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ASM 2.1b1
Frank Vercruesse
http://asm.vercruesse.de
Reviewed in July 2002
ASM 2 brings OS 9's Applications menu to the right side of OS X’s menu bar and also allows you to show or hide applications. It’s a hands-down great Finder enhancement.
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Backup Toolkit 3.0.5
FWB Software
http://www.fwb.com
Reviewed in May 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/05/reviews/backup
Backup Toolkit works well enough for OS 9 and OS X users who need to save a few critical files to a file server, a backup hard drive, or an iDisk. But you must log on as root to back up and restore everything on an OS X hard drive.
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BatChmod 1.3.1
Arbysoft
http://macchampion.com/arbysoft
Reviewed in July 2002
BatChmod gives you drag-and-drop control over single files and entire folders, but be sure to take the program’s warnings seriously.
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Boot CD 0.2
CharlesSoft
http://www.charlessoft.com
Reviewed in July 2002
Boot CD is ideal for creating a customized emergency startup CD, but it doesn’t provide much documentation.
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Boswell 2.0
Copernican Technologies
http://www.copernican-tech.com
Reviewed in August 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/08/reviews/inbrief
Although laudable improvements have been made since version 1.0 (for example, rewritten documentation), Boswell 2.0 has further to go before it can become the personal librarian it claims to be.
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CelView 3.0.1
Celcorp
http://www.celcorp.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/terminal
CelView’s custom toolbars, file transfer to and from your connected system, and ability to use an older Mac OS make it an appealing terminal emulator for anyone who needs to connect to legacy systems, albeit at a premium price.
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Default Folder 1.6.6
St. Claire Software
http://www.stclairsw.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This application maintains lists of recently visited and favorite folders, and there is nothing else that compares to it in OS X.
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File Buddy 7.1
SkyTag Software
http://www.skytag.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/inbrief
Some may balk at the price, but for what File Buddy does—provide a more efficient way to manipulate files than through the Finder—it’s a good value.
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FruitMenu 3.0
Unsanity
http://www.unsanity.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This thoughtful application fulfills the needs of those dissatisfied with the choices in OS X’s Apple menu.
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Gemini UDS 1.1.6
Snowtide Informatics Systems
http://www.snowtide.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/gemini
The sophisticated capabilities of this Internet search utility aren’t for everyone. If you’re a casual user, free services like Google are enough, but if your work demands wide-ranging Web-based research, Gemini merits strong consideration.
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GraphicConverter 4.5.4
Lemke Software
http://www.lemkesoft.com/us_index.html
Reviewed in July 2002
GraphicConverter is an excellent tool for people who work with different image formats and want high-powered automation features that speed up work on multiple images, but its interface can be a bit dense.
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ImageRodeo 1.3.1
Clyde McQueen
http://www.imagerodeo.com
Reviewed in July 2002
Efficiently and automatically generates Web sites from image collections. Some of its templates include a link to Shutterfly.com’s online print service.
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iPhoto Librarian 1.0
Scott Schroeder
http://www.elgato.com/toastexport
Reviewed in July 2002
Plug-in specializes in burning photos onto a CD, and it does so very well.
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iPhoto Toast Export Plug-in
El Gato Software
http://www.elgato.com/toastexport
Reviewed in July 2002
If you want to get your pictures from iPhoto onto a CD and you own Roxio’s Toast Titanium, you should download iPhoto Toast Export Plugin. Burning photos onto a CD is all this plug-in does, and it does the job well.
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Kick-Off 1.5
Sophisticated Circuits
http://www.sophisticated.com
Reviewed in August 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/08/reviews/kickoff
The Kick-Off is not a casual purchase, but it will bring your computer back online after a power failure and help keep it running.
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LaunchBar 3.2.9
Objective Development
http://www.obdev.at
Reviewed in July 2002
LaunchBar can find any file almost instantly, even if you don’t remember its exact name. It undoubtedly saves you time and sanity.
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MacBreakZ 3.2
Publicspace.net
http://www.publicspace.net
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/inbrief
If you just can’t force yourself away from your Mac, MacBreakZ could be your answer. This utility unobtrusively tracks your keyboard and mouse activity, then reminds you to take breaks.
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MacReporter 1.1.2
Inferiis
http://www.inferiis.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This utility compiles headlines from the Web and places them at your disposal in OS X’s Dock, and it’s easy to use.
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MaxMenus 1.2.2
Proteron
http://www.proteron.com
Reviewed in July 2002
MaxMenus installs customizable menus in the four corners of your Mac’s screen, a smart idea that brings power to your interface
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MOX Optimize 2.0.2
InfoSoft
http://fly.to/infosoft
Reviewed in July 2002
This utility efficiently speeds up your network connection, disables startup files, and deletes unnecessary language-support files to save hard drive space.
