Freecasts

Think of this post as an extension of Fredric’s Fantastic Freeware except that instead of me doing the reading/ad-libbing, you will have to supply your own internal voice. These are the top free or cheap Mac Apps that every Mac user should have.
Network Apps:
Cyberduck- I have used most ftp programs for the Mac including; Transmit, Fetch, and the command line, and I still prefer Cyberduck. Free
MacFusion- This amazing program lets you mount a remote drive with read/write access through ftp or ssh on you desktop. This is compared to the Finder which only lets you mount a ftp drive with read only. Requires MacFuse which is free as well as MacFusion.
SpamSive- This program is considered by many (including me) to be the best spam blocker on the Mac. Setting it up isn’t difficult, but be sure to read the readme. $30
iFreete- This application is a freeware directory for the Mac. In other words it finds Mac freeware and lets you see screenshots, reviews, and downloads for a particular piece of software. It is kinda hard to explain, but think iTunes for freeware. Free.
JollysFastVNC- There are many VNC programs for the Mac, but my favorite is this one due to it’s speed. Free.
Colloquy- The definitive Mac IRC program. Free.
Media
Perian- It may be a bit vain, but I think I was one of the first people to discover Perian and get it well known. I say that because over a year ago, I submitted it to digg. Anyway, Perian is the ultimate Quicktime plugin, allowing QuickTime to play almost any file. Free.
VLC- I use this app when Perian just doesn’t work. I have yet to find a file format it won’t play. Free.
VisualHub- This app can take most video formats and transform it into either: iPod, H.264, Mpeg4, Mpeg, DVD, Divx (with many types), WMV, Flash, PSP, DV, and Tivo. Not only that but it is quick and the developer has a good sense of humor (read the readme). $23.32
iSquint- The little brother of Visual Hub. It can convert almost any format into a format readable by the iPod. Free.
Handbrake- Converts DVDs into video files on your computer. Works on most if not all DVDs including the protected ones. But we all know that you won’t use it for illegal uses, right. Good. Free.
Pixelmator- Much has been said of this little Photoshop competitor, but I will tell you what you need to know. Fast as hell, has most of the functionality of Photoshop, $59, ’nuff said.
Productivity
NeoOffice- In my tests, this app has all the functionality of M$ Office (which I hate with a burning passion) for free. It can open and write to any office doc. The one problem is that it is a bit ugly, but it recently got a facelift. Free.
Schoolhouse- This app is a Swiss Army Knife app. Not only can you manage your homework in it, but you can calculate grades, you can email teachers, and take notes. All from this one app! A must have for any student.
TextMate- There is so much that can be done with this app it is staggering. It can be used to write code, to make websites and to write text. $59.
iWork- Includes Pages (word processor and page layout tool), Numbers (spreadsheet maker), and the best presentation software that I know of; Keynote. I use this app all the time. It can open and save to office formats. It is also better looking and faster than office and has all the features that most office users use. $79.99
Utilities
Growl- It is impossible to describe this app, but I will do my best. This pops up a little notification window when another process has something to tell you. Very useful. Free.
Onyx- The ultimate Mac Maintenance utility. I use it once a week to keep my Macs running fast. Free.
SuperDuper- My favorite Mac backup program. The reason why it has won my heart is that it can do incremental, bootable backups. $27.95
Quicksilver- The best launcher out there. 100x quicker than Spotlight and more expandable. With all the plugins that are available for it, it can be used for many things. Free.
AppFresh- Think software update for all of your programs. It also has intergration with iUsethis. Free.

Good friends of mine will probably remember that I got an iPhone shortly after it came out (July 7th to be precise). Provided that those people are also readers of this blog, they might also wonder why there was no review of the iPhone after I got it and the reason is such: I hate doing reviews right after I get something. It is too easy to be overcome by the “shineyness” of a new gadget and overlook other faults. Not to mention that (in my humble opinion) you can not do a review of a product without having a bit of time to use the damn thing and find out it’s faults and hidden greatness. Several things are left out of this review most notably all the hacking and bricking. That stuff is up to you. I hacked my iPhone, but in this review, I will pretend that the iPhone was unhackable and I never hacked mine. In this review I will list the pros and cons each of the features by their order in the SpringBoard. The exceptions will be the clock application (I don’t use it), the calender application (since I don’t use it), the stocks application (what is there to review), and the settings application.
1: SMS
Pros:
The SMS program is the smoothest SMS app I have ever seen on a phone.
I love the fact that you can click on links for phone numbers and web sites.
Cons:
No MMS; either sending or receiving.
The chat interface can be a bit confusing when you are not having a regular conversation on sms.
The message limit in the iPhone’s software.
2: Photos
Pros:
This application has an amazing interface. This is the first app I show off when flaunting my iPhone. People just go crazy for the flicking and the flipping.
I love how it responds to the motion sensor.
Cons:
None really
3: Camera
Pros:
In bright light the quality is quite good.
The fact that the little camera icon turns with the iPhone shows off that attention to detail that Apple is known for.
The shutter visual is quite cute.
No shutter sound. Those are just so annoying.
Cons:
You have no control over the advanced features of the camera such as exposure, white balance, shutter time, and resolution.
There is no zoom.
In low light, the pictures don’t look as good.
4: Youtube
Pros:
The H.264 videos look great.
Depending on if you are on wi-fi or Edge, it changes the resolution.
The videos load relatively quickly.
Cons:
This application is a huge battery sucker.
The navigation is a bit weird in the fact that I cant search by uploader.
Sometimes when I click on a link to Youtube (either in Safari or Mail) it takes me to the web page.
Not all the videos are converted to H.264.
5: Maps
Pros:
Good integration with the iPhone.
Live traffic updates.
The directions feature.
Cons:
No street view.
Sometimes the pin isn’t where the address is.
It doesn’t cache maps.
6: Weather
Pros:
It is accurate.
Cons:
I wish the icon would reflect the actual weather.
7: Calculator
Pros:
Simple to use.
Cons:
I wish it had more advanced functions and graphing.
8: Notes
Pros:
Until February, the closest we have to a to do list on the iPhone.
Perfect for jotting down quick things.
The animations.
Cons:
They don’t sync with anything.
They can’t be exported.
9: Mobile iTunes Store
Pros:
Very quick.
You can buy iTunes Plus content.
Perfect for impulse buying.
Cons:
Perfect for impulse buying that will later be regretted.
Doesn’t work on Edge.
No podcasts or videos.
10: Phone
Pros:
Unlike my dad’s Treo, it is usable.
Calls come in clear.
Thanks to the infrared sensors near the top, face dialing is a thing of the past.
It has a great microphone.
Cons:
No contact searching.
The weakest speaker that I have ever seen on a phone.
11: Mail
Pros:
The best mail client I have seen on a phone.
Cons:
That isn’t saying much.
No spam filter.
No “Mark all read” button.
Sometimes emails don’t get downloaded immediately.
12: Safari
Pros:
Motion sensor aware.
Fast (on wifi).
The zooming is very very smart.
I like how it handles tabs.
Cons:
No flash plugin.
Limited to 8 tabs.
Doesn’t cache pages to be open.
No downloading.
When I stream a song, I should be able to surf the web at the same time.
13: iPod
Pros:
The best iPod ever.
External volume control.
The included headphones are better quality than the normal iPod headphones.
The iPhone headphones have that pause/next track button built in.
Cons:
Weak speaker.
Sometimes I get into coverflow mode when I don’t want to.
The damn recessed headphone port.

