.FLYINGHEAD MACINTOSH SURVIVAL GUIDE
.TITLE Mac developers to the rescue
.OTHER
.SUMMARY Contributing Editor Jim DeLaHunt again comes to the rescue of Macintosh users in his latest installment of the Macintosh Survival Guide. In this article, Jim showcases some great software packages that improve the HotSync process, make installing applications far less cumbersome, and fix the icons on downloaded PalmPilot files.
.AUTHOR Jim DeLaHunt
.EDNOTE Contributing Editor Jim DeLaHunt again comes to the rescue of Macintosh users in his latest installment of the Macintosh Survival Guide. In this article, Jim showcases some great software packages that improve the HotSync process, make installing applications far less cumbersome, and fix the icons on downloaded PalmPilot files. Last month, we chopped Jim’s article in half in order to make it fit better in the publication. Unfortunately, when we modified Jim’s article, we left in some references to content that wasn’t there. Oops! The missing content is in this article and you can expect more hard-hitting Macintosh content from Jim in future issues. — DG
Macintosh software developers who are also PalmPilot fans have stepped forward to fill in the rough spots of the standard Palm Computing Macintosh software. Some have become immediate "must have" items on my Macintosh. Let’s take a look at a few of these.
.H1 Problem: It takes too long to turn the HotSync monitor on and off
In order for HotSyncs to happen, you need to run the HotSync monitor software. Some people can just set the software to run automatically when they start up their Mac. Not me. My Macintosh has a variety of software competing for the one serial port on the back. If the HotSync monitor is running, I can’t connect to my ISP and read PalmPower magazine. So I have to turn on my HotSync monitoring just before I HotSync, and turn it off just after.
Now, it’s quite possible to do this by selecting the HotSync control panel from the Control Panels. However, this is really slow — twelve seconds on my Mac. When I’m trying to HotSync one last time and get out the door, I can’t afford it. Judging by the number of software packages addressing this problem, I’m not the only one who’s impatient.
My favorite of the bunch is HotSyncCSM 0.2d, by Yukinari Suzuki. "CSM" refers to Control Strip Module. PowerBook users will know the control strip — a little tab on the bottom-left corner of the screen, which expands out to give access to a list of commonly-used controls. HotSyncCSM is simple and effective. You can see it in Figure A. HotSyncCSM is at the right-most end of the strip.
.FIGPAIR A HotSyncCSM, at the far right, is simple and effective.
When you click on the HotSync icon on the control strip, a little three-item menu pops up. You can turn start HotSync monitoring, stop monitoring, or open the HotSync control panel. Turning monitoring off or on happens in under three seconds. The little HotSync logo on the control strip switches between light and dark gray to indicate monitoring on and off. Despite the zero in the version number, I found HotSyncCSM to be reliable. HotSyncCSM is freeware.
Another neat little application is SyncControl version 1.0, by Joe Santaniello of jofish software. As Joe describes it, this is "A small program for Mac based PalmPilot users. SyncControl turns the Hot Sync Monitor on or off quickly, and allows easy switching between the printer and modem ports. SyncControl loads in 2 seconds on my machine vs. 14 seconds for the Hot Sync Control Panel." I couldn’t have put it better myself. You can see it in Figure B. It can open to a menu which lets you turn HotSync monitoring off and on and set the port which HotSync uses, or collapse the window down to an icon indicating whether monitoring is on or off. SyncControl is available for only five bucks.
.FIGPAIR B SyncControl menu (left) collapses to an icon showing HotSync status (right).
SyncControl was as fast as advertised for me. I encountered one glitch, due to the fact I use a PowerBook. My serial port is listed as a "Printer – Modem Port", which is not on SyncControl’s menu. So, if you select either "Printer Port" or "Modem Port" from the menu, that would be an invalid setting for my machine. However, if you set the port in the HotSync control panel and don’t touch it in SyncControl, you’d be fine. And if you have a Mac with separate printer and modem ports, SyncControl’s menu likely works perfectly. For my use, HotSyncCSM is more convenient, and you can’t beat the price. If you don’t use the control strip, or have a machine with separate ports, you might prefer SyncControl. You won’t go wrong either way.
