Macworld Article on OPML

I explained my OPML workflow today in this Macworld article. Enjoy.

Markdown Reference Links Revisited

Following recording the most recent MPU episode, I got serious about Brett Terpstra’s Markdown Services. These are a really nice collection of tools that I’m completely incapable of replicating with my usual bag automation tools and chewing gum. I used to do this with TextExpander. I talked about this a little bit during the show but since recording, I’ve particularly picked up on using the services that convert inline links to reference links and the other that assembles reference links from open Safari tabs. Think about that one for a moment: Write an article, open Safari and find your links, run the service. Boom. It’s a service so it works anywhere you write text.

I’m not alone, since the episode hit the airwaves I’ve received several e-mails from bloggers and web-writers explaining how this changed their workflows. Nice work Mr. Terpstra, indeed.

Dr. Drang also covered this today and talked about how he pulls off these tricks with TextMate. (The good Doctor also is the first to publicly unmask me as a tramp.) While I get that you can do a lot more with a tools like TextMate, at this point I’m thinking Brett’s services plus Byword are enough for me.

Mac Power Users 57: Power Text Editing

Mac Power Users Episode 57, Power Text Editing, is available for download. I’ve been looking at TextMate and BBEdit and wondering how they fit in a writing (as opposed to coding) workflow. We had Brett Terpstra join us and explored the question in detail. Get the episode over at 5by5. If you haven’t already, why not subscribe?

Paste Plain Text with TextExpander

Reader Chris sent me a great idea using Text Expander to remove formatting from text. Create a plain text snippet with nothing but the $clipboard command. When activated, it pastes sans format. Slick.

Home Screens - Darren Rolfe

Darren Rolfe (Twitter) is the genius behind the MacSparky and original Mac Power Users logo. I’ve known Darren for years and consider him a friend. (Darren also loves his daughter, Ella, very much.) In addition to his amazing graphic design work, Darren pens his own online comic, The Mighty Monocle. So Darren, show us your home screen.

What are your most interesting home screen apps?

I think Planetary is the one of the most interesting, original and beautifully simple apps I’ve seen yet. It was a gift from a fellow iPad owner. The best way to describe it, is that it’s an intergalactic visualisation of your iTunes music library. You need to see it, to believe it!

Sketchbook Pro is also an interesting and extremely powerful app. I’m still adjusting to using the iPad for drawing. For my web comic I still use traditional ink and paper and I doubt if that will ever change. But, I want to be able to try and sketch rough panels/ideas on my iPad when I’m commuting. 

What is your favorite app?

Well I’m fairly new to this new-fangled iPad shenanigans. But so far, my favourite is the BBC iPlayer (UK only) app for the iPad. It gives you access to the some of the latest and greatest BBC television and radio shows. 

Which app is your guilty pleasure?

I don’t think any of my apps are “guilty pleasures”. However, I did push the boat out and blow the budget on the case for my iPad. I opted for the DODO case. They’re hand-crafted in San Francisco with traditional book-binding techniques. Essentially it’s a moleskine outer cover with a precision cut bamboo inlay. I love it!

What is the app you are still missing?

Alas, I can’t think of one. Which frustrates me immensely! I could be rich… Mu, ha, ha, mu, ha, ha!

How many times a day do you use your iPad?

All the time! I usually take it with me on my commute. Later, when I get home it is always being used by someone in the house. Me, my wife or my 6 year old daughter. 

What is your favorite feature of the iPad?

The sheer versatility of the device. As I mentioned I’ve only recently jumped on the iPad bandwagon. But now I have, I truly had a “lightbulb switching on” moment when I started to use it. What can’t you do with it? 

If you were in charge at Apple, what would you add or change?

Firstly, SORT OUT THE LACK OF FLASH SUPPORT ON THE IPAD!  

I don’t know how? Buy Adobe or develop something else I don’t care, just make it happen. 

Secondly, I’d create a “Long Term Loyalty to Apple Award” for all those people who stuck with Apple through those dark, dark days back in the late 80’s. Me included! Perhaps, something along the lines of a gold-plated SE?

Anything else you’d like to share?

You can find my web comic “Mighty Monocle” at www.mightymonocle.com. It currently updates once a week. 

One last thing… The background wallpaper for my iPad home screen was designed for me by my daughter using Granimator for the iPad. Granimator is another fantastic FREE app that combines music with these surreal pieces of artwork!

Thanks Darren.

For more home screen posts, clicky here

Speaking About the Cloud

I’m speaking this weekend at the Southern California Macintosh Owner/User Group about the present and future uses of emerging cloud technologies. If you are in the Orange County, California area on Saturday morning, drop in to meet some very nice people and put your geek on for a few hours.

Easy Timeline from BeeDocs

(Disclosure: BeeDocs, maker of Easy Timeline is a sponsor of MacSparky.com. I’ve used (and paid for) BeeDocs’ products long before they started sponsoring the website.)

I’ve always been a fan of BeeDocs Timeline 3D. As a lawyer, I find its powerful timeline tools useful and often take advantage of Timeline 3D to quickly create professional looking timelines for use in the “day job.”

Put simply, I’m a believer in BeeDocs and their products. I’ve even switched some lawyer friends to Macs solely based on my Timeline 3D timelines. One legitimate problem for potential Timeline 3D users is, however, its price, $65. I think the price is right, especially considering how often I use the software. However, if you are just making a few timelines, $65 can be steep. Users spoke and the gang at BeeDocs listened.

BeeDocs now publishes, through the Mac App store, Easy Timeline, $20. Easy Timeline is a simple to use timeline application.

