 years of mulling the question, the company has produced what sounds like a very promising replacement: HD Photo. Offering greater support for new digital imaging trends like HDR (High Dynamic Range), HD Photo boasts the same or better image quality than JPG in half the file size. While Microsoft has patents on some of the technology in HD Photo, they are surprisingly allowing anyone to license it for free for use in apps and devices like photo editing software and digital cameras. To learn more than you might ever want to know about HD Photo, check out its Wikipedia entry or episode #51 of TWiM (This Week in Media), one of my favorite podcasts in which the crew sits down with Bill Crow, Microsoft's Program Manager for HD Photo. Be careful with that one though - TWiM's cast is composed of some incredibly knowledgeable, hard-core media geeks, and they eventually get their geek on with Crow as they delve into the discussion.

Long story short: excitement is steadily building for HD Photo, as it is shaping up to be quite the revolutionary image format that could (hopefully) knock JPG off its pedestal some day. Fortunately, the HD Photo team have taken another step in spreading the format by releasing a Photoshop CS2/CS3 plug-in for PowerPC and Intel Macs running Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. The plug-in can be downloaded from Microsoft, and it for some odd reason expires on December 31, 2007. If you know your stuff when it comes to image formats and you give this plug-in a spin, let us know what you think in the comments.

[via Macworld]

TUAWGet your Microsoft HD Photo plug-in for Photoshop originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 22 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mint is an excellent web stats tracking app from Shaun Inman with a powerful, extensible plug-in architecture. The iPhone is an excellent... well you know the rest of that one. While these two things might not have much to do with each other at first glance, a plug-in and a hack have brought us one step closer to having a more minty iPhone experience.

First up is a new iPhone Pepper (aka - plug-in) for Mint that formats your stat panes into a single column for better viewing on MobileSafari. Simply install it via the typical Mint procedure, activate it and *boom* - this new pepper stays out of your way when using a real desktop browser, but auto-detects MobileSafari and displays the proper single-column formatting when you're on the go. The drop-down pane atop Mint's admin panel even works, offering quick access to panes way down below with only two taps.



Next up on the list of iPhone Mint-ification steps you can take is adding a full-blown Home screen button for Mint, courtesy of iPhone Apper and what looks like the easiest way to get ssh/sftp installed on the iPhone yet.

Continue reading Mint and iPhone: Two great tastes that taste great together

TUAWMint and iPhone: Two great tastes that taste great together originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whether you have a good reason for wanting to maintain more than one iPhoto library or your collection simply became un-browsable long ago, Brian Webster's iPhoto Library Manager is your answer. This slick little utility was mentioned briefly in an Ask TUAW back in May, but to summarize: iPhoto Library Manager makes it painfully simple to create multiple iPhoto libraries, keep them anywhere you want, automate them with AppleScript and Automator, switch between them with a single click and even set one library as the default. But it doesn't stop there - the features I've already listed are available in a free version, but registered users get to enjoy the ability to create library shortcuts for opening straight from the Finder, copying photos (and preserving all their metadata) between libraries, merging libraries and copying photos from multiple libraries into a folder for synching with an iPod. To top all this off, the new v3.3 brings iPhoto '08 compatibility and some other goodies.

What does it cost for this multiple iPhoto library goodness? To gain the more powerful features and give Webster his due, iPhoto Library Manager costs a mere $19.95 from Fat Cat Software.

TUAWiPhoto Library Manager 3.3 brings iPhoto '08 compatibility, more originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>iPhotoiPhoto Library ManagerIphotoLibraryManagerlibrarieslibraryTue, 21 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[TUAW Tip: Google Calendar works well on your iPhone]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/tuaw-tip-google-calendar-works-well-on-your-iphone/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/tuaw-tip-google-calendar-works-well-on-your-iphone/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/tuaw-tip-google-calendar-works-well-on-your-iphone/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



Yesterday my co-blogger Dave Caolo was lamenting the fact that there's no easy way to get his iPhone and Google Calendar to sync (although purchasing Spanning Sync is certainly an option). While it is true that the iPhone's Calendar app only syncs with iCal on a Mac (or, via this trick, Entourage as well), I replied to Dave's woes with: who needs sync, anyway?

I am a happy iCal/iPhone/Google Calendar syncher, thanks to Spanning Sync, but I realize that one man's cup of tea is another man's grubby water. For those that would prefer to simply stick with Google Calendar for all their calendaring, the service actually scales incredibly well for an iPhone. This isn't an iPhone-specific UI or portal like so many other companies are launching. Rather, it seems to be their streamlined UI designed for most mobile phones. Either way, the list of upcoming events looks great, and all you need to do is visit the standard calendar.google.com on your iPhone to get redirected.

