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Quickly Append Browser URLs To Evernote with Keyboard Maestro

I often come across webpages and interesting links that I can’t check out right away, but that I also don’t want to send to Instapaper, Pinboard, or my OmniFocus inbox. They are, put simply, “stuff to check out”; I append these URLs to an Evernote note carrying the same name:

Macro

Macro

As I detailed in my review of Drafts 3.0 for iOS, appending text from an iPhone or iPad is easy with Agile Tortoise’s app and a combination of Evernote actions and browser bookmarklets, but I had to think of an equally straightforward workflow for the Mac. Unfortunately, the lack of a Drafts app for OS X forced me to resort to AppleScript to achieve the same kind of functionality, but the deal was (partially) sweetened by the new features introduced in Keyboard Maestro 6.0, released back in May.

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Feed Wrangler’s Smart Streams→

Shawn Blanc:

Anyone who has been subscribing to RSS feeds for longer than a few months will know your subscription list regularly needs pruning and adjusting. Well, I want my RSS reader to help me with that task. Smart Streams can help by making it easier to wrangle my feeds based on more than just which website they came from. I expect in the long run that they will prove very accommodating and useful as my interests change and as my attention ebbs and flows.

A good overview of Feed Wrangler’s best feature. I’ve been using Feed Wrangler since April and I’m very happy with it.

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ReadKit and Slow Feeds Updated with Feed Wrangler Support

ReadKit

ReadKit

As I noted yesterday with Mr. Reader’s update, the upcoming shutdown of Google Reader has resulted in a fast uptake of third-party RSS services by existing clients for iOS and OS X, leading to a more variegate, rich ecosystem of apps that sync to different web services that aim at replacing Google Reader. Among the new contenders for the RSS throne there’s David Smith’s Feed Wrangler, which has become my favorite alternative to Google Reader and that, after Mr. Reader and the upcoming Reeder for iPhone update, is now supported by Slow Feeds and ReadKit. Read more

Indiegogo: Kreyos Meteor - A Voice and Gesture Enabled Smartwatch

The Kreyos Meteor is the latest wearable gadget to make its appearance on a crowd-funding platform, this time on Indiegogo. Claiming to be the only smartwatch with both voice and gesture controls, the Kreyos Meteor connects over Bluetooth to your iPhone, Android, or Windows 8 phone. With an iPhone, you can engage Siri through the watch, or use motion-based gestures like a wave of the hand to skip tracks, answer calls, or to have the watch read you a text message without pressing a button. The watch will even help you locate your misplaced phone.

More impressive are the litany of features that are built in for monitoring personal health. The watch could replace devices like the Fitbit or Jawbone UP, tracking overall activity and more with built-in heart rate and cycling monitors. And the Kreyos Meteor isn’t just limited to being a watch - it can be taken out of its watchband to fit into a lanyard or belt clip. It’s also waterproof, making it a great choice for swimmers who want to analyze their performance or for trail runners exposed to the elements.

Targeted at people who want a better way to receive notifications and individuals who are looking for an all in one sensor to track their performance, the Kreyos Meteor wants to keep the phone in your pocket. Just like the Pebble, the Kreyos Meteor will also give developers an opportunity to create new apps and gestures. Already exceeding its goal of $100,000, a contribution of $119 lets you pre-order you the watch in black, expected to ship this November. For an additional $10 you can pick your own color. You can learn more fund the campaign here.

Responding To iOS 7→

Winning apps won’t merely take Apple’s default look and mimic it. Think about how boring it would be if all of our apps looked like iOS 7 Calendar or Settings. It would get old really fast. But that’s nothing new. Think about if all the apps on iOS 6 looked like iOS 6 Calendar and settings… Yep, it would be really boring.

Jeremy Olson has some great thoughts on how designers and developers should respond to iOS 7 in the coming months. From what I’ve seen so far, this summer will be an interesting one.

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Apple Details iOS 7 Business and Education Improvements→

Last night, Apple updated its iOS 7 mini-site to include links to two webpages that detail improvements coming for Business and Education users.

For Business, the biggest additions are Per app VPN, more controls on “Open In”, third-party app data protection, and more options coming to MDM with streamlined enrollment. New MDM options are also coming for Education users, alongside single sign-on for an institution’s apps, App Store license management, and more.

Macworld has a good overview of the changes coming in iOS 7 for Business and Education. As noted by Bradley Chambers, the new Apple ID features for students under age 13 are a notable addition.

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Mr. Reader 2.0 Adds Support For Feedly, Feed Wrangler, Fever, and More

Mr. Reader 2.0

Mr. Reader 2.0

With Google Reader shutting down in less than a week, developers of RSS clients for iOS and OS X are rushing to get updates approved by Apple and let App Store customers continue using their apps with other RSS services. In the past two weeks, details have emerged on a variety of new RSS platforms that are launching on the brink of Reader’s demise, such as Feedly, Digg Reader, and AOL Reader; I’ve already covered Feed Wrangler, the service I’m currently using, and Reeder’s update with support for Feedbin. It’s not clear if one service will stand out as a “winner” in a post-Google Reader world; for now, what’s apparent is that most third-party developers are deciding to support various Google Reader alternatives rather than picking a single service (as it happened with Google Reader in the past three years). Today, my favorite Google Reader app for iPad, Mr. Reader, has been updated to support six new RSS services, with a version 2.0 that doesn’t add new sharing or reading functionalities, but that ensures the app will continue working after July 1. Read more