K’s Weblog

There. That title ought to get some interest.

It’s time again for this week’s edition of the GGP, and with it the latest update from the Mac Lab Rat.

Leopard
This week was of course Leopard launch week. I’ve put up several ([1], [2], [3], [4], [5]) posts on the subject over the past week or so, and don’t have a ton more to say about it. It’s quick, solid and works basically like Tiger. It’s got a couple of very nice upgrades (Time Machine for one), that I haven’t been able to use yet.

PortableApps for the Mac
There’s been lots posted about the concept of Portable Applications — software that you can load on a USB key and run without needing to actually install it on the computer. This week I’ve rounded up a site with OS X compatible versions of many popular programs including Firefox and Thunderbird. If you work cross-platform like I do, the portable Firefox will work particularly well with another GGP featured service Quick Bookmarks. If you use a Mac, or particularly if you use more than one, check out Portable Apps for the Mac.

Coconut Battery Monitor
I really like this application. I was running it on my Macbook before the Leopard upgrade and will probably get it back on there this week. Coconut allows you to monitor not only the stock information about your battery (power remaining, charge cycles) but also provides information like the current max charge vs. the max rated charge (ie: is your battery still charging to capacity). It gives some great insights into the true health of your battery. If you’re running a Mac notebook Coconut Battery Monitor is definitely worth a look.

Spark
Last up this week is Spark, an application that will allow you to assign a keyboard shortcut to pretty much any action your Mac can do. Not only can you launch applications and open files, you can also tie a shortcut key to application specific functions and AppleScripts! I’ve already got a few different key combos set up and there will be more to come as my Windows-based keyboard-centric tendencies continue to shine through. Spark will save you time!

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