Main

November 17, 2008

Text Expander Saves Typing and Time.

TextExpander-Example.png

TextExpander 2.5 ($30) isn't for everyone, but if you find yourself typing on the computer on a daily basis, text substitutions can save you a lot of time. TextExpander automatically expands abbreviated text snippets into predefined words or phrases. It can also run scripts based on what you type. As an example, whenever I type "ctadd" on my Mac, TextExpander automatically replaces that abbreviation with the full CreativeTechs mailing address.

Watch some video tutorials to see TextExpander in action, and read a great review at Lifehacker to get a sense of the time-saving possibilities.

Source: This tip inspired by my recent visit to Forget Computers, a Mac IT support company in Chicago, whose team uses TextExpander every day. This write-up also inspired by a tip in the November 2008 issue of Design Tools Monthly.

October 27, 2008

Mac Halloween Screensavers

Jack-O-Lantern-Screensaver.png

Jack-O-Lantern Here is a screen saver that displays a carved 3D pumpkin, right down to the flickering candle inside. Several carving designs are included, or you can create your own personal carving.

Spooked! (Sound activated) This screensaver uses your Mac's microphone. The screen remains dark until your victim makes a noise. That triggers a leering skull to jump out with an optional scream, startling unsuspecting co-workers.

3D Desktop Zombies! This one is fun! Watch as the undead come back to life and roam your desktop, fighting, crawling, and leaving messy footprints, blood and gore. All as your screen rotates in 3D.

iPhone-CrazyPumpkin.gifiPhone Crazy Pumpkin This one isn't technically a screensaver. Turn your iPhone into a digital jack-o-lantern. Swipe your finger to change the carvings for the eyes, nose, and mouth. Give your iPhone a shake to change the color. Perfect for a night out trick-or-treating with your kids. [iTunes Link]


October 13, 2008

Make Expanded Print/Save Dialogs the Default.

Expanded-Save-Print.png

In OS X Leopard, Apple provided simpler, minimized, save and print dialog boxes which hide all that confusing detail — like where you want to save your files, or how you want to print your documents. For access to the full information, click the small inverted arrow in those dialog boxes.

Read on for a couple quick terminal commands to make expanded print/save dialogs the default.

Continue reading "Make Expanded Print/Save Dialogs the Default." »

October 06, 2008

Can't Eject a Disk? Find Which Files are Open.

GREP-LSOF-Terminal.png

Have you ever tried to eject a disk or shared server, only to be told that it could not be ejected because a file was in use on that disk? How annoying.

Here is a terminal command that generates a list of all the files open on that specific drive.

lsof | grep /Volumes/Workspace

Note: You must replace /Volumes/Workspace with the path to the specific drive that is refusing to eject. Read on for further details.

Continue reading "Can't Eject a Disk? Find Which Files are Open." »

September 29, 2008

Check your Battery's Health with coconutBattery.

coconutBattery-250px.gifDoes your laptop seem to die faster than it used to? It probably does. Laptop batteries lose capacity over time.

Download coconutBattery, a free utility, to reveal some important details about your laptop battery's health.

Apple says their batteries are designed to retain up to 80% of original capacity after 300 full charges. You can see in this screenshot from coconutBattery, how a 4-year-old iBook whose battery has been charged twice that number now has only about 17% of it's original capacity left.

You can maximize your battery lifespan with some good maintenance practices. But however well they are maintained, laptop batteries do lose capacity over time.

Continue reading "Check your Battery's Health with coconutBattery." »

September 22, 2008

Resize Your Web Browser with Bookmarklets.

Safari-ResizeBookmarklet.png

Here is a fun trick to try in your favorite web browser. Paste the following snippet of javascript code into the address bar where you normally type a web address:

javascript:window.resizeTo(800,600);

This tiny script tells your web browser window to jump to 800x600 pixels in size. A handy shortcut for web designers proofing sites. Here are a collection of resize links based on that simple javascript code:

Resize Link: 640x480
Resize Link: 800x600
Resize Link: 1024x768
Resize Link: Full Screen

You can save these links as Bookmarklets — small javascripts saved as normal bookmarks — to easily resize your browser windows on the fly.

In the rest of this tip we'll walk you through adding Bookmarklets in Safari.

Continue reading "Resize Your Web Browser with Bookmarklets." »

August 25, 2008

Proofreading With Your Eyes Closed.

Proofreading-Speech.png

Here is a technique I use every week while proofreading final drafts of this tips newsletter. When you need to proof your final documents or important email, have your computer read the text out loud to you and listen for mistakes. You'll catch errors you might otherwise miss.

In many OS X applications, you can highlight your text and choose [Application] > Services > Speech > Start Speaking Text (if you are using Mail for example, look under the Mail menu next to your Apple menu).

As with last week's tip, this trick only works in Cocoa apps. If you are using an Adobe or Microsoft program where this doesn't work, just paste the text into a new TextEdit document and have your Mac read from there.

Continue reading "Proofreading With Your Eyes Closed." »

August 18, 2008

Press ESC for a Pop-up Autocomplete List.

OSX-Autocomplete.png

It's always fun to stumble across a little-known feature that's been around for years. When you're typing text in many OS X applications (Safari, TextEdit, Mail, etc), you can press ESC (F5 also works) for an pop-up list with words from the built in OS X dictionary.

Note: This trick only works in Cocoa apps. It works in most of Apple's built-in software, but unfortunately not in many Adobe or Microsoft applications.

Continue reading "Press ESC for a Pop-up Autocomplete List." »

August 11, 2008

Eliminate shadows in Leopard screen grabs.

LeopardShadowTerminalRemove.gif

Three months ago we published two Photoshop actions we developed to clean up shadows in Leopard screenshots when using the command-shift-4 plus spacebar screen capture technique. We received a number of thank-you emails, so those tips must have touched a nerve for some people out there.

This week's tip covers a different way to remove the shadows from Leopard window screen captures: A simple terminal hack that disables shadows in the screen capture itself.

While this doesn't matter much to most users, those extra Leopard shadows can be a real pain for some designers (and tip writers) who regularly use screen captures in documentation.

Continue reading "Eliminate shadows in Leopard screen grabs." »

August 04, 2008

Easily Remove an OSX System Preference Pane.

RemovePrefPanes.gif

Here is the easiest ways to remove System Preference Panes you've added over time and no longer need. Simply control-click, or right-click, on a preference icon in the Others section of your System Preferences (the Other section contains the custom preferences installed by users). A pop-up menu lets you remove the selected preference pane.

This is a great way for those of you who don't want to go digging through various Library folders looking for the actual preference pane manually.

Continue reading "Easily Remove an OSX System Preference Pane." »

July 21, 2008

Instantly Darken your Mac's Monitor.

Darken-Your-Monitor.gif

Here is a nice, quick one. If you’re working on an (ahem!) important confidential document and someone walks into the room who shouldn’t see your screen, you can instantly darken you Mac's screen by pressing ctrl-shift-eject. To turn the brightness back to where it was, press any key or move the mouse.

Continue reading "Instantly Darken your Mac's Monitor." »

July 07, 2008

Track Craigslist Opportunities using RSS.

RSS-Craigslist.png

RSS feeds are a great way to stay updated whenever new articles (or tips) are posted to your favorite blogs. But the usefulness doesn't stop there. As you become more comfortable using RSS feeds, you'll discover all sorts of handy ways you can use RSS to grow your business.

For example, you can turn any search on Craigslist into a personalized RSS feed that notifies you whenever newly posted listings fit your search criteria.

Continue reading "Track Craigslist Opportunities using RSS." »

Avoid the Finder's Odd Sort When Opening Files.

OpenNumberedFiles.png

Try this test on your Mac: Select a collection of ten image files in the Finder and open them in Photoshop. You can either double-click the files, or drag them together onto the Photoshop icon in your dock.

Do they open up in the order you expected? Do they open in alphanumeric or chronological order? Chances are Photoshop opens the images in a seemingly random order. How frustrating!

This annoyance isn't limited to Photoshop. With a few notable exceptions, opening a list of files from the Mac OS X Finder results in a random order in most applications. In this tip we'll describe 3 workarounds to solve this annoying behavior.

Continue reading "Avoid the Finder's Odd Sort When Opening Files." »

June 16, 2008

Grow your Studio with Google Webmaster Tools.

Google-Webmaster-Tools.gif

If you want to attract visitors to your studio's website (or if you design websites for clients) you really must understand and use Google's collection of Webmaster Tools. This free service from Google provides you with detailed reports about your website's visibility on Google, as well as giving you valuable ways to influence how your website appears in search results.

Link: Google Webmaster Tools

In this tip we'll dig into this powerful resource that is key for harnessing Google as a marketing vehicle for your creative studio. As part of that discussion, we'll show how you can answer the following questions:

  1. When was the last time Google indexed your website?
  2. Are there any bad links or missing pages on your site?
  3. Does your website's content reflect your brand and target market?
  4. Who is linking to your website?
  5. How can you make your Flash-based site more findable?
  6. Can you stop Google from indexing photos in your portfolio?
  7. How do you remove something from Google's search results?

