Over the weekend, I was fortunate to participate in recording the 51st episode of the Mac Roundtable. As always, it was a lot of fun talking with fellow Mac geeks. We covered the new MacBooks, MacBook Pros and Allison’s tale of woe when she wiped out her brand new MacBook Pro with a magnet. In the picks I covered PGP Whole Disk encryption which will get more attention here at MacSparky in the not too distant future.
Continue readingFunny how these ideas develop. It has been bugging me that since I got the MacBook Air, I never seem to take my MacBook Pro off my desk. I’ve slowly come to the realization that an iMac would be much better suited to the way I am using the MacBook Pro. As a result, I’m toying with the idea of selling my MacBook Pro. It has the following specs:
* 17″ MacBook Pro (circa April 2008)
* 2.6 ghz
* 4 gig Ram
* 320 Gig HD
* AppleCare through April 2011
* I’ll also include a Rain Stand, case, and extra power supply.
This is the current MacBook Pro but I’m sure it will be replaced with the new model shortly. If any readers are interested, I’m selling it for $2,200 plus shipping. I’m not sure if I am being silly switching to an iMac but I’m going to put it up and let fate decide.
********* Update ********
I actually had a guy call me and offer my asking price but in the end I got cold feet. When the MacBook Pro needs to be replaced in a few years, I’ll probably do so with a desktop machine but for now I’m going to stick with it. Thanks everyone for the ideas and notes.
MacMommy twittered today about this excellent article where James Wages explains how useful his SE/30 is to him. He uses it to write, play games, and surf the web. That is right … surf the web even though the web didn’t exist when this machine was manufactured. This is particularly exciting to me since, thanks to the generosity of a reader, I’m about to come into possession of my very own SE/30. More on that to come.
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Apple Insider today ran an article about Snow Leopard including a complete rewrite of the Apple Finder. I started using Macintosh computers in 1985 and the Finder really hasn’t changed much since then. I’d love to see someone scrap the Finder and start from scratch but I have my doubts.
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So we’ve had a few days and the reality distortion field is breaking up. People seem to be generally excited about the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros. The one major complaint I’ve heard is the removal of firewire from the MacBooks. I can appreciate this complaint but also must admit I don’t miss firewire on my MacBook Air at all. If I were to try and hook it up to my video camera and it was my only Mac however, I’d have two bags of hurt.
So I’m already now hearing people ask what Apple will possibly bring to Macworld. They’ve already released new iPods, new laptops, and they just updated the iMac design last year. So what is left? I’ve got no clue but I’m still burning a candle for the tablet device I asked for last year. Tim Robertson wrote an excellent article summarizing the last few Macworld announcements here. What do you think Steve will pull out of his bag of tricks this year?
Tomorrow morning is the big announcement for the new MacBooks and some sites are now reading the tea leaves to predict colored MacBooks. On a certain level this makes sense with the recent excitement over the new iPod Nano colors. I could almost see them doing something like this with laptops. I know a few people for whom color would make a difference. Time will tell.
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My ability to resist information management programs ranks right down there with Homer Simpson’s ability to resist doughnuts. I just can’t help myself. As such, when Circus Ponies’ Notebook 3.0 recently released, I was first in line.
In case you haven’t heard of it, Notebook is … well … a virtual notebook. It creates a digital version of that spiral bound workhorse you grew up using. You can pick the kind of paper, the color, even the type of binding. In addition to this eye candy, Notebook does a lot of things your traditional paper notebook couldn’t. You can clip to your Notebook straight from the web. It also lets you easily create bulleted lists and outlines and links to you data such as address book contacts. You can mark up your pages with a tablet or highlight sections with the highlight tool.
Version 3.0 adds several additional features including the ability to add and annotate pdf files. This feature is very useful to me although I would have liked it even more if I could use my tablet pen to add highlighting to my imported PDFs. The new version also allows you to create simple diagrams. The diagram tool does not raise to the level of OmniGraffle but if you want to sketch out simple relationships on a notebook page, you are good to go. Another new addition are sticky notes. With this you can paste a tab or sticky note right on your notebook. If your tab hangs off the end of your notebook, you can still see it with the Notebook closed and jump back to that page with just a click. You can also easily publish your notebook to the internet. One of my favorite features in Notebook is its robust indexing. Just about any data you stick in your notebook gets indexed including words, tabs, names, and links.