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Perfboard 2.1
Pepsan and Associates
http://www.pepsan.com
Reviewed in July 2002
Perfboard efficiently monitors system performance and keeps you informed via a continually updated readout.
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PhotoFix 3.4
Microspot
http://www.electricfish.com
Reviewed in July 2002
It looks and feels like a miniature version of Photoshop. It’s nowhere near as fast or complete, but it will do the trick for many image-manipulation needs—it also makes a nice complement to iPhoto.
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PhotoPress 1.0
ElectricFish
http://a-sharp.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This handy application prints as many as 36 photos per page and has worthwhile and effective tools for cropping and renaming images and building Finder thumbnails.
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Pic2Icon 1.3
Sugar Cube Software
http://www.sugarcubesoftware.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This imaging application makes great 128-by-128-pixel icons for image files so you can browse a folder of images in OS X and see photo-realistic representations of your pictures.
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PixelNhance 1.5
Caffeine Software
http://www.caffeinesoft.com
Reviewed in July 2002
PixelNhance performs basic image enhancement well, making it the perfect complement to iPhoto for the occasional editor.
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PowerKey Pro USB 650
Sophisticated Circuits
http://www.sophisticated.com
Reviewed in August 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/08/reviews/powerkey
This programmable power strip is reliable, flexible, and elegant. Due to its price, the PowerKey may not make sense for home users, but it’s worth every penny to server administrators and others who manage unattended Macs.
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PowerTerm 1.0
Ericom
http://www.ericom.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/terminal
Offering more than a dozen terminal-emulation types, snappy response times, and one-click access to many commands, PowerTerm is an attractive package for a low price, but its lack of file-transfer capabilities and its file-saving quirks weigh against it.
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Pseudo 1.2.3
Brian Hill
http://personalpages.tds.net/~brian_hill
Reviewed in July 2002
Pseudo saves you time when you want to modify a file owned by the root server, plus it’s free.
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SmartWrap 2.2.2
Selznick Scientific Software
http://www.selznick.com
Reviewed in July 2002
SmartWrap efficiently cleans up e-mail text, taking out angle-bracket characters and hard returns. It’s a real time-saver.
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Snapz Pro 2.0 and 1.0
Ambrosia Software
http://www.ambrosiasw.com
Reviewed in July 2002
These utilities are essential for users who frequently need to capture screens; it urther editing in another application almost completely unnecessary.
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Spring Cleaning 5.0
Aladdin Systems
http://www.aladdinsys.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/springcleaning
Aladdin’s uninstaller is helpful, but if you get a little reckless, you’ll lose files your Mac needs. The program can be useful, but we recommend using it with caution.
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Tinker Tool 2.3.2
Marcel Bresink Software-Systeme
http://www.bresink.com/en/
Reviewed in July 2002
This handy application is an excellent key to accessing an assortment of OS X’s hidden preferences.
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Typeset 1.5.3
VizSpring Software
http://www.vizspring.com
Reviewed in September 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/09/reviews/inbrief
This inexpensive and speedy utility is helpful for previewing fonts for home or office projects.
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Watson 1.6.2
Karelia Software
http://www.karelia.com
Reviewed in July 2002
Watson efficiently looks up zip codes, airline schedules, stock prices, and TV listings, and it saves you time.
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WindowShade X 2.1.2
Unsanity
http://www.unsanity.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This one-trick pony performs its great trick well: bringing windowshade functionality to OS X.
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X Font Info 1.0
Vincent Software
http://homepage.mac.com/vjalby
Reviewed in July 2002
It efficiently brings OS 9 capability to OS X when dealing with the contents of a suitcase.
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XRay 1.0
Rainer Brockerhoff
http://www.brockerhoff.net
Reviewed in July 2002
This souped-up version of OS X’s Show Info command has features that make it an excellent utility.
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Zingg 1.2
Rainer Brockerhoff
http://www.brockerhoff.net
Reviewed in July 2002
This utility adds a contextual menu item that lists every application Mac OS thinks can open your document—a great shortcut.
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BBEdit 7.0
Bare Bones Software
http://www.barebones.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/bbedit7
BBEdit continues to be a remarkably powerful text editor for a wide range of users. Most loyal BBEdit users will want this upgrade for its improved text-handling and Web-design capabilities. Those who have never used it and need serious text-manipulation power should definitely give it a try.
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chartConstructor 1.0
headshack
http://www.headshack.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This simple program lets you construct PERT and Gantt charts, but its features don’t compare with those of high-end project-management packages.
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Computer Cuisine Deluxe 3.1
Inaka Software
http://home.pacbell.net/inaka
Reviewed in October 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/10/reviews/inbrief
Computer Cuisine Deluxe lets you catalog recipes with ease, but it’s no joy to use. The recipe cards are larger, improving readability, but the interface is hard to navigate, the default font is tough to read, and the e-mail feature works only with Qualcomm’s Eudora.
