ScreenFlow 2.0: The Best Screen Recorder Gets Better
Ever since ScreenFlow came out there just hasn’t been a better application for making screencasts. ScreenFlow allows you to quickly create high quality screencasts. Just recently, Telestream updated ScreenFlow to version 2.0. If you want to check out our video review of ScreenFlow 1.0, look at Michael Mistretta’s great post here. In this article I’ll be covering most of the new features in version 2.0.
GPush Review: Bringing Gmail Notification to the iPhone
E-mail addiction is a hard habit to shake. I get more than a hundred emails every day. We’re not talking spam here — we’re talking legitimate e-mails that demand my attention. My inbox is so full, it has it’s own inbox. Given the circumstances, it’s fairly easy to see how I’ve become a compulsive email checker. Watching TV. Writing. Sitting at a red light. No matter what the activity, I couldn’t go more than five minutes without checking my inbox. …and then there was GPush.
Opinion: Apple, Shape Up Your Changelogs
I recently updated to the most recent release of iTunes. I did this as soon as it came up in my Software Update, as I always try to have the most up-to-date versions of the software on my computer. Newer is better, right? Well, that’s usually been my view, but in addition to some cool new and improved features, there were some things that I was very used to that I now had to learn entirely new ways of doing. This led me to hate the new iTunes, and only after finding ways to recreate old features, which took me some time, could I really accept it as an improvement.
Impressions: App Store Genius
As part of the recent OS 3.1 upgrade for the iPhone, Apple introduced a new feature intended to suggest apps based on your previous purchases. Like the similar function introduced to music listeners in iTunes 8.0, this handy little feature goes by the name “Genius.” But does the App Store Genius live up to it’s name like it’s big brother, or is this genius just a C student in disguise?
Opinion: An Updater’s Chronicle
Today, I upgraded my operating system to Snow Leopard. I knew that it would be worth it in the end, but every time I do this I am petrified. Of all my files disappearing (this happened once to me); of the upgrade stopping partway through, leaving me with no operating system (this too has happened); of my programs not working after the upgrade because they haven’t been upgraded themselves. Luckily for me, however, none of these happened when I upgraded today. I write this not only as a story of my installation, but also as a reassurance to you that Snow Leopard will not become—despite its namesake—a sharp-toothed beast with untold powers of destruction. This cat is surprisingly tame.
Simplenote Review: No-Nonsense Notes
The market for iPhone note taking apps is huge. While Apple provides a Notes app, it is very basic and only syncs with notes in Mail.app. The de facto third party note taking app for the iPhone/Mac is Evernote which includes syncing between your iPhone, desktop, and the web. Evernote, however, has many more features than most people need from a note taking app. All the extra features of Evernote can cause it to run slowly on older iPhone/iPod Touch platforms. Simplenote solves this problem as a fast, clean, and no-nonsense note taking app for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Bevy Review: A Powerful Application Launcher
If you are like me, you probably have a ton of applications that you use, but you also don’t want to have then all on your dock. Bevy, by bergdesign, is an application launcher that will show you all of your applications in one simple window.
When you first launch Bevy you will want to add a few folders. Just click the gear icon in the top left and select folders. Here you will tell Bevy where to search for applications, and Bevy will display you applications in different sections for each folder. This will let you easily keep things organized. You can also exclude some items that you don’t ever need.
Flickery Review: Flickr on Your Desktop
I assume most of you know about Flickr, the awesome, and free (unless you go pro) photo-sharing service. But it isn’t only for sharing your photos with your friends and family, it is also a great image search engine. Many photos on it are under Creative Commons, and the quality of image you get is much higher than on a place like Google. There have been many iPhone apps that let you access Flickr, but not so many Mac apps (surprisingly). One of the only Mac apps is Flickery.
News: Snow Leopard to Include Anti-Malware Utility
Apple has long used the security of its software as a selling point. While Windows machines are often plagued with viruses, spyware, malware, any number of bad things, Apple users generally go about their days with little or no security protection, because little to none is ever needed. However, starting with Snow Leopard, the company is apparently packaging anti-malware tools into its operating system. This has two effects: firstly, it makes the system more secure, but secondly, it also gives the system the appearance of being less secure. Apple has not yet returned requests to comment on the feature, which is getting analysts and bloggers talking.
News: Apple Denies Rejection of Google Voice App
In a letter written to the Federal Communications Commission, Apple stated that, rather than rejecting a proposed iPhone application for the Google Voice web service—as had been previously reported by many news agencies—the company was “still pondering” the program. This letter is in response to an ongoing investigation by the FCC into Apple, AT&T, and Google, and their connections to and thoughts about the Google Voice service.
