Archive for January, 2008

Microsoft Word 2008 - Initial Impressions

Published at January 31, 2008 in Word. 2 Comments
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So I’ve been complaining about Microsoft Word 2004 for some time now. It is sort of a love tolerate/hate relationship that goes back years. I know some people love it but I’m more of a Scrivener and Pages kinda guy myself. This doesn’t change the fact that my law office runs on Microsoft Word and we have some fairly complex document formatting. Pages is great for general Word compatability but is not up to scratch for some of the more complex stuff I seem to bang into.

Using Scrivener and exporting text files for my office staff has generally worked out pretty good. A few months ago I had decided I probably wouldn’t bother with Office 2008. A few things changed that. First, on black Friday, Microsoft had a great deal that gave a $100 rebate on any copy of Office 2004 purchased that day along with a free upgrade to 2008. So I got in for a very reasonable price. Second, I was at David Pogue’s session at Macworld when he interviewed the chief Office 2008 Microsoft honcho. Imagine a room of about 1,000 Mac geeks and in walks a Microsoft executive. Talk about a hostile environment! The guy (I’ve been trying to find his name but can’t so I’ll just call him “the guy”) was actually very friendly and passionate about the Office 2008. I had to hand it to him for just showing up.

Anyway, I’ve now been using Word 2008 for three days and these initial impressions are just that … initial impressions.

1. Word 2008 Runs Faster.

Word 2004 was dog slow on my Intel Mac. It was slow to load and (if this makes any sense) text input. There was a delay between my typing the letter and it appearing.

2. Word 2008 is More Mac Friendly.

I don’t know how to put this but it feels more like a Mac application than Word 2004. The inspectors are cleaner and the general look is much improved.

3. Word 2008 is very Compatible with PC Word.

This has always been true but thankfully all of the complex formatting still works. It seems to be even better on some accounts which (I believe) is related to fonts but it is too early to say.

I’ll keep you posted as I dig a bit deeper.

———–Post Update ——-

“The Guy”, Craig Eisler, was kind enough to write in on the comments. Craig, along with the improved Word 2008, is really doing a good job of smashing up a lot of my bias against Microsoft.

Timeline on Sale Today

Published at January 31, 2008 in timeline. 1 Comment
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Thanks to reader Max who pointed out BeeDocs’ excellent Timeline application (you can read my review right here) is on MacZot today only for $25. Now is your chance.

Smarter Right Click in OS X

Published at January 30, 2008 in Tips. 6 Comments
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I found myself in the mouse system preference pane tonight and noticed a little checkbox …

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“For secondary clicks, place two fingers on the trackpad then click the button”

Hmmm.

I checked it and then put two fingers on the trackpad while clicking a desktop icon. It gave me the drop down menu consistent with a right click!

How come I never noticed this before. Now I can right click with one hand. Am I the only one that didn’t know about this?

Menubar Apps - Caffeine

Published at January 28, 2008 in caffeine and menubar. 0 Comments
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Continuing my sort-of-regular posts about my favorite menubar applications, I direct you attention to the hot steaming cup of java in my menubar ….

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Caffeine!

Caffeine has the same effect on your Mac that it has on your body. It keeps things awake. This small freeware application has a tiny memory footprint and sits by idly until you activate it with a click. It then keeps everything awake. I find this most helpful when I’m watching video or sharing my screen with someone. Just today I was sharing a timeline on my screen with a client (you all remember how much I like timelines, right?). Anyway, I clicked on caffeine and had no pesky dark screens while I did my thing. Best of all, it is a lot cheaper than Starbucks. Indeed, it is freeware. Try it out yourself.

Happy Birthday to My MacBook Pro

Published at January 27, 2008 in cult of mac. 3 Comments
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Today my MacBook Pro turned one. Happy Birthday Mac! The MacBook Pro was the perfect choice for me with a combination of power and portability. Sure I may like the power of a Mac Pro (did anyone see Don McAllister’s numbers on his eight core machine?) or the portability of a MacBook Air, but for my needs, this machine has been perfect. For a present, I think I will upgrade its hard drive.

OS X Backup Strategies

Published at January 26, 2008 in Backup, Mozy, Tips, carbon copy cloner, dotMac and superduper. 5 Comments
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I’ve had several people ask me about backup strategies lately so I thought I’d share a post about my ideas on the subject. A backup plan doesn’t need to be complicated. With some of the new tools available it doesn’t even have to be expensive. It just needs to follow a few simple rules.

