huwmart.in

HP TouchPad Now The Number 1 Seller On Amazon

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 18:43:00 +0100

HP TouchPad Now The Number 1 Seller On Amazon:

Has any other product ever become the number 1 seller on Amazon after it was discontinued?

My Use Cases #1: Reset Launchpad with Keyboard Maestro

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 17:39:00 +0100

Inspired by Philip Baeten’s awesome post on how he uses Keyboard Maestro from last week, I’m planning to start a new series of posts here at huwmart.in, simply, and aptly called: My Use Cases. The plan is to cover use cases for great productivity app’s like Alfred, BetterTouchTool, Keyboard Maestro, Hazel, MercuryMover and hopefully many more, one use case at a time. Because, knowing from personal experience, it’s pretty tough to actually get to grips with some of these great app’s until you find some (hopefully) interesting things to do with them.

So thats going to be my job during this series. And to get the ball rolling I want to talk about one macro i’ve set up in Keyboard Maestro myself. Some of the best uses for Keyboard Maestro are when you find yourself going through the same process over and over, and really don’t want to go through that anymore, and it’s stuff like that i’m going to try and highlight during this small series.

Since the swich to Mac OS X Lion one of the new features I was expecting to hate but actually rather enjoy now is Launchpad, the only problem i’ve found is that it doesn’t play particularry nice with non-App Store applications - meaning that if you uninstall an app that wasn’t downloaded from the Mac App Store, Launchpad won’t register the change and you’ll end up with an ugly mess like this one where the icons stick around but aren’t linked to anything.

Fourtanately it was found pretty quickly that you can reset Launchpad by deleting a database file found in ~/Library/Application Support/Dock/ and then running the Terminal command killall Dock, both of which can actually be condensed into one Terminal command rm ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dock/*.db; killall Dock to delete the file and kill the Dock forceing Launchpad to reset. And although thats all well and good i’d rather not have to open the Terminal every time I want to reset the Launchpad, so, naturally, I threw together this really short and simple Keyboard Maestro macro where it’s triggered by the hot key ⌥⌘L to execture a shell script containing the aforementioned Terminal command:

rm ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dock/*.db; killall Dock

And that just deletes the file and forces Launchpad to create a new database with your current list of applications, it’s also worth noting that it’s best to set Keyboard Maestro to “ignore results” from the shell script to completely annoy the Terminal.

HP drops TouchPad price like a stone

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 12:52:00 +0100

HP drops TouchPad price like a stone:

If you thought this webOS fire sale weekend couldn’t get any crazier, think again. Best Buy has made an about-face and is now selling the TouchPad, limited to one per customer. Meanwhile, reports on Twitter and our tipline suggest that some of HP’s servers are starting to buckle under the load of new TouchPad activations.

I’d love to see the sales charts for the TouchPad since HP dropped the price like a stone. They seem to be flying off the shelves everywhere, which suggests they’ve flooded the market with upto 245,000 new tablets.

Of course, here in the UK, the best price you can get the 16GB Wi-fi model for right now is £349 - “Save £50.00” - what do they take us for?

Thomas Brand’s Sweet Newton Setup

Sat, 20 Aug 2011 15:42:25 +0100

Thomas Brand’s Sweet Newton Setup:

My MessagePad keeps me portable and on target the way no modern computer can. I can’t browse the internet with my MessagePad, I can’t use Twitter, IM, or iTunes. There are no preferences to get in the way of my writing. With my MessagePad I don’t need to be sitting at a desk to be productive.

UK set to legalize CD and DVD copying for personal use

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 21:14:08 +0100

UK set to legalize CD and DVD copying for personal use:

I’m going to go wild.

The Pen Type-A

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 18:34:26 +0100

The Pen Type-A:

The popping noise this thing makes is no doubt the most satisfying thing in stationery. Or maybe a close second to lining out a task in a notebook.

