Mac Chick of The Month

Where’s “music menu selection memory” in the new mobile OS X?

September 30, 2007 by Dr. Macenstein · 3 Comments
Filed under: That's Weird..., Users Helping Users, iPhone, iPod, whining

Faithful Macenstein reader Justin writes:

Figured I would go to you because…
a> Macenstein rocks…

(Always a good way to start a letter to us)

b> You’ve submitted articles about a Leopard question I had before.

Anyway, iPhone/iPod Touch question… where the hell is music menu selection memory in the new mobile OS X interface? Remember on your old iPod, if you selected something, a song or album (even items in the settings menu) and went to another part of your iPod, you could return down the same menu path as you had previously? Each menu would start on the item that you had previously been on? This is a huge feature that definitely wasn’t brought over…

The only sort of memory they have for music is the “Now Playing” item… which doesn’t help much when Music crashes because your doing too much stuff in MobileSafari.

Anyway, love the site, keep it up… Thanks,

See how Justin brings his question full circle by kissing our ass in both its opening AND closing? I think we can all learn a lot from Justin.

As for his question, yes, Justin, you’re right. We also noticed that selection memory was lacking in the iPhone, and figured it was just one of those quirky things that makes an iPhone so lovable. It seemed like something simple that common sense suggested would be updated soon. However, now that we’ve gotten a bona fide “feature-packed” iPhone update from Apple and it is still missing, this seems kind of odd.

We could kind of buy iPod functions working differently on the iPhone (such as the way for no reason Apple changed it so none of the standard video out via dock cables seem to work, requiring we pay for new ones), but not on the iPod touch. After all, that still is by design a music player, and should behave exactly like a regular iPod, but with a touch screen.

The removal of music menu selection memory has no discernible benefits for the end user, so we say, bring it back Apple. If not for us, then for Justin.

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Macenstein’s “Mac Chick of the Month” (October 2007): Sarah

September 29, 2007 by Dr. Macenstein · 20 Comments
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Celebrity Mac Chick, Mac Chick of the Month, iBook, iPod

Welcome to Macenstein’s “Mac Chick of the Month”.

Each month we feature a different die-hard, Mac-loving girl who is (almost) as well designed as the Apple products they love. This month we present you with the lovely, Sarah, a southern Florida art school student and die hard Mac Chick!

“I’m currently in college studying fine arts,” says Sarah. “I have been using Macs my entire life. My father is a graphic designer so we have always had plenty of Apple products in our house. I love Apple’s products because they are beautiful, sexy and fun to use! PC’s are like ancient machinery to me…booooring!!”

“I am proud to say that i have converted many of my friends to the world of Macs and they are all thrilled! =) yay. I currently own two iBook laptops, one mini iPod, one iPod nano, one 30 GB iPod and one 20″ iMac. I am constantly using my Apple gear all day, every day. I actually rely on them quite a bit. I am a Photoshop and Illustrator fanatic, and i am constantly doing art work”.

Age: 23.
Location: South Florida.
Occupation: Student/artist.
First Apple product: Old school ibook.
Favorite Apple gear: My 30 gb video iPod and my 20″ iMac!!
Favorite on-Apple gear: Um theres no such thing! I’m a devoted Mac chick all the way.
Favorite TV shows: Anything on the discovery health channel. Also, Showtime series like Huff, Dexter, The Tudors, Weeds, and The L word.
Favorite movies: Cry baby, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, The Last Samurai…
Favorite Bands: Linkin Park, Aesop Rock, Moloko, Portishead, Sneaker Pimps, all elecro and DNB…way too many to list =)
Hobbies: PHOTOSHOP, collecting toys!! Photography, painting, drawing, illustration, playing on my macs, people watching…
Pets: 2 fabulous kitties.

“Art is my life and my iMac is one of the tools I use to express myself.”

“I’m also a hard-core toy collector. I have a passion for designer toys (urban vinyl art toys). I have hundreds of them! Unfortunately I am running out of room to put them but that won’t stop me, oh no, there are still TONS of toys that I need to complete my collection ”

“I am striving to be a digital artist, most likely an illustrator. I am largely inspired by graffiti, pop art and low brow art. I am really a big dork who would rather sit home alone on a Friday night, watching movies or reading blogs from other toy collectors and artists. I also have a huge soft spot for other “geeks”…any man who is comfortable with himself and who doesn’t care what others think is an A in my book!!”

To see more of Sarah, visit her at: http://luminoussoul.deviantart.com and myspace.com/luminoussoul

Do you think you or someone you know would make a great “Mac Chick of the Month”? Send us an e-mail, or check out our application guide here or on our MySpace page for details.

Due to popular demand, we are proud to offer a MCotM desktop wallpaper to enhance the beauty of YOUR Mac. As a special Halloween treat, this month we have included a bonus holiday wallpaper as well. Enjoy!

Click to download.

