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BMW's Pathfinder 'microNavigation' system promises to augment GPS
BMW has been working on augmenting GPS navigation for some time now, and it took another big step forward in recent weeks with the announcement of its Pathfinder "microNavigation" system. As the name suggests, that would supplement your basic navigation system with maps and directions for areas not covered by GPS -- a parking lot, for instance -- and it could be continually updated on an as-needed basis, with users able to download so-called microMaps for a specific area before they go on a trip. You'd also be able to easily jump from the in-car navigation to a navigation app on your phone to complete the final leg of your journey -- and, presumably, find your car when you're ready to leave. Of course, it is still just a prototype, but BMW does at least have a pretty good track record when it comes to actually implementing these sorts of things in its cars.
Mac power tools: charge up your workflow
I recently bought a new Mac, and I decided not to migrate years of cruft over to a pristine Snow Leopard install. I also decided to shed years of stale workflow and adopt a new way of doing things. Enter the power tools: software that augments the power and performance of OS X to do things faster and smarter. I'll examine some general system enhancements and look at a couple of powerful Mac/iPhone app combos that really work well together. Step one was finding a replacement for my beloved QuickSilver. I had abandoned QS well over a year ago due to performance issues on most of my Macs, but after a nagging pain in my wrist surfaced, I realized I had to find more keyboard shortcuts. Enter LaunchBar, which fills in for 90% of what QuickSilver used to do for me. LaunchBar is one Ctrl-Space (configurable, of course) away from Spotlight searching, Google searching, application launching, math calculations and much, much more. LaunchBar is $25 around $35 per seat, and worth taking 15 minutes to learn the basics. Go ahead, hate me for giving up QS, but try LaunchBar before you hurl the insults. Next I needed a better way to juggle 3 Gmail accounts. But I also needed a way to track the metric ton of inbox items that flow through those email conduits. The solution was the combination of MailPlane and Things. I had really dedicated my heart to Toodledo, but there's one trick I couldn't replicate on any setup (The Hit List included): when I get an email in MailPlane, I can select some text and press Shift-Ctrl-Opt-Cmd-0 and the Things HUD pops up and autofills the notes section with a link to the email itself. It is awesome. Not perfect, mind you, but a huge thing for me. Read on for more power tools and tips.
GSM Association proudly endorses NFC and Carrier ENUM
The GSM Association has been gung-ho about near-field communications (NFC) for a good while now, but just recently at a meeting in Macau did it take the opportunity to officially proclaim its support for NFC and Carrier ENUM. As for the former, it's urging manufacturers to have NFC technology (which is most commonly used for mobile payment systems) in "mainstream mobile phones by mid-2009 by using the standardized single wire protocol (SWP) interface, which enables communications between NFC hardware and a SIM card." Furthermore, it gave a hearty thumbs-up to ENUM (previously known as Number Resolution Service), which is an IETF-sanctioned standard for converting traditional phone numbers into IP addresses. It also announced that a related service (dubbed PathFinder) was generally available to mobile and fixed network operators from NeuStar. All this sounds fine and dandy, but what we're really interested in is what these folks did in Macau after the business was settled. Lucky...[Via phonescoop, image courtesy of ISOC]Read - Official GSMA support for ENUMRead - Support for NFC / ENUM
Path Finder 5.0 is available, more file-management power
Cocoatech's Path Finder is the Mac OS Finder replacement that many users love (including us). If you haven't used it, you are missing out on something. A tabbed interface, insane customization options, powerful search (you can completely override Spotlight if you like) and so much more will have you ditching the Finder in no time. Path Finder can be run in conjunction with the Mac OS X Finder or on its own. Today, it gets even better with the release of version 5.0. There are cool new features like a dual-pane file browser, which lets you display two folders simultaneously in one window and move files between them. Other new features include sidebar, Favorite Places and shared network places. Many so-called "power users" complain about the Finder's limitations. If that's you, chances are Path Finder has the fix. It requires Mac OS 10.4 Leopard 10.5, and costs $34.95$39.95 for a single license. (Cocoatech let us know that they're working on the server issues that blocked access to the PF5 pages earlier.)
Blu-ray movie releases for the week of Nov. 20
We're not entirely sure, but we think there are a few other Blu-ray movie releases this week that don't have "Die Hard" somewhere in their title. Seriously, this is like the greatest day ever for die-hard fans of Die Hard. (See what we did there?) Live Free or Die Hard The Die Hard Collection Hairspray The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause David Gilmour: Remember That Night Badder Santa: Unrated Die Hard Die Hard with a Vengeance Die Hard 2: Die Harder Pathfinder: Unrated Even if you're somehow not a fan of John McClane, there's not really much left over unless you like to see a foul-mouthed Santa, John Travolta in drag or even more exploitation of the poor, unfortunate Native Americans. Yippie ki-yay!