Continue reading "Grow your Studio with Google Webmaster Tools." »

June 09, 2008

Embed iPhone Friendly Videos on your Website.

It is pretty easy to embed an iPhone-optimized video in any website you are designing. Which can be a nice flourish to welcome the growing hordes of iPhone users who might be visiting your site soon.

Sound hard? It's not. Apple has added a special Export to Web option to QuickTime Pro ($30) that makes the process nearly automatic.

Continue reading "Embed iPhone Friendly Videos on your Website." »

June 02, 2008

Take a Quick Screenshot of One Window.

ScreenCapture.gif

Here's a trick I rely on all the time. The keyboard shortcut to take a screen capture of a specific, isolated, window in Mac OS X:

Command+Shift+4, then tap the Spacebar.

Most designers know the Command-Shift-4 shortcut which gives you a small crosshair you can use to crop in on a specific part of your window. Tapping the Spacebar afterwards switches to a camera icon that takes a cropped picture of any window you click on.

Continue reading "Take a Quick Screenshot of One Window." »

May 19, 2008

The 10 Most Popular Tech Tips So Far.

Tech01.gifTech02.gifTech03.gifTech04.gifTech05.gif
Tech06.gifTech07.gifTech08.gifTech09.gifTech10.gif

Each week we bring you a pair of creative and tech tips drawn directly from our real-world experience supporting hundreds of Mac-based creative teams across the greater Seattle area. Take a moment to peruse the most visited tech tips over the last year.

Tech #1: Change Microsoft Office's serial number, Easy!

Tech #2: Avoid serial number headaches with CS3!

Tech #3: Set default applications in Mac OS X.

Tech #4: My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide.

Tech #5: Six free Internet speed test sites.

Tech #6: Mac OS X Shortcuts! A Tiny Guide.

Tech #7: What is a good microphone for podcasting?

Tech #8: Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide.

Tech #9: Reset a lost Mac OS X password.

Tech #10: Fold your own iPhone today.

Continue reading "The 10 Most Popular Tech Tips So Far." »

May 12, 2008

Should You Host Your Own Email Server?

Email-Hosting.png

Ten years ago, we were installing a lot of mail servers for design firms and advertising agencies across the greater Seattle area. Today, however, we rarely recommend our clients host their own mail servers.

Why the change? Email has become the key tool for conducting business. Creative teams are accessing email away from the office with laptops, webmail, and (increasingly) iPhones. And most significantly, fighting spam has become a full-time job.

In short, if you own an independent creative studio, there is one good reason to have your email handled by a dedicated hosting company: They'll probably do a better job than you.

Continue reading "Should You Host Your Own Email Server?" »

May 05, 2008

Leopard vs. InDesign: Crashes on Open, Import, Export, Save and Print.

Leopard-vs-CS3.png

One of the more frustrating Leopard-vs-InDesign issues we're seeing at clients is a bug that causes frequent crashing when using InDesign CS3's Open, Place, Import, Export, or Save dialog boxes. Designers may also experience these particular symptoms while re-linking graphics as well as printing files.

Until Adobe or Apple fixes this issue, we have an odd work-around culled from various online forums that has helped improve stability at several of our clients:

Continue reading "Leopard vs. InDesign: Crashes on Open, Import, Export, Save and Print." »

Leopard vs. InDesign: Can't Hide InDesign.

INDD-Leopard-Hide.png

A common Leopard-vs-InDesign complaint we hear from designers is not being able to hide InDesign, either from the InDesign menu or by pressing Command-H. And worse, if you can get InDesign to hide, you can't get it back.

Happily this problem can usually be fixed by deleting the InDesign preference file.

Continue reading "Leopard vs. InDesign: Can't Hide InDesign." »

April 28, 2008

Save Word 2008 files as DOC instead of DOCX.

Word2008_Doc.png

If you've updated to the new Mac version of Microsoft Office 2008, you may have noticed Word now saves files in Microsoft's new DOCX format. The problem is, just as Windows users found, not everyone can open this new file format yet. The easy way to prevent compatibility problems with colleagues and co-workers is to change your default file format back to the old DOC format until everyone in your life has upgraded to the new version of Word.

Continue reading "Save Word 2008 files as DOC instead of DOCX." »

April 21, 2008

Change your Adobe CS3 serial number.

CS3-SerialNumber-Erase.gif

Managing serial numbers is a headache in almost every creative studio. If you have more than 3 designers on a network, someone has to take responsibility for keeping track of which serial numbers belong on which computers.

CreativeTechs recommends that creative teams stop buying single-user copies of CS3. For the same cost, your studio can get a site license with a single serial number for your entire team. Here's our tip from last year:

Transactional Licensing: Avoid serial number headaches with CS3!

But back to today's tip: What if you are using a single-user copy of CS3, and you need to change which serial number is installed on a particular computer? It turns out Adobe makes changing the serial number easy as can be. No need to uninstall and reinstall software if you know where this "Erase my serial number" checkbox is located.

Continue reading "Change your Adobe CS3 serial number." »

April 14, 2008

Customizing your Leopard Dock.

PicnicDock.png

Some time ago I replaced the dock on my MacBook Pro with a picnic theme. Surprisingly, with all the wisdom I have at my disposal to provide clients, one of the most common questions I get these days is how they can have a picnic dock too. So I'm breaking down and documenting this little treat in what is surely to be one of the more frivolous tips in our collection.

Continue reading "Customizing your Leopard Dock." »

April 07, 2008

Retrieve forgotten passwords with Keychain Access.

KeychainAccessBanner.png

Here is a quick tutorial for something we walk clients through all the time. Say you've forgotten your studio's wireless Airport password. If you checked the "remember this network" option when you first connected wirelessly years ago, your long forgotten password awaits you now in Mac OS X's Keychain Access utility.

Continue reading "Retrieve forgotten passwords with Keychain Access." »

March 31, 2008

Kernel Panic Screensaver

panic_dialog.gif

We'd like to offer up a perfect April Fools Day prank to play on the Mac users in your life — the Kernel Panic screen saver. Download and install this beauty onto your target's Mac. The result is a harmless (see warning) screensaver that faithfully emulates the horrifying experience of a Mac kernel panic.

Doomslaser: Kernel Panic Screensaver.

Or, if you've got a friend who uses a PC, we've got something for you too. Someone in Redmond obviously has a sense of humor, because the Microsoft TechNet site hosts a Windows screen saver that emulates the infamous Blue Screen of Death:

BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) Screensaver.

Have a fun (and safe) April Fools day tomorrow.

Continue reading "Kernel Panic Screensaver" »

March 24, 2008

Hide your desktop shame with Camouflage.

Camouflage.gif

Do you have way too many items on your desktop? Do you hate cleaning up that mess? Camouflage, a free utility from Briksoftware, is the right tool for you. It hides all the icons and leaves nothing but the pure wallpaper. It's the digital equivalent of sweeping everything under your bed.

Briksoftware's Camouflage

Camouflage does more than cover up the desktop files. Double-click on your newly immaculate desktop, and the Finder opens the list of all your desktop items in a new window. I've run this on my MacBook Pro for about a month and it has turned out to be a lot more useful than I had expected.

Continue reading "Hide your desktop shame with Camouflage." »

March 17, 2008

Test Your Website on Apple's iPhone Simulator.

iPhoneSimulator.jpg

If you are a web designer, your clients may soon start worrying how their websites work on an iPhone. That's because after only eight months, iPhones now account for a remarkable 71% of all US Mobile Browser web traffic.

Designing websites that take advantage of the iPhone web environment requires more than simply designing for a smaller screen size. The iPhone automatically scales websites when needed. iPhone readers use multi-touch gestures to zoom or move around the page. Flash isn't supported, and neither are larger animated GIFs (a surprise to me).

Tucked away in Apple's free iPhone Software Development Kit is a terrific iPhone Simulator you can use to test and preview your websites. In the full version of this tip we'll show you where that iPhone Simulator application is hidden, and include a few tips on how to test various iPhone features.

Download Apple's Free iPhone SDK

Note: You'll have to register for a free developer account and agree to Apple's terms. Read on and we'll show you where the iPhone Simulator application is hidden, and include a few tips on how to test various iPhone features.

Continue reading "Test Your Website on Apple's iPhone Simulator." »

March 10, 2008

Rename Your Files with Renamer4Mac.

Renamer4Mac.png

Renamer4Mac makes it easy to rename a large number of files. You just drag files or folders into its window, then adjust what you want to change. As you define your intended changes, Renamer4Mac previews in blue what each new file name will look like. When your file names appear the way you want them, you can apply the changes.

power4mac.com/renamer

This tool is perfect for designers who find themselves with a folder of files whose names need to be adjusted. For example, adding an identifying name to photos, along with a sequential number. Or changing the names of files for a website to lower case and replacing spaces with underscores.

