Management
Latest
Keyword Manager for iPhoto
For as long as I can remember, Ken Ferry's Keyword Assistant has been the only iPhoto plugin (at least, AFAIK) for adding some real power and, dare I say, "tagging" to iPhoto's keyword system. Now there's a new kid on the block by the name of Keyword Manager, and it definitely brings some interesting features to the table. Keyword Manager uses two separate windows that both have their own keyboard shortcuts for toggling visibility. The first is a Quick Assigner window (pictured on right) which, as you might guess, allows you to quickly tag add keywords to your photos. It offers keyword completion (via a slick drop down menu) and support for multiple word keywords. The second panel (on left) is a very nice Keyword Manager, allowing you to organize keywords in a hierarchy to help keep your organization in check. Naturally, since both of these panels have their own keyboard shortcuts, you can call them even when in iPhoto's full-screen mode. All this is done with a very nice iPhoto Adjustment Panel-like UI.Now Keyword Manager is pretty impressive, but I think they're reaching just a little too high by charging $19 for a plugin, especially in light of Keyword Assistant being free. I think $14.99 would hit the sweet spot for a plugin like this, but then again, I admittedly haven't plunged into organizing my increasingly sprawling iPhoto library yet, so YMMV.[Update: Commenters Jools tipped us off to promotional codes at VersionTracker that drop the price to $12 in the US or €12 in the EU: VT-542U845 (US) and VT-542E845 (EU). No word on how long those codes are good for, but that's a much more reasonable price in my book.]Keyword Manager is available from Bullstorm, and a demo is available which allows you to assign keywords 75 times before requiring a license.Thanks Bernt
German prosecutors probing BenQ Mobile's bankruptcy
Another day, another company slamming the doors shut, and another governmental group prying them back open to sniff things out. Shortly after BenQ pulled the plug on its German mobile division (and somehow got its P51 to China), chief senior public prosecutor Christian Schmidt-Sommerfeld has initiated an investigation to find out just what went down behind the scenes of the now-closed company. It's possible that "a number of bankruptcy-related offenses were committed," such as delaying their filing for bankruptcy and overstating how many units were sold in the most recent quarter by a couple million. Rumors had already surfaced regarding management's knowledge of the cashflow quandaries and their adamant indifference towards finding a solution, eliciting statements of "being lied to" to mar the already unfortunate closing. Nevertheless, we're sure someone will get to the bottom of all this, but unfortunately there's nothing they can do to bring all those unreleased (and sexy) mobiles to market.[Via The Register]
Dragster - drag and drop file management and transfer with a twist
Ambrosia Software, those crazy kids with the Snapz Pro X and WireTap Pro, have unveiled the latest trick up their sleeve in the form of Dragster, an interesting approach to drag and drop file management and transfer. This utility, as you can see, lives in the Dock and is more or less like a drag and drop command center, allowing you to specify a number of locations you frequently need to move or send files to, such as remove servers, specific folders and more. These locations pop up when you drag items over Dragster's dock icon, allowing you to take care of your business right then and there, instead of rooting around in the Finder or tediously connecting and reconnecting servers. One feature I find a bit more interesting than its Dock icon abilities is the Contextual Menu that offers the same functionality. To me, this seems a bit easier to use and more efficient than dragging icons all around the display.Either way, try it out for yourself. A demo is available, while a license costs $19. Dragster, as most other new applications these days, is a Universal Binary.
Midnight Inbox v0.9.5
Since we first heard about it a month ago, Midnight Inbox has been improving by leaps and bounds. One only needs to check Midnight Beep Softwork's development blog to get updated on all the changes and improvements (far too many to thoroughly list here), but put simply: a lot of performance and stability improvements have been made and the UI has received a significant update. Midnight Beep has been keeping a very open ear to user feedback, and they have a lot of cool features coming down the pipeline, such as: iCal syncing, printing of hipster PDA cards, archiving, live filters and search, support for Quicksilver, Automator and AppleScript and of course - language localizations.For beating some heavier hitters to market with what is quite possibly the first true GTD app, Midnight Inbox certainly doesn't look too shabby, and neither does its $35 price tag. Check out Midnight Beep Softwork's site for more details and to take a demo for a spin.
