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Apple posts iTunes tutorials
It is a safe bet that many people received iPods this holiday season (I know a bunch of TUAW readers did), and a few of those people might be new to the whole iPod/iTunes combo. Apple has recently posted a number of video tutorials that cover iPod and iTunes basics. Now, if you're somewhat familiar with iTunes/iPods you won't learn much from these tutorials, but your Aunt Dora who is rocking her first iPod ever will find these videos very helpful (and you'll look like the good niece or nephew because you helped her with her new techno-bauble. Everybody wins!).
Cinemassively: How to make a gift box
If you're as prim-challenged as me, but want to give your SL friends something for Christmas, then this is the tutorial for you. Torley Linden has made an extremely informative video on how to make gift boxes in Second Life, add contents, send them, and how to receive them. If you have some time, I'd strongly suggest checking out her other tutorials, involving how to set permissions, fill out your profile, get texture info, and much, much more!If you're interested in making instructional movies yourself, the tool that Torley used is called Camtasia Studio 5. You can identify the style by their zoom ring, which focuses in automatically where the action is going on in the video.
Apple posts iLife '08 tutorials
Sure, it isn't a 30 day demo, but these iLife '08 tutorials give you a very nice overview of what the various apps can and can't do (and how they do and don't do 'em). The short videos are very task oriented, as you would expect with tutorials, and best of all they are free.Check them out, and see what iLife '08 has to offer.Oh, and can someone explain to me why I need to go to a store and buy physical CD's to get iLife? Apple is one of the world's largest distributors of digital music, and I am pretty sure they can handle digital distribution of software as well. Ah, another mystery of the universe.
Organizing your Desktop with file wells
Uncluttering your life and Getting Things Done is a perennial favorite among us TUAW folks, and MurphyMac has posted a new video showing a novel way to take charge of your Mac desktop. Creating a custom desktop helps organize your workspace around your workflow. You build a background in your favorite image editor to match the size of your desk, adding organizing "wells" to store different file classes (like incoming, action items, items-to-file, and so forth). By setting this as your desktop, you instantly add a new level of order to your workspace and can take advantage of the structures you design into the background. It's not rocket science, but it's a great idea for adding structure while preserving the visibility you lose with a folder system.
GarageBand podcasting tutorials available
Let's say you've made a few podcasts that you're proud of...mostly. There's always room for improvement, right? If you use GarageBand as your main podcasting tool, check out these tutorials at MacProVideo. Tips include using the right EQ settings for your voice, volume management and getting the most out of your remote Skype and other over-the-net sessions. It's $29.50US for nearly two hours of video (you can view two demo videos at the website). Check it out, and bring your podcasts to the next level.
How to make Mac icons
I love trying out new desktop icons from sites like the Iconfactory. In fact, my copy of Pixadex is bursting with nearly 3,000 icons. I guess it was inevitable that I'd eventually want to try to make my own.Luckily, Macinstruct has posted a great tutorial on making icons for the Mac. It's fully illustrated and provides easy to follow, step-by-step instructions. Now I know what I'll be trying this weekend.[Via Macsimum News]
AddOns for the complete noob
[Note: Hopefully this will be a valuable resource for new players. If you know any, feel free to send them here. If you already know how to use AddOns, there is probably very little in this post that will interest you.]You just got WoW, or maybe you've had it for a while. You heard about these neat things called "AddOns" and you want to try them out. How do you do it?
New feature: Ask WoW Insider
We're starting a new feature this week here at WoW Insider that we've stolen reverently borrowed from our sister site, Engadget. The idea behind Ask WoW Insider is to tap into the collective intelligence of you, dear readers, in order to to provide assistance and knowledge to your fellow World of Warcraft addicts fans. What question about WoW do you want answered by the wisdom of crowds -- What's the best bar mod? What's the best build for leveling a mage? What are some great pieces of armor to score for a level 45 rogue? Send us your burning questions to: ask AT wow.com and each Friday we'll pick one to publish (along with credit to you, of course!). Then your peers will have at it in the comments with their best answers to the week's question. So -- what do you want to know? Send us your questions at ask AT wow.com!
Apple releases iLife video tutorials
The tireless folks on the iLife team at Apple have released a very nice set of video tutorials for each of the suite's applications. You can browse the videos by topic, and move through each step-by-step clip easily. It's a great place to start getting you hands dirty with the iApps. Check it out (and go create something!).[Via Macworld UK]
PBFixit is now iFixit
One of my favorite Mac sites, PBFixit, has been renamed iFixit. iFixit provides parts and great step-by-step repair and upgrade tutorials for the Mac mini, Powerbook G3 (233-500mhz), iBook G3 (300mhz-900mhz) and iBook G4 (800mhz-1.42GHz), plus the titanium and aluminum PowerBooks. The tutorials are fully illustrated and, best of all, include pages that allow you to keep track of all the screws and parts you remove, in order. iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens had this to say about the name change: "Why are we changing names? A few reasons. The first: iFixit sounds cooler. Secondly, Apple is discontinuing the PowerBook name and we want to stay relevant to all Mac owners. But most important, we want to keep our options open. Our team is working incredibly hard to improve our product line and develop the Fixit Guide series."Check out iFixit if you haven't. They're a very good resource.