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Consistency 1.0
Sciral
http://www.sciral.com
Reviewed in January 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/01/reviews/consistency1
Consistency is an innovative approach to making sure the recurring tasks in your life get done. Although you’ll need to keep Consistency up and running if you want to stay on track, a well-designed tool that keeps us on top of things is worth $20 to us any day.
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CookWare 7.9
Digital Fried Chicken
http://www.digitalfriedchicken.com
Reviewed in October 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/10/reviews/inbrief
CookWare 7.9’s interface is right at home in the Aqua environment, with large, clearly marked buttons for quick navigation of your recipes. It has a field for entering a rating after you’ve tried a recipe, and extra recipes are available via the company’s Web site at an additional cost.
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Dave 4.0
Thursby Software
http://www.thursby.com
Reviewed in February 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/02/reviews/dave4
Dave 4.0 offers great functionality for Mac users on Windows networks who just want to blend in. Smaller, cost-conscious businesses that already use OS X 10.2 may have a tough time justifying its purchase, however.
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Discribe 5.0
Charismac Engineering
http://www.charismac.com
Reviewed in May 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/05/reviews/discribe
The newest version of CD-burning program Discribe has many improvements—including support for OS X and many more drives—but it lacks VCD encoding, and installation in OS 9 is somewhat complicated.
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DiskTracker 2.2.2
Portents
http://www.disktracker.com
Reviewed in April 2003
DiskTracker catalogs any removable media connected to your Mac. The catalogs are searchable by name, date, label, file type, and more. A double-click on a file in the results window will deliver a prompt for the disc or disk containing the file. DiskTracker can even print labels for almost all removable media.
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DragThing 4.5
TLA Systems
http://www.dragthing.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/reviewsinbrief03
The new version of our favorite shareware file launcher is even more OS X savvy than its predecessors. For those who find their desktops littered with aliases or whose Docks are bursting with icons, DragThing can be a great space saver.
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eTraquer 1.5
Network 23 Canada
http://www.network23.ca
Reviewed in July 2002
eTraquer works as an office in-out board for Mac users, but this is all the program does.
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Fax X
Smith Micro
http://www.smithmicro.com
Reviewed in May 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/05/reviews/faxstf
Although it’s easy to use, this program’s limited feature set and unreliable performance make it no replacement for a dedicated fax machine.
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Gimp-Print 4.3.5
Reviewed in April 2003
Gimp-Print is a free, open-source print driver for OS X 10.2 that supports hundereds of older, non-PostScript pritners, including most ink-jets from Epson, Canon, Hewlett-Packard, and Lexmark. The driver works best when printing text and business graphics, but it won’t necessarily support all of a printer’s features.
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Inspiration 7
Inspiration Software
http://www.inspiration.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/inspiration7
If you’ve ever lost a great idea in a brainstorming session’s tsunami, Inspiration 7 will blow you away. It handles the grunt work for you, so you can concentrate on being inspired. The program also earns high marks for its ease of use and excellent visual-representation and chart-drawing features.
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IOXperts 802.11b Driver 1.0.1
IOXperts
http://www.ioxperts.com
Reviewed in December 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/12/reviews/inbrief
IOXperts’ driver lets older PowerBooks join the wireless crowd. It’s especially ideal if you already have a third-party wireless card.
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MacJournal 2.1
Dan Schimpf Software
http://homepage.mac.com/dschimpf
Reviewed in November 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/11/reviews/reviewsinbrief
MacJournal lets you create and modify virtual journals. It’s a model of utility and excellent application design, but printed or exported journals won’t include graphics, and e-mailed entries are buggy.
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Move2Mac
Detto Technologies
http://www.Detto.com
Reviewed in February 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/02/reviews/move2mac
Move2Mac is an unusual program because it’s meant to be used only once—to transfer files and settings from a PC to a Mac. For most people, $60 is a small price to pay for the assistance of this automated computer consultant.
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Norton AntiVirus 8.0.2
Symantec
http://www.symantec.com
Reviewed in November 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/11/reviews/norton
Norton AntiVirus provides the tools necessary to keep your Mac free of viruses, with the exception of PC virus detection. The reponsibility for keeping your definitions up-to-date still rests with you, however.
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Norton Utilities 7.0
Symantec
http://www.symantec.com
Reviewed in October 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/10/reviews/norton
Norton Utilities 7 is a worthwhile addition to a conscientious OS X user’s tool box. There are some shortcomings, though. This version is noticeably slower than version 6 in OS 9, and it installs kernel extensions, which may provoke conflicts.
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Office 2.0
ThinkFree
http://www.thinkfree.com
Reviewed in October 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/10/reviews/thinkfree
If you’re looking for an inexpensive program that lets you tweak Microsoft Office documents, ThinkFree Office is your answer. But if you use MS Office regularly and need most of its features, skip ThinkFree and cough up the money.
