This week’s Mac Power Users was recorded largely in the Macworld/iWorld press room. Katie and I summarized some of the workflows we covered in our session and talked about some of the cool new gadgets found on the show floor. While we recorded, I drank tea.
USB to Lightning/Micro USB Combo Cable
One of my favorite finds at Macworld this year was the Skiva combo Lightning/Micro USB Cable. This doesn’t require much explanation. It is a standard USB cable on one end and the other end has a Micro USB plug with an attached adapter that can turn it into a Lightning cable. It provides both power and syncing to my iPhone and a way to sync/charge my Micro USB devices. Where once I carried two cables, now I carry one. I love that. You can find it on Amazon (affiliate link).
Sponsor: Middle Davids Artisan Candles
This week I’m pleased to introduce a new sponsor, Middle Davids Artisan Candles. Dan and his team at Middle Davids understand the use of rituals to help with productivity. We all like our good coffee (or tea!), our ergonomic chairs, and our clean work surfaces, but what about scent?
I burn candles while I write and I always feel that the ritual of lighting the candle is a way to tell myself “it is on” and get to work. After I’ve worked a few hours, I blow out the candle and take a break. You’ll be surprised how well this works. My favorite is the Northwoods scent, that smells like a fir tree. We don’t have native fir trees in Southern California and I love it.
Dan, the proprietor, is a candle geek and obsesses on candles like I do productivity apps. The candles are 100% botanical soy wax, not paraffin (which is a petrochemical) and the wicks are cotton woven (no metals).
Middle Davids has a subscription plan that gets you two candles a month with 40 hours of burn time. That’s two hours of focus a day. You also get a box of wooden matches, and a sample of the next month’s scent. Give it a try. You’ll surprise yourself. Use the code “MacSparky4” (or “macsparky4”) for 10% off.
Macworld Photo Stream 2
Here are some of my photos from Macworld on March 29, 2014. The show wrapped up today. It was another great Macworld leaving me charged up and full of ideas.
Macworld Photo Stream
In the past two days I’ve given five presentations and attended 4 parties. Other than that, I’ve not been doing much. Here’s my photo stream from the Macworld show floor.
OmniFocus 2 for Mac Returns, Expanded Beta
Today at the Omni Group announced its expanded beta for the completely rejiggered Omni Focus 2 with a product release in June. The current beta is pretty complete. I started using it in the private beta about a month ago and for a few weeks now, it has completely replaced version 1 on my Mac.
The new version brings forecasting to the Mac and the Review mode brings the Mac a lot closer to iPad OmniFocus’s utility. There is a lot to like about the new version. I particularly dig the way the inspector becomes a permanent fixture. I’ll have a lot more to say when the final product ships but for now, if you’re interested, get yourself over to The Omni Group and sign up.
Macworld 2014
As I hit the publish button I’m cruising through the California central valley in the family minivan. I really love going to Macworld every year. I love all the geeky stuff on the show floor. I love the content and the parties. But most of all, I love meeting old friends and making new ones. I recently talked about Macworld with Chuck Joiner on his Mac Voices podcast.
If you are at Macworld this year and see me, please stop me and say hello, whether you are an old friend or a new one. If you are normally introverted, this is the time to put that aside and let your geek flag fly. We’re all family in Moscone at Macworld.
You can definitely find me at the following places:
Thursday, March 27
Drobo Booth, Show Floor, 1PM
Katie Floyd and I will be talking about how we use our Drobos.
Mac Power Users Workflows, 3PM, Room 133
Katie and I will be demonstrating some of our favorite workflows from five years of the Mac Power Users along with a few new ones.
Macworld Rapid Fire, 5:00 – 6:30 PM, Room 103
Imagine a room full of geeks, with each getting only 5 minutes to explain something cool. I’m one of the speakers and hoping to make my few minutes special.
Friday, March 28
Mac Roundtable, 11:30 AM, Show Floor
The Mac Roundtable is a collection of podcasters. We’ll be doing a live show on the show floor with Chuck Joiner riding heard.
Paperless, 2:00 PM, Room 123
Despite the book, I’ve never actually given a Paperless presentation at Macworld. That’ll change this year.
Saturday, March 29
App Camp for Girls, 10:00 AM
Jean MacDonald is running a 2 hour App Camp session starting at 10:00 AM. My family will be there in force with my wife and I helping Jean, my youngest daughter in the camp, and my oldest daughter shooting video.
The Incomparable Live, Computer Draft 12:00AM, Show Floor
The Incomparable podcast is recording a live session on Saturday where we’ll be doing a computer draft. This will be my first time on the Incomparable and have to admit, I’m pretty jacked up about it.
Macworld Agrees: Dragon Dictate 4 is Better
Today Kirk McElhearn weighed in for Macworld on the new Dragon Dictate. It’s better. I thought version 3 was pretty good and yet version 4 is noticeably better. I’ve received some email from readers following my initial thoughts on Dragon Dictate 4 on two subjects.
First, I’m asked if the UI is in parity with the Windows version. It’s not. The gap gets narrower with each successive release but most things (particularly voice corrections) just seem smoother on the PC version. For me, however, the ability to run it on my Mac trumps any difference.
The other subject I’m hearing about from readers is how they had such a hellish time getting their upgrade or experiencing some other hijinks with their purchase. I heard this from several people. It sounds like in most cases it eventually got sorted out but took much longer than it should have. That’s no excuse and Nuance needs to get better at dealing with individual consumers. All I can say in this regard is stick it out if you want the best possible voice recognition on the Mac. Dragon’s it.
MPU 183: Merlin’s Fifth
This week Merlin Mann came back to the Mac Power Users. Merlin was our original workflow guest and his annual visits are always one the highlights of our year. This year we cover the emerging technologies in home automation and talk about what makes some apps stick while others never do.
Sponsor: GroovBoard
This week’s sponsor is the GroovBoard. The GroovBoard is a lap desk and stand that turns your iPad into the perfect couch computer. Make yourself comfortable and get some writing done with a real keyboard while the GroovBoard holds your iPad at the perfect angle.
Like to pull up your knees but still want to use your iPad comfortably? No problem. Want to just relax and read an ebook without having to hold the iPad in your hand? Check. No matter if you want to use your iPad to write, read, draw, paint, make music, play games or watch movies, the GroovBoard will hold on to your iPad, Apple Wireless Keyboard and stylus, so you don’t have to.
Each GroovBoard is beautifully hand-crafted in Germany from a selection of fine hardwoods. Models currently come in alder, antique oak, apple (of course), bamboo, beech, cherry, maple and walnut and fit a wide variety of interior design styles. I got the walnut and keep it by my couch. It works great with my new iPad Air and it just looks classy.
The GroovBoard is made in Germany but if you use the coupon code MACSPARKY, you get free worldwide shipping. That’s a savings of $24 for shipping to the United States. The code is only good through March 30 so get yours now.
Thanks GroovBoard for sponsoring MacSparky.