Written on January 17th, 2008 at 12:01 am by Darren Rowse

14 Essential Mac OS X Applications for Bloggers

Blogging Tools and Services 90 comments

A number of blogging friends have recently made the switch from using PCs to using Macs as their primary blogging machines.

Each time that one of them makes the move I tend to get an email or call a day or two later asking for advice on different applications to help with their blogging. Lately I’ve been saving my recommendations and have compiled them into a single email. I thought that I’d share it here on the blog also as I know many of you are Mac users.

Of course some of these 14 applications (not listed in any particular order) are not exclusive to Mac users - but hopefully it’ll give a little insight into the type of tools that I’m using.

1. ecto

Ecto-1ecto is one of those tools that just clicked for me when I started using it. It is a desktop blogging tool that allows you to get posts up on multiple blogs without having to log in to the back end of your blog. It works with most blog platforms and allows you to blog offline, drag and drop images into posts plus lots more. ecto is currently at version 2.4.2 with a beta test of ecto 3 currently in progress (I’ve only just downloaded it but it looks great). MarsEdit - is another Mac based desktop blogging tool that you might want to consider. It has a very similar feature list to ecto and I’d probably use it if I wasn’t already hooked on the workflow that I’ve established.

2. ImageWell

Icon ImagewellMy blogging changed the day I installed ImageWell. I use it to create most of the images that you see here on ProBlogger. It’s fantastic taking an image, doing quick crops, adding words, putting shadows around images, taking them and making them have curved corners etc. Sure you can do this in Photoshop - but ImageWell is much lighter weight, quick to use and is easy to use.

3. Skitch

Skitch Still in an invite only beta (although I only had to wait one day to get the invite) Skitch is a tool that I see having the potential to replace ImageWell. It allows you to edit and even create images that can be used for illustrative or attention grabbing purposes on your blog. Start with an image and draw on it, at words, arrows etc - or use it for screen capturing or even snapping a quick shot of your self with iSight. It also allows you to host your images on Skitch.com and share them with your friends.

4. Twhirl

TwhirlI’ve been getting more and more into Twitter of late. I use it to connect with readers, promote my latest posts (some of my readers use it now instead of RSS to follow my blogs), share links to posts that I’ve been reading that I like (I’m doing most of my ’speedlinking’ in Twitter now etc. Twhirl is a client that allows you to Twitter from your desktop which means you never have to actually visit Twitter itself to use it. I find that this makes me much more active as a Twitterer. Another similar tool is Twitterrific. Alternatively you might like to use a tool like Tweetbar (a Firefox sidebar Add-on).

5. Flickr Uploader

FlickruploadriconFlickr is not something that I use a lot these days for hosting images - but when I used to do more of it this was a tool that I used every day. It syncs well with iPhoto and gets your shots up loaded in a flash.

6. CyberDuck

Cyberduck. The first FTP browser that I ever downloaded and the only one that I’ve ever needed to use. It’s so simple to use even a complete tech dunce like me can use it. The other FTP client that I’ve tried a few times is Transmit it’s great too and I’d probably be using it if I were not already used to CyberDuck.

7. InstantShot

InstantshotInstantShot is a screenshot application. While OSX’s screen capture shortcuts are useful - an application like InstantShot has a few more useful features. It sits nicely up in your top menu bar - ready for instantaneous use. Other screen shot applications that I’ve played with include QuickSnap, Paparazzi and SnapNDrag.

8. CaptureMe

CapturemeiIf you want to capture videos of what you’re doing on your screen then CaptureMe is a tool worth considering. I’ve been using it a bit more lately - particularly in a few of my recent video posts. It’s no Camtasia (not that they have a Mac version) but It’s a good quick option if you want to grab snippets of video. Two other screencasting tools that I’ve got on my list to check out are iShowU and SnapzProX. I’ve heard good things about each but still hear regular calls from bloggers to Camtasia to get a product released for Mac users.

9. Adium

AdiumAdium is a great little instant messaging client that allows you to use a variety of instant messaging networks all in the one place. I have it set up for MSN, AOL, Yahoo and Jabber. It’s said to have video coming soon which will make it even more useful. I just wish it’d do skype too and I’d never need another IM client.