Continue reading "Rename Your Files with Renamer4Mac." »

March 03, 2008

Leopard Disk Utility Can Now Resize Partitions.

DiskUtility-Resize.gif

In the past, changing the size of a Macintosh volume has been a significant undertaking, requiring third-party tools or offline reformatting. But, all that changes in Leopard. In the newest version of OS X, you can grow or shrink any HFS+ partition. The resizing is done live, and can even be performed on a mounted boot volume (though we wouldn't recommend it).

For more details, read the post on Make Mac Work, our sister blog written for IT professionals who support Mac users:

Make Mac Work: Resize Disk Partitions.

Warning: This is the sternly-worded paragraph that reminds you to never resize a partition without a complete current backup. Got it?

Continue reading "Leopard Disk Utility Can Now Resize Partitions." »

February 25, 2008

Add Translation Links to your Web Site or Blog.

flagsoftheworld.jpg

Last week my family and I left for a much anticipated vacation in Italy. But rest assured, before we left town, our team queued up a fun collection of tips to run while we're gone. If everything works properly, those tips should continue to flow uninterrupted each Monday until we return.

In the spirit of travel, we'd like to offer up a tip and tutorial on how to add translation links for international readers of your website or blog. In this example, we'll add a small collection of tiny flags representing different languages. When a reader clicks on a flag, the page is translated using Google's translation services.

French German Italian Italy Italy Italy

Click on a flag to translate this tip into French, German, Italian, Russian, Japanese, or Chinese. Then read on in your language of choice for details on how to recreate these links yourself.

Continue reading "Add Translation Links to your Web Site or Blog." »

February 10, 2008

Convert Quark, InDesign, Publisher, FrameMaker, etc.

IDQX-Converters.png

Over the years, our team fields lots of questions from clients needing to convert documents from one page layout program to another. For this tip we've compiled a number of utilities we've used and recommended.

Q2ID — QuarkXpress to InDesign

ID2Q — InDesign to QuarkXPress

PUB2ID — Microsoft Publisher to InDesign

PM2Q — PageMaker to QuarkXPress

PDF2ID — PDF to InDesign

MIF Filter — FrameMaker to InDesign

MIF Filter — FrameMaker to QuarkXPress

The full version of this tip includes some additional details for each converter, including pricing, links, etc.

Continue reading "Convert Quark, InDesign, Publisher, FrameMaker, etc." »

February 03, 2008

Create a Favicon for your Web site.

FaviconExample.gifA favicon is an icon you can design for your website that shows up next to the URL when someone visits. Think of it as a tiny visual business card for your Web site. Think of it as a tiny visual business card for your Web site. You can create one by visiting Genfavicon, a simple Web site who's only purpose is to generate favicons for you:

Genfavicon.png

genfavicon.com

Once you've created your favicon.ico file, you'll need to upload it to the root directory of your website and add bit code in the header of your html files (Here's a simple favicon tutorial).

Continue reading "Create a Favicon for your Web site." »

January 26, 2008

Larger Studios, Don't install Office 2008 (Yet).

Office2008icons.jpg

The new Mac version of Microsoft Office 2008 has started arriving at our client's studios. While we generally reserve judgement on the inevitable antidotal list of problems that accompany any new software release, there is a significant enough problem with the current Office 2008 installer that we're recommending larger design studios hold off installing it for the moment.

With this particular problem, the Office 2008 installer incorrectly grants ownership of it's files to a particular local user as it installs them. That won't effect most small studios or individual designers, but in some larger managed networks this can cause potential problems. For more details, read the post on Make Mac Work, our sister blog written for IT professionals supporting Mac users:

Make Mac Work: Don't Install Office 2008 (Yet)

We're recommending that clients hold off installing Office 2008 until Microsoft releases a patch to fix this issue. That should be soon. For larger studios, we'd prefer clients use the corporate site-license version of Office 2008 anyway (which should ship Feb 1).

Continue reading "Larger Studios, Don't install Office 2008 (Yet)." »

January 13, 2008

Play almost any video file on your Mac.

QuickTime-VideoHelp.png

We field a lot of troubleshooting calls over the course of a year from Mac-based art directors experiencing problems playing movie files sent to them by Windows-based clients, or viewing video clips from certain local TV news websites.

There are two essential (and free) utilities that will solve a host of incompatible video problems with Apple's QuickTime utility. They are free to download, and easy to install. We recommend installing these on most Mac creative workstations.

Perian — Billed as the Swiss-Army knife for QuickTime. This open source plug-in for QuickTime includes a wide number of video codec files that enables your Mac to play most common video formats.

Filp4Mac WMV — Provides support for Microsoft's Windows Media files (WMV) — one of the few video formats Perian doesn't support. The free version allows you to play most WMV files. You can pay to unlock additional options for exporting and converting WMV files into other formats.

Note: Perian requires Mac OS X 10.4.7. Both utilites are compatible with Mac OS X Leopard.

Continue reading "Play almost any video file on your Mac." »

January 06, 2008

Easily Burn Movies to a DVD without Apple's iDVD.

Burn2DVD.png

Every now and again clients will ask how to burn QuickTime movies to a DVD they can show on TV using a standard DVD player. In the past, we've recommended looking at Apple's iDVD which comes pre-installed on all new Macs. The problem is, iDVD is a bit overkill if all you want is something simple to play a couple movies on your TV.

That's where Burn, a free lightweight CD/DVD burning utility comes in so handy:

Burn at SourceForge.net

Burn is certainly not the fanciest disc burner available. But it is free, simple, and it burns a variety of formats including CDs, DVDs, VCDs, DivX Disc and Audio CDs. This rest of this tip includes a quick tutorial on burning movies to DVD.

Continue reading "Easily Burn Movies to a DVD without Apple's iDVD." »

December 17, 2007

BusySync. An iCal Server for smaller studios.

BusySync.jpg

One of the big features in Apple's new Leopard Server is iCal Server — which finally adds group-calendaring options to Apple's iCal calendar utility. A long requested feature that many creative studios have wanted for years.

However, iCal Server isn't always the right fit for smaller studios who don't require a full server installation. For those creative teams, BusySync ($19.95 per-user), might be a better calendaring solution.

BusySync Shared iCal Calendars

Install BusySync on each computer in your office and a new configuration options appear in System Preferences. From there, users can publish their iCal calendars on the network, and subscribe to co-worker's calendars.

Continue reading "BusySync. An iCal Server for smaller studios." »

December 09, 2007

Holiday 2007 Tech Gift Ideas.

For those techie folk on your shopping list, here are some ideas in the $20-$80 range. To keep things interesting, we avoided the obvious list of Apple iPods and peripherals (although those never fail to please). The extravagant gift in this list includes a nice twist to spread your generous spirit a little further.

Tech Gift #1 — The Ultimate Hardware Geek’s Swiss Army Knife.

Gift07-SwissKnife.png Swiss Army CyberTool 41

How many pocket knives come with a DIP switch setter and torx bits? Very few indeed. This unique Swiss Army knife contains a specially selected set of tools to fit the daily needs of computer hardware techs. This is a great tool for making computer repairs. It includes 4 double-head hex bits, as well as various sizes of Philips and regular slotted screwdrivers. A total of 41 different functions in a single tool - amazing!

Continue reading "Holiday 2007 Tech Gift Ideas." »

December 02, 2007

Free Seattle Leopard Server Strategy Sessions.

LeopardServerBox.png

Last week, CreativeTechs' Jordan Bojar gave a terrific talk on the upcoming impact of Leopard Server for larger creative businesses. If you missed it, we’ve set aside time for a limited number of complimentary planning and strategy sessions. If you manage a creative team in the Seattle-area with at least 10 people, take advantage of this opportunity to help map out your team's strategy for a Leopard Server upgrade in 2008.

Continue reading "Free Seattle Leopard Server Strategy Sessions." »

Use Mouseposé for training presentations.

Mousepose.gif

If you give Macintosh training presentations or demos, give Mouseposé ($14.95) a try. Your audience will appreciate it.

Mouseposé 2 from Boinx Software

With Mouseposé installed, press your defined hotkey, and it dims the screen and puts a spotlight around your mouse pointer, easily guiding the audience’s attention to an area of interest. Very useful when you are trying to point out a small-but-important detail on a large projection screen.

Mouseposé can also be configured to display a pop-up overlay on the screen showing any keys you press. A great feature for helping people understand when you are using certain shortcut commands, or say, holding down the Option key when clicking on a particular button.

Continue reading "Use Mouseposé for training presentations." »

November 25, 2007

Leopard Hack: Turn off Leopard's 3D Dock.

LeopardHacks-Dock.gif

For our first Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard tips, we've been collecting a variety of popular visual tweaks and most-requested adjustments to Apple's updated interface. Because our readership includes a mix of users, we've presented each hack in a technical and non-technical format.

