The MacCast

Maccast 2009.07.01 – iPhone 3GS Accessibility

Adam Christianson — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:29:46 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Special edition. In this special episode of the Maccast we talk with Shelly Brisbin (App Store Pundit), Josh De Lioncourt (Mac-cessibility), and Shane Jackson (Blindworld Blog) about the new iPhone 3GS and specifically about it’s new accessibility features.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.

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iPhone 3.0: More than Cut, Copy & Paste (updated)

Andrew Lardi — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 04:40:37 +0000

iPhone 3.0 has brought some fantastic new features that are well known like Cut, Copy & Paste. However some smaller tweaks have been made to the operating system that provide a better user experience. To me most of these changes effect Podcasts. For example you now have easy access to the speed controls and a 30 second skip-back button incase you missed something. Fantastic for shows that go in-depth on specific topics like Security Now!

Also seen in the screenshot is the little envelope icon. This button allows you to share current podcast with a friend via an iTunes Link. This does not work on podcasts not featured in the iTunes store, so if you’re subscribed to an RSS feed you are unable to share.

The feature most important to me for daily use isn’t MMS, but the ability to quickly see the remaining battery life. My way around this was a little app called Free Memory, which has the auxiliary feature of telling you the battery life percentage. The app is still worth keeping around if you own an original iPhone or an iPhone 3G and for the ability to free some memory on your device. For iPhone 3GS owners, you now have a nice little option to show the battery life in the top tray of the iPhone.

To access the battery life option, head over to your settings button on the iPhone home screen. From there tap General, then tap Usage, and there will be a slider button on the top. This option is turned off by default and hidden in a screen most people never make there way into.

iPhone OS 3.0 has been great to me so far, but my big excitement is over the speed of the new 3GS which I was reluctant to pick up at first. A full review of my 16 GB 3GS White will be coming up soon. In the meantime, what features of the iPhone 3.0 update have proved useful to you?

Updated: Added text to help clarify that the battery percentage feature is an iPhone 3GS only feature. Thanks to the astute folks in the comments for pointing this out.

Maccast 2009.06.23

Adam Christianson — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 06:50:21 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 270. WWDC Aftermath. Software Updates. iPhone 3.0 OS in the wild. iPhone 3GS in the wild. What’s next for iPhone? Apple warns Pre customers about iTunes. Checking in on Apple’s latest numbers. Steve Jobs coming back soon? Some One-to-One corrections. Apple Store correction. Finer fiddling with function keys. Snow Leopard is for Intel only. New Macbook SD slot debate. Determine iPhone eligibility from your iPhone. Remedies for a slowing Mac. Shortz iPod cables and recording radio (Radioshift). Why does my app have a crossed out generic icon? Force a Safari Top Site

Special thanks to our sponsor:

Path Finder 5, Path Finder is a comprehensive file browser for OS X that combines the best of Apple’s Finder with powerful, integrated utilities and some innovative ways of accessing and manipulating your files.

New music, Hey Kate! by The Fire Apes (iTunes)

EOL: New iPod RED (cedar) (via iLounge)

Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. — George Carlin

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How to use your iPhone 3G S Voice Contol

Adam Christianson — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 06:33:36 +0000

So I have only played with the iPhone 3G S for few hours, but one of the cool features I was looking forward to trying was the new Voice Control. Only one problem. I had trouble figuring out exactly how to make it work. In most cases I am usually able to figure out how new iPhone features work. For this feature, I had to get some help from Apple’s support site and the iPhone 3G S User Guide. To save you some time, here is how to get this feature up and running on your new iPhone 3G S along with the command you can use to make it go. If you want to consult the manual yourself, here is the link (PDF) from Apple’s support site.

To activate the Voice Control feature:
Press and hold the Home button on your iPhone or press and hold the center button on the iPhone headset. After a second or two the Voice Control interface should appear and you’ll hear a beep indicating it is ready for your command.

