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Today's News by Cletus™ Let's do some updates: DragThing 4.5.1 is a minor maintenance release to fix a bug that could cause problems when converting preferences files from older versions of DragThing. Otherwise it is identical to the recent 4.5 version. We have it here, and it can be found here also
Simple Search for Mac OS X provides a GUI front end in the form of a tab that can attach to either side of your monitor. It stays out of your way until needed. You choose your search site from the popup menu, enter your query and hit return to submit. Simple as that.
Infinity-to-the-Power-of-Infinity has posted MacBoot 1.0. In Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar, the familiar happy mac image was replaced with a grey apple on a grey background. This program allows you to replace the boot image with an icon or image of your choice. You can also modify the background of the boot image.
 DockSwap will allow you to save several different preference settings for your Dock which can be accessed at any time. Providing compatibility with Mac OS X 10.2.1 now, the simple switching interface is accessed by pressing "Control-ESC". DockSwap saves all Dock settings, including hiding, magnification, and persistent applications/files.
A favorite of mine, PTHClock has been updated. It is a very cool clock and calendar program. It slides out from the menu bar in a slick fashion and allows you to change the color of the time in the menu bar. Changes include: - Added Italian localization.
- No longer need to restart when toggling menubar position.
- Added a preference to automatically hide the calendar when switching away from PTHClock.
- Added a preference to disable shadow display on Date/Time display.
- Added a preference to automatically start on login.
- Added ability to change time zones in Date/Time display.
- Default Date/Time formats no longer have an extra space for AM/PM.
PTHCPUMonitor was also updated by PTH Consutling. PTHCPUMonitor is an application that displays the system load on the menu bar. This update adds two features: a HotKey to kill the active application and another to display detail window.
Angelo Scicolone has posted a bug fix for the just released PrefsOverload taking it to version 5.1.1.
CharView displays all of the symbols of a selected font, allowing you to quickly choose between the different character sets. Besides bringing compatibility with Jaguar, other changes include: - The dock icon of CharView can now be hidden.
- Many settings can be accessed directly from the CharView menu on the Preferences bevel button.
- Font names in the font menu and on the printed page are shown in the native form for the non-Roman font.
- System screensaver process will be detected and the menu icon hidden while it is running.
- Save of window coordinates.
You can have multiple Docks, you can have Docks with different preferences, or you can use DockExtender to add menus to the Dock or Menu bar. The intent is to help keep a clean, neat Dock. This particular beta release fixes incomplete Dockling launches that made DockExtender menus unusable until the Dock was restarted and fixes filename truncation where version numbers with periods ('.') in them were incompletely listed in menus.
Apples most recent eNews letter fell into my lap today. It is one of those things that comes and I always think... I should unsubscribe. I only skim the ingredients normally, but then something caught my eye: "We've Got the Proof", which deals with a forensic photographer. Now that is pretty cool. Remember I work in the medical field...still an interesting read this weekend. So then I thought, oh well, while I am here, may as well look around and I saw the Tip section included something you may be interested in: Immediately hit the spacebar after typing Command-Shift-4. Instead of crosshairs, you'll see a little camera. Move the camera around to highlight the Dock, the menu bar, the desktop, or any open window. Then just click the mouse button to “snap” a screen shot. In fact, with this option, you can entirely eliminate the desktop when you capture a screen shot of an individual window. More...
I don't believe this is the norm! In fact I know this is not the norm. Jeffrey Zeldman is having one heck of a time installing Mac OS X. He chronicles his adventures in OSX Blues and OSX Blues II. Readers are trying to help him, but the frustration continues.
Have a Press Release? Software or General News? Submit it here: Suggestions!
Snapshots by Jeremy Hoesly Close the week out with a handful of snapshots: - This screenshot from an anonymous contributor sports an Anime Wallpapers desktop picture. Roxio’s Toast finishes burning a CD.
- An “Austere Petal” desktop picture and the Classic Theme debut in this submission from Mando Gomez. Interesting.
- Mac15 sends this snapshot featuring a Digital Blasphemy desktop picture. WeatherPop provides the current forecast from the menubar.
- The stock “Aqua Blue” desktop picture is showcased in this contribution from rGreen along with icons from Mac Axonz. Entourage is running in the background.
Today was a much more leisurely day as our week-long journey across the United States approaches completion. Much of the day was spent seeing the Hoover Dam and the Las Vegas Strip. By Monday, I’ll once again be updating from the comforts of home back in Virginia. More pictures from the trip will be showcased then.  See just how easy it is to contribute to ResExcellence! Give our browser-based submission upload page a whirl.
