Thanks to e - mail , messaging clients , cell phones , and myriad other communicating tools , it ’s easier than ever to stay in touch . And the six applications I list below make communicating with other people even easier , without costing you an arm and a pegleg .
In addition to communication peter , this installment of our multi - part look at the best low - cost software system for the Mac profiles cyberspace and networking applications programme on the next page . If you miss any of the three previous installments , we ’ve already covered enhancers and troubleshooter , multimedia system apps , and fourth dimension savers and shortcuts .
The interpretation numbers listed below are current as this article was posted . But software is update frequently , so new rendering could become uncommitted by the metre you read this ; check the developers ’ World Wide Web website through the links furnish to make certain that your Mac meets the system requirements for the programs .
Remote-control utility: Salling Clicker 3.0.1
Want to control your Mac from across the way ? You could bribe a consecrate remote , but if you ’ve get a compatible Bluetooth - able mobile phone or handheld PDA , or a compatible Wi - Fi - fit handheld , Salling Clicker 3.0.1 ( ) permit you use that twist as a remote control . The software currently supports more than 100 headphone and handhelds . With it , you’re able to control Microsoft PowerPoint and Apple Keynote presentment ; Apple ’s iTunes , DVD Player , and iPhoto ; and many third - party applications . Via your Mac , you’re able to also control third - company computer hardware such asElgato ’s EyeTVandSlim Devices ’ Squeezebox . you’re able to even steer the shiner cursor in the Finder . Salling Clicker also provide blanket AppleScript support , as well as a proximity sensor for automatize action when you venture within a certain distance of your Mac . ( $ 25;Salling Software )
Address Book shortcut: BuddyPop 2.5.1
Pop - up contactsBuddyPop return you quick access to your Address Book information .
BuddyPop 2.5.1 ( ) lets you rapidly get at to your Address Book contacts without having to leave another lotion to get to them . plainly press a keyboard cutoff , and up pops a semitransparent window ; eccentric in a few varsity letter of an Address Book contact ’s name , and pressure return to get a floating windowpane that list the contact ’s details . you may come home on an tocopherol - post address to open a new message to that person , get across on a uniform resource locator to open it in your web web browser , or control - select an address to simulate it to the Clipboard . If you ’ve got a Bluetooth - enable mobile phone , BuddyPop lets you call any link by two-fold - clicking on a tangency ’s earpiece number , and it displays a ready to hand Caller ID pop - up windowpane for incoming call option . ( € 10;Tynsoe )
iChat recorder: Conference Recorder 2.0.1
Although iChat archives your schoolbook chats , it does n’t record your audio chats and videoconferences . If you require this functionality , check outConference Recorder 2.0.1 ( ) , which lets you well record your TV and audio with one mouse click . Recordings are automatically save as QuickTime pic files — what you see in the moving-picture show is on the button what you see during the conference . you could choose the quality of audio frequency and video in your recordings and whether to record just the audio portion of a video chat . you could even register yourself via iChat ’s TV preview window — great for practicing a intro or create a video podcast . ( $ 15;Ecamm internet )
Video-chat enhancer: ShowMacster 1.8.1
Multimedia chatsWith ShowMacster , you could display video and images and bet audio , in an iChat videoconference .
Have you ever been in a video recording chat and wanted to share an ikon , a movie , or an audio file cabinet ? You could drop behind a media file into iChat to send it to the other participants in your Old World chat , but they would have to download the data file and open it on their own Mac . ShowMacster 1.8.1 ( ) lets you display medium files in iChat itself , turning videoconferences into full - blow multimedia system presentations . To show an image or play an audio data file , just drag the file cabinet into the drop zone of the confabulation window ’s ShowMacster drawer ; the medium will now be shown — in place of your mug — in the other participants ’ video windowpane . While exhibit medium via ShowMacster , you could still talk to other chat participant . When expose image , you’re able to use the build up - in Sketchboard to draw on them . serious of all , because ShowMacster uses iChat itself to broadcast look-alike and video , people receiving your media do n’t need to be using ShowMacster , just iChat 2 or by and by . ( € 15;Eberhard Rensch )
Other top communication tools
If you ’re the type who keeps meticulous records of all your iChat session , you needLogorrhea 1.3.1 (; free;Spiny ) . The software lets you browse your iChat log by user name , appointment , and time , as well as search for schmoose session by wrangle and phrases . MailTags 1.2.2 (; payment requested;Indev ) delivers organizational backbone to your Mail message by letting you arrogate keywords to east - mail , or organise messages by task , for easier lookup and retrieval ; you may also utilize MailTags to add line to messages , localise and view a content ’s precedency , and sic due particular date for responding to messages .
From generating hypertext markup language colouring material codification to wield your bookmark , these 11 low - toll apps will handle all your Web pasture and networking needs .
File-sharing customizer: SharePoints 3.5.4
OS X ’s Personal File Sharing and Windows File Sharing features are handy , but the power to configure them is limited to a single starting time / Stop button . SharePoints 3.5.4 ( ) gives you admittance to all the nuts and deadbolt . you’re able to set the communion status of , and toggle invitee access to , individual folder and volumes ( officially calledsharesorshare points ) . you could also create and care OS X groups , set plowshare permissions , change drug user watchword , and customise the File Sharing servers themselves . For Personal File Sharing , you may toggle logging and Bonjour , and tailor-make greetings and admin access . For Windows File Sharing , you could edit your Mac ’s workgroup and NetBios gens , as well as the IP address or domain name of your WINS host ; choose specific files to hold back from Windows users ; qualify the security method acting ; and even force Home directories to show up in Windows parcel browsers . ( defrayal requested;HornWare )
Internet search tool: iSeek 1.1.1
search shortcutiSeek lets you explore scores of Web sites right from your menu bar .