Voice commands you can use:

Call a contact: Say “call” or “dial” plus the name of a person in your contacts to call that person. If they have multiple numbers the iPhone will prompt you for which number, i.e. “Home” or “mobile”.
Dial a number: Say “call” or “dial” and then the number
If you make a mistake: You can say “wrong,” “not that one,” “not that,” “no,” or “nope.”
Play music: Say “play” or “play music.”
Pause music: Say “pause”
or “pause music.”
Change songs: Say “next song” or
“previous song.”
Play an album, artist, or playlist: Say “play,” then say “album,” “artist,” or “playlist” and the name.
To enable shuffle: Say “shuffle.”
Get current track info: Say “what’s playing,” “what song is this,” “who sings this song,” or “who is this song by.”
Use Genius: Say “Genius,” “play more like this,” or “play more songs like this.”
Cancel Voice Control: Say “cancel.”

That’s it. I have to say the Voice Commands work pretty well right out of the box (at least with my “average” anglo saxon US voice). About my only complaints are that you have to constantly go in and out of Voice Command mode using the hold button technique described above and that the default voice is a bit tricky to understand at times. No OS X “Alex” here. That said it’s nice to have voice control on the iPhone (finally) and I look forward to get getting better in future updates.

Maccast 2009.06.08 – WWDC Keynote Wrap-up

Adam Christianson — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:45:02 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 269. A show for Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. A special episode of the Maccast where I am joined by Victor Cajiao (Typical Mac User) to wrap up all the announcements from the 2009 WWDC keynote. We discuss the new Macbook Pro and Macbook Air models, Snow Leaoprd, iPhone OS 3.0, and the new iPhone 3Gs. Enjoy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.

Smile on My Mac, check out Textexpander and their blog.

It is better to look ahead and prepare than to look back and regret. — Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1962 – )

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Maccast WWDC 2009 Live Skype Chat

Adam Christianson — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:49:26 +0000

Join us for live Maccast Skype chat starting right now. We’ll have the conversation going now until the end of Apple’s live WWDC event which starts today (06/08) at 10:00 AM PT. We are using Skype this time because iChat rooms have a 35 person limit. If you have Skype already installed, use the link below to join If you don’t have Skype you can download it and use it for free at Skype.com. The Skype room limit is 150, so it will still be first come first served. See you there.

Maccast WWDC Chat hosted by themaccast.

Join now

Chat about what’s on your mind. More about public chats.

Maccast 2009.06.05

Adam Christianson — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 06:42:03 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 268. Apple Store news and updates. Apple software updates galore. Next gen iPhones or it’s look-a-likes surface. On the eve of WWDC, last minute updates. Apple may nix free iPhone app re-downloads. WWDC iPhone rumor round-up. Apple extends warranty for Nvidia defects. Apple tops in UK Ed. Adjusting media playback speeds. Make your own widgets the easy way. What to do if you haven’t backed up. The ‘F’ and ‘fn’ keys. Fax from your Mac. Moving your Time Machine backup to a bigger drive. A note about Maccast WWDC coverage. Adam on Mac 20 Questions.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Faronics Deep Freeze

New music, Breathe by This Is Fiction

EOL: Mmmm, mmm, iPhone (via Cult of Mac)

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. — Mahatma Gandhi (1869 – 1948)

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Maccast 2009.05.27

Adam Christianson — Thu, 28 May 2009 06:59:15 +0000

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MC20090520.mp3 [33.3MB 01:12:35 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 267. Apple doubles up it’s smartphone share. NEXT, next gen iPhone rumors surface. Gruber weighs in on 3rd gen iPhone specs. iPhone 3G supplies dry up at AT&T. Apple tablet may wait until next decade. Don’t forget the iPod rumors too. AT&T considers new data plans and plans boosted network. Safari’s messy tops sites feature leaving trails. Security research publishes OS X Java exploit proof of concept. Could a Pan-European iTunes Store become a reality? Back to school promo and Macbook bump. Tips on choosing a Mac mouse. Software vs. Hardware RAID-1. Selecting and finding Mac upgrade parts. What to do with that old iPhone.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.