Continue reading TUAW Tip: Google Calendar works well on your iPhone

TUAWTUAW Tip: Google Calendar works well on your iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Aug 2007 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CalendareventsGoogle CalendarGoogleCalendariPhonemobileTue, 21 Aug 2007 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[iPlace: Image download helper for Safari]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/iplace-image-download-helper-for-safari/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/iplace-image-download-helper-for-safari/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/21/iplace-image-download-helper-for-safari/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Considering the graphical nature of the web, I'm surprised more features and plug-ins haven't appeared to solve the problem of downloading images from sites as well as iPlace does. Operating as a SIMBL plug-in for Safari (including the 3.0 beta), iPlace allows you to specify multiple locations on your Mac for downloading images, but that's not all. It then gives you a contextual menu item when right-clicking an image or a web page that will allow you to instantly download any image to one of your specified locations, or - and here's the kicker - bring up an image downloading window that shows you each image on the page, along with your download locations provided as drag and drop wells in a sidebar on the left. Opening this window on I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER, for example, brings up the long list of images you see above, all ripe for efficiently dragging and dropping wherever I want.

In a word: iPlace is awesome. There are of course enhancements I would like to see, such as the ability to scale these images up and down to make it easier to view more from the page at once, but for a spankin' new product straight out the gate, this is a really handy plug-in.

iPlace is provided as donationware from Tekuris.

TUAWiPlace: Image download helper for Safari originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Aug 2007 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>downloadingimagesiPlacemanagerphotospicturesplug insplug-insPlugInsSafariTue, 21 Aug 2007 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[CNET Labs benchmarks Parallels and Fusion virtualization products]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/cnet-labs-benchmarks-parallels-and-fusion-virtualization-product/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/cnet-labs-benchmarks-parallels-and-fusion-virtualization-product/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/cnet-labs-benchmarks-parallels-and-fusion-virtualization-product/#commentsFiled under: ,

Whenever two options are presented, it is often a smart move to weight the pros and cons of each and make a decision based on your needs. If you need to push Windows in a virtualization environment, Daniel A. Begun at CNET Labs has benchmarked Windows Vista running in both Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion. The short of the long? If you really need to push Windows, do it in Boot Camp if at all possible. If Boot Camp is out of the question, VMware Fusion was the winner in heavy duty, multimedia tasks by a landslide, due largely in part to its support of multiple core processors (Parallels, as of this writing, only supports one core per CPU). On the flip side, however, Parallels Desktop is the only virtualization product that supports 3D gaming right now, but as a Parallels owner, I'll still vouch for running your games in Windows via Boot Camp.

At the end of the CNET Labs day, both apps still have their pros and cons. Begun hails Parallels Desktop for being the more usable and intuitive of the two (and during my initial tests of both before deciding to buy, I agreed), though I had a much easier time getting non-Windows OSes installed in VMware Fusion (to this day, Parallels Desktop still won't install Ubuntu, and I have received no response as to why). Still, the moral of this particular story is that if performance is at the very top of your virtualization shopping list, VMware Fusion is, at least for now, the reigning champion. Check Begun's full article for more details on the tests and how they were performed.

TUAWCNET Labs benchmarks Parallels and Fusion virtualization products originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 20 Aug 2007 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Add ESPN to your list of major media outlets who have designed a portal specifically for the iPhone. While they might have had an easier time customizing their PodCenter with podcasts and downloadable media for the iPhone (after all, they were already halfway there with a PodCenter), they win absolutely zero points for the URL you use to get there:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/iphone/

If you know of a better way, please sound off.

As far as the iPhone-ified UI, ESPN did a pretty good job. Shows are listed descending by date, and tapping on a specific episode presents a logo, brief description and the ability to stream the episode. ESPN has also launched a few new shows for this rev to the PodCenter, though I can't get a single one to play yet. For now, I'll chalk that up to growing pains, since this iPhone UI more or less just launched today.

