Twitter has finally acknowledged something that I've been complaining about since the early days - constant status updates in response to the "What are you doing?" question are generally boring. In my first mention of Twitter (see "Visions of the Sublime and the Inane," 18 June 2007), I wrote:

Twitter defines itself well as "A global community of friends and strangers answering one simple question: 'What are you doing?'" You've heard of solutions looking for a problem? Twitter is thousands of answers looking for a question that no one cares about.

I've suggested elsewhere that Twitter's question should be "What are you thinking about?" but given the widespread use of Twitter for sharing interesting links, talking about current events, reporting on clever comments by one's kids, and more, Twitter has now changed its question to "What's happening?"

And while I think it would be fun if Twitter changed the question occasionally - how about "What's up, Doc?" - asking "What's happening?" is fine, since it will encourage new Twitter users to post more interesting and useful bits of information. Anything that raises the level of discourse is a good thing.

To be fair, I suspect most serious Twitter users rely on a client like TweetDeck or Twitterrific and haven't seen the Twitter Web site with its question for quite some time, but as Twitter has improved its Web interface, I could see more people sticking with it for longer before jumping ship for a more-capable client.

 

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WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Syncing data from your Mac to various different devices is easy in theory, but often troublesome in practice, and truly annoying when something goes wrong. Whether you'd like to figure out how to sync contacts to your non-Apple smartphone, get your head around how your Apple TV syncs, help your father sync his Palm after upgrading to Snow Leopard, sync a particular set of podcast episodes to your iPod, or make it so you can update your calendar on any of six devices and have changes reflected on all of them, the $10 "Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard" has the answers you need.

Written by Michael E. Cohen, the 162-page "Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard" explains how to sync managed data from a Mac to another device or service. "Managed data" is data that you can't usually see as separate files in the Finder, including things like iCal events, Address Book contacts, Safari bookmarks, and anything you store in iTunes or iPhoto. This ebook looks at how you sync data on a Mac running Snow Leopard with various devices and services including:

• Another Mac
• Microsoft Exchange
• The cloud (i.e. MobileMe or Google Calendar)
• An iPhone or iPod
• A non-Apple mobile phone
• A PDA like a Palm or Blackberry (specifics are brief)
• An Apple TV

Michael details how Sync Services and the all-important truth database work under the hood (fascinating stuff!), helps you get set up properly, and offers advice for what to do if you run into syncing conflicts or other problems. You'll especially like this ebook if:

• You're just getting started with syncing
• You've always wondered how syncing works behind the scenes
• You're already syncing, but want to add complexity or solve problems
• You need to be able to answer a wide variety of syncing questions from clients or curious family members

If you own a previous edition of this ebook, you should have already received an email message with an upgrade discount; if not, open your PDF and - on page 1 - click the Check for Updates button.

 

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WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

The Camino Project has released a significant update to the Mac-focused, Gecko-based Web browser Camino. The latest version has been upgraded to version 1.9 of Mozilla's Gecko rendering engine, adds Growl support, improves full keyboard access in the browser window, enhances pop-up blocking, and heightens security with increased malware and phishing protection. The update also improves tabbed browsing by enabling users to rearrange tabs and providing a new tab overview feature. (Free, 15.8 MB for English-only or 21.2 MB for multilingual)

 

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READERS LIKE YOU! Support TidBITS with a contribution today!
<http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/contributors.html>
Special thanks this week to Craig Lane, Marc Fleisher,
Jacobus Kats, and Miles Anderson for their generous support!   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

While talking with Tech Night Owl host Gene Steinberg, Adam explained how unlikely it is that most people would be infected by the new iPhone worm and how Apple's App Store approval policies are starting to cause real damage by driving developers away.

 

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Fetch Softworks: Fetch 5.5 has WebView, the easy way
to view files in a browser and copy web addresses from Fetch.
Also Quick Look support, droplet shortcuts, and more.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

In "A Finder-Copying Bug in Snow Leopard" (10 November 2009), I reported the existence of a bug related to copying files in Snow Leopard, and explained how to see the bug in action. Basically, the bug arises when you attempt to copy a troublesome file from a Snow Leopard machine to another computer via File Sharing. I also provided specific instructions for reproducing the bug using an example "troublesome file" that anyone could download.