Path Finder 5, Path Finder is a comprehensive file browser for OS X that combines the best of Apple’s Finder with powerful, integrated utilities and some innovative ways of accessing and manipulating your files.

New music, A Lonely September by Plain White T’s (iTunes)

EOL: His Holiness, Mr. Jobs (Link)

Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it. — Maya Angelou (1928 – )

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Mac Mini Mod: Internal RAID-1

Adam Christianson — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:52:09 +0000

Maccast listener Roland just sent me an email to show off his recent Mac Mini mod. Inspired a bit by this article over on iFixit, Roland came up with his own take on the hack. He details the design process in part 1 and walks through completing the project in part 2. The whole thing is pretty sweet. What I like about Roland’s solution is that he seems to give careful thought and consideration to possible heat issues and comes up with an ingenious solution that mimics Apple’s original design for cooling and airflow. I think the solution seems sound and should continue to work without issue (as evidenced by the iStat numbers in his post). It may be obvious that this kind of hack would void your Applecare, but I will say it anyway. This kind of hack will void your warranty.

If you are looking to squeeze some data redundancy into you Mac Mini case this post is worth a look. Interestingly you could probably also run a RAID-0 (scary RAID) if you wanted to squeeze in some extra internal storage. That might make a nice upgrade for your Mac Mini Home Theater.

Maccast 2009.05.20

Adam Christianson — Thu, 21 May 2009 06:54:42 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 267. A show for Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. A special episode of the Maccast where I am joined by my friends Victor Cajiao (Typical Mac User), Ken Ray (Mac OS Ken). Enjoy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.
Smile on My Mac, check out Textexpander and their blog.

Links:
Smile on My Mac Blog
Typical Mac User
Typical Shutterbug
Victor on Twitter
Mac OS Ken
Ken on Twitter

We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible. — Vince Lombardi (1913 – 1970)

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Maccast 2009.05.11

Adam Christianson — Tue, 12 May 2009 06:59:47 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 266. Rumors of Apple buying Twitter. Mac browsers hold April share. Blackberry squeezes out iPhone in US sales. Apple tops in quality and satisfaction. Apple and Google may be getting too close. Apple may help with in contract iPhone replacements. Rumors of App Store approval changes. Sharing Automator tips and tricks. Mac screen sharing. Review: Kensington Hands-Free Visor Car Kit. Bluetooth issues with new Mac Pro. Control your Mac with your head via Eyetwig iTracker. One iTunes + multiple Macs = pain. Announcing the winners of the Things Packs

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Faronics Deep Freeze

Audible.com – Get your free audiobook.

New music, All We Need is Love by Michael Rossback (iTunes)

EOL: The Many Typefaces of Jobs (via Cult of Mac)

Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory. — Albert Schweitzer (1875 – 1965)

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Maccast 2009.05.01

Adam Christianson — Sat, 02 May 2009 16:51:46 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. iPhone and Verizon rumors continue. Snow Leopard adds YouTube spots. Latest iPhone beta requires new iTunes. Mobile Me now offers 24/7 chat support. Apple goes on hiring spree. What’s up next for Apple hardware? WWDC is sold out, again. Don’t forget Automator. Snitch on Mac connections. Converting audio in iTunes. Keeping Macs in Sync. Fox News Gadgets & Games appearance.

