Mac Reviews

Back in 2005, I reviewed the iCub, the first “digital lifestyle” product from French audiophile company Focal-JMlab. It was a unique product with excellent performance and great design. Its biggest drawback, for many people, was that it was too general in its focus: Rather than a dedicated iPod or computer speaker system, it was a subwoofer, an amplifier, and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) in a compact package that you could use in many configurations. The price—$750 without satellite speakers—also put it out of reach of many consumers.

Focal’s follow-up to the iCub is the $599 Focal XS, and while it’s still not inexpensive, it’s nevertheless a more affordable and a more focused product, offering a Mac-centric design along with features specifically designed for iPods and computers.

iMac inspired
It’s obvious that the XS’s design was inspired by the look of Apple’s current iMac. The two satellite speakers each feature a weighted base finished in glossy black; an angled, brushed-metal stand that echoes those on the iMac and Apple’s Cinema Displays; and a black enclosure with aluminum trim and a black-mesh grille. Similarly, the subwoofer enclosure is matte black with aluminum trim and a glossy-black face. Taken as a whole, the XS is one of the more attractive computer or iPod speaker systems I’ve seen, and few look as good next to Apple’s current hardware.

Each of the XS’s satellites, derived from Focal’s Solo6 monitors, is 4.75 inches tall, 3.6 inches wide, and 3.4 inches deep and hosts a 3-inch midrange driver and a 0.75-inch tweeter. (Including the stand, the total height of each satellite is 12.8 inches.) The satellites connect to the subwoofer via 5.5-foot, thick, cloth-covered cables.

The right-hand satellite’s base features an iPod dock using Apple’s Universal design; eight dock adapters are included for older iPods. (Newer iPods and both iPhone models ship with their own dock adapters.) Although the system isn’t officially “Made for iPhone,” in my testing both iPhone models worked well except for audible interference when the original iPhone accessed the EDGE network.

In front of the dock cradle are power and volume buttons, and on the back of the base are an auxiliary-input minijack (for connecting another analog source), a USB port, and a Sync/Audio switch (more on the latter two features below). Although a white, backlit ring around the power button blinks when you change the volume, there’s no visible volume level. Also missing is a headphone jack.

The XS’s subwoofer is fairly compact at just 10.2 inches tall, 9.1 inches wide, and 13.75 inches deep (16 inches deep if you include the necessary clearance for cables in the back). It hosts a 6.5-inch speaker driver, as well as a 70-Watt amplifier for the sub, two 30-Watt amps (one for each satellite), and a DAC—a Burr Brown model, for the audio geeks out there—for converting your computer’s USB audio to an analog signal. On the back of the sub are the two speaker connectors, a power-cable jack, a power switch, and a dial for setting the subwoofer level.

Simple setup
The XS is easy to set up. Each of the two speaker cables fits into only one of the two jacks on the subwoofer, so you can’t accidentally mix up the left and right channels. Focal includes the necessary USB cable for connecting your computer to the system; once you do, you just go to the Sound pane of System Preferences and select FOCAL XS in the Output screen. (Your Mac’s volume buttons control the level of audio going from your computer to the XS.) Focal also includes a stereo miniplug cable for connecting another audio source; for example, a TV or another media player.

As with most iPod speaker systems, you simply put your player in the dock cradle and press play to listen. However, because the XS connects to your computer via USB, the dock cradle can also be used to sync your iPod with iTunes. And unlike many other speaker systems that include a data connection, the XS provides a way for you to decide whether your docked iPod should play music or sync: the aforementioned Sync/Audio switch. When the switch is set to Audio, you can listen to your iPod’s music; when set to Sync, your iPod goes into sync mode and shows up in iTunes on your Mac. (If you’re using the XS as a computer speaker, Sync mode automatically switches your Mac’s audio output to the Mac’s own speaker; once you shift back to Audio mode, your Mac’s audio automatically switches back to the XS.) In either mode, Sync or Audio, your iPod is charged while in the dock cradle.

This Sync/Audio switch is a useful feature that too few systems provide; you don’t even have to remove your iPod from the cradle when changing modes. However, the feature would have been even more convenient if the switch were located in the front or on the top of the speaker base; I found the switch to be awkward to reach given its placement on the back of the base.

