Behind the scenes at Many Tricks, Part 1

June 30th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths and Peter Maurer

By most any measure, Many Tricks is not a big company—there are only two of us, and we’ve only got a handful of products. Complicating this relatively-simple small business, though, is the fact that we are separated by 5,327 miles (according to Google Earth), and nine clock hours.

Given our small size and geographic separation, we need to work efficiently individually, and doubly so during those few hours each day when our schedules overlap (typically from about 5:00am to 12:00pm, west coast USA time). So what tools do we use to keep in touch, to manage our web site, and to run the business? Keep reading for a behind-the-scenes look at the apps that keep Many Tricks humming.

As this post turned out much longer than either of us expected, we’ve broken it into two parts. This first part covers the tools we use to create our apps and handle our online activities; the second part will discuss running the business side of the company and general Mac tools that aren’t directly related to any of the prior categories.
Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Behind the Scenes, Company News, Developer, General | 3 Comments »

It’s minor update Monday!

June 28th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

Today we’re releasing minor updates to three of our programs; these are primarily bug fix releases, with little in the way of new features. You can download the latest version from each program’s respective product page, or just check for updates within each program. The updated programs are:

  • Butler: Version 4.1.9 fixes a drag-to-Stack issue, and adds our in-app purchasing module. [release notes]
  • Leech: Version 2.0.4 fixes a problem with ‘shadow’ downloads (which were invisible, but definitely happening), as well as with duplicate downloads, from certain sites. [release notes]
  • Name Mangler: Version 2.2.1 adds the in-app purchasing module, and solves a couple of issues that could arise when renaming both files and folders at the same time. [release notes]

With these releases, and last week’s release of Witch 3.5.1, things should quiet down a bit here (in terms of updates) as we return to work on Usher, Butler, and a project to be named later.

Posted in Butler, Leech, Name Mangler, Products, Witch | 8 Comments »

Witch 3.5.1 gets gradiental

June 23rd, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

Yea, I know it’s not a word…but it perfectly describes the one notable new feature in Witch 3.5.1: support for gradients in the selection background color.

The default gradient is seen in the image at right, but you have (as you might expect from Many Tricks) full control over its appearance—including whether it’s there at all.

To customize the gradient, open Witch’s Appearance tab, then click on the color well next to Selection background color to open the color picker. Below the Opacity slider you’ll see a new (unlabeled) gradient slider. Center the slider for no gradient, or pick a spot left of center (lighter at bottom) or right of center (lighter at top) that pleases your eye.

In addition to this new feature, Witch 3.5.1 squashes an annoying bug related to the delay timing of the preview windows. In addition—and I think this is a very cool addition—you can now call up preview windows on demand, even when previews are disabled. Simply press P (or the Space Bar, though this may not work if you use Command in your Witch shortcuts) with any window selected, and its preview will appear. Press P again to make the preview vanish.

There are a few more fixes and improvements detailed on the Witch Release Notes page; you can get version 3.5.1 directly from the product page, or via the built-in updater.

Posted in Products, Witch | 2 Comments »

Safari Guardian updated for Mac OS X 10.6

June 22nd, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

We’ve updated Safari Guardian for the 64-bit world that is Mac OS X 10.6. So if you’re a Safari Guardian user, download the latest version and you can stop running Safari in 32-bit mode.

(There were no other changes in this release, and it still works with Safari 4 and/or Mac OS X 10.5, if you’ve not yet upgraded your OS or your browser.)

Posted in Products, Safari Guardian | Comments Off on Safari Guardian updated for Mac OS X 10.6

Witch 3.5 peeks into windows

June 14th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

It seems just weeks ago that I was writing “if we were believers in large version number increments, this could easily be Witch 3.5.” Oh wait…it was just weeks ago, when we released Witch 3.2 with Spaces support. So why are we today releasing Witch 3.5, doing that version-number-jumping thing that both Peter and I dislike?

Basically, as we looked back at the list of changes and additions since Witch 3.0—including today’s update—it seemed unfair to simply call this version 3.3. So after some discussion, we settled on 3.5, as we think that properly reflects all the feature additions and general improvements we’ve made since the release of Witch 3.0.

So what’s new and different in Witch 3.5? The most visible change in this release—and the one that had the largest impact on the version number jump—is that Witch now provides window previews for all windows it knows about.

To see a preview of any window, just leave the window selector on any entry for two seconds. (You can shorten or lengthen the delay before the previews appear, or disable them completely, using Witch’s preferences.)

You can even tell Witch to use a shrunken version of the previews in place of the icons you normally see in the Witch panel.

In addition to the very-useful previews, our new in-app purchasing system (introduced with Leech 2.0.3) has been added to Witch, providing a much-simpler way for trial users to purchase a license.