Path Finder 4.8.2 can now replace the Finder, supports Quick Look
The guys over at Cocoatech have released an update to their excellent Finder replacement Path Finder that adds a couple of absolute gem features in Leopard. First, Path Finder now supports the brilliant Quick Look feature. Better yet, Path Finder now integrates with the OS in that it can now intercept the "Show in Finder" calls from other applications and direct them to Path Finder. What this means it that those little magnifying glass icons in, for example, the Safari downloads window (right) will now take you to Path Finder instead of the regular Finder. This even works on Stacks where the "More in Finder" button again goes to Path Finder. While there were some Input Manager style hacks that had previously allowed similar functionality, this is the first time this has really worked seamlessly with the OS. Thanks, apparently, is due to Apple themselves for making this possible with Leopard.This really opens the door to replacing the Finder wholesale in Leopard with Path Finder.Path Finder 4.8.2 is available for download in a demo. It's a free update for registered users of PF4, $17.95 for upgrades from earlier versions of PF, and $34.95 for a full version.[via Infinite Loop]
Path Finder 4.8 released
We mentioned last week that some long hoped-for features were coming to Path Finder 4.8, including per-folder settings allowing you to specify differing viewing options on a folder by folder basis. Today Cocoatech officially released the upgrade. As expected the changelog is headed by the per-folder settings and the new Unified interface (inspired by Leopard), but there are also a long list of improvements and bug fixes.Path Finder 4.8 is a free upgrade to Path Finder 4 users. The regular price is $34.95 and a $17.95 upgrade is available for users of earlier versions; a demo is available for download.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Path Finder 4.8 to bring per-folder settings
Over at the Cocoatech blog they've announced that the forthcoming version 4.8 of Path Finder will finally have one of the most long-requested features: per-folder settings. Basically what this means is that Path Finder will remember particular view settings (e.g. icon, list, column, etc.) for different folders. So you could keep your ~/Pictures folder in icon view, your ~/Documents folder in list view, and your ~/Music folder in column view and it would automatically remember your preferred view whenever you navigate to that folder in Path Finder. All of these preferences are stored in Core Data and thus Path Finder does not leave annoying hidden files (like the Finder's .DS_Store) in the file system.In addition, the 4.8 upgrade will bring interface improvements to move closer to the Unified style that is becoming de rigueur for new Mac applications. The 4.8 update is supposed to be available "very soon" and will be free to registered users of Path Finder 4.
Path Finder 4.7 is available
Don't feel glum that you can't use Leopard's new Finder for another four months, just download Path Finder!Pathfinder is the Finder replacement for Mac OS X that has earned many fans. It's a dream for power users, as it greatly enhances the amount of information available about your files, customization and more. Today, Cocoatech released version 4.7. Changes include: A revamped Get Info window that provides summary information for multiple items. "Experimental" Subversion support from within Path Finder with basic svn functionality (status, update commit, diff, add, etc.). A redesigned Applications Launcher The integrated Terminal feature has been updated to the latest iTerm code. There's more, of course, and you can get the full run-down here. Path Finder 4.7 costs $34.95US (existing customers can upgrade to Path Finder 4.7 for $17.95US) and requires Mac OS 10.4 or later.
PSP Fanboy Theatre: Volume 12
PSP Fanboy offers the latest and greatest movie and game trailers, formatted for the PSP in this new weekly feature. Check it out every Saturday. PSP owners can download files wirelessly via m.pspfanboy.com.Instructions: Save all movie and thumbnail files to MP_ROOT/101ANV01/. Requires firmware 2.00 or above. Do NOT place in "VIDEO" folder. Firmware 2.80 or above do not need to download thumbnails. Day WatchDownload MP4 (10.8MB) | Download THM The following videos are featured after the break: Pathfinder, Air Guitar Nation, Vacancy, Color Me Kubrick
Get your Pathfinder theme and gamer pics
With next month's quiet release of the movie Pathfinder we receive a few free downloads off of the XBLM. Right now you can get a free Pathfinder theme (which isn't anything spectacular) and a picture pack. The picture pack is actually pretty good, featuring a few creature pics and even a skull! Nothing says "I'm hardcore" like a gamer picture featuring a skull. Very l33t indeed. And for our worldly fanboys, we're pretty sure this content is only available to US residents and possibly Canada. Hey, we don't make the rules.
Ask TUAW: The Finder, iTunes Artwork, and More
It's Wednesday and that means it's time yet again for Ask TUAW, our weekly Q&A column. This week we'll be tackling questions about the Finder, finding tracks without artwork in iTunes, changing iPhoto file names, and more. As always, readers are most welcome to offer their own thoughts and comments, but especially to submit new questions to be taken up next week. And so without further ado, let's turn to this week's questions.
