<div id="popup_box_thanks" style="display:none" onClick="close_popup_thanks('popup_box_thanks', 'ts')"><br>Thanks for submitting your tip! All submissions are moderated by an editor before appearing online. We've reset the form so you can enter another tip. Or you can close the tip submission box. <div class="x_close" id="thanks_upper_right"><a href="javascript:void(0)" onmousedown="close_popup_thanks('popup_box_thanks', 'ts'); return true;">Close</a></div></div>
<div class="tbf_row"><div class="tbf_wide_extra_top not_bold">Please submit only technical tips that will help other TidBITS readers better use their Macs, iPhones, and related software and hardware. All product announcements should be sent to <a href="mailto:releases@tidbits.com">releases@tidbits.com</a>.</div></div>
<div class="tbf_left">URL</div><div class="tbf_right"><input type="text" value="" name="tip_link_url" tabindex="3"><span class="tip_description"><br>Enter the URL to a Web page that supports your tip.</span></div>
</div>
<div class="spacer"></div>
<div class="tbf_row">
<div class="tbf_left">Linked text</div><div class="tbf_right"><input type="text" value="" name="tip_link_label" tabindex="4"><span class="tip_description"><br>Enter the name of the page linked above.</span></div>
<div class="tbf_wide"><input type="submit" value="Preview Your Tip" name="preview_tip" onClick="fill_preview('tipbits_enclosure_preview', 'ts', this.form); return false;" tabindex="7"> <input type="submit" value="Send Us Your Tip!" name="submit_this_tip" onClick="handle_tip_submission('ts', '', this.form, 'tip'); return false;" tabindex="8"></div>
</div>
<div class="spacer"></div>
<div class="tbf_row">
<div class="tbf_wide"><span class="fine_print">When you submit a tip, you give us permission to use it. Read <a href="javascript:void(0)" onClick="generic_show_hide('tip_terms')">our terms</a> for more details. All submissions are reviewed before publication.</span></div>
<div class="tbf_wide"><span class="fine_print">Our terms: By submitting a tip, you agree to assign TidBITS Publishing Inc., a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual license to reproduce, publish, and distribute your tip in connection with the TidBITS Web site and associated products in any media. You agree that you created the content you submitted, and that you have the right to assign us this license. You give us permission to use your name, but your email address won't be publicly displayed or shared. We review all submissions before publication, and reserve the right to select which submissions we feel are appropriate for our readers and to edit those we publish.</span></div>
<div id="comment_thanks" style="display:none" onClick="close_popup_thanks('comment_thanks', 'comm')"><br>Thanks for submitting a comment! Please check your email for a link that, when clicked, will verify that you're a real person and cause your comment to appear immediately. <div class="x_close" id="comment_upper_right"><a href="javascript:void(0)" onmousedown="close_popup_thanks('comment_thanks', 'comm'); return true;">Close</a></div></div>
<div class="tbf_wide"><span class="fine_print">Our terms: We reserve the right to edit or delete any comment, so please post thoughtfully. We use your email address <i>only</i> to send you a one-time verification message confirming that you posted this comment. We also store your address to allow you to verify using other Web browsers in the future. For more info, see our <a href="http://db.tidbits.com/privacy.html">privacy policy</a>.</span></div>
<li><a href="/feeds/tidbits.rss" title="Subscribe via RSS" class="gettb">RSS <img src="/images/feed-icon-12x12.gif" width="12" height="12" border="0" class="nav_img" alt="Subscribe via RSS"></a></li>
<li><a href="http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=276986548" title="Subscribe to the podcast" class="gettb">Podcast <img src="/images/feed-icon-12x12_podcast.gif" width="12" height="12" border="0" class="nav_img" alt="Subscribe to the postcast"></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.twitter.com/TidBITS" title="Get Article Updates via Twitter" class="gettb">Twitter <img src="/images/feed_icon_12x12_twitter.png" width="12" height="12" border="0" class="nav_img" alt="Get Article Updates via Twitter"></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/TidBITS/195314925519" title="Go to the TidBITS Page at Facebook" class="gettb">Facebook <img src="/images/feed_icon_12x12_facebook.gif" width="12" height="12" border="0" class="nav_img" alt="Go to the TidBITS Page at Facebook"></a></li>