In the previous article I suggested that perhaps the troublesome file was always an application, but readers have supplied examples of other bundles that can also trigger the bug. So, a troublesome file is always a bundle, but not every bundle is troublesome. Then the question is: What, exactly, makes a troublesome bundle troublesome?

By comparing two very similar applications, one of which is troublesome and the other not, even though they have nearly identical internal structures, I have discovered that the answer involves Unix permissions on symlinks inside the bundle.

Here's a quick Unix refresher. A symlink is a file that points to another file (the other file can be a folder). Unix permissions specify whether a file can be read (r), written (w), or executed (x), and they specify each of those with regard to three categories of person: the user that owns the file, the members of the group that owns the file, and the rest of the world.

A troublesome file turns out to be a bundle containing a symlink that is itself marked as writable by the group or the rest of the world. Here's an example (generated by the ls -al command, with much of the information omitted):

lrwxrwxrwx /Applications/Interarchy.app/Contents/Frameworks/Growl.framework/Growl
-> Versions/Current/Growl

It's a symlink (that's what the initial "l" means), and it is readable, writable, and executable ("rwx") by the user (the first "rwx"), the group (the second "rwx"), and everyone else (the third "rwx").

In theory, permissions on a symlink should be more or less meaningless; a Unix system should ignore them. But apparently Snow Leopard does not ignore them, and therein lies the trouble. Here's what seems to be happening. The user tries to copy the bundle, so the Finder proceeds to copy the bundle's contents. The symlink is encountered before the file it points to. So the symlink is copied to the remote machine, and now the system sees (I'm guessing) that the symlink's permissions are unusual, and tries to copy those permissions onto the file it points to, also on the remote machine. But the file that the symlink points to has not yet been copied to the remote machine, so this attempt to set its permissions fails, and the Finder raises an error (-36).

If you'd like to know whether you have any potentially troublesome bundles, run this command in Terminal:

sudo find / -type l -perm +g+w -ls

You'll be asked for your password. After you give it (and press Return), go get a cup of coffee, because this command takes a long time while your entire hard drive is traversed. In the end, a list appears showing all files that are symlinks ("-type l") and also give write permissions to the group ("-perm +g+w"). The symlinks are each inside some bundle, so if you read the pathname backwards you can see what bundle it is. For example, the symlink listed in the example above is inside Interarchy.app. So, that copy of Interarchy constitutes a troublesome file, and cannot be copied to another machine using the Finder via File Sharing.

Both TidBITS Publisher Adam Engst and I tried the above command, and came up with a list of bundles that are troublesome on our respective machines. The list includes, on Adam's machine, Interarchy, Nisus Thesaurus, Quicksilver, and an iPhoto Library, and on my machine, a bunch of Omni applications, including OmniWeb, OmniDazzle, and others. Why our results don't match - why, for example, my copy of Interarchy has different permissions on its symlinks than Adam's - is a mystery. But what is clear is that, in both our tests, the bundles that are ferreted out in this way are exactly the ones that trigger the Finder copying bug.

If you'd like to fix the problem, by changing the permissions on the symlinks within a bundle, so that that bundle can be successfully Finder-copied via File Sharing, here's how to do it. In the Terminal, type:

find

Then type a space. Now drag the troublesome file from the Finder into the Terminal window; this causes the Terminal to enter the pathname of the bundle. For example, if at this point Adam were to drag Interarchy into the Terminal window, the Terminal would now read:

find /Applications/Interarchy.app

Now continue typing, so that your command has this form:

find /Applications/Interarchy.app -type l -exec chmod -h go-w {} \;

At the end, press Return. The command means: Traverse down into Interarchy, looking for symlinks ("-type l"). When you find one, change the permissions ("-exec chmod") of the symlink itself ("-h") so that neither the group nor the rest of the world have write permission ("go-w"). I'm not going to explain the other stuff, but it's all essential, including the backslash before the semicolon. After running this command on a bundle, the bundle will still work fine, and it will no longer trigger the Finder-copying bug.

 

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Microsoft's MacBU: Supporting Mac users with Office 2008.
Straighten up your Office with the latest updates to Word,
Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage. Update today at Mactopia!
<http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.mspx>   Copyright © 2009 Matt Neuburg. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Influential essayist Paul Graham has an excellent take on why Apple's ridiculous policies with the App Store are a huge mistake. He argues that Apple is driving developers away, which is the first step on a slippery slope that could make it more difficult to attract the top notch employees necessary to continue innovating. Graham's most devastating point: does Apple more resemble the hammer-thrower or the dictator in the 1984 ad?