StuffIt - The Complete Compression Solution
Tools of the Trade by Michael Coyle The ResEx Theme Archive has been updated with slightly better previews and the most recent 10.2 ready versions of many themes. Some fine themes that impinge a little too much on Apple's trademarks can not be added (Max Rudberg's SmoothStripes, for example), but every other 10.2 theme of which I am aware is in there. If you know of one that is not, email me. In addition, Duality 4 Preview Release 2 is available for the adventurous. With 4.0 the theme switching software becomes a System Preference Panel.
After several long years of crunching numbers, the RC5-64 challenge is over. A PIII computer in Tokyo returned the correct key. Thanks to everyone on Team ResExcellence who had participated.
Previously on ResEx, I mentioned the ability to customize the on screen images for Volume and Brightness. The images and feedback sounds are stored in /System/Library/LoginPlugins/BezelServices.loginPlugin/Contents/Resources/. Ed from DigiDiesel has shown just how nice a job can be done with custom artwork. In addition to submitting our first iTunes 3 skin, George Krueger noticed while digging through the resources that iTunes now has a built in graphite skin.! If you set your appearance in the General System Preferences to graphite, iTunes will follow suit. This also means that, if someone has their system preferences set to Graphite, it will counteract some of the changes in iTunes skins.
 First Impressions of .Mac's Backup and Virex by Bernie Zenis
With only a few days left in which to decide if you want to sign up for a .mac account, Bernie Zenis wrote an excellent review of Backup and Virex, two of the services offered with membership.. As a long time fan of Macintosh computers I have come to value Apple and Apple-recommended products. Apple's move from the free iTools to the for fee .Mac brought a lot of emotions as well as a few new welcome features. I was particularly looking forward to Backup and Virex. Having used them for a few weeks now, I can say that I am not impressed and sometimes disappointed. (Continued...)
New Boot Images in the Archive... - dZign sends a YinYang image.
- Also known as the Little Dipper, Anders Rohlen sends an image of the Ursa Minor constellation.
- This furry Jaguar X is from Krun.
- A chrome design was made by Martin Jaggi.
- The guy who started this whole boot image stuff, Ryan Schmidt, sends three images from Monsters Inc.
- Dan Black sent a colorful and grey version of Disney's newest critter, Stitch. See the matching Boot Panel below.
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?) - That Elvis lovin' Stitch is tearing up this Boot Panel from Dan Black. Be sure to see the matching boot image.
- The first skin for iTunes 3 has been sent by George Krueger. It's an update of his popular Aqua skin.
- Brushed Metal and a furry X comprise this Boot Panel from Carl Ritchie.
- It's tough to see all the funny text in the preview, but Chaos sent a MOSS for the "Creative Department".
Snapshots by Jeremy Hoesly Snapshot postings return at last: - Baron Garger contributes this snapshot sporting the stock “Quantum Foam” desktop picture. AquaMon lists various system stats, including an impressive uptime of 57 days.
- This screenshot from Kip features a Sujiallen desktop picture. Icon selections from Icon Factory, MiXthePiX, and PixelGirl Presents are scattered throughout.
- A desktop picture from the film The Ring from Ringworld is showcased in this contribution from Matthew Maber . NetNewsWire Lite retrieves news headlines.
- Our software archive and giveaway master, Cletus , sends this snapshot sporting DayLite, a personal information manager of sorts. DragThing is touting the new popup window-like functionality of sliding windows along the bottom.
I’m currently updating from Utah as we continue our trek to southern California. The following map shows our latest progress.  See just how easy it is to contribute to ResExcellence! Give our browser-based submission upload page a whirl.
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Today's News by Cletus™ As Jeremy heads cross country, I myself am looking to head for a part of the country where pollen does not exist! Perhaps Alaska. I also noticed that someone in the forum is questioning his route. Why did he go to Columbus? I think he had heard there was trolley that ran to California for a buck and wanted to see if he could catch a ride....
 ParaDocks was updated and is now freeware. Cool! Another change in this release is that they have decided to remove the Dock management functions from ParaDocks. ParaDocks is now a running application switcher. If you are not familiar with ParaDocks, it is described as a "reincarnation of the Classic application launcher found on OS 9" It has additional features such as a floating window containing all currently running applications. You can easily switch between applications by clicking the icons.
Trash It! has been updated to allow easy deletion of locked files. There have also been many code revisions to this AppleScript based utility for force emptying the Trash.
No matter how carefully you select features to install when upgrading Mac OS X, it seems items still slip through. I know I did not install any additional language localizations, yet there were some that were installed. I ran DeLocalizer 1.1 and bam, it found and deleted them. Plus it reclaims space on your hard drive if you find things getting a little cramped. What is new? It is compatible with Mac OS X 10.2 (Jaguar).
