Several iPhone attorneys, myself included, put together a posting about our favorite iPhone applications. It ran today on the MacLawyer website and iPhone J.D. It is worth reading, even for non-pointy headed lawyer types.
Macworld Moves to February
Today IDG announced 2010 Macworld moved from January to February 9 – 13, 2010. The location will remain at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, CA. I spoke with several developers, exhibitors, and attendees at this year’s Macworld and the one point everyone agreed to was that having the event the week after New Years and the same time as CES was madness. I think the move to February was a good thing and should make it easier for attendees and exhibitors alike.
Free Expo Hall registration for Macworld 2010 will remain open, for a limited time, so if you are thinking about it, go register. I’ve been to several Macworld expos and for me the experience has always been defined by the community, not the Apple booth, so start making your plans now.
iMovie Update – The True Story
Tidbits had an excellent piece on what actually changed with the recent iMoive 09 update.
Continue readingABA Techshow Countdown
This week I’ll be packing my bags and heading to the ABA Techshow in Chicago. I’ve nearly got the Keynote and travel arrangements are complete. It looks like there will be several interesting speakers and I encourage any Legal Tech types in the Chicago area to check it out.
Continue readingMac Roundtable, Episode 60
I joined Allison Sherridan and Bart Busschots for the Mac Roundtable #60 where we discussed iPhone 3.0, Twitter clients, and the fabled Apple netbook/tablet. Check it out.
Continue readingToday Review
One of the best features of Microsoft Entourage is My Day, a little window that summarizes your appointments and tasks. While I’m not an Entourage user, I must admit a little envy at that simple little window. Apparently I’m not alone. Developer Second Gear Software wrote their own application, appropriately called “Today” that works with iCal data giving you the benefit of My Day without the overhead of Entourage
Using Today, in one narrow window I can get all of a particular day’s events and tasks. Today reads works with the Leopard iCal calendar database so you have the same data without using the screen real estate. If you move an event in Today, it is also adjusted in iCal and all of your iCal connected devices. Switching to a different day is as simple as clicking on the date and selecting your new view from the drop down calendar. You can also move incrementally by clicking on obvious little triangles. Today recognizes the different colors of your iCal calendars and recreates them in its view.
Using Today you can do more than just view your calendar. You can also add events. The recent 1.6 update added natural language detectors for adding new events so setting a meeting for tomorrow, you can type the date or just “tomorrow.”
If you manage your tasks through the iCal and Apple Mail database, you also have full control of them in Today. If you check off a task in Today, it automatically updated in Mail and iCal. I tested this feature and it worked. I didn’t use it extensively however since my task list system is outside the iCal/Apple Mail database.
There are several useful settings allowing Today to be as visible (or subtle) as you please. For instance you can make the Today window always on top of your desktop or hide it in you menu bar.
Once you get comfortable with Today, you will find yourself opening iCal a lot less often. For laptop users, that is a good thing. A Today license is $15. Second Gear has a free trial period.
You can listen to this review on the MacReviewCast Episode #203.
Run SuperDuper on Drive Connect
Fire up your propeller beanie. Mac OS X hints has a very good article today about how to set up an applescript to automatically SuperDuper your drive upon connection of the backup external drive.
Continue readingBusySync on Sale at MacZot
One of my favorite utilities is BusySync which allows all of my various family members to sync calendars. It also allows for seamless Google Cal synching. I reviewed it last year. Anyway, if you’ve been holding off because of the the price, today is your lucky day. Maczot has it for 40% off.
Continue readingCurio Review
I have to admit I’m pretty plugged in when it comes to Mac applications. That is why it is always fun to discover a gem I’ve never heard of. That happened recently with an application from Zengobi software, called Curio.
Curio really doesn’t fit into any easy categories. I guess you could call it a project organization and data collection tool. I’ve come to think of it as a playground for my brain. It has several modules including outlines, notes, mind maps, “to do” lists, PDF annotation, images, and embedded web pages. I’ve used a lot of data collection applications and this one is truly unique. In a lot of ways it reminds me of a wall in my apartment I used in college. I’d tape on notecards, pictures, and ideas. It was very liberating being able to move things around and make new connections. Using Curio, I can now do this on my Mac. You can add and layout pages with whatever modules fit your needs. For instance on one project I have a page with a mind map, another page has a chronological outline, and a third page has images of relevant web pages. You really are limited only by your imagination.
My biggest problem with Curio was getting my arms around it. Everytime I thought I had it figured out, I’d push another button and find another useful tool. You can even add voice annotations and draw with a pen tablet. One of the most recent updates ties Curio to your Evernote database. Now I can see my entire Evernote library from inside Curio and drag Evernote assets straight into my Curio projects. This makes both applications much more useful.
Curio gives you the ability to combine nearly unlimited capture with nearly unlimited format. Put simply, you can throw just about anything at it and organize it according to your own personal wiring. It is definitely the most flexible data organization tool in my bag of tricks.
While Curio has a lot of tools, it does not match the functionality of exclusive use applications. For instance, OmniOutliner is a more powerful outliner than Curio’s. Likewise, the mind map function isn’t as robust as an exclusive mind mapper. I still use my more powerful single use tools for big jobs. However, the Curio tools are usually enough.
Curio comes in two flavors, a standard edition for $99 and a professional version for $149. The pro version includes a additional tools including a status shelf, pre-built templates, a presentation mode, a dossier feature that helps you start new projects, and encryption. For students, there is a $69 academic license. You can download a free trial from the Zengobi.com. This one that is definitely worth checking out.
You can listen to the above review on the Mac ReviewCast #202.
Continue readingiPhone Software 3.0 – No Scoop, Just Dreams
Apple announced yesterday that on Tuesday they will be sharing the blueprint for iPhone software 3.0. In the Apple blogosphere this is nothing less than a class one rumor and speculation generating event. Indeed already websites are weighing in with their “inside knowledge” concerning MMS, tethering, and the long fabled cut and paste. I have no idea what the boys in Cupertino have up their sleeves. Nevertheless, I can hope. I can wish. I can dream. If you’ve been reading this blog for any time, you already know what I’m talking about. Bluetooth keyboard support. Enough said.
Continue reading