[via iPhone Alley]

TUAWESPN brings PodCenter to the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 20 Aug 2007 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ESPNiPhonepodcastsPodCenterstreamingMon, 20 Aug 2007 18:40:00 EST<![CDATA[MoodSwing multi-status utility: Now in convenient menubar dosage]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/moodswing-multi-status-utility-now-in-convenient-menubar-dosage/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/moodswing-multi-status-utility-now-in-convenient-menubar-dosage/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/20/moodswing-multi-status-utility-now-in-convenient-menubar-dosage/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



Attention all ye users of Adium, Skype, iChat, Twitter, Facebook and Jaiku - Brett Terpstra has struck again with MoodSwing, his excellent utility for updating your status across all these apps and services. Why do I call it a utility instead of just a Quicksilver action, you ask? Because Brett is now providing both the original action and a new full-blown menubar app - at the request of TUAW readers - called MoodBlast. Both now live on the same download page at Brett's Circle Six Design blog, and they both allow you to update your status across all the aforementioned services at once. While MoodSwing is an action you set-and-forget to work with Quicksilver (though you can reconfigure later), an advantage of the MoodBlast menubar app is that you're presented with the UI you see above every time you activate it, with any services you used previously already selected for updating. The other advantage of the MoodBlast app, of course, is that you don't need Quicksilver in order to minimize the effort spent for online socialization.

As with his other excellent projects, Brett Terpstra provides MoodSwing and MoodBlast as donationware.

TUAWMoodSwing multi-status utility: Now in convenient menubar dosage originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 20 Aug 2007 16:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For those who want to spice up their video conferences and would like to use their iSight (or other webcam) with more than one application simultaneously, CamCamX might just be the app for you. Offering an old-school UI for mixing movies and images into your video conferences, CamCamX allows you to play digital broadcaster with most of the webcam-enabled apps for Mac OS X. In addition to mix-master-iSight with your video and media, CamCamX also allows you to use more than one webcam app at once, allowing you to, for example, hop into a video chat while also providing a live webstream or recording yourself with QuickTime (though, for some strange reason, you apparently need to purchase iChatUSBCam if you want iChat to fit into your CamCamX workflow). While the UI isn't the most beautiful thing this side of the HIG, it's a powerful concept that mimics Apple's upcoming iChat Theater in Leopard, but seems to open a few more doors since it works with apps like Yahoo! Messenger, Skype and even Flash.

A watermarked demo of CamCamX is avaialble from VJ Software, while a license costs $29.00, with 3-year and lifetime upgrade memberships available for $59 and $99, respectively.

TUAWCamCamX: Spice up your video chats and get more out of them originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 20 Aug 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>FlashiChatiChat TheaterIchatTheaterSkypevideovideo conferencingVideoConferencingYahoo MessengerYahooMessengerMon, 20 Aug 2007 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Keyword Manager updated for iPhoto '08]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/keyword-manager-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/keyword-manager-updated-for-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/keyword-manager-updated-for-iphoto-08/#commentsFiled under: , ,



While I wasn't exactly dying without Keyword Manager in iPhoto '08 just yet, thanks to its new built-in keyword abilities, I am nonetheless relieved to see that my favorite iPhoto keyword plug-in for power users has just been updated for the latest version. While the major new feature in Keyword Manager v1.3 is of course iPhoto '08 compatibility, I have noticed what I believe is a new, dedicated Keyword Manager button added to the controls in the lower left of the iPhoto window (or has that been there all along? I've always just used the keyboard shortcut to invoke it so I never looked down there). Also on the new features list is slightly better performance when selecting many photos, an updated UI for the Keyword Manager windows to match iPhoto '08's new Adjust palette UI, and updates to the Danish translation of the plug-in. It is also worth noting that Keyword Manager still works with iPhoto '06 as well.

A demo is available from Bullstorm Software, while a license costs $19 USD (or €19).

TUAWKeyword Manager updated for iPhoto '08 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 19 Aug 2007 21:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Handbrake, the reigning king of effortless DVD conversion software, has received a major update to v0.9.0. New in this version is a "re-envisioned" interface for the Mac OS X version (as well as a completely rebuilt UI for Windows), and picture quality has been improved quite a bit through new effects, filters and deinterlacing techniques. Overall speed has also been boosted, and you no longer have to customize your encoding settings for the iPhone, thanks to new presets that simplify the process.

Altogether, nearly 300 changes were made for this new version, so head on over and give it a spin.