 

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WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Uncomplex has released a notable update to Mailplane, its WebKit wrapper for Gmail that maintains Gmail's interface while adding standard Mac OS X features like drag-and-drop, Growl notifications, and screenshot capabilities. Changes include new Service menu items, the capability to insert images into message bodies, the option to have multiple rich text signatures, usage of Gmail's offline capabilities, and an added warning when leaving a message with unsaved changes. Also, AppleScript support has been enhanced, new chat notifications have been added, and the Screenshot button and menu item are now always enabled. A full list of changes is available on Uncomplex's Web site. ($24.95 new, free update, 6.4 MB)

 

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StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built
right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way
to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file.
Only $39.99 until 01-Dec-09! <http://my.smithmicro.com/tidbits>   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit is offering a holiday sale on its Office 2008 lineup from now through 5 January 2010. The promotion includes $20 off Office 2008 for Mac Home & Student Edition, $50 off Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition, and $40 off the Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition Upgrade. Participating resellers include Apple, Best Buy, and MacMall.

 

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WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

The New York Times reports on the growing trend of including user-created content and corrections in online mapping tools. Sites such as WikiMapia, OpenStreetMap, and Google Maps all rely on volunteer mapmakers to enhance their maps by adding details and fixing errors. Often the changes reflect the kind of knowledge only locals have: back alleys, public art, the exact location of a restaurant, etc.

 

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Fetch Softworks: Fetch 5.5 has WebView, the easy way
to view files in a browser and copy web addresses from Fetch.
Also Quick Look support, droplet shortcuts, and more.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Mac OS X can read NTFS-formatted volumes, but it can't write to them without additional software like Paragon's NTFS for Mac OS X. Today only, the Giveaway of the Day site is giving away version 6.5 of NTFS for Mac OS X, which isn't the latest version and may not be fully compatible with Snow Leopard. But it's free and could be worth trying if you need to write to NTFS-formatted drives. The current version 7.0 - which is Snow Leopard-compatible - normally costs $39.95 but is available for $19.95 at the moment.

 

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StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built
right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way
to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file.
Only $39.99 until 01-Dec-09! <http://my.smithmicro.com/tidbits>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Web design is nothing if not an iterative process, and with the number of articles and ExtraBITS links we're publishing these days, I became unhappy with how quickly articles on our home page were pushed "below the fold" - visible only after scrolling. Depending on the length of article summaries, a MacBook screen might display only the two or three most recent articles, and while users can of course scroll to see more headlines, research shows that many people don't.

So Glenn and Jeff and I put our heads together and came up with an optional refinement to the design of our headline pages that shows more headlines in the same space (headline pages include the Latest Stories home page, plus each of our individual sections and staff pages accessible from the left-side navigation bar). Instead of presenting the full article summary between the headline and its associated metadata, the redesign hides the summary entirely, displaying it in a pop-up balloon when you mouse over it.

We didn't want to confuse regular readers, so the feature is turned off by default. To switch to balloon mode, click the Hide Summaries of Articles link under the featured article on any section's headline page. It becomes a Show Summaries of Articles link, and clicking that restores the previous design so you can easily choose whichever approach you prefer. A cookie records your Hide/Show selection so it can be honored on your subsequent visits.

You'll also notice that we've updated the search results interface to use a similar approach.

Let us know in the comments if you have suggestions for improvements to this feature or other aspects of our Web site.

 

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StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built
right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way
to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file.
Only $39.99 until 01-Dec-09! <http://my.smithmicro.com/tidbits>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

TomTom has released version 1.2 of several of its turn-by-turn navigation software packages for the iPhone OS, including TomTom U.S. & Canada ($99.99). This new release enables owners of the original iPhone, which lacks internal GPS hardware, and those with any iPod touch to gain access to satellite-based navigation through the TomTom Car Kit for iPhone ($119.95).

The car kit is a suction-cup windshield dock (be sure to read "Beware the GPS Thieves", 24 April 2009) with a built-in microphone and speaker, a stereo audio output jack, and a required connection to a car power port. The kit has its own GPS receiver, which communicates with the iPhone and iPod touch via the dock as an external device. Hands-free calling may be used over Bluetooth with an iPhone. The dock charges the iPhone or iPod touch as well. (Apple allows dock-based hardware to communicate with specific application software.)