10. Skype

SkypeSkype has become an essential part of my life. I am on it more than almost any other application in this list. I use it primarily as an IM network but also for voice and video chat (both for work and personal use with family overseas). Skype’s one of the most essential tools that we use at b5media and it must have saved us many thousands of dollars in bills over the last couple of years. We do all of our team meetings on it and hold weekly blogger chats with many bloggers at a time.

11. Firefox

FirefoxFirefox has become such a central part of my workflow that I barely remembered to include it in this list. Tabbed browsing changed my blogging workflow completely and Firefox does it better than Safari in my mind. Add to that the multitude of Add-ons available for it and I can’t see any other browser capturing my loyalty for some time yet.

12. TextEdit

TexteditSometimes it is the most simple things that get used the most. I’m actually writing the first draft of this very post in TextEdit - the text editor that comes with Mac OSX. While I know there are plenty of other sexier text editing tools out there - I can’t find one that is more useable than TextEdit - so I stick with it. I use it to write posts, brainstorm, list my ‘to do’ items and much more. WriteRoom is another writing tool that I know many use - it makes your full screen a writing screen removing all distractions. It’s good - but I still prefer TextEdit. Another alternative that I’ve had recommended to me by a couple of people is xPad which looks like it has some cool features. Another two to try are TextWrangler and TextMate. Like I say - I find the simplicity of TextEdit works for me.

13. Keynote

KeynoteIt might seem strange to include a presentation tool like Keynote in a list of blogging tools, but it has actually become a really important part of my blogging tool belt. I use it largely as a way to design diagrams and charts for my posts. You can see some of this in action in the ‘results posts’ of my polls where I usually present the findings in a graph made in Keynote. Almost without fail I’m asked in these posts how I made the graphs - they are truly beautiful. It also leaves Powerpoint (for Mac) for dead when it comes to making a presentation.

14. TaskPaper

Taskpaper-IconI’m not a very organized person and have tried a multitude of organizational tools to help me ‘get things done’. Most have ended up sitting unused on my Mac. I do like iCal’s new ‘to do’ lists - but another useful tool is TaskPaper which is a simple tool for project organization. Another one that I’ve tried but that I’ve never really got into is Things. It’s more complicated (and comprehensive) than TaskPaper. I’ve also tried OmniFocus and found it to be useful.

Other Applications that I Use

I’ve not included many Apple made products in this list - but I also use Mail for my email, iCal for my Calander, iPhoto and Aperture for image editing and management and iMovie for video editing. Most of the rest of the tools that i used are web based (Google Reader for RSS (although I do like Newsfire) and Google Docs for a lot of my document creation).

What do you use?

When I asked my Mac using Twitter followers what applications they used in their blogging I was flooded with recommendations (thanks to everyone who responded). It made me realize that I’m just scratching the surface with what I use. I’d love to hear from other Mac using Bloggers - what applications have become a part of your blogging tool belt and daily workflow?

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90 Responses to “14 Essential Mac OS X Applications for Bloggers”

  • Sandy

    January 17th, 2008 12:19 am

    I don’t use Mac :(
    but thank you very much for the great review.

  • Mark McGuinness

    January 17th, 2008 12:24 am

    I’ve been using Ecto since you recommended it a few months ago, now I can’t imagine how I ever managed without it. It takes the technical pain out of writing blog posts (adding links, images etc.) and allows me to focus on the actual writing.

    Since switching to Mac a year ago I’ve found Pages really useful for creating e-book pdfs - it’s light years ahead of Word in terms of creating something attractive fairly quickly. http://www.apple.com/iwork/pages/

  • Cookemouse

    January 17th, 2008 12:26 am

    Some useful tips here. I use iPhoto a lot, and Firefox. Everyone in my closest circle of friends uses Macs.

  • Skellie

    January 17th, 2008 12:45 am

    Love it! Going to have to try out all of these…

    I’ve been drafting my posts in TextEdit, too.

  • Justin Dupre

    January 17th, 2008 12:45 am

    Great tools, as soon as I update to a mac.

    Now what would you recommend for PC users?

    Justin Dupre
    http://www.blogosis.com

  • Lodewijkvdb

    January 17th, 2008 12:45 am

    This is surreal…

    After reading so much about the great productivity apps on a Mac, about the ease of video editing and video chatting, I was warming up for the switch to a Mac.