1. Keep it Simple.

The more complex you make your backup plan, the less likely you are to follow it. Complexity used to be a requisite of a backup strategy. Thankfully that is not true any more.

2. One Backup is Quaint, Two Backups are Secure.

If you have your data backed up in one place you are “probably” okay. However there are a variety of circumstances that may cause one backup to be one too few. For instance, what if:

* You have a power surge that blows out your computer and your backup drive;

* A thief steals your computer and the shiny Western Digital box sitting next to it;

* Your computer fails and unbeknownst to you, your backup drive has been broken for several months?

That last one happened to a friend of mine. He lost five years worth of family photos. So having two backups in two different places is probably a good idea. If you don’t have a choice and only have one backup drive, I recommend you don’t keep it plugged in and store it somewhere else in your home.

My Backup Plan

My backup plan uses three external hard drives. I could pull it off with two but I happen to have an extra drive and I am a bit irrational when it comes to backups. So, anyway, my backup gear is …

1. a 1TB Western Digital MyBook with Firewire 800;
2. a 500GB Western Digital USB 2.0 Drive;
3. a 320GB Lacie USB 2.0 Drive.

My plan involves a combination of Carbon Copy Cloner and Time Machine. I was a happy user of SuperDuper but I’m still waiting for them to release a Leopard version. So my strategy is to keep it simple and keep in two places so what I do is this:

At Home …

I keep the 1TB and 320GB home on my desk. The 1TB drive holds my Time Machine drive and other miscellaneous stuff that doesn’t get copied in Time Machine like my Parallels folder, Aperture library, and a few other oversized files. The 320GB is used for my clone image whether it be Carbon Copy Cloner or (hopefully soon) SuperDuper. I do the clone a few times a week. Now I know 320GB is a lot for a clone drive. But if everything goes according to plan … I just may need that space soon. More to come on that later.

At Work …

The 500GB drive stays at my office and also holds a clone of my drive plus other miscellaneous media. The clone gets run a few times a week. Often I’ll set it to copy before heading off to lunch or a long meeting.

That is it. Simple system + multiple locations = Backup mojo.

So that is the heavy lifting of my backup plan. There are a few extra wrinkles however. For instance, I use my iDisk to keep copies of my essential documents. I know keeping it synced requires a nice chunk of hard drive space but I’m okay with that. I also store some files in the cloud in other places (Mozy is a good solution), and often carry copies of my most recent stuff on a 2GB thumb stick. I don’t do any backups to CD or DVD. It reminds me too much of the bad old days and boxes of floppies.

Let me know your plan or share it in the comments.

BusySync Review Gets a Raincheck

Published at January 25, 2008 in Uncategorized and busysync. 0 Comments

I seem to have come down with a rather nasty flu. I was all set to make BusySync this week’s feature review but, alas, my voice currently sounds more like a cement truck than a human. Rest assured the feature review will be back next weekend and publish with the MacReviewCast. In the meantime here is a hint.

I really like BusySync.

Andy Ihnatko Takes OmniFocus for a Spin

Published at January 25, 2008 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

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I’m a big fan of both OmniFocus and Andy Ihnatko so when Andy took OmniFocus for a spin without cracking the manual or any other preparation I knew I would be in for some laughs. As Andy attempts to trundle through the application he brings back a few memories of me through the beta process. Hang in there Andy, it will come together.

Interestingly, Ken Case from Omni submits a few comments providing some good application tips so at the end it actually gets educational.

Check it out.

Disk Warrior Gets its Spots

Published at January 24, 2008 in disc warrior. 0 Comments
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As I reported last week after talking to the Alsoft people at Macworld, the new version of Disk Warrior is out at 4.1. It is Leopard compatible. The new version also fixes hardlinks which sounds to me like medicine for Time Machine.

The Alsoft web site explains:

Owners of DiskWarrior 4 version 4.0 will soon be able to download a free CD updater. When available, this free updater will allow you to create a new startup CD containing the updated DiskWarrior application. Please note that the new startup CD will start up the same set of Macs as your current DiskWarrior CD. Your new CD will not start up any Mac that your current DiskWarrior CD can not.

Now, if we could just get back SuperDuper ….