Another nice feature is that all three possible audio sources—iPod, USB, and auxiliary—are mixed together, so you don’t have to swap cables or flip switches whenever you want to listen to a different source. It also means you can hear your computer’s alerts and other audio while listening to your iPod. However, in my testing, audio from a docked iPod drowned out my Mac’s audio—set to full volume—when both were playing. (iPod audio level cannot be adjusted, as the XS gets line-level audio from the iPod’s dock-connector port.)

Xcellent Sound
You’d hope that a $600 iPod speaker system would sound good, and the XS doesn’t disappoint in this category, performing more like a small home stereo than a set of “computer” speakers. Audio is balanced, with very good—and quite neutral—treble detail and midrange, as well as solid bass response down to around 70Hz. (There’s a slight dip in response between 120Hz and 100Hz, which I’m assuming to be roughly the system’s crossover frequency—where the audio signal is split between the satellites and the subwoofer.) At lower volumes, the bass isn’t especially powerful, but it’s tight and balanced with the rest of the audio spectrum. At louder volumes, however, you’ll want to set the subwoofer’s bass level carefully, based on your listening area, to avoid boominess. There are no other tone controls.

Stereo separation and imaging are likewise excellent, in part due to the ability to put up to 11 feet of space between the left and right satellites. And unlike many of the larger iPod/computer speakers I’ve tested, the XS sounds very good both from across the room and while sitting at your desk. Overall, it’s one of the best-performing iPod/computer speaker systems I’ve tested.

It’s also worth noting that the XS is designed to be relatively green: When in standby mode, it uses less than 2W of power.

On the other hand, the included remote is quite basic, including only power, volume, play/pause, back, and forward functions, and using “bubble”-style buttons that provide little tactile feedback. While I liked the internal magnet that’s just strong enough to let you store the remote on either satellite stand, I found the remote’s infrared signal to be on the weak side: The remote worked adequately from across a room, but if I moved too far to the left or right of the sensor (located on the front of the right-hand satellite’s base), reception suffered.

Macworld’s buying advice
The XS costs quite a bit more than most iPod/computer speakers out there, but it’s an excellent aesthetic match for Apple’s current hardware; provides some of the best audio you’ll get from a set of computer speakers; and, by letting you listen to your Mac’s digital-audio signal, your iPod or iPhone, and another audio source, is also very versatile. If you’d like something that looks and sounds great at your desk or from across the room, this is an impressive system. Indeed, it’s one of our favorite iPod accessories of 2008.

[via Macworld]

TypeIt4Me expands your abbreviations as you type, and works in all applications, not just one. It also lets you define meaningful abbreviations, so you can type them naturally, as part of your writing, without memorizing – or reaching for – obscure ctrl-cmd-xyz combinations.

Born in 1989, TypeIt4Me is still a teenager youthful 20 in human years, yet old & mature in Mac years.

No matter how much you type, I’ll save you wear and tear on those wrists & fingers.

• Never type your full name or email signature again;

• Never hunt around for that standard contract clause;

• Type a short abbreviation and have it expand to a word, a phrase, even several pages worth of text (with pictures, too);

• Trigger AppleScripts with your abbreviations instead of reaching for a menu or pressing obscure keyboard combinations.

Anytime you enter text in your Mac by typing it at the keyboard, TypeIt4Me can help you do it faster and more accurately. First you define a number of abbreviations and the full text entries that they represent, then you watch the Mac expand them on the fly even as you continue typing.

New in version 4.1:

TypeIt4Me 4.1 provides one new feature: a filter field just under the list of clippings in the system prefs panel:

Typing text in it will filter the list of abbreviations to show only those which include the typed text in either the abbreviation or the clipping.

For example:

Gives me:

System requirements:
Mac OS X 10.4 or later

System Support:
PPC/Intel

$27.00 Shareware

For more information, visit:
http://ettoresoftware.com/EttoreSoftware/About_TypeIt4Me.hl

[via AppleLink]

Geneforge 5: Overthrow is the final installment in Spiderweb Software’s Geneforge saga, a series of fantasy-themed role-playing games. The Geneforge saga features enriched story lines, open-ended gameplay, and multiple endings, but lacks graphical sophistication or a quality soundtrack. With Geneforge 5, the developers have crafted a strong ending note to the series, but the game’s main problem is also its main selling point: it looks and plays like a game released 15 years ago.

