Mac Net Journal

I haven't taken the leap to use many so-called Web 2.0 services so far, but I know that they are all the rage for many Mac users and even more people who live on the Net. Gmail, online calendaring, groupware ... Should we trust our data to the network pipes and remote servers? I am still not sure. But I do know that no one wants to lose their data and there is nothing worse than that sinking feeling when it dawns on you that something has just gone horribly wrong with your storage solution.

Macintouch has some interesting comments on online backup options in an ongoing reader thread today.

A review of font managers on Ars Technica
Wednesday, December 27, 2006, 10:55 PM

A trio of Mac OS X font managers are reviewed today on Ars Technica - something useful for those who live and die by using just the right font: The Mac OS X font managers review

Happy holidays to all!
Sunday, December 24, 2006, 5:15 PM

Here's wishing you a happy holiday season, no matter what holiday you and your family choose to celebrate!

MacDevCenter's take on the best apps of 2006
Monday, December 18, 2006, 10:25 PM

MacDevCenter has its list of the top new applications of 2006, as chosen by its top writers. It looks like a lot of folks like Yojimbo. Maybe I will have to take a look sometime...

Hunting for energy losers
Monday, December 18, 2006, 10:04 PM

Jason Fry writes in the Wall Street Journal about the biggest energy users in his apartment: A hunt for energy hogs. The verdict - major appliances such as a clothes dryer makes a big impact, but so does using a number of incandescent lights. Meanwhile, high tech gadgets were not using nearly as much power. Of course, I don't see information about a big-screen plasma TV on the list...

DiskWarrior 4 with Intel capabilities
Monday, December 11, 2006, 9:55 PM

via TidBITS: DiskWarrior 4 Adds Intel Compatibility - Alsoft has released DiskWarrior 4, the long-awaited upgrade to their essential disk-repair utility. DiskWarrior locates and repairs disk directory information, which can bring back to life an otherwise unusable partition which has no physical faults and no other data corruption. (DiskWarrior scored highly in David Shayer's "Shootout at the Disk Repair Corral" article, 2003-11-24, which compared major disk repair applications.) DiskWarrior 4 adds compatibility with Intel-based Macs ... [TidBITS]

iView MediaPro to become Microsoft Expression Media
Sunday, December 10, 2006, 4:50 PM

I am not sure why, but I shudder when I read that Microsoft has announced its plans for what it will do with iView MediaPro - the image management tool that I have been using for the last five years or so. The program is going to be released under a new name next year as Microsoft Expression Media - one part of a Microsoft Expression Studio, which sounds like Microsoft's idea of how they will compete with Adobe. A post on the iView Multimedia blog outlines the deal - the price will go up $100 to $299 and at this time there is little word about new or enhanced features. To Microsoft's credit, current iView users will get the "upgrade" to Expression Media for free, and a discount on purchasing the whole Expression Studio suite.

I am considering my options. In past years I used GraphicConverter to manage my images, and the image format conversion tool and image editing tool worked well for that purpose. Other options could include Photo Mechanic. But I hesitate to want to buy into another Microsoft product, which means I can decide to either deal with the upgrade to Expression Media in the second quarter of 2007 or move to something else.

A week on the road
Monday, December 4, 2006, 6:49 PM

I am in the midst of a week of vacation time, spent along the shores of the Strait of Juan de Fuca where I can hear waves lapping at the beach just thirty feet away from the pack porch of the rental cabin where Natalie and I are staying. This is a perfect getaway spot for writing and bird watching, and also for photography. We arrived two days ago to find the remnants of last week's snowstorm melting in the fields that lead up to the shore. It is warming up now, and yesterday I rose to view the sun rise over the mountains of the North Cascades.

This is a leisurely week, without much online time, short of a few short interludes checking my e-mail on my Treo 650. The goal is to unplug, from work at least, and to spend some time reading and writing. But of course my MacBook Pro is here, providing music and an electronic tool for writing.