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Here's a quick way to send a file to a screen-shared desktop
I've been doing a lot of Mac development recently. This means I often need to screen share to my headless OS X Mountain Lion system for testing. This morning, I was updating my folderol app to add features for folder tagging. I had to make sure that those Mavericks-only features wouldn't show up when the app was run on 10.8. Normally, I mount the headless system as a foreign disk drive and then copy/drag to the drive using finder. But for whatever reason today, I thoughtlessly dragged the app directly to the shared desktop. And I'll be gobsmacked, but it worked. The file just transferred, and a new File Transfer window opened to show me that the process was successful: I honestly have no idea how long this feature has been around. For all I know it goes back to the OS X stone ages. [It does go back quite a ways... drag and drop file transfers using Apple Remote Desktop were introduced in v3 back in late 2006. –Ed.] But I also know that if it was a pleasant surprise to me, some of you out there will appreciate knowing about it too.
Video extender powers iPad 2 wireless HDMI hack: The streaming adds 2 pounds
If you don't mind spending a bit of money and adding a couple of pounds of weight (and a two hour time limit) to your iPad, this video demonstrates that a simple HDMI wireless extender will allow you to transmit audio and video to a remote presentation system. After watching the clip, we hopped on Amazon to see what it might take to duplicate this hack; we found the HP Wireless TV Connect (the same product that appears to be in use) for US$150, and a similar Brite-View product for $160. Although you can choose a VGA extender over an HDMI one, you will not be able to transmit audio the way this solution does -- and you'll end up spending more. So how much should you expect to spend, beyond the iPad and receiving screen? The HP transmitter should work fine, although you can scale up to more professional HDMI transmitters for more dough if you need the quality. The Digital AV Adapter is $39, and the battery pack will add another $24 -- then you'll need a case to hold it all together and stronger arms to carry the iPad around. Still, for mobile presenters and trainers who absolutely have to roam around with iPad in hand, it's an intriguing and (relatively) economical hack.
Version control for writers
Rachel Greenham has written a very good tutorial called 'Subversion for Writers.' If you aren't a coder, you probably aren't familiar with the popular version control system, Subversion. It allows you to work collaboratively with folks on the same files (in most cases code) without fear of overwriting the work of others. Subversion tracks all the changes made to those files, and who did them, and allows you to rollback changes or branch off into different directions with having to worry about mucking up the entire project.Rachel, being a geeky writer, immediately saw the potential of using Subversion for writers. Her tutorial walks you through what Subversion is, how to install it on your Mac (if you're running Leopard it is already installed), some apps you can use to make interacting with Subversion easier, and how to track your changes. To be clear, this method is not for everyone. If you aren't comfortable with the Terminal you should steer clear of this, and if you don't revise the same document over and over again you'll have no need for it. That being said, it is a very clever idea.[via the Hog Bay Software Forums]