Tomasz Kukielka wants you to know that OnMyCommandCM 1.3.1a3 is a new version of contextual menu command line executor. Users can add their favorite commands to a list and execute them with single ctrl-click. The new version brings revised command description format. It is simpler and more powerful now.
Angelo Scicolone has updated PrefsOverload to version 5.1this version fixes a bug that prevented icons from appearing correctly under Mac OS X 10.2 "Jaguar". Both Classic and Carbon versions compiled with REALbasic 4.5 instead of RB 3.5.2 and RB 4.0.2 respectively.
Docktastic Pro is a Mac OS X Dock replacement with free floating dock icons. This release provides improved performance and fixes a bug causing Docktastic to disappear when hidden/shown.
Have a Press Release? Software or General News? Submit it here: Suggestions!
Snapshots by Jeremy Hoesly Today we took a break from traveling and visited Rocky Mountain National Park. As promised, I’m featuring a few shots I took just this afternoon. Some of these photos will become desktop pictures. Because I was gone the whole day, I’m going to postpone normal snapshot posting until tomorrow. I’ll have plenty of time then to crunch out a full-sized update as we trek over the mountains of Colorado and Utah.    See just how easy it is to contribute to ResExcellence! Give our browser-based submission upload page a whirl.
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Tools of the Trade by Michael Coyle Laine Lee sends a couple of interesting tidbits. He updated his Pillowtalk-Sky theme to version 1.4 for MacOS X 10.2. It fixes a bunch of small display errors. Laine also took Denis Bredelet's command line utility, tiff2raw, and put a drag and drop GUI on it. If you're an artist converting TIFFs to boot images, take a look at cpal.
Keaka Jackson has added another update to Visage, the utility for installing Boot Panels and Login images under MacOS X. This version adds French and Italian localizations, and fixes several pesky bugs.
The one remaining application that forces me to boot into MacOS 9 is ProTools. Here is a site with some rumored information on ProTools 6, the first version that runs under MacOS X. This dang update better support my MBox!
How to change the "Unknown Album", "Unknown Artist" and "Unknown Genre" in iTunes 3 by Egbert If you dislike the way iTunes 3 sorts the tracks this simple edit will help limit the extent of the problem. I got extremely angry when I had to rearrange my complete MP3 list of over 75 Gigs due to iTunes' habit of renaming the folders containing a single track, folders without a special album name, etc... - Open Resorcerer.
(You can use MacResourceDog, but first drag the Localized.rsrc onto QuickConvert)
- Ctrl-click on a COPY of iTunes and choose "Show package content".
- Open Content/Resources/German.lproj (or your preferred language).
- Drop the "Localized.rsrc" onto Resorcerer in the Dock.
- Click "STR#" (below "STR").
- Double-click "Filenames" (it's the first item number).
- Double-click the name you want to change and enter a new name.
- Save and close.
 | | Above: iTunes Localized.rsrc opened in Resorcerer 2.4
|  | | Above: iTunes Localized.rsrc opened in MacResourceDog
after dragging the resources onto QuickQonvert.
| I changed the names simply to "• Unknown Album" etc. This doesn't avoid iTune's bad habit, but now I have these folders at the end of the list and not in between. Of course, if iTunes gets mad or other curious things happen, don't blame me. Suggestions and praise can be send to: egbert@vactory.de (Keep your negative comments with yourself ! ;-)
New Boot Images in the Archive...
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?) - Whether you have moved up to 10.2 or are saving your pennies and continuing to run 10.1, Nick Bate has assembled a set of four boot panels to make you happy. Two are brushed metal, another two contain the Classic Apple.
- To match the pair of Mozilla splashes that were posted on Thursday, Nathan Green assembled a Blue Faced MOSS.
- "No Osama" is the name of this Boot Panel from Jim Jacobson.
- Huey, Dewey, and Louie sent this set of splash screens for Microsoft Office that feature their uncle Donald Duck. A must have for all you Disney freaks and available now for 12 easy payments of $99.
- Ugh! More furry contributions! Mark sent a fur covered jaguar Boot Panel. Come on guys, I'm allergic to cats. Storing these files on my drive makes my nose itchy.
StuffIt - The Complete Compression Solution
Today's News by Cletus™  Snard has been updated. This application acts a launcher from either the Dock or menubar. It also consolidates many items as it does its thing into a convenient system menu, Dock menu or hot key item. The menu and Dock versions are separate downloads. Additionally, you can download a package called— Snarcons which are alternate icons specifically designed for use with Snard. The changes listed are:
- Changed Open App as Administrator... to Open App as Root...