New music, HeavensaLie by Lacuna Coil (iTunes)

EOL: Lego Luxo Jr. iMac G4 (Link)

When they discover the center of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to discover they are not it. — Bernard Bailey

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Maccast 2009.04.26

Adam Christianson — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 07:50:40 +0000

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MC20090426.mp3 [31.0MB 01:07:40 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 264. Apple’s Q2 results. Not too shabby. Vendors vie for Apple Netbook. More next gen iPhone stuff. 1 Billionth app downloaded from App store. Feedback on online backup services. Formatting USB drives, another tip. Correction on iPod recycle credit. Shortcuts for display sleep. Review of MAXPower 802.11 USB 2.0 Stick Adapter. Challanges of getting ‘Back to your Mac’. Managing ‘remembered’ Wi-fi networks.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Thoughtout – Makers of the Ped 3, Ped 3 Auto, and Naja King iPod/iPhone stands.

New music, She’s Changing My Mind by John Hoskinson (iTunes)

EOL: One Image to Rule Them All (Link)

Whoever ceases to be a student has never been a student.. — George Iles

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Thoughtout’s new MagStay Uni. Want One Free?

Adam Christianson — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:26:52 +0000

Thoughtout, friends and sponsors of the Maccast, recently announced a new version in their MagStay product line designed for Apple’s latest “unibody” style notebooks. The new MagStay Uni and the original MagStay Pro are designed to do one simple thing… prevent Apple’s MagSafe connector from becoming disconnected. Now, before you start clicking on that comment link to express your concerns about the dangers of blocking the MagSafe from doing it’s job hear me out. The MagStay products are not designed for everyone and are not for use all the time. You obviously wouldn’t want to use the product when you have your precious Macbook Pro on a desk or table in a place where someone may trip over the cord. But, if you are relaxing on the couch, no one is around, and you don’t want your knees knocking the connector out every time you adjust your position (a situation that HAS happened to me), then you’ll be happy you have the product. Another perceived disadvantage of the MagStay and MagStay Uni are that they work by using up an adjacent port. An Ethernet port in the case of the MagStay Uni and a USB port for the original MagStay Pro. Again, if you think about when you would use the product this is really not a problem. Typically you will be in a more mobile situation, using Wi-Fi, and attaching few if any external devices. There is no doubt that these products target a specific niche of users, but if you are one of these users then Thoughtout gives you a solution. Nothing wrong with that.

So could you use a MagStay Uni? Would you like to get one free? If you are one of the first 10 Maccast listeners to use the coupon code, maccastfreemagstay on the Thoughtout.biz site you can get a free MagStay Uni (you just need to pay for shipping and handling). You can checkout the product, watch the demo videos, and make your purchase by clicking here.

Maccast 2009.04.19

Adam Christianson — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 07:54:26 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 263. Apple ramping up for new iPhone. AT&T wants to extend iPhone relationship. Patent watch. Apple billionth app countdown. Jobs still on the job. Apple updates. iPods sales up and Apple fairing better than most. $1.29 tracks not paying the piper. Apple prices 20″ iMac for Education. Mac Zombie botnet rises. Apple airs new Mac vs. PC ads. Error on MySQL standard in Leopard. Formatting a USB drive in Leopard. Downloading from non-native iTunes breaks ToS. Old iPods worth 15% off new. Preventing Macbook sleep issues. Online backup solutions. Restore podcasts in iTunes. Fox News Gadgets & Games appearance

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.
Smile on My Mac, check out Textexpander

New music, Walk Right Over Me by The Gathering

EOL: Data is key (Link)

If you’re never scared or embarrassed or hurt, it means you never take any chances — Julia Sorel

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Maccast 2009.04.14 – Interview with David H Lawrence XVII

Adam Christianson — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 06:21:38 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. A special episode of the Maccast with David H Lawrence XVII. David is currently playing the role of the mysterious, somewhat creepy, and probably misunderstood, Eric “The Puppetmaster” Doyle on NBC’s hit show Heroes. When he’s not stalking cheerleaders David is also a new media creator and producer with an incredibly diverse background in audio broadcasting, video, the Internet, filmmaking, podcasting, and tech in general. In this episode we will learn about the man behind the man and the bonus is it turns out he uses a Mac.