Thanks Jim

TUAWHandbrake 0.9 released with speed, quality enhancements and more originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 19 Aug 2007 18:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>conversionconvertingDVDencodingHandbrakerippingSun, 19 Aug 2007 18:14:00 EST<![CDATA[TUAW Tip: Turn off your remote control infrared receiver]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/tuaw-tip-turn-off-your-remote-control-infrared-receiver/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/tuaw-tip-turn-off-your-remote-control-infrared-receiver/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/19/tuaw-tip-turn-off-your-remote-control-infrared-receiver/#commentsFiled under: , ,



The Apple Remote is a slick little gadget, but Apple made a particular design choice that annoys the bejebus out of me: out of the box, every Mac is set up to work with any Apple Remote. If you have a couple of sleeping MacBooks in your living room like we do when you pick up a remote to watch something on the Apple TV, you could very well wake all three devices with the press of a button or two. To make matters worse, Apple isn't very forthcoming about solving this problem or giving you an easy way to bind an Apple Remote with one device or another. Fortunately, there are a few options that aren't hard to pull off.

Your first choice is to completely disable the infrared receiver on your Mac. If you rarely or never use your Apple Remote, you can disable the infrared port on your Mac so it simply no longer accepts signals, intentional or otherwise. This is done with the setting you see above, accessible at the bottom of the Security Preferences Pane.

Your next option is to pair your remote(s) with their respective devices, a step that I wish Apple could somehow implement from the get-go so you don't have to. Here is an Apple support doc detailing the one simple step to pair an Apple Remote with a Mac, and another on pairing and unpairing a remote with an Apple TV. In case you ever have to unpair a remote from your Mac, you can simply open the Security Preferences Pane and click the Unpair button at the bottom right (note that this button is only illuminated when an Apple Remote is actually paired with your Mac; otherwise it's faded out).

For your sake, I hope you don't have too many Apple Remotes to pair, but this should solve those sudden waking moments for your Macs.

TUAWTUAW Tip: Turn off your remote control infrared receiver originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 19 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Apple RemoteAppleRemoteinfraredMacpairunpairSun, 19 Aug 2007 13:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Widget Watch: password protected Secret NotePad]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/18/widget-watch-password-protected-secret-notepad/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/18/widget-watch-password-protected-secret-notepad/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/18/widget-watch-password-protected-secret-notepad/#commentsFiled under: , ,



The Dashboard is fun and all, but few widgets offer much in the way of storing any kind of data in a secure way. If you would like to work with a scratchpad in the comforts of Dashboard but also want the notes you jot down to be secured from wandering eyes, Secret NotePad might be a good option. With support for multiple pages, locking itself and even clearing the clipboard, this is perhaps one of the most secure widgets you'll find this side of the Mac OS X Keychain. Oh, speaking of the Keychain: all the notes you create in Secret NotePad, and even the original password you create to secure these notes, are stored in the Keychain for easy backup and synching with .Mac and similar services.

Upon opening Secure NotePad, you are presented with a small dialog asking you to create a new password just for locking down the notes you store in this widget. This dialog doesn't allow you to verify or even see the password you're typing though, so make sure you're getting it right. After that you get a simple resizable box into which you can paste plain text. Clicking the lock icon in the upper left of course locks the widget, scaling it down to nothing but the title bar and the password entry box. No password, no dice. Flipping the widget over presents options for locking the widget after a certain amount of Dashboard inactivity time, clearing the clipboard, default font/size and even locking the Keychain when you lock the widget. Truly, this is one widget your nosey coworkers won't get very far with.

Secret NotePad can be found in Apple's Widgets directory.

TUAWWidget Watch: password protected Secret NotePad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 18 Aug 2007 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>KeychainnotesSecret NotePadSecretNotepadsecuritywidgetsSat, 18 Aug 2007 12:01:00 EST<![CDATA[MoodSwing 4 multi-status Quicksilver script has come a long way, baby]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/moodswing-4-multi-status-quicksilver-script-has-come-a-lo/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/moodswing-4-multi-status-quicksilver-script-has-come-a-lo/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/moodswing-4-multi-status-quicksilver-script-has-come-a-lo/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

If it seems like it was only last week that Brett Terpstra introduced his side project MoodSwing, a clever script that allows users to change their status message across multiple apps with Quicksilver - well, it was. People loved it, so Brett quickly began updating, tweaking and adding a slew of new features and services that MoodSwing could manipulate. The script is now up to v4 with a dedicated page at Brett's Circle Six Design blog, listing out all the features and supported services:
  • Supports Adium, iChat and Skype
  • Supports Twitter, Jaiku and Facebook
  • Automatic Qurling of long URLs
  • Word Count
  • Send current weather (international)
  • Send current iTunes track
  • Encryption of passwords stored in preferences
  • Easy-to-edit defaults, can be overridden by command syntax
In a surprisingly short time, MoodSwing has become an incredibly powerful Quicksilver action that can simplify the process of letting your friends across many services know what you're up to. The action is pretty easy to set up and configure to your bidding, but be sure to check out the MoodSwing page for instructions to get the ball rolling. As with so many of Brett's other excellent offerings, MoodSwing is provided as donationware, so scroll down on Brett's Downloads page and show him some appreciation.