- Reorganized Options tab of Snard configuration window
- Added new option for accessing Snard menu.
- Updated Snard for 10.2
While at the Gideon SoftWorks site, check out xBack. xBack is a utility that allows you replace your desktop picture with a screen saver. They have a brand new icon for the program thanks to Rick Roe. Besides the superficial changes, there were many performed under the hood. Such as, fixing a crash when you tried to quit, adding a "Start at login" menu item, allowing you to correctly identify the running saver at all times, and making xBack look in /Network/Library/Screen Savers for screen savers.
With the new Quartz extreme feature, everyone is interested in "active" desktop elements. So..... another one to look at is DeskEffects. This provides the user with a Preference Pane for working with desktop screen effects. You can also use an option to start your favorite desktop screen effects at login. The newest release fixing bugs that was causing some screensavers to fail to load and had the Priority controls not working. Both features have been fixed. Download.
The very popular LaunchBar was updated over the weekend. Besides bring Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar compatibility, it also now has the ability to read Chimera, Mozilla and iCab bookmark files. It also fixes a bug causing the setup scan to hang when processing directories that have no execute permissions set. Other enhancements can be found on the home page.
Renicer 1.1.5 gives you a GUI to work with for assigning process priority values for applications. It is designed to run in the background, it automatically prioritizes whatever application is in front. Additionally, it ups the priority of the Finder, Dock, and Window Server. This version has been updated to run with the big cat— Jaguar
Startup Syringe allows you to easily change your startup boot image. Since we are mentioned in this update, I thought I better mention it. ;) - Minor changes in Read Me.
- Added links to Startup Syringe web site and ResExcellence Boot Image Archive to the distribution.
- Changed distribution to disk image format.
- No functional changes to Startup Syringe script.
A couple of icon tools have been updated over the weekend also...
 Icon Brush utilizes AppleScript to edit icons. It provides full support for Mac OS X native .icns files and Windows .ICO files and support for 32-bit icons. Changes to this version include:
- Applescripts created in programs other than Apple's ScriptEditor can now appear in the 'Scripts' menu.
- Added new AppleScript command to allow you to export an icon element with its mask.
The old standby, Folder Icon X has also under gone an update. The big one is compatibility with Mac OS X 10.2.1. Other changes noted are: The menu Template will not display the invisible system items and is now unlimited for the registered users. Also, the "Folder Icon X.plugin" can now import the ".icns" icon files properly.
I mentioned Blobber last time, and now it is has been updated to version 1.2. The PR states that version 1.2 adds animated previews, expanded documentation, 4 New Blobbers, and a change in the password handling. Other small changes now includes a cursor making tutorial.
A Better Finder Creators & Types X 3.0.1 is now available. This maintenance release fixes a context menu conflict with A Better Finder Rename.Version 3.0 overall, is a complete rewrite of the popular Mac OS 9 file association manager. The new product was entirely developed using Apple's Mac OS X Cocoa framework in order to provide the best possible Mac OS X compliance, speed and reliability.
If you still use both Mac OS X and Classic, Classic Toggler X 1.4.2 provides an easy way to monitor and control both systems. It has been updated for use with Jaguar.
Have a Press Release? Software or General News? Submit it here: Suggestions!
Polling Place by Michael Coyle  Roughly two-thirds of respondents remembered that December 7th was the day the Japanese Fleet attacked Pearl Harbor. Whether or not it was a provoked attack was debated in the forum thread. The point is: time has a way of softening even the most memorable events in history. I'm sure when I'm an octogenarian sitting on my front porch sipping a cool lemonade, I'll shake my head in disgust that kids will have forgotten that way back in 2003 the White Sox won the World Series. :-)
For a company that constantly promotes a consistent user interface, Apple seems to be waffling between the Aqua interface and the Brushed Metal look launched a few years ago with the Quicktime Player. Many of the new Apple supplied applications forsake Aqua: iChat, Quicktime Player, iMovie, iTunes, iPhoto and several others, for example. This week's Polling Place question was suggested by Charlie Hayes, "Do you like the Brushed Metal style of Apple Apps?"
Snapshots by Jeremy Hoesly As of Friday, I’ve embarked on a coast to coast roadtrip from Virginia to California to help one of my brothers move. This week will contain special updates on this trip as we traverse the continent. I’ve brought my digital camera along; so expect some shots of the various areas we travel through. The map below chronicles our progress thus far.  Snapshot postings will resume within the next few days. Until then, expect some pictures from the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains as we travel into these areas. See just how easy it is to contribute to ResExcellence! Give our browser-based submission upload page a whirl.
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