1Password Updated … Again

Published at January 24, 2008 in 1password. 0 Comments
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Well I probably sound like a 1Password fanboy and … upon reflection … I realize that I am.

Tonight I booted up my favorite password, secure data, kitchen sink application to find out there is another update. This is no small update either. The list of new and repaired features is thorough. When I met 1Password developer Dave Taere, we just immediately clicked. He is passionate about making 1Password the best application possible and he is delivering. Enough of my rambling though. Upgrade your 1Password and check out this feature list.

NEW Replaced Setup Assistant with Welcome screen in the main 1Password application.
NEW New Generic Text Importer allows importing of any data from a comma separated text file.
NEW Added Cmd-0 shortcut to open main 1Password window.
NEW Added option to export only selected items to 1Password Interchange File.
NEW Added password strength indicator to Strong Password Generator window.
NEW Added shortcut menu button in 1Password Import Assistant.
NEW Added password strength information to Web Forms.
NEW Added Display scope (Always, Web Pages, HTTP Auth, Never) to Web Forms. Allows you to prevent specific forms from ever appearing in the Restore Form list.
NEW Added Australian and Swiss bank account information to Wallet.
NEW Redesigned Sync to my1Password window.
NEW New Sync with my1Password implementation that allows data synchronization across multiple Macs.
CHANGED Improved diagnostics to detect non root:admin file ownership in Leopard InputManager folder.
CHANGED Updated Safari restore instructions when its code signature was modified.
CHANGED Improved import of comments from KeePassX.
CHANGED Updated diagnostics to point to the correct Rosetta Knowledge Base article.
CHANGED Added support for user-editable fields in generic import.
CHANGED Added support for quoted and multi-line fields in generic text import.
CHANGED Now retaining previous column type selection when changing generic text import options.
CHANGED Fixed Autosave in Firefox 3. Should now correctly observe form submit and prompt user with the Autosave dialog window.
CHANGED Export to Palm and Treo can now be used during the trial period without adding the Palm license.
CHANGED Added check for Rosetta settings when Safari fails to decrypt the keychain entry.
CHANGED Improved credit card fill on German websites.
CHANGED Added 512×512 1Password icon for better Leopard support.
CHANGED Renamed plain-text backup to 1Password Interchange File.
CHANGED Updated About screen.
CHANGED Added [I have a license] button to the Registration Required screen.
CHANGED Removed keyboard shortcuts from the context menu as per Apple guidelines.
CHANGED Made sure Rename and Delete folder menu items are disabled for special folders.
CHANGED Simplified backup filename generation to avoid intermittent backup errors.
CHANGED Improved Passwords Plus importer to ignore invalid CSV lines.
FIXED Made sure all Wallet items are displayed in iPhone bookmarklet.
FIXED Fixed bug with back button in Firefox 2. Back button was disabled for first navigation of windows other than initial.
FIXED Made sure column widths are saved and restored correctly when switching the sections and folders and restarting 1Password application.
FIXED Fixed a problem with 1Password.app being copied as 1Passwd.app into Applications folder when the program was launched from the disk image.
FIXED Fixed problem with Sync to my1Password by encoding special characters as Unicode.
FIXED Fixed import from KeePassX.
FIXED Fixed problem with images being resized incorrectly in Import Assistant.
FIXED Fixed problem with Delete Folder via shortcut menu not working in Mac OS X 10.4.
FIXED Fixed problem with Go-n-fill link not working in the object list view.
FIXED Fixed possible infinite loop in the Strong Password Generator window.
FIXED Fixed crash in Strong Password Generator.
FIXED Fixed import from Passwords Plus when the file was exported from Mac version.
FIXED Corrected 1Passwd spelling in Security Warning.

Happy Birthday Mac

Published at January 24, 2008 in cult of mac. 0 Comments
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On January 24, 1984, Apple unleashed the Macintosh on a hungry public looking for a computer that worked with them instead of against them. At the time I was in High School slugging away at my Atari 400 computer. Man did I want a Mac bad but there was no way my parents could have afforded the little box that said “hello.”

Well here we are 24 years later and the Mac is still making work and fun a lot easier.

Happy Birthday Mac!

