UGH! I AM GETTING FRUSTRATED, trying to remain objective regarding so many gorgeous new books covering the computer as an artistic tool. It is not easy to do justice to them using words, so please visit your local book emporium to see for yourself.
Caveat: many of the outstanding graphic design books reviewed below are rather expensive, especially outside the United States. For the working artist or designer, the cost of a superior book or software application is not a major concern. Beginners should examine the recommended books in person, or deal with a bookstore that has a reasonable return policy.
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FinderPop 1.6.2
Author: Turlough O’Connor,
Freeware
FinderPop is a small, efficient, and useful program that can enhance your experience with MacOS 8′s contextual menu feature. This control panel works by adding useful menu items to your usual pop-up contextual menus (Control-click in OS 8), such as an optional “Desktop” item to show all the items on the desktop, a “Processes” submenu that allows you to see you available free memory and switch to any other application, a “Finder Windows” menu that is useful for browsing many open windows within the Finder, and various items like “Empty Trash”, “Change Desktop Background” and “New Folder.” In addition to these features, FinderPop also has a “FinderPop Items” folder that can be customized with aliases and programs just like the Apple Menu, and the entire “View” menu for full contextual menu-based control of a window’s appearance. It can even allow a user to click and hold the mouse to bring a contextual menu up instead of having to hold the control key down.
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As all of you out there are aware, summer is here, and with it all of the fun that it brings. Great weather, sunny beaches, grassy baseball diamonds, picnics in the park, cool water in the swimming pool–all leisure activities with a fun factor of 100%.
With that idea in mind, we’ve decided to showcase two games that also follow that idea. Mars Rising, from Ambrosia Software, and Project Magellan, from Plaid World, are both awesome scrolling space shoot-em-ups with nothing but fun in mind. There are no mazes and maps to worry about, no puzzles to figure out before you can advance to the next level, and certainly no brain teasers. Just fly your ship and blast everything in sight. These games have a fun factor of 100%, too, so disengage your brain and enjoy!
Adam: Wow Mike, you really said it all there! So, no reason to ramble. Here we go…
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(Editor’s note: We hope you enjoy this second installment. John’s first series of Selected Short Subjects appeared in the March, 1998 “Nemo Memo.”)
On April 27, 1997, the final MacSense CD-ROM disk arrived in my snail box here in Tucson. At the time I was not aware that Chris McVeigh, the publisher of MacSense, had decided to terminate his outstanding Mac-ezine, but I found out a few days later.
Chris went through a low-profile year, and he has resurfaced at MacHome Journal http://www.machome.com as Editor at Large and Producer of the new monthly MacHome CD-ROM disk. Meanwhile, Ed Prasek, formerly an editor working under Chris at MacSense, is now the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief at the very same MacHome Journal.
You can draw your own conclusions about the chain of events leading to this apparent reversal of fortunes. The fact remains that both these talented, hard-working Mac media men have joined forces once again.
(More on the MacSense CD)
I have had a full year to become familiar with the contents of the last MacSense CD, V4.02. Here is a view of the top-level window:
TechTool Pro 2.0
Company: MicroMat Computer Systems, Inc.
Estimated Price: $99.99
http://www.micromat.com
It’s not very often that a really good diagnostic utility comes
around, and until TechTool Pro 2, Norton Utilities was my choice for fixing problems with my Macintosh. I had TechTool Pro 1.0, but it didn’t do much more than diagnose my problems, which wasn’t a huge help to me. However, that has all changed with TechTool Pro 2. TechTool Pro 2 is my new utility of choice, and it leaves Norton Utilities with much to be desired.
Testing, and then some…
TechTool Pro 2 can test any, and I mean, any component of your Macintosh. From your ADB port to your ZIP drive and everything in between, TechTool Pro 2 will test it, and if problems are found, will either fix them or give you “advice” on how to fix them.
The real beauty of TechTool Pro 2 is that it can correct many of the problems it finds. It will repair a multitude of disk problems that can affect B-Trees, Master Directory Blocks, Extents, File Allocation Blocks and many other file related problems. And TechTool Pro 2 is the only utility currently available that will correctly diagnose and repair Mac OS Extended (HFS+) formatted hard disks.
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Sulky thought it very chivalrous of the Apple CEO to offer his mansion as a place she could recover from the byte of the DogCow. She also saw it as a way to learn more about him as well as his connections with the DogCow project. Her left ankle still throbbed with pain and the doctors from the Genetics Labs at Stanford wanted to keep her under observation for several days. After finishing her reports to the Agency on the whole affair, she had lots of time to snoop around a bit, enjoy the grounds, the pool, hot tub, and to catch up on her reading.
