All Forces

iCal Exchange - A free way to publish calendars online, public or private.
Project24 - Dynamically generated calendars for iCal
iAlertU Demo - Must see video of iAletU, the coolest application of motion detectors on Powerbooks. So far it only works on the new ones but development is in progress for other models
Learn To Program - A gentle introduction to programming (ruby)
Prototype Disected - Jonathan Snook’s awesome visual guide to Prototype’s methods and properties
PayPal Helper - Using Javascript to modify a PayPal shopping cart
Affiliate Marketing - Tips and Tricks of affiliate marketing
Mac Se/Cube - A Mac Cube inside a Mac SE
Mac SE/Mini - A Mac Mini inside a Mac SE
Mosaic Podcast - After much technical delays with compression issues, I finally launched the video podcast at Mosaic. A 45 minute clip was compressing at 300mb through the standard QuickTime to iPod video export. I finally found an app called Podner which allows me to do 2 pass encoding, has cropping and batch processing. The size of the files went down to around 120mb, a much more manageable size for both serving and downloading. I’m also using Lostify, an app that allows me to edit tags on video files for Video Podcasting.

My Powerbook has been lagging for a while now. Mostly due to the fact that my 100 GB drive is down to 1 GB of available space. I started the process of archiving to my external drive some projects I was done with and I was able to bring it up to 15.3 GB. I then remembered reading about an application that strips all extra languages that come with Mac OS X and all it’s applications. The worst thing that can happen is that I have to reinstall the OS, no big deal. I gave Monolingual a try and was highly impressed. Not only does it strip superfluous languages (warning: make sure u don’t remove english and us english, they are two separate options) I would never need but it also removes architecture specific parts of apps like the code for the new intel macs. These new universal applications include the application for both the powerpc and intel architecture but this is precious space I want back for my ever expanding 50 GB iTunes library, my 20 GB iPhoto library and oh yes, my work, I forgot that’s why I originally got the computer for.

I shaved off 2 gigs of languages and intel code.

Link: monolingual.sourceforge.net

Last week, upon returning from a trip to New York I told my daughter to make a list of fun things we could do together. It was daddy and daughter day. Her number two item on the list, the Apple Store. She loves hanging out in the kids area while daddy drools over new gear. Needless to say, she is very computer savvy for her age.

Determining what computer a kid should have and at what age is a very tricky and personal matter. It varies from kid to kid and from parent to parent. For example, my daughter(5 years old) has yet to break anything on her iMac. However, my son(2 years old) has gone through 3 keyboards, two mice and has filled up the DVD drive with coins (a common trait amongst boys i’ve found). They each have had their own iMac since day one. These old iMacs are sturdy and durable. And although 12 gigs is not that much hard disk space, it can hold a good 10 to 15 game CD images.

This is Part 1 in a series for a kids Mac setup.

Read the rest of this entry »

Moving big files through the internet can prove to be one of the most challenging things to do. There are issues of transfer speeds, dropped connections and file size restrictions.

What’s available right now?

1. Email - Most servers have a file size limit for attachments
2. FTP to a server - Most servers have a size limit
3. P2P - Peer to peer transfer is not a private network
4. iChat - Does not provide “Resume” in case you need to reconnect
5. FTP Sharing - Not any size restriction other that your hard drive, can support many connections

This guide will help you set up an FTP server on your Mac in less than 15 minutes using PureFTPd. We’re not setting up the FTP Sharing that comes as part of Mac OSX because that one is tied in to an OSX user. On the other hand, PureFTPd allows you to set up FTP users just for FTP access. It allows you to disconnect them, limit their bandwidth, monitor their activity etc. We are also going to set it up using no-ip.com, a service that will give u a server name in case your dynamic IP address changes.

Read the rest of this entry »

It was hard to part from it, but it was time to update my faithfull 22″ Cinema Display. A good monitor that looked sharp and was impressive to visitors. But, five years in computer time is an eternity. And add to that the Apple factor. Apple’s constant redesign of their hardware line that made the monitor feel like it’s 10 years old when sitting next to a new one. Out with the transparent plastic and in with the new aluminum enclosures. I sold my 22″ and upgraded to a new 20″. Did I dare to say upgrade when i bought a smaller one? I upgraded indeed. So what did I buy into other than the new hip silver look and less pixels?

• This new monitor has DVI as opposed to the ADC which makes it work really nicely with the rest of the world.
• A thiner margin around the screen makes it seem slimmer.
• It has both USB and Firewire ports right behind the screen.
• I can tow away my keyboard right underneath it.
• Has a way smaller footprint
• Has a usefull powerbrick. I nitially disliked that it had a powerbrick, but as it turns out it’s a great feature for powerbooks because it can help keep the cords in reach if it is kept up on the desk top. Check out the picture above to visualize it. I no longer need to reach down to the floor to get my monitor cables everytime I hook up the powerbook to the monitor.

I went down 2 inches because I noticed I never really used the whole screen on my 22″. Besides, I’m trying to decluter and simplify my digital lifestyle and the 20″ fits the bill.

At last, the new version of tiger arrives at my doorstep a whole day early. I love that online Apple Store.

I had no problems with installation but it took several minutes for my user login to complete. I suspect it was Spotlight because it was the only thing visible and it was giving me that beloved beach-ball.

Will be updating soon…

I was reading the article on the current MacWorld about traveling light ( Hit The Road Mac ) and it hit me. Traveling light is not just about weight. There is a whole other dimension of elegance and simplicity that is usually not thought of. So I decided to do do something about it, starting with my long iSight and Original iPod cable.

Here’s my to do list:

• 1.8 meters firewire cable vs. .5 meter firewire cable
• Phone AC Charger vs. Phone USB Charger
• USB Digital Camera Cable vs. Internal PCMCIA Smart Media Card Reader
• iPod Dock Cable vs. PocketDock Adapter
• 15″ Powerbook vs. 12″ Powerbook ( once they add the lighted keyboard of course )