2009
12.04
Google launched a DNS resolving service called Google Public DNS that uses Google’s infrastructure to improve page loading time. A DNS resolver converts domain names into IP addresses and this process might slow down browsing.
Google’s privacy page says that the full IP addresses are deleted within 48 hours and Google does not permanently store personally identifiable information. “We built Google Public DNS to make the web faster and to retain as little information about usage as we could, while still being able to detect and fix problems.”
Point your DNS settings at 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 to make use of this new service.
2009
12.02
Ok i’m not sure how I managed to miss this gem but anyway. I use the brilliant application (and everything else) launcher Quicksilver. Now there have been problems in compatibility with Snow Leopard (10.6) which for me at least have been sorted. Nicholas Jitkoff, the developer of Quicksilver, recently moved on to work for Google and he’s been busy.
Enter Google Quick Search box, a reduced functionality version of Quicksilver, themed with Google’s standard look and feel. it pretty much encompasses everything i used to do in Quicksilver an has integration with Google Mail/Google Apps and Twitter. So for now it replaces Quicksilver on my system. I don’t feel quite as bad since the same guy developed it.
2009
11.30
Today Apple have released the latest Snow Leopard update (10.6.2) citing the following changes:
The 10.6.2 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard and includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac, including fixes for:
- an issue that might cause your system to logout unexpectedly
- a graphics distortion in Safari Top Sites
- Spotlight search results not showing Exchange contacts
- a problem that prevented authenticating as an administrative user
- issues when using NTFS and WebDAV file servers
- the reliability of menu extras
- an issue with the 4-finger swipe gesture
- an issue that causes Mail to quit unexpectedly when setting up an Exchange server
- Address Book becoming unresponsive when editing
- a problem adding images to contacts in Address Book
- an issue that prevented opening files downloaded from the Internet
- Safari plug-in reliability
- general reliability improvements for iWork, iLife, Aperture, Final Cut Studio, MobileMe, and iDisk
- an issue that caused data to be deleted when using a guest account
In addition to this we have updates to safari (4.0.4):
This update is recommended for all Safari users and includes improvements to performance, stability, and security including:
- Improved JavaScript performance
- Improved Full History Search performance for users with a large number of history items
- Stability improvements for 3rd-party plug-ins, the search field and Yahoo! Mail
iPhoto (8.1.1):
This update addresses issues affecting face recognition performance and accuracy. It also fixes minor issues in the areas of book ordering, and iPod touch support.
And finally bluetooth firmware (2.0.1):
This update provides bug fixes and better compatibility with the Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard. It installs on all Macintosh systems with Bluetooth based on the Broadcom chipset.
2009
11.26
Textmate doesn’t support code completion for PHP out of the box so here are the instructions for getting the PHP code completion bundle from macromates. Some of the instructions online are currently outdated.
So lets get started. To download and install the bundle please follow these instructions.
- Open Terminal
- Run the following commands
mkdir -p /Library/Application\ Support/TextMate/Bundles
cd /Library/Application\ Support/TextMate/Bundles
svn co http://svn.textmate.org/trunk/Bundles/PHP.tmbundle
And that’s it. Crack open textmate and check that it’s worked. Create a new PHP file and type the first few letters of a php function followed by escape. ⌥ F1 will give you some useful usage documentation.
Have fun 
2009
11.23
In order to get google maps to orient the map to your current direction, simply hit the GPS fix button again. It’s not very well documented but simple when you know how.
[updated] and before everyone tries to work out where I was. Starbucks of course.
2009
11.19
For now I have to say none. I’ve only tested the app from ALK at the moment but with the amount of cash these boys are brining in on a daily basis they could at least do some work! We still don’t have live traffic information apart from Navigon. But then again Navigon can’t even be bothered to theme their screenshots in English!
I do like Co Pilot, mainly because of the price. I’m sure if Tom Tom dropped their price they’d be no stopping them. For now their are in it for the investors.
Unless I’m navigating to somewhere i’ve never been, google have the best solution for giving you what you want. Google Maps is my constant companion for my daily commute down the M62. It’s saved me hours! Come on guys, spend some of that cash making these apps better instead of recycling.
On a side note, the Tom Tom cradle with Google Maps is amazing!
2009
11.11
Orange have finally announced their tariffs the iPhone 3GS and i have to say i’m pretty unimpressed. You would have expected them to at least make an attempt to make the deal sweeter compared to o2. They are pretty much equalling o2 price for price on each of the tariffs. Savings of a meagre 11p on the £34.26 (24 month) tariff and 48p on the equivalent 18 month. Makes me hope they include tethering or something like that for free – but you know they won’t.
Come on vodafone – make us smile. The word is out, you know what to do.
2009
11.11
I’m almost leaning towards handing things in spreadsheets to be honest. Free Agent looks and functions great but i can’t help feeling it’s a little over the top for a freelancer with an accountant. Surely that’s what i’m paying him for?
Free Agent has many great features but also does a lot of calculation in the backend for VAT returns and such. Without the import of expenses that would mean i would need to also spend time each month entering my expenses twice. Sure i could right an import using their API but do i really need it?
£25/month is a lot too. You’re talking £300 a year on a piece of software designed to compete with the likes of Sage Instant Accounts. Now don’t get me wrong, i’m all for web apps over desktop software but this really is stretching the model. Most web app accounting software either includes a free limited version or is much cheaper. £300/month would buy me a PC and sage so i don’t need to run it on my mac!
The search continues….
2009
11.02
I’m currently reviewing a few invoicing, expenses and account management tools for dealing with company accounts. I’ve started work as an IT freelancer so I need to be able to manage all my expenses and invoicing. There are plenty of tools out there but the majority are US based apps and have fairly limited support for the UK. You can change the currency on all of them but as yet i’ve only found that Xero supports everything including UK vat returns and general tax goodness.
It’s a tricky subject for a startup. I have an accountant so I don’t really want to duplicate work which he will do, so i’m not sure that xero ticks the right boxes. It will allow me to do everything BUT will it allow me to do too much? One of the main issues I have is that xero doesn’t allow importing of expense claims. I use an app called iXpenseIt for recording all of my expenses which could be 3-4 a day. Over a month this can be a lot of data input.
Maybe I should just use speadsheets and a dedicated invoicing solution such as Harvest. Only time will tell but i’ll keep you updated since I know this can be a confusing area. Especially knowing what your accountant needs and how to keep on top of it.
