AppleScripts

Apr 27 2009

Map It

Don’t we all just want to find out place in the world? With this week’s picks we’ll turn address into maps and more.

blue Map ItMap Address Book addresses via Google Maps

This one comes courtesy of MacOSXHints.com: These are two AppleScripts that let you shoot addresses from the Address Book to the new (beta) Google Maps service. The scripts run inside the Address Book, from a contextual menu. This script requires Firefox (as Safari isn’t supported by Google Maps).

mu Map ItGetDirections

This is a similar plug-in for the Address Æ’aBook. It lets you select an address and get directions to or from it to another location. It also works through a contextual menu and requires Panther.

mu Map It93 Photo Street

This unique application lets you arrange photos by location. The program can download street maps for you and allows you to search for an address to mark the location of your pictures. This requires Panther.

mu Map ItBeholder Lite

This free program gives you an interface for searching out graphics on the web. Beholder can also scan your hard drive and iPhoto library for the image you’re looking for.

mu Map ItWeather Maps

Now, back to maps: Weather Maps downloads, well, weather maps for your selected region as jpegs.

blue Map ItMapIt! Firefox Extension

One more: this Firefox extension adds a MapIt option to your contextual menu, allowing you to find an address in selected text. I supports MapQuest, Yahoo! and Maps.com maps.

Well, I hope we’ve all found something or somewhere we were looking for. If, stop in next week for a new set of downloads. Looking for something in particular? Email your suggestion to brian AT macmerc DOT com.

Brian

mu Map ItDownloads provided by MacUpdate

blue Map ItA MacMerc Exclusive

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Apr 27 2009

Use Your Screen Corners

Brought to you by: James

Your Screen Corners can be used for a multitude of tasks. In the old days, we used to call these “Hot Corners”. They’re like Hot Keys, but a lot easier to get to. Unfortunately, you only have four.

Sure, you only have four corners, but there’s a lot you can do with four. To see what the Apple would like you to do with your Screen Corners, go to System Preferences/Dashboard & Exposé. Apple has been pretty stingy on the amount of available options, but they are all very useful.

Personally, I prefer to set my lower-left screen corner to “Start Screen Saver”. This is both in homage to the old After Dark days, and to quickly lock my screen if need be. My lower-right corner is set to “Dashboard”. This allows me to quickly access my most commonly used widgets such as Weather, Dictionary, Calculator, and Calendar. My upper-right corner is set to “All Windows”. This triggers Exposé to resize all windows, making all of them visible and easy to choose from, which is a great help when I’m working on more than five Photoshop documents at once. I haven’t set anything for the upper-left corner, and probably never will. I use the Apple Menu too often, and I don’t want to accidentally trigger anything each time I go near it.

If you think that your Screen Corners are limited to Apple’s suggestions, then you’re wrong. Take a look at CornerClick and Spanner. From opening applications to running AppleScripts, there’s a lot more for your Screen Corners to do. Enjoy!

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Apr 27 2009

mini Remote Server

The Mac mini packs power in a very small case. It also saves you the cost of a display, keyboard and mouse – which is great if you don’t need them.

In this tutorial we’ll look at a high level at the components needed to run your Mac remotely, with nothing more than a network connection. Without a head, you Mac is far from a zombie. It is a very accessible server capable of taking care of itself.

miniserver mini Remote Server

What you’ll need:

  • a Mac mini or any Mac with OS X 10.3+ and a network connection
  • a commercial or free (VNC) remote access solution

You’ll need to get OS X installed and a network connection set up on your Mac before you deprive it of its head. I suggest setting it up on your network with a static IP (don’t forget to set those DNS servers) for simplicity in access it.

You’ll also need to install the remote access solution of your choice. For the pros and cons of the two most popular commercial solutions, check out this review of pcAnywhere and Timbuktu. If going the free route, grab OSXvnc server and the Chicken of the VNC client. For access to your server from the internet, you’ll need a static IP from your ISP or dyndns set up on your router along with port forwarding for your remote control application.

startupandshutdown mini Remote Server

Now comes the automation. To make the most of your remote Mac, use Panther’s or Tiger’s Energy Saver preference pane to set start up and shut down times. Next, set up iCal to schedule events (either AppleScripts on 10.3 or Automator workflows on 10.4). What? For example, my headless Mac starts its day at 6:30. At 7 it starts an update of my podcasts and at 7:30 it ejects my iPod just in time for me to grab it on my way to work.

updateandeject mini Remote Server

The possibilities are limitless. You are free to locate your mini in your entertainment center or by a phone outlet. Your headless Mac isn’t limited to automated functions either. It doubles as an iTunes shared music library and a network backup drive. Remote control software allows you to use it like a desktop – even from a PC.

Without a monitor you save space, energy and money. And don’t think that stashing your mini in the closet means you have to miss out on the Mac OS X experience. The headless Mac is nothing to be afraid of.

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