Besides the soreness of her ankle, Sulky felt a bit different. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but she seemed continuously flushed and more conscious of her femininity than ever before. At first she thought it was a combination of the rare free time and the continuing pain that made her focus on herself. Now, she wasn’t so sure. Her body felt, well… full… and on occasion she set out to explore feelings her intellect had discarded years ago.
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Bill, you old prankster you! That was a pretty hilarious thing you did to me the other morning. Almost as funny as your Soupy Sales pie-in-the-face stunt you pulled off in Brussels. Although I would have thought that a man of your stature might have more important things to do than waste your time playing such an elaborate, hi-tech prank on the likes of me, I reckon even the richest man in the world can have a sense of humor. You really had me going there for awhile.
If you don’t mind Bill, (or even if you do!) I’m gonna tell my readers how you hacked your way into my computer and tried to force your browser software on me.
Of course, I can’t prove that it was Bill Gates who did this but I can put two and two together and come up with the only plausible explanation for what happened… and it all points to Billy and/or Microsoft.
If you read my column last month, I defined Billy’s “Internet Explorer” as a ‘computer virus.’ I also insulted his Word 6.0 by calling it the ‘slowest moving object known to man.’ I suspect that Bill read this and took umbrage with my definitions and decided to play a little prank on me.
This is what happened:
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KeyQuencer 2.5
Company: Binary Software
Estimated Price: $49.95 (Lite version: $30.00)
http://www.binarysoft.com
I didn’t believe it before I tried it. I honestly didn’t. “Try this utility for a week,” they told me. “After a week, you’ll never know how you lived without it.”
“Yeah, right,” I said, with more than a touch of disbelief in my voice.
Well, after that first week, I was still saying “yeah, right,” but the sarcasm and skepticism had disappeared from my tone, and I was in total agreement. KeyQuencer is one of those things that you never know you’re missing, but once you get it, you wonder why you didn’t try it out years ago.
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Well, it’s become pretty much customary for me to mention the beginning and ending of each school year, so I’ll make no exception this time around. My freshman year of college has come to a close, and I’ve had many new and exciting experiences. However, I’m also ready for a dozen weeks or so of R & R, and I’m looking forward to spending the sunny summer days having some fun and earning some cash.
From a computer standpoint (after all, this magazine is called My Mac, not My Vacation), I’ll be happy to get away from the Windows-centric computer network at school. In the computer lab on my dorm floor, we had 13 Gateway 2000 computers, which varied from one 486-based machine to several 166MHz Pentiums. There were exactly eleven days out of the entire school year when all thirteen computers were functional for the entire day, and there were a couple of occasions when we had as few as eight computers working.
A little background for those who don’t have time to keep up with Microsoft vs. the DOJ. Due to pressure from the courts to show why the Gates’ guys shouldn’t have to follow the rules like the rest of us, Microsoft has decided to beef up their public image. And who knows better how to affect the minds of millions than America’s PR men.
Seems Microsoft has hired some of the best of the best to orchestrate a vigorous campaign targeting the nineteen states that filed antitrust suits against Microsoft. One plan, so we hear, was to encourage a deluge of agency originated, ‘unsolicited, grassroots support’ for Microsoft and Windows in the local press. They’ve even had form letters written for the digital bigwigs to sign and held a pep rally in the Big Apple with Big Bill as cheerleader. ‘Gimme a ten! Let’s hear it for M!’
And the chips and slicks? Well, in order to encourage a swing to Microsoft Explorer as the nation’s number one, bar none browser, Microsoft intends to give away NT 4.0 Server software and assorted goodies to ISPs able to sign up at least 500 subscribers using a new customized MIE browser.
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“Why don’t you write something about my Mac,” says Number One Husband, setting a plate down close, but not too close, to the computer.
“Your Mac?” I say, waving a fork. “Mmmm, this is good. But I don’t understand. I’m always writing something about my Mac.”
“Not your Mac.” He watches with interest as I dislodge a piece of cheese from between the keys. “My Mac.”
‘But Honey,” I try to break it to him gently. “You don’t have a Mac. You’re an IBM sort of guy.” It’s true. He has a perfectly good Pentium 133 in the living room. It even has a new modem. One of these days I’ll have to make time to show him where to plug it in.
