Archive for May, 2010

iPhone & iPad app review site

iPhone & iPad app review site

While I’ve come across many reviews for iPhone, iPad and iPod apps scattered across the web, I haven’t found a decent site that specialized in it. The closest I’ve found is Appshopper.com, a site that pulls descriptions, screenshots and links from the iTunes Store down and presents it in a blog-style site.

Appshopper

Appshopper brings your app exploration to a blog-style site

While appshopper does little more than reorganize what is already available to you, it does offer a better way to just explore, finding apps you may not have thought of checking out or searching for. If you like a particular app, the site will also display a list of other apps by that developer. You can also add apps to your own wishlist.

Appshopper isn’t as useful as I would like, but it’s a great start, and I’m not aware of any site that offers more. If you know of one, please share the link in the comments!

05/31/2010 Read More
How to truly delete a file in Mac OS X

How to truly delete a file in Mac OS X

Securely Empty TrashMost people aren’t aware that when you empty the trash in Mac OS X, you aren’t actually deleting a file. It’s true. Selecting Empty Trash from the Finder menu, or using the Command + Shift + Delete keyboard shortcut simply marks the chosen files or folders in a way that allows the system to overwrite them whenever it needs to. The actual files remain on your hard drive until the system actually writes another file on top of them.

In order to truly delete a file or folder, you must use Mac OS X’s Secure Empty Trash command under the Finder menu. When you use this method to empty your trash, the system actually overwrites the file with gibberish data, mostly ensuring your file is unrecoverable.

Securely Empty TrashIf you’re concerned about security, you can set Mac OS X to always securely delete your files when you empty the trash the normal way by going to your menubar and choosing Finder>Preferences, and turning on the Empty Trash Securely item.

05/28/2010 Read More
Easily adding a starting page number with Adobe InDesign CS5

Easily adding a starting page number with Adobe InDesign CS5

I’ve already pointed out that Adobe InDesign CS5 adds many small new features. Another such feature is the ability to set your starting auto page number in the New Document dialog box.

Start Page Number in Adobe InDesign

The new Start Page # feature in InDesign's New Page dialog box

You’ll still need to create an Auto Page Number box on your page just as you always have, but prior to InDesign CS5, you had to manually set the starting page number to your document via the Numbering & Section Options contextual menu in the Pages panel. Now, you can set it right at the start of your document creation.

Not a huge feature, but a nice one for those who regularly create auto page numbers that don’t start with the number 1.

05/27/2010 Read More
Quickly add pages to your Adobe InDesign document

Quickly add pages to your Adobe InDesign document

InDesign CS5Knowing shortcuts in your applications can greatly improve your productivity. Thankfully, Adobe provides a plethora of them in all their applications, including InDesign CS5. One frequently used shortcut in my work day is adding a new page in a document; and it just kills me to see people making a trip up to the Layout>Pages menu to do it.

There are several ways to add a new page to your InDesign document, but the quickest way is simply to hit Command + Shift + P. Doing so will add a new page immediately following the page you’re currently viewing.

New Page icon in Pages panelIf you need more flexibility, consider holding the Option key while clicking the New Page icon in the Pages panel. This will bring-up the New Page dialog box, which offers you the ability to choose how many new pages you wish to add, where to add them in your document, and which Master Page to base them on.

This tip works in InDesign CS5, CS4, and possibly earlier – though I have no way to verify prior versions.

05/26/2010 Read More
Reading between the lines with new clients

Reading between the lines with new clients

Bad client aheadOne of the most exciting and difficult periods of the designer/client relationship is the very beginning. There can be quite a bit of anxiety at the start, because neither of you know what to expect.

The best bit of advice I can give you is to trust your gut, because where there is smoke, there is most often fire.

Jeremy Tuber sheds some light on what I mean with an excellent article detailing an experience he had with a new client. While his experience may be extreme (or not), it illustrates the idea that you have to read between the lines when meeting with a new client for the first time.

05/25/2010 Read More
Creating calendars in Adobe InDesign with this handy script

Creating calendars in Adobe InDesign with this handy script

I was extremely happy to find out that one of the few scripts I used extensively in Adobe InDesign CS4 still works perfectly in the latest InDesign CS5 upgrade – making calendar creation dead simple.

Calendar Wizard for InDesign

Creating calendars is as easy as a few mouse clicks

Calendar Wizard, by Scott Selberg, makes creating editable calendars as simple as a few clicks of the mouse, a task that would make you nauseous if you had to do it manually in InDesign.

The script allows you to set numerous preferences before creating your calendar, such as what day of the week to start on, the ability to highlight holidays, and creating mini-calendars for the previous and next month in the corners. I don’t use scripts often, but this one is definitely worth keeping around.

05/24/2010 Read More
Create your own Adobe CS5 style icons

Create your own Adobe CS5 style icons

With the release of Creative Suite 5, Adobe brought with it a new set of icons for all their applications. Now I won’t get into the whole debate about whether or not they’re better or worse than the previous ones, but they are different. And if you’re like me, you may have an interest in altering them a bit, and creating similar ones for other folder and applications in your OS X Dock.

Icon Generator is a website and a companion Adobe AIR application, both free, that allow you to create your own CS5-style icons with little effort.

CS5 Icon Generator

Create your own CS5-style icons easily

As you can see in the screenshot above, you can type in your own letters (up to 15, but it looks bad beyond three), choose a face and font color, and even add or remove icon shadows and glare. I should also note that if you preferred the Adobe CS4-style icons, you can choose that style instead.

But it Icon Generator doesn’t stop there. You can choose to use an image on the face of your icon, rather than letters. You simply upload a 512×512 pixel JPG or PNG file. As you can see below, the results are pretty darn good!

Icon Generator

Icon Generator allows you to use images instead of text on your icons

Once you’re finished customizing, Icon Generator allows you to download a .zip file containing various sized PNG files of your icon, and even update your Twitter profile icon if you wish.

Icon Generator is free, so if you like the Adobe CS4 or CS5 icons and want to customize more icons to match, this little AIR app is just what the doctor ordered.

05/21/2010 Read More
Free Font: Outlaw

Free Font: Outlaw

Outlaw font

Billy Argel blends grunge and western styles in this free font

There are fonts you use every day, then there are those priceless ones you only bust out for a special occasion. Outlaw is one of those fonts you may only use once, but you’ll be happy you have it when you do. Outlaw features a fantastic grunge appearance on a western-style font. The author of the font, Billy Argel, is particularly good at creating grunge fonts – so be sure to check out his other fonts available on DaFont.

05/19/2010 Read More
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