Parallels on a Windows Network

Published at January 23, 2008 in Legal and parallels. 2 Comments
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I’ve been in the same office for 15 years. For giggles I decided to move to another office recently. It is a little bigger and has a better view. Also, it is good to shake things up once in awhile. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize until after I got all my furniture moved that there is no ethernet into my new digs and as far as the network is concerned, I fell out the window.

So my PC box sits in my computer stand with its two monitors silent while I attempt to get someone to wire it up. Mainly out of necessity but also out of Mac geekiness, I decided to see if I could exist on a windows network with nothing but my MacBook Pro. Turns out I can.

We use a specific program that is a relational database for lawyers called TimeMatters. It is PC only and although the program can be frustrating, one thing it does very well is keep all of your data on the server. So I booted up parallels and had an extended call with a very smart PC friend of mine and in about an hour we had my Mac securely on the network with TimeMatters installed on my laptop and working flawlessly in Parallels. For the last few days I’ve been doing most word processing in Pages and jumping over to Parallels for the database management stuff. I’m very pleased at this newfound ability and amazed why I didn’t take steps to make this happen earlier.

I’ve frequently used Parallels for another legal PC only program, CaseMap, but interacting with the office database on my Mac seems to step it up a notch. It makes me feel a little bit of a rebel. The lone wolf.

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Okay, maybe I’m laying it on a bit thick, but I’ve had very few problems. Once Parallels sent one of my cores spinning up for no apparent reason. I logged out of windows and rebooted the virtual machine and everything sorted itself out. Other than that, no complaints. And the fact that my cable installer seems to be busy doesn’t really bother me so much either.

MacHeist Countdown

Published at January 22, 2008 in macheist. 0 Comments
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The MacHeist now has less than 2 days left and it was a smashing success. There is a lot of software there for just $49. If you already own some of it, you can gift it to a friend. Check it out before it is too late.

Super Secret Key Combination for Apple Logo

Published at January 21, 2008 in Tips and cult of mac. 3 Comments
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Apple has this funny habit of adding useful features and not publishing it or telling anyone about it. Here is one that may not be all that useful but definitely fun.

option + shift + k

Go ahead. Try it. Did it make you smile?

Macworld Commentary on MacReviewCast

Published at January 20, 2008 in macworld. 0 Comments

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Before leaving San Francisco, I recorded a short narrative of some of my impressions from Macworld 2008. The recording was published this weekend in the Surfbit’s MacReviewCast episode 143. The recording was extemporaneous so there is no transcript. If you are interested, you’ll have to go download and listen. I assure you it is all pure genius inspired … umm … entertaining.

A Lawyer’s Take on Macworld 2008

Published at January 20, 2008 in Legal, OmniFocus, Uncategorized, bento, busysync, daylite, drobo, macspeech, macworld, scansnap, smartboard and timecapsule. 1 Comment
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In addition to being an affirmed Mac geek, I am also a lawyer. So as I spent the last several days talking to developers and roaming the halls of Macworld, a few things in particular got me excited about practicing law with my Mac.

Macbook Air

Apple’s new machine is a real eye catcher. It is just three pounds and manages to keep a 13 inch monitor. While this would be really nice for the roadwarrior or running around in depositions and trial, the $1800 price tag makes me look twice. If you really need thin and are willing to sacrifice a bit of functionality (no ethernet or firewire) you may want to check it out. I’m sticking with my Macbook Pro for the time being.

MacSpeech

For those of you former PC users who miss having DragonDictate in your toolbelt, fret no more. I was never a big fan of iListen, but the folks at at iListen recently acquired the license for the Dragon recognition engine for use on the Mac. Their new product, MacSpeech Dictate will be releasing next month and looks fantastic. I spent about an hour at their booth and am very impressed. I also watched David Pogue fawn over it as it produced very accurate and quick results.

I wasn’t alone in my opinion that this product will change things. It was one of the “Best of Show” award winners by several publications. Put this one at the top of your list for productivity boosters.

OmniFocus

I’m a big fan of the Omni Group applications. I use OmniOutline, OmniPlan, and OmniGraffle to manage much of my caseload. I got in early on the beta of their OmniFocus task management application and it was just released as a 1.0. This application is fantastic for keeping all the plates in the air. I did an extended review of it at Macsparky.com

I talked to the folks at Omni and they are going to do everything in their power to get these applications on the iPhone once the iPhone SDK releases.