TUAWMoodSwing 4 multi-status Quicksilver script has come a long way, baby originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 17 Aug 2007 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AdiumBrett TerpstraBrettTerpstraFacebookiChatiTunesJaikuMoodSwingQurlSkypesocialFri, 17 Aug 2007 17:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Amazon has an iPhone portal]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/amazon-has-an-iphone-portal/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/amazon-has-an-iphone-portal/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/amazon-has-an-iphone-portal/#commentsFiled under: , ,

This is yet another moment where I wish I was cool enough to get Erica's iPhone screenshot utility working, because this is pretty impressive: visiting Amazon.com in MobileSafari on an iPhone will display a small alert at the top of the page, prompting you to visit their new beta iPhone portal. The customized site is pretty slick and offers a healthy array of navigation options. The top of the page has a search box, with side-scrolling image thumbnails of the top selling music albums just below. Next in line is a pull down menu of top selling products across what looks like the entirety of Amazon's category selections, including Baby, DVD, Electronics, Health, etc. Next is a big fat 'iPhone beta site feedback' button - a great idea if I do say so myself - and finally, a list of links for the basics such as signing into your account, viewing your shopping cart and the Help section.

For a beta site it's a nice first offering, but I am a bit more surprised by the fact that Amazon - the King Kong of online retail - has introduced a shopping and searching portal specifically for the iPhone. Could they have started a trend, inspiring other retailers to make it easier than ever for you to spend money with one of the most expensive gadgets you've ever bought? Only time will tell.

[Update: Thanks to commenters reminding me about iPhoney, I was able to snap an actual screenshot of the site on an iPhone.]

Thanks Jamie

TUAWAmazon has an iPhone portal originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 17 Aug 2007 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AmazoniPhonemobileportalsshoppingFri, 17 Aug 2007 14:58:00 EST<![CDATA[David Pogue on iMovie '08: "What the [bleep]!"]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/david-pogue-on-imovie-08-what-the-bleep/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/david-pogue-on-imovie-08-what-the-bleep/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/17/david-pogue-on-imovie-08-what-the-bleep/#commentsFiled under: , ,

iLife '08 buyers have spoken, and Apple has listened: the new iMovie '08 is a major disappointment in some key areas. So much so that Apple decided to provide iMovie '06 as a free download, but it's almost as if they knew this was going to happen, because iMovie '06 is the only iLife app that gets preserved in a backup folder when installing iLife '08.

Adding his influential voice to the crowd, David Pogue has penned a new article blatantly titled Apple Takes a Step Back with iMovie '08, and you get three guesses as to how he feels about the new changes. Throughout the article, Pogue repeatedly slams Apple for doing something no other company has in recent memory: update a mature, popular application with a new version that retains almost no resemblance to its predecessors. Pogue even goes so far as to recommend iMovie '08 to have been given a different name, such as FlyMovie, ByeMovie or WhyMovie.

Though he does briefly praise the app for a few of its new features - such as skimming (despite its tall resource requirements), unparalleled color correction tools, YouTube sharing and the ability to truly delete portions of a clip you won't be using to reclaim hard drive space - Pogue still tosses his hat into the ring with disgruntled iMovie fans (especially since he's been using it to create all his videos for the New York Times) in asking Apple: "What the [bleep]!"

TUAWDavid Pogue on iMovie '08: "What the [bleep]!" originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 17 Aug 2007 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>David PogueDavidPogueiMovieiMovie 06iMovie 08Imovie06Imovie08Fri, 17 Aug 2007 12:10:00 EST<![CDATA[First Look: Pixelmator private beta arrives]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/first-look-pixelmator-private-beta-arrives/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/first-look-pixelmator-private-beta-arrives/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/first-look-pixelmator-private-beta-arrives/#commentsFiled under: ,



The day is finally here. After an introductory video back in May and a more in-depth teaser earlier this month, the Pixelmator crew have begun sending out the private beta downloads and I just took it for a spin, creating the image in this post. It is indeed a sexy app - the UI is a gorgeous translucent black, and it really does offer a lot of functionality and innovation aimed squarely at Adobe Photoshop or, perhaps more appropriately, Photoshop Elements. While Pixelmator is still very much a beta and too buggy for shop or casual work, I am able to play with most of the promised features, including snapping pics from an iSight, the iPhoto browser and all the powerful color and manipulation tools.

