My friend Dave Taylor posted his list of critical Mac software at his blog today. While I like his choices of Firefox and SnapzPro, and agree that the rest are all useful, my list would be quite different.
First, I wouldn’t recommend Microsoft Office to anyone, unless they had a critical need for something that was 100% compatible with other Office users. Otherwise, iWork is far cheaper and will get you where you need to go. Office is $400, which is a lot to spend for the casual Mac user.
Dave recommeds 1Password, and I hear good things about it, but I have been using Password Retriever for years and love it.
GraphicConverter makes a lot of people’s lists, but it always seemed a little buggy to me. For a little more money, I’d get PhotoShop Elements.
My favorite FTP program is Transmit. It works well with another critical piece of software for me: BBEdit. But more casual users may want to get TextWrangler instead.
I still use StuffIt as my main compression tool.
Dave seems to be much more into IM and Twitter than I am, so iChat and Twitter’s Web interface are fine for me.
But I’ll have to add Audacity to my list as an audio editor, and a free one at that. Also, I love VoodooPad, a small but powerful Wiki application that allows me to take notes and keep track of things in ways that calendars and to-do lists can’t.
The iPhone stocks application is a simple app that displays the current stock price of a list of stocks that you provide.
The main screen shows the stock symbol, the current price, and the relative change for the day. Red is used to indicate a falling price, green to show a rising price. The chart at the bottom of the screen shows graph of the stock price for the selected stock.
Pressing the i button at the bottom right of the screen will bring up the list of stocks you are tracking so you can edit them. You can click on the button to the left of the stock to delete it from your list. You can also click on the % or Numbers buttons on the bottom to choose to display a percentage of change, rather than actual dollars per share value.
You can re-arrange the stocks by pressing and dragging the right end of the stock line up or down.
To add a stock, press on the + button at the top of the screen. You can then type the symbol of the stock or the stock name and it will look up the stock symbol for you.
The iPhone Weather application allows you to quickly view the local weather and a five-day forecast. It shows the forecasted high and low temperature, and a weather icon, such as sunny, or partly cloudy.
The iPhone camera is a 2 megapixel (1,200 x 1,600) digital camera. It has almost no features: no flash, focus or zoom. When you bring up the camera interface, it has only one button, at the bottom of the screen. Press this button and it will take a picture.
Once you have taken a picture, the camera application stores it on your phone in the Camera Roll photo album and gets ready to take another picture. You can also press the button at the bottom left corner to go to the Camera Roll. This is essentially the same as viewing the Camera Roll in the Photo Albums application.
From here, you can move back and forward in the Camera Roll, start a slideshow, throw away the picture, or press the button at the bottom left. This will bring up four choices: Use As Wallpaper, Email Photo, Assign To Contact, and Send to Web Gallery.
Photo Albums is where you store pictures on your iPhone. When you first open up the Photo Albums application, you get a list of the different albums available. Camera Roll will contain the pictures you have taken on your iPhone. Photo Library will contain all of the photos you have choosen to sync with your iPhone using iTunes.
(Also see: MacMost Now 485: Creating iPhone Photo Albums, MacMost Now 432: iPhone Camera Apps, MacMost Now 416: iPhone 4 Cameras and the complete list of iPhone OS video tutorials.)
You will also see any other photo albums you have choosen to sync. To create a photo album, use iPhoto. Then, go to iTunes with your iPhone plugged in, select your iPhone and choose the Photos tab. You can select to have all of your photos and albums synced, or only a few. You can also use Smart Albums, that will have selections based on search criteria, such as the most recent photos.
When you select an album to view from the Photo Albums page, you will be taken to a Photo Library page. This will show all the photos in the album, and allow you to scroll through it. You can also press a Play button at the bottom of the screen to start a slideshow.
If you press on a photo, you will be taken to a close view of that photo. You can now use arrows at the bottom of the screen to look at the next or previous picture. You can also press the Play button to start the slideshow. If you are looking at the Camera Roll, you will also see a Trash Can button that you can use to throw away the picture.
