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Witch - bring Windows app switching to Mac OS X
The way that applications, windows and our OS behave is a subject of much debate. Toss some life-long switchers into the mix and boy-howdy, you got yourself the nerd version of a bar fight. One of these much debated behaviors between Mac OS X and Windows is how to handle switching between applications and their windows. Mac OS X focuses on applications - when you press cmd + tab, you can switch between all of your open applications, but you have to press cmd + ` in each app to cycle between the windows specific to said app. The Windows switcher, on the other hand, doesn't see applications, only windows. Pressing the switching keystroke equivalent of alt + tab offers a selection of all open windows, including the 20 Word documents and 5 IE sessions you have running. For the sake of this post, I'm not necessarily saying one is better than the other, and the subject of why this difference exists is a usability discussion best left for another day. I simply wanted to lay some context for Witch, a Windows-like application switcher from Peter Maurer (of Butler and the original Textpander/TextExpander fame) that fuses window-centric switching with some of the nice perks of Mac OS X. Not only can you switch between windows, just like on, uh, Windows, but you can also do things like bringing all minimized windows to the front or even close those minimized windows without having to bring them to the front.Witch, like many of Peter's apps, is donationware. However, if you get attached to it and don't want it to go the way of TextExpander (or if you simply want to give a developer his much-due credit), I highly recommend you donate for Peter's fine work.[via Lifehacker]
The Google Switch: an iPhone killer?
Color us skeptics on this one, but we've got a tipster claiming to have the scoop on Google Switch. This version of the mythical Googlephone is said to be the result of a collaboration with Samsung -- not Alpha Networks or HTC. Of course, it's a button-less touchscreen device as is the rage these days only this time with GPS built-in for pinpoint navigation around Google Maps. What's pictured in that all too familiar blur (Photoshopped?) is the phone's contact program said to be an extended version of Gtalk combining Gmail, text and instant messaging. According to our tipster, the device doesn't have any on-board storage. That's right, all your applications are served up over the network with new apps "attached" to your account via a web interface. So what is it... the real deal or engorged fanboy fantasy? Check the gallery below for biggie pics suitable for dissection. The Google Switch: an iPhone killer?
XCM unveils Multi-Component Cable v2: console connections unite
We're all about keeping things nice and well kempt, and if you're the type who's sporting a house full of consoles, you know precisely how difficult a clean wiring solution is to maintain. Helping to clear out that rat's nest of cabling is XCM -- those same folks who brought us the XFPS -- which is delivering the Multi-Component Cable v2 to simply that cord conundrum. Sporting a trio of connectors, this single device can simultaneously connect to your Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 3, and reportedly your dusty PS2 as well, and plugs into your TV set via component outs. As you might expect, a simple flip of the toggle switch changes the console you see on screen without you having to risk your life climbing atop the television. Currently, the device is still stuck in "preview" mode, but XCM promises to have a full list of specs and availability details ready soon, and if you can catch a video sneak peek after the jump.
Pete Wright: "My Microsoft career is now officially over"
Coming to the rescue once again, digg's users have highlighted a fairly prominent Windows coder's testimony of a switch to Mac OS X and Ubuntu Linux. Pete Wright, a (former) Windows developer who made Microsoft's 'influencer' lists by working for such clients as American Express and Enron, has said goodbye to Redmond. "Today, I've resigned to leave that world behind forever, and I couldn't be happier," Pete exclaimed in a fairly lengthy blog post back in September. Pete cites Microsoft's inability to innovate and Vista's aura of 'Service Pack 3-ness', as well as "buggy, overpriced and stress inducing" software for the switch (amongst other things), but I have a sneaking suspicion his new work environment of t-shirts, sandals and nerf guns had *some* influence. Still, chalk this up as another prominent switch to Mac OS X by a developer fairly high on the Windows totem pole. One can only guess as to how desirable Mac OS X Leopard will be, once Mr. J and company lay all their cards on the table at Macworld 9 days from now.[via MacDailyNews]
Radiient offers up 4-port HDMI switch / hub