The new version adds text-to-speech synthesis for street names and other information in several languages, drops in better volume control for vocal instructions, and a minimal iPod control interface. Other GPS navigation apps have embedded nearly all the iPod functionality within themselves. The program also includes a display of lane positioning, showing a driver which of multiple lanes to be in, a feature found in some competing programs.

While this support for the original iPhone and all iPod touch models is welcome, the combined price of about $220 for the application and hardware seems rather steep compared to similarly featured low-end standalone GPS devices. The big advantage? One fewer device to keep track of.

 

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MacSpeech Dictate -- unleash the power of your voice with
award-winning speech recognition solutions for the Mac.
It's so easy to use - just talk! Now with spelling and
phrase training. <http://tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>   Copyright © 2009 Glenn Fleishman. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

I've owned an iPhone since shortly after it was introduced - yes, I was one of the saps who paid $600 for the original model just before Apple dropped the price to $400. Despite using it every day, and eventually upgrading to an iPhone 3GS, when I started writing "Take Control of Your iPhone Apps, I was happy to discover many new techniques that had previously slipped under my radar.

The $10 book covers the main built-in apps - Calendar, Phone and Contacts, Safari, Mail, Messages, Camera, Photos, Maps, Compass, and iPod (plus Music and Video on the iPod touch) - as well as Apple's free Remote app. It's available for purchase and download now, and there's also a bundle deal to buy it with Ted Landau's excellent "Take Control of iPhone OS 3," which was also just released.

Here are a few of my favorite techniques from the many I collected for "Take Control of Your iPhone Apps."

Silence an Incoming Call -- I don't always answer my phone. If the phone rings when I'm talking to someone face to face, I would rather the caller leave a message on my voicemail than to interrupt our conversation. One option is to tap the Decline button on the screen, but that involves more attention to the phone (and away from the person I'm with) than I'm often willing to give.

Instead, here are two excellent shortcuts you can perform when the phone is still in your pocket or purse:

• Press the power button once to silence the ringer; the phone still rings on the caller's end and then goes to voicemail.
• Press the power button twice to send the call directly to voicemail.

I like the second option better because the short amount of time between the first ring and going to voicemail tells the caller I'm aware of the call and not just away from the phone.

Set the Camera as Your Instant-On App -- If you frequently grab the iPhone to take photos, set the Camera app to launch when you double-press the Home button. You must still use the Slide to Unlock slider to wake the phone, but then you can double-press the Home button to go straight to the Camera.

Open the Settings application, go to General > Home and tap Camera in the list of options. If you listen to music often, set the iPod Controls switch to Off; otherwise, a double-press of the Home button brings up playback controls while music is playing.

The Best iPhone Camera Tip Ever -- The iPhone doesn’t capture a photo until you release the shutter button. Instead of tapping the button to take a photo, press and hold the button as you frame your shot. On the iPhone 3GS, you can still tap the screen to set a focus area with the button held down. When you’re ready to take the picture, release the button. This technique minimizes camera movement because you don’t have to both press and release the button with your finger.

Use Spotlight Search from the Home Screen -- The system-wide Spotlight search function turns out to be quite handy. Press the physical Home button to view the Home screen and then swipe to navigate to the screen to the left of the first Home screen. (You can also press the Home button, wait a moment, and press it again.)

If your iPhone or iPod touch is packed full of apps, you may find it easier to use Spotlight the way you would use something like LaunchBar on the Mac (see "LaunchBar 5.0.1 Runs on Snow Leopard, Adds Clipboard History," 20 October 2009). Start typing the name of the app and then tap it when it appears in the list of matches.

Spotlight can drill down into more specific items on your device. If you want to listen to a particular song, for instance, you don't need to first open the iPod or Music app, tap the Songs button, and scroll down the list to find it.

(By the way, here's a tip-within-a-tip: If you're already in the iPod or Music app, swipe down to reveal the Search field, which is normally hidden at the top of the list.)

Instead, start typing the name of the song in the Spotlight search screen. The song appears in the list with other items; tap it to jump directly to the iPod or Music app, where the song begins to play.