Thankfully, Saulius and the Pixelmator crew gave me permission to write up some initial thoughts with screenshots, so check out a preliminary Pixelmator gallery I've put together of some handy features and clever details, and read on for more of my first impressions of this highly anticipated image editor.

Gallery: Pixelmator First Look

Pixelmator Welcome screenVarious filtersiPhoto browserNew layer from iSightLayers palette

Continue reading First Look: Pixelmator private beta arrives

TUAWFirst Look: Pixelmator private beta arrives originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>colorgradientimage editorsImageEditorsimagesmaskingmasksphotosPhotoshoppicturesPixelmatorselectionThu, 16 Aug 2007 18:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Netvibes unveils optimized iPhone portal]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/netvibes-unveils-optimized-iphone-portal/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/netvibes-unveils-optimized-iphone-portal/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/netvibes-unveils-optimized-iphone-portal/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Netvibes is one of the largest players in the web2 portal game, allowing users to add all sorts of content and communication widgets to customizable pages, acting as a dashboard for your online realm. You can add widgets to watch RSS feeds, email from lots of services like Gmail and .Mac, weather, search engines, podcasts that can play in the page, calendars and a massive world of user-generated stuff that can extend Netvibes' portal in just about any direction you would want. For a while now, Netvibes has offered a mobile version of their portal at m.netvibes.com for regular phones, but now they have an iPhone-specific portal at m.nv1.netvibes.com (I know, I think they could've made it a prettier URL too). It offers complete access to all your tabs with that increasingly popular iPhone-like UI, and each tab lists the widgets it contains in a single column view, optimizing space and legibility. Even complex widgets like that Facebook widget the company recently introduced work fine, and the Twitter widget counts the characters I type in real time.

Since my NetNewsWire feed list now tops 330, I've been looking for an easier way to stay on top of a few of my favorite feeds in a simple UI when on the go with my iPhone. I still think the .Mac Reader is a good solution, but having all those feeds along with handy todo and social widgets in a slick UI is even cooler. This Netvibes iPhone page just landed near the top of my must-use mobile bookmarks.

TUAWNetvibes unveils optimized iPhone portal originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>iPhonemobileNetvibesRSSwidgetsThu, 16 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Multisite and iWebSites for iWeb now supports '08 version]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/multisite-and-iwebsites-for-iweb-now-supports-08-version/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/multisite-and-iwebsites-for-iweb-now-supports-08-version/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/multisite-and-iwebsites-for-iweb-now-supports-08-version/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



For most users, iWeb keeps things simple by creating and managing a single, all-encompassing site file stored in your home directory. The downside for anyone who would like to create more than one site with iWeb, however, is that the app doesn't offer any easy way to do so; users have to drill into ~/Library/Application Support/iWeb/ and either manually move or delete the single site file in that folder, or pick up an app like Multisite for iWeb or iWebSites. Both of these apps allow you to easily create independent iWeb site files that can be published to different local folders and subsequently uploaded with external FTP apps to anywhere you chose.

Fortunately, both apps have just been updated to work with the new iWeb '08, though note that iWebSites is at a 2.2 alpha stage, as the developer isn't positive all the kinks have been worked out yet. While I haven't used either of these apps, a quick perusal of their features sets reveals that iWebSites has a unique trick up its sleeve: it can merge two different iWeb site files into one, though it apparently can take a while. Anyone have experience with these apps?

Multisite for iWeb is available from Clarkwood Software for $19.95 with a demo available, while iWebSites is offered as donationware from Cocoadrillo Software.