While we've taught you how to craft your own component video switch (not to mention your own cables), there will (probably) come a time in your 1080p-needing life where that sole HDMI port on the rear of your television just won't cut it. Enter Radiient's HDMI Switch Select-4, a 4-port HDMI hub that doesn't deviate too far from the other alternatives already out there, but cuts out the audio ports altogether while adding in an RS-232 control port. Also, this device features a bevy of colorful LEDs, sure to enthrall some users who want to control things with the lights out while enraging others who like things pitch black when catching a flick. Nevertheless, the Select-4 supports HDCP, DVI (via adapters), and all your standard HD resolutions right up to 1080p. Notably, this sucker doesn't seem to support the recently-unveiled 1.3 spec, which means you'll miss out on some of the extra niceties on that shiny PlayStation 3. Still, Radiiant apparently feels its HDMI switcher is worth its weight in gold, as this bad boy will run you a whopping ¥69,300 ($592). Update: These things have a $299 US asking price (at least as of right now). Thanks Jacobim.[Via Akihabara News]
Leo Laporte might go 100% Mac: "So long Suckah"
Leo Laporte, podcaster extraordinare and the web's general tech-guru-on-steroids, has blogged that the Soundbooth beta Adobe announced today just might let him jump ship to the Mac entirely. Since the first days of his podcasting adventures, Leo's been using Adobe's Audition for all his podcast recording and editing, but it's Windows only. While Soundbooth isn't entirely a Mac counterpart (Leo's initial impressions are that it's an "Audition Elements"), his "So Long Suckah" post title sounds like he's optimistic.Still, I agree with Leo and I'm a little disappointed in the offering. Soundbooth's biggest ding right now is that it only does single track recording and editing. For Adobe's girth as a company, I'm a bit surprised this feature is missing. Here's hoping the term 'beta' is applied for every ounce it's worth right now.Either way, it's nice to hear Leo might be able to make the jump entirely. One less workflow intrusion is a good thing.
Make your own component video switch
Our friends at Engadget have a nice how-to up today about building your own component switch. If you're not sold on going digital just yet, still have many devices where component is your best output available or just picked up a new Pioneer Elite plasma, quit crawling behind the TV already. Sure you can buy off the shelf, but where's the fun in that? We already showed you how to build your own component cables, hook them up to a former KVM switch and custom-made component-to-VGA cables (You're not still using your TV speakers are you? We can only help you if you first help yourself.) and you're well on your way to joining the elites of the HD Beat flickr group.
Made in the USA Radiient Technologies HDMI switch reviewed
HDMI switches come in two flavors: cheap and high-end. There isn't many in between and Audioholics recently put the Radiient Technologies HDMI switch/repeater through the paces. First off, this former of the two types and retails for $399, but it utilizes some of the best circuity on the market. The only thing they found 'wrong' was that the switch only outputs to one HDMI sources. Even that isn't anything wrong with the quality of the unit. This switch preformed flawlessly and earned a perfect score of 5 out 5 in both the overall and value ratings. Sure, you can pick up a unit similar to this one at Monoprice for around a $132 but with Audioholics found this switch preformed in nearly the same way as a straight HDMI video feed. It is worth a few extra hundred dollars to some in order to guarantee the absolute best picture quality; maybe not to you, but it is to some. Plus, this switch is made in the good 'ol US of A. How many items in your A/V rack can say that?
Editorial: Behind the MacBook "Hack"
The web has been on fire the past few days with news of a presentation given at the BlackHat computer security conference featuring the compromising a MacBook Pro by executing very low-level code on the drivers of a wireless card. Whether or not the exploit presented actually counts as hacking of a Macintosh (they used a third party wireless card) is not at issue in this post. What I think is more important is the fact that these guys chose to demonstrate the vulnerability on a Mac, instead of a Windows or Linux machine, which are also vulnerable to the exploit. The presenters cited the "Mac userbase aura of smugness on security" as their reason for choosing a Mac as their guinea pig.Some readers might attribute this negative attitude toward Mac users as one held only by uninformed Windows users and malicious hackers, but that is far from the case. Many very intelligent and highly respected members of the tech community feel the same way. Some of them even used to love Macs. Before pointing any fingers and making any accusations about who lost their mind when, I think we need to take a step back and examine our behavior.
Evergreen's low-cost component/optical remote hub
Evergreen has a tendency to produce low-cost products and you know what, we don't mind. These items might not look like anything fancy but they tend to get the job done for the right price. Their latest jaunt into this market comes in the form of a component video/optical hub that can function via a remote. The unit would allow you to plug three component devices into the hub and then run one cable to your display. That is if your display happens not to be 1080p; not that there is many devices that output 1080p over component, but if you happen to have one, be warned that this hub will not pass that signal. Evergreen understands us and made it switch via a remote. Do yourself a favor though and program the IR signal into the learning remote that you have. The hub is retailing for 9,980 Yen ($86) and is available right now.
Octava's 4 port HDMI switch with Toslink
There are plenty of HDMI switches out (or coming out) right now, but not so many we've seen with four port digital coax and Toslink switching thrown in for good measure. Quite the convenience, saving yourself the extra step of changing sources on that audio receiver, but convenience comes at a price: is $274 worth it to you not to have to toggle audio inputs to match your HDMI source? (We have a feeling for many the answer is yes.)[Via HD Beat]
USA Today moron: "Boot Camp to cause exodus to Windows"
Andrew Kantor has posted a pretty darn funny piece of satire at USA Today based on the idea that Boot Camp is actually going to cause Mac users to switch over to Windows (ok, maybe it isn't 'satire.' Maybe it's 'saying anything he can for page views'). I have to hand it to Andrew - if this article wasn't obviously a clever piece of humor, he would instead have what could quite possibly be an educated, insightful and altogether accurate argument for why Mac OS X users should simply replace their cumbersome, overpriced and useless Macs with a Windows PC from, say, Gateway.Andrew, I gotta tip my hat - you really know how to hit the nail on the head. Once I used Windows on my friend's MacBook Pro "long enough to be deprogrammed," I'm already on the hunt for the nearest garbage can to dump the PowerBook I (begrudgingly) am typing this on right now. Anyone have the sales phone number for eMachines?
BeLight announces winners of switcher contest
As you may remember, BeLight software recently posed the question to the Mac faithful: How would you convince a PC user to switch? They held a contest to find the best answer, and today they've revealed the winners. I thought the best advice came from Wesley D. Radcliffe, a contestant who said, "...Let them play. Sit your powerbook in your lap and use expose. Wait for them to ask how you're printing files, playing music, and using the internet at the same time, with not one cable touching it..." I recently had an opportunity to show off iMovie a bit, and after about 10 minutes I had sold a Mac to a long-time PC user. Another friend of mine (think of the most die-hard PC user you know) actually said the words "Macs are cool" after playing with a G5 iMac. The lesson: Never underestimate the power of the demo.
Drag and drop calendar items from Entourage to iCal
I don't know how long this secret affair has been going on, but apparently MacOSXHints caught a calendar event from Entourage sneaking over to iCal! Mmhm, that's right. Allegedly, it's possible to drag and drop *gasp!* a calendar event from Entourage right onto the iCal window.While it sounds like the event will retain all of its information, I'm not sure if that includes an alarm, if set. The event will also default to being an hour long once dropped onto iCal, so depending on your workflow and your typical schedule, this might or might not be handy.
Blogging the switch to Mac OS X
I found another one of those 'switcher blogs' and I thought it might make an interesting read for both Mac newbies and power users. I honestly can't find any information on the author, but My Journey to Macintosh provides up some interesting switcher experiences, such as loading up Firefox just because that's what the author used on Windows, then discovering that other browsers like Camino offer a far more Mac OS X-like experience, in part because Camino isn't butt-ugly and it uses the Keychain.One thing I like about this blog is that the author seems to be a power user, of sorts; while some posts are about discovering the wonders of working with PDFs on a Mac without the need for Adobe's (fat, bloated, clunky, slow and horrible) Reader, another post laments some hangups in getting PHP and MySQL working. In other words: there's something for everyone!There isn't a virtual library of posts yet, but I thought it might be an interesting switcher blog to watch because of both the variety of topics the author has touched on so far, and an About section that reads: "Microsoft Windows user since Windows 3.0 moves to a Mac and Mac OS/X Tiger. Watch the process, good and bad :)." See? Fair and balanced, too. Enjoy.
How would you convince a PC user to switch?