At the bottom of the picture, in the left corner, is a small button that will bring up some more functions. You can choose to have the picture used as you iPhone wallpapge, you can email the photo, assign it to a contact, or send it to a Web Gallery that you had previous set up with your .Mac account and iPhoto.
The iPhone calendar is a mini version of iCal, the calendar application that comes with Mac OS X.
There are three main views for the calendar: List, Day and Month. The list view simply takes all the events in your calendar and displays them one after the other. It usually start by showing you today’s events, but you can scroll up or down with your finger to see earlier or later events.
The next view mode is the Day View. This shows you only events scheduled for today. You can use the arrow keys on the top left and top right corners to move from day to day. You can also scroll up and down with your finger to see events earlier or later in the day.
If you are viewing the current day, the screen will automatically start with the top of the screen close to the current time. Otherwise, the screen will adjust to show the first event. Any all-day events will be shown at the top of the screen, before the timeline of events.
The monthly view shows the entire month in standard calendar format. The current day will always be shown darker than the rest. Under the calendar will be a shortened list view of events for the selected day. The selected day can be the current day, or another day of the month.
At the top of the screen, you can use the arrows to move from month to month.
Always present at the top of the screen in all three views is the Today button. This will take you back to the current day in any view. There is also the + button, which allows you to add an event.
When adding an event, there are a variety of screens that you must use, starting with the main Add Event screen. From there, you can go to the Title & Location screen, the Start & End screen, the Repeat Event screen, the Event Alert screen and the Notes screen.
Both the Title & Location screen and the Notes screen use a keyboard to allow you to enter information.
The Start & End screen uses a scrolling clock interface to allow you to choose each time. You can also turn All-day to On. If you do, the scrolling clock interface only lets you set the start and end day, not a time.
The Repeat Event screen lets you select None, Every Day, Every Week, Every 2 Weeks, Every Month or Every Year. For instance, if you select Every Day, the event will appear on every day from the current day forward.
Also, if you select to have an event repeat, a new option of End Repeat is added to your main Add Event page. This allows you to choose a date on which the repeating ends.
The Event Alert screen allows you to choose a variety of times to show you an alert: 5 minutes before, 15 minutes before, etc. If you choose an alert, the main Add Event screen will now allow you to also add a Second Alert.
The Notes screen allows you to add additional information about the event.
All of the screens include a Save and a Cancel button. The Save button on all screens will take you back to the main Add Event screen. So adding an event consists of a sequence of going to each of the screens and pressing Save to return to the Add Event screen. Pressing Cancel instead, will return you to the Add Event screen, but not save the information you entered.
On the Add Event screen, you can compete the event by pressing the Done button.
To view any event in the calendar, navigate to the event using one of the three views. Press the event to go to a screen with all the event information. Then you can press on an Edit button to go to the Edit screen, which is identical to the Add Event screen except for the red Delete Event button at the bottom of the event, instead of the Cancel button at the upper left.
The main way many people use the Calendar application is to enter their events using iCal in Mac OS, and then sync with their iPhone using iTunes. The sync works both ways, taking changes made on the iPhone and uploading them to the Mac.
We’ve created a special section called the MacMost iPhone case finder. There you can search for iPhone and iPod touch cases based on color, style, brand and model.
The iPhone’s Clock application has a lot going on that you might not expect. There are actually four different functions built in: World Clock, Alarm, Stopwatch and Timer.
The World Clock allows you to add several different locations using a search, and it will show them all in a vertical list. Use the + button to search for and add a location. Use the Edit button to delete locations and change their order.
The Alarm allows you to add one or more alarm times to a list. You can specify the sound to play, whether to allow a snooze function, and you can name the alarm. You can also have the alarm repeat on one or more days of the week. You set the time for an alarm using three dials at the bottom of the screen. So, for instance, you could set the alarm to wake you Monday through Thursday at 7 a.m., and then Friday at 7:30 a.m. and Saturday at 10 a.m. You could also set an alarm for every day at 10 p.m. to remind you to take medication or let the cat out.
