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Posts tagged with "mac"

MacHeist Confirms Tweetie 2 for Mac Is Still Coming→

MacHeist Confirms Tweetie 2 for Mac Is Still Coming

Ev’s tweet even took me by a bit of a surprise because we’ve been in contact with Loren Brichter (@lorenb), developer of Tweetie, ever since the bundle happened and even though Twitter has acquired his company,Atebits, he’s still been working on Tweetie 2 for Mac. If you carefully read Ev’s tweet, you’ll see that he was careful with the language and “not something we’re actively investing in” doesn’t at all mean that the app is in any way dead. In fact, we’ve confirmed with Loren that it’s alive and well and he’s still progressing on Tweetie 2, even though with the acquisition and his new responsibilities, it’s taking longer than he originally anticipated. It’s also worth noting that he’s added another developer to help him move things along.

And it should be free. MacHeist users will get access to an early beta.

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SweetFM 2.0 - Last.fm Mac Client

Chocomoko has released version 2.0 of their SweetFM Mac application. SweetFM is a Last.fm client and player for Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.4.

Version 2.0 has a completely redesigned UI that is more user-friendly and uses native Mac OS technologies. It also comes with Safari and Chrome browser extensions for Last.fm station control and can open the iTunes store pages from the current track. Other features: supports Media Keys, has an EQ, tagging and social network sharing, device scrobbling, multiple user accounts, hot keys and playlist management. Read more

Fight the Dangers of Distraction On Your Mac→

Fight the Dangers of Distraction On Your Mac

Does this mean we should all cancel our Twitter accounts, stop checking email and throw our iPhones in the trash? No, we just need to exercise some moderation. Consistently spend some time concentrating on doing one thing and ignore distractions. Not only will our brains thank you in the long run, but in the short term, you’ll see performance improve, too. Of course, doing it is easier said than done. Luckily, technology can give us all a little SelfControl.

Good tips. Didn’t know about this app.

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It’s Here: AutoCAD for Mac Now Available

It’s been 18 years since the last appearance of AutoCAD on the Mac platform. 18 years during which professional designers and engineers all over the world were forced to use a PC, or install a copy of Windows on a partition on their Macs. Today, AutoCAD is coming back to OS X: it’s finally available for download (with a 30-day free trial) here.

Also available with educational discount for students, AutoCAD for Mac returns with a native interface and feel built on top of OS X unique capabilities, exclusive features for Mac users such as Cover Flow support and multi-touch gestures, also supported by the Magic Trackpad.

Our experience has been that AutoCAD for Mac is similar enough to the PC version that the transition is easy. We’ve found it to be a very powerful and reliable product that has all the functionality we need.”

Styles&Wood, the UK’s leading provider of property services to retailers, banks and commercial organizations, is one of the more than 5,000 participants who were part of the AutoCAD for Mac beta program. “We have been waiting a long time for AutoCAD to come back to the Mac,” said Andrew Handley, CAD development manager. “Our experience has been that AutoCAD for Mac is similar enough to the PC version that the transition is easy. We’ve found it to be a very powerful and reliable product that has all the functionality we need.

AutoCAD for Mac is available here. Check out the full press release after the break. Read more

Apple Seeds Xcode 4 Preview 4 To Developers

Apple has just posted a new developer preview of Xcode 4, which reaches version 4. It’s available in the Mac and iOS developer portal.

This is a pre-release version of Xcode 4, a major new release of Xcode for both Mac and iOS development. This release requires Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, and includes the iOS SDK 4.1, to develop apps for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. Please review the Release Notes and Readme before installing this software.

Xcode 4 is a major new version of Apple’s development suite which sports lots of new features and a new single-windowed UI. The first version of Xcode 4 preview was released during the WWDC in June, the second build was seeded in late July, and Preview 3 was made available on September 2.

New Version of Skype for Mac Coming “Soon”

This morning Skype launched a brand new version of its official Windows client with direct Facebook integration. That’s a biggie. And what about Mac users? We’re still left behind with a clunky old version of Skype that doesn’t even support multi-video chat, nor does it have the new UI introduced in the Windows counterpart.

Still, Skype promises we only have to wait a little more before we can put our hands on a “complete overhaul, both in terms of the way it looks, and in terms of functionality”.

No problem, Skype: we’re used to wait for Mac updates. Just one thing: where’s the iPad app, again?

Licensing State of the Union→

Licensing State of the Union

Interesting article over at Flyosity on the various techniques developers can use to prevent their apps from being cracked and shared. The last bit, though:

There are a number of ways to protect your application from piracy. However, when it comes down to it, piracy cannot be stopped. Whether you like it or not, if someone wants to steal your application, they will. On this note, pirated copies should not be considered lost sales. Most pirates had no intention of purchasing your application in the first place. Donʼt hurt your real customers. If your application is good enough, people will buy it. The best way to prevent piracy?

Make great apps.

I couldn’t agree more. The whole thing is a must-read, especially for developers.

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Walt Mossberg Loves The New Outlook for Mac

Our beloved Walt Mossberg is loving the new version of Office for Mac, dubbed “2011” and dropping on October 26th. Particularly, he seems to be liking the new Outlook a lot:

I was able to import a nearly 3-gigabyte Windows Outlook data file with no problems. And I was able to easily and perfectly import all my messages and settings from Apple’s own built-in Mail program and to sync with Apple’s (AAPL) built-in Mac address book. But Microsoft is still working on syncing with Apple’s iCal calendar program, and the Outlook calendar can’t sync with Google Calendar. Also, while the new Mac Outlook can import Windows Outlook data, it can’t export its data to Windows yet. Microsoft says it is also working on that.

In general, Outlook on the Mac proved fast and capable in my tests. It doesn’t work exactly like its Windows counterpart, but Windows users will find it very similar. And it has some Mac-specific features. For instance, its contents can be easily searched by the Mac’s built-in universal search feature, Spotlight, and can be backed up by the Mac’s Time Machine backup system.

Microsoft’s new Mac Office is by far the best Mac version of the suite I’ve used, and I can recommend it.

For as much as I understand the needs of companies willing to use Macs, but stuck on Office, there’s no way I’m giving up on Mail for when it comes to desktop email. I’ll give it a try, though.