WTB: Bag space
In WoW, as with real life, I'm a bit of a hoarder. Give me space and I will fill it with things that might be useful, or perhaps were useful (you never know when you'll need them again). After one or two ill-advised disenchantments, I've started keeping non-replaceable gear around in my bank, and as a druid I have multiple sets of equipment anyway.Of course, I'm also an enchanter and engineer, so I have to store materials and equipment for those professions -- not to mention a vast number of quest items that are collecting dust waiting for me to finish the quest. Non-combat pets, items useful in certain instances, items useful for PvP, Darkmoon Faire tickets... my bank just isn't big enough to hold it all.There are a couple of solutions. Firstly, I can try culling the trash and actually getting rid of some of my quest items, disenchanting equipment I haven't used in weeks, and choosing which of my non-combat pets is my favourite. Secondly, as I have multiple characters (including a bank-only character), I can send the majority of my non-soulbound items to an alt, who can hold on to them or return them in the mail for easier access. I always lose track of who has which items; I used to use the BankItems mod, but I haven't found one that tracks mailboxes yet.The final option is, of course, to get more bagspace. Not easy when all your bags are 16-slotters already; I've recently finished the grind for an Argent Dawn Supply Bag, and I'm also hoping I'll come across an Onyxia Hide Backpack or Panther Hide Sack at some point. The materials for Bottomless Bag are offputting, though -- twelve mooncloth for two bag slots? I think I'll have to manage.
Hazel - automated file management
Hazel is one of those rare pieces of software (with a strange name) that feels like it's filling a gaping feature void I didn't even know Apple left in Mac OS X: it's a powerful, rule-based file and folder management app that brings a little bit of Automator, AppleScript and Folder Actions to the table in a way that none of those apps and features do well on their own. Hazel installs as a System Preferences Pane and, as you can see, allows you to build a list of folders on the left with a list of toggle-able rules on the right. The on/off switch on these rules is key, as they make it easy to switch between running certain kinds of rules on a folder for different workflows, jobs, times of the day or week.
Moneydance 2006 - cross-platform finance management
Moneydance 2006 (awkward name and all) is a well-rounded personal finance app with a nice selection of features including: online banking and bill payment, budget management, recurring transactions, investment tracking, report generation, Quicken/Money import, database encryption and a whole lot more. It might be missing a few features when compared to big dogs like Quicken 2006, but it's priced accordingly: a license is $30 no matter what OS(es) you need it for, and when I say cross-platform, I mean it: Moneydance 2006 works on Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, Solaris, OS/2, and Unix.A fully functioning demo is available that allows for entering up to 100 transactions - so what are you waiting for? Go grab a copy and stop making excuses for ending up budget-less and broke every month.
Curio Basic offered for free until midnight, August 7th
Remember Curio from Zengobi, that unique brainstorming and project management app we found a couple weeks ago? As a thanks to all the publicity they've been getting lately the company has decided to offer Curio Basic for free - but only until midnight, EDT on Tuesday, August 7th. All you need to do is enter some basic information at the promotion page, and a license (a $39 value) will be emailed to you. Definitely note, however, that one of Zengobi's terms is that they can cancel this offer at any time (probably in case they get slammed with too many requests), so I would recommend you run, don't walk, to snag your copy. After all: you can't beat 'free'.
Widget Watch: Basecamp
Basecamp is an award-winning, web-based project management service from the much-loved 37Signals, makers of the equally-loved Backpack. Since Backpack has had its own widget for a while now, it seems that Kennedia Consulting felt it was high time Basecamp received the Dashboard treatment as well. The cleverly titled Basecamp Widget offers an interface to the pleasantly simple, yet powerful, Basecamp web service, allowing you to: View Milestones, Todos, Posts and Contacts for your active projects Complete and Uncomplete Milestones Complete and Uncomplete ToDo items The author has also stated that a slew of additional features are planned for the widget, depending on how much interest is expressed from the community (hint hint). So check out the widget, submit some feedback and let the developer know you care.
