Glen Scott - Keeping it simple, since 1977

The new beta 3 version of Messenger for Mac allows you to make voice calls to other Messenger users for free:

Mac Version - Yahoo! Messenger

So, I’m now in the process of getting my new MacBook up to speed in terms of applications. Here are the apps that I decided were essential and needed installing:

• Yahoo! Messenger
• last.fm Client
• TextWrangler
• Cyberduck
• Inquisitor
• OpenOffice
• Firefox

Bingo!

I’ve updated the plug-in so it’s now a Universal Binary:

Yahoo! Maps Plug-in for Apple Address Book

I’ve been meaning to get hold of one for ages, but finally I’ve got my hands on an EyeTV.  I’ve chosen the Hybrid version as I’m planning on digitising some analog video at some point in the future.

Initial impressions are very good:

• The USB device itself is very small, as is the bundled aerial.
• The EyeTV software (version 2.5.2) is excellent; it includes a free 1 year subscription to the tvtv service which provides a comprehensive programme guide.
• Digital picture quality is excellent, even in full screen mode, although unfortunately I don’t get the full range of Freeview channels.

EyeTV Hybrid INT

If you have a large music library on your computer, it won’t necessarily fit on your iPhone or iPod. Instead of syncing your whole library, it’s worthwhile being a little more selective with the tunes that you want to listen to on the move. To this end, I have two smart playlists set up that I sync with my iPhone:

1. Wheat, No Chaff

This chooses tunes that I have rated 3 stars or above

2. Recently Added

This playlist picks new music that I have added to my library in the last fortnight.

So a combination of these playlists results in a good mix of great tracks, and new stuff. You can choose to syncronise only selected playlists in the Music tab of your Device:

So, after dissing Firefox yesterday, here is something more positive:  Finally, Firefox has a proper Mac UI in the 3 Beta 3 release:

Download Firefox 3 Beta 3

I use Safari most of the time, but occasionally switch to Firefox for development purposes. There’s always something annoying about Firefox that makes me switch back sharpish. Today’s bugbear: crappy rendering of italic fonts.

Compare and contrast (click to view actual size)

Wikipedia content rendered in Firefox:

Same content rendered in Safari:

Plastic Ono Band - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I’ve put together a tiny plug-in for the Address Book application in Mac OS X that allows you to view a map of your contacts addresses:

Yahoo! Maps Plug-in for Apple Address Book

I am, as of today, an official developer on the YMail.app project. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks you’ll see the app moving forward, with at the very least, a version that works with the latest version of Yahoo! Mail.

To make things more interesting, this is not an official Yahoo! product

YMail.app on SourceForge.net

One of the things that I find difficult about using my Mac for study is the amount of distractions. Simply by being connected to the internet means there is a whole world of procrastination waiting for me.

When I need to focus on writing an essay, there is a very simple little tool that helps me out. It’s called Backdrop and, like all the best productivity tools, is incredibly simple: Run it, and it covers your screen with a single colour. In my case, it’s black. After that, you can bring your most essential apps to the front and focus on just them. I simply have my editor, and nothing else. All ready for me to bang out text, and because I can’t see my desktop, dock, or other open apps, I feel more focused on my primary task.

Backdrop