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First Look: Mailplane â€“ A desktop Gmail client for OS X

September 28, 2007 by Brain in a Jar · 12 Comments
Filed under: Product Reviews, Software

These days, web apps are giving their desktop equivalents a run for their money. Still, desktop apps provide a level of integration that is difficult to recreate through a browser. Mailplane aims to provide the best of both worlds for users of the popular web-based email service Gmail, plus some clever new features that aren’t found anywhere else. Mailplane will be released in the coming weeks â€“ here’s our first look.

Desktop Integration

Mailplane tries to bridge the gap between web app and desktop, bringing drag-and-drop file management and integration with other applications to Gmail. While you can still use the “attach a file” link when composing an email, it’s now possible to simply drop an attachment into a new message. An “iMedia” browser gives direct access to the most likely locations for media files, potentially removing several steps from the process of attaching frequently mailed file types. While these features may be nothing new for most well-made Mac applications, Mailplane makes Gmail feel right at home on the desktop.

You can even attach multiple files in one step. Try that with Gmail’s file dialog.

There are also some unexpected niceties that aren’t all that common place. When composing a new message, for example, a “Screenshot” button becomes available. This opens Grab and prompts you to select an area of the screen to capture. Your new screen grab is immediately attached to the email. While it might be a little specific, it’s a useful feature that I’d love to see make its way into Mail.app.

Managing Multiple Accounts

Through a traditional browser, Gmail only allows one account to be logged in at a time, making managing multiple accounts a real chore. Mailplane works around this limitation, providing a sidebar listing of available Gmail accounts and unread messages in each. Switching accounts is as simple as a double click.

One small catch: while Mailplane handles the process of logging out of one account and in to the next, it can’t hold your place when you switch back. This means that if you just put together a complicated search in one Gmail account, then switched accounts to quickly read a new message, you’ll have to start your search all over again upon switching back.

A Specialized Browser

Mailplane is, at its heart, a specialized web browser exclusively for use with Gmail. This contributes both some strengths and weaknesses.

On the up side, you always see the full Gmail interface in the center of the Mailplane screen. This means that if Google decides to add a new feature or change the shortcut for a function, you won’t be stuck going back to Safari until Mailplane gets updated. That’s nothing to sneeze at considering how quickly things can change in the world of web apps.

On the downside, the buttons in the Toolbar are effectively “hacks”. They require Gmail’s Keyboard Shortcuts to be turned on (which Mailplane does nicely remind you to do when adding a new account,) and are limited to the functions that are accessible through those shortcuts. Those shortcuts do include 90% of what you’re likely to do in Gmail, but one could argue that you might as well just learn the shortcuts yourself, or use the buttons built in to the Gmail web interface. Luckily, the Toolbar is easy to customize, so you can mix and match as you see fit.

Sure, I could use the Toolbar button, but the regular one is so much closer.

Additionally, since Gmail doesn’t work without an internet connection, neither does Mailplane. No, I’m not expecting to be able to magically receive emails offline, but it would be nice to be able to review those I’ve already received and draft new messages. This is something we’ve taken for granted for a long time in clients like Mail.app, but making this possible in Mailplane would require some action on Google’s part. With Google Gears, however, it may not be long until this gets remedied.

I can see you, email… If only I could read you.

Overall, Mailplane provides some great new functionality and increased ease of use for many Gmail users, with a handful of minor drawbacks. If you use multiple Gmail accounts from multiple locations, or work with Gmail through a standard browser, Mailplane is definitely worth a try. However, those currently using Mail.app to check their Gmail account and working primarily from one computer are unlikely to find a reason to switch.

Mailplane for OSX (Currently in Beta, v1.0 coming soon)

Price: $24.95 for 1 license, $32.95 for 5 system “Family Pack”

Pros: Mailplane provides Gmail users with the kind of OS integration that can still only be found in desktop applications, without watering down Gmail’s impressive feature set. Working with multiple Gmail accounts in multiple locations is a breeze. Extras like easy screenshot mailing and iLife integration are welcome additions.

Cons: Mailplane’s “specialized browser” approach can lead to redundant options that are often more of a pain to use than Gmail’s built-in buttons. Mailplane relies on an available internet connection to function, making offline composition or review of received emails impossible.

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Review: Contour Design’s Showcase for iPhone

September 28, 2007 by Dr. Macenstein · 6 Comments
Filed under: Product Reviews, iPhone

Countour Design’s Showcase for the iPhone is that rare animal of case that merges the best parts of other cases to form an entirely new animal.

Sort of the platypus of iPhone cases.

The Showcase is great for crazy folks like me who painted their iPhone. Now I can protect my expensive “Shrek-green” paint job and see it at the same time!

Not quite an acrylic case yet not quite a rubber case either, the Showcase allows you the ability to show off (most of) your beautiful new gadget’s surfaces, while still providing a fair amount of shock absorption in the event of a fall.