The Geneforge saga revolves around the rise and fall of an extremely powerful race of magicians known as Shapers who have the power to create sentient beings to do their bidding. The earlier games in the series deal with the subsequent rebellion as some of the sentient beings were pissed off about the whole being-controlled-by-the-Shapers thing. Geneforge 5 allows you to play as part of the rebellion or an ally of the Shapers. Through your journey, you’ll work with different sects, go on quests, choose sides, as well as learn close-combat, magic, and creature-creating abilities.

Geneforge 5 reminds me of Blizzard’s Diablo series, which divides characters into different class types, features a distant third person isometric perspective, and also tasks the character with hoarding lots of dropped loot in their pursuit of some goal. Of course, holding certain items will encumber you in combat, so you also have to choose what loot you grab carefully.

Real-time adventure mode switches to turn-based combat mode when you encounter enemies, something that happens constantly unless you opt to avoid them. The combat uses a classic system involving items, spells, and creations as your tools of destruction. In a repetitive pattern, you’ll encounter the same poorly animated worms and troll-like creatures in the various dungeons you explore. The AI in the game is challenging and you’ll want to quicksave often because you’ll likely die several times the first time through an area.

The game allows you to use diplomacy and stealth in certain situations, but as any RPG-fan will tell you, the easiest way to gain experience is to level up through combat and quests. That means you’ll get used to seeing that same firebolt animation hundreds of times in a given session playing Geneforge 5.

Various maps let you see which of the dozens of areas you’ve visited in the game’s progress, and a green outline denotes if you’ve cleared an area. The journal feature is also helpful to keep track of your quests, and the item, spell, and weapon menus are easy to use.

Since the mythology of Geneforge is built around the magical Shapers, when selecting a class you’ll want to pick something that has strong shaping abilities. But the Shaper creatures aren’t particularly innovative in terms of gameplay—the pets that you create are similar to ones you’d find in other RPGs. So despite all the in-game text about evolving creatures and perfecting control, the shaped creatures look and feel worn. “Evolving” your creatures involves maxing out their stats as you gain experience, much like you would enhance your spells and weapons. Their appearance, actions, and use don’t alter save on a superficial level. Your “shaping” skills are limited to cookie-cutter creatures like dinosaurs and trolls, and then watch them change color as they get stronger.

I’m new to the Geneforge series, and the story and gameplay took a while for me to get into, as my character kept on going in an out of amnesia and my guide didn’t speak in complete sentences (which was intended to convey she too was just waking up from control by the Shapers). There are multiple paths, sects, and ways to solve a problem and the lack of a linear plot may turn off some players. Simply, there are so many plots, subplots, and characters to keep track of that only dedicated RPG fans won’t be turned off. While the lack of graphical sophistication lends the game to an old school feel, the monotonous environments and unidentifiable characters make it hard to feel attachment to the world. There is plenty of text to get through to get the full experience, so the game feels sluggish coming out of the gates, but rewards players who stick with it.

The game will take you many hours to play, and that’s only with one character. With nine classes, differing sects that open up different maps, and dozens of endings, the complete experience requires an investment not in hours, but days.

Macworld’s buying advice You have to give Spiderweb credit—the Geneforge series goes toe-to-toe with bigger publishers and humbly, but adeptly delivers quality gameplay and story. At $28, it won’t cost you much to check out. The hint book costs an additional $7 through Spiderweb’s online store, which is quite helpful for some of the more difficult puzzles and if you want to learn how to unlock some of the different endings. Geneforge 5: Overthrow is definitely a niche game, and therefore hard to recommend to a wide audience. If you enjoy deep, long RPGs with a complex storyline and love old-school turn-based combat then Geneforge 5 will make you nostalgically satisfied, like watching an old 80s movie would. If you’re a casual gamer, not an RPG fan, or don’t have several days to invest to understanding the Shaper society, then you’ve probably stopped reading this review paragraphs ago.
[via Macworld]

Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length.

