Macintosh: Most recommended software list? - Page 4

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

Thanks, I'll check that out.

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

Check your PM

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

Maybe this has been mentioned already, but I just found a new one called Blue Phone Elite. It lets you make and receive calls and text messages through your Mac using your Bluetooth enabled cellphone. It basically makes the Mac act like a glorified Bluetooth headset, so you can use the built in mic and speakers. Free 2 week trial then you have to pay for it.

Mira Software, Inc.

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

Perhaps of interest for DSLR users looking for a 'Make It So' type workflow app.

Testing a Demo of DxO Optics Pro v5 beta for OSX intel (ppc is available as well)
FREE DEMO

A stunning app for batch processing raw or jpg from your Nikon/Canon DSLR. The software uses modules designed for most current DSLR models and lens ranges. My interest is for a D40 & 18-55 kit lens, but there are free modules for the 18-200mm VR, the wide 12-24 and others I will need later. The standard pkg will cover Nikons up to D300. The pro models (D3,2X,etc) and prime F lens modules require an upgraded pkg. Canons up to 40D and most of their DX lenses are covered in the standard as well.

Lightroom/CS3 plugs are included for workflow additions.

Many, if not all functions in this software can be done with a combination of share and freeware combined with CS, but to have what might be considered a very complex and easily adjustable action in one spot is compelling.
The lens correction alone might sell it for me.

After tossing a few old and thus unknown body jpgs at it, I'm stunned at what I get in such a limited mode (raw with current model modules gets you into a full range of corrections)

a review of 4.2 - DxO Optics Pro Software

The mouse overs on KR's review should give you an idea of what it does, but v5 has more stuff.
Those fisheye to flat corrections at the bottom are amazing.

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

Just wanted to recommend Deja Vu, an alternative to Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper:

Déjà Vu

I have used Deja Vu for years, and I prefer how it is a part of System Preferences as opposed to a standalone app. It's extremely easy too. Just pick the folder/ disk you want to back up, and then point out where you want it backed up. Of course, it can also be scheduled to back up as well.

I highly recommend it!

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

I opened up this thread to see what you guys had recommended for a DVD/BD library function and was checking out Delicious Library based on your recommendation. The Blutooth scanner sounded AWESOME but man, $210, I think I'm gonna use the iSight instead.

Anyone use The Unarchiver? I saw that when I checked out Xee, looks interesting for the times you need to open 7zip and other non .zip archives...

Re: Macintosh: Most recommended software list?

I triend almost every twitter client available but for free think Nambu was the best free client for features combined with GUI.

Bump for Stickyage, please Mods!

I Love Stars

Great, free tool for encouraging the rating of songs in iTunes. When music is playing, it appears in your menu bar; about 30 seconds before the end of an unrated song, it will flash and/or chime to remind you to rate the song. One click on the 5 dots to set a 1-5 star rating (or double click to even do 1/2 stars) and the song is rated.

I like this because it is inobtrusive but nudges me to rate my music, and doesn't require keyboard shortcuts to get the job done. And it's free. And Snow Leopard compatible.

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Unfortunately Nambu is totally broken in Snow Leopard and its been almost a month now since SL's release.  No word on when Nambu will be fixed.

Can anyone recommend a free Twitter client that does work under SL to tide us over until Nambu is fixed?

Tweetie

I'm getting an iMac soon and am wondering what the best av is? I know apple isn't the same target for malware as the pc is, but I presume an av and firewall is recommended. This quote is old. Anyone care to update it?

I am an apple rookie.

I'm running Sophos Anti-Virus on my Macs and have been very satisfied. 

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I don't mean to be a pain, but you are satisfied based on what?  After the arrest of the Russian guy behind the MacDefender Trojan there hasn't been any OS X malware, certainly no viruses.  So apart from hopefully not doing any harm to anything other than your pocketbook, what possible satisfaction could you get from Sophos?

 

To Johnny Angell: -- my advice coming from a Mac user since 1984 -- forget about anti-virus software.  If there is some sudden infestation of Mac malware, you'll hear all about it and can take measures then.  Somehow, I have lived for 27 years without it* and have survived with flying colors.  By all indications Mac anti-virus software does more harm than good.

 

Best Mac security advice:

1) Upgrade to Lion if you haven't already -- it adds numerous new security features.

2) Try to perform some elementary due diligence when installing new software -- anything coming from the Mac App store will be safe, probably stuff from outside is too, but google to make sure --  what do people say about the sowtware -- is it featured on macupdate.com, etc.

3) Do enable *the built in firewall* -- there is absolutely no need for any third party software.  System Preferences: Security: Firewall On.  (likely it is already on by default, but check anyway).

 

*In fact there was some real Mac malware pre Mac OS X (pre 2001) on "classic" Mac OS.  Since the switch to Mac OS X a decade ago there has not been a single virus or anything else that can possibly do any harm unless the user installed it themselves. 