Hawk Wings lists 10 Mac OS X tools for Getting Things Done
Tim Gaden at Hawk Wings has compiled a list of ten Mac OS X tools that can help you implement the Getting Things Done philosophy in the way you work. The tools are broken down into three categories: email clients, dedicated GTD apps and web-based solutions for that ultimate cross-platform effect. Mail.app, of course, starts off the list. Once combined with a few Smart Folders and the powerful Mail Act-on and MailTags plugins, Mail.app can become a most powerful GTD tool indeed. Other featured tools include kGTD (an OmniOutliner Pro template), a Todo.txt script for the ultimate in plain-text GTD, EasyTask Manaager (a stand-alone app without the GTD learning curve), iCommit (a web-based PHP tool), Backpack, Gmail and even wikis. Check out Hawk Wings' list for more ideas and tools to help you, well, get things done.
DON'T USE PROCRASTINATR
UPDATE: A commenter on this post has published a fix for the Procrastinatr damage which I've tested multiple times. We have a new post here with instructions and a download.TUAW readers: I sincerely apologize for the damage that Procrastinatr did to iCal. I didn't notice any discrepancies in my calendar after trying this out (as almost all of my calendars are synced from Google Calendar), but please know that I have learned my lesson, and I will take much better care in the future before posting anything like this again. One commenter has created an AppleScript that supposedly fixes the problem, which we are testing (and re-testing) right now. Again, please accept my sincerest apologies, and we will update as soon as we learn anything more.If you're feeling overwhelmed from the onslaught of YouTube forwards, newsreader headlines, Miniclip games and software demos we tirelessly blog for you, Procrastinatr just might be your solution. Even though it's only a 0.8b version, this handy little app can help you make molehills out of mountains and start managing your time again.Procrastinatr is provided free of charge from Procrastinatr.com. It's a joke app that is somewhat malicious. Avoid it.
Complete transcript of Nintendo management briefing
Nintendo has gone ahead and transcribed the entire management briefing, which consists of a rather large, and thankfully in-depth, question and answer section in which all aspects of the company are discussed. Iwata reiterated that we wouldn't see an exact release date and price for the Wii until in or before September, commented on increased R & D budgets, and proudly proclaimed his choice for the name Wii as the console's title. OK guys, no more paraphrasing from me, you'll have to put in the work and read the rest yourselves.[Update:Fine reader sotiri has informed us that an English transcript is freely available via Nintendo's Japanese site. The links have been adjusted and balance has been brought back to Nintendo Wii Fanboy.]
Bare Bones Software releases Yojimbo 1.2
Yojimbo, the information collection app from Bare Bones Software that helps you 'master the onslaught', has been updated to version 1.2. Among the additions and improves are a Quick Start movie for new users that launches on first startup, search term highlighting, browser bookmarklets for one-click bookmarking or web archiving in Yojimbo, AppleScript importing and much more.A 30-day fully functioning demo is available, while Bare Bones offers full single user, family and educational licenses for $39, $69 and $29, respectively.
Disk Order - an advanced Finder replacement
Disk Order is another app that takes a stab at replacing the Finder, but doesn't seem to take things quite as overboard as PathFinder. With tabbed file browser windows, built-in FTP client, command line tools and more, Disk Order should have a few things to offer anyone who feels like the Finder is the ugly duckling of Mac OS X.A full-featured demo of Disk Order is available, while a license costs $22.57.[via MacMerc]
Packrat 0.8 - edit Backpack lists, display images
In mid-April, Rod Schmidt asked for feedback as to whether he should release editing features in Packrat, his Backpack syncing client, as he develops them. From what I saw, the response was largely in favor of doing so, and yesterday Rod announced on his blog that Packrat 0.8 has taken the first step in this direction. Users can now edit lists in Packrat, then sync up the changes to their Backpack account. This new version can also display inline images (but not linked images) as long as you've already downloaded them, of course. This is a pretty big deal if you're a Backpack fan, especially since I'm fairly certain Packrat is the first app that has this kind of potential to become a true, offline-capable Backpack client.Swing on by infiniteNIL Software to grab a demo of Packrat, a license will cost $24.95. If you want to get involved or offer some feedback, be sure to check out the Packrat discussion group and and Rod Schmidt's blog for development updates.
