PictureSync for OS X

Holocore / Mac OS X Software / PictureSync

Via Macintouch.

PictureSync is a convenient utility that simplifies batch uploading your photos and video clips to online services, - directly from your image-management application or files, and without losing your own valuable annotations and metadata.

Features :

» Image resizing
» Suports most file formats and movies
» Customise annotations used online
» Upload directly to albums
» Specify image upload order
» Automatic rotation (with EXIF)
» sRGB conversion (with ICC profiles)
» Use multiple services

Services:
Webshots FotoTime
Flickr Smugmug
Vimeo Buzznet

Applications:
iPhoto
iView Media Pro
IPTC annotations
Drag and drop (IPTC annotations)

It's $10 donationware. If it actually does what the author claims it's worth more than that for me. I'll try it out.

Update 8/31/09: I used PictureSync for several years and I got my $10 out of it -- but it died.

Sharing an iTunes library between multiple users

macosxhints - Use two iTunes libraries and one Music folder

I prefer the techniques that use an alias to the music library (see comments). I've done something similar for years. The trick is having the file paths match in the xml files.

GoodPage HTML editor and site manager - supports WebDAV

GoodPage

I'll try it.

Best advice ever on Macintosh RAM (via Macintouch)

Bad RAM (Part 4)

This is way better than anything I've ever read. Thanks Trevor and Macintouch.

Trevor Inkpen CanadaRAM.com

Apple does not manufacture RAM, they purchase RAM wholesale from companies like Samsung, Hynix, Micron, IBM and Elixir. They do not and have never used Crucial RAM. (Crucial bases their advertising on the fact that Crucial is owned by Micron, who does sell Apple some RAM). You really can't say that a particular brand, 'Kingston' for example, does or does not work in Macs. Each company has hundreds of models, only one or two are correct for a given Mac. Kingston only guarantees their KTA- series memory for use in Macs. Their PC-generic KVR- series are specifically not guaranteed for Macs. Most bad reports result from using the wrong model RAM in a Mac.

One poster alluded to third-party RAM meeting or exceeding Apple's specs. There's a problem with this. A given RAM module that works in the PowerMac G5 may fail in the iMac G5 - despite having the same paper specification, in practice the two Macs have different tolerances. 'DDR PC3200 CL3 JEDEC compliant' does not adequately describe the criteria for compatibility. The RAM's internal organization and the programmable logic make the difference. It's like saying that a wheel for a Ford has to be 'steel, 14' diameter and 12' wide', without specifying the bolt pattern.

There is no way to look at specs and determine accurately if the RAM will be Mac compatible, the only way to be sure is to test it. Buy RAM only from a seller who guarantees that the RAM has been tested and is compatible with your model Mac.

Choosing PC Generic RAM (including Kingston KVR-, Crucial non-Apple models and any number of other brands) has a problem - the brand of chips used, and the design of the memory board sold under that part number, is liable to change without notice. And these changes can make them fail on Macs, especially 'sensitive' models like the Mini, iMac G5 and 1st gen. Aluminum PowerBooks. So, if your buddy buys RamCo ABC2345 memory and it works, you could buy the same RamCo ABC2345 part next month and it wouldn't work because it was a different design.

So it is impossible to predict whether a RAM part will work in a Mac UNLESS the seller provides a written guarantee that it is compatible in your Mac. (Auction sellers, PC shops and big-box and online discounters are less likely to provide reliable compatibility information). It's also impossible to make a blanket statement that 'Brand Y' is good, or bad - because it is down to choosing the correct model.

Finally, keep your Apple RAM so you can reinstall it when you send the Mac in for warranty repair.

More on the great capacitor scandal -- Nichicon

MacInTouch Home Page

Macintouch has been tracking capacitor and motherboard failures on Apple's G5 machines. Now they expanded to reporting on Dell issues. Macintuch really does journalism. They use their readers as reporters and deploy their own editors and investigators. An interesting and underappreciated model!

Ron Royer reports that the current rash of iMac G5 failures may be caused by a bad batch of Nichicon capacitors that is also causing Dell computers to fail:

I don't know if you have seen this, but other manufacturers seem to have this issue too... Postings from Badcaps.net:

"I work as a network engineer/administrator at a company in Washington DC, with about 600 installed workstations. As many as 200-300 of those are the GX270 models, which are 2.4-2.8GHz P4 machines.

We've had a rash of motherboard failures on these machines. I only recently had a chance to inspect a dead board before it was returned to Dell, and it turned out to have swollen Nichicon caps.

I finally had a Dell tech admit that they were aware of the problem and were replacing boards under warranty (the corporate machines usually have 3-year extended service plans). As of today we have 7 new boards on the way to us and at least 15-20 more have already failed. (I'm pretty sure that the GX270 boards are OEM-built by MSI.)

I'm just posting this for information, and to see if anyone else has seen this in a large-scale IT operation, especially with Dells."

"Well, we did 12 boards today, and we have 6 more to call in. I spot-checked some of the bad caps, and they all seem to be Nichicons with the same lot numbers and about the same date range (early 2003). All the replacement boards that were installed had Rubycon caps instead.

I did notice a few boards where, while the caps looked identical, not all of them were bulging. There is a picture of this here: [Dell Motherboard Capacitor Failures]

I'm starting to agree with the idea that this is Nichicon's own quality control problem, rather than the same batch of bum electrolyte as last time. I also think that the lousy ventilation inside the Dell small-form-factor case speeds up the failures, since they don't like to waste money on things like fans."

The G5 interiors run hot -- as do small-form-factor Dells. I think the Mac Mini is quite a bit cooler. This problem may be a combination of high temperatures and manufacturing problems. Are computer manufacturers running at temperatures that exceed manufacturing specs for their components?

I also wonder if setting the iMac to 'full performance' mode might accelerate this problem.

Login Delays and Damaged Font Caches on Mac OS X 10.3

Daring Fireball: Login Delays and Damaged Font Caches on Mac OS X 10.3

One of the great weaknesses in OS X is the propensity to "corruption" of caches, preferences and other items. I makes me wonder how strong the unix underpinnings of OS X really are.

I've been experiencing login delays, so I'll check this out. I'll also see if Panther Cache Cleaner or its ilk deal with this. (ONYX has been having bugs recently.)

Apple recommends monthly full charge and discharge cycle for LiON battery products

Apple - Batteries

Both iPod and laptop:

Exercise Your Machine

Lithium-ion batteries need to be used for maximum performance. If you don’t use your device often, be sure to complete a charge cycle at least once per month.