Spotlight search sometimes gets results that the Search field within an app won't find. In the Mail app, you're limited to searching only the mailbox you're currently viewing, such as an account's Inbox. When you perform the same search from the Home screen, you can locate messages from other mailboxes, too, such as a message that has been filed and a reply to the message in the Inbox.

Scrub Playback in the iPod or Music app -- When you're listening to a song, podcast, or audiobook, tap the progress slider at the top of the screen to move to another section of the track. However, the combination of a relatively small screen, the size of most people's fingers, and sometimes lengthy media make this a coarse way of scrolling. What if you just want to back up a few seconds in an hour-long podcast?

The iPhone engineers came up with a brilliant workaround. Tap the playhead on the slider and then drag your finger down to scrub the playback at various speeds; the rate appears above the slider, such as "Quarter Speed Scrubbing." The farther down the screen you slide your finger, the more fine-grained control you have over moving the playhead.

Use the Clock App to Set a Sleep Timer -- If you enjoy going to sleep to music or an audiobook, a combination of two apps lets you do it with the iPhone.

1. Open the Clock app and tap the Timer button.
2. Set the duration of the timer.
3. Tap the When Timer Ends button and instead of selecting an alarm sound, tap Sleep iPod.
4. Open the iPod app and play your audio.

When the timer expires, playback softly ends. But you’ll be asleep by then, right?

Hidden Functionality -- By necessity, Apple's iPhone designers had to be clever about adding functionality to a handheld device, making the experience richer for those of us who use an iPhone or iPod touch regularly while keeping the interface uncluttered.

That need has resulted in these and other tips and techniques - all covered in the book - that make a big difference in my everyday use of the iPhone. If you'd like to make your little digital companion even more useful than it is now, check out "Take Control of Your iPhone Apps."

 

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THE MISSING SYNC: Take it with you! The Missing Sync makes
it easy to synchronize contacts, calendars, notes, photos
and more from your Mac to your BlackBerry, HTC, Treo,
iPhone and other phones. <http://www.markspace.com/bits>   Copyright © 2009 Jeff Carlson. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Canadians were peeved when Amazon's international Kindle didn't include Canada among the list of countries in which it could be purchased. Amazon has amended that, offering Canadians the chance to buy a Kindle at US$259. Canadians will still pay higher prices than U.S. residents for books and subscriptions, however. The Kindle isn't yet listed for sale at Amazon.ca, but must be purchased from the U.S. store.

 

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Microsoft's MacBU: Supporting Mac users with Office 2008.
Straighten up your Office with the latest updates to Word,
Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage. Update today at Mactopia!
<http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.mspx>   Copyright © 2009 Glenn Fleishman. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Apple has released several updates to its printer drivers for Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. The updates include the latest drivers for printers from HP (version 2.3), Canon (version 2.2), Brother (version 2.2), and Lexmark (version 2.1). More information on installing printer software updates, including a list of supported printers, is available on Apple's Web site. (Free, 387.44/274.59/99.9/117 MB)

 

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READERS LIKE YOU! Support TidBITS with a contribution today!
<http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/contributors.html>
Special thanks this week to Craig Lane, Marc Fleisher,
Jacobus Kats, and Miles Anderson for their generous support!   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Fetch Softworks has updated its longstanding file transfer software, Fetch, with a handful of bug fixes. Version 5.5.3 eliminates bugs that could generate an 8905 error when opening Fetch or saving shortcuts in Snow Leopard, that caused occasional freezes when quitting, that caused the copy cursor to be displayed when moving a file, that sent redundant server messages to the transcript window, and that prevented some items from appearing in a parent folder's file list after having been moved into the parent folder. Full release notes are available on the Fetch Softworks Web site. ($29 new, free update if you purchased after 28 January 2009, 17.4 MB)

 

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StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built
right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way
to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file.
Only $39.99 until 01-Dec-09! <http://my.smithmicro.com/tidbits>   Copyright © 2009 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

This week's TidBITS Talk discussions cover several new topics. On the troubleshooting front, readers diagnose why Microsoft AutoUpdate is repeatedly pushing a conversion utility, why Magic Mouse tracking isn't as good when connected to a Mac Pro, and whether something is wrong with an iMac's FireWire bus. Suggestions are also offered for building a Mac help desk for a school, previewing photos on a virtual wall, and obtaining early versions of the Mac OS. We also look at the end of the Apple v. Psystar case and the ongoing costs of using Macs in the office versus Windows PCs.