<li><a href="javascript:void(0)" title="Sections" class="tabhead" onClick="return showhide('articleslist')">Sections <span id="articleslist_triangle"><img src="/images/nav_triangle_open.gif" width="9" height="9" border="0" class="navtriangle" id="articleslist_tri_image" alt="Click to show or hide the contents of this section."></span></a></li>
<li><a href="javascript:void(0)" onClick="return showhide('stafflist')" title="Staff" class="tabhead">Staff <span id="stafflist_triangle"><img src="/images/nav_triangle_closed.gif" width="9" height="9" border="0" class="navtriangle" id="stafflist_tri_image" alt="Click to show or hide the contents of this section."></span></a></li>
<li><a href="javascript:void(0)" title="Issues" class="tabhead" onClick="return showhide('issuelist')">Weekly Issues <span id="issuelist_triangle"><img src="/images/nav_triangle_closed.gif" width="9" height="9" border="0" class="navtriangle" id="issuelist_tri_image" alt="Click to show or hide the contents of this section."></span></a></li>
<li><a href="javascript:void(0)" onClick="return showhide('abouttidbits')" title="About TidBITS" class="tabhead">About TidBITS <span id="abouttidbits_triangle"><img src="/images/nav_triangle_closed.gif" width="9" height="9" border="0" class="navtriangle" id="abouttidbits_tri_image" alt="Click to show or hide the contents of this section."></span></a></li>
<div class="center_top">Thoughtful, detailed coverage of the Mac, iPhone, and iPad, plus the best-selling <a href="http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/?pt=TB-TAGLINE" style="color:yellow">Take Control</a> ebooks.</div>
<!-- begin centercolumn -->
<div id="centercolumn">
<!-- begin rightcolumn_container -->
<div id="rightcolumn_container">
<!-- begin rightcolumn -->
<!-- rightcolumn is embedded within centercolumn so featured text wraps around it -->
</div><!-- end tearoffbox_wide_container for watchlist items -->
<!-- begin tearoff box wide -->
<div class="tearoffbox_wide_container">
<div class="tearoffbox_wide_tips">
<div class="tip_display">
<div class="tips_sponsor_logo">
</div>
<h6>Quickly Mail a Link in Safari</h6>
<p><p>Reading a Web page in Safari and want to send the URL to a friend via email? Simply press Command-Shift-I to open a new email message with the Web page title as the Subject line and the Web page URL in the message body.</p></p>
</div>
<div class="tearoffbox_wide_bottom_tips">
<div style="padding-bottom:35px"><div class="tip_display" style="float:left"><p><br><a href="/tipbits/159">Link to this tip</a></p></div><div class="tip_display" style="float:right; width:150px">
<div class="tbf_wide_80" id="hc_rc_4378">To help us avoid automated posts and misuse of our site, please enter the words below.</div><div class="x_close_row" id="hc_upper_right2_4378"><a href="javascript:void(0)" onmousedown="HidePopupContent('hc_4378', 'hc', '4378'); return true;">Close</a></div>
<div class="featured_meta"><div class="meta_article">14 Dec 1999 | <a href="/article/5716?print_version=1">Print <span class="shift_up"><img src="/images/printer_icon.gif" alt="Printer-Friendly Version of This Article" border="0" width="9" height="10"></span></a></div></div>
<div id="article_box_4378"><P><STRONG>Put Time on Your Side</STRONG> -- We could definitely use a gift of free time, but in the meantime Fred Miller <<A HREF="mailto:fmiller@theriver.com">fmiller@theriver.com</A>> suggests using MultiTimer Pro to track the time you're currently using. "For people wanting or needing to keep track of time spent on any project, from school papers to household computer tasks to client tracking, this is an easy to use valuable shareware program that is worth the $30."