Field Guides and Broken 3D Printers

Today, I made a little Monday Brief video for you sharing progress on the next Field Guide, 3D printer problems, and this week in the Labs. Enjoy.…

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Mac Power Users 717: The Apple Notes Deep Dive

While it had humble beginnings, Apple Notes has grown into a true competitor over the years. On this episode of Mac Power Users, Stephen and I explore its history, features, and where Apple should take it nex t.

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About the M3 Performance

As the MacBook Pros with M3 are hitting the wild, we are getting more data on their performance. It’s looking like a roughly 20% increase over the M2 generation. The M3 Max chip is clocking about the same speed as the M2 Ultra, which is impressive.

I did not think the succeeding generations of Apple silicon would improve that much year over year. I hope Apple can keep it up.

Automators 140: LimitLiss Automations with Casey

On this episode of Automators, R osemary and I are joined by Casey Liss to talk about all things automation—from home automation from the 1970s to Shortcuts now.

FOD Interview – Stream Deck with Tim Stringer

When I saw that my friend and fellow nerd, Tim Stringer, bought a new Stream Deck, I knew it would be an excellent interview for the Friends of Dave series in the MacSparky Labs. We did the interview with a live audience, and Tim did not disappoint.… This is a post for the Early Access and Backstage MacSparky Labs Members. Care to join? Or perhaps you need to sign in?

The Lab Report for November 3, 2023

It’s time for the latest Lab Report from MacSparky, covering this week’s Apple news and updates…This is a post for MacSparky Labs Members only. Care to join? Or perhaps do you need to sign in?

Find and Delete Duplicates on Your Mac with Gemini

During MacSparky Labs events, I often get asked about how I manage duplicates on my Mac. I use Gemini from MacPaw, part of my Setapp subscription.… This is a post for the Early Access and Backstage MacSparky Labs Members. Care to join? Or perhaps you need to sign in?

“Shot on iPhone 15 Pro Max”

Perhaps the biggest news of the Scary Fast Apple event is that Apple shot the whole thing on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. So the Mac event was, at least, kind of about the iPhone. It’s remarkable how far the iPhone has come as a camera.

Apple shared details of how they did it. There’s some really nice equipment in this footage which begs the question, did they use iPhones to shoot the video about using the iPhone to shoot the event?

Bookworm Podcast: On Quality

Recently, I guested on the Bookworm podcast to chat with Mike about On Quality by Robert Pirsig. This is the same guy that wrote Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and my feelings on both books are … complicated.

This Month in the MacSparky Labs

Here’s what took place in the Labs for the month of October 2023:

2023-10-31 – MacSparky Labs “Scary Fast” Meetup (Labs 1)
2023-10-30 – An Update on Today’s “Scary Fast” Apple Event (Labs 1)
2023-10-27 – The Lab Report – 27 October 2023 (Labs 1)
2023-10-27 – Labs FOD: Tim Stringer’s Stream Decks (Labs 2)
2023-11-25 – October Deep Dive – Maker and Manager (Labs 3)
2023-10-25 – The Endor Studios Recording Setup (Labs 1)
2023-10-24 – Building Interactive Keynote Presentations (Labs 2)

2023-10-20 – The Lab Report – 20 October 2023 (Labs 1)
2023-10-19 – Labs Focus Session (Labs 2)
2023-10-18 – Portable Zoom Station (Labs 1)
2023-10-17 – Testing Lex (Labs 3)

2023-10-13 – Lab Report – 13 October 2023 (Labs 1)
2023-10-12 – Contextual Email (Labs 2)
2023-10-11 – October Labs Meetup (Labs 2)
2023-10-10 – Exploring Default Folder X 6 (Labs 1)

2023-10-06 – Lab Report – October 6 (Labs 1)
2023-10-05 – September 2023 Deep Dive – iOS 17 (Video) (Labs 3)
2023-10-05 – September 2023 Deep Dive – iOS 17 (Audio) (Labs 3)
2023-10-04 – MurmurType (Labs 2)
2023-10-03 – Sparky’s Super Action Button (Labs 1)
2023-10-02 – Sparky’s Q4 Planning (Labs 1)
2023-10-02 – Labs Focus Session (Labs 2)

If you’d like to be a part of the MacSparky Labs, you can get more information and join right here.