Hide Apps and Folders in Launchpad with Launchpad-Control

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 18:18:14 +0100

Hide Apps and Folders in Launchpad with Launchpad-Control:

A really nice little tweaklet which allows you to hide certain applications and folders from appearing in Launchpad. I personally won’t be using it, if i’m going to use Launchpad I wan’t to use it as intended, that and i’m running a pretty tight ship in terms of applications so it isn’t much of a problem.

(via MacStories)

"Snow Leopard was the end of an era of OS X and Lion is the beginning of a new chapter."

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:44:00 +0100

“Snow Leopard was the end of an era of OS X and Lion is the beginning of a new chapter.”

- Stephen Hackett

Episode 4: Fear

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 13:58:00 +0100

Episode 4: Fear

This week on the Scatterbrain podcast, I talk about fear and doing, talking about productivity, I consider when it’s time to set aside the to-do list and just take the leap.

I also briefly discuss my workflow for writing, and making this podcast, both of which definitely aren’t ideal but work for me.

I also give a mention to my new pet project over at Take An Ad’ Break where in the coming weeks and months you’ll be able to find commentary from me on some of the most awesome and most appalling adverts on television plus coverage of advertising in other mediums.

Samovar Stories Tea with Dean Karnazes: Moorish Mint, Wuyi Oolong
The post I wrote in the rain
Take An Ad’ Break

Apps:

The Hit List
Things
OmniFocus
DropVox
Simplenote

[Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Instacast] [Download]

iPhone 5 Allegedly Getting Voice Control Powered By Siri

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 11:50:32 +0100

iPhone 5 Allegedly Getting Voice Control Powered By Siri:

(via Business Insider)

Fujitsu to launch Windows 7 phone

Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:39:00 +0100

Fujitsu to launch Windows 7 phone:

That title is not garbled. Fujitsu did not announce the release of its Windows Phone 7 handset today, but instead its Windows 7 phone. All of a sudden Microsoft’s naming system is a bit of a mouthful, isn’t it? The phone will be released on July 23rd.

The handset, named the F-07C Mobile Phone, runs a full, complete build of Windows 7, and can be, according to the Fujitsu copy, used “as a PC.”

It’s really painful to watch these huge companies flailing, trying to stay relevant by breaking into the mobile space, and doing it entirely wrong. Stick with the enterprise guys.

Tweetbot Tips and Tricks

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 06:01:05 +0100

Tweetbot Tips and Tricks:

Who said Tweetbot doesn’t add real value to Twitter?

Episode 3: Plus

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 18:21:00 +0100

Episode 3: Plus

This week on the Scatterbrain podcast, I talk about my first impressions of Google+ and how it compares to Facebook and Twitter, I consider what I like about it and where I think they need to make changes discussing the design, privacy and integration with other services. I also talk about how I foresee it fitting into my social graph.

Why Google+ Looks Good: Original Macintosh Team Member Andy Hertzfeld
This Week In Google 101: Inside Google+
This Week In Google 102: Relatively Awesome
This is my next Podcast 014 – 07.09.2011

+Huw Martin

[Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Instacast] [Download]

Gmail+: Google Already At Work On “Several” Gmail/Google+ Integrations

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 12:00:06 +0100

Gmail+: Google Already At Work On “Several” Gmail/Google+ Integrations:

Mark Striebeck, Google’s Engineering Manager for Gmail, left a public note in Google+ yesterday letting everyone know that Google is already working on integrating Google+ into Gmail. Specifically, he cites “several Gmail / Google+ integrations” in the works. At the same time, he wants to use Google+’s new Hangouts group chat feature to get ideas and feedback on how the integration should work. Tomorrow on Google+, Striebeck’s team will hold a brainstorming session.

Awesome. But why are the Reader team not doing this? It seems like a natural fit with Google+. Maybe Sparks is their supplement for the time being.

nikf.org: Google+ Redirects And Tumblr

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 19:28:00 +0100

nikf.org: Google+ Redirects And Tumblr:

nikf.org:

So Richard pointed out this excellent post about using HTACCESS files on a server to redirect domain.com/+ to your Google+ account. In his post, he lamented the inability to do is with his domain as it’s hosted on Tumblr, just like this blog is.