</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.ironsoftware.com/MultiTimerPro.html">http://www.ironsoftware.com/MultiTimerPro.html</A>></P><P><STRONG>Backup Backup Backup</STRONG> -- Phil Lefebvre <<A HREF="mailto:p-lefebvre@nwu.edu">p-lefebvre@nwu.edu</A>> shares our beliefs about maintaining a good backup system. "Retrospect ($150) or Retrospect Express ($50) from Dantz Development is one of those things that everyone should buy when they first get a computer, but usually only buy after a painful lesson. Save them the lesson." Read our series or articles on backup if you need more convincing.</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.dantz.com/">http://www.dantz.com/</A>><BR><<A HREF="http://db.tidbits.com/series/1041">http://db.tidbits.com/series/1041</A>></P><P><STRONG>First Aid Anywhere</STRONG> -- Bob Williams <<A HREF="mailto:bob@trivectus.com">bob@trivectus.com</A>> suggests buying a gift that can also turn out to be a gift to yourself. "If you help friends or family when they have Mac problems, get them Netopia's HouseCall. Buy them the Patient, then whenever there are problems, you can work on them from the comfort of your own home or office using the Doctor (which is free). As I prepare to move to the other side of the country, buying several copies for folks was one the first things I did to prepare." Jeff Carlson reviewed HouseCall for us in <A HREF="http://www.tidbits.com/tb-issues/TidBITS-493.html">TidBITS-493</A>.</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.netopia.com/software/tb2/mac/housecall/">http://www.netopia.com/software/tb2/mac/ housecall/</A>><BR><<A HREF="http://db.tidbits.com/article/05509">http://db.tidbits.com/article/05509</A>></P><P><STRONG>Type in Your Style</STRONG> -- David Huston <<A HREF="mailto:dhuston@drfast.net">dhuston@drfast.net</A>> recommends Strider Software's TypeStyler for the amateur art director on your list. "I am a big fan of TypeStyler, which has been revived from its former Apple IIgs days of glory. It allows you to create almost all the special type effects the pros use for printing and Web use easily and instantly. It will save your files in practically every known format. If you want to add immediate eye appeal to your documents or Web sites, with a minimal learning curve (a couple hours at most), then this is an ideal application."</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.typestyler.com/">http://www.typestyler.com/</A>></P><P><STRONG>Like, Colors, Wow</STRONG> -- For artists or anyone looking for a legal hallucinogen, Peter Miller <<A HREF="mailto:peter@perpetualocean.com">peter@perpetualocean.com</A>> writes, "I highly recommend Eric Wenger's ArtMatic, a very cool (and very inspirational) complex image generator. Graphic artists and animators could probably even get productive with it!"</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.artmatic.com/">http://www.artmatic.com/</A>></P><P><STRONG>Mac Macro Might</STRONG> -- Fredrik Jonsson <<A HREF="mailto:frjo@pobox.com">frjo@pobox.com</A>> writes, "I would like to recommend the macro program KeyQuencer, by Alessandro Levi Montalcini. A good macro program is very important factor for my productivity. With it I can adjust my Mac to a great extent, and adapt it to me instead of the opposite." For more about KeyQuencer, see Matt Neuburg's "KeyQuencer - QuicKeys Quencher?" in <A HREF="http://www.tidbits.com/tb-issues/TidBITS-351.html">TidBITS-351</A>.</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.binarysoft.com/kqmac/kqmac.html">http://www.binarysoft.com/kqmac/kqmac.html</A>><BR><<A HREF="http://db.tidbits.com/article/00838">http://db.tidbits.com/article/00838</A>></P><P><STRONG>A Second Look at OneClick</STRONG> -- Christian Heurich <<A HREF="mailto:christian@heurich.com">christian@heurich.com</A>> writes, "Whether you used OneClick in the past and despaired at version 1.x's incompatibility with Mac OS 8.5 and higher - or if you've never used OneClick at all - I would like to recommend OneClick 2.0. OneClick is a scriptable macro utility that's compatible with current versions of the Mac OS, and there are many authors contributing their add-ons and utilities to WestCode Software's efforts. The constantly growing source of useful component additions is one of the stellar aspects of OneClick. It offers additional ease of use, utility, flexibility, and extensibility to a great tool - the Macs you use. Hey, it works." For a review of OneClick and more thoughts about macro programs in general, see our article series "Mac Macros."