If you haven’t heard of the video website Hulu, you must be living under a rock. For the past few months, it has been the site of controversy, hate, and mild like. For those who are living under rocks, let me sum it up for you. Hulu is a joint venture between NBC Universal (NBC, USA, Sci-Fi, etc) and Newscorp (Fox, FX, Fox Sports, and iHOR (International House of Republicans)). Both of them were tired of having their shows put up on YouTube, and felt that Apple was ripping them off, so they decided to make their own site. When I first heard about this site, I assumed the usual: No downloading, heavy DRM, no Mac/Linux, and only clips. Yet I signed up anyway because, lets face it, I am a sucker for a new web service (I am the guy who signed up for the Slingbox for Mac private beta even though I do not own nor have I ever owned, a Slingbox.) A few days ago I got the email that I had been accepted, and I delved into the website with the lowest of expectations. And those expectations were blown away.
I thought the website would be terribly ugly, full of ads, and html from the 1990s, but the website is clean, and a little bit ajaxy. It is only spoiled by a few ads here and there. My next reservation would be platform restrictions. I have 9 computers, none of them windows, so that would pose a problem. You can imagine the look on my face when I clicked on a link, and it just worked! How novel! I searched and a lot of my favorite TV shows were there. So far so good, then it came time to watch an episode.
I had many preconceptions about the viewing experience including, but not limited to: the ads, the quality, and the loading time. I found the ads, while somewhat annoying were fine. And the best part about them is that you can see exactly where the ad is in the general time line of the show. There are 2 ads per 30 minute show, not including preroll ads. Each ad is 60 seconds long and is ignorable. The quality isn’t bad either, while it isn’t HD (yet),it is far better than anything that I have seen on youtube. And yes, the loading time is nice and fast.
Now it is time to tackle the naysayers. And while I have negated almost all of their complaints, I left out one. The issue about downloading. This is a non-issue for me. Whenever I bought a TV show on iTunes, I would watch it once or twice, then I would never watch it again. I would start to notice how much space it was it was taking up on my iPhone/iPod/MacBook/PowerBook’s HD. I wanted to delete it, but then I would feel bad that I wasted money, and besides what if I wanted to watch it again? Now I can rest safely knowing that the content is on Hulu’s servers.
I was never a TV fan. When I was a baby, I would rather read than watch TV. Even now, I don’t have a TV let alone cable. And because of all the mentioned reasons, Hulu is perfect for me.

I wanted to find out if I could combine my dad’s discount (and if said discount even existed) with my student discount. I decided to pose as my dad and talk about my son. So what does this have to do with there being bots? Read the transcript and tell me if you read anything weird. Nothing in the transcript has been changed except for the name of the guy working for Apple. (I changed his name in this so that if this guy who I chatted with is real, I won’t wake up with him stabbing me numerous times.)

• You are chatting with Appl, an Apple Expert

A couple of days ago I ranted about how much I was pissed about my Shure E2cs, and how I hoped my EP-630s would be good. Well I am here to say that they are good, and I would recommend them very highly right now. First they are extremely loud. They make my Shure headphones sound quiet. Next, they fit in my ear very nicely which is saying something. They also sound really nice. However, one of the most important things that can make or break (pun intended) a set of headphones is their durability, and I think the Creative ones have those in spades. They even have a metal ring on them which makes it feel even stronger.

However, there are only two downsides to these headphones. The most annoying is that if you touch the cord when the earbuds are in your ear, you hear it. The only other downside thus far is the fact that there is a bit of hissing when you have them plugged in, but not playing anything.

Keep in mind that this review is ongoing and by this time next week, I might be saying that I hate these piece of shit headphones! But so far so good.