    Two days ago (after an agonizing experience with video editing) I decided that I’m buying a Mac next week. I just hadn’t decided upon MacBook vs iMac yet. But video editing on a laptop doesn’t really appeal to me.

    Yesterday was the launch of MacBook Air, which made me decide to buy the iMac (huh?). The iMac offers a better solution for my current needs, and the Air is what I was looking for in a laptop.

    Today, you give me a list of all the essentials for my blogging activities on a Mac. Excellent timing! I’m deeply grateful.

    Curious to see what this wonderful world offers me tomorrow. A huge discount maybe…

  • JPierre

    January 17th, 2008 12:48 am

    Thanks for the tips. Will try out the ones missing from my list.

    Keep up the great work :)

  • Shawn

    January 17th, 2008 12:48 am

    I use pretty much all the apps you mention on my Mac book pro. One thing I do that I have found helpful in separate my RSS feeds. I have a few hundred in Google reader, but no more than 5 in Mail. This way I wont miss some of the most important feeds. I also separate my email. I have Gmail, and then another email address that goes to Mail.

    So I keep Mail open, and when something comes in, I jump at it. But it’s only the relevant important stuff that goes there.

  • Shawn

    January 17th, 2008 12:49 am

    Oh, and I also use Mind Manager from Mindjet to do my planning and brain storming.

  • Jon Allen

    January 17th, 2008 12:52 am

    Thanks for the tips. I need to go off and download a few of them.

    News Net Wire is one of the best RSS readers I’ve seen. Now it’s free I am delighted.

  • Ruchir

    January 17th, 2008 12:53 am

    Sadly I don’t have a mac yet. But I’m going to get one soon. Thanks for sharing all the tools.

  • Christy

    January 17th, 2008 12:55 am

    Skitch has such potential. I love the concept and am excited by this BETA so I can’t wait for it to roll out in full form.

  • shanec

    January 17th, 2008 12:57 am

    You might also consider giving MarsEdit a try.

  • Ben

    January 17th, 2008 1:02 am

    I’ve been exploring the idea of getting a Mac and this is a great resource for the software that I would use on it. Just started using Ecto for Windows and I’m quite impressed on what it can do.

    I’ll be bookmarking this page for future use.

    Thanks

  • BW

    January 17th, 2008 1:07 am

    darren.

    Yet another great list - now do I make the switch to a Mac or not. Decisions, decisions….

    Don’t suppose you have an upcoming contest that just happens to be giving away a Mac, do you?

  • Michael

    January 17th, 2008 1:18 am

    Darren,

    I have been using most of the apps on your list. My differences are that I use Transmit for FTP and I use Camino for my browser. I also use Skitch’s screen capture for my captures. I especially love the Crosshair capture that is available.

    New reader to your site as I strive to make my blogs a little better. Thanks for all that you do.

  • Internetry

    January 17th, 2008 1:23 am

    Hi Darren,

    nice list you have over here.

    I would suggest another RSS reader though:
    http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/NetNewsWire/Default.aspx

    I used the lite version for awhile however the creators made the total version available for free.

    Thanks :-)

  • Cifra

    January 17th, 2008 1:26 am

    I personally really don’t like this list.

    I’m also a (semi) Mac user and the only two apps from the list that I use are Adium and TextEdit. Why have a whole set of desktop apps? You >will

  • be awesome instead

    January 17th, 2008 1:27 am

    Thanks for this. I have been looking for a definitive list of mac blogging applications and already use quite a few ( I love CyberDuck!)…I currently live on my mac at home but blog from an old XP box I remote to. The reason I go that far is that I enjoy using Windows Live Writer. I tried ecto in the past and it just didn’t seem as friendly and simple to use ans WLR…I’ll give it another shot at your recommendation.

  • Joe

    January 17th, 2008 1:43 am

    Nice post, darren. I’ll be checking out a lot of these once I move into the new home!

  • Lex G

    January 17th, 2008 1:50 am

    In Europe, we don’t really use Macs as much as they do in the states (and Australia I guess) … Actually, most Macs here are Big Macs…

    Indeed most apps are also available on the PC and it’s still nice to see what your weapons of choice are Darren…

    Which, actually makes me think … Don’t you use an off line RSS feed reader as well ? Cause they can be really handy…

    Lex - http://www.newmediatype.com

  • Robert Burdock

    January 17th, 2008 1:55 am

    Nice list Darren. Thanks. As a busy student and aspiring writer Scrivener ( http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.html ) is my one-stop DISTRACTION FREE writing tool of choice. It’s revolutionised my writing tasks.

  • Cathy Moore

    January 17th, 2008 1:59 am

    I use Keynote for charts & graphs, too, but mainly to create interactive Flash presentations that I embed in my WordPress blog.

    A quick example: http://blog.cathy-moore.com/?p=67

    To do it:

    1. Make your slide a size that will embed in your blog easily.

    2. Create your slideshow. Slide transitions don’t survive the export to Flash, but many object builds and the new animation effects do.

    3. If you want it to be interactive, make the presentation use hyperlinks only (in the Document inspector, under Presentation). You’ll need to include links, of course.

    4. Export to Flash.

    5. Upload to WordPress.

    6. Embed using the usual HTML object embed code or the Kimili Flash Embed plugin.

    One hitch: Embedded Flash doesn’t always appear where you want it to appear in your RSS feed. Some readers see the Flash at the beginning of the post. So I just write the post in such a way that it makes sense no matter where the Flash ends up.

  • Jay F.H.

    January 17th, 2008 2:20 am

    I recently purchased my first mac and I’m loving it.

    I went a little nuts on the apps…

  • Sangesh

    January 17th, 2008 2:25 am

    Mac has always interested me… but I’ve never had an opportunity to try one yet. Hope something happens in the near future.

  • Harri Lammi

    January 17th, 2008 2:29 am

    Darren, this the thing I was looking for!

    I changed to Mac about 6 months ago and had been struggling to get all the necessary blogging (and other useful Win) stuff installed.

    Thanks for the info!

  • Cifra

    January 17th, 2008 2:31 am

    Sorry for the double-post.-Browser glitch :)

    I personally really don’t like this list.

    I’m also a (semi) Mac user and the only two apps from the list that I use are Adium and TextEdit. Why have a whole set of desktop apps? You >will

  • Todd Morris

    January 17th, 2008 2:42 am

    I already use most of the items on your list. But I definitely want to check out CaptureMe, and ImageWell. Thanks for sharing.

    Todd

  • Tony Steward

    January 17th, 2008 2:43 am

    I was testing out Ecto and MarsEdit and decided to go with Mars because of the ability to quickly edit a post in Textmate (where I composed my posts). Everything else is the same in my setup except I use Safari because I collect information through the clipping services in to DevonThink for research (this doesn’t work with Firefox). I have a hotkey on my mouse for clipping to a rich text note in devonthink for any articles I come across for future reference or blog writing.

    For longer writing of either posts or articles/books I am using Scrivener - which just rocks when you have a longer bit of writing that you are writing.

  • Tony Steward

    January 17th, 2008 2:44 am

    Wow, that last sentence points to my grammatical and eloquent skill in prose…. lol

  • Tamar Weinberg

    January 17th, 2008 3:05 am

    You’re totally going to have to poll the audience and get their advice on the best tools for PC users, now, Darren. :)

  • Ed O'Keeffe

    January 17th, 2008 3:31 am

    I personally use Transmit rather than CyberDuck for my FTP needs.

    As a photo blogger I would have to say Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop CS3 are two daily applications I use when post processing my photographs and resizing them for the web.

    As for my RSS reader, I use NewsFire but I will probably start using Google Reader when I get five minutes to transfer my subscriptions.

  • Aaron Stroud

    January 17th, 2008 3:49 am

    Freeverse has a great tool for focusing your attention one program at a time. Think is free and it allows you to darken your screen, illuminating the one app that you are using.

    This is a must download app if you’ve got a huge screen and find it difficult to focus on your writing. (mac only)

  • Shawn Hoefer

    January 17th, 2008 3:50 am

    I’ve looked at all of these and used a couple of them. I have Text Edit, but rarely use it preferring, of all things, AppleWorks for quick word processing tasks… I also like that poor old abandoned program for quick and dirty illustrations.

    For photo editing, I have Photoshop and ImageReady. I also have ImageWell, but I could never get the hang of it.

    For screen caps, MacOS X does a fine job for me and I don’t work with video enough to care.

