Archive for April, 2009
Hug Your Mac
6At the end of February I wrote about ordering the Finder icon pillow from Throwboy and the positive (and friendly) experience when doing so. Two weeks into my home renovations, my beautiful pillow arrived. It was a bittersweet occasion. There it was infront of me but because I was elbow deep in dust and debris I couldn’t open it from it’s plastic wrap for fear of it getting harmed.
It wasn’t until 10 days later that I could finally remove it from it’s plastic bag and give it a jolly good squeeze. It was worth the wait. These things are *so* well made.
I know many people have commented on both Flickr and Twitter in the past few days when sharing photos and have asked me where this wonderful pillow comes from, how big it is, how soft it is, etc…! So, here is a little FAQ just for you:
Where can I order one? Throwboy.com
How much was it? $29 (+ $8 shipping to UK)
How big is it? The Finder icon pillow is 11 inches by 9 inches.
Is it really soft and cuddly? Yes, 100% fleece with polyester fiber filling. Very squishy and huggable!
Was it easy to order? Yes, very simple order procedure and very friendly service from Throwboy.
Would you recommend them? Absolutely, infact I’m thinking of ordering another pillow but can’t decide which one to go for!
How long did it take to arrive? I ordered on February 24th and got notification of shipping on 3rd April – it arrived at my door on 8th April.
I know from some comments I’ve received on other sites that people are a little put off by the 3-6 weeks estimated for shipping due to the fact that they’re handmade. My response would be don’t be. The sooner you order, the sooner you will have it in your hands. It’s well worth the wait – the time absolutely flew by for me and just think how great it will look alongside your Mac set-up or on your sofa/chair/bed. It’s the ultimate Mac Geek Accessory 
Sold in 300 seconds
72 years ago
Yesterday Tweetie for Mac was released. It was the application many of us Twitterers-on-a-Mac fanatics have been ancitipating following the sneak-peek video posted on their site a few days ago. It didn’t disappoint and within 5 minutes of downloading and testing, I had purchased it for $14.95.
My requirements for a desktop Twitter client have always been pretty simple: the ability to quickly see @ replies and Direct Messages and search the public timeline within the app, the way one can in Tweetie for iPhone. I regularly miss @ replies in Twitterrific unless I scroll through the list of tweets. With Tweetie I’ll never miss an @ again thanks to the blue indicator shown in the left hand menu bar of the client window.
Of course, Tweetie for Mac comes with many more features. Things I never thought I’d need but of course now that I have them I’m wondering how I managed without them, such as the viewing of images without having to crank up Safari or leave the app itself, view my contacts credentials and see whether they are following me back, all by simply double clicking their icon…
I can even stop following that person within Tweetie, not that I’d ever want to stop following the lovely @chrisdejabet, mind you 
There’s not much about Tweetie for Mac that needs improvement, in my eyes, apart from a refresh button without having to go to the menu bar > Twitter > Refresh. I’d also like to see what the current refresh rate is. I’m thinking 3 minutes but it’s a bit hard to tell and there’s no way of changing the default.
Tweetie for Mac is $14.95 for a 2 week introductory period, until May 4th. After that you’ll pay $19.95. You can, of course, download and use the app completely free, as long as you don’t mind ads. The great thing about purchasing Tweetie is the license which allows you to use the app for all your Twitter accounts on as many computers as you (personally) own. How awesome is that?
You can view all of the features on the Tweetie for Mac site. If you have any questions about the app before you buy then feel free to drop me a line in the comments section.
Electric Nightmares Part 2
7Today is the first weekday in 21 days that I have been able to get up post-6am and do what the hell I wanted with my day. Yes, the electrical rewire and subsequent repair work finally came to an end yesterday. I’m a few pounds (in weight) lighter and also a few pounds (in sterling) lighter. Not quite so happy about the latter!
When I wrote about the impending rewire last month, I thought I had a pretty good grasp on what was about to happen, what the disruption would be and what kind of mess I’d be met with each day. I’d been briefed by the team who were about to kick seven shades out of my house and believed I’d prepared myself sufficiently. I was actually way off. These past 3 weeks have been some of the most stressful in my life. Living out of boxes for 3 weeks, coming home to clouds of dust, broken walls, broken floors, men in and out of my house as if they owned it. Relentless work for 21 days, 8am to 4pm daily.
Now that I have my privacy back I now have the task of re-decorating every room that was affected. That is every room in the house, every wall and every (upper) floor. The lucky room to get attention first is, unsurprisingly, the home office. One of the things I have missed desperately during these past 3 weeks is my routine and structure. The home office was always my cocoon to get things done and focus. Not having that place to escape has been extremely draining – instead I’m having to sit in a broken shabby room with my PowerBook on my knee, looking around at a sea of cardboard boxes and ripped wallpaper. Not a chance of me being productive or creative, not that I’ve needed to be, mind you.
So, that’s where I’m at right now. Painting of skirting boards have been done today, tomorrow and the rest of the weekend will be repairing walls (covering with wallpaper), emulsioning said wallpaper, laying a new wood floor and fitting a new door. I hope to be back in The System Attic early next week.
One of the things I will do when I’m moving my things back in is hug my iMac. Next Monday will be exactly one month since we parted and I have so many gifts to present it with from the MacHeist Bundle I bought a few weeks ago. All year I waited patiently for the bundle and it was released on the eve of my rewire when the iMac was packed away. What are the chances?
My posts here, naturally, have been greatly reduced and affected during my downtime. I didn’t have regular internet access for 2 weeks as my router was packed away and my only source for getting net access was the iPhone. I had hoped to write occasionally, but inbetween the work I had only a few hours to eat, drink, shower and sleep and that’s pretty much all I wanted to do. Once I’m settled back into my office then I hope to get my writing routine back as soon as.
Tweetie for Mac
7I am very excited to hear that Tweetie, the best twitter client for the iPhone bar none, is coming to a Mac desktop near you. I have struggled to find a desktop client that I feel truly comfortable with other than Twitterrific. I can’t abide TweetDeck, Twhirl, EventBox or the other twitter clients which also incorporate feeds from Flickr/Facebook/RSS. Twitterrific is a very barebones app compared to the other clients around, but I do like the Mac only exclusivity and the fact that it isn’t a horrid AIR app.
I am hopeful that I can finally banish Twitterrific to the archives when Tweetie for Mac hits the tubes and I expect it will be every bit as elegant as the iPhone app.
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