In addition to offering a lower cost alternative, Easy Timeline also gets a BeeDocs timeline product in the Mac App store and all the user convenience that comes with that: easy installation, no license key, multiple installations.

Creating timelines with Easy Timeline is a snap. The app ships with several color schemes and layouts you can choose among when creating a new timeline. (You can also change the look after you start building your timeline)

Creating new timeline entries is intuitive. Click the New Entry button and start filling in data. You can drag and drop multimedia on timeline entries, including images, movies, and audio. The date formatting is flexible from within the timeline.

As you add additional entries the page automatically adjusts itself to fit your data. I used to spend hours building timelines in complicated excel and graphics apps before discovering BeeDocs products. When the timeline is complete you can share it as a PDF file or display the timeline from inside the app. Easy Timeline includes Timeline 3D’s three dimensional display mode. This lets you use the arrow keys to move forward and backward on a timeline in three dimensions. It looks fantastic for audiences (and juries).

Differences with Timeline 3d

The more expensive Timeline 3D, $65, includes a lot more import and export options. Timeline 3D, imports events from many other applications, including iCal, Aperture, iPhoto, OmniFocus, Basecamp, and Skitch. Timeline 3D also publishes timelines to websites, YouTube, Keynote, and HD video with advanced rendering features such as motion blur and audio soundtracks.

Both Timeline 3D and Easy Timeline have the same data format so you can move timelines between both products.

Summary

Put simply, Easy Timeline takes a lot of hard work out of making timelines and creates a final product simply not possible without many hours of time with more complicated software. If you’ve been holding off on BeeDocs timeline products, now is the time to get in.

Home Screens - Michael Lopp

I have this distinct memory of being in a dark place about two-thirds of the way through Mac at Work and discoverying this article by Michael Lopp (Twitter). Michael’s tips for finishing a book were critical and came at exactly the right time in my life. In addition to saving my bacon, Michael publishes Rands in Repose and has already authored two of his own books, Being Geek and Managing Humans. So Michael, what is on your home screen?

What are your most interesting home screen apps?

I’ve currently got the photography bug, so the most interesting apps to me are Instagram, Camera+, and TiltShiftGen. The combination of the three make me feel like I’m a photographer although I’m taking pictures with, ya’know, my phone.

If you asked me this question in another month, my answer would  be different.

What is your favorite app?

I’m late to the game on Camera+, but I’m loving it. It’s well thought out, it provides unexpected value, and it’s easy to use. Unfortunately, they fully missed the boat on social, so I’m constantly using Camera+ to post to Instagram since that is where my people are which seems like a massive missed opportunity. It’s douchey to say, but I’ll say it “Social matters more than you think”.

Which app is your guilty pleasure?

Guilty pleasure. I’m going to interpret that as “app that provides provides disproportionate vice-like pleasure”.  I’m going to go with Boxcar because I’ve set it up to provide me various ego-based alerts whether it’s retweets in Twitter, mails from important people, or other douchey “Hey, you’re important!” events that happen on the Internet.

My hope is the new notifications in iOS 5 provide me even further opportunities for ego surfing.

What is the app you are still missing?

I think iOS 5 notifications (and perhaps iMessage) will help, but there is a constant stream of interesting notifications and alerts that are happening on the Internet and keeping track of them is a nightmare for me. I don’t want to spend my time changing between different apps, I want to know what has changed.

How many times a day do you use your iPhone?

Whatever the maximum amount is.. I’m +1 on that.

What is your favorite feature of the iPhone?

Two features that are very related: the iPhone fits in my back pocket and conscientiously stays out of my way when I’m urgently trying to get something done.

If you were in charge at Apple, what would you add or change?

I’d develop the elixir that would allow Steve Jobs to live forever.

Anything else you’d like to share?

I took the picture of my iPhone the moment I received this request which I think makes it more authentic. Things you can learn about me from this:

• It really bugs me that I’ve got one unheard voice mail, three app updates, and 47 unread mails.
• Camera+ should be on the main screen, but I haven’t figured out what to nuke, yet. Either Mint or Simplenote.
• The location of the apps on my screen is a a function of usage — outside corners = higher usage.
• Good Messaging blows, but I use it for work.
• My main screen is for the apps I use 95% of the time, the next screen is full of unreadable groups that I access via search.

Thanks Michael, for everything.

The New Loop

They did a bang up job on the re-design of one of the best Apple news sites.

Multi-Platform is a Feature

Maybe this is obvious but as iCloud rolls out, users are going to add a new criteria to their app buying calculus. “Is it multi-platform?”

Just like the way even us ‘power users’ are getting hooked on Lion’s versioning and auto-saves, even the most die-hard Dropbox supporters are going to find themselves expecting data to migrate between their Macs, iPads, iPhones, and even Windows PCs.

With iCloud, there is no secret incantation, retina scan, or hacking involved. Your data just is. No longer will you have to consider whether the right folder is synced to the right app. Work on one device. Turn it off. Work on another device and pick up where you left off.

There is a price to brain dead syncing. From everything I’ve seen, in order to work, you’ve got to be working on the same app on every platform.

For the first time since the iOS arrived in our lives, using the same app on multiple platforms comes with an added benefit, data bliss. When users look at apps for their Mac or iOS devices, they are going to actively seek those with support on other platforms. Automatic data-syncing is a huge benefit and multi-platform is going to be a big deal for enlightened Mac and iOS developers.

Already there are some text editors supporting both iOS and Mac OS X. I think this will spill over into most productivity apps: PDF apps, outliners, mind mappers, graphics apps, and any app with a user generated data file. Expect to see a lot of familiar apps on unfamiliar platforms soon.