I never miss an opportunity to learn more about Applescript and extending my applications in ways the developers never considered. I also work in text files for all of my notes.
Background At home I'm on my Mac with Notational Velocity and Omnifocus close at hand. However, at work, I use a windows machine with Resophnotes. Resophnotes is a wonderful Simplenote client that is as close as you can get to Notational Velocity on Windows.
I'd like to posit a thesis that I have rarely heard about Apple. Apple understands that their market potential lies in their consumer advocacy.
Apple is often criticized by media producers for their self serving decisions that often hurt pre-established business models. It started with the music industry crying foul over Apple's insistence on $0.99 per track. Later, Apple was criticized about the lock down of the iOS platform and advertising system.
I've written about Hazel before. It is the more successful big brother of Apple's Folder Actions. Here's an example from Practically Efficient of integrating with Hazel for automatic file organization. What I particularly like about this example is the use of TextExpander to quickly rename files with the date and triggers needed for Hazel. This trick is being added to my list of every expanding time saving shortcuts.
I use Omnigraffle on a regular basis. I primarily use it as a tool to accompany Pages and Keynote. I use Omnigraffle to build custom graphics and icons for presentations and reports. I also recognize that I use a small fraction of it's power, but Omnigraffle is an incredibly deep application with many uses. I love this example from Dr. Drang.
I bought into the Simplenote world from the moment I read John Gruber rave about it. Since then I have relied heavily on the Simplenote platform for both personal and professional note taking and list making. The beauty of Simplenote lies in its unique restriction to plain text. I have been tempted by the luxuriousness that is Evernote. However, after a brief project to extract all of my notes from Evernote into a file structure that would outlive the hosted service, I realized that there was safety in simplicity.
SimplicityIsBliss has some very helpful info. It's new to me but is now in my short list of feeds for useful Mac information. There is particularly heavy attention paid to Omnifocus but in a good way.
Dropbox (referral link) is the service that Mobile Me should have been. Apple really missed the mark with MobileMe especially in the file syncing arena. Innovation does not tolerate a vacuum or even a partial suck. Dropbox filled that void nicely and the ubiquitous integration with iOS apps has made it indispensable. That's one reason I am a happy paying customer.
If I pay for a service, it's usually because I am deriving significant value from it.
OmniFocus from Windows
There's no doubt that OmniFocus by the Omni Group is the quintessential mac app. It's elegant, easy to use and simply makes work easier. It has nearly solved the digital ubiquitous capture problem. It's an iPhone app, it's an iPad app, it's desktop app, it's a whipped topping. Unfortunately it is not a windows app (yet).I spend most of my work hours on a Windows machine. I have developed a couple of rountines that allow me to integrate OmniFocus with my workflow on Windows.
Hazel by Noodlesoft is a really fantastic little helper application. It's really what folder actions should have been. It's the rare example of how Apple missed the target and an independent developer really nailed it.
I'm going to skip the Hazel tutorial and get right to the main show. I wanted a system for ripping DVD's of all kinds. Typically this is a manual process where I rip a disk image to my harddrive and then extract the video at the appropriate resolution.
It's an interesting dichotomy. As screens get larger and resolutions higher, screen real-estate gets more valuable. There's been a dramatic uptick in the number of native OS features on both Mac and Windows to provide tools for maximizing a workspace. Windows has window snapping. OSX has Spaces. Recently there has also been a variety of new utility applications for OSX that provide some additional assistance in moving and resizing your workspace windows.