The lightweight case is actually 2 cases in 1, literally. First, the inner layer is a see-through acrylic that completely covers the iPhone (minus the screen and requisite holes for controls/ports). On top of that, Contour Design applied a thin, yet effective rubber coating to the outer bezel, sides, and lower rear of the case. This rubber does two things. First, it provides a bit of protection to your iPhone in the event of a fall, and second it makes the Showcase easier to grip, minimizing the chance of that fall ever occurring in the first place.

Much like the platypus, the design of the showcase is a bit unique as well. The case is more or less a modified clamshell design. To insert your iPhone, you need to fold open the case, and push your iPhone’s lower half into the bottom of the case, then flip the case closed at its hinge. The case snaps shut quite tightly, so no need to worry it will open accidentally, even when dropped (from a reasonable height). The downside here is getting the iPhone in and out of the case can be a little difficult, as the Showcase provides a rather tight fit.

The Showcase ships with a removable holster which works well, although it is a bit on the large side. The holster does a good job holding the case tightly, and its ratcheting clip allows for an endless range of positioning possibilities (well, 12 positions, actually, as it locks in 30 degree increments). As any faithful Macenstein reader knows, I am not a big fan of holster clips, and rarely use them to carry my iPhone. The only thing I find clips useful for is to double as a stand when watching videos, and you can do that with the Showcase’s clip as well with a 90 degree counter-clockwise turn.

The thing I like most about the Showcase is that you feel your iPhone has the security of a shock absorbing rubber case, but since you can still see a good 70% or so of the iPhone, the case doesn’t look as bulky (or feel as heavy) as one that entirely covers the rear of the case.

Since for most people the focus of the iPhone is on the large touchscreen gracing the front, I am glad to see Contour decided to pay tribute to the design of the rear of the iPhone as well with the Showcase. I have been testing cases quite a bit since I got my ColorWare-painted iPhone back, and this is the first case to finally let me see the back of my Jolly Green Giant while protecting it.

Issues

The biggest issue I have with the Showcase is the clear material the case is made of. In my testing (which wasn’t all that rigorous) the Showcase seemed to pick up scratches quite easily. Not the kind of giant gashes that mar its aesthetics â€“ more so the swirly, thin lines that appear after a few weeks on an unprotected iPod’s body. These are the kind of scratches you need to tilt the case in the right light to see, but once you do, they somehow seem to be more obvious than they perhaps are. Since the point of the Showcase is to “showcase” your iPhone, it would have been nice if a slightly harder plastic was used.

The Showcase picks up minor scratches quite easily. I wasn’t really able to get a great photo of them (perhaps a sign they are not all that bad) but in person, even small scratches on clear acrylic catch the light and become noticeable.

My 2nd issue is minor, but I’m all about finding small things that bug me. On the back of the Showcase, up by the camera, Contour Design decided to embed their logo in the plastic. Again, sort of like the scratches, this is one of those things you may not notice until the light hits your case just right, but then it becomes a focal point. I would have much rather they embossed their logo (if need be) on the lower back of the case, in the black rubber. I feel its current placement mars the otherwise beautiful open-back window the Showcase provides.

I am not a fan of Contour Design’s choice of logo placement, as the embossed logo on the clear plastic on the rear of the case catches the light and is quite noticeable.

A final minor annoyance is the amount of effort it takes to get the iPhone OUT of the Showcase. As I briefly mentioned earlier, removing the iPhone can be difficult, and at times you may feel you are putting an abnormal amount of pressure on both case and phone. I would think if you are someone who changes cases often, it would likely only be a matter of time until you broke it. Perhaps I am just a spaz. However, you can connect the iPhone to you r computer via the dock cable while still inside the Showcase, so you may find you rarely (if ever) need to remove it.

Conclusion

I think the Showcase is one of the better-looking cases available for the iPhone, and its combination of shock absorption and eye-pleasing aesthetics make it a good choice for an all-purpose case. Unfortunately the Showcase’s ability to attract small scratches makes you wonder why an unprotected iPhone doesn’t scratch as easily as this “protective” case does.

Contour Design’s Showcase for iPhone

Price: $35

Pros: cool looking, provides a nice blend of protection and style

Cons: case picks up small scratches easily, hard to remove iPhone from case, poor logo placement

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iLife updates hint at new product offering?

September 26, 2007 by Brain in a Jar · 5 Comments
Filed under: Humor, Updates, iLife

Apple today released a slew of incremental updates for their iLife â€™08 products. Aside from the usual bug fixes, we couldnâ€™t help but notice the tantalizingly-named iLife Support. Is this the first hint that Apple Inc., recently freed from the bounds of its “Computer” nomenclature, is taking a step in the direction of continuing and end-of-life care? Would Apple really be so careless as to let slip an update for such a groundbreaking yet-to-be announced product?

While it would certainly be the fulfillment of a life-long dream for many an Apple fan-boy, letâ€™s just hope they do a better job with quality assurance than weâ€™ve seen of late rolling out iLife Support in our local ER. Might be worth using extra care around falling debris and sharp objects until they roll out Rev. 2.

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