NEW TOOLS

Below are some recent hardware and software discoveries.

HARDWARE

Pinnacle Video Transfer Device
This is a unique device is designed to digitize any S or Composite video signal to a USB device without a computer. The final Quicktime files can be viewed on your video iPod, iTV or on your computer. I use it to digitize movies and TV shows directly from the TV. I also use it to digitize TV programs I have recorded on my Cox digital recorder. Its a great way to create free video content for you iPod. You can use this device to convert home videos to a digital format as well. I have experimented with several types of USB devices and have found the SanDisk 8GB Cruzer Slide to work the best.This is a great USB drive! Check out the Pinnacle Video Transfer.Canon G9 Camera
This is an outstanding camera. I took it to Myanmar as a back up to the two 5D's. I also used it to make group snapshots and film clips. There are several things that make this a great camera. It will record both RAW and JPEG 12.1 MB images at the same time. You can use it in a completely manual mode. I like shooting in this mode because you get real time feed back on the big LCD regarding the exposure of your image. I gave up using the Kodak I have mentioned previously because other than its great panorama function its images are poor quality. I solved the problem of shooting pans with the G9 by using the great pano stitching program DoubleTake. I am never without this camera. Check out the G9 and accessories out at B and H.iPod Touch
When Apple upgraded the memory of the Touch to 32GB I broke down and bought one. I am glad I did. It is a phenomenal device. I highly recommend it. I use it primarily to watch movies when traveling. The screen size is great, its clear and sharp. The battery will last across the country. Beyond films it is really a tiny computer when connected to a wireless network. You can send and receive email, surf the web and all sorts of other stuff. Check out the iPod Touch!
iPod Touch and iPhone Case
I love good cases for all my gear. I hate scratches on anything. I ran across this case recently and decided to try it out. It is unique because it completely covers your iPod Touch or iPhone. The surface of the case is designed to telegraph your touch through to the device screen. So far it works great. Its very thin. Check out the iPod Touch Retro T2 Case.
GeekPod 100
I may have mentioned these amazing rechargeable batteries before. They are epic! I loaned my battery to my daughter's boyfriend who took it to Fiji with him on a surf trip. He use his iTouch on the 12 hour flight and it went from four green lights to three. He used it all week and on the return flight and had power to spare. Check out the GeekPod 100, its the best external battery I have found! Great company also!

ScanSnap S300M
I have been patiently waiting for this device to come out since MacWorld in January. They are finally shipping. This is a great portable, duplex, sheet fed color scanner. I have been using it for about a month with no problems. I also use their ScanSnap S510M at work. Its small and not portable, nor will it run off USB port power like the S300M. In the past these scanners suffered from having unreliable feed rollers. It seems ScanSnap has solved that problem in both devices. Its a great tool.IntelliScanner SOHO
I finally broke down and bought the IntelliScanner SOHO bar code scanning device. I had an early device like this several years ago however you had to use it plugged into the computer. You use this tool to catalog your books, DVD's, CD's, Wine etc. I ships with software called Collector. The beauty of the device is that it is cordless and will hold in its memory 2500 scans. After scanning you plug it into your computer via USB and it downloads its contents into Collector. Collector then checks the internet to gather an image and data on the item you scanned. The following are screen shots from Collector.The thing that finally sold me on re-scanning all my stuff is the built in tool Collection has for publishing your collections to the web. You can access your library and search it from any location, even on your iPhone. Check out my book and film libraries! As you add titles you just hit the Publish button to update the info on the web. Intelliscanner hosts the site. Check out the IntelliScanner SOHO.

Trihub 7
I have been eagerly awaiting the delivery of MacAlly's USB Hub called the Trihub 7. I plan to use this hub as a device to charge our iPods and other things that use the USB connection for charging internal batteries. I won't even hook it up to the computer. I will let you know if this idea works.Altec Lansing iM207 Orbit
This is a battery powered speaker for your iPod or other mobile device that uses a small stereo phono plub. The speaker sounds good but is not as small as I thought it would be. Check out the iM207 Orbit.

SOFTWARE

eMedia Guitar Instructional Software
This is the first instructional software I have used on my laptop to advance my playing ability. I started with the intermediate version and then purchased the Blues version as well. I think its a great learning tool. The only thing I don't like is that you have to use the CD while the software is running. Other than that it is great. There are a whole range of other versions eMedia offers.