</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.westcodesoft.com/">http://www.westcodesoft.com/</A>><BR><<A HREF="http://db.tidbits.com/series/1044">http://db.tidbits.com/series/1044</A>></P><P><STRONG>Tip for Taps</STRONG> -- Allan Moult <<A HREF="mailto:allan@ghostgum.com">allan@ghostgum.com</A>> writes, "Here's a lifesaver gift for anyone using a PowerBook with a trackpad: TapGuard ($5 shareware). Although I love using the PowerBook G3, there's one frustrating aspect - it's too easy to tap the trackpad accidentally with your thumb or shirt sleeve and select a swath of data that gets deleted with the next keystroke. TapGuard makes your computer ignore the trackpad clicks if you've pressed a key in the last one-sixth of a second. This is typically plenty of time to trap any unwanted clicks. When TapGuard ignores a click, the menu bar flashes."</P><P><<A HREF="http://poseur.com/tapguard/">http://poseur.com/tapguard/</A>></P><P><STRONG>Looking Down from Above</STRONG> -- The SETI@home project uses computer processing time to search for life in outer space, but Ed Holloman <<A HREF="mailto:holloman@airmail.net">holloman@airmail.net</A>> suggests a method for peering at the goings-on at home. "I found a cool screen saver called Planet Earth from Lunar Software, which displays a three dimensional model of the earth with real-time night shadows and clouds. It can be set to display a pop-up when you pass the cursor over a city, displaying the name and local time (the longitude and latitude are also available). Planet Earth comes with a database of cities, and you can add your own locations - I added the North Pole so I'll know when Santa is about to leave and whether he'll be delayed due to cloud cover." Planet Earth is $30 shareware.</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.lunarsoft.com/planetearth/">http://www.lunarsoft.com/planetearth/</A>></P><P><STRONG>No. More. Staggered. Speech?</STRONG> Bob Williams <<A HREF="mailto:bob@trivectus.com">bob@trivectus.com</A>> writes, "Two words: voice dictation. IBM's new ViaVoice would make a wonderful gift for anyone who does a lot of text entry, or suffers from RSI symptoms. It also includes an active noise-cancelling headset/microphone." Although it's a brand new product without a track record, there's no denying the appeal of continuous speech recognition on the Mac!</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.ibm.com/software/speech/">http://www.ibm.com/software/speech/</A>><BR><<A HREF="http://db.tidbits.com/article/05703">http://db.tidbits.com/article/05703</A>></P><P><STRONG>Tight Genes</STRONG> -- David G. Kanter <<A HREF="mailto:david@kanters.com">david@kanters.com</A>> writes: "I'll endorse Leister Production's $90 Reunion 6 for the Mac for any Mac user who is either already bitten by the genealogy bug or considering jumping into the genealogy fray. Reunion 6 remains a brilliant, made-for-the-Mac product that help you organize family information and produce a wide-range of charts and reports that you can tailor to your needs. Although Reunion is easy to use and its default settings serve most users, the program is also extremely flexible. Even genealogy veterans using another program should look at Reunion - it can import and export data using the GEDCOM format, so sharing data with others is usually an easy process."</P><P><<A HREF="http://www.leisterpro.com/">http://www.leisterpro.com/</A>></P><!-- 1999 Software Gift Ideas Adam C. Engst --></div>
<!-- end article text -->
<!-- PayBITS -->
<p> </p><div class="sponsorbox">
<div class="sponsortext"><A HREF="http://markspace.com/bits?source=tidbits"><IMG SRC="http://db.tidbits.com/images/badges/mark-space.gif" ALT="" HEIGHT="50" WIDTH="50" BORDER="0" ALIGN="left"></A>SYNC YOUR PHONE with The Missing Sync: Sync your calendar,<br />address book, music, photos and much more between your phone<br />and Mac. Supports ANDROID, BLACKBERRY, PALM PRE and many<br />other phones. <<a href="http://markspace.com/bits?source=tidbits">http://www.markspace.com/bits</a>></div>