    But, really, I find that more and more I am browser based… I use Google Docs, iGoogle, Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Reader, Remember the Milk (what?!? No Google? Not affiliated with Google… just like software that works and is not platform dependent) and Scribefire.

    That said, this is a good list for a person that doesn’t mind being platform dependent and I would agree with most of the selections.

  • Etavitom

    January 17th, 2008 3:52 am

    Great 14 Tips! Thanks….

  • 47

    January 17th, 2008 4:10 am

    Nice list!

    I started using Cyberduck a few weeks ago but used Yummy FTP for a couple of weeks before that.

    Cyberduck has a single pane (for the destination directory) while Yummy FTP has two panes (for the source and destination directory).

    I like both a lot so far.

    47

  • Heraldo

    January 17th, 2008 4:14 am

    Great post. Very helpful, thanks.

  • Derek Wong

    January 17th, 2008 4:42 am

    Oh reminds me of a post that I made awhile back when I was setting up my MacBook Pro.

    If you’d like, check out my 17 Must Have Mac Apps.

  • Travis

    January 17th, 2008 4:45 am

    Great list! I am going to check out a few of apps that I haven’t heard of before (like TaskPaper).

    When I first started using my MacBook I used Cyberduck… but since I have started using FileZilla (http://filezilla-project.org/) and like it much better.

    Its more like a classic FTP app. with a “local” and “remote” side… and it works on windows and mac which is a big plus for me.

  • Shaun Krisher

    January 17th, 2008 4:46 am

    I’m a quicksilver junkie, and I twitter with a script for that. Ecto rules, as does its sister app, endo. captureme is definitely on my to-download list. That was a hole that needed plugging.

    oh! you might like my most recent blog post called “Success’s Six S’s” Hahahaha, I know. I write a blog for new photographers, and, while it’s directly aimed at that group, there’s stuff there for bloggers, too!

    check check it. word to your mother.

  • Read Scott

    January 17th, 2008 4:49 am

    I’ve used most of these tools, but the most useful to me is TextEdit. I know it’s a simple tool, but it’s great for pre-publish formatting. It’s also a no-worries way to save a post that’s not finished yet. My other favorite is definitely Keynote. You can create simple animations with it that will export as Quicktime videos and can be added to your blog to entertain and educate simultaneously. I love it.

  • Dr.Mani

    January 17th, 2008 5:31 am

    Wow, awesome list - thanks Darren, that’s a huge time saver. Now to try out the programs on your list that I haven’t…

    All success
    Dr.Mani

  • Troy

    January 17th, 2008 5:32 am

    I use NetNewsWire (now free!) for off-line reading and MarsEdit for writing blog posts. Google Docs allegedly lets you write blog posts, but I have yet to get it working with my host.

  • Delilah Hinman

    January 17th, 2008 5:42 am

    Thanks for this nifty list, Darren. I’ll have to give some of them a shot.

    My favourite Mac apps are MagiCal, Snitter, Journaler, and Quinn (a Tetris-like game that more distracts me from my blogging work :P).

  • Mitch McDad

    January 17th, 2008 6:27 am

    Is iWeb just to limited to be a main blog platform?

  • Rich Minx

    January 17th, 2008 7:24 am

    Thanks Darren! I also use VLC to watch videos, MacIrssi for very geeky IRC chatting, and of course iTunes - essential for good blogging :)

  • Chris Jacobson

    January 17th, 2008 8:47 am

    Great list, Darren! I just ordered an iMac last night. These applications will come in handy.

  • Snagwire Media

    January 17th, 2008 8:50 am

    I use the Flock browser for blogging and networking. It has the same service as ecto built into it. My favorite part of it is the web clips feature where you can drag images and text from the web into the sidebar and then straight into your text editor.

    Skitch looks like it will be a new tool, thanks.

  • Darren Rowse

    January 17th, 2008 10:27 am

    Justin - ‘Now what would you recommend for PC users?’

    Switch :-)

    Seriously - I’m not really sure as it’s been so long since I blogged on a PC.

  • Tim Hanlon

    January 17th, 2008 11:06 am

    Good list - I use five of the apps you mentioned every day.

    I have to give shouts to two of my favorite apps that haven’t popped up yet - Shrook for RSS, and Seashore for quick image editing tasks.

    Can’t wait to try ecto. Is it possible to make it talk to a custom CMS?

  • infmom

    January 17th, 2008 11:29 am

    Hmm. I’ve just been using the Deepest Sender Firefox add-on for posting blog messages. I can see I need to think outside the Fox. :)

  • Steve Nguyen

    January 17th, 2008 11:50 am

    I use Yojimbo on my Mac. It’s more of an information organizer but I really like it. I also use AppZapper quite a bit since I often download and test out new programs. It allows me to easily trash a program along with its files. Finally, I’d recommend shadowClipboard. It holds a whole bunch of text clips and is accessible from the menubar.

  • Marc

    January 17th, 2008 12:13 pm

    I’ve got to agree with you about Adium - If only it did skype.
    For text editing, I use xPad as it autosaves and has all docs avaiable in a drawer.
    Jing is another great (free) screen recorder.

  • Suzie Cheel

    January 17th, 2008 12:45 pm

    As a recent switcher , this is a great resource, going off to test the ones i haven’t used so far

  • Brad

    January 17th, 2008 1:54 pm

    Two essential Mac apps I can’t live without:

    Transmission: Super fast, efficient, free, sexy Bittorent client.

    Quicksilver: An application launcher but so much more. A Mac just isn’t the same without this. Also free.

    Also, two great websites to find other great Mac applications are IUseThis and Cool Mac Apps.

    One more thing, for Web Development–it doesn’t get any better than Coda.

    It manages multiple projects effortlessly and does exactly what I need without being bloated.

  • Dave

    January 17th, 2008 2:18 pm

    Very useful list. I just made the switch to Mac and was looking for a Mac equivalent for Irfanview. Looks like ImageWell has all the features I’m looking for.

  • Mathew Packer

    January 17th, 2008 5:04 pm

    I’ve found a new lover, ecto be thy name..

    Thanks for making blogging just that little bit easier Darren!

  • Kim

    January 17th, 2008 5:12 pm

    That’s funny, I just went on a crazy hunt for blogging tools.

    I’m trying out ecto right now and I like it, but the tagging doesn’t mesh well with how the tags on my main site work. It’s otherwise decent.

    Skitch is out of invitation only beta and is now in public beta. It definitely is better than imagewell (I also use it right now in addition to picnik, which is amazing with the FF extension)

    I’m also pretty hooked on google notebook (not an app, but along those lines) to collect links for later reference.

  • Kate Foy

    January 17th, 2008 5:15 pm

    Lots of my favourites in your list Darren.
    I’d add FireFTP as the tool of choice for a Firefox user; easy and intuitive.
    Quicksilver is an insanely wonderful Mac-only application which you must try.
    TextEdit, yes, again lean and ideal for all text work.
    MarsEdit is also a top blog-writing tool.
    And thanks for the tip on ImageWell. Looks like the very thing I’ve been looking for.
    Not sure I (or the world) need another Twitter app, but have a look at Snitter. It’s another friendly-sit-on-your-desktop app that keeps you in the Tweet loop with your fellow Twits (!)

  • Sophie

    January 17th, 2008 8:15 pm

    How fabulous to see that Macs are becoming the blogging machine of choice! I definitely second a lot of the suggestions here.

    I use twidget as my dashboard twitter client which works well (it doesn’t have the distraction of everybody elses twittering, it is just for posting your own). The other thing I have found really useful recently is the Xinha Here Firefox plug-in for doing HTML editing in forms (I use it within movable type to add more formatting to my blog posts for the redesign I’m working on).

  • Peter - Snagit Guide

    January 17th, 2008 9:27 pm

    We have had loads of visitors wanting Snagit for Mac. I hope it will be a reality soon :-)

    See:
    http://www.snagitguide.com/42/snagit-for-mac/

  • Venkatesh Varalu

    January 17th, 2008 10:53 pm

    Thanks for the very good list Darren. It will help.

  • Marshall Spencer

    January 18th, 2008 12:39 am

    WOW - how timely coming across this great post … I just switched to an iMac at Christmas so I’m slowly getting used to blogging and working in general with this great Leaopard platform and the other goodies that mac’s have to offer. Thanks again for the great tips !!

