On this episode of Focused, Mike and I tackle one of the most difficult subjects of focus: communication.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
TextExpander, from Smile: Communicate smarter. Get 20% off.
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I remain a fan of the Band-in-a-Box app and I’m pleased to see their continued support for the Mac. This app lets you easily create backing tracks for any song. You just type in your chord changes, pick a style, and then you can start singing (or jamming) on top of it. I’m pretty sure the first time I bought this app was in the late 80’s.
They just released the 2021 edition with over 80 new features and loads of new content like 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, Artist Performances, Bonus RealDrums “Singles,” RealDrums transcriptions, MultiStyles PAK 1, XPro Styles PAK 1, Xtra Styles PAK 11, and more. From now until June 30th, you can save up to 50% off upgrades, Bonus PAKs with 40 Additional RealTracks, MultiStyles PAK 1, and more.
I’m pleased to announce that today I was able to turn off the tracking pixel on the MacSparky Newsletter. Going forward, my newsletter subscribers will be sending me no data back. I’ve wanted to do this for some time, but just not had the ability. When ConvertKit (my newsletter service) announced their new beta “privacy-first” program, I jumped on it. So with the MacSparky Newsletter, the creepy switch is permanently set to “off”.
Stephen and I are joined by Paul Kafasis on the latest episode of Mac Power Users to talk about Mac software development in the modern era, some of Rogue Amoeba’s history, and the tools Paul uses to get his work done.
This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:
TextExpander from Smile: Get 20% off with this link and type more with less effort! Expand short abbreviations into longer bits of text, even fill-ins, with TextExpander from Smile.
The Intrazone, by Microsoft SharePoint: Your bi-weekly conversation and interview podcast about SharePoint, OneDrive and related tech within Microsoft 365.
Hooray! Apple has made Shortcuts for the Mac. On this episode of Automators, Rose and I dive deep on our initial impressions with the Mac version of Shortcuts and how well it plays with traditional Mac automation.
This episode of Automators is sponsored by:
The Intrazone, by Microsoft SharePoint: Your bi-weekly conversation and interview podcast about SharePoint, OneDrive and related tech within Microsoft 365.
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* Cross Promo: Clockwise: Four people, four tech topics, thirty minutes. Listen now.
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This week MacSparky is sponsored by DEVONthink. There are a lot of ways to manage a database on your mac, but in my opinion, there is no better tool than DEVONthink. Just a few of the things I use DEVONthink for include:
A reliable repository of research documents. DEVONthink will hold as many documents as you can throw at it. In addition, it makes import (and export) easy, so you can have all that power without feeling trapped.
A research assistant. DEVONthink uses artificial intelligence to analyze and connect your documents in ways that may not otherwise occur to you.
An OCR Tool. Everything you store in your DEVONthink Pro library gets OCR’d. It just happens.
An Automation Tool. DEVONthink lets you build powerful automation subroutines into your library to help tag, move, and organize documents.
One of my uses for DEVONthink is legal research. I dump legal cases, statutes, regulations, and law review articles in DEVONthink whenever I’m working on a thorny problem and let DEVONthink grind on the documents before I do. It is spooky what DEVONthink finds when I start searching my legal database. It’s like having my own research assistant. You could also do the same with all of your personal records. Dump them into a DEVONthink database and let DEVONthink sort it for you.
DEVONthink supports multiple sync methods and lets you even use your own sync password, so everything is encrypted. If you’ve got an iPad or an iPhone, you can access your DEVONthink data there, too, with DEVONthink to Go.
It is this combination of power and security that makes DEVONthink the clear winner. You can think of DEVONthink as your paperless office. You can automate your workflow from capture to filing, editing to publishing. It stores all your documents, helps you keep them organized, and presents you with what you need to get the job done.
Interested? MacSparky readers can get a 20% discount on DEVONthink. Use the code MACSPARKY2021 at checkout. This is a limited-time offer, so check it out now.
You know I love my keyboard shortcuts, and recently shared my top 25 basic Mac keyboard shortcuts that help me save time every day with Daylite. Check it out.
Coherence X4 is out now. It’s a major update to Coherence. If you don’t know about Coherence, it’s a tool that allows you to turn any website into a Chrome-powered app on your Mac, and it’s great if you’re looking for SSB (site-specific browser) tools in general, or to replace electron apps in particular. With Coherence, you can do things like:
Create a Google Drive app that works as well as Chrome without having to use Chrome as your default browser
Create a desktop app for Roam Research, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Google Meet
Make a customizable app for Slack, Whatsapp, or any other electron-based app with the ability to add extensions or customize
Create isolated, incognito workspaces for multiple sites like your banking applications or email and messaging.
Features with this update include the ability to return to where you left off when you click on the dock icon. With this quick resume, there’s no restart. There’s also an App Gallery so you can easily browse for apps and workspaces, and instantly add them to your Mac. You can also create Incognito apps that always launch in Incognito mode for consistent privacy and data security.
I’ve tried a lot of these browser-in-a-box style apps over the years and this is, by far, the best one I’ve ever used.
This week on Mac Power Users, we were fortunate to interview Apple executive Vivek Bhardwaj about the new Shortcuts for the Mac and what it means for traditional and future Mac Automation. Stephen and I also dive deep into the rest of the WWDC announcements and what they mean for the Apple platforms in general. The interview came out great and there is tons of insight in this show about WWDC. (Also, if you’d like to read the interview, Stephen got it transcribed and posted it over at 512 Pixels.)
I’ve been running tests on iOS 15 voice-to-text dictation. The below video demonstrates an iOS 15 vs. an iOS 14 comparison on two iPhones with the same processor. iOS 15 is slightly faster and more accurate. Because it is being done on-device, you are also freed from the whims of your Internet connection.
Where iOS 15 really pulls ahead is the removal of the blasted timer. No longer do you have to randomly restart dictation as you dictate. This will be a game changer when it releases. The below video shows demonstrates this difference.