If you've recently upgraded to Mac OS X Leopard, and find yourself disliking the new 3D  glass shelf on the Dock, here is the hack to switch it back to a simpler 2D version.

Continue reading "Leopard Hack: Turn off Leopard's 3D Dock." »

Leopard Hack: Make Leopard's menu bar opaque.

LeopardHacks-Menu.gif

For our first Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard tips, we've been collecting a variety of popular visual tweaks and most-requested adjustments to Apple's updated interface. Because our readership includes a mix o fusers, we've presented each hack in a technical and non-technical format.

If you've recently upgraded to Mac OS X Leopard, and find yourself disliking the new translucent menu bar, here is the hack to make it opaque again.

Continue reading "Leopard Hack: Make Leopard's menu bar opaque." »

November 16, 2007

Learn Adobe's Pen Tool with Advanced Math.

Bezier_3_big.gif 360×150 pixels.gif
Bezier_cubic-equation.gif

Okay, we don't actually expect anyone to learn Adobe's pen tool through the study of cubic Bézier curves — but we love this cool animation of how the Bézier spline is actually derived from the mathematical equations you control with your handy pen tool.

You can read more than you care to know about the mathematics that Postscript is based on — along with some more fascinating diagrams at Wikipedia:

Bézier curves from Wikipedia

Continue reading "Learn Adobe's Pen Tool with Advanced Math." »

November 11, 2007

Preparing for Leopard: Helvetica is Dead.

HelveticaGrave.pngOBITUARY: After a prolonged battle with Mac OS X, Helvetica — along with younger cousin Helvetica Neue — was finally pronounced dead on October 28, 2007 with the release of Leopard, by Apple, in California.

For years, print-based graphic designers and prepress professionals have fought to replace certain Mac OS X default fonts with their existing PostScript Type 1 fonts of the same name — Helvetica being a primary example.

It's been a losing battle.

Now with Leopard, the war for control of Helvetica is done, and Mac OS X won.

Continue reading "Preparing for Leopard: Helvetica is Dead." »

October 20, 2007

Build a PowerBook and MacBook repair toolkit.

MacLaptopToolkit.jpg

Over the last week we've had a lot of Apple laptops in our office for various repairs and upgrades — including one of our own MacBook Pros that was upgraded with a larger internal hard drive.

It is a good reminder that however skilled you are at hardware repair, you won't be able to open a MacBook Pro case without the right set of screwdrivers. We've asked CreativeTechs' hardware guru, Jasson Lewellen, to compile a list of tools and training materials for people who are interested in doing basic Apple laptop repair.

So whether you run an IT team headed towards self-service, or you are an intrepid DIY home-user willing to void a warranty, here are a collection of links for you to start building your own laptop repair toolkit.

Continue reading "Build a PowerBook and MacBook repair toolkit." »

October 14, 2007

Use Safe Boot to Clear Font Caches.

GarbledFonts-Corrupt.gif

If you suspect that fonts are causing problems in your applications, an easy troubleshooting step is deleting your Mac’s font caches.

We've covered font cache problems before in our Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide — which delves into font problems more deeply. However we did overlook a quick and easy method to delete font cache files.

Continue reading "Use Safe Boot to Clear Font Caches." »

October 07, 2007

1-800-GOOG-411

goog411.jpg

Can a phone number count as a tech tip?

For the last month I've been using Google's new 411 service from my cell phone when I'm looking for local phone numbers or addresses. It took a couple calls to get used to the voice-recognition interface, but I use it all the time now. Google's search results have been surprisingly good at finding me what I need when I'm driving around.

Call 1-800-GOOG-411. (That's 1-800-4664-411). Say where you are and what you're looking for. If you are calling from a cell phone with text messaging, just say "text message" or "map it" and the system immediately sends you a text message with phone number, address and an optional map link.

For more details, check out the GOOG-411 site:

http://www.google.com/goog411/

Continue reading "1-800-GOOG-411" »

September 29, 2007

Firefox Can’t Reach Internet?

With great standards-compliance and cross-platform support, Firefox is becoming the browser of choice not just for end-users but for many web developers as well. Once it’s deployed inside some corporate networks, the Macintosh edition can’t see past the firewall.

Firefox may be an excellent internet citizen, but it doesn’t follow Macintosh standards too closely. Among the conventions it ignores are the Proxy settings in the Network pane of System Preferences. Instead, Firefox keeps it’s own proxy settings hidden, three levels down in its own preferences. This is the most common reason Firefox can’t seem to load web sites when Safari can.

firefoxproxy.jpg

To solve the problem, go to the Firefox menu and select “Preferences…”, choosing the “Advanced” button at the top of the resulting window. Then from the row of tabs, select “Network” and click “Settings…” to bring up the proxy configuration panel. From there it’s easy to fill in your proxy addresses, and your Firefox users will be back online.

Continue reading "Firefox Can’t Reach Internet?" »

September 23, 2007

Find what Macs are sharing over your network.

flame_screenshot.jpg

It's still a beta, and pretty light on features, but we've found the free utility, Flame, to be super handy for stuff like snooping out who has Printer Sharing turned on...

http://husk.org/apps/flame/

Just start Flame to see a list of all the computers on your network that are advertising network services. (If it can, it'll identify the user of each computer instead of giving you the machine's name.) This gives you a quick way to scan the network for who is broadcasting shared iTunes music libraries, web sharing, or other network services. Many times individual users are not even aware their sharing options were turned on.

Continue reading "Find what Macs are sharing over your network." »

September 16, 2007

Control multiple Macs using one keyboard with Teleport.

Transport.gif

Some designers (especially web developers) have more than one computer on their desk. Often they'll use their powerful desktop workstation for the big projects, while they use their laptop to test web pages, check email, or change their iTunes playback.

Julien Robert’s free Teleport utility lets you work on multiple Macs using a single shared keyboard and mouse. One computer has the keyboard plugged directly into it, while Teleport allows you to control the other Mac over a network connection.

Once installed on both computer, you almost forget it is there. Just drag your mouse to the edge of one display and suddenly you are controlling the other Mac. You can even drag and drop files between them.

Continue reading "Control multiple Macs using one keyboard with Teleport." »

September 09, 2007

Sync all your web browsers using Bookit.

Bookit.jpg

If you frequently switch between multiple web browsers, Everyday Software's Bookit utility ($12) allows you to sync a single collection of bookmarks seamlessly across your entire assortment of browsers. A must-have tool for Mac-based web developers, and other active web users.

Combine Bookit with a shared server or .Mac account, and you can synchronize the same set of Internet bookmarks across multiple computers. A great way to keep your laptop's bookmarks in sync with your main design workstation.

Continue reading "Sync all your web browsers using Bookit." »

August 22, 2007

Clean Out Old Email Attachments.

RemoveAttachment-Entourage.gif

Both Microsoft Entourage and Apple’s Mail application retain attachments even if you have saved them to another location on your hard drive. Plus, these mail programs keep copies of all the attachments that you’ve SENT to other people.

You can slim down your mail archives by removing old attachments you no longer need. Seperate instructions are included for both mail programs.

Continue reading "Clean Out Old Email Attachments." »

August 19, 2007

Reset a lost Mac OS X password.

resetpw-utilitymenu.jpgMany times every month we get calls from designers or IT managers who need to reset a lost administrative password on Mac workstations.

Apple has provided an easy method to reset a lost password — although you'll need to have a Mac OS X Install CD/DVD to take advantage of it.

We're posting this short illustrated guide to make the process easier next time it comes up.

Bookmark this tip so you have it handy the next time a user forgets their Mac's administrative password.

Continue reading "Reset a lost Mac OS X password." »

August 12, 2007

Email Your Current Document.

EmailDrag.gif

Here is a fun one. You can send any open document as an email attachment by simply dragging the icon in its title bar onto the icon of your email application in the Dock. Make sure to save first. Try it!

Continue reading "Email Your Current Document." »

July 29, 2007

Find Mac OS X's hidden UPS options.

ups.gif

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is the only way to make sure your studio's servers receive clean, sufficient, and consistent power. In the past, configuring an UPS for Macintosh required tedious fiddling with dubious third-party software. Now the functionality is built directly into the operating system, and the most challenging part of the process is finding exactly where Apple hid those controls.

Continue reading "Find Mac OS X's hidden UPS options." »

July 15, 2007

Microsoft Office for Mac won't save to your server?

Your creative team is working feverishly, when suddenly people can't save their Office documents to the server. A cryptic error message appears when they try:

There has been a network or file permission error. The network connection may be lost.
"There has been a network or file permission error.
The network connection may be lost."

No matter what you do, you can't seem to get Word or Excel to save to your network shares. You've gone over the machines repeatedly, and everything is set up properly. Worse still, the problem's intermittent. The errors often surface when your people are busiest, but sometimes days go by without any problems.