Most web web browser have their own Search line of business , but if you do a lot of WWW searching , you neediSeek 1.1.1 ( ) . It let you begin Web search from within any coating , without take your fingers off the keyboard . Just agitate a user - defined keyboard compounding , and iSeek ’s hunting theater of operations seem in the card bar , ready for your input . you’re able to quickly prefer from a bevy of possible hunting land site , including CNN.com , eBay , Google , NationalGeographic.com , Rotten Tomatoes , VersionTracker.com , and even the iTunes Music Store . imperativeness recurrence to see your search results come along in your vane web browser . you could assign particular site their own keyboard command if you search them frequently . iSeek also automatically finishes previously searched text strings — helpful when you ’re searching for the same thing on multiple sites . ( $ 15;Ambrosia Software )
Bookmark organizer: Bookit 3.7.1
Many hoi polloi use multiple Web browsers , either to quiz Web sites they ’ve created or because some sites just go better in some browsers . In either slip , keeping bookmarker organizedbetweenbrowsers can be a major hassle . Bookit 3.7.1 ( ) offers a resolution to this job . importation bookmarks from the most popular Mac browsers , set up them , and edit them — Bookit then synchronise your browsers by writing indistinguishable bookmark data file for each . And if you ’ve amaze multiple Macs , you may synchronize bookmarks across computers via Personal File Sharing or .Mac . ( $ 12;Everyday Software )
File-sharing tool: DropCopy 1.2
Although connecting two local Macs for the determination of share files is relatively easy , you still have to place up Personal File Sharing and then manually connect from one Mac to the other , allow for your name and password when prompt . That ’s a big hassle if all you want to do is move a Microsoft Word text file or a few photos from one Mac to another . DropCopy 1.2 ( ) simplifies the outgrowth by letting you apace station files instantly to particular drug user on other information processing system via a simple drop zone on your desktop . drop back a file ( or files ) to the drop-off zone , and you ’ll see a listing of all computers on your internet that are pass DropCopy ; drag the single file onto a user ’s name to immediately copy that file to their computer . In addition to its file cabinet - copying savvy , DropCopy also allow you to send text messages to other electronic computer and to copy the contents of the Clipboard on another DropCopy - using computer . ( free for up to three computers ; for enceinte networks , $ 25;10base - deoxythymidine monophosphate Interactive )
Bookmark sorter: Bookdog 3.6
All modern Web internet browser let you organize your myriad bookmarker , yet few offer one of the most no - brainer features : the power tosortthose bookmarker . Bookdog 3.6 ( ) offer this functionality for Safari , Camino , and Firefox ; you could even decidehowto sort — by page name , URL , or domain — and whether or not to brush aside democratic site prefix ( such as “ Welcome to ” ) . If you ’ve already get up your bookmark into brochure , Bookdog will sort themwithinthose folders ; you may also choose to sort only particular folders . What ’s more , you get the ability to manage duplicate bookmark , notice bookmarker that no longer work , and discover links that result in multiple redirections . ( $ 15;Sheep Systems )
Color tag generator: ColorTagGen 1.0
Web designers and anyone who ’s ever muddle around with vane web site are familiar with the hexadecimal ( hex ) color codes used in HTML and CSS—#FF2F2A for a particular nicety of red , for example . There are a number of way to get the curse value for a present colouring , but if you do n’t keep a graphics app such as Adobe Photoshop running all the time , firing it up just to get the curse value for a color is overkill . EnterColorTagGen 1.0 ( ) . This overt - author app does one affair : it displays the RGB and jinx - encoded people of colour value for any selected colouring . Simply choose a coloration in OS X ’s Color Picker , and ColorTagGen gives you the color ’s hex or RGB codification in one of several formatting . select the Copy HTML button , and the code is re-create to the Clipboard for wanton pasting into your favorite HTML - author app . ( free;R.A.D. Productions)—ROB GRIFFITHS
Other top Internet and networking tools
ICeCoffEE 1.4.2 (; free;Nicholas Riley ) lets you Command - press a universal resource locator in most bone ecstasy applications and mechanically have that uniform resource locator open in your preferred Web internet browser . minuscule Snitch 1.2.3 (; $ 25;Objective ontogeny ) monitors extroverted dealings — alerting you to software trying to “ phone family ” and guard against malicious package that ’s attempting to link to other systems .
NetNewsWire Lite 2.1 (; free;NewsGator ) may be a scaled - down reading of the $ 30 NetNewsWire , but this RSS referee does n’t skimp on features , such as a nifty three - paned interface and the ability to share RSS subscriptions between Macs . PDF web browser Plugin 2.2.3 (; innocent for home , education , or noncommercial use;Schubert - it ) expand on Safari ’s PDF - viewing capabilities with features such as multiple layout option , split persuasion , and support for annotations , conformation , and links . WinShortcutter 2.1 (; free;Lobotomo Software ) give Mac users well-off memory access to Windows shortcuts ( the Windows version of OS X aliases)—ideal for anyone who work in a grouchy - platform environment .
Disclaimer : Mac Publishing , publishing company of Macworld , has an accord with NetNewsWire Lite publisher NewsGator that will include providing servicing on Macworld.com and selling a news reader app base on NetNewsWire . As always , Macworld endeavor to keep its newspaper column and business operations separate ; NetNewsWire Lite ’s inclusion in this feature was not work by the business relationship between the two companies .
