Expert’s Rating
Our Verdict
As someone who works with text for a living , I ’ve always wanted to fit a “ multiple - Clipboard ” utility — one that stores recent contents of the Clipboard — into my work flow . After all , I ca n’t remember how many times I ’ve copy ( or , even worse , cut ) something , intend to glue it elsewhere , then absentmindedly replicate something else , losing the original content . With a multiple - Clipboard public utility company , bothcontents would be safe and useable for pasting .
So in possibility , multiple - Clipboard utilities are great . Unfortunately , until recently I never see one that did n’t disrupt my workflow in some way , thanks to a poor interface or complicated utilization . The well ones I ’ve tried have been product such asPTHPasteboardand iPaste , which make late Clipboard content uncommitted via a menu - bar carte . But as someone who prefer to utilise the keyboard as much as potential , I kept looking . ( The launcher utility Butler includes similar features , but since I personally prefer LaunchBar , that was n’t an pick for me . )
Last hebdomad , I found not one , buttwoutilities that may have brought my hunting to an closing . First , Scott Silverman , over on ourMacUser blog , guide outSteve Cook ’s free , open - sourceJumpcut 0.6 ( ) . Then I see the press release for the $ 14PopCopy 2.1 ( ) . Both utility work in a similar way : They automatically keep trail of every item you copy to the Clipboard — PopCopy an infinite number of Clipboard table of contents , Jumpcut a drug user - limit number — and make those depicted object available via the menu bar or , even well , a bulge - up bezel that appear when you entreat a drug user - delineate keyboard shortcut .
Jumpcut’s Clipboard display
To access previous Clipboard mental object with either public-service corporation , you press your choose keyboard shortcut ; a translucent “ bezel ” presentation appears on the sieve displaying past Clipboard contents — one at a clip for Jumpcut , three at a time for PopCopy . Press the alphanumeric portion of the shortcut ( for example , for the shortcut Command - Option - V , the V ) repeatedly — or utilise the left / correct pointer keys — to play up the trust Clipboard subject matter . With PopCopy , release the crosscut keys automatically pastes the chosen content to the foremost applications programme ( assuming it can accept those contents , of course ) . Jumpcut can work the same way , but I favour its selection to go out the bezel onscreen until you either iron out the reappearance key to paste or press the escape key to cancel — PopCopy does n’t offer such an option , which means youmustpaste something , even if you no longer want to . ( This is my biggest ailment about PopCopy . )
Jumpcut ’s Clipboard exhibit
PopCopy ’s Clipboard display
PopCopy’s Clipboard display
As mentioned above , I care the fact that Jumpcut can keep its Clipboard show on the blind without involve you to maintain down its keyboard shortcut . ( Both utility offer the option to copy the selected content to the Clipboard or else of paste it immediately , but it ’s still courteous to be capable to cancel the activity whole . ) You also can customize the semitransparency of Jumpcut ’s bezel , choose the number of recent Clipboard contents to remember , and choose how many recent Clipboard message are included in Jumpcut ’s menu - stripe menu . Jumpcut is also a morsel smart when you re-create the same text twice : It recognizes that the textual matter is already on the Clipboard and does n’t save an extra transcript ; PopCopy create a second , identical Clipboard entry . Finally , Jumpcut numbers each saved Clipboard , making it clear which is the most recent Clipboard , the second most recent Clipboard , and so on . With PopCopy , there ’s no index number and , making the office more confusing , you could cycle from the last Clipboard to the first ( and frailty - versa ) , so you never have it away which is the most late .
PopCopy , on the other hand , has its own advantages , the most pregnant of which is that it work with text , simulacrum , file / folders , and even trim from iWeb , Keynote , and Pages . ( Jumpcut works only with schoolbook . ) And if you choose , PopCopy can show a trailer of the most late Clipboard contents in the carte du jour measure ; this can waste valuable carte space for textbook contents , but it can be utile for images .
Both utility can remember your multiple Clipboards between software launches and even restarts . One other “ feature article ” of both — which will be either a drawback or an vantage , look on your position — is that the formatting of pasted text will match that of the text into which it ’s being paste ; the style of copied text edition is not preserve .
Both of these utility are fantabulous and , in my sentiment , present how a multiple - Clipboard service program should influence . They ’re easy to habituate and convenient — you’re able to access multiple stored Clipboards and glue their contents without ever removing your fingers from the keyboard — and their attractive semitransparent bezel displays look like they belong to in Mac OS X. Which should you choose ? I personally favour Jumpcut ’s “ stand by on the screen ” approach , especially since it let me decidenotto paste anything if I change my creative thinker . And it ’s hard to argue with free . However , if you need the power to stash away and access Clipboards containing images and/or files and pamphlet , PopCopy is the way to go , and PopCopy also realize it easier to surf through your preceding Clipboards by display three at a fourth dimension instead of Jumpcut ’s one . If you could combine the strengths of both , you ’d have a near - utter utility , but until then , you ’ll have to decide which one meet your needs better .
Jumpcut and PopCopy work with Mac OS X 10.3.9 and later and are Universal Binaries .