There is an explanation. What your team may be suffering from is an unfortunate side-effect of how Microsoft Office for Mac handles its temporary files. If your team is suffering from this problem, we have a somewhat technical description of the cause, with some options on how to address it.

Make Mac Work: Office Won’t Save To Server.

Continue reading "Microsoft Office for Mac won't save to your server?" »

July 08, 2007

Basic Workstation Settings Cheatsheet.

Cheatsheet-Workstation.pngFor this month's technical cheatsheet, we have a simple form to help capture those crucial details for each user's computer in your office.

The form includes the most commonly needed network and email settings for each user. Basic stuff, but important when you need to do some quick troubleshooting.

Workstation Settings Cheatsheet.pdf

These simple cheatsheets prompt you to track down and organize crucial network details on a single 3x5 card. Depending on your studio, a copy of this card could be given to each user, or a collection of cards could be kept in the network closet for future troubleshooting purposes.

Continue reading "Basic Workstation Settings Cheatsheet." »

June 24, 2007

Is your Mac OS X Server crashing? A possible fix.

Xserve-Terminal.jpg

Is your Mac OS X server crashing frequently? If so, we have two questions for you:

Question 1: Do the crashes, restarts, or slow downs occur primarily when several people are searching server volumes over the network?

Question 2: Are you running Mac OS X Server 10.4.7 or later?

If you answered yes to both these questions, you may be suffering from a problem that exists in Mac OS X Server 10.4.7 and above where multiple Spotlight searches can render a server unresponsive.

Continue reading "Is your Mac OS X Server crashing? A possible fix." »

June 09, 2007

Important Router Settings Cheatsheet.

Cheatsheet-Router.pngFew experiences are more frustrating than digging through old notebooks trying to track down the correct settings for your DSL router. Especially when the rest of your studio is up in arms about Internet and email being down.

Which brings us to this month's technical cheatsheet:

Router Settings Cheatsheet.pdf

We often find ourselves fixing problem Internet connections or poorly performing networks. Rarely do clients have all their important network settings organized in one place.

Continue reading "Important Router Settings Cheatsheet." »

June 04, 2007

What is RSS? A description in plain English.


A wise blog reader once said, “There are two types of Internet users. Those who use RSS feeds, and those who don't.” It's true. Once you grasp how useful RSS feeds are, it changes the way you keep updated online.

The problem is, if you aren't already in the know, no one seems able to clearly explain what RSS is all about. Most descriptions becomes so convoluted that it leaves the uninitiated more lost than they started.

That's why I love this simple, unassuming 3-minute video. With a whiteboard, a pen, and a fun casual style, Lee LeFever does the best job I've seen describing RSS in easy plain English.

Continue reading "What is RSS? A description in plain English." »

June 02, 2007

Can I Upgrade to Adobe CS3 Yet?

CS3-Icons.jpg

Back on March 28th I led a free talk at Seattle's School of Visual Concepts titled Getting Ready for CS3, Leopard & New Macs.

We cautiously recommended most studios hold back a couple months before upgrading to Creative Suite 3 — and I promised we'd run a tip in the beginning of June 2007 with our experiences supporting CS3 in real-world environments. This is that tip.

Continue reading "Can I Upgrade to Adobe CS3 Yet?" »

June 01, 2007

iStumbler finds all local wireless networks.

iStumbler.gifiStumbler is a powerful free tool for finding and troubleshooting wireless networks. It will display all the wireless hotspots within range of your Mac. You can quickly determine whether they’re open or secure, their SSIDs, signal strength, the wireless channel used, and more:

iStumbler Website

This type of information is becoming increasingly important in some Seattle buildings were dozens of wireless networks compete for bandwidth. It's also a handy tool if you find yourself away from the office and hunting for a free hotspot to check email.

Continue reading "iStumbler finds all local wireless networks." »

May 20, 2007

Don't install Version Cue (unless you use it).

VersionCue-DontInstall.gif

For everyone busily installing their new copies of Adobe CS3, we have a quick recommendation about Version Cue: Don't install it.

Continue reading "Don't install Version Cue (unless you use it)." »

May 13, 2007

Want both CS2 and CS3? Install CS2 first.

Here is a quick tip for early adaptors of Adobe CS3. If you want to install both CS2 and CS3 on the same Mac, make sure you install Adobe CS2 first. If Adobe CS3 is already installed, the CS2 installer will gray out Acrobat, Illustrator and InDesign, thinking those applications are already installed.

CS2-InstallProblem.gif

The simple, but frustrating solution is to uninstall CS3 and reinstall CS2 first.

Continue reading "Want both CS2 and CS3? Install CS2 first." »

Online backup that works: Mozy.com.

Mozy.pngOver the years, many clients have asked me about the possibility of backing up over their studio's Internet connection. It is an enticing idea. Every night your studio's work files are magically whisked away to a safe online server.

That fantasy is coming closer to reality. Mozy.com provides unlimited backup storage for $4.95/month per computer— or a free 2GB option for people who don't have as much to back up.

Mozy just released a beta Macintosh client which we've been testing. Even in beta it is the best Internet backup for Macs I've worked with. The free 2GB option is a perfect size for keeping key project management and accounting files protected.

Continue reading "Online backup that works: Mozy.com." »

May 06, 2007

Keep track of software updates with AppFresh.

AppFresh.png

How do you keep track of the latest versions for all your installed Mac software? Apple's built-in Software Update helps keep software like iTunes and Mac OS X updated. Adobe and Microsoft have built-in tools to check for updates of Creative Suite and MS Office. But what about the rest of your assorted software?

That's where AppFresh comes in quite handy. AppFresh is a free new utility that helps keep all applications on your Mac up to date by checking the internet for new releases.

Continue reading "Keep track of software updates with AppFresh." »

April 29, 2007

Keep your Internet up using two providers.

Linksys-RV082.png

Does your creative team rely on Internet to keep the business running? If any interruption in email causes major headaches, you might consider adding a backup Internet connection for your studio.

There are routers available that support dual Internet connections. For example, your office might have a primary high-speed connection, with a secondary inexpensive connection as backup.

A common example would be to install both Cable and DSL Internet connections simultaneously -- making it less likely that both connections would be down at the same time.

Continue reading "Keep your Internet up using two providers." »

April 22, 2007

Pair your Apple Remote to a specific Mac.

AppleRemote.jpgApple ships their new Apple Remote with every computer they make today. We've started hearing complaints from designers whose Macs go wacky when coworkers run a presentation using one of these ubiquitous devices. We've compiled links to a couple handy Apple Technotes that document how to pair a remote with a specific Mac (or Apple TV).

Pairing your Apple Remote with your Mac.

Pairing your Apple Remote with your Apple TV.

Pairing your Apple Remote with your iPod Dock.

Continue reading "Pair your Apple Remote to a specific Mac." »

April 21, 2007

Remove Photoshop CS3 Beta before installing CS3.

PshopCS3Beta-Conflict.gif

Some early adopters are experiencing problems installing their new copy of Adobe CS3. If you tested the public beta version of Photoshop CS3 on your computer you will see the following cryptic error when you try to install the full version:

"Adobe Photoshop CS3 cannot be installed because it conflicts with: Adobe Photoshop CS3"

If you've seen this error, you must first remove the beta version of Photoshop CS3. That takes more than simply trashing the application folder.

Continue reading "Remove Photoshop CS3 Beta before installing CS3." »

April 01, 2007

Getting Ready for CS3, Leopard & New Macs.

Talk Notes: CS3, Leopard and New MacsThanks to everyone who joined us for CreativeTechs' presentation "Getting Ready for CS3, Leopard and New Macs!" at the School of Visual Concepts. We had a fun evening.

Turnout was great, and the audience Q&A at the end of the night went on for at least an hour after the show. Obviously this is a hot topic.

As always, here is a PDF of our presentation:

CS3 and Leopard 03-28-2007.pdf

In addition, we've compiled some extra links in this blog post...

Continue reading "Getting Ready for CS3, Leopard & New Macs." »

March 24, 2007

Don't touch your Mac during Software Updates.

This tip's headline is a bit alarmist — so let us clarify. When you are running software updates, or installing new security patches, you shouldn't do anything with your Mac while it's running through the last "Optimizing System Performance" phase of a software update.

OptimizingSystemPerformance.gif

Launching applications while your Mac is performing this last phase of a software update can potentially damage system library files. In the worst case, there is a chance your Mac won't be able to start up again without significant troubleshooting.

Continue reading "Don't touch your Mac during Software Updates." »

March 17, 2007

Manage multiple libraries in iTunes 7.

Apple slipped a nice bonus into their iTunes 7 upgrade: The abiliity to easily manage multiple music libraries.

Switching libraries is simple; hold down the option key on your Mac (or shift key in Windows) when you launch iTunes. You'll be presented with an option to create a new library or choose the library you want to load instead.

iTunes-Choose.png

This is a wonderful feature if you want to seperate a collection of audio books or kids music from your main iTunes library.