BusySync

For the small offices that don’t need the expense of a server but want to sync iCal calendars between multiple desks, there is a great little application called BusySync. For a cost of $20 per computer, you get seamless bonjour and net syncing between machines. They have a new version due out soon that will also allow for Google calendar syncing.

Bento

FileMaker is the best application for database intensive solutions. If you are running a small practice, FileMaker’s smaller application, Bento, looks really robust.

Billings and Daylite

Marketcircle continues its place at the top of small office management software. They had a nice booth and made regular presentations. I was unaware of some of their interesting add-on products like Daylite Delivery and the FileMaker connector. These guys fill a very particular niche.

Fujitsu ScanSnap

I love my Fujitsu ScanSnap. It is a reliable, fast scanner with a small footprint. Now they have a portable version, the S300M, that retails at $295 and looks perfect for those depositions on the other side of the country.

Smart Board

Smart Technologies has a very impressive device you install over your LCD television that allows you to create a virtual white board like you are John Madden. The price point is steep. I was told “around $5,000″ but it sure is nice.

Storage - Drobo and TimeCapsule

While TimeCapsule is aimed as a consumer device, 1TB storage with a built in wireless “N” router is a pretty attractive product.

I was also impressed with the Drobo that allows you to drop up to four swappable drives in with no headache. Interestingly, if you pull out a drive while it is running (or if the drive dies), Drobo automatically moves the data around to protect its integrity. The Drobo device costs $500 without any drives.

For all of you Mac lawyers, I highly recommend visiting Macworld sometime when you get a chance. Not only will you find some great tools for your practice, you’ll probably have a good time while you are at it.

Wordpress Administration on your iPhone

Published at January 20, 2008 in Wordpress and plugin. 0 Comments
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I stumbled upon an excellent plugin for Wordpress that allows me to administer the Macsparky website from my iPhone. (It also works for iPod touch.) While it was technically possible before, it is much easier with this plugin that automatically detects when you are logging in from your mobile device and allows you to administer and post. You can get it right here.

OS X Top Hints

Published at January 20, 2008 in OS X and Tips. 0 Comments
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Mac OSXHints posted its results on its top 10 hints contest. Number one was the hack that allows you to put a “recent documents” icon in the Leopard Dock. I’ve been using this hack since they first discovered it and it is quite handy.

You can read the entire list right here.

OmniFocus iPhone Update

Published at January 19, 2008 in OmniFocus, iPhone and omnioutline. 2 Comments
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With all the excitement at Macworld one of the tidbits I failed to report was a conversation I had with the Omni folks. They were very enthusiastic about getting their hands on the iPhone SDK next month. They told me they would be working hard to figure out an iPhone application for OmniFocus. I also dropped several not so subtle hints about my wish for OmniOutline on the phone as well. Those of you who had a Newton may remember the nice outline module it had.

If I could get my OmniFocus tasks and OmniOutlines in my pocket, many things would be much easier for me. After talking to the Omni people, I’m convinced that if it is possible, they will pull it off.

EyeTV Woes

Published at January 19, 2008 in elgato and eyetv. 1 Comment
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Well Apple didn’t give me the magic tablet I was hoping for, but they did make the Apple TV much more interesting for me. I do a lot of home video and I was halfway to buying one before. The price drop combined with the ability to rent HD movies puts me in the “will buy” category.

Since I’m intending to do that, I thought I would also get an EyeTV device to allow me to get recorded content onto the Apple TV and my phone. They had a very good deal at Macworld and I picked one up. I have a bit of free time today so I started setting it up but unfortunately the software disc is blank. It has elgato’s printing on the disc, it says “eyetv3″, but when I put it in my Mac, there is nothing on it. The finder opens up showing a “recordable disk”. To make matters worse, I am unable to find a digital download of the eyetv software so my idea of recording tonight’s playoff previews on my Mac are dashed.

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I sent an email to elgato. I’ll keep you posted on just how good their customer service is.

———————————–

Update 1.20.08

The elgato customer service is actually very good. I received an email this morning with the download link and an apology. Apparently in their rush to get to Macworld with the new software they had a batch of bad disks.

I hooked it all up night and it delivers as promised … almost.

In order to get the DVR function working their television guide provider (TitanTV) has got to have your specific cable provider in their system. Mine is Cox communications which apparently didn’t make the cut. This could be operator error. I’ve only been trying to figure it out for an hour.