Google Maps
Until recently I had not tried making my own custom maps via Google Map. I experimented with the tool by making a map of places we like to visit in New York City. I was blown away by how easy it is and have plans for a whole series of custom maps. Check out the NYC Map!

iToner
If you want to create custom ringtones for you iPhone this software works great! Check out iToner.

Monocle and GOOD Magazines
I know its not Mac hardware or software but I had to put in a plug for two interesting magazines I am enjoying. Both Monocle and GOOD are about world culture, issues and design.

AVOID THESE PRODUCTS

Iris
IRIS just released a new TINY USB-powered sheet scanner called the IRIScan 2. It totally sucks. I have never been able to get a scan out of it without big black stripes across the image. Total piece of shit. The ScanSnap S300M is larger but far superior.

MacWorld Has Come and Gone

I didn't get as much out of MacWorld this year as I did last year. I finished walking the expo floor after lunch and headed home. There were a few things that were interesting:

HARDWARE

Invisible Shield
If you don't like bulky cases for your ipod's, iphones and other gadgets this looks like a great product. Invisible Shield is a clear, polymer-like coating that is impermeable.

Rhino • Skin
A beautiful, light aluminum hardcases for both macbooks and macbook pros. Comes in either black or aluminum finish. I am taking one to Myanmar and well let you know how it works. The only thing I am suspect of is the cover latches. They seem a little flimsy.

iSkin
They have created a beautiful leather laptop case called Soho. Beautiful.

ScanSnap
Fujitsu just released their new portable color sheet fed scanner for the Mac called the ScanSnapS300M. It will operated on USB power from your laptop. It will hold 10 sheets at a time and do duplex (two-side) scanning in one pass. Looks like a great portable tool. It does not ship for a couple of months

IntelliScanner
The IntelliScanner Mini is an interesting device. You can use it to organize your books, dvd's, cd's etc. It's cordless and has a memory so you can scan a bunch of items and load them into it's data base. I have an old one with a cord, which is a hassle. The thing I was most interested in is that you can create a web-based data base of your books, films, etc and access the data base from any computer and from the iPhone. This is a breakthrough for me because you don't have to transfer the data base from computer to computer and you can access you library remotely.

Iris
IRIS just released a new TINY USB-powered sheet scanner called the IRIScan 2. It scans only one side but it weighs almost nothing. Scan quality is not to bad. I bought one and will let you know how it holds up.

SOFTWARE

Blurb
Blurb books, that you can order on-line, have come a long way. Their product is beautiful and affordable. I looked at several hard and soft cover books. The printing and binding was excellent. You download their software called "Blurb Booksmart", layout your book/cover and upload it. The product is far superior to Apple iBooks.

Recosoft
They have developed two interesting conversion programs. PDF2ID converts PDF's to InDesign documents and PDF2Office converts PDF's to files editable in Word, PowerPoint, RTF, AppleWorks and others.

Three Days to MacWorld

I didn't find much to add the the list this week. I'm sure I will find some great stuff next week at MacWorld.

SOFTWARE

Soundslides
I forgot to add one great program to the list. It's called Soundslides. It was designed for photojournalists to quickly get images organized into a Flash based slide show that could be uploaded to the web. It creates great slide shows with sound for the web.

MarsEdit
I also discovered MarsEdit. If you post to a blog this software allows you to compose off-line and then upload your post and images to your blog. Red Sweater Software offers this software. The guy that wrote the software and owns the company previously worked for Apple.

HARDWARE

Logitech
If video chat or use the video mode in Skype you will love this new, compact but powerful, Logitech camera. It is far superior to the camera built into the Mac Book and Mac Book Pro. I like it for two reasons. First, it has a wide angle lens. Second, it produces a bright, sharp image. It connects to your computer via USB. It has a built-in clip designed to attach to the top of your laptop screen. It also ships with a useful stand if you want to use it on your desk top.

Welcome to My New Blog

I enjoy investigating new hardware and software for my Mac. I decided to create a platform for sharing useful tools I discover as I read Mac magazines and RSS feeds on the web. I also intend to write about both things that have worked and not worked for me.

This first post will be longer than those that follow because I have quite a backlog of discoveries.