The Stopwatch is the simplest feature of the clock. It simply has a Start and Reset button. When you press the Start button, it changes to a Stop button. Meanwhile, the time changes and displays in tenths of a second. The Reset button changes to a Lap button. Press the Lap button and the time is recorded in the list and the stopwatch resets to 0 and continues counting.
The Timer function shows a dial at the top of the screen that allows you to set a time in hours and minutes. Then you can press the Start button to start counting down. You can also specify a sound to play when time is up.
The iPhone calculator is a simple calculator with minimal functions.
To do a simple calculation, enter in a number, then an operation, then another number, and then the = button. For instance, to add 13+86 you would enter 1 then 3, then +, then 8 and 6, then =.
There is also a memory function. Press m+ to store the current number in memory. Once it is there, you can use m+ to add to that number. Use m- to subtract from memory. When you want to get the result that is in memory, use mr/mc. Press it again to clear memory. When a number is stored in memory, the mr/mc button is outlined.
The c button will clear the current operation.
The iPhone Notes application lets you type, store and email small text documents.
The main screen will list the notes you have stored, and the last time you edited them. Press on a note to edit it. Press the + button to create a new note.
When viewing a note, you have a few buttons at the bottom of the screen. You can use the arrows to move from note to note. You can use the letter-shaped button to email your note. You can use the trash can to delete the note.
Click on the body of the note to enter edit mode. This will bring up the keyboard. You can type on the keyboard to enter text. You can roll your finger over the text in the note to reposition the cursor. To enter non-letter characters, press the the .?123 button at the bottom left. You can press, hold, roll and release to enter a single special character, or tap on the .?123 button once, and then tap on a key to type multiple characters.
The SMS Text Application lets you send text messages to other phones and connected devices that support SMS.
The main SMS Text screen shows your recent conversations. You can use the Edit button to delete conversations. You can also swipe left to right across the listing with your finger and press the Delete button that appears.
To start a new conversation, press the pencil-in-box button at the upper right.
Enter a phone number, or use the + button to select one from your address book. Then click on the small text area next to the Send button to enter your message. Press the Send button to send.
Once a conversation has started, or if you select an old conversation, you will see a list of messages along with some buttons. You can press the Call button at any time to call the person you are conversing with. You can press the Contact Info button to see their listing in your Address Book.
The rest of the screen shows your conversation, with your messages to the right, and the other person’s messages to the left. You can send a new message using the text area and the Send button at the bottom of the screen. You can also use the Clear button to clear out the old messages.
The iPhone You Tube Application lets you browse and view videos at the popular video sharing site YouTube.com. You can do this several ways: by using the Featured and Most Viewed lists, searching or viewing your video bookmarks or history. You can select from these options at the bottom of the screen. Press More to see other options, such as the Most Recently uploaded video, Top Rated videos. and your viewing history.
The iPhone Maps Application is allows you to view and search Google Maps. It also lets you see traffic reports in some cities, satellite views, and will give you directions from one location to another.
The main screen for Maps has a search field at the top and a few buttons at the bottom. Press the search field to bring up the keyboard. Then enter a location. You can enter a specific address, a zip code, the name of a city and state, or any search term to allow Google Maps to take its best guess.
Moving around the maps is done by pressing and dragging on your screen. You can zoom in by pinching the screen, and zoom out with the opposite gesture.
To get directions, press the Directions button at the bottom of the screen. You will now have two search fields at the top. Enter something in each field. You can use the squiggly button at the left to swap the fields.
You can then press the Edit button to change the start or end locations, or use the Start button to see the first step in following the directions. Arrows will then replace the Start button and allow you to go through the directions step-by-step.
The iPhone can also find your current location with varying degrees of accuracy. Press the bulls-eye button at the lower left.
