Today's News by Cletus™ Dude, you're getting a Jaguar!
Various sites around the net I have been reporting that Mac OS X 10.2 is arriving into pre-ordering patties. I have checked my order status and it is still being assembled. Hmm. Some of the reports indicate that they are going out in the sequence they were ordered. Some are reporting that 10.2 is not shipping yet. All things considered, I am very anxious to get my hands on Jaguar.
Finikin Developers have released Modifier Pro fixing a problem where you would be asked to authenticate at inappropriate times, a memory leak, and a problem where Modifier Help would sometimes be launched in Classic. The program also provides a much better GUI for working with file permissions in Mac OS X. Now you can easily change the file and folder permissions while avoiding the Terminal app if that is not your forte!
A couple of font viewing applications have received updates. The first is CharView from Manannikov's Shareware. This update includes the following changes:
- Window hiding bug in MacOS 9.x and OS X Classic has been fixed.
- Font remembering bug has now been taken care of.
- Shows the correct Unicode characters without substitution. This bug was unique to version 2.0.1.
The other font viewing utility is TypeJet from Arcane Ware. Among the many updates to this version, major GUI modifications were made to the main window including new search field, search icon, slideshow icon, ArcaneWare logo, and the information static text. Several other enhancements and fixes were performed on this release.
Aladdin has announced compatibility of DragStrip with Mac OS X 10.2 by releasing version 4.0. DragStrip is a full-featured "launcher" application that allows users unlimited flexibility in organizing and accessing frequently used files and applications.
Hold on— not to be out done, James Thomson welcomes the challenge by offering this: "Since people are asking, no - the new version of Aladdin's DragStrip utility is nothing at all to do with me or DragThing. If you are considering a dock utility, why not give both a try and see which you prefer. DragThing has been available for Mac OS X since day one and we haven't been standing still since then either!" Check out this little teaser.... Isn't competition great?! Stay tuned!
Flurry is the very popular Mac OS X screensaver from Calum Robinson. You hear this name come up a lot when screensaver talk is bantered about. I even remember Mike and I sitting in the fishing boat discussing screensavers for over an hour! I distinctly remember visualizing the little fish swimming by on the screen and thinking— those are the only fish I am seeing. One more tidbit on Flurry— it appears that the screensaver is making it into the Jaguar release. If this is indeed true, congratulations Calum. I guess I just paid for a screensaver after all.
Cletus has left the building.....
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Complete Cable Management For The Home & Office.
Tools of the (Fur) Trade by Michael Coyle
If you use Mozilla be sure to stop by DeskMod and MozDev.org. to see the new themes that are popping up for this Open Source browser. Four are pictured below...
 Early Blue |  Eskimo |
 Celtic |  Orbit |
My, my. Derek Gordon has been busy! He just sent version 2 of his animal skinned MacOS X theme titled Fur. It looks so warm and fuzzy you just want to cuddle with it. Ok. Maybe not, but still, it's a cool look.
I don't have Jaguar yet, and neither does Jason Harris, but that didn't stop him from releasing "Theme Fur" (There's that fur word again). Theme Fur converts the current collection of MacOS X themes to work under MacOS X 10.2. This should help you get by until the original authors create updates.
User Contributed Splash Screens. by Michael Coyle It's easier than ever to contribute using the new Browser Based Upload Page! If you contribute a file to any section of ResExcellence, you could win a PowerMax gift certificate worth $50 ! (How?)
- Chiana from FarScape is featured in this Boot Panel from Scott Sample. He created the star field and nebula in Photoshop!
- In the brushed metal style of Quicktime, Frederic Beaulieu created a MacOS X Boot Panel.
- Here is a simple contribution that I cannot believe someone had not thought of earlier. It's a replacement cursor extention where the watch clock-face spins backwards. Get it, Think Different!! It was created by Ben Bolt.
- Does she work in your office? This boot panel from red rocket features a smokin' lady in front of her PowerMac.
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Today's News by Cletus™
If you are looking for an unique sound manipulation program, look no further than SoundHack. The program provides many features not found in other program. This version provides the ability to work with .cdda files and fixes a bug in phase vocoder pitch stretching.
piPop is the popular navigation tool for Mac OS X. Version 2.0.4 is primarily a bug fix for the problem where the root menu would not hi-lite the selected item. piPop is described as a utility to help make your workflow smoother. Give her a try.
Folder Icon X 1.2.4 is a quick update to this custom folder icon maker that has added the command "Save Incomplete Icon" to the File menu.
