Tue, Jan 1, 2013
Lisa Eadicicco, Digital Trends
Kirk McElhearn, Macworld
It’s that time again when Mac users make their New Year’s resolutions. How about a simple pledge to keep your computer clean? I’m not talking about deleting cache files or removing old apps you no longer use. I’m talking about your Mac’s screen and keyboard, or its dusty, grungy innards. It’s not difficult to do, but keeping a clean Mac can help it run smoother, and keep you from getting sick as well. Here are a few ways you can keep your Mac looking new and fresh.
Tom Warren, The Verge
Like clockwork, Apple's iOS devices are experiencing another time-related bug on New Year's Day. A new Do Not Disturb feature in IOS 6 is failing to disable itself for some today, leaving calls and notifications muted for longer than usual. Not everyone is affected, but one of our own iPad's with the scheduled Do Not Disturb feature enabled has failed to turn off at the normal time.
Heng-Cheong Leong, MyAppleMenu
Welcome to 2013. I didn't die in 2012.
And speaking of not dying, here are the selection of apps that managed to stay on my Mac OS X dock and my iPhone's home screen. Perhaps they can be of assistance to your digital life too?
Mac OS X
1. MAMP - I've got tired of fighting with Apple in dealing with Apache and MySQL when Mountain Lion was released, so now I'm using this instead.
2. OmniOutliner for Mac - This is great for taking notes and for making plans.
3. Google Chrome - I do like Safari, especially the double-tap-to-zoom feature. But, Safari is not the most reliable web browsers out there. So, when I do get frustrated, I switch to Chrome.
4. Reeder - I cannot imagine why anyone would want to use the web browser to browse articles from Google Reader, especially when you can have Reeder.
5. TweetBot - It took quite a while, but I've finally moved my tweet-reading experience to a new app that can sync up with my tweet-reading experience on the iPhone. (There's also Tweet Marker, but somehow, it didn't really work well for me.)
6. Wren - I use Wren to tweet, because I know I am easily distracted.
7. Sublime Text - I have also switched text editor because I'm now full-time on a Windows machine during work hours, and I do want a text editor that is cross-platform between Mac and Windows.
iPhone
8. Audiobooks from Audible and Downcast - I've started using the former because a particular version of the Apple's Music app started losing my place in my audiobooks, and I've started using the latter when Apple released the Podcast app and I fear for my podcast-listening experience on the iPhone.
9. Orbital - I'm still playing this iPhone game, especially when I am listening to audiobooks or podcasts during my commute. (I don't drive.) This is great mindless entertainment for my eyes and hands that also doesn't distract my ears.
10. Letterpress - Fulfills the rest of my (casual) gaming needs.
11. TweetBot, Instapaper and Kobo - These are the three main apps I turn to for reading, from 140 characters to entire articles to entire books.
12. Lumin - And for reading real-life physical text (such as bills and recipes where tiny types are the norm), I rely on this app to make text bigger. (I've tried pinching the paper, but that didn't work.)
13. SG NextBus and Gothere.sg - These are my go-to apps for travelling in Singapore. Too bad the local telco's data connection can occasionally be so bad as to render these apps useless.
NSHipster
In celebration of the forthcoming year++, I thought it’d be fun to compile a list of some of your favorite tips and tricks of the trade–to give y’all a chance to show off some of your NSHipster cred.
Ash Furrow
This list isn't about stylistic things like which line new braces go on (new ones, duh). This list is about potential problems with the code you're writing on an objective scale.
Jeffery Battersyb, Macworld
Studiometry 10 is a business management application aimed at small businesses and designed to help track and manage projects, create quotes and invoices, and make sure you’re getting paid on time. Geared toward businesses that are anywhere from 1 to 50 employees, the program is designed to grow as your business does, making it easy to convert a standalone database into a server-based business management tool that can handle all your users whether they’re working from a Mac, PC, or iOS device.
David Sparks, MacSparky
Kirk McElhearn, Macworld