There are at least two other solutions available! LaunchQuit HotSync 1.0, by Mike Hill, is an application which turns on HotSync monitoring, waits for a specified number of minutes, and turns it off again. It’s built using AppleScript, though it runs like an application.
AutoSync 1.0, by Jim McCarthy, also uses AppleScript to turn on and off HotSync monitoring. It also includes scripts to check three of the most popular PalmPilot application archives.
.H1 Problem: It’s cumbersome to mark PalmPilot applications for installation
Recently, my PalmPilot Professional began malfunctioning. It would completely lose power when I changed batteries, and I would have to reinstall all my applications. And I have a dozen applications I use! Boy, did I get to know the InstallApp’s tedious cycle of selecting a file, marking it for installation, and repeating.
.BEGIN_KEEP
Fortunately, there is a better way. SimpleInst 0.1d4, another little marvel by Yukinari Suzuki, is a Mac application which does the same job as InstallApp, only more conveniently. You simply drag the icon of the PalmPilot application file on top of SImpleInst’s icon, and release. It marks the application for installation, and then quits. Behind this simple exterior lie a few extremely useful options. You can see these in Figure C. If you sync multiple PalmPilots to the same computer, you can select to which PalmPilot to install. You can use SimpleInst with Now Synchronize (you’ll know if this applies to you). And you can have SimpleInst keep a log for you. As with HotSyncCSM, the low version number doesn’t do justice to this nifty and reliable product. And it’s free!
.FIGPAIR C SimpleInst is simply wonderful, and provides these options.
I don’t know how I lived without this great utility.
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.H1 Problem: PalmPilot applications come off the Web with the wrong icons
I pull a lot of PalmPilot applications off the Web. They often appear with either SimpleText icons, or generic icons. You can see both in Figure D. Neither is correct.
.FIGPAIR D PalmHappy fixes the icons of PalmPilot application files.
PalmHappy 1.01, by Jim McCarthy, provides a simple solution. Simply drag the icons for PalmPilot application files onto PalmHappy. It will change them into the correct icons. This has several benefits. First, these files will now be visible in InstallApp. If the icons are wrong, you have to select the "all files" option in InstallApp, and see a lot of distracting other file entries. Second, this icon type belongs to SimpleInst. This means you can now mark these applications for installation into your PalmPilot simply by double-clicking them, which will run SimpleInst. Best of all, PalmHappy is freeware.
Another utility with the same idea is PCtoMac, by John Loose. It’s fine, but I like PalmHappy better.
.H1 I’m not dead yet!
So, armed with these nifty utilities, you are much better prepared to download and install PalmPilot software from the Macintosh. In fact, as you double-click to install applications you can chuckle at the Windows users who still having to use the clunky InstallApp. But is that all there is? Certainly not. Several software developers have come up with PalmPilot applications and corresponding Mac applications, overcoming some hurdles in the process. We’ll cover this in a future article. In the meantime, may you and your Mac — and your PalmPilot — become ever stronger!
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.H1 Product availability and resources
HotSyncCSM is available at http://www.gix.or.jp/~ysuzuki/index-e.html
SyncControl is available at http://home.sol.no/~cvoss/pilot/applications/SyncControl.sit.hqx
Quit HotSync 1.0 is available at http://www.palmpilotfiles.com/original/launchquithotsync.sit.
AutoSync 1.0 is available at http://fremont.scs.unr.edu/~mccarthy/applications/AutoSync_1.0.sit.hqx.
SimpleInst is available at http://www.gix.or.jp/~ysuzuki/index-e.html.
PalmHappy is available at http://fremont.scs.unr.edu/~mccarthy/.
.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO Jim DeLaHunt is an independent PalmPilot software developer. In his spare time, is an engineering manager with a multi-national software company and a tenor with local opera companies. He can be reached via E-mail at jdlh@jdlh.palo-alto.ca.us.
.DISCUSS http://www.component-net.com/webx?13@@.ee6bee3