You can enable more Maps features by pressing the eye button at the bottom right. This brings up more options, such at the ability to drop a pin in the map at the current location, and to turn on traffic reports. You can also switch from map view to Satellite image view, or use a hybrid of map and imagery. The List view can be used when you are getting directions and simply wish to see a list of all the of the steps on one screen.
The traffic reports show up as green, red and yellow lines, usually on interstate highways in major cities. You may have to zoom out quite a distance to see them.
The Satellite and Hybrid views will show satellite pictures of the area. Different areas may have different quality and levels of depth.
The iTunes application on the iPhone is a small version of the iTunes store found in the Mac and Windows iTunes application. You can see the featured and new releases, top ten lists, browse by genre and search. You can then purchase music and get it directly on your iPhone.
The search functionality allows you to search for group, album or song name.
When you select an album, you can purchase the entire thing, or a single song. You can also preview a song by clicking on its listing. It plays a 30-second clip.
Click on the Downloads button at the bottom of the screen to see any songs you have purchased. These will automatically be added to your iPod Application as well, so after purchasing there is no need to use the iTunes Application to play the songs.
I’ve read in a few places how the “Xbox 360 Live Vision Camera” might be a good replacement for the no-longer-sold stand-alone iSight camera. With Leopard (and Tiger 10.4.9) you can now use a variety of standards-based Web cameras with Macs. Just plug-and-play. And at $33 at Amazon.com, this Xbox camera seems like a bargain, and people are reporting excellent quality.
But after getting one, I was very disappointed. First off, the camera is manual focus. That puts it down a step from most other Web cameras. It is 1600×1200, which is nice, but the resulting quality at 640×480 is poor compared to the built-in iSight in iMacs and MacBooks.
It does plug-and-play, but I couldn’t get it to work with iMovie or PhotoBooth, as it only wanted to use the built-in iSight. I did get it to work with WireCast and QuickTime Pro.
The big show-stopped for me was the color quality. Very poor. The color was way off and no amount of lighting seemed to fix it.
So, this might be a good, cheap Web camera for chatting or having fun, but not for making any video.
It seemed like “never” was when Neverwinter Nights 2 for Mac would be released. First it was November, then December, then January, then March. But now it looks like we’ll get it a bit earlier than March as Feb. 26 has been set as the date.
Neverwinter Nights is the successor to the Baldur’s Gate series of games and both are directly related to real Dungeons and Dragons, which means a little nostalgia thrown in with good RPG play. You can also create your own adventures, which for some RPG-obsessed people like me, is even more fun than playing.
I loved the Baldur’s Gate games on Mac years ago. I couldn’t wait for the original Neverwinter Nights to come out on Mac, so I bought it for Windows. I regretted that decision, since my main computers are Macs it meant that it was too much of a bother to switch to a PC to play. So I didn’t get my money’s worth out of it. Now with Boot Camp and Parallels, it was tempting to get the Windows version of Neverwinter Nights 2 many months ago, but I’ve been holding out as to not make the same mistake.
Adobe announced Director 11, which is the software that allows developers to make Shockwave content. Shockwave is the browser plug-in that is used in multimedia and gaming. It is considered more powerful than Flash, mostly because of its 3D engine that uses OpenGL on the Mac to present real 3D — the type you see in big games.
But for a while, Shockwave really hasn’t been available on the Mac. Shockwave 10, the current version, was released in 2004 and does not work on Intel machines. You could get it to work by setting either Safari or Firefox into Rosetta mode, forcing them to work like PowerPC applications on Intel machines. But most people didn’t bother.
With the release of Director 11 in March should come Shockwave 11, which will work on Intel Macs. So Shockwave will be back. You can see lots of example of Shockwave content at the free online games site GameScene.com.
Rumors of blu-ray drives on Macs starting way back in mid-2006, but so far nothing official from Apple. You can get a 3rd-party blu-ray drive for your Mac, and Toast already supports Blu-ray drives. Also, look to Steve Jobs’ other company, Disney, to see that they have been all into Blu-ray for some time. Plus, Apple has been on the
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