Notebook is probably the most mature application available for OS X. It was originally developed for NeXT and then it literally followed the operating system to Apple. That being said, there is a lot of competition for information management applications including online solutions such as Evernote.
I am still trying to sort out exactly the best way to manage my bits of information. I like Evernote but can’t see myself putting all of my data in the cloud. In the past, I’ve used OmniOutliner and Bento to keep information. With its new features, Notebook is now a also a contender. I think the advantage of Notebook is its open flexibility and the ease of use in combining different kinds of data and files. It is not as robust at its individual components as stand alone applications. For instance, the outliner in OmniOutliner is better than that found in Notebook. What makes Notebook special is that you have all of these tools in one place. In writing this review I sent out word to the Twitter nation asking fellow Mac users how they used notebook and got a variety of interesting responses ranging from managing lawsuits to blog posts to wine lists. I think it boils down to personal preference. My wife, for instance, has no interest an outlining program but completely “gets” Notebook. I’ve used Notebook to plan vacations, work projects, and simply to collect ideas. In the end, I don’t think there is any one perfect application for information management. I do think, however, Notebook is an essntial tool in the never ending battle against lost data.
You can download a 30 day trial of Notebook at circusponies.com. A license will cost $49.95 and an upgrade from the previous license will cost $19.95. They also have an academic licnse for $29.95. This application would be perfect for a student.
You can listen to this review on Surfbits episode 181.
Today the Uncluterer website posted an excellent article on giving presentations. I do quite a bit of presentation work and following years of hard knocks I’d have to agree with just about everything the author says. Especially the part about practice. Presentations don’t happen magically. Unless you are some sort of freak, the only way to come off smoothly is to practice. Believe me. I’ve tried it the other way and it always turns out ugly.
So when I know I’m about to give an important presentation, I practice. No one and no thing is safe from my practice. Mirrors, co-workers, traffic, family members, unsuspecting door to door salesmen: They are all liable to be dragged through an opening statement, a presentation, or a particular analogy that I have yet to get just right. It is good to know I’m not alone.
The fact that Apple is updating its notebook lines appears to be the worse kept secret in technology. People were talking about an October 14 event last month and some websites already claim to have pictures of the new cases. There is even a lot of discussion about a new manufacturing process where the new MacBooks will be carved out of a single piece of aluminum* which should make them stronger.
Today Apple sent the official invite out for an event on October 14, 2008 at 9:30 a.m. where they intend to put the “spotlight on notebooks.” I’m set on computers for some time but a friend has been seeking my advice on a new MacBook and I’ve been telling her to hold off.
I routinely ridicule people for making wild speculation of new Apple products but that never stops me from doing it myself, so here goes:
* All of the MacBooks (Pros, standard, and Air) will now be aluminum. There will be no more plastic laptops;
* All of the MacBooks will feature the LED screen probably standard or, at least, as an option;
* Despite speculation, there will remain to be Pros, Airs, and standard MacBooks.
I would love to see the prices drop to have one model at $999, but I seriously doubt it will. Apple has never been a company to play the margin game. I think they are more likely to say, “Hey they are so much better and still the same price!”
What do you think? Sound off in the comments.
* Am I the only person that wishes I could say the word “aluminum” with a British accent? Maybe Don McAllister should screencast THAT.
Last year I was fortunate enough to get to spend a few days in San Francisco at the Macworld Expo. I must admit, however, that my Macworld experience did not follow the usual path you would expect. I spent the majority of my time slumming the halls meeting tons of great readers, podcasters, developers, and other miscellaneous mac geeks. Indeed, I would have to say the best part of the experience by far was all of the great people I met and new friends I made. I made a point of finding people to eat meals with, visit events with, and even troll the display booths with.
For the benefit of this website, getting to shake hands with individual developers and have them answer my questions made a huge difference in my ability to report and review for the past year. Another nice benefit of the trip was my inspiration for the resurrection of the Mac Roundtable which is doing quite well again.
I had so much fun that I just recently booked travel arrangements for my return. If any readers are going to be up there, let me know. I’ll be there Tuesday through Thursday. I thought about going to the Steve-Note but when I realized the extra expenses for that would be about $450 plus a night on the sidewalk, I decided I could avoid the reality distortion field for another year. Also, if you are planning on heading up, don’t miss visiting Macworld Bound, where you can get great tips and information for your trip.