Open XML File Format Converter for Mac 1.1.3 -- A bug with Microsoft's Mac AutoUpdater application could cause repeated notices of new updates. (5 messages)

Magic Mouse tracking -- Using the new Magic Mouse with a Mac Pro appears to result in tracking problems, but other Macs aren't affected. (7 messages)

Building a Better IT Help Desk -- A reader is building a new IT help desk to support 1,000 Macs in a school, and is soliciting suggestions for best practices. (9 messages)

Hanging photos in a virtual room -- To aid in designing a wall of photos, a reader is looking for software that would allow him to preview the look before implementing it. (3 messages)

Apple v. Psystar - Apple Wins -- To no one's surprise, Psystar has lost its lawsuit against Apple. Readers discuss how the company stumbled. (4 messages)

SheepShaver -- After reading Matt Neuburg's article about this application that emulates the Classic Mac OS, a reader realizes he needs system install disks earlier than Mac OS 9.1. (2 messages)

iMac FireWire conundrum -- Is an EyeTV hogging the resources of an iMac's FireWire bus? (3 messages)

Office Machines -- Companies often don't consider Macs for their businesses because of the higher initial cost compared to cut-rate Windows PCs, but readers point out numerous other factors that go into a corporate purchasing decision such as buying anti-virus software, paying for service calls, and so on. (7 messages)

 

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THE MISSING SYNC: Take it with you! The Missing Sync makes
it easy to synchronize contacts, calendars, notes, photos
and more from your Mac to your BlackBerry, HTC, Treo,
iPhone and other phones. <http://www.markspace.com/bits>   Copyright © 2009 Jeff Carlson. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

We may not be quite up to Thanksgiving here in the United States, but all the stores have been displaying their Christmas decorations and displays since Halloween was over. We don't entirely approve of starting the holiday season so early, but we need the time to collect all the reader-driven gift suggestions into our annual gift guide.

I'm sure economists would appreciate a little consumer spending to prop up the global economy, and while it may no longer be possible to pick up an ailing investment bank or bankrupt country for that special someone, Apple aficionados everywhere will still appreciate gift suggestions from the TidBITS community.

Here's how it works. Readers contribute ideas through November 27th, then everyone gets to vote for their favorites in an online survey through December 4th, and we'll publish the top-ranked suggestions on December 7th.

We've started threads for some broad categories in TidBITS Talk where you can share your ideas for great presents, or feel free to post your gift ideas in the comments for this article. If you subscribe to TidBITS Talk via email, just reply to a message in the right thread. If you read TidBITS Talk via the Web, you can post via the Web too; scroll down to the bottom of the window in the appropriate thread.

• Hardware Gift Ideas
• Software Gift Ideas
• Game Gift Ideas
• Computer-Related Miscellaneous Ideas
• Non-Technical Ideas for the Macintosh-Minded

Please suggest only one product or idea per message, give the reason why you're recommending it, make sure to include a URL, and recommend only others' products.

To get your creative juices flowing, check out last year's "2008 TidBITS Gift Guide" (8 December 2008) and the "2007 TidBITS Gift Guide" (10 December 2007). To refresh your memory on what readers have suggested previously, also see the last three full gift issues from 2006, 2005, and 2004. Thanks in advance!

 

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StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built
right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way
to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file.
Only $39.99 until 01-Dec-09! <http://my.smithmicro.com/tidbits>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Congratulations to Bill Gruber of mac.com, Louis Mendelowitz of pobox.com, and Paul Gould of maya.com, whose entries were chosen randomly in the last DealBITS drawing and who received a copy of Labels & Addresses 1.3.3, worth $49.95. But don't fret if you didn't win, since BeLight Software is offering a 30-percent-off discount on Labels & Addresses 1.3.3 to all TidBITS readers through 9 December 2009. Thanks to the 698 people who entered this DealBITS drawing, and we hope you'll continue to participate in the future!

 

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MacSpeech Dictate -- unleash the power of your voice with
award-winning speech recognition solutions for the Mac.
It's so easy to use - just talk! Now with spelling and
phrase training. <http://tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>   Copyright © 2009 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Safari 4.0.4 -- Apple has released Safari 4.0.4, a maintenance and security update for Mac OS X 10.4, 10.5, 10.6, and Windows. Changes include improved JavaScript performance; improved full history searching in particularly large history folders; and enhanced stability for third-party plug-ins, Yahoo Mail, and the search field.