Continue reading "Manage multiple libraries in iTunes 7." »

March 14, 2007

DST changes and Microsoft Entourage.

We've been getting calls this week about updating Microsoft Entourage for the new Daylight Savings Time (DST) changes this year. We probably should have run this as a tip a week ago. Here it is now:

Microsoft Entourage 2004: Update your copy of Entourage to at least version 11.3.3. Download the latest patch from Microsoft here: Mac Office 11.3.3 update.

Microsoft Entourage X: There is no official patch for Entourage X. The best fix is to upgrade to Entourage 2004, which is more stable in many other ways. Alternatively you can use this unsupported patch (untested by our own team): Unofficial DST Workaround for Entourage X.

Continue reading "DST changes and Microsoft Entourage." »

March 11, 2007

Stop Entourage background disk churning.

Here is a great tip if you are having problems with regular hangs/pauses in Entourage — especially with hangs that slow down your Mac with extended periods of heavy unexplained disk activity. Particularly noticeable for people with large 1GB+ mail databases.

You can reduce disk churning by using a somewhat hidden option to turn off Entourage's background database integrity check.

Entourage-DBIntegrityCheck.gif

Warning: Turning off Entourage's database integrity check does improve performance for users with large mail databases. However if you go this route, make sure you have an excellently maintained backup system in place to protect yourself from loss of data.

Continue reading "Stop Entourage background disk churning." »

March 06, 2007

Digg This Button Cheat Sheet

About a month ago, Digg announced new "Smart" Digg buttons on the Digg blog. You've seen them before — the familiar Digg badges that appear next to some blog entries showing how many Diggs a particular post has received. There is an example with a skimpy number of Diggs shown at the left for this very post.

Digg has a pretty good tutorial page describing different ways you can implement the Digg This button on your own blog: http://digg.com/tools/integrate

However, that tutorial does not include previews of what the actual Digg badges look like for each set of code. Nor does it include the additional code needed to float your Digg badge to the left (or right) of your blog post text.

I'm posting this short cheat sheet showing the code for a couple standard uses of the Digg buttons — along with a preview of each result.

Continue reading "Digg This Button Cheat Sheet" »

February 24, 2007

Update your Mac for Daylight Savings Time.

DST.png

In 2007, several countries change the dates on which they observe Daylight Saving Time (DST). In the United States, all states except Arizona and Hawaii will begin observing Daylight Saving Time on March 11.

Your computer may need to be updated to adjust for these changes. Apple has released updates to fix this problem. If you're running Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or 10.3 (Panther) use your Mac's Software Update feature (Apple Menu> Software Update...) to automatically download the new DST update.

Continue reading "Update your Mac for Daylight Savings Time." »

February 18, 2007

Shortcut Cheat Sheet for Safari & FireFox.

browser-cheat-sheet.gif

We appreciate a good cheat sheet. So when we came across this handy collection of Mac web browser shortcuts over at The Apple Blog, we added it to our collection.

browser-cheat-sheet.pdf

Here you'll find a fairly comprehensive list of shortcuts for two of the most popular Mac web browsers — Safari and FireFox.

There are more browser shortcuts than you might initially think. The browser is arguably the most used application on many people’s computers, so a shortcut here and there could save a fair bit of time.

Continue reading "Shortcut Cheat Sheet for Safari & FireFox." »

February 11, 2007

Open MS Word 2007 .DOCX files on a Mac.

Word2007toMac.png

In Office 2007 Microsoft introduced a new file format called the Microsoft Open Office XML Format (.docx). This format is not compatible with older versions of Microsoft Word. The Mac version (Office 2008) isn't expected to ship until the second half of 2007.

So far this month, several clients have called to ask how to open, convert, or place Word 2007's new .docx file format on a Mac. For the next couple months, this issue will be a problem for many Mac-based studios.

Here are some conversion options for now:

Continue reading " Open MS Word 2007 .DOCX files on a Mac." »

February 03, 2007

Fixes for Stuffit Expander and missing files.

StuffitMissing.png

You've recieve a Stuffit archive (.sit) that contains crucial files for your project. But when you expand that archive, Stuffit Expander ends up giving you an apparently empty folder, or only shows a couple of your needed files.

This is one of those problems we get a lot of calls about from frustrated designers. Certainly more designers suffer in silence.

In this tip we'll not only explain what's going on, we'll give you three easy ways to fix the problem for good!

Continue reading "Fixes for Stuffit Expander and missing files." »

January 20, 2007

Set default applications in Mac OS X.

RCDefaultApp-Extensions.jpg

RCDefaultApp is a free utility that CreativeTechs has started adding to our recommended Mac OS X installs. It adds a special preference pane that allows you to quickly change the default application for many common situations:
  • Open all your .pdf files in Acrobat instead of Preview.
  • Pick a different default mail client or web browser.
  • Control what opens when digital cameras or webcams are plugged in.
  • Close security holes with how certain weblinks are handled.

Of course you can change these settings other ways. But RCDefaultApp makes it much easier by putting the most requested controls into one location — a new "Default Apps" option at the bottom of your Mac OS X System Preferences.

Continue reading "Set default applications in Mac OS X." »

January 15, 2007

Fonts & Mac OS X 2007 Update.

SVC Font Class 2007 PDF

Last week we reprised our annual Fonts & Mac OS X talk at Seattle's School of Visual Concepts. This year included some significant updates for designers managing their fonts in 2007.

Here is a link to the PDF of the presentation, which includes specifics on some of the details covered:

SVC Font Class 2007.pdf

In addition to this PDF, we have a variety of links and resources that were mentioned during the presentation.

Continue reading "Fonts & Mac OS X 2007 Update." »

January 07, 2007

Make Suitcase play nice with InDesign fonts.

Many of our tips come directly from the annoyances Seattle designers call us about. This is one of those issues. We hear from many frustrated designers who complain that Extensis Suitcase is constantly deactivating fonts in Adobe InDesign while they work. Seemingly at random.

SuitcaseFusion-DeactivateFonts.jpg

The short answer is to turn off the "On document close" option in the Suitcase Auto-Activation plug-in preferences. Read on for full details.

Continue reading "Make Suitcase play nice with InDesign fonts." »

December 31, 2006

CreativeTechs' 2007 Backup Recommendations.

Xraid.gif

At the beginning of each year we like to take a moment to discuss the topic of studio backup. Use this checklist as a comparision for your own studio's backup strategy.

Happy New Year! May all your data be safe in 2007.

Continue reading "CreativeTechs' 2007 Backup Recommendations." »

December 18, 2006

Storage and Backup Solutions For Your Photography

From Digg: Photographer Chase Jarvis shares a rare look into a high-end photo studio's backup protocol. This post is directed at photographers, videographers, or creative studios and is NOT for the weak of heart. He outlines a robust solution that protects a huge amount of data. (Chase shot 35,000 pictures for one job last month.)

read more | digg story

December 17, 2006

Photoshop CS3 Beta 46% faster than CS2!

CS3-Beta.jpg

Over the weekend we ran the Photoshop CS3 beta through a series of speed benchmarks. The initial results have been encouraging. Overall we are seeing speed increases of 40% to 55% in most Photoshop features compared to Photoshop CS2 on the same Mac Pro system.

Continue reading "Photoshop CS3 Beta 46% faster than CS2!" »

Photoshop CS3 Beta Released!

CS3-Beta.jpg

We don't normally discuss beta software in this tips newsletter. However we're making an exception here. Last Friday, Adobe released a downloadable beta of Photoshop CS3.

Continue reading "Photoshop CS3 Beta Released!" »

December 09, 2006

Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide.

GarbledFonts-Corrupt.gif

GarbledFonts-HelveticaFractions.gif

GarbledFonts-TimesPhonetic.gif

Garbled fonts in Entourage. Corrupt fonts in Safari. Weird symbol fonts in Apple Mail. How frustrating!

Click on any of jumbled font examples that you might be experiencing. We've documented a fix for each font problem on a separate post in our troubleshooting blog.

Continue reading "Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide." »

Garbled Font Fix: Corrupt Font Cache

GarbledFonts-Corrupt.gif

This post includes a fix for one source of garbled fonts in Mac OS X. For other fixes check out our special Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide.

The Problem: Safari, Entourage or other applications show unfamiliar characters overlapping each other. If you're seeing garbled text similar to our example above, it is most likely caused by a corrupt font cache file.

Continue reading "Garbled Font Fix: Corrupt Font Cache" »

Garbled Font Fix: Helvetica Fractions

GarbledFonts-HelveticaFractions.gif

This post includes a fix for one source of garbled fonts in Mac OS X. For other fixes check out our special Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide.

The Problem: If you have the Helvetica Fractions font installed, text in some applications may appear as overlapping numbers and symbols. This font substitution problem can effect many Mac OS X applications including Address Book, iChat, Safari, Mail and Microsoft Entourage.