However, with Tumblr you can actually hook this up so that it works. Give nikf.org/+ a go. Here’s how to set this up with Tumblr:

1. Head to the Tumblr Customize page for your blog.
2. Choose the ‘Pages’ menu item on the Customize page.
3. Create a new page, configure it as below and hit save.

Very nice idea by Nik, i’ve just set it up (you can hit me up on Google+ now, at huwmart.in/+), but it simply acts the same way as gplus.to, just with a better looking URL address. It still doesn’t solve the problem that my Google+ ‘username’ out of the box is 107419002725667151057.

webOS now led by Stephen DeWitt, Jon Rubinstein in charge of ‘product innovation’

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 15:53:20 +0100

webOS now led by Stephen DeWitt, Jon Rubinstein in charge of ‘product innovation’:

It will be interesting to see if this move plays out for better or for worse. I liked Rubinstein as the face of webOS, but obviously the TouchPad reviews have been lackluster.

Maybe things will work out with a better management head at the helm, to really give webOS that “scale” HP promised, whilst Rubinstein pushes ‘product innovation’.

Or maybe not.

Google to rebrand Blogger and Picasa

Wed, 06 Jul 2011 12:08:30 +0100

Google to rebrand Blogger and Picasa:

From Google’s perspective this is obviously a good move, they’re rebranding Blogger and Picasa as Google Blogs and Google Photos respectively, apparently as a big push to “unify its brand” ahead of the launch of Google+. I think it’s terrible though, on the same vein of Google trying to “unify its brand”: people want to be part of a brand.

Maybe not in the beginning, but now i’m sure one of the big things that brings people to Flickr is the name. It’s known as that huge beast of a photo sharing site, and if you want to share photos, you obviously go there. What Google have done by rebranding Blogger and Picasa is null the brands behind them. ‘Google Photos’ and ‘Google Blogs’ might do just fine based on their large existing user base to make people want to be part of that, but there’s less of a pull.

Having a brand like Picasa is good, there’s a name to it - you can ask “Are you on Picasa?”. Instead now people will be asking “Are you on Google Photos?”, and the average Joe will have no idea what they’re talking about, they might even assume you’re talking about image search! People want to be associated with a brand, and being associated with a search leviathan like Google doesn’t exactly tug at the heart strings.

Circle and search

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 22:07:59 +0100

Circle and search:

Although I had to laugh watching the demo video which felt comical and completely rehearsed, I do think Microsoft are on to something. The idea of taking advantage of multitouch by circling words to copy them to the clipboard is really straightforward, the implementation though, still looks half baked, you have to tap a button first before dragging a marquee of an oval over the chosen words. If Microsoft manages to get it right (eventually) it could be awesome and it’d be something i’d love to see in Windows and Windows Phone which would add to the whole “get in, get out, get back to life” concept they adopted for Windows Phone 7 to make the overall experience quicker and more seamless. Right now though it isn’t doing it for me.

Transferring GoDaddy mail to Google Apps

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 21:13:16 +0100

Transferring GoDaddy mail to Google Apps :

If there’s one thing Google seem to do really well, it’s search, that and user guides. Having got a lovely new email address at me@huwmart.in, I wasn’t loving it, the GoDaddy mail interface is the most distraught interface i’ve ever laid eyes on. To escape UX hell I signed up for a free Google Apps account and then went from there, after following the user guide to the letter and waiting for the changes to process now I can access my mail account through Gmail. Perfection.

Helping others through writing

Mon, 04 Jul 2011 21:31:00 +0100

Helping others through writing:

Iain Broome:

What a lovely idea for a (guest) blog post by Lisa Rivero over at Write It Sideways:

Regardless of how often or even whether we are published or how much (if any) money we make from our writing, all of us have a love for written communication and at least some skill with words, and we can use that love and skill in valuable ways, big and small.

Lisa provides a few suggestions for how you can use your writing skills to benefit others without expecting anything in return. This is my favourite:

Write short book reviews or reading lists (with or without a byline), and ask if you can make copies for distribution at your local library.

I could do that. You could do that. What a smashing idea.

I am most definitely going to try that.