manipulation posts

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Odds and ends, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

Zen Bound arrives on the iPhone

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Feb 27th, 2009

This one's impressive -- Zen Bound originally started out as Zen Bondage, a physics game/sandbox where the goal was to wrap a rope around a 3D shape or object. The game has just recently been ported to the iPhone, and in the process has actually been improved -- the graphics look sharper and the iPhone's multitouch controls really add to the tactile experience.

As a "game," it might be questionable -- it looks like there's a lot of fudging in terms of whether or not the rope has "covered" the object, and the scoring system itself is more or less tossed in as just a reason to get you to interact with the objects. But as an app, and a demonstration of the kinds of interactivity that can be exclusive to a device like the iPhone, it comes highly recommended.

Zen Bound is available on the App Store now for $4.99.

Tags: 3d, 3d-objects, chillingo, manipulation, multitouch, physics, rope, touchscreen, tying, zen-bound

Filed under: Features, How-tos

Mac Automation: image tweaking plug-in for Finder

by Cory Bohon (RSS feed) on Jan 7th, 2008

Here's a task that most computer users run into on a daily basis: cropping and dealing with small image tweaks. This could be a daunting task if it were not for the Mac and Automator. In this how-to, I will show you how to make a small Finder plug-in that will allow you to manipulate images quickly. Please note, some of the actions required for this how-to are dependent upon Pixelmator being installed.

For this automation, you will need the following Automator actions (in the same order):

Get Selected Finder Items
Transform Images (this action is only available when you install Pixelmator)

Continue reading “Mac Automation: image tweaking plug-in for Finder”

Tags: Automator, copy, Crop, Finder, image, manipulation, pixelmator, Transform Images, TransformImages

Filed under: Software, Productivity

Quicksilver developer update with new triggers, preference UI, more

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on May 8th, 2006

A pre-release, developer version of Quicksilver is available with a seriously revamped preference pane. Also included in this not-ready-for-prime-time release: a new Triggers system that allows for groups, a revamped plug-in pane with categories and "droplets," which you can read more on here. I'm sure there's more hidden under the hood of this release, but finals are trumping the amount of time I have to tinker with this stuff.

Since I just know some of you are going to ask, here's how to get your hands on this developer preview edition, but please do not bug us if things get wonky; it's an unstable dev edition. You have been warned: Go to the Application tab in Quicksilver's preferences and change which version it checks for updates; I believe it's actually called 'developer preview.' Then tell it to check for an update and you should be able to snag the new version. Enjoy.

[via Hawk Wings]

Tags: app, application, file, launcher, manipulation, manipulator, productivity, Quicksilver

Filed under: Software, Cool tools, Open Source

OS X-native GIMP coming

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jan 29th, 2006

StyleMac has discovered that GIMP is making its way to OS X native goodness, as Mikael Hallendal, involved with the project, posted on his blog. For those not familiar with GIMP: it's basically an open source version of Photoshop. No, it isn't an exact, feature-for-feature alternative, but it's one of the best available analogies I can think of.

As far as I've found, there's no ETA on when you'll have one less reason to run X11, but this will certainly be a welcome addition to OS X's graphic edition options.

Tags: editing, GIMP, graphic, image, manipulation, open source, OpenSource, photo, X11

Filed under: Software, Cool tools, Productivity, Internet Tools

Quicksilver pre-release version with mini-tutorial goodness

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jan 6th, 2006

This morning Quicksilver notified me that a new version was available. Since I love living on the bleeding edge of application launching and file manipulation, I went ahead and updated. While I can hold my own fairly well with Quicksilver's unbelievably powerful features, I was still delighted to see that, upon installing the new version and restarting Quicksilver, I was greeted with an upgraded intro dialog (pictured) that better explains how Quicksilver functions. This should be good news to us Quicksilver-faithful, as it should help new and would-be users get a grasp of Quicksilver's function and power more quickly.

The new version can be grabbed either from Quicksilver's preferences - or for you curious new users - their site.

Tags: application, file, launcher, manipulation, Quicksilver, search

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