Useful Mac Web Sites

With the amount of computer information available on the Internet, it should come as no surprise that there are hundreds of web sites that focus on the Macintosh. The problem with finding information about the Mac is one of quality, not quantity. Macintosh web sites range from amateur weblogs to huge commercial or advertising-supported sites, with every possibility in between. The following sites represent the best of the Macintosh web, and are sites that I use regularly.

General Macintosh Information and News

If there were just one Mac web site to recommend, it would have to be TidBITS (www.tidbits .com). This free weekly publication, available on the Web or by e-mail, is one of the most venerable Macintosh publications, with its first issue dating back to April 1990. (See Figure 22-4.)

Figure 22-4: The TidBITS web site showing the November 10, 2003, issue

I discovered TidBITS shortly after I bought my first Mac in 1991. At the time, the text version of this weekly publication was distributed on floppy disks included with a Mac magazine. I have been reading it ever since, and am proud to be a regular contributor to this excellent publication.

TidBITS issues generally have a few news briefs and two or three longer articles covering such subjects as software reviews, tutorials, book reviews and articles on the Internet, Macintosh hardware, and much more. TidBITS publisher, Adam Engst, is regularly voted one of the most influential people in the Macintosh world thanks to the breadth and seriousness of TidBITS.

You can view TidBITS on the Web, or you can go to the TidBITS web site and subscribe to the free e-mail edition. You won’t regret it.

Macintosh Magazines

Several Macintosh magazines have web sites that offer additional and complementary content to their print versions. Full of news and reviews, these magazine sites offer archives that allow you to search for articles about specific applications or hardware, and help you make comparisons when you are shopping for software or accessories for your Mac.

• Macworld (www.macworld.com) This is the oldest Mac magazine of them all, and its web site is chock full of reviews and tests. You can search these archives and read articles taken from the print edition, as well as read news available only on the web site. I’m a regular contributor to Macworld magazine.

• MacAddict (www.macaddict.com) MacAddict is a more iconoclastic magazine, with an in-your-face style. You can read all the magazine’s reviews online and search its past reviews. Its home page also features the latest Mac news.

• MacHome (www.machome.com) Designed for home Mac users, this print magazine focuses more on the type of hardware and software that these users need, devoting a lot of coverage to games and other home-oriented products.

• About this Particular Mac (www.atpm.com) This e-zine is a monthly web-only magazine, available both on the Web and as a downloadable PDF file. Written by Mac users for Mac users, it offers a fine range of articles about software, hardware, and books.

Macintosh Troubleshooting Sites

In addition to using Apple’s support web site (see earlier in this chapter), there are many web sites dedicated to Macintosh troubleshooting. Most of these sites offer general troubleshooting information and forums where users can ask questions and share their experiences.

• MacInTouch (www.macintouch.com) Created in 1994, MacInTouch is one of the premier troubleshooting sites for Mac. With timely information about Mac OS X problems, and information about new and updated software and hardware, this site provides invaluable resources for Mac users in a jam. It invites reader feedback and publishes long threads of comments on a wide variety of Mac troubleshooting issues. It is one of the first to react to problems caused by updates or new products.

• MacFixit (www.macfixit.com) MacFixit provides thorough coverage of all Mac hardware and software issues, and offers in-depth articles and information on new and updated software and hardware. Part commercial and part free, MacFixit also has a forum section—one of the best for Mac troubleshooting—where you can ask questions and offer help.

• MacOSXHints (www.macosxhints.com) This site is full of hints and tips for going the distance with your Mac. While it is geared more toward power users, there are many useful hints for beginners as well. The site also has excellent forums where users can ask questions and share their experience.

Macintosh Software Sites

In Chapter 21, I told you how important it is to keep both your Mac OS X software and your applications up-to-date. There are a few important web sites to check to find if updates are available for your software.

While it’s best to use the Mac OS X Software Update function (see Chapter 21), you can also check Apple’s web site to find the latest updates. Go to www.apple.com/software/ and check the Downloads section for the latest updates and new applications for Mac OS X.

You can find other software at www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/. The page is easily accessed by selecting the Apple Menu | Mac OS X Software..., which opens a new web page at this address in your browser.

This page contains downloads of free software, shareware, demo versions of commercial software, and updates. You can click any of the category links in the Categories section to see what’s new, and you can search by entering keywords in the Search Downloads field.

Other sites for finding Mac software include

• MacUpdate (www.macupdate.com) This site lists dozens of updates each day to commercial, shareware, and freeware programs. If you sign up as a member (for free), you can create your own watch list for programs you use, and the site will send you e-mail whenever these programs are updated. They also offer free newsletters listing new and updated programs.

• VersionTracker (www.versiontracker.com) VersionTracker is similar to MacUpdate, with lists of new and updated software, newsletters, and more. Access to the site is free, but a commercial version offers additional features.

Macintosh Mailing Lists

Mailing lists are discussion groups that work by e-mail. Each subscriber receives all the messages posted to the list, and can send and receive questions and comments. While mailing lists are invaluable in the amount of information they provide and the number of users who offer solutions to problems, they can flood your Inbox. If you’re hesitant about getting a lot of e-mail, you are better off avoiding them. However, mailing lists create a community of users who share their experiences with others in a true spirit of altruism.

There are many mailing lists dedicated to the Mac, and especially Mac OS X, and one site features a couple of dozen lists covering a variety of subjects: The Macintosh Guy (www.themacintoshguy.com/lists). Some lists are for specific applications and uses (iTunes, audio, business) and others are more general, such as the half-dozen lists dedicated to Mac OS X (lists for newbies and users, and lists about applications, Unix on Mac OS X, and so on).

Finally, the TidBITS-Talk mailing list, run by TidBITS publisher Adam Engst (www.tidbits .com), is a moderated mailing list that offers discussions about articles published in TidBITS as well as other general issues about the Mac.