Monday, December 1, 2008

Must have applications for a new mac

For all my new Mac friends a few (free) programs I can't live without:

istat pro- everything that's going on with you Mac from disk storage to fan speeds to temperature.

Screenshots- This has to be my most used app. It allows you to set what format a screenshot is taken in (screenshots are Shift + command + 4 for you new guys, you can then hit space bar to take that whole window). From jpeg to PDF to GIF to TIFF. This is especially helpful since many programs don't especially love Mac's default of PNG.

Flip4Mac- This is one of those programs people get early on and then forget they have. It's crucial allowing you to view windows media player files natively in quicktime. This allows quicktime to truly be your all in one media player.

OpenOffice- For any kind of power user I'd recommend getting iWork to meet all of your presentation, word processing and spreadsheet needs however for the casual home computer open office is awesome. It allows you to open and create word, excel, PowerPoint and access files. It even looks just like the older versions of MS office so PC users will feel really comfortable.

Version Tracker- Okay so not a program but it's the one site that I get almost everything for my Mac for free. Anytime you want anything stop here first. Most likely someone has made it and made it freeware.

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