Agreed.

No need for anti-virus software.

Just keep Software Update running, and stay updated.

19 year user here.

Well you can do what you want. I would just take Ted's advice and not run anything because it's not like Mac sales have increased making it a target. I agree the chances of something happen is less but not zero. A free solution the protects you from malware is a good thing unless you live in a cave and never get on the net. Sophos has caught two malware attempts when I was running leopard. Just two keep this all level there are roughly 116 Threats for the Mac. I will agree a lot of them are keyboard loggers, etc that you would have to install or.... I will also say that a Mac is just a Unix variant and given the number of threats for Unix/Linux is on the rise it is only a mater of time. Most security experts agree on this. I will also say that most attacks no longer go after the OS but software running on the OS so if you install no software like browsers, quicktime. You should be safe...

Virus checkers on OSX only make sense if you are running bootleg software, frequent spammy porn sites, or have family members who can't be trusted to use common sense. If you fall into one of those 3 categories or worry that if something asks you for the admin password that YOU aren't trustworthy to make a smart decision knock yourself out.

A smarter safer move: Don't install Flash or Silverlight.

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I am happy to agree to disagree about the rest, but I will argue strenuously against the canard that Macs have been relatively safe due to their low market share, and now that it has gone up, they are sure to be a target.

 

How about this:  current iOS installed base: ~220 million, Android installed base, ~120 million.  iOS should be the number one mobile target, right?  Yet iOS malware == zero.  Android malware -- truckloads.   I leave it to the reader the figure out why.

 

If market share was important, the Mac would have been the top PC OS target for years now -- something like 80% of the $1000+ computers are Macs -- that's where the users with money are -- the prime criminal targets -- and yet...

 

Why are PCs running XP and IE 6 the number one target, way, way, way out in front -- because they are EASY, and because all the malware writers have Windows PCs themselves and that's where their software writing experience lies. I'll bet that Windows 7 machines are less often targeted because it is more work.  Criminals, like most people out there are lazy.  Why is Android so popular with the malware brigade: because it is easy.  And they can write code for it in Java on their XP PCs, instead of having to buy a Mac and learn Objective C and Cocoa to do bad things to OS X/iOS users. And if they really did learn Obj C - Cocoa they could make good money writing iOS apps, no need for a life of crime. Writing Android apps -- not so much.

 

It really is as simple as that.  Market share has NOTHING to do with it.

 

 

Ted we can disagree as a 20 year security and IT person I have numbers to back me up.

 

• Mobile platforms are hard to attack because people don't do as much random surfing
• iOS has even been better because it is a locked down platform (and a store completely controlled by Apple)
• iOS has had two malware apps but they where caught before they got too far
• Jailbroke iOS phones have been compromised 
• Android is an open platform and no central police there for badness has happened via apps

 

Here is a result from Pawn2Own 2011

 

 

First up, and first to fall, was Safari 5.0.3 on fully-patched Mac OS X 10.6.6. French security firm VUPEN was first to attack the browser, and five seconds after the browser visited its specially-crafted malicious web page, it had both launched the platform calculator application (a standard harmless payload to demonstrate that arbitrary code has been executed) and wrote a file to the hard disk (to demonstrate that the sandbox had been bypassed).

Full Article - http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2011/03/pwn2own-day-one-safari-ie8-fall-chrome-unchallenged.ars

Big differences between malware in the wild versus ending a machine to a poisoned website with a day one exploit. Oh yeah, the other thing you failed to mention is that NONEof the anti-malware tools would have helped a real user avoid those exploits either.

It's nice to know there are fewer chances to be attacked by malware when running the Mac os. My iMac should already have Lion installed. If I run win7 using Parallels and browse the web, have I opened myself up to attack just as if I were on a PC?

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I am not as familiar with Parallels as I am with VM Ware which I have used in the past, but *please correct me, Parallels users* I'd imagine they are similar.  With VM Ware you can take "snapshots" of known good states of your machine.  Should your VM get corrupted, via malware or otherwise, you can simply restore the last good know state (of course that would kill anything you did since taking the snapshot).  The way I was using my Windows VMs that wasn't a concern so I felt fine running without virus protection, but after discovering that Navicat for Oracle was an excellent OS X substitute for Toad, I have stopped using Windows.  I don't know of a way having an infected Windows VM can screw up OS X -- again if someone knows better, please correct me.

I don't look into it, but I would assume that any file on your Mac that can be accessed from the Windows VM could likewise be attacked by any virus  within the Windows VM.   so I do run the standard Windows 7 security software  within parallels.

Same here, I run Microsoft Security Essentials in P6 and P7.

iMeme, hope this comes to the MAS:
http://www.michaelfogleman.com/memes/