Musings from Mars http://www.musingsfrommars.org I've been observing personal computing behavior for a long time, and now I have some things to say. Here are my two cents about computing, music, software, and related topics. Tue, 25 Jun 2024 16:28:46 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Shortcuts Nirvana, Part 2 http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2021/09/shortcuts-nirvana-part-2.html Shortcuts Nirvana: How I Accumulated 800 Shortcuts article on home automations and Shortcuts earlier this year, I have continued to find and make shortcuts and recently passed 800 in my library. I thought this milestone would be a good time to reflect on what I've been doing with these shortcuts and how I managed to gather so many.]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2021/08/shortcuts-nirvana-how-i-accumulated-800-shortcuts.html Building Smart Automations With Apple Home, Siri Shortcuts Over the past few months, I've had a blast building out my smart home, using Apple's Home app as the foundation. Who knew how much fun it would be making things happen in the house without having to move a finger? I'm still at the beginning stages, but I thought it would be useful to document what I've done and learned so far.

Automating your smart home and life makes use of two apps that come with your iPhone: Home and Shortcuts. (The links to each in the following text take you to Apple's User Guide for for each app, which I would recommend perusing if you get lost.)

]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2021/04/building-smart-automations-with-apple-home-siri-shortcuts.html Balanced Article on “Smart Home” in 2020 Gives Nod to Apple for Privacy/Security http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2021/03/balanced-article-on-smart-home-in-2020-gives-nod-to-apple-for-privacysecurity.html Can You Fall In Love With A Watch Face? I recently began exploring all the different faces that are now available for the Apple Watch. There are many cool options these days, but I happened upon one that I simply can't get enough of. It's the kaleidoscope face, which comes with a nice array of image options and several "facet" styles.

]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2021/02/can-you-fall-in-love-with-a-watch-face.html An Audiophile Listening Room with Apple’s HomePod Apple's HomePod has been the underdog in the "smart speakers" category since its introduction last year. It's more expensive than the offerings from Google and Amazon, and Siri doesn't seem to be as powerful. I haven't used Alexa or the Google AI assistant, so I can't say what the difference may be. But let me just say that HomePod is a revelation in audio quality, and its "smart" features are more than adequate for my needs. The most surprising aspect of HomePod is that it has finally let me put together an audiophile listening room without taking out a second mortgage!

]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2019/03/an-audiophile-listening-room-with-apples-homepod.html Mars Themes and OS X Mavericks http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2013/10/mars-themes-and-os-x-mavericks.html Trying To Tame Mountain Lion Without A Hat Remember my angst about whether I should migrate my computing life to Mountain Lion? Well, that story's now over, and Mountain Lion has won. Mounting A Lion VirtuallyMore on that in a moment, but first I want to briefly describe my experiment in using Mountain Lion as a virtual OS inside Parallels Desktop — an experiment I've now abandoned. The process was quite simple once I figured it out, but it took more setup than expected. You have to install Parallels Desktop on both Snow Leopard and Mountain Lion, and then, on Mountain Lion, make a virtual disk of the Mountain Lion OS, which is one of the default choices when defining a new virtual OS in Parallels.]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/12/trying-to-tame-mountain-lion-without-a-hat.html Windows 8 UI strategic mistake, argues design guru - Computerworld http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/11/windows-8-ui-strategic-mistake-argues-design-guru-computerworld.html Raskin: A Radical Finder Alternative http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/raskin-a-radical-finder-alternative.html Spark: Venerable Shortcut-Manager Freeware Gets A Rewrite http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/spark-venerable-shortcut-manager-freeware-gets-a-rewrite.html MainMenu: A Menu Extra for Simple System Administration Tasks http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/mainmenu-a-menu-extra-for-simple-system-administration-tasks.html TVShows: New Freeware Gathers Torrents for Your Favorite Shows http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/tvshows-new-freeware-gathers-torrents-for-your-favorite-shows.html Still Thinking About It: Can You Mount A Lion Virtually? an earlier article explaining why I've avoided Lion, this is the first time since Mac OS X debuted in 2001 that I've hesitated to upgrade. So here it is again: Should I? Why not?

One of the main reasons to upgrade is to take advantage of iCloud, which has become a more serious need now that Apple took MobileMe away from us. I can no longer sync my Safari bookmarks automagically, for example. However, I'm still pissed that Apple hasn't made a version of iCloud available for the many folks still on Snow Leopard.

Speaking of which, what exactly is the breakdown of Mac users in August 2012? It's only been a month since Mountain Lion was released, but clearly upgrading is happening pretty quickly. According to the stats from NetApplications.com, Lion users account for about 35% of the market, Snow Leopard users about 34%, and Mountain Lion users about 20%. There are still about 10% of users hanging on to Leopard. That Snow Leopard figure is pretty damn high considering how long Lion has been out, and is one that Apple should be paying more attention to.

]]> http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/still-thinking-about-it-can-you-mount-a-lion-virtually.html JustLooking: A New Image Previewer Debuts as Freeware http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/justlooking-a-new-image-previewer-debuts-as-freeware.html Apple v. Samsung: The True Story http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/09/apple-v-samsung-the-true-story.html EazyDraw: Powerful Drawing and Painting Tool http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/eazydraw-powerful-drawing-and-painting-tool.html rooVid: Makes Publishing QuickTime Movies Even Easier! http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/roovid-makes-publishing-quicktime-movies-even-easier.html fLOW: Create Experimental Soundscapes for Ambient Music Fans http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/flow-create-experimental-soundscapes-for-ambient-music-fans.html iBlog: Major Update to Blogging Tool in the Works http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/iblog-major-update-to-blogging-tool-in-the-works.html Searchlight: Spotlight for Your Network http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/searchlight-spotlight-for-your-network.html Keyclick: Still Yearning for Audio Feedback When Typing? http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/keyclick-still-yearning-for-audio-feedback-when-typing.html Utility Lock: Freeware Menubar Utility Provides Screen Locking with a Keystroke http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/utility-lock-freeware-menubar-utility-provides-screen-locking-with-a-keystroke.html Live Interior 3D: New Native Mac App for Home Design http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/live-interior-3d-new-native-mac-app-for-home-design.html Photonator: New Photo Collection Manager Enters Public Beta http://www.musingsfrommars.org/2012/08/photonator-new-photo-collection-manager-enters-public-beta.html