Essential Mac Apps - Part 1
September, 08 2006 04:05 PM Filed in: Software
This is my list of essential Mac apps and as
such it is shaped by the kind of work I do! In
most cases I've tried each app listed but am
only or mostly using the first one in a
particular category. Others I've likely tried
but only use as back-up if necessary or not at
all though I consider them to be useful and
others may prefer them. Something else about a
list such as this, while I have apps categorized
by usage it is worth noting that this is a very
loose kind of categorization given all the
potential for crossover in the usage of any
particular app.
Launchers
Essential. While Spotlight search makes things a bit easier when I'm using someone else's Mac it's not really a substitute for a real Launcher. Quicksilver is my favorite by far because it is free and with it's plugin architecture it does more than Launchbar. Another benefit is the great community of folks that can offer help in getting the most out of using Quicksilver.
Virtual Desktops
Leopard will bring default, pre-installed virtual desktops to the Mac via Spaces. Until then I'll continue using Desktop Manager. I've been using this for a couple years and cannot imagine a Mac without it. If you are using a new Intel Mac you can use Virtue which is very similar and under active development though a bit buggy from what I've read.
Edit: 9/15/06 I decided to go ahead and try out Virtue again thinking the bugs would force me right back to Desktop Manager. One week later and I've made Virtue my default. Not a single crash! What I like better about Virtue: I can save desktop space by not showing the little pager all the time. Instead I have it set to pop up via a short cut. Even better, If I just click an app in the dock or choose it via the OS X Command-Tab applications switcher it will automatically switch me to the appropriate desktop for that app. Very cool.
Browsers
In terms of speed and rendering I consider these four to be close enough that they are all excellent choices. I prefer Safari for two reasons. First, with Saft I can save my tabs at a crash or quit and I can block flash advertising. Second, I love the OS X Tiger Dictionary application which can be accessed via contextual menu in Safari but not Camino or Opera. OmniWeb is a great browser but not great enough to pay for.
RSS
Vienna delivers many of the features of NetNewsWire with a very similar look. It also has the great benefit of being open source freeware/donationware. As an RSS reader it offers an integrated tabbed web interface via the OS X WebKit. It's also got a whole slew of filtering/viewing possibilities. It really is an excellent reader with a great feature set and interface. Regarding Safari, I've come to appreciate Safari's built in RSS and used it before Vienna. If you are a heavy user of RSS I'd suggest trying a Safari-Vienna combination. If you read just a handful of RSS feeds Safari's RSS would likely be enough for you.
Torrent
I don't really have a strong opinion on this.
Sharing
There are other Gnutella/Limewire clients but this one is freeware/donationware and has worked great for me.
FTP
My first website built in 1997 was ftp'd with Fetch... ah what fond memories! I've not used it in a while but the last time I did it was rock solid. For the past couple years Transmit has been my favorite by far.
Email Client and Plugins
Over the years I've tried them all or most of them. From the days of the Classic Mac Os through X, I've used: Mulberry, PowerMail, Mozilla, Mailsmith, Eudora, Entourage, and Apple's Mail. I think I'm forgetting one. In any case, I've tried the last two versions of Entourage but never left Mail and don't plan on it. It has been, for the most part, everything I need in an email client. With add-ons such as those listed here, I could not be happier. Actually, I will be with Leopard Mail because having those to-dos and notes built in will be oh so sweet.
Chat
Tried them both and love them both. I've settled on iChat for quite sometime because Adium does not handle file transfers well. In fact, it has almost always crashed for me with any kind of file transfer. Given that everyone I want to chat with has an AIM or .Mac account I don't really need Adium's ability to handle other services. With the new features coming in Leopard iChat there is no way I'll be taking it off my dock.
More coming soon in Part 2...
Technorati Tags: Apple, OS X, Mac Apps
Launchers
Essential. While Spotlight search makes things a bit easier when I'm using someone else's Mac it's not really a substitute for a real Launcher. Quicksilver is my favorite by far because it is free and with it's plugin architecture it does more than Launchbar. Another benefit is the great community of folks that can offer help in getting the most out of using Quicksilver.
Virtual Desktops
Leopard will bring default, pre-installed virtual desktops to the Mac via Spaces. Until then I'll continue using Desktop Manager. I've been using this for a couple years and cannot imagine a Mac without it. If you are using a new Intel Mac you can use Virtue which is very similar and under active development though a bit buggy from what I've read.
Edit: 9/15/06 I decided to go ahead and try out Virtue again thinking the bugs would force me right back to Desktop Manager. One week later and I've made Virtue my default. Not a single crash! What I like better about Virtue: I can save desktop space by not showing the little pager all the time. Instead I have it set to pop up via a short cut. Even better, If I just click an app in the dock or choose it via the OS X Command-Tab applications switcher it will automatically switch me to the appropriate desktop for that app. Very cool.
Browsers
In terms of speed and rendering I consider these four to be close enough that they are all excellent choices. I prefer Safari for two reasons. First, with Saft I can save my tabs at a crash or quit and I can block flash advertising. Second, I love the OS X Tiger Dictionary application which can be accessed via contextual menu in Safari but not Camino or Opera. OmniWeb is a great browser but not great enough to pay for.
RSS
Vienna delivers many of the features of NetNewsWire with a very similar look. It also has the great benefit of being open source freeware/donationware. As an RSS reader it offers an integrated tabbed web interface via the OS X WebKit. It's also got a whole slew of filtering/viewing possibilities. It really is an excellent reader with a great feature set and interface. Regarding Safari, I've come to appreciate Safari's built in RSS and used it before Vienna. If you are a heavy user of RSS I'd suggest trying a Safari-Vienna combination. If you read just a handful of RSS feeds Safari's RSS would likely be enough for you.
- Vienna
- Safari
- NetNewsWire
Torrent
I don't really have a strong opinion on this.
Sharing
There are other Gnutella/Limewire clients but this one is freeware/donationware and has worked great for me.
FTP
My first website built in 1997 was ftp'd with Fetch... ah what fond memories! I've not used it in a while but the last time I did it was rock solid. For the past couple years Transmit has been my favorite by far.
Email Client and Plugins
Over the years I've tried them all or most of them. From the days of the Classic Mac Os through X, I've used: Mulberry, PowerMail, Mozilla, Mailsmith, Eudora, Entourage, and Apple's Mail. I think I'm forgetting one. In any case, I've tried the last two versions of Entourage but never left Mail and don't plan on it. It has been, for the most part, everything I need in an email client. With add-ons such as those listed here, I could not be happier. Actually, I will be with Leopard Mail because having those to-dos and notes built in will be oh so sweet.
Chat
Tried them both and love them both. I've settled on iChat for quite sometime because Adium does not handle file transfers well. In fact, it has almost always crashed for me with any kind of file transfer. Given that everyone I want to chat with has an AIM or .Mac account I don't really need Adium's ability to handle other services. With the new features coming in Leopard iChat there is no way I'll be taking it off my dock.
- iChat
- Adium
More coming soon in Part 2...
Technorati Tags: Apple, OS X, Mac Apps
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