Recovery Software for Your Mac
Resourceful – 1. having the ability to find quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties; 2. teenage Apple employee in NY who helped police recover her stolen laptop and other goods.
There was a story in the New York Times recently about the teenage girl in New York who had approximately $5000 worth of computers, tv’s, and other electronics stolen from her apartment. When a friend called to ask if she was online because he saw that it appeared she was online from her iChat profile, she logged onto a friend’s computer and remotely activated the Back to my Mac feature on her laptop. It is part of Apple’s $99.95 per year .Mac subscription package (http://www.apple.com/dotmac/). She was able to take a picture of the thieves using the computer and found that they were friends of friends. She took the photos and the thieves’ ID to the police, who arrested the two men.
There is another application that utilizes the Mac’s built-in iSight camera for its recovery of stolen laptops. It’s called Undercover from Orbicule Software. http://www.orbicule.com/undercover
Once you alert Orbicule that your laptop has been stolen, it activates the software, which pings Orbicule when the Mac logs on to the internet. The iSight camera takes pictures of the thief and the screen at predetermined times. In addition, the IP address is recorded so the thief’s location can be traced.
If that fails, a hardware failure is simulated causing the screen to gradually dim until it is black. The premise is that the thief will take the laptop into a repair shop. Orbicule has a list of Apple Service Providers’ IP addresses and if the computer is logged online from one, a message will be displayed telling them that the Mac has been stolen. It will also begin screaming at the loudest volume that the laptop has been stolen, and the computer will be locked to prevent any further use.
A single-user license is $49 and a household license is $59. They also have student licenses, site licenses, and volume licenses available.
Karelia’s iMedia browser…free…get it now
Here’s a good one. Karelia Software has released an iMedia Browser. It’s like the media browser with a lot of the Apple apps that gives you instant access to your photos and other media files. You can access it from the dock or menu bar.
And did I mention it’s free??
Get it at http://www.karelia.com/imedia/
Get Time Out!
Dejal’s Time Out helps you combat RSI (Repetitive Stress Injury) and encourages you to take frequent breaks while working or playing at your computer. As Dejal (pronounced Dee-Jill) developer David Sinclair says, “It is easy to fall into bad habits when using a computer for hours on end”. You get into what you’re working on, and before you know it a couple hours have passed, your neck is on fire, your shoulder is in knots, and your eyes are seeing double, or worse! That’s where Time Out comes into play. It reminds you to take regular breaks.
The program can be set up in several ways via the Preferences menu. Breaks come in two flavors: “normal” breaks last for 10 minutes every 50 minutes, and “micro” breaks last for 15 seconds every 10 minutes. The screen gradually dims, a zen-like logo comes forward, a countdown timer displays the time remaining in the break, and you cannot type or do anything else during the break. Those break times are just recommended parameters. You can change the duration of both the break and the time between the break via the preferences pane. There is also a button present that allows you to postpone the break or to skip it altogether.
A really cool feature is that you can run Automator workflows, AppleScript, or Python script or applications at the beginning or end of a break. Some of these are included, and there are also user-submitted scripts to add functionality. One of the scripts shows a status change in Adium at the beginning and end of breaks. Another pauses iTunes during your break, then cranks it up again when the break is over. Many of these features will be included when v. 2.0 is released, but it’s nice for now. Many other user-requested features will also be present in the upgrade.
I can tell you from personal experience that this app works quite well. I have had a decrease in headaches since I started using Time Out. I was also having issues with hand and wrist pain. While not totally alleviated, it is improved.
For now, Time Out is free. Use it, love it, and get attached to it. Consider making a donation to further Time Out’s development. Anyone who makes a donation in any amount prior to the upgrade being released will receive a free license for Version 2. You can’t beat that! There will continue to be a free Time Out Lite for those who do not want the added functionality that will come with version 2. Download Time Out. Your body will thank you.
Time Out is available at http://www.dejal.com/.
Post to your blog with ScreenSteps
With the new beta of ScreenSteps, you can now publish tutorials directly to your WordPress, TypePad, or Moveable Type blog. I’d tried posting to my WP blog awhile back, and suffice it to say that it did not work. Works nicely now, for both WP-hosted and self-hosted blogs (I only tried it out in WP, since that’s where my blog is…the comments from other users seem to indicate this is working well for the other listed blogs as well).
ScreenSteps lets you create tutorials which can be exported into .pdf or HTML format. This is great not only for IT and tech support folks, but for the “regular guys (and gals!)” who regularly receive calls from family and friends asking how to do something.
There are some good (what else?) tutorials to get you started quickly. Check out ScreenSteps here: http://screensteps.com
Find the best FM stations to work with your iPod’s transmitter
Belkin, makers of the TuneCast and TuneBase FM transmitters for the iPod, have a nifty little tool on their website. You input your location information and it tells you the best stations to use with your FM transmitter.
I tried this (albeit with my iTrip) and it worked pretty well. It’s not perfect, but it sure beats the time-consuming and frustrating task of manually searching each station.
Here’s the link for the utility:
http://www.belkin.com/mybestfm/
