Posts By: Gary Rosenzweig

You’ve got an iPhone with a camera. In front of you in the store is a product with a bar code on the back. Why type in the name of the product and search the Web for prices when an app can do it for you? RedLaser will grab the bar code and search the Web for prices and information. Other apps can do this too, but RedLaser seems to be the best of the bunch.

When you are on a Web page that asks you to upload a file, it usually includes a Browse or Choose File button. For instance, you may be uploading a new profile image to Facebook or Twitter. Usually, you would click the button and select a file. Then press another button to upload. But did you know you can drag and drop a file from any Finder window to the Choose File button and it will insert the file path for you? Just be sure to drag and drop directly on the button. If you drop it away from the button it will load the file into the browser window instead.

If you have more than one Mac on your home network, you can share files between them by simply turning on file sharing and browsing to another Mac in the Finder. You can also add additional users and set up shared folders.

Thanks to everyone who voted in the to-do list application poll here at MacMost.com. We’ve now got our top six task managers. While it is impossible to say which one is best for you, this will at least give you an idea of what others are using.

The top spot belongs to Things from Cultured Code. The king-of-all to-do list applications seems to have every feature under the sun: repeating to-dos, due dates, notes, search, tags, projects, plus both iCal and iPhone sync.
It will set you back $50, but can you put a price on productivity? Well, probably. But I bet it is more than $50. Add another $10 for the iPhone app, if you want to sync in that direction too.

Next on the list is a combined entry of iCal and Apple Mail, both which share to-do list tasks between them. Of course this combination of applications comes with Mac OS X, so everyone has it. Since this is an integrated solution that everyone already has, it is not surprising that it ranks so high. But it is perhaps surprising that it is not number one, or even dominating the list completely.
This is most likely because iCal/Mail really lacks any power to-do list functionality. It doesn’t even sync with the iPhone, even though most other parts of both iCal and Mail do. You’d think it would be a no-brainer for Apple to create a stand-along app that uses this data, syncs with the iPhone and also maybe MobileMe. But thanks to them ignoring this software genre, we’ve got all of these other third-party solutions. We’ve got an old episode about using iCal to-do lists if you want to check it out.

Third on the list is OmniFocus from the Omni Group. This is another full-featured application that has everything and the kitchen sink. Plus, if you are already a user of Omni Group applications, like OmniPlan, then you will probably find it nice and familiar. It carries an even heftier price tag an Things, at $80, and then another $20 for the iPhone app.

Next on the list if another comes-with-your-Mac application: Stickies. Now, this isn’t really a to-do list application at all, but its versatility has lots of people using it as such. You can put a single item in a note, or create short lists of items. Hey, if it works, it works. We did an episode on Stickies a while back if you are curious about it. You definitely can use it as a to-do list manager, but it just isn’t made for that.

Tied for fifth on the list are The Hit List by Potion Factory and Evernote. The first is gainign popularity with its fancy and simple-to-use interface. The second is a multi-purpose notes and media tool that is part-of-the-way in the cloud.
The Hit List will set you back $50, and includes a lot of features in a very Mac-like interface. Evernote has a free standard version, and then they hit you with $45/year for a premium service to pay for the use of their net-based syncing. It has a free iPhone app as well, which makes it a great way to share notes between your Mac and iPhone without even having to dock the phone.
Here are the complete results of the original poll:

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Which is the most popular to-do list application for the Mac? MacMost wants to know!
Look through this list carefully and select the to-do list or task management application that you use on your Mac. Some are Mac applications and some are online. This poll is about Mac applications only, not iPhone apps.

Learn how to create artistic photo slideshows in iPhoto that can then be exported as video files. You can then email these video files, create a DVD or upload to a video sharing site.

Learn how to use the iPhone's Maps app to search for stores, get directions, plot your current location and more. The iPhone Maps app has been a part of the iPhone since the beginning, but it keeps getting better. Find out what it can do and how easy it is to use.

This week’s Apple news was highlighted by the release of Mac OS X 10.6.2. You can get the update by choosing Software Update from your Apple menu or by going to Apple’s site. It is primarily a bug fix release, with a full list of bugs squashed here.
Apple started shipping its i5 quad-core iMacs this week. All versions of the new 21.5 and 27-inch iMacs are now shipping, although there appear to be delays in some versions of the 27-inch model due to video chipset shortages.
Apple introduced a new service called Reserve and Pick-Up at Apple stores. You can order an Apple product online and pick it up at a local store between December 15 and 25. They are even offering gift wrapping.