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This month I speak with Ilene Hoffman, better known as the premiere chat host of the Macintosh side of Talk City, which can be found at http://www.talkcity.com/chat.htmpl?room =MacSos. On February 27th, both Tim Robertson and I were guests on Ilene’s hour as part of a special series of chats with computer columnists and book authors. So, figuring that turnabout was fair play, Ilene is now in the hot seat, as it were…
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Greetings to one and all. Last month I asked for some genuine feedback
regarding your Macintosh. How to upgrade and the like. I received several responses from some of you and this month’s article is devoted to the questions that you asked. So, this article is dedicated to Ken R., Robert H., Richard (@CalTech) and Jon S.
Okay, Richard, you came in first. Which OS do I recommend for a
PowerBook 5300 and why? Well, first of all, if memory serves correctly,
it originally came with at least 7.5, yes? It is a PowerPC so…Hmm … (don’t hurry me, I’m processing). I’d suggest that if it has the RAM, at least 16MB, then you could upgrade to OS 8.1 but keep in mind that your applications most likely will need to be upgraded too. Any Power Mac can handle that jump but the applications may not like it. Check those out and let me know.
Robert, you’re next. Faster graphics, eh? PowerMac 8100/80, eh? Nubus slots, eh? Man, I wish I had an old copy of MacWeek nearby! The last 90 pages or so had all kinds of good, wholesome advertising that you could paw through. I’m sure you’ve done some shopping around but if you haven’t, I would first check with the likes of ClubMac, MacZone and MacConnection, etc. Another place comes to mind, Pre-owned Electronics (1-800-274-5343 ext 4411). I know a guy who works there, Gary McNamara. Tell him Eddie says “Hi!”… He’s gonna kill me… :^D
Macintosh 128k
Company: Apple Computer, Inc.
Cost: $ Priceless
http://www.apple.com
The Apple 128k Macintosh was the first Macintosh model made. I ran across this little gem one day at a “friend of a friend’s” house. I was there to look at a washing machine and see if I could help fix it, when I noticed a white box with the Apple logo on it. I was told that my friend’s friend had a garage sale a few weeks ago, and the old Mac was never sold.
I checked it out, and was amazed to find that the machine was an original Mac, made in February 1984. Not only did he have the Mac itself, which worked like it was brand new, but the keyboard, the mouse, an extra external disk drive, all the original floppies, as well as the original box (in perfect shape) and the original cassette tutorial tapes. He had everything, just like it came from Apple ‘lo those many years ago.
One of the first things I noticed was that the original disks will not work in a newer Mac. The message “This disk cannot be read my this Macintosh” came up, which bummed me out a little.
For those unfamiliar with the original Mac, you should know that there is no internal hard drive. If fact, everything is run off of a floppy disk. All your programs and system software is on disk. So each program disk I have, from MacPaint to Microsoft Word not only has that program on it, but the system software as well. Also keep in mind that these disks are only 400k in size. To grasp just how small in size that is, you would need five of these disks just to hold the last issue of My Mac Magazine. Or, by going to my Extension folder, I see that the latest release of QuickTime 3.0′s extension is 2.7MB in size. That one extension is larger than all of the system software and Microsoft Word 1.0!
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Dear Readers:
June is here! Finally, warm summer months! All the hard work in the fall, planting bulbs, fertilizing the lawn, and the never-ending weeding is paying off… give me a couple of years gardening and some time to grow the plants, and I will have a little showplace, if I do say so myself!
I just hope all of you are enjoying your late spring/early summer as much as me.
I have to thank the following folks for keeping me on the straight and narrow: Jose Coba, Jeff Kalmes, and Buzz Buzzell.
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Ah, it’s nice to be back and have a few minutes to continue with this column. This month I deal with a couple recent issues that I personally hit upon, namely two products: the Iomega Zip Plus drives and Epson printers. Keep in mind that I’m not recommending against buying these items, merely relaying my experiences with a variety of them.
Let’s start with the Zip Plus drives. Recently I’ve heard of (and ran into) many problems with the new Iomega Zip Plus drives. I had considered purchasing one myself, but didn’t since I already have two of the SCSI and one parallel models. If you aren’t familiar with the “Plus” model, well, it allows you to connect it to either a Mac (via SCSI) or an IBM compatible PC (via parallel or SCSI); previously you needed a Zip drive that had either interface.
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MyMac Podcast #385
MyMac Podcast #384