If you are looking for a quick way to change your desktop picture, why not look into the new Azine Software DesktopPictureCM? This Contextual Menu plugin provides a quick way to set the desktop picture from within the Finder. As with CM's, simple right-click or control-click the picture and select 'Set as Desktop Picture'.
However, if you are looking for automation to change the desktop picture, check the new version of ChangeDesktop. Changes in this version include:
- Added French localization for all components.
- Changes to work with 10.2 (Jaguar).
- The Daemon now supports aliases to pictures (not folders).
- Fixed a failure to upload and a crasher in the Daemon's Publish Service.
- ChangeDesktop sports a new Software Update service.
Everyones favorite dialog box enhancement tool is Default Folder! The version for Mac OS X had undergone significant changes making it a must have. St. Clair Software, as always, is doing good things with this program. The list of changes is long and makes for a good read. If you have not tried out the version for Mac OS X yet, please do so. The feature of clicking in a Finder window and having the dialog box switch to that window has been added to this release.
The next version of System Optimizer X is now available for download. The summary of changes for this version include: Internet connection optimization, window buffer compression, internet version checking, localized readmes, full error coding, minor bug fixes, minor interface improvements.
WorkStrip X has now been updated for compatibility with Mac OS X 10.2. It provides users with a highly customizable alternative to the Dock. Some of the hi-lites include the ability to have multiple workspaces and previews of files without opening a program.
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Tools of the Trade by Michael Coyle
Derek Gordon from the outstanding DGGraphics sends a new MacOS X Theme titled "Fur". (Ya know, Jaguar, fur. Get it?)
In a break with tradition, Derek is not using a repeating pattern for the menu bar, so there are three versions to download depending on your screen resolution.
Derek adds, "I have received feedback that some of the GUI elements don't transfer properly to work with Jaguar using Theme Fur 1.3, namely the menubar text defaults back to black., but once I get my paws on 10.2, I'll make the necessary changes. Also there are a few variations among the themes. Fur 1280 has a solid black menu selection fill with stripes, while Fur 1152 has a black fill with a solid white background. I haven't decided which one I like best, so I would love some feedback. It's my first theme."
For AOL Chat, Adium is pretty cool, but some folks like the emoticons from iChat better. John Engler has posted a tutorial on extracting the AIM emoticons and dropping them into Adium. This is likely to get him spanked by Apple Legal, so read it while you can!
Since this seems to be PalmOS week at ResEx, here's an tip from Diane Jennings.
"I have a Palm PDA and love it except for the Graffiti. For some reason, I could never master the special characters required for the software to recognize my handwriting.
I grew tired of having to look up the special characters each time I wanted to write in something on my Palm. So, I searched on the web for handwriting recognition software designed especially for PDAs.
I found MyScript suitable for my needs. It allows you to write in your own handwriting and the software is easy to use. Since it is made by a French company, they do not accept all credit cards for ordering. I recommend getting the software directly from Handango where it’s cheaper than getting it from the company’s website. PS. You can leave the bulky laptop at home...."
Diane, you can have my Powerbook when you pry it from my cold, dead, fingers. For $34.95 MyScript gives Newton-style handwriting recognition to the PalmOS. I think what Diane is bothered by is not the normal alphabet characters of the PalmOS, but all the other ASCII characters: @#$%. These require cryptic keystrokes.
Ryan says, "All of a sudden, I have Military Time in my Menubar Clock. I am running OS X and have no idea how to change it back to good ole' easy reading time. Can you help? I have looked everywhere in the preferences that I can think of."
The military time is a special message only to you Ryan from John Ashcroft. It's his way of letting you know that "Uncle Sam Wants You!"
To tell Ashcroft you're not interested, look under the Time tab of the International System Preference.
John's Sketchpad has added a dozen new Boot Panels for MacOS X. Topics include the crew and ship of "Enterprise", the fighter jets of the US Armed Forces, and of course some lovely ladies.
Kent Salas is nuts. Like crazy good nuts, not crazy bad nuts (I think my Dad's gone crazy). He has so voided the warranty on his G4 Tower, which he affectionately calls, "BlueIce". Not only has he replaced the plastics with transparent panels, he has managed to embed a small LCD screen in the front of the tower! You have to see it to believe it. And he's not done...
Have you wondered why Mozilla never shows a splash screen under Linux. It seems it's turned off by default. In a terminal, type: mozilla -splash to see the dragon. If you launch the browser via an icon, middle-click on it to bring up the Properties window and under the Execute command where it says mozilla, add the -splash.
