Ubersicht is an OS X utility that allows you to display dynamic (or static) content on your desktop. In the screenshot below I have some static content for a color palette and Git commit standards; all text being selectable. Possibly more interesting though are the other widgets that are always changing. Take the two Strava widgets at the bottom of the screen. One widget allows me to quickly see how my 2016 cycling compares to 2015 and the other just displays some key data from the current year.

ImageOptim is a fantastic utility to reduce the size of your images without impacting image quality1. I use it both for my web and iOS work, but it was not until today that I made it even better. My Old Workflow Save whatever image I was working on to some folder Open ImageOptim Drag the image onto ImageOptim canvas ImageOptim does its work I move the optimized image to its final destination My New Workflow Save whatever image I was working on to an “optimize” folder Hazel automatically moves to an “optimized” folder Hazel automatically kicks off ImageOptim and it optimizes the image I move the optimized image to its final destination My responsibilities went from four steps to two; a 50% reduction.

In my previous post, Apps I will install on New MacBook Air, I highlight the apps that I intended on installing on my new MacBook Air. It has now been 30 days since I first laid hands on the new system, so what better time to report what I REALLY installed. Before Dropbox it could take a couple of days to get a new computer set up with all of your goodies.

In a previous post, What Would You Buy First?, I highlight the apps I would buy first if I had to start all over today. In this post I will outline the apps I will be installing on a new MacBook Air that arrives today. One data point to note: I am cutting my drive space in half (to 256GB), so this list may be slightly different if it were a new iMac.

Today Ben Brooks posted his list of apps he would buy first if he had to start all over again. So why not join in on that fun? My list of apps I would buy first: Dropbox - duh Backblaze - backup computer and 2 Drobos 1Password - manage all passwords Aperture - photo management and editing OmniFocus - manage my tasks OmniGraffle - draw pretty pictures (I’m a software architect) Sparrow - Gmail client Reeder - RSS reader TextMate - robust text editor FontCase - manage my font fetish LittleSnapper - take/manage screenshots Acorn - cheap, lightweight image editor (I no longer use Adobe Photoshop even though I have CS5) Alfred - launcher/productivity app TextExpander - excellent timesaver, just get it SuperDuper!

We are all very, very busy these days. We fill our time with work, friends, and family. Any spare time we fill with hobbies, TV, and of course the Internet. Many of these activities lead to consuming and generating copious amounts of digital content as I have mentioned before. It is the generating of so much digital content that is overwhelming to me. It leads to more time to manage the content.

I really like how Jon Hicks handles comments on Hicksdesign. Instead of allowing direct comments on his blog he provides a link that pre-populates a tweet. I’m not a fan of blog comments and many agree. Alex Payne states why best: For most sites, though, comments are worse than useless. The anonymity of the Internet inspires hit-and-run attacks, unintelligible ramblings, and truckloads of spam. So I wanted to implement a similar feature on this site.