10 Mac OS X Finder alternatives compared and reviewed
While the Mac community anxiously awaits a much-rumored and much-needed Finder update in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Simplehelp decided to survey the landscape of 3rd party alternatives for a temporary fix. A total of 10 Finder replacements are reviewed, with a chart that rounds up the basics, and plenty of screenshots to accompany each app.While Path Finder is obviously one of the reigning kings of this genre, Simplehelp found some pretty unique - though not always functioning - takes on the file management paradigm, all with significant pros and cons to consider.While I haven't put all these apps to the test recently, I've given many of them a spin at least in the last year or two, and I can't say I'm optimistic for a 3rd party's ability to replace the Finder any time soon. Apple seems pretty intent on locking down their (arguably aging) Finder, and it seems we're all stuck with it until those rumors of a revamp come true.
FileBrowse - a media browser companion for Finder
Romain Guy at The Apple Blog has penned a nice walkthrough of an interesting new app called FileBrowse, which acts as more of a streamlined tool for media file browsing and manipulating tasks, as opposed to a full-fledged Finder replacement (cuz we all know how well that's going). FileBrowse makes use of subtle display and 3D elements to provide more information when rooting through folders of images, music and video. As you can see, it draws Windows XP-like thumbnails on folders of images, allowing one to peek at what's inside without actually having to crack it open. It also offers far more information (like metadata) when viewing items individually, and it even renders album artwork on music folders, along with video file previews, a unique visual grouping system, and more.FileBrowse looks like an interesting app, so check out Romain's walkthrough if you've been feeling the Finder is a bit lacking in these departments lately. At $25 though, it probably won't be for everyone, but it's nice to see some new file browsing tools that focus on a few things, and doing them well.
Why Path Finder 4 is Tiger only
We've mentioned Path Finder, the full featured Finder alternative from Cocoatech, a number of times here on TUAW. I am sure there are a few of you that were upset because the latest version of Path Finder only works with OS X 10.4. The MacDevCenter sat down with Steve Gehrman and Neil Lee, the men behind the app, to talk about the decision to only support Tiger with Pathfinder 4.They both make compelling arguments for Tiger only support (mostly they wanted to include the latest and greatest Cocoa features, and since there is only one guy coding it didn't seem sensible to support two different versions of Path Fider, a Tiger specific version and a pre-Tiger version). Well worth a read, if you are interested in Mac development.
Path Finder 4.1 released with Universal Binary, other enhancements
Path Finder, the powerful file browser/manager (pseudo-Finder) from Cocoatech, has been updated to version 4.1. Along with Universal Binary status and the typical round of bug fixes, this update also includes: Improved Go To Folder with autocomplete Smart Folders – Path Finder can now read Finder-created Smart Folders New Size Browser for quickly viewing total file sizes of folders, bundles, etc. Added rotate buttons to the integrated PDF viewer Path Finder can now preview PDF bundles (often found on OS X install disks) Added preview support for Help Viewer bundles Path Finder now displays if an application is PPC, Intel, or Universal Binary in the info panel Path Finder can now previews NEF files Added preliminary “email to” support for Microsoft Entourage and Eudora Updated Chinese, Japanese, Russian, French, and German localizations Check out Cocoatech's changelog for the full list of improvements and fixes, and scroll to the bottom of Path Finder's product page to download the new version. A 21-day demo is available, while a full license costs $34.95.
Path Finder goes universal
Path Finder, everyone's favorite Mac file browser on steroids, went universal today with the release of version 4.02. Other changes include: A new crash reporter Plugged memory leaks (yay) Fixed an issue where you could accidentally arrow into the preview column and not get out Transparency and float state now saved for text editor and image editor window Version 4.02 is a free update for registered users. A full license costs $34.95 and upgrades to version 4 cost $17.95 (although, if you bought Path Finder 3 after Sept. 29th, 2004, you can upgrade to the current version for free).
7 things Merlin Mann likes about Path Finder
When I posted about Path Finder 4 the other day lots of folks wondered if we needed yet another Finder replacement. Being the lazy blogger that I am I waited from someone else to write a post about that so I could point to it, and Merlin Mann (who I almost met at Macworld) of 43 Folders fame, was kind enough to do it.He lists seven things that he likes about Path Finder and that the plain old Finder just can't do.I hope it answers some of your questions.
Path Finder 4.0 released
We've been waiting awhile for the new version of Path Finder to come out, and now the wait is over. Path Finder 4 is available for download right now, and it is chock full of new features and sporting a new icon.A full license costs $34.95 and upgrades cost $17.95, though if you bought Path Finder 3 after Sept. 29th, 2004 this is a free upgrade.Check out the changelog for a look into what is new in Path Finder 4.