User Contributed Splash Screens. by Michael Coyle It's easier than ever to contribute using the new Browser Based Upload Page! If you contribute a file to any section of ResExcellence, you could win a PowerMax gift certificate worth $50 ! (How?)
- She looks clueless and thinks MacOS X 10.2 is useless. So says this school girl Boot Panel from red rocket.
- This is based on a photo taken on one of the rare days Los Angeles was smogless. A very pretty skyline Boot Panel was prepared by Evan.
- A bubbly Internet Explorer splash screen was created by SniZe.
- Augggghhhh!!!! More fur! James Rose sent this Giant Boot Panel of the furry Jaguar logo.
- While it doesn't yet work on iTunes 3, BloodFly contributed this TBird iTunes skin for Classic MacOS.
Calendar & Appointment Scheduler for Mac OS X
Today's News by Cletus™
I have randomly selected the three winners of the Personal Organizer contest. They will be receiving a free registration for the program from Chronos. Our thanks go out to all that entered. Our congratulations go out to the three winners who are:
- Laura Belgrave
- Rock Norris
- David McMyler
Matthew Fahrenbacher wrote in to let us know that Alarm Clock S.E. has just gone through a major overhaul and has been updated to version 3.0. It now sports a better calendar layout, more advanced event handling and features, better interface design, better performance, and much more. If you tried out an earlier version and weren't impressed, you should try out this one - it's a big difference!
Monet's Water Lilies is the newest screensaver available from CassDesign. CassDesign has produced many nice screensavers. While they are shareware, if you're going to spend money on a screensaver, these are the ones to consider. The description for this one is: In the later years of Monet's life he settled down at Giverny and painted his garden and the pond filled with water lilies. In this screen saver you can enjoy many of his famous paintings.
Donelleschi has posted an update to DockFun! This very popular program allows you to switch between different Dock configurations. An infinite number of configurations to be exact. This release is primarily a bug fix for the default Dock issue.
If you like to have multiple files or programs launch at the same time, try Multiple Launcher X. "Multiple Launcher X is an Mac OS X-native application allowing users to create a stand-alone launcher that can open multiple items, both files and folders. The editor fully supports drag and drop feature." This version works on systems 10.1 through 10.2.
I noticed this little tidbit from Dr. Mac on OSX FAQ the other day. If you did not see it, it is worth mentioning and definitely worth reading. Here is what he said: "In a nutshell, a future release of Mac OS X will break any menu extras you're using. If you're like me, you LIKE menu extras." Unsanity comes to the rescue:
The Menu Extra Enabler enables third party Menu Extras (the things on the right side of the menu bar) to run on a future release of Mac OS X. Mac OS X 10.2 introduces a block that prevents third party Menu Extras from loading. This haxie brings back all kinds of nice stuff like Cee Pee You or MUMenu into your menubar. And of course, it's completely free.
This really seems odd to me since it will really hose third party developers [again]. If you read Unsanities comments it seems even Apple is not following their guidelines while still hosing others. I hope other "menu.extra" developers continue to work on a fix and not give up. This continued hammering by Apple on third party developers is getting a little tiresome. Hats off once again to Unsanity for helping out on another (intentional or not) blunder on Apples part and doing it for free.
A Couple of nice updates to check out. OmniGraffle 2.0.6 is now available as is a new sneakypeak of OmniWeb 4.1.1sp1 from The Omni Group. Check them out. They are a couple of my favorite programs....
Have a Press Release? Software or General News? Submit it here: Suggestions!
Polling Place by Michael Coyle 
According to this web site, in the average population, one-third of people dream in color. It notes that artists dream in color most of the time. This may explain why 84% of ResEx readers experience color in their dreams. So many of you are involved in graphic design.
Since most nights I have vivid colorful dreams, I feel a little bad for the 9% that don't remember any dreams at all! You're not the PC users that visit the site, are you? ;-)
Recently, the Wife began complaining about the bulky size of her old Newton 300 Message Pad. (She must have bought a new, smaller purse!)
To get out of the Dog House after my recent drinking binge with Cletus, I thought I'd buy the little lady a nice PalmOS Organizer. After checking out the various options, I picked up a Sony Clie 360. DaNG ThESE ARE cooL, BuT GRAffITI TAkEs soME GETTING usE To.
More than a year ago, the Polling Place asked how many readers used a PDAs. I think it's time to revisit the issue. This week's Polling Place asks, "Do you have a PDA?"
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