The Sandwich Mac Users Group (SMUG) met last night to indulge in another evening of geeking out and sharing interesting Mac related things. Ben had brought along his Hackintosh - an Advent / MSI Wind netbook hacked to run OSX – very cool stuff. It sounded a bit fiddly for me though… 
We shared lots of tips, tricks, websites and apps. So build on the last meeting’s list, here are some more useful apps and websites for use with your Mac.
Tips
o MacHeist is a website offering bundles of Mac apps (usually 10-12) where the cost of the bundle is reasonable (~$49) and the value of the software contained in the bundle far exceeds that if you were to buy the apps separately. Usually the bundle includes some productivity apps, helpers, image, audio or video editing tools, and games. There is usually one key app that is the “hook” but most of the stuff in the bundle is useful in some way or other. Well worth a look. HOWEVER, the deal only happens annually – so you need to keep an eye open for the next round of MacHeist.
o Hongkiat.com hosts a couple of very good blog entries detailing 100 free useful Mac apps. Part 1; Part 2.
o Nigel has his list of Mac apps stored in Evernote.
o Scott shared how to convert MP3s to Audiobook format: Get the MP3 file and right-click, choose to save as / convert to AAC. Hard delete original MP3 (send file to trash). Soft delete AAC (don’t send file to trash). Find the AAC file (m4a) and rename to m4b. Reimport into iTunes.
Apps
o The Hit List – GTD, task management app.
o Freemind - Java-based mind mapping software.
o Burn - When I had problems trying to burn a DVD with data using the usual Mac methods, Burn saved the day. It’s plain vanilla burning software but works very well.
o Spotify - Stream music directly from the web. The music starts streaming very quickly… The Free version has adverts appearing sporadically, the subscription versions don’t.
o Airfoil - Streams music via the network to other computers, Airport hubs, Apple TVs, iPod Touch or iPhones with the Airfoil Speakers app installed.
o The same software company offers many cool looking audio apps: AudioHijack for recording from apps, and any sound sources on the Mac (Skype, iChat, etc.) and Fission which offers lossless audio editting.
o NuevaSync - Syncs smartphone calendars, events with Google Calendar, Gmail contacts, PIM information.
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