Continue reading "Garbled Font Fix: Helvetica Fractions" »

Garbled Font Fix: Times Phonetic

GarbledFonts-TimesPhonetic.gif

This post includes a fix for one source of garbled fonts in Mac OS X. For other fixes check out our special Garbled Fonts Troubleshooting Guide.

The Problem: If you have the Times Phonetic font installed, text in some applications may appear as greek symbols. This font substitution problem can effect many Mac OS X applications including Address Book, iChat, Safari, Mail and Microsoft Entourage.

Continue reading "Garbled Font Fix: Times Phonetic" »

December 03, 2006

Best data recovery utility for Mac? Data Rescue!

DataRescue.gifThis is one of those tips we hope you'll never have to use.

Should you find yourself needing to recover lost files from a problem hard drive, we've had the most luck with Data Rescue II by Prosoft Engineering:

Link: Data Rescue II

You can download this data recovery tool and scan your hard drive for free. You only need to buy the $100 software if it succeeds in finding files you want to recover.

Continue reading "Best data recovery utility for Mac? Data Rescue!" »

November 25, 2006

Install AppleJack before you need it.

AppleJack is a great troubleshooting assistant for Mac OS X. With AppleJack installed, you can troubleshoot a computer even if Mac OS X won't fully start, or don't have a startup CD handy.

AppleJack.gif

We recomend AppleJack in our tiny-but-popular My Mac Won't Start! guide. We've been holding back this tip for a new version that is compatible with Apple's new Intel-based Macs. Happily, version 1.4.3 which adds Intel-compatibilities was released this month.

Continue reading "Install AppleJack before you need it." »

November 19, 2006

Concerns when buying Mac Pro RAM.

macproram-thumb.jpgAs designers have been buying more Intel-based Mac Pros, we are starting to see that this model is particularly sensitive to the quality of RAM installed.

The Mac Pro uses a new kind of RAM: Fully Buffered DIMMs, or FB-DIMMs. Each one has its own heat sink attached, which allows the Mac Pro to use fewer fans. With all third-party RAM, it's best to purchase modules that specifically support your system. And in the case of the Mac Pro, that's not just a recommendation — it's a requirement.

Continue reading "Concerns when buying Mac Pro RAM." »

November 12, 2006

Macs creating files with "._" prefix on servers?

MacFilesonWindows.gif

We get occasional calls from Mac-based corporate creative teams, asking about strange files their Windows-based co-workers are seeing on shared file servers. The files have familiar names, but all start with a "._" prefix.

Here is the explanation of where those oddly named files come from, and why they are important to the Mac-based creative team.

Continue reading "Macs creating files with "._" prefix on servers?" »

November 10, 2006

Great Web Developer extension for Firefox.

We have a long list of tips on our "must write" list. Near the top of that list is a great tool we use all the time in Firefox called Web Developer.

Firefox-WebDeveloper.png

Download: Chris Pedrick's Web Developer extension.

This free extension adds a developer toolbar to the top of Firefox or Mozilla web broswers. It is great for web development because it lets you to see how any web page is built. You can easily read or copy a site's CSS, turn on and off content, etc. It's awesome for picking apart any site!

Continue reading "Great Web Developer extension for Firefox." »

November 04, 2006

Disable Microsoft Messenger's Security Warning.

Microsoft Messenger 6 for Macintosh was released in September. The new version is a Universal application built to run on both PowerPC-based and Intel-based Macs, and brings a number of new features, including spellchecking, improved corporate server compatibility, and the ability to communicate with friends on the Yahoo! chat network.

There is one security feature we've been hearing complaints about: Messenger 6 now begins every IM session with a stern (and longwinded) warning:

Never give out your password or credit card number in an instant message conversation. To help prevent infection by a computer virus or worm, never accept or open any file or link in an instant message until you verify its authenticity with the sender.
Warning text: "Never give out your password or credit card number in an instant message conversation. To help prevent infection by a computer virus or worm, never accept or open any file or link in an instant message until you verify its authenticity with the sender."

There's no checkbox or preference to turn off the persistent warning, but if you're willing to pry into Messenger's application structure there's a hack to make it go away for good.

Continue reading "Disable Microsoft Messenger's Security Warning." »

October 22, 2006

Six free Internet speed test sites.

speedtest.gif

How fast is your DSL or Cable Internet connection right now?

There are dozens of websites that provide free Internet speed tests that can help you answer that question. This week's tech tip provides links to a half-dozen speed test websites you can use for free.

Our favorite is Speedtest.net (pictured above) which uses an entertaining Flash-based animation to show the status of your test in action. An interactive map shows the location of your computer on a world map, and lets you test your download and upload speeds to dozens of test servers across the globe.

The rest of this tip lists other free Internet speed test services we've used when troubleshooting Internet speed issues.

Continue reading "Six free Internet speed test sites." »

October 07, 2006

Change Microsoft Office's serial number, Easy!

Over a year ago we published a tip detailing how to change the serial number on an installed copy of Microsoft Office X or Microsoft Office 2004. That tip described a technique for digging around in library preferences, and hunting down an invisible OfficePID file.

It turns out there is a much, much, easier method!

Office-RemoveTool.jpg

The Remove Office tool that comes with Microsoft Office 2004 has a hidden feature that removes the serial number on installed copies of Microsoft Office (both version X and 2004).

Continue reading "Change Microsoft Office's serial number, Easy!" »

September 24, 2006

Network crashes in CS2? Try Adobe Dialog.

Here is a tip for creative teams who are experiencing a lot of "unexpectedly quit" crashes when opening files from a network server in Adobe Creative Suite 2 applications.

The application Adobe InDesign CS2 quit unexpectedly.

It appears, under certain conditions, the new "Use Adobe Dialog" option introduced in CS2 can prevent crashes in InDesign and Illustrator while accessing documents over a network.

Continue reading "Network crashes in CS2? Try Adobe Dialog." »

September 17, 2006

Subscribe to RSS news feeds in Safari.

Safari-RSS-Demo.gif

Most blogs today offer news feeds using a technology called RSS. These feeds provide an easy way to stay updated whenever new articles (or tips) have been posted to your favorite blog.

We've created an animation showing how this process works in the latest version of Apple's Sarafi web browser. The rest of this tip includes more detailed step-by-step instructions.

Continue reading "Subscribe to RSS news feeds in Safari." »

September 16, 2006

Organize RSS feeds using Safari bookmark folders.

"How do you find time to read all those blogs?"

That's a pretty common question. We do spend a lot of time scouring the web for new tips -- but that is only a small part of our job. One trick we use to streamline our perpetual hunt is organizing RSS feeds into different bookmark folders in Safari. Think of this as creating your own personal clipping service.

Safari-RSS-Folders.gif

Safari shows the total number of new posts in each bookmark folder. That means you don't have to visit a blog until you know something new has been posted.

Continue reading "Organize RSS feeds using Safari bookmark folders." »

August 27, 2006

Post Troubleshooting Checklist

TuneupChecklist.gifThis week's tech tip is a simple PDF checklist we've been using at CreativeTechs for several years now. The next time you have someone work on your computer, print out this checklist and keep it handy. Before you let your tech leave, go through this with them to make sure everything important is still working properly.

Mac OS X Post Tune-Up Checklist (PDF)

We developed this checklist years ago to help ourselves avoid missing important details while working on our clients computers. Based on the positive feedback from last month's Mac Maintenance Checklist, we've decided that the last week of each month we'll feature a form, checklist, or other tool that designers can use to get the most out of their existing computer tech support.

Continue reading "Post Troubleshooting Checklist" »

August 20, 2006

3 Theft-Recovery Software Products.

Last month one of our clients, a prominent Seattle photographer, lost her laptop while flying home from an assignment. Her dilemma reminded us of a few software packages we've heard of that attempt to help reunite stolen computers with their rightful owner.

How theft recovery software works.

When a stolen computer is connected to the Internet (using dial-up, WiFi, Ethernet, etc), these utilities attempt to send network information back to a central server. This information can be used to track down which ISP is used for Internet access, and helps law enforcement track down the stolen devices.

Continue reading "3 Theft-Recovery Software Products." »

August 12, 2006

iFixit Guides to DIY Laptop Repair.

ifixit_laptops.gifAre Apple's DIY options not juicy enough for you?

If you really like getting deeper into your own Mac hardware repair, you'll probably love a collection of Fixit Guides created by iFixit.

These guides are for serious do-it-yourself Apple laptop repairs. Each Fixit Guide has detailed disassembly instructions that walk you through the process of easily accessing and replacing components in your PowerBook or iBook. These guides are well written and well illustrated. iFixit has even developed new instruction manuals for Apple's latest MacBook and MacBook Pros.