Here I presents you 8 twitter applications for Mac OS X based on popularity, downloads and ratings on MacUpdate, Version Tracker and i use this

Twitterrific ($14.95)

Twitterrific is a fun application that lets you both read and publish posts or “tweets” to the Twitter community website. The application’s user interface is clean, concise and designed to take up a minimum of real estate on your Mac’s desktop.

TwitterPod (Free)

TwitterPod is a Twitter client with message store capability. The messages by your friends and by yourself will all be stored and displayed on an easy-to-navigate window.

Twucket (Free)

Twucket is a new Twitter client for Mac OS X Leopard. It’s designed to use a minimal amount of screen real estate, so you can keep an eye on your Twitter feed in a window small enough to leave open all the time.

Tototl (Free)

Tototl is aimed to provide a lightweight and easy to use desktop client for the Twitter Service on the Mac OSX Platform.

twhirl (Free)

twhirl is a desktop client for the popular microblogging platform Twitter that builds on the very cool Adobe AIR runtime. AIR allows desktop software development using popular web techniques like XHTML/CSS or Flash/Flex. twhirl requires the most recent version of AIR (beta 3) to be installed on the client computer.

NatsuLion (Free)

NatsuLion is a simple Twitter client for Mac OSX Leopard.

Its goals are the follows:

• Be simple
• Feature icons
• Easy to use for Twitter light users

Jetwit (Free)

Jetwit is a simple application for posting messages to Twitter, Facebook and displaying them as a Skype mood text.

Syrinx (Free)

Syrinx is a free, customizable Twitter client with a strong, efficient workflow. Experience your tweets in color by customizing the background colors or using the built in themes. Keep track of unread tweets using the intuitive new bookmarking system. Search your tweets to find what you missed. Now with Growl support, and a new Friends window.

One newly excavated ribcage to go please, hold the glass shards and nails.

Imagine that you’re living on the tough streets of the big city, just trying to liberate someone from their hard-earned cash when you accidentally “fall on some bullets.” A visit to a regular hospital is out of the question. That’s where an amateur surgeon comes in.

You play a pizza boy with a penchant for surgery in the first 17+ rated game to appear in the App Store–mostly for violence and profanity and a lot of references to drugs and drinking. It’s also the first game from Adult Swim, a more complete version of the short, web-based freebie.

The game starts as you accidentally run over a hobo who turns out to be a disgraced doctor. He urges you to slice him open with your pizza cutter and do a little tinkering, and before you know it, you’re on-call for drunks, vagrants, lowlifes, and people who generally aren’t seen in the surgical ward.

You’ll be using your faithful pizza-cutter as a scalpel, your stapler to make stitches, your cigarette lighter to cauterize wounds, along with plenty of other makeshift medical tools. You’ll find out how to use these through trial and error, although there is a rudimentary help screen to give you a few tips. With the pizza-cutter, you’ll trace your finger along a dotted line to make an incision, with the tongs you’ll gently tug out foreign items by slowly dragging your finger across the screen.

However, sometimes the game doesn’t clearly explain how to use complicated items. For instance, you’re supposed to use a corkscrew by gesturing in a circle… but it seems to rarely work. Your patient’s screams will let you know you’re doing something wrong, but you’ll have to point and drag until you find the correct way to advance.

The first few medical tasks include removing bullets, broken glass, and porcupine quills from internal organs with your tongs, but soon you’ll be delving deeper into someone’s innards with a chainsaw in an effort to discover what’s wrong. With 30 different patients to operate on, it provides plenty of gameplay and gets more challenging with each new surgery.

The dialogue is funny, and things like using an Etch-a-Sketch as an x-ray make DIY surgery fun. You’ll find yourself eager to get the next victim, er… patient on the table as quickly as possible.

THE BOTTOM LINE Amateur Surgeon full of the Adult Swim brand of adult humor. It’s a rare entertainment release; comedy and gameplay are equally good. COMPANY: Adult Swim CONTACT: www.adultswim.com PRICE: $4.99 REQUIREMENTS: iPhone or iPod Touch with 2.0 software update.
[via MacLife]