The update also addresses a number of security issues, including one related to a vulnerability in libxml2 which could lead to crashing when parsing maliciously crafted XML content, and another related to a vulnerability in the way Safari initiates navigation via the "Open Image in New Tab" option that could disclose local information. Also fixed are three other vulnerabilities related to how WebKit implements Cross-Origin Resource Sharing, handles FTP directory listings, and behaves when encountering an HTML 5 Media Element that points to an external resource. The update is available via Software Update or from the Apple Support Downloads page. (Free, 28 MB)

Yojimbo 2.1 -- Bare Bones Software has released the latest version of the information organizer Yojimbo. In Yojimbo 2.1, the Drop Dock feature is now available in Exposé's Show Desktop mode; Speech and Transform commands are now available from the Edit menu; and Snow Leopard support for spell checking, text substitution, and data detectors has been added. A number of bugs have been fixed as well, including a crashing bug that could kick in when clearing or closing the Downloads window. Full release notes are available on the Bare Bones Web site. ($39, free update, 6 MB)

Wireless Keyboard Update 2.0 -- Apple has released a firmware update, Wireless Keyboard Update 2.0, to enable users to take advantage of its 2009 wireless keyboard's special features. While the release notes do not specify what those features are, they likely include function keys that provide single-touch access to system features such as Exposé and Dashboard. Users must be running Mac OS X 10.5.8 or later to install this update, which is available via Software Update or the Apple Support Downloads page. Users who have already installed Mac OS X 10.6.2 needn't worry about installing this update separately as it is included in the operating system update. (Free, 10.95 MB)

Freedom 0.5.1 -- Seeking asylum from your own procrastinating Internet habits? I certainly have in the past (see "Minimize Desktop Distractions," 4 December 2008), and always keep my eyes peeled for new applications designed to keep me on top of my work. If you're in the same boat, consider trying the latest version of Fred Stutzman's Internet-blocking application Freedom. Changes in the most recent update include increased support for applications that require some share of network access, better support for remote filesystems, and enhanced stability. Also, an unspecified bug related to Microsoft Word has been fixed. (Free, 771 KB)

Default Folder X 4.3.3 -- St. Clair Software has released a maintenance and stability update to the Open/Save dialog enhancement utility Default Folder X. Version 4.3.3 fixes a number of compatibility issues with earlier versions of Mac OS X, including a bug that caused Default Folder X to use excessive amounts of CPU in Leopard, and a bug that prevented Default Folder X from working in Carbon applications under Tiger. Also, the installer now automatically starts the program after installation, and the Shift key now properly reverses the order of menu items in Finder Windows, Disks, and Favorites. ($34.95 new, $14.95 upgrade, free update for owners of version 4.x or 3.x owners who purchased their copy after 1 June 2007, 10.7 MB)

Microsoft Office 2008 12.2.3 Update -- The Microsoft Office 2008 12.3.3 update contains a critical security fix, as well as significant improvements in stability, according to Microsoft's release notes. Office 2008 apparently contained a flaw that could be exploited to gain control of a computer remotely. An attacker would have to create a specially crafted Word or Excel file that a user opened. No reports of this attack, labeled by Microsoft as privately reported, have been heard of in the wild.

The hefty update also improves stability of all the Office 2008 applications. For those of us who work on Take Control ebooks, seeing the note that in Word 2008, stability is improved when "you accept tracked changes in a document" is music to our ears - we use change tracking constantly while editing documents and have seen regular crashes during revisions. (Free update, 349.5 MB)

Firefox 3.5.5 -- Mozilla has released a minor stability update to its popular Internet browser Firefox. The release notes are terse, saying only that the update fixes "several stability issues." A closer look at the bug list indicates several crashing bugs have been fixed, including one related to a GIF decoder and another related to startup. (Free, 17.6 MB)

 

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Bare Bones Software's BBEdit 9.3 -- A burly upgrade with new
Sleep command, LassoScript support, plus enhancements to Projects
and core features like Find and Multi-File Search windows,
editing in browsers, and text completion. <http://barebones.com/>   Copyright © 2009 TidBITS Staff. TidBITS is copyright © 2009 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.