TUAWMultisite and iWebSites for iWeb now supports '08 version originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>FTPiWebiWebSitesMultisite for iWebMultisiteForIwebsitesThu, 16 Aug 2007 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[iPhone app requests - this time with screenshots]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/iphone-app-requests-this-time-with-screenshots/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/iphone-app-requests-this-time-with-screenshots/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/iphone-app-requests-this-time-with-screenshots/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Everyone and their mother has requests for iPhone apps - heck, I had eight of them. But not everyone goes the extra mile like Phillip Ryu has to create detailed screenshots of how their apps should look (Update: Phill contacted me to clear up that Josh Pyles created the screenshots in collaboration). In addition to the screenshots, most of Phill's requests in 5 iPhone Apps I'd Like To See From Apple are also unique from similar posts I've seen across the blogosphere - he's asking for things like an Archive.org/Ebook reader, the iTunes Store for iPhone (of course, but a nice mockup nonetheless), a sketching app (Skitch for iPhone anyone?), a VoIP app and iMovie for iPhone that could offer basic editing and sharing with .Mac, YouTube and Mail. It's an interesting list of requests with pretty pictures that do a great job of mocking up the apps with the iPhone's new UI paradigms in full force. No tiny menus or tool palettes here; just large buttons, lists with large text and toolbars lining the bottom of each app. Here's hoping that the signs pointing towards true iPhone app development arriving with Leopard in October are more than empty speculation.

TUAWiPhone app requests - this time with screenshots originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>appsiPhonemockupsrequestsscreenshotsThu, 16 Aug 2007 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Meebo releases iPhone web app]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/meebo-releases-iphone-web-app/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/meebo-releases-iphone-web-app/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/16/meebo-releases-iphone-web-app/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Meebo, the reigning champion of web-based chat, has just released their entry into the iPhone app arena. I had a chance to speak with meebo's CEO, Seth Sternberg, earlier today about the release, and they truly do have a surprisingly innovating iPhone app on there hands. Simply point MobileSafari at meebo.com and the site will send you to the iPhone portal (a technique about which our own Scott McNulty had a few thoughts to share) where you can sign into any of Meebo's supported services - including AIM, Yahoo!, MSN and Google Talk - or you can sign in with an account you have already registered with meebo. From there, things get very interesting (note that the screenshot below was snapped in Camino since I'm just not cool enough to get Erica's iPhone screenshot utility up and running).



First, if you registered an account with meebo and added your credentials for one or more chat networks, you'll appreciate the fact that everything transfers over to the iPhone app. Custom status messages, your buddy icon, even the history from chat sessions on your desktop computer - they all appear in the iPhone app. Your buddies are listed alphabetically, but any current chats float to the top of the buddy list for easy access, and this is a bit of UI where meebo has some unique innovation going on: the entire iPhone meebo experience centers around a home screen that is your buddy list; it takes up the entire display, and it even rotates and scales gracefully for landscape mode. No tabs here, which can be a mixed bag for the experience.

Tapping on a buddy slides over to a new chat window with nothing but an icon to get back to your buddy list, a box to type in and the send button. Chat history (if there is any) populates pretty quickly, even over EDGE, which is an area that Seth said the company focused quite a bit: ensuring the entire app was light on data, simple to use and ultimately fast. Tapping the buddy list icon of course gets you back to the list, and any chats you started automatically float to the top. This is where the lack of tabs can be both a blessing and a curse: while the buddy list is nice and large, making it far easier to to read and navigate than any previous iPhone chat apps, it still takes at least two taps - not including any potential scrolling - to get out of a chat, back to the list and into another chat; more taps if you need to scroll. It's a unique approach to solving this kind of a problem, but ultimately, I think meebo made the right choice.

All things considered, meebo's iPhone chat app is hands down my new favorite. I haven't been chatting much on my iPhone yet, but meebo's streamlined experience, fast load times and easy navigation make this a slam dunk that has finally sparked my interest in trying out mobile chat. I was even more surprised about how well they've done on this 1.0 app when Seth shared that this is meebo's first mobile app of any kind. While the company has done web-based chat for years now, they've never ventured onto any mobile device platforms. That said, I think they just about knocked this one out of the park. If you own an iPhone and need to chat, meebo.com is easily one of the best options available.

TUAWMeebo releases iPhone web app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 02:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AIMchatGoogle TalkGoogleTalkgTalkiChatmeeboMSNYahooThu, 16 Aug 2007 02:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Apple releases new iPhone ad: "All These Years" [Updated: two new ads]]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/apple-releases-new-iphone-ad-all-these-years/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/apple-releases-new-iphone-ad-all-these-years/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/apple-releases-new-iphone-ad-all-these-years/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Apple has released another iPhone ad unofficially titled either "All These Years" or "How?" I say 'unofficially' titled because it hasn't appeared at Apple's iPhone ads page as of this writing yet, but a copy is already on YouTube. This time around, Apple's giving a shout out to the business users, asking how they could have gone all these years without "email like this" or "stock updates like this" in their pocket. Personally, I'm glad they wrote the ad this way, because I would probably have spit out my beer if the voiceover would have said "without email like this... in your pants."