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PGP Personal 8.0
PGP Corporation
http://www.pgp.com
Reviewed in April 2003
PGP Personal 8.0 is an excellent and inexpensive solution for those who need to send and receive secure documents or simply protect the contents of files. The rewards for mastering the system are peace of mind and industrial-grade protection.
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Readiris Pro 7
IRIS
http://www.irislink.com
Reviewed in October 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/10/reviews/readiris
Readiris Pro 7 may be fast and easy, but it’s not so good at its most important function, character recognition. Only users with very meager OCR requirements will be satisfied by this program.
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Retrospect Backup 5.0
Dantz Development
http://www.dantz.com
Reviewed in July 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/07/reviews/retrospect
This OS X–compatible version of the Retrospect backup utility is compatible with many types of drives.
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Reunion 8
Leister Productions
http://www.leisterpro.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/reunion8
Reunion 8 is superb. If you’re a novice family historian, you’ll be able to learn the program in a matter of minutes. For current users, OS X compatibility and first-class charting features make it a compelling upgrade. There is no easier way to track your familiy’s history.
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SharePoints 2.0
Michael Horn Software
http://www.obdev.at
Reviewed in July 2002
This utility enhances OS X’s file sharing by letting you set the sharing status of individual folders. You can give a guest access to just your Music or Pictures folder, for example.
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Sharity 2.6
Objective Development
http://www.obdev.at
Reviewed in July 2002
Sharity provides a CIFS browser in the Finder, making browsing and using shared volumes from most versions of Windows easy, but it lacks support within the Classic environment.
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Six Degrees 1.5
Creo
http://www.creo.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/reviewsinbrief03
Six Degrees lets you pinpoint e-mail messages, contact information, and files anywhere on your Mac—even if you don’t remember where you put them, who sent them to you, or their file names. This version takes care of our previous concerns about speed and makes some nifty interface improvements. However, it’s compatible with just one e-mail client (Entourage X), and that keeps it from greatness.
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SnapTalk 2.0
Glass Bead Software
http://www.glassbead.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This instant-messaging program, designed to improve your company’s internal communications, does its job well.
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Speed Download 1.96
YazSoft
http://www.yazsoft.com
Reviewed in July 2002
This program efficiently accelerates your downloads by opening multiple connections to the download site and then joining the resulting pieces.
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StuffIt Deluxe 7
Aladdin Systems
http://www.aladdinsys.com
Reviewed in January 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/01/reviews/stuffit
StuffIt Deluxe 7 provides highly secure data encryption, better compression, and terabyte archive sizes, making it a good update. However, if you’re not compressing huge files or making sure your data is secure, the latest StuffIt Expander may suffice.
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Ten for X 1.0.2
Aladdin Systems
http://www.aladdinsys.com
Reviewed in April 2003
Ten for X is actually 12 utilities for OS X. Some are programs provide features that disappeared in OS X (WindowShade X, for example), others make it easier to work under the OS X hood. You probably don’t need all 12, but if you use OS X for more than an hour a day, you’ll find three or four must-have utilities.
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Virtual PC 6.0
Microsoft
http://www.microsoft.com
Reviewed in April 2003
This release doesn’t make Windows emulation on the Mac much faster, just a little better. Integration with the OS X Dock and desktop mounting of disk images are nice additions. The performance of ACT, AvantGo, and Microsoft Visio Enterprise was perfectly acceptable on our Quicksilver G4.
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VisualRoute 7.0
Visualware
http://www.visualware.com
Reviewed in March 2003
http://www.macworld.com/2003/03/reviews/visualroute7
VisualRoute combines three tried-and-true analysis tools—ping, whois, and traceroute—to help you track down invaders and spammers. It can save you time and provides information in easy-to-read tabular and map formats. It’s a real deal.
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WeatherPop Advance 1.5
Glucose Development
http://www.glu.com
Reviewed in November 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/11/reviews/reviewsinbrief
WeatherPop puts weather information in your OS X menu bar. It connects to the Internet to retrieve the latest data; however, the data sources can be unreliable. Still, for those interested in what’s going on outside, WeatherPop is addictive.
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Who’s There Firewall Advisor 1.2
Open Door Networks
http://www.opendoor.com
Reviewed in November 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/11/reviews/reviewsinbrief
Version 1.2 of this tool for firewall-log analysis adds support for OS X’s built-in ipfw Unix firewall
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Workstrip X
SoftChaos
http://www.softchaos.com
Reviewed in November 2002
http://www.macworld.com/2002/11/reviews/workstripx
Designed to replace the Dock in OS X, WorkStrip X promises simplicity and efficiency. Before it can deliver, you’ll need to spend a significant amount of time setting it up and experimenting with its features.
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