Automatic, scheduled Mobile phone iSync via Bluetooth
iSync is fantastic. It allows you to keep your computer and mobile phone in syncronization. For example, you're out somewhere and manage to get the digits off somebody you're interested in, the next time you iSync your mobile with your computer your mobile will update your Mac's address book with the new number you added to your phone. And if you add any new contacts in your Mac's address book, they will auto-sync to your phone. This is a simple yet very powerful tool to help keep your computer and mobile phone in sync.
iBluetooth
The only thing that makes iSync even better is being
able to perform the iSync wirelessly via Bluetooth and to
automate the iSync so that it happens
automatically without your having to initiate the
process. This entry covers how to make this
happen.
I was in need of a new mobile phone and as cool as
the upcoming iPhone looks, I just want a basic phone.
I don't have many requirements of a phone. I want a
thin phone since I carry it in the front pocket of my
pants. I also want a phone that is compatible with
the Mac's iSync so that I can easily syncronize my
contact information between my iMac and my phone.
Be sure to check to see if iSync supports your phone, or something new that you're considering. Here is Apple's iSync device compatibility list. There are also some modifications and third party solutions to make more phones work. Just google the phone model and isync to see if there are solutions if your device is not directly supported by iSync.
The Motorola Razr is the phone I picked, it is thin and it works with iSync over bluetooth - no cables needed! It is very easy to setup your new mobile device to talk with your Mac via Bluetooth. From your menu select the Bluetooth icon, select Set up Bluetooth Device... and follow the steps to pair the mobile device to your Mac.
I used to sync my previous phone, a Motorola V180, via a USB
cable to my iMac which worked fine. But having to
plug in the USB cable often meant that I didn't do
it. When I received my new Razr I was excited,
more than anything, to get it connected to my iMac
via Bluetooth. After charging the phone, I went
through the menu shown just above to set up the
new bluetooth device. It takes less time to
actually set up the device than it takes to read
this paragraph talking about it. It is a nice and
easy procedure.
The next step is to add the device to iSync. Launch
iSync, select the Devices menu, and then Add
Device... select your Bluetooth enabled
phone, and then it will show up in the iSync
application.
At this point, you can begin syncing your computer
and your mobile device by launching the iSync
application and pressing the Sync
Devices button. That is all fine and good,
but it works much better in my opinion if I can
completely automate it. After a little searching, I
found an AppleScript
at MacOSXHints.com that would launch iSync,
initiate the Sync Devices, and then exit iSync.
Here is that
script. There are several method you can then
choose from to schedule this AppleScript. You can
do a Cron entry via the terminal, you can use
Lingon, or what I did was to
just use iCal. I made a new iCal entry for iSync
for each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8PM,
then in the Alarm settings for the event in iCal,
I selected to Run Script and
selected the script that I had got from
MacOSXHints.com. I'm not so sure that I like
seeing the iSync event in my iCal though, so I may
just delete it and set a cron job via the terminal
to run the script say every 48 hours.
By the way, if you do want the Applescript, you can download the
actual script here.
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Camino Nightly Builds and CaminoSession conflicting
Don't fear, CaminoSession functionality has been incorporated directly into Camino. You'll need to uninstall CaminoSession. After that open Camino, go into the preferences, and on the General Tab enable: When Camino Starts: Loan the pages that were open before quitting.
I've been a big fan of Camino since coming back to the Mac. It's built on the Mozilla engine like Firefox, but unlike Firefox, Camino is all Mac all the way. KeyChain integration is even better than Safari. UI is all Mac. It's a great browser, consider giving it a try.
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A non Airport extreme wireless router
I would really like to get an Airport Extreme, but I don't need 802.11N so I'm very hesitant to pay an additional $100 for it compared to a regular 802.11B/G router.
My 4 or 5 year old SMC wireless router has been a real champ. Nice GUI, it has served me well for a long time. Recently it has needed to be rebooted about once a week though, and I reached my breaking point with the necessary reboots. I probably would have bought the new Airport Extreme even with the premium price for it's 802.11N support if it had a 4 port giga-switch built into it instead of a 100Mbps. But I just can't see paying $180 for it when I don't need the 802.11N and it can't speed up my wired LAN to giga-ethernet speeds.
The timing was right this morning when I ran across this deal on a Linksys WRT54GL for only $38 delivered after a Linksys and a Paypal rebate. and jumped on it. You may be wondering what makes this Linksys so cool. Clearly it doesn't look very cool and is obviously not designed by Apple. The Airport Extreme is the nicest looking wireless router I've ever seen, the Linksys looks like a Radio Shack experiment gone bad. It's not the looks, but the ability to update the firmware with great OpenSource firmware that adds numerous feature to the router. One such feature is the ability to turn up the power for better connections. Great stuff.
It would take a long article in itself to go over all the neat things that the two non Linksys firmware offers for this router. You can find out more about them at their websites, and on Wiki. DD-WRT web page, and the Wiki page. Tomato web page, and the Wiki page.
I'll be flashing my router with the Tomato firmware, it looks simply awesome.
Maybe I'll post screenshots in a few days when it is up and running
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MediaFork, the new Handbrake
Handbrake has been one of those "must have" programs used for ripping and encoding your DVD's to files.
A group has taken over the Handbrake project and are moving forward with a new application called MediaFork.
Click here for a quick walk through the
MediaFork.
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AudioBug solution for an iPod in your car
Having recently moved over to an iPod RED Nano my audiobook habits have simplified even more. iTunes is great for managing my library, and the auto-bookmarking of audiobook files (M4B) is a godsend.
AudioBug with their Aerielle technology has just improved my situation.
I used to use an FM Modulator in my Isuzu Trooper and
the quality was mediocre at best. The device only
operated at three preset frequencies also, so if
those didn't work well for you that was just too bad.
Maybe you have a new car with included iPod
integration, but our new car [unfortunately] has no
such integration. Since I listen to my iPod every day
on my commute I would like a better solution than
earphones in the car. I bought this AudioBug on a
hunch, and wow am I pleased. Forget the experiences
that you may have previously had with FM
Transmitters. The AudioBug ATB-350 blew me away. The
sound is fantastic. I am pleasantly surprised at how
well it works.
Operation couldn't be easier either. The unit powers
on when your iPod or other audio device powers on,
you select an unused frequency with the up/down
switch. There are three preset buttons on the unit,
you hold any of them down for a few second to set a
frequency to memory. If you iPod is off for 30
seconds the unit auto-powers down, and it auto-powers
back up when you turn your iPod back on.
Highly recommended. I picked mine up for $32.99 with free shipping at
Buy.com.
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Seashore Reaches 1.9
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Funny Video: How To Install Vista
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Perian allows QuickTime to play more video formats
Definitely check out this wonder free addin.
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Airport Extreme is not completely extreme.
Why in the world does this wireless router have local wired LAN ports which only support up to 100 Base-T Ethernet, when the iMac's, MacBook's, MacBook Pro's, hell - even the Mac Mini - they all support 1000 Base-T.
It makes no sense to me whatsoever to support fast speeds on all of the computers, but then not make it possible to connect at the higher speeds because the router caps at 100 Base-T.
I was honestly considering getting the Airport Extreme, but now I don't know that I can consider it with the speed limiting LAN ports.
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