Witch 3.5 also contains these additional features and improvements:

  • Space number badges now scale with the size of the icons. As you make the Witch panel larger, the Spaces badges will get larger, too.
  • Space number badges can optionally be shown only for windows in other Spaces (click the Show Space numbers check box one time, to make it a minus sign).
  • Jump to the top (T, Home) or bottom (B, End) of the switcher panel via keyboard shortcut.
  • For those using a scrollwheel or trackpad to scroll through Witch’s window panel, a new pref enables wrap-around, so that the selector will move from bottom to top (or vice versa) without stopping.

We also squashed some minor yet still-annoying bugs, mainly related to toggling between two windows. To see a full list of changes, just visit the Witch release notes page.

If you’ve enabled automatic updates, Witch should alert you to version 3.5; otherwise, you can download it via the Witch web page.

Posted in Products, Witch | 2 Comments »

Leech 2.0.3 released

June 9th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

Today we released a minor update to Leech. The only new functionality (which we’re bringing to our other apps as we update them) is in-app product purchasing. This optional feature—you can always buy it through our web site, just as before—saves you a trip to our site to complete your purchase.

Because this in-store feature is brand new, we’d like your help in testing it. We’ve tested it internally, of course, but there’s nothing like a little real-world test to really prove it works. If you’ve been thinking about buying Leech, we’d love it if you’d download this latest version and then buy it using the in-app purchase module.

As our way of saying ‘thank you for the help,’ we’ll give the first 25 purchasers (via the in-app module, of course) a coupon good for 40% off their next Many Tricks’ purchase. That means, for instance, that you could buy Witch for around $11, Name Mangler for $6, and Butler for $12. If you shop using our web store, you can apply that 40% to everything you buy, too.

In addition to the in-app purchasing, we also further improved Leech’s interaction with Path Finder, and squished a couple minor bugs; one related to filenames, the other related to Sparkle. As always, you can visit the release notes page to see all the changes.

Launch Leech and it should inform you of the update, or it you can download it directly from our site.

Posted in Leech, Products | 12 Comments »

See (one part of) Many Tricks in person

June 8th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

Next week, I’ll be speaking at two different Macintosh User Group (MUG) meetings. First, on Monday June 14th, I’ll be at the Portland MUG (PMUG). The meeting starts at 6:30pm, and my talk starts at 8:00pm.

On Tuesday, I’ll be at MacNexus, the Sacramento MUG, and the meeting starts at 7:00pm.

At both meetings, I’ll be talking about Many Tricks, how to interact with Mac developers when you need help, and presenting some of my favorite Mac OS X tips and tricks from my nearly 10 years running macosxhints.com. Oh yes, I’ll also have some freebies to give away—Many Tricks’ apps, plus some other goodies.

If you’re in Portland or Sacramento, drop on in and say ‘hi!’. And if you’re associated with another MUG and are looking for speakers, please let me know—we’re thinking of doing this more regularly to meet some of our fellow Mac users and customers.

Posted in Company News | 1 Comment »

Butler 4.1.8 update released

June 4th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

We’ve just released Butler 4.1.8, which we strongly recommend for all users. There are only three changes in this version, but they all make Butler work better:

  • Fixed a Sparkle-related bug in Butler. We’ve worked around the issue for users of Butler 4.1.7, so you can update as usual. We have to get this fix out, though, to simplify future updates. Note that this update may sit on the “installing update” screen for 30 seconds or so. If this happens to you, just wait; Butler will relaunch on its own.
  • Made further changes to the code that locates the iTunes library. Some users experienced issues with the changes we made in 4.1.7; we’ve solved those problems in 4.1.8.
  • Fixed a bug introduced in 4.1.7 that prevented drag-and-drop operations with Butler’s pasteboard.

You should be able to update from within the app, or by downloading the new version from Butler’s product page.

Posted in Butler, Products | 9 Comments »

Name Mangler 2.2 pops up

June 2nd, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

We’ve just released Name Mangler 2.2, available via in-app updates or through the product page. The big news in this release is pop-up file previews—not just for images, but for any file that has a Quick Look preview.

We actually offer two different previews—a small pop-up panel (hence the title of this post), and the standard Mac OS X Quick Look window (only available in Mac OS X 10.6). You can set (in Name Mangler’s Preferences) whether you’d like the small pop-up panel to appear when hovering over a file’s icon, or only when you click the icon. (To get the Quick Look window to appear, click again when the pop-up panel is visible.)

We added a couple new variables to the Advanced section of Name Mangler (created and modified), and changed the way you can nest commands in Advanced mode. There are also the usual bug fixes and general improvements; head on over to Name Mangler’s release notes page to see all the changes.

Posted in Butler, Products | Comments Off on Name Mangler 2.2 pops up

Butler 4 update and Butler 5 pre-sale

May 27th, 2010 by Rob Griffiths

Today we’re releasing a minor Butler update (to version 4.1.7), which includes support for Sparkle (to automate future updates), and fixes some issues with non-standard iTunes library locations, visual glitches when dragging, and incorrectly-placed System Preferences panels.

Butler should (if you’ve enