Essential Mac software

[PJR]

kiwisr said:

A good MSN messenger client is aMSN. (mainly because everyone I know uses MSN), supports virtually all the same features as the Windows MSN clients - webcam etc, which Adium et al don't do.

I've used this.. I thought the cam was only 1 way at a time though? Also, with a bit of jiggery pokery, you can actually use MSN through iChat. Its pretty basic though, so text only for the most part. Same with ICQ, although I don't know of anyone that uses that any more.

P,

[The Dude]

For me;

Quicksilver - just because it's simply THE best piece of software EVER!
Transmit - FTP
Neo Office - still buggy but getting better all the time and does 90% of the things MS Office does.....but for free.
Max - best CD ripper/MP3er for the Mac (includes FLAC support) and free.
MacMame - no explanation needed
Phone Agent - shareware phone manager for Nokia and Sony Ericsson phones. Amazing feature-set for a few dollars, miles better than any OEM software I've ever seen (www.macmedia.sk )
VLC - best video-player ever. Plays just about anything or will have a damn good try.
Speed Download - high-speed download manager. Not free but well worth it for big downloads.
Carbon Copy Cloner - free util to clone hard-drives.
Media Rage - good MP3/file/tag management tool-set

[Leithen]

Give Camino a go - take a brave pill and download one of the latest nightly builds for the latest features.

Another vote for Quicksilver, takes a bit of learning, but once embedded in your brain you won't look back.

SuperDuper is how every backup application should be, simple and it just works.

I'd also give Skype a try, especially if you take another brave pill and follow these instructions for high resolution video. It really is excellent.

[PJ S]

MaxMenus - make use of the corners of your screen.
GraphicConverter - not quite PS, but oh so close for oh so little.
Deja Vu - 30 day trial backup provided with Toast Titanium.
MenuTunes - control iTunes with key combos.
SafariStand - what every Safari user should have.
Flip4Mac - play various Windows media file types via Quicktime.
R-Name - batch renaming of files.
Renamer4Mac - batch renaming of files.
NoteTaker - what TextEdit should've been.
iView Media Pro - Mac's version of ACDSee.

[prelude4ws]

So much choice!

Have picked up a few of these now

Quicksilver
VLC
Superduper
ClamXV

But I'm still learning how it works, so far a lot better than any PC I have had.

[tog]

Just remembered another one that every Safari user should have - AcidSearch. It gives you everysearch engine you want in the search box and contextual menu, and also lets you customise it to suit any site you regularly need to search. Couldn't get by without it.

[GHW]

TextMate - fantastic text editor.

[tog]

GHW said:

TextMate - fantastic text editor.

...but so is TextWrangler, which is free - my favourite price point

[Globulator]

HiRich said:

I'm looking for something that will help me create pdfs, without purchasing Acrobat. What I have is a series of scans (e.g. pages of a race programme). I'd prefer to compile them into a single document.
- Preview allows me to open them "as if" but only lets me save them as single-page pdf files.
- Word (and the "Save As pdf" print function) sort of achieves it, but leaves significant borders, and a lot of trouble trying to get the correct (non-A4) page size.
- Safari & Print/Save As pdf doesn't allow for page breaks
So does anyone know of a simpler method, free or shareware or trick?

Open a new NeoOffice document, copy and paste in the items you want direct from Preview, and then save as PDF.
There are about 3 different PDF options for saving, can't remember the best to use - so check the result in preview and ideally acrobat before you rely on it.

[pincher]

Any chance that this topic could be made a sticky, like the Freeware apps one for Windows?

[CommanderJameson]

tog said:

Just remembered another one that every Safari user should have - AcidSearch. It gives you everysearch engine you want in the search box and contextual menu, and also lets you customise it to suit any site you regularly need to search. Couldn't get by without it.

In a similar vein is Inquisitor, which extends the functionality of the search box.

[HiRich]

Globulator said:

Open a new NeoOffice document, copy and paste in the items you want direct from Preview, and then save as PDF.
There are about 3 different PDF options for saving, can't remember the best to use - so check the result in preview and ideally acrobat before you rely on it.

Thanks, the one mentioned earlier has already solved most of the problems, and I've located a copy of Acrobat whic, although a truly miserable program, has done some other bits.

[Globulator]

Good to see you've got it sorted.

Personally I d'ont run Acrobat. 'Preview' (comes with the Mac) is the (and still my) default app for any .PDF file (and a number of JPG/BMP/GIF etc. files. Preview is lightweight and very powerful.

With preview I can open, save, and copy from any PDF file, and also copy bits of pictures and save as PDF etc. I can't remember if it does text selection from a PDF - but IIRC it does.

So I guess what I'm saying is that I can't understand why you need Acrobat when you have Preview - but you may be doing something I never have I guess.

[tog]

Globulator said:

Good to see you've got it sorted.

Personally I d'ont run Acrobat. 'Preview' (comes with the Mac) is the (and still my) default app for any .PDF file (and a number of JPG/BMP/GIF etc. files. Preview is lightweight and very powerful.

With preview I can open, save, and copy from any PDF file, and also copy bits of pictures and save as PDF etc. I can't remember if it does text selection from a PDF - but IIRC it does.

So I guess what I'm saying is that I can't understand why you need Acrobat when you have Preview - but you may be doing something I never have I guess.

PDFPen will let you edit pdfs directly, more so than you can with Preview, and it's much cheaper than Acrobat. But I've never needed anything more than Preview either.

[Globulator]

Holy Moly!! Heres a thing..

.. Just playing with a mouse with built in scroll wheel (the John Lewis stylee ones with the super glow effect on offer at the moment) on the mac and I look at the Mouse Preferences.

It says 'Zoom with scroll wheel when pressing (and then a list) Control'.
News to me. So I hold down Ctrl and move the scroll wheel up and the whole damn screen zooms in like the screen is a giant magnifying glass!! And when you move the mouse it moves about too. Amazing!

WoW!

Never knew if could do that! (Tiger + Powerbook G4)

[tog]

Globulator said:

Holy Moly!! Heres a thing..

.. Just playing with a mouse with built in scroll wheel (the John Lewis stylee ones with the super glow effect on offer at the moment) on the mac and I look at the Mouse Preferences.

It says 'Zoom with scroll wheel when pressing (and then a list) Control'.
News to me. So I hold down Ctrl and move the scroll wheel up and the whole damn screen zooms in like the screen is a giant magnifying glass!! And when you move the mouse it moves about too. Amazing!

WoW!

Never knew if could do that! (Tiger + Powerbook G4)

Ain't it cool . Useful for watching videos on web pages full screen. If you press ESC once you've zoomed in then the cursor disappears too.

Another good one is ctrl-option-command-8.

[PJ S]

Fun this OS X thing, isn't it?
If only Vista was as good a copy as it was intended to be!

[cjs]

tog said:

Globulator said:

Holy Moly!! Heres a thing..

.. Just playing with a mouse with built in scroll wheel (the John Lewis stylee ones with the super glow effect on offer at the moment) on the mac and I look at the Mouse Preferences.

It says 'Zoom with scroll wheel when pressing (and then a list) Control'.
News to me. So I hold down Ctrl and move the scroll wheel up and the whole damn screen zooms in like the screen is a giant magnifying glass!! And when you move the mouse it moves about too. Amazing!

WoW!

Never knew if could do that! (Tiger + Powerbook G4)

Ain't it cool . Useful for watching videos on web pages full screen. If you press ESC once you've zoomed in then the cursor disappears too.

Another good one is ctrl-option-command-8.

Excellent!

Keep these Apps and tips coming!

I agree lets get this thread 'Stickyed'

[pincher]

Any new recommended 'essentials'?

[Timmy2TARs]

I like Acquisition