  • Matt

    January 18th, 2008 3:00 am

    One feature that I wish blogger had was the ability to store drafts of posts in folders. So if I prep a story, I’d like to file it away for future use.

    Does MarsEdit or Ecto have this “folders” feature?

    thanks,
    Matt
    http://www.duelingtampons.com

  • Nick | Put Things Off

    January 18th, 2008 3:24 am

    TaskPaper is pretty nifty. If anyone wants something a bit more powerful, they might like to check out my OSX Task Manager Showdown.

    I’d never heard of ecto — I’ve just downloaded it and am finding it great so far. Previously I’d written all my posts in the excellent WriteRoom.

  • Suvendu

    January 18th, 2008 3:44 am

    I am looking for a offline tool which allows me to read the blogs as well as write blogs from the same interface. In addition it can save files/links/images to local drive while reading and use it while writing back the blog…any clue will help.

    thanks in advance

    Suvendu

  • Kelly St. Germain

    January 18th, 2008 5:01 am

    Hi Darren. Thanks for sharing these great products. I am looking forward to moving over to the mac. I work in the real estate industry and many of their asp based applications run only on the pc so trying to integrate business and the mac is difficult. Regardless, it’s great to look forward and learn about these possibilities.
    Kelly

  • Little Guy Network

    January 18th, 2008 6:14 am

    Some really good programs listed here, it will be obviously helpful for all mac users that are more and more recently.

  • Wikilaw

    January 18th, 2008 6:24 am

    See, this is why I actually READ Darren’s posts, rather than immediately trash them like I do most of the other so called “blogging experts”. Stuff like this is pure gold, just pure gold.

    I already use some of the stuff that was listed there, but I have to disagree with you on one thing. The new version of Safari is FAR superior to firefox.

    But the rest of the article is great. Adium is an AMAZING IM tool, especially when you custom skin it, it looks great. Flickr Uploader inspired me to start uploading my semi-pro photography, and it’s gotten me a fair bit of traffic. Skype is cool, but somewhat useless to me, but I’ve used it before mainly to talk to people in Europe from the US. Keynote is great, not really for blogs, but what it shines for is when you write something REALLY good, like say, this post for example, you can convert it into a stunning looking presentation. Then publish it with the other iLife and iWork ‘08 tools.

    I find Instantshot to be somewhat worthless actually, when you consider that in OS X 10.5 you can use Cmd+Shift+3 to take a full screen shot, and Cmd+Shift+4 to get a draggable selection box screenshot. Much faster, and it saves it right to desktop for you.

  • Wikilaw

    January 18th, 2008 6:27 am

    MitchMcDad: iWeb USED to be too limited for a blogging tool. But if you have iLife ‘08 it is much better since now you can install any kind of HTML code you want.

    The biggest downside to iWeb is that it’s really designed to use mac.com, so unless you want your blog to be hosted at yourmacdotcomusername.mac.com you might be better off finding a better tool.

  • MMJ

    January 18th, 2008 6:40 am

    I like to use MacJournal for some of my blog posts.

  • Kelly

    January 18th, 2008 7:35 am

    Darren,

    As a fellow impassioned fan of Macs, thanks for the list.

    I love Inspiration, the outlining/diagramming program, for getting my thoughts together for blogging. It’s also great for other diagramming like mapping a website’s structure.

    I use MS Entourage for keeping my notes on blog ideas, half-finished posts, etc. Then I paste the post into Dreamweaver to make sure things are looking good and functioning well before posting. It takes an extra minute but I prefer it to discovering the boo-boo after posting. Dreamweaver would be expensive to purchase as a blog-previewing tool, but I use it for my work so it’s already here.

    Regards,

    Kelly

  • George Tuvell

    January 18th, 2008 10:26 am

    Very good suggestions! I found Picnik to be a very good online photo editing tool. It’s nice because it integrates with Flickr, and allows you to keep your photos hosted online. It provides most of the features you see in ImageWall…..just FYI

  • Glenn -- DVD Spin Doctor

    January 18th, 2008 6:58 pm

    I just discovered TextWrangler for handling xhtml etc. Super smooth.

  • Darren Rowse

    January 18th, 2008 8:35 pm

    thanks everyone for your comments. Also for those who suggested other apps - you’ve just given me something to do this weekend!

  • Mustapha

    January 18th, 2008 8:52 pm

    I found the newly free Netnewswire a really excellent feeds reader. Now that I’m using it I wonder how I managed without it..

  • John Hood

    January 19th, 2008 12:28 am

    BBEdit has proved an invaluable tool when modifying my blog template! May be worth a look for those who are happy to edit HTML!

  • Roolz Salxs

    January 19th, 2008 12:14 pm

    I use MacBook and I’m very proud of this post… :)
    Thank you very much for this review. A good list ;)

  • Glenn

    January 20th, 2008 5:10 am

    Excellent list, started to write a comment on how easy it is to use Keynote for website/blog graphics (using the Export function together with ImageWell). But I got over enthusiastic, so put it into this Photoshop Smackdown post. Realise you are already using Keynote graphs for your posts so are probably doing it this way, but figure Export is such a useful feature for Mac users it is worth highlighting. There are links in the post to some Apple tutorials that show more detail.

  • Alex Celeste

    January 20th, 2008 9:41 am

    I use MarsEdit for writing blog posts and NetNewsWire/ NewsGator for reading RSS. It’s all quite handy how natural it feels compared to the other OS X apps I use.

  • Dedwarmo

    January 21st, 2008 10:52 pm

    If you want to buy a Mac, the cheapest one they sell is the Mac mini ($600 new). Bring your own keyboard, mouse, and display.

  • Bionic Beauty

    January 24th, 2008 2:24 am

    Hmmm… I love GiMP for image editing, Inkscape for creating vector drawings (banners, etc). For FTP, I found OneButton FTP to be very straight forward and reliable. Nvu is useful for to check any layout changes I might be making (it’s like FrontPage but Open Source) and of course, I use NeoOffice. I’m a fan of open source softwares. Free, easy, and supported. Can’t ask for more than that. :)

    I agree with you that Firefox is much handier than Safari. But both are 200 times better than IE. ;)

    Cheers!
    Jami

  • Babe

    January 24th, 2008 9:01 am

    Great tools

  • Vanessa

    January 25th, 2008 7:36 am

    I’m a Mac user and use some of these tools everyday. Thanks for a great list, Darren. I thought you might like to know that Skitch is now in public beta, so no waiting to use it.

  • The Monetizer

    January 30th, 2008 5:23 am

    I’ve been using Text Edit and Adium. Another tool I like for Mac is the Taco HTML editor. A free HTML tool to construct documents and works pretty well. Thanks for the other tips going to look into a few of these for my laptop.

  • maria

    February 2nd, 2008 6:18 am

    Ecto has totally changed how I blog! It’s great for handling links & adding images, which to me is the most tedious aspect of blogging as I prefer to focus on my actual writing. I also love that I can very easily upload my images onto my web host. Really great recommendation!!

  • Chip

    February 20th, 2008 11:25 am

    For managing tasks, I jumped from iGTD to OmniFocus. I couldn’t get MailTags to work after Leopard and the ability to record tasks from any program is critical. Plus, OmniFocus has this built in and doesn’t depend on a secondary app to git ‘er done.

  • Dee Copeland

    February 28th, 2008 1:27 am

    Has anyone noticed how imagewell doesn’t work as well since their upgrade in the past few weeks? I’m on a mac, so not sure if I’m the only one who noticed that pictures now look fuzzy once I edit them.

  • John

    March 5th, 2008 8:27 pm

    I just read your post on Anywired’s “Under The Hood” interview. Gina of Lifehacker did one too. I’m fascinated to discover what gear others are using, I just hope it doesn’t start to hurt my credit card!!

  • Craig Fine

    April 25th, 2008 12:50 am

    I can’t believe no one said anything about Quicksilver! I use a MAC and could not function without this cool little application that runs in the background. I disabled the “Apple-Spacebar” shortcut for spotlight, and I use it to launch Quicksilver. Go look up what this little FREE utility can do on Google, YouTube, anywhere. It rocks and I can launch applications with only a few keystrokes. I no longer have to go to my applications folder to hunt through the list of programs. I can launch my web browser and go straight to my ebay account simply by pressing “Apple/Command”-The letter “E”-BAM I am there and I am logged into my account too.

    Don’t use a MAC without Quicksilver! Don’t do it. :-)

    Craig

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