socialite
Latest
Realmac talks about the future of the Mac App Store and reduces pricing
In anticipation of tomorrow's opening of the Mac App Store, Realmac Software announced pricing for its line of Macintosh software that will appear in the store. In a blog post yesterday, Realmac wrote that it believes the Mac App Store will usher in more focused apps that will do one thing and one thing well. The days of "Swiss Army Knife" programs may be winding down. Realmac also believes upgrade pricing is a thing of the past with software vendors taking a cue from Apple; the company sells its iLife and iWork suites for a set price and provides minor upgrades until a new full version is released, when the consumer is then charged the full price for the new version. Lastly, Realmac believes that prices of apps in the Mac App Store will get cheaper since the iOS App Store created an auction market that drove down prices. Where prices will end up is anyone's guess. In light of this, Realmac made some pretty big changes. RapidWeaver, the website creation tool, is dropping in price both on the Mac App Store and on the Realmac site, from US$79 down to $39.99 for a limited time. It seems like Realmac is taking a flyer on this, since they are interested in seeing how prices shake out, and intend to adjust the price accordingly as time goes by.
The best Mac applications I used in 2010
As the end of 2010 approaches, I started looking back over the Mac applications that I used this year to see which ones stood out. They weren't necessarily released this year (although many were), but they were apps that helped me get stuff done in 2010. I didn't try to come up with some specific number or any other predefined criteria, I just took a good hard look at my Applications folder, menu bar and System Preferences. They are presented in no particular order. Dropbox reached 1.0 in 2010, and the milestone release included some significant Mac-specific features such as Extended Attribute Sync. This was also the first year that I exceeded the free space Dropbox provides, and paid for a 50 GB account. Thanks to the referral program, educational user referral bonus, and extra free space programs that Dropbox offers, I have 83.4 GB of space in my "50 GB" account. TUAW folks have written extensively about our love of Dropbox, but if you've somehow missed it: Dropbox is a folder on your computer which syncs (and therefore is "backed up" and version-managed) online, and which you can then sync to all of your other Mac, Windows, or Linux computers. (Want to know more? Check out the official Dropbox tour.) Thanks to the API which the company announced back in May, many iOS developers have added Dropbox syncing as well, making 2010 a pretty significant year for Dropbox and its users. (Cost: 2 GB/free; $9.99/month or $99.00/year for 50 GB; or $19.99/month or $199.00/year for 100 GB.) Read on for the rest of 2010's best Mac apps...
Tapbots releases Calcbot, Macheist makes it cheap
taptaptap, Tapbots, and Macheist have released a very well-designed calculator app for the iPhone and iPad called Calcbot -- it's available for 99 cents right now on the App Store. I would say that I don't know why we need another calculator app on the store, but this one's designed by Tapbots, so it's basically a clinic in UI design for the iPhone: clean and beautiful Retina Display-enabled buttons, gorgeous animations, a swipe-to-access extra set of functions, and the ability to go back and look at past calculations and even email them off. Basically, this is a calculator app you want to take a look at, even if you already have a calculator app. Plus, Macheist is sweetening the deal as usual -- that 99 cent price is for a limited time only, and if you do pick up the app, you can spread the word about Calcbot on Facebook and pick up a free copy of the Socialite social networking app for Mac, which will allow you to manage all of your various social personalities all just one place. That's a $29 value right there, so you're basically making $28 on the deal -- excellent offering.
Socialite (formerly Eventbox) out of beta, into your Mac
Socialite, the Mac social networking application formerly known as "Eventbox," has been released out of beta. The application is intended as a "one stop" for Twitter, Facebook, Google Reader, Flickr, Digg, and any site that supports RSS. I've used Eventbox for some time now, as well as Socialite betas, and I was impressed enough to buy a license before RealMacSoftware purchased the application and changed the name. So far, I am impressed. Twitter support includes multiple accounts, and it makes it very easy to send Direct Messages as well as @replies. Socialite also includes support for Twitter's new "Lists" and "Re-tweet" features. As far as I know, Socialite is currently the only native Mac Twitter client that supports lists. The application is the only way that I ever bother to keep up with Facebook, and it can do so without all the "cruft" (ads, for instance) in the browser interface for Facebook. Socialite is also a great way to keep up with your Flickr contacts. Socialite sells for US$20.00, and a demo is available. If you previously purchased an Eventbox license, you will be contacted with instructions on getting a Socialite license within 24 hours. Without a license, Socialite is limited to three services, which will probably be plenty for some people. Download the 1.0 and check it out for yourself! Update: RealMacSoftware's website seems to be taking a dirt nap. You can download the 1.0 version directly from Amazon's S3 servers here. (MD5SUM = f06c92ce51b7f9a3db96d5e9051adbdb)
Student recieves Paris Hilton's recycled number, along with a lot of late night calls
Getting calls at 3AM almost every night thanks to bad luck and a recycled number may be most people's idea of hell, but when the inherited number is Paris Hilton's there's a certain element of hilarity added to the mix-up. Due to standard 6 month cellphone number recycling, college student Shira Barlow started receiving calls meant for the former jailbird: primarily from callers that are clueless to being dumped by the socialite, along with the usual rabble of adoring fans and bitter haters. The reason anyone knows about this is because the LA Times happened to call the number, getting through to Shira who explained the story of how she got Paris' number. Poor Paris, she seems to have nothing but trouble with phones.