Apple introduces Remote Desktop 3
Well I guess we know why the Apple Store was down earlier. Today, Apple introduced Remote Desktop 3, which is now a Universal Binary and includes over 50 new features that deliver better software distribution, asset management and remote assistance. Over 30 Automator actions, remote Spotlight searching of multiple Tiger machines, a Dashboard observation widget and automatically installing software on remote machines when they return online are at the top of the new feature buzz list, which includes: Remote Drag and Drop files and folders between local and remote computers Remote Copy and Paste for simple transfer of text and images between local and remote computers Persistent Task History and Task Templates to make it easy to save and replicate repetitive task Curtain Mode to hide the desktop of a system while it is being controlled remotely Application Usage and User History Reports to track software compliance and monitor the use of unauthorized applications Smart Computer Lists for dynamically managing systems based on specified criteria AES 128-bit encryption for secure communications between Apple Remote Desktop 3 and clients Apple Remote Desktop 3 is available immediately through the Apple Store for either $299 to manage up to 10 machines, or $499 for managing an unlimited number of machines.
iTunes 6.0.2: Do Not Auto Delete podcasts
The most recent update to iTunes (6.0.2) brought a minor addition that podcast fans have been drooling over for quite some time now: the ability to customize the auto deletion of podcasts. As you can see in the accompanying image, if you right click a podcast in iTunes, you now have a new option near the bottom of the context menu: "Do Not Auto Delete." This can override any settings you've enabled to clean out podcasts after X number of episodes, which can be handy for hanging onto episodes of things like podcast novels such as Ancestor (iTMS link) and EarthCore (iTMS link). Since not all podcasts are time-sensitive episodes about 'what's going on this week,' it's nice to see this flexible level of podcast management arriving in iTunes.
Location X - automatically adjust settings on the go
If you're an iBook/PowerBook user who is constantly fiddling with various settings depending on where you are, point your mouse towards Location X for the solution to all your preference-changing woes. I only played with this for about 5 minutes before plunking down my $20 for it, as I am already in love. This app makes me cry out "why doesn't OS X do this already??" Then I realize I'm alone in my apartment right now, which just makes me feel weird.Anyway, Location X is essentially a management app for all the various settings you might have to constantly set and reset, depending on which networks your Mac connects to throughout the day. For example: in between classes, I use wifi at Starbucks since all of the networks on my campus have most of their ports restricted. Well, Starbucks' wifi treats SMTP servers that require authentication in an odd way, so I'm constantly having to change my SMTP server when I sit down for a cup o' joe. But Location X, as you can see in my screenshot, can do so much more. Not only can this latest v2.5 do automatic network detection, it can set default printers, adjust energy settings, change browser homepages, run applescripts, change security preferences and so much more. It even has a plugin architecture, opening the doors for anyone else to build in even more settings and functionality.I highly recommend this app for any of you mobile warriors out there who are tired of constantly adjusting settings like these, simply because you're on the go during the day. Location X is shareware which costs $20 (a bargain, if you ask me), while a demo that allows for 8 location switches is available here.
Easy project folder setup with Client Folder Maker
Client Folder Maker (CFM) is a handy applescript applet for those of you who repeatedly have to create standard folder structures for any kind of projects such as websites or design proofs for clients. The applet offers a simple UI for essentially creating a folder structure template, allowing you to list all the regular folders you might need. Building websites for clients? Create a folder structure list in CFM with folder names like I have pictured and you can simply run this applet to generate all the folders you need for each project, named according to whatever scheme best suits you. It's a handy little applet if you're doing any kind of repetitive work like this, and for the mere price of $0, how can you go wrong?
What would you change about the menu bar?
This time around the "What would you change" topic I thought I'd forgo an actual app and post on a part of OS X; the menu bar, in fact. While I really dig the menu bar and how it works, it leaves much to be desired in the customizability department. For example: I don't know of a way to increase its width or the font size, and it would be great if there was some kind of a power-user option to make it easier to hide the menu bar altogether, instead of only some apps (like Photoshop) being able to do it. Or how about the image I have here: a comparison to XP's system tray, which includes a crude icon management system of hiding 'inactive' system tray icons. Fellow TUAW blogger Scott is quick to point out, however, that this hiding of inactive icons on XP is a great way of allowing all sorts of unwanted software to install itself and run right under your nose. Nevertheless, if you have a lot of icons up in the menu bar, it would be great to have some way of managing all the clutter besides simply dragging them around manually with the command key.So what say you, TUAW readers? Since we can't even get Macworld press passes I'd say it's a safe bet that Apple won't be taking notes, but a good UI conversation might be a nice way to pass the slow-news holidays.
