Utilities Articles on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Timed command-line screenshots

by Erica Sadun (May 20th, 2013)

A TUAW staffer recently asked if there were a way to snapshot the exact same region of the screen over and over at timed intervals without buying third-party software. There is, but it depends on your comfort with the command line. If you're experienced in Unix scripting, read on. If not, you may ...

Preview, sips, and more: OS X image processing tools

by Erica Sadun (May 16th, 2013)

On a recent trip, I found I had failed to add copies of my auto-resizing drop tools to my travel MacBook Air. My droplets allow me to convert images to TUAW-standard sizes, namely 225 pixels for small images and 456 pixels for banner images. (See? Information you never thought you'd need to ...

Macworld shares five nice TextExpander snippets

by Dave Caolo (May 3rd, 2013)

TextExpander by Smile is an essential tool for folks who type as often as we do. It lets you create short key combinations that trigger -- and are replaced by -- larger strings of text. For example, I have TextExpander covert "actk" to "Apple CEO Tim Cook." It saves time. Macworld editor Dan Miller ...

Drafts 3.0 adds draft and action management, much more

by Dave Caolo (Apr 24th, 2013)

Drafts, the iOS note-taker from Agile Tortoise, has been updated to version 3.0, and it's a big one. Drafts 3.0 is available now for the iPad (US$3.99) and iPhone ($2.99), and it's a free update for existing users. Much like Apple's own Notes, Drafts lets you quickly jot things down (we recently ...

Timebar: Turn your menu bar into a countdown timer

by Erica Sadun (Apr 22nd, 2013)

Timebar ($2.99) has got to be one of the wackier utilities I've come across but it's one that may deserve to find a loyal audience. It works like this: You pull down the menu, set a stop time and an optional audio alert. Click "Start" and boom, the menu bar at the top of your screen ...

Quicksilver app launcher released after 10 years in beta

by Michael Grothaus (Mar 26th, 2013)

After spending 10 years in beta (and you thought Siri was in beta a long time) OS X launch utility Quicksilver has at last reached version 1.0. The utility allows users to launch applications or perform tasks through simple keyboard shortcuts. Announcing the release, the developers of ...

Alfred 2.0 adds workflows, improves preferences, more

by Dave Caolo (Mar 14th, 2013)

Alfred is one of my favorite Mac utilities (here's my review of version 1.0). After a long beta period, version 2.0 is now available. I've been using it throughout the beta period and I can say that it's a huge improvement over version 1.x. The new workflows are fantastic, the preferences are ...

Desktop Groups: Add floating file pallettes to your desktop

by Erica Sadun (Mar 11th, 2013)

Desktop Groups (US$7.99) offers a nice utility for anyone looking for a fresh take on desktop organization. It creates little floating window palettes for arranging your workspace. Each group can be shown open or closed. The windows live essentially at the same level as the desktop. That means ...

Launch Center Pro 1.1 adds native in-app actions, Action Composer, more

by Dave Caolo (Mar 8th, 2013)

AppCubby has released Launch Center Pro 1.1 (US$2.99, currently on sale), a major update to its very useful utility for the iPhone (here's our full review of Launch Center Pro 1.0). This update brings many big additions, including native in-app actions, a re-designed Action Composer and ...

Access your Nest Thermostat from your Mac menu bar

by Mel Martin (Mar 7th, 2013)

The Nest Thermostat has been a hit since it was announced in late 2011. Apple sells them along with other retailers, and they were created by Tony Fadell, one of the fathers of the iPod when he was at Apple. The Nest can be accessed from a browser, or iOS apps that let you control all aspects ...

1Password 4 for iOS offers new interface, favorites, more

by Dave Caolo (Dec 12th, 2012)

AgileBits has updated 1Password for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch to version 4 with many super new changes. It's got a beautiful new look and very handy features such as favorites, a built-in tabbed browser, a brand-new setup process and even a "demo mode" for showing off to friends without ...

Checkmark 1.1 adds recurring reminders, snooze reminders, more

by Dave Caolo (Oct 17th, 2012)

Checkmark is a reminder app from Snowman that we've reviewed before. In many ways, it's faster than using Apple's Reminders app, especially once you've created favorite locations and reminders. Version 1.1, released today, adds recurring reminders, snooze reminders and more, making a handy utility ...

Keyboard Maestro and the automation mindset

by TJ Luoma (Oct 1st, 2012)

Keyboard Maestro always sounded like a useful app, but I wasn't sure how I would ever use it. Now that I have it, I keep finding new ways to use it. I think Keyboard Maestro is perhaps one of the more difficult apps to explain, because how I use it might vary greatly from how you use it, but ...

Notification Hacking with Scheduled Notifications utility

by Erica Sadun (Sep 24th, 2012)

A while back, Matt Gemmell wrote a great little US$3.00 utility called Sticky Notifications that merged Mountain Lion's notification center with sticky notes. It allows you to pin reminders to your desktop. Now, Jeremy Tregunna has released a time-triggered twist on the idea. His Scheduled ...

SlimBatteryMonitor a better menu bar battery monitor

by TJ Luoma (Aug 13th, 2012)

One of the annoyances of Mountain Lion has been the loss of the option to have the remaining battery time shown in the menu bar. Fortunately I can offer you not only a solution, but a better option, all for the low, low price of $0. I have used SlimBatteryMonitor instead of Apple's menu bar ...