Continue reading "iFixit Guides to DIY Laptop Repair." »

Apple's Do-It-Yourself Repair Options.

apple-diy.gifIf you are the hands on type that likes to troubleshoot and solve your own computer problems, you might want to bookmark Apple's Do-It-Yourself page.

http://www.apple.com/support/diy/

Pick your Mac and you'll be taken to a page that lists all the parts Apple considers to be user installable. Instructions are easy to follow and have great up close photos and diagrams. Some older Mac instructions include handy QuickTime tutorials.

Continue reading "Apple's Do-It-Yourself Repair Options." »

August 06, 2006

How much is your old G4 worth?

Every month we get calls from clients selling or buying an old PowerMac G4. How much is it worth? Here is a website with the answer:

G4 Tower Value Guide

Enter the model of the G4; the amount of RAM; the hard drive size; and the type of CD/DVD drive. This site gives you a price estimate based on recent eBay and online market values.

From our experience the resulting value estimates are pretty realistic.

Continue reading "How much is your old G4 worth?" »

July 22, 2006

Mac Maintenance Checklist.

MaintenanceChecklist.gifFriday July 28th is System Administrator Appreciation Day. In honor of our fellow left-brain professionals, we've put together a couple tips that may be helpful to those of us tasked with the challenging job of keeping creative teams stable, happy and productive.

First up: A Mac Maintenance Checklist. This is something we've been playing with at CreativeTechs -- for our clients who've scheduled a regular monthly maintenance visit to keep their computers fit and healthy.

Mac Maintenance Checklist (PDF)

The checklist is a simple, low-tech way for clients to make sure their computer issues get addressed. Plus it helps the tech avoid missing sporadic maintenance details.

Continue reading "Mac Maintenance Checklist." »

July 15, 2006

Paparazzi! - Grab easy screenshots of a web page.

Paparazzi-Thumb.gifWhen you need to capture an image of a long website design, don't spend your billable hours stiching together multiple screenshots.

Mac-based designers should download a free copy of Paparazzi instead.

In Paparazzi, simply enter the URL and click Capture. Your web page loads in a small preview window. You can save the resulting image in a file format of your choice.

Tip: Use Paparazzi to preview what a site will look like at different resolution. Change the Crop Size pop-up to one of the presets (640x480, 800x600, 1024x768), or enter your own dimensions. You'll get a sense for how well the site design works with different size displays.

Continue reading "Paparazzi! - Grab easy screenshots of a web page." »

July 09, 2006

An Exchange Server alternative for Mac studios.

KerioCalendar.gif

Microsoft's Exchange Server has become an industry standard for providing shared calendars, shared contacts, and centralized email across an organization. An Exchange Server can be a great choice for teams that already have a solid Windows-based infrastructure in place.

But what if you run a Mac-based studio?

That's a question we get asked a lot. Especially by the owners of medium-sized creative studios. Their teams have the same need for centralized calendars and contacts. A good solution for Mac-based creative teams has been hard to find.

At CreativeTechs, we've recently started installing and supporting the Kerio Mail Server. This question is becoming a little easier to answer.

Continue reading "An Exchange Server alternative for Mac studios." »

July 02, 2006

Add application aliases to your Finder windows.

FinderWindowCustomized.gif

We've long known how to customize the toolbar in Mac OS X's Finder windows -- but recently a client demonstrated a great example why we should.

Try adding aliases of your most frequently used applications to the toolbar at the top of your Finder windows. It's like having a tiny version of the dock hovering just above your files. This allows you to quickly drag documents onto the program you want to open them in. For example, open screenshots in Photoshop instead of Preview, or Quark files in InDesign instead of QuarkXPress.

Continue reading "Add application aliases to your Finder windows." »

June 20, 2006

My Mac Memory Book.

HandPocketMod-MemoryBook.jpgHere is another tiny booklet in our collection of Mac-focused PocketMod guides. This one is loosely based on a form Apple provides on their Mac 101 website.

One of the big problems we at CreativeTechs run into while supporting creative pros is helping our clients keep track of all those crucial details: Passwords, network settings, mail server addresses, email addresses, hardware specifications, serial numbers, etc. Thus we give you the Mac Memory Book:

My Mac Memory Book! (PocketMod Edition)

This topic is less exciting than our first guide, My Mac Won't Start -- and a scrap of folded paper does not replace the need for good organization. But if you'll fill this guide out for each computer in your office, and keep it handy, this information will come in useful time and time again.

Continue reading "My Mac Memory Book." »

June 19, 2006

Mac OS X Shortcuts! A Tiny Guide.

HandPocketMod-shortcuts.jpgIn our tip My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide, we asked for other ideas for useful PocketMod booklets. Here is the first great example from András in the Hungarian Republic who writes the Macintalk blog.

A complete listing of Mac OS X shortcuts in PocketMod format:

Mac OS X Shortcuts! (PocketMod Edition)

For instructions on how to fold this guide, or for a template to create your own PocketMod, read Discover PocketMod. The low-tech PDA.

June 17, 2006

My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide.

HandPocketMod.jpgFew situations are more frustrating than struggling with a computer that won't start. Especially with client deadlines looming. That's the idea behind this tiny troubleshooting guide:

My Mac Won't Start! (PocketMod Edition)

Print out this guide, fold it together, and keep it handy. Designed with the clever PocketMod template (read Discover PocketMod. The low-tech PDA.), you can tape this tiny booklet to the side of your Mac in case you ever need it. It lists several of the most common fixes for a Mac that will not start up properly.

Continue reading "My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide." »

June 11, 2006

Convert Printed Documents to PDF w/ ScanSnap.

ScanSnap.gifFujitsu’s ScanSnap ($420) is a remarkable device that’s unbelievably productive and compact — about the size of a small fax machine. Its purpose is to convert printed documents into searchable electronic files, and it does that very quickly.

Fujitsu ScanSnap fi-5110EOXM

ScanSnap has two scanning heads which lets it scan both sides of a double-sided document at once. Just drop any combination of sizes of documents into its 50-sheet feeder, from receipts and business cards to billing statements and magazine pages, and the ScanSnap will convert them into any of several foramats: searchable PDF files, Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint documents, or photo scans at up to 600 dpi. The speed is roughly 18 double-sided sheets per minute.

Continue reading "Convert Printed Documents to PDF w/ ScanSnap." »

June 03, 2006

Use multiple email aliases in Apple Mail.

Here is a simple little tip in Apple Mail for people who regularly use several email address aliases in their corespondence. For example consider the case of a web designer who uses three main email addresses...

william@acmedesign.com (actual mailbox)
webmaster@acmedesign.com (alias)
support@acemedesign.com (alias)

Apple-Mail.gif

Apple Mail makes the process easy...

Continue reading "Use multiple email aliases in Apple Mail." »

June 02, 2006

QuickTime 7.1 Causes Adobe CS2 Freezes on Intel Macs.

An important notice for designers using the new Intel-based MacBook laptops, iMacs, or Mac Minis. QuickTime 7.1 causes a variety of freezes with Adobe Creative Suite on Intel-based Macintosh computers. Apple has recently released QuickTime 7.1.1 to fix the problem.

You can download the needed update from the QuickTime download page, or via Mac OS X's Software Update utility (Apple menu > Software Update).

Note: In addition to these freezing problems, Version Cue is not supported on Intel-based Macintosh computers. The Version Cue icon will be crossed out in the top right corner of your menu bar.

Continue reading "QuickTime 7.1 Causes Adobe CS2 Freezes on Intel Macs." »

May 21, 2006

Browse maps in 3D with Google Earth.

Google Earth is a free utility that lets you search for nearly any location in the world, then shows you the location in 3D. For example, enjoy a virtual 3D tour of downtown Seattle starting at the CreativeTechs office (although 3D New York is much more interesting).

Google Earth gives you driving directions, maps, and statistics about the area, and lets you zoom and swoop around the world in real time. It can also overlay an amazing amount of information, including roadways, political boundaries, points of interest, local amenities, and information from other Google Earth users. You can also add your own notes.

Available at earth.google.com.

Continue reading "Browse maps in 3D with Google Earth." »

May 13, 2006

What is a good microphone for podcasting?

Two months ago we ran an apparently popular tip on Creating Quick Voiceovers in GarageBand 3. We've received a lot of questions since then about the best microphone to use for a simple voiceover.

We can't quite declare a "best microphone." But if you are looking for an inexpensive way to record video tutorials, GarageBand voiceovers, or your own podcasts, here is our recommendation: Go with one of the Plantronics DSP headsets with a USB connection. These provide good voice recording, and are quite affordable. They plug right into your computer's USB port. Easy.

Two models we've used in our QuickTIme video tutorials:

Plantronics DSP-400 USB Headset [$35].
Plantronics DSP-500 USB Headset [$45].

The DSP-400 folds down for easy portability while the DSP-500 is a bit more substantial (the DSP-500 is apparently the mic of choice for at least one large video tutorial company).

Want to hear for yourself? We've got sound samples on the blog version of this tip for 6 different microphone options.

Continue reading "What is a good microphone for podcasting?" »