Links
NBC’s Heroes
Heroes, Nowhere Man Trailer
Davids.com
Support The New True Charlie Wu project
Secrets of Screen Acting: The Podcast
The David Lawrence Show
Demos 2 Go Go
@dhlawrencexvii on Twitter
Xanadu, April 17th – 19th, 2009, Las Vegas, NV

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Maccast 2009.04.13 – New Mac Mini Home Theater Update

Adam Christianson — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 07:57:44 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Special edition. A special episode of the Maccast with Ara Derderian from the HDTV & Home Theater Podcast (htguys.com). We see how the latest version of the Mac Mini stacks up against the prior generation for use as a home theater Mac. We also talk about Mac remote control options and a few other odds and ends including our hopes for future generation media based Macs.

Show Links
HDTV Podcast
Apple Mac Mini
HD Homerun
El Gato
Monoprice Cables
Logitech Remotes
Remote Buddy
Boxee
Simplify Media
Netflix
Apple Feedback

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Maccast 2009.04.11 – Interview with Michael Simmons from Cultured Code

Adam Christianson — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 03:57:44 +0000

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MC20090411SP.mp3 [31.1MB 01:08:00 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. A special interview with Michael Simmons from Cultured Code. In this episode Michael shares his insights and experience on how to successfully launch and bring to market an award winning iPhone and Macintosh based application. We discover how he and the team at Cultured Code developed and planed the award winning application Things for it’s launch at Macworld 2009.

Links:
Maccast Things Interview from Macworld 2009
Things from Cultured Code
Xyle Scope
Tweetie
App Shopper

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Maccast 2009.04.08

Adam Christianson — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 07:58:48 +0000

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MC20090408.mp3 [35.9MB 01:18:20 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 262. Apple releases 2nd iPhone 3.0 Beta. Snow Leopard closer to being on the prowl. Shuffles shake up some sales. XServe’s go Nehalem. AT&T TOS blocks Sling, then doesn’t. Rumors paint next gen iPhone picture. HD Rentals now in iTunes with 8.1.1. iTunes goes all DRM free and variable. Follow-up on Macbook cracked case repairs. More Appleworks discussions. My opinions on Applecare for the iPhone. Migrating data to a new Mac from backups. Matching Memory. Leopard USB Disk formatting mystery. Using iTunes codes to bypass region control.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Faronics Deep Freeze
RCP Tones – Sophisticated Ringtones for iPhone 3G. Business Rings, Sleek Melodic Alerts, Beeps, Chimes, Alarm Sounds & more. No hidden fees or subscriptions. No DRM.

New music, Shadow of Me by Mr. Jason (iTunes)

EOL: A softer cuddly Steve

It’s a dangerous business going out your front door — J. R. R. Tolkien (1892 – 1973), “The Fellowship of the Ring”

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Maccast 2009.03.30

Adam Christianson — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 07:59:42 +0000

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A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 261. Apple AT&T 3G hard sell. 10.5.7 appears near completion. Snow Leopard set to show it’s spots? Macs without borders. Dubious duplicators dupe developers. Apple update roundup. Macworld 2010 dates announced. Migrating Appleworks database files. MySQL or Filemaker. AirPhones review. Beware of using partitions for redundant backups Macbook cases cracking. Anatomy of your iTunes folder. Microsoft’s new Mac price attack ad

Special thanks to our sponsors:

Circus Ponies NoteBook – The Easy Way to Get Organized on the Mac. Try it FREE for 30 Days.
Path Finder 5, Path Finder is a comprehensive file browser for OS X that combines the best of Apple’s Finder with powerful, integrated utilities and some innovative ways of accessing and manipulating your files.

New music, All of My Idols are Dead by Killola

EOL: Sit on it Steve! (Link)

I was so naive as a kid I used to sneak behind the barn and do nothing. — Johnny Carson (1925 – 2005)

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