SOFTWARE

Vaja Cases
Their laptop and iPhone cases are elegant and beautiful! The cases are made of leather. The fit and finish is beautiful. They can be customized in a innumerable ways. They are one of the few companies that create an elegant, thin "hard sided" case for your laptop.
http://www.vajacases.com/home/home_en.html

Axio
These folks also create a true "hard sided" laptop case that I like. It's far less expensive than the Vaja because it is not made of leather. This is a great travel case. Very light.

booq
The folks at Booq create a great, thin, zippered laptop case. They are great if you are not looking for true "hard sided" protection.

Stilleto 10
If you have a subscription to Sirius satellite radio you might be interested in the Silleto. It's a portable device that's a little thicker that an iPod that you can use to listen to Sirus programming out side your care. It costs about $6 dollars to add it to your Sirus account. It works great. You can record up to 10 hours of programming on it. If you spend time outside this is a great tool.
I found the best price on Amazon.

HARDWARE

iPhone Applications

Initially I hacked my iPhone to gain access to more applications for my phone. I chose to go a different route after the last software upgrade for the phone. I have been using Safari based app's and have been pleased with them.This is the link to Apple's collection of Safari based applications for the iPhone. Generally there is nothing to install. You just go to the link directly on your iPhone then bookmark it.
http://www.apple.com/webapps/

iDo
To-do list app for iPhone. This is one of my favorite app's because you can update your lists either from your computer or phone. Very functional and useful. Worth the small fee they charge.
http://ido.pmade.com/

Google Labs
I am a devoted fan of Google's products. This blog was created using Google's Blogger. I use Google Reader, Google Notebook, Google Doc's and Spreadsheets and Google Desktop. To access these and other tools all you need to do is sign up for a gmail account. The thing I like most about using Google's products is that they "live" on the web. As a result I can use any computer, PC or MAC, to access my documents.
http://labs.google.com/

Gmail
This is the account page link if you want to set up a free account which will allow you to get started using all the great tools.
https://www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount

Skitch
This little program is in beta. I find it useful for adding notation to photos and screen shots although it is designed to do far more.
http://plasq.com/skitch

DoubleTake
This is the best and most simple panorama creation software I have found.
http://echoone.com/doubletake/

HandBrake
This is the software I use to rip movies from DVD's to my iPod or iTV. It is an outstanding program.
http://handbrake.m0k.org/

Audio Hijack Pro
I use this software to capture audio clips from iTunes and Sirus radio stations. It will capture any sound generated by your computer. I play the resultant clips on my iPod or through my computer to the sound system in our home.
http://www.rogueamoeba.com/audiohijackpro/

Sharpshooter
This a great little app that automatically pops up when you make a screen shot so you can rename it before it hits your desktop. If you create a lot of screen shots you need this tool.
http://www.iwankerl.com/Software/Sharpshooter/

VisualHub
I use this software to convert various video formats into clips that my iPhone, iPod or iTV can read. I also use it to make self contained Flash clips. It is fast and can be set to convert a large queue of films.
http://www.techspansion.com/visualhub/

PhotoToMovie
This is the best software I have found for animating still photographs and converting them into QuickTime clips that I can add into my films which I edit in Final Cut Pro.
http://www.lqgraphics.com/software/phototomovie.php

FotoMagico
This software produces the most beautiful slide shows at a super high resolution. I use this for photography slide shows. You can add text and a sound track.
http://www.boinx.com/fotomagico/overview/

PhotoZoom Pro 2
I use this software to enlarge images to make big prints without loss of quality. It works very well.
http://www.benvista.com/main/content/content.php?page=ourproducts&section=photozoompro_1

ShutterBug
I used this software to build my web site. I love it. Easy to use. I often use it to create html slide show files that we load on the web. The slide shows on the UPD site were built with this software. I prefer this software over iWeb because it is easier to manage several sites.
http://xtralean.com/SBOverview.html

AVOID THESE PRODUCTS

Elagato Turbo
This product is a software/hardware combination. The device plugs into a USB port. In theory it is supposed to vastly decrease the time it takes to convert video and movies to a format your iPod can use. I have found it very slow. The VisualHub software described above is faster and less expensive.

Maxtor Hard Drives
Do not be deceived by the cheap price of the Maxtor 1.5 TB drives. I have had two fail within the last 6 months! I have decided to use GDrives exclusively.