But seriously: I worry about how well this particular ad is going to do. The iPhone is receiving a lot of criticism from the business sector, much of it understandable, for not working with Exchange Servers. While I don't wear a suit to work every day (or pretty much any day), word on the street is that Exchange support is the major hurdle keeping the iPhone from storming corporate purchase receipts. If the iPhone is primarily targeted at consumers, that's great. But if Apple wants to truly go after business users, they need to play by that industry's rules and offer the software support those folks need.

That said, it is a bold ad that certainly highlights the iPhone's gorgeous UI in a business setting. I'll update this post with a link once Apple publishes the official ad.

[Update: There are actually two new ads, and Apple has updated their site with both - All These Years is the one I caught here, but another new one is All the Parts. Just like the first ad, I question their approach because the ad isn't entirely accurate. One major 'part' of the internet the iPhone lacks is Flash. While I personally would be happy as a camper if Flash never arrives on the iPhone, I understand that it's something many users want. Either way, the lack of Flash is certainly a glaring hole in their particular wording with this second ad.]

[via iPhone Alley]

TUAWApple releases new iPhone ad: "All These Years" [Updated: two new ads] originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Aug 2007 20:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>adsApplebusinessiPhoneYouTubeWed, 15 Aug 2007 20:12:00 EST<![CDATA[Should Apple have used Cover Flow in iPhoto '08?]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/should-apple-have-used-cover-flow-in-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/should-apple-have-used-cover-flow-in-iphoto-08/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/should-apple-have-used-cover-flow-in-iphoto-08/#commentsFiled under: , ,



TUAW reader o!ivier has posted a mockup to his Flickr account of how he believes the iPhoto '08 Events UI should have been designed. Seeing it as a more natural evolution of what Apple is doing with Mac OS X and their apps (iTunes, Finder in Leopard, etc.), o!ivier believes Apple should have built in Cover Flow for browsing events instead of the new 'skimming' UI, where users run their mouse over resizable thumbnails to see all the photos contained in the event scroll by. Instead, this Cover Flow mockup proposes the idea of scrolling left and right through Events just like you scroll through albums in iTunes. Clicking an event produces thumbnails of all the images laid out in the area below, which can then be resized independently from the Cover Flow area.

I rarely prefer design mockups like this over what Apple produces, but I have to admit: I think Apple dropped the ball here. O!ivier's mockup looks far more useful, as you can browse through Events and view resizable thumbnails of all the photos they contain without leaving the Events UI. Don't get me wrong, skimming is cute, but Cover Flow + iPhoto looks like it would look just as slick but provide a far more useful working environment.

Who knows - Maybe Apple just wants to wait for users to get used to Cover Flow in Leopard's Finder. After all, they need to give us at least a few reasons to upgrade to iLife '09, right?

TUAWShould Apple have used Cover Flow in iPhoto '08? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Aug 2007 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Cover FlowCoverFlowiPhotoiPhoto 08Iphoto08mockupsUIuser interfaceUserInterfaceWed, 15 Aug 2007 15:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Details about the new GarageBand Jam Pack: Voices]]>http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/details-about-the-new-garageband-jam-pack-voices/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/details-about-the-new-garageband-jam-pack-voices/http://www.tuaw.com/2007/08/15/details-about-the-new-garageband-jam-pack-voices/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Yet another minor Apple product announcement that made it under our radar was a new Jam Pack for GarageBand: Voices. No, it isn't samples of Britney Spears, John Mayer and Adam Duritz - it's a collection of over 1,500 new instruments that fall under the categories of Drum and Percussion Instruments, Choral Ensembles, and Soloists. The focus, of course, is on filling up your tool belt with samples of professional instrumental soloists and choirs covering a wide variety of genres and styles.

If you want more details on the pack, iCompositions has rummaged through and detailed exactly what you get in this new Jam Pack. Strangely, you get quite a bit more than what Apple advertises - the pack actually contains 1701 loops - and it takes up nearly half the specified hard drive space as well; instead of taking up 3 GB, all those loops only took over a mere 1.7 GB.

As with most other Jam Packs, this new Voices pack is available in the Apple Store for the standard Jam Pack price of $99.00.

TUAWDetails about the new GarageBand Jam Pack: Voices originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Aug 2007 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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