It is tough to recommend a mouse. The reason there are so many different types of mice is that personal preferences vary greatly. A perfect fit for one person is a nightmare for another. And Apple mice tend to get blasted in reviews. To be fair, they have made mistakes in the past. The Mighty Mouse suffered from a horrible track ball that seemed to stop working the moment a piece of dust got near. While the Magic Mouse fixes that problem by using a touch-sensitive top instead of a ball, it lacks features like side and middle buttons. But having a Magic Mouse on one Mac and a Mighty Mouse on another, I can report that when I have to use the Mighty Mouse I can see how much of an improvement the Magic Mouse is. If you’ve got the budget to get a new $70 mouse right now, they you should try it.

Combine the facts that your iPhone is always with you, it has a GPS chip, and has access to maps, and you’d think that you should be able to use it to track your bike rides — distance, speed, time, and even plot your course on a map. But most apps that claim to do this fall short in one way or another. An exception is Cyclemeter, which does all of these things and more. It keeps track of your rides without requiring you to sign up for a Web service or leave your iPhone. And it is gentle on your battery compared to other apps. Plus, it is very geeky cool to be able to see your ride on a map when you are done.

The Eject button located at the top right of most Apple keyboards can be used as a shortcut for restarting, sleeping or shutting down. Option+Command+Eject will put your Mac to sleep. Ctrl+Command+Eject will try to restart your Mac, providing no running applications are in the way. Ctrl+Option+Command+Eject will attempt a shut down. In addition, you can simply press Ctrl+Eject to bring up a dialog where you can choose Restart, Sleep and Shut Down. In addition, Shift+Ctrl+Eject will attempt to out your display to sleep, instantly.

Learn how to speed up your video clips and use slow motion in iMovie 09. You can also reverse the direction of a clip.

Learn the basics of using the Mac trashcan to delete files. Windows users will find it is slightly different than the Windows recycle bin. This is an excerpt from the book the MacMost.com Guide to Switching to the Mac https://macmost.com/book

Learn how to spot whether an Apple rumor is valid. Many Apple rumors have no source and don't fit with the company's past. Find out what to look for so you can decide for yourself which rumors make the most sense.

It is hard to believe that when the iPhone launched in 2007 that the App store wasn’t a part of it. The very idea of third-party apps was even rebuffed by Apple at the time. But now it is the main feature touted by Apple in its commercials, and it is practically the only reason for the existence of the iPod Touch.
In the 480 days since the launch of the store, more than 100,000 apps have ben released by developers. That’s 208 per day. Many of them are free, and many are only $0.99 — with a few going higher, even above $100.
The app store has made small fortunes for some developers, and created frustrations for others. Apple holds total control over what gets in the store, leaving some developers out even after spending the effort to develop for the iPhone. Also the 100,000 apps vary greatly in quality, with many being cookie-cutter applications with simple data or ebooks shoved into them.
But there is no doubt that the App Store has pushed the iPhone to the next level and sent other phone makers and carries scrambling to keep up.

I’m amazed by the number of people that still connect their digital cameras to their Macs to transfer pictures. A far better way is to use a USB Flash card reader. This
Kingston model is very similar to the one I have had for years. These card readers are usually faster than your camera in transfering photos — sometimes much faster. And they don’t run down your camera battery. New iMacs and MacBook Pros have an SD card slot, but this will help those with older models or with cameras that use other kinds of cards.

The ability of the iPhone 3GS to take video is great, but it makes you choose been capturing moments as a photo or a video. Video is a good choice, but sometimes you also want to send out or post a quick picture too. Videopix allows you to select a frame from a video and save it as a photo to your iPhone’s camera roll. It is pricey, but if you use video a lot, it could come in handy.

If you ever find yourself with too many Safari windows open, you can merge them all into one tabbed window by selecting Window, Merge All Windows. The window currently at the front will remain, and all tabs of all other windows will become tabs of that window. This is especially useful if you run into a lot of sites that pop open new windows when you click links.

Find out how you can use the Web to translate pieces of text or whole Web pages. Learn how to use the two main translation services: Babel Fish and Google Translate.

Learn how to make a simple music loop using GarageBand in this excerpt from the MacMost.com Guide to Switching to the Mac by Gary Rosenzweig. You can use simple loops in photo slideshows, videos and other projects.

Learn how to rename a batch of files using Automator in Snow Leopard. You can quickly and easily create a workflow that will allow you to select a group of files or a folder and rename the files replacing or adding text, adding numbers or the time or changing the file extension.