We've all tried to fill this role at some point in our lives. Sometimes we get the job done, and other times, well...Dell is still in business, aren't they? BeLight Software wants to celebrate Apple's upcoming anniversary by bringing a few more sheep into the fold. Describe to them whatever successful technique you've used in the past, and the top three suggestions will win a 12 month subscription to either Macaddict or Macworld magazine. Now, we all know how annoying an evangelist on a mission of conversion can be, so don't pound those poor Windows users over the head. You get more flies with honey.[Via MacMove]
Dvorak off his meds: claims Apple switching to Windows
Someone. Please. Help Dvorak find his meds. He's lost them again, resulting in yet another shock-value crackpot theory article that I chose not to link to on general principle. This time around, Dvorak has once again put inaccurate facts on the table and drudged up baseless speculation that Apple could - and already is - dropping Mac OS X to simply run Windows on their Macs.No, that wasn't a typo. Dvorak thinks Apple is going to trash Mac OS X for Windows in what could be "the most phenomenal turnabout in the history of desktop computing," whatever that's supposed to mean (search for the article at PC Magazine, if you really want to read it). Most of his 'evidence' is based on claims that no one's switching over to the Mac, despite all of Apple's buzz over the last couple years and the (disputed) "iPod halo effect." Apparently, John didn't notice that Apple doubled its U.S. market share last year to 6.6%. While that isn't a monumental number, the fact that it doubled in barely a year is a significant factor I think John simply missed in what I'm sure was highly methodical research. Let's also not forget that Dell more or less asked Apple if they could sell OS X on their computers - what better way to cut down on customer service expenses?The rest of his argument cites Apple dropping FireWire in the iPod, Apple's switch to Intel and the fact that large vendors like Adobe weren't ready when the new Intel machines landed. It seems that through his impeccable research, Dvorak also missed previous discussion about FireWire and its high-bandwidth, largely pro purpose, as well as the iPod's mass-market target. Let's also not forget that Adobe can't simply flip a switch and make CS hop over to the Intel side of the Mac CPU fence.Poking holes in Dvorak's ideas aside, I'm starting to wonder if his articles are becoming not much more than thickly-veiled calls for help. Clearly, he's beginning to lose it, and I wonder if he's just having a hard time asking for the help he so clearly needs. Who's up for a "save John C. Dvorak" fund-raiser?[thanks David Anasco. Image courtesy of John C. Dvorak's Wikipedia entry]
TUAW Tip: you can rotate windows, too
For today's TUAW Tip, I thought I'd build on Scott's tip yesterday (concerning the Application Switcher) with a simple tip about cycling windows, not applications. Many of us know (or will soon) that using cmd - tab will switch between applications, but plenty of users still haven't discovered the wonders of cmd - ` (the key right above tab), which allows you to switch between windows within an application. So if you, for example, have a few documents open in Word, cmd - ` will easily let you switch between just those documents, without having to bother with any other windows and apps you have open.One catch: this works in most apps such as browsers, iChat and even iPhoto, but not in a select few, such as Photoshop. In fact: if anyone knows how to cycle windows in Photoshop, please sound off in the comments.Now that you're armed with both cmd - tab and cmd - `, virtually no window is safe from your view. Combine this trick with a little Exposé action and you could obtain the ranking of "OS X window management ninja."
Which Mac are you?
Since Apple flipped (off) the Switch campaign, we're all waiting to see what, when and if there will be a new television ad series that features something other than the iPod.The new Switch page on Apple's website gives us a clue. Apple is "counting the ways" you'll love your new Mac, boasting about their "it just works" technology (?) and the stunning aesthetics of their hardware, touting the triumph of Mac OS X, emphasizing the $499 price tag of the Mac mini and prompting you to ponder "which Mac are you?" (I'm still stumped on that one!)But will ever see another non-iPod television commercial? Maybe Apple just needs some new ideas since things didn't work out so well with Errol Morris. Let's hear yours...If you were hired to create a commercial for Apple Computer that focused on something other than the iPod, what would you do?
Apple pulls plug on new "Switch" ads?
Think Secret is reporting that Apple has cancelled the newest Errol Morris-directed Switch ads that were scheduled to appear in an upcoming advertising campaign. The new Switch blitz, according to the report, was intended to emphasize the iPod's "halo effect," and would have featured people who got hooked on the Mac after getting a taste of the iPod. Although 60 "real people" were flown to Los Angeles and many of them were already interviewed and filmed by Morris (and compensated about $3k to boot), it appears that the next Ellen Feiss will never get her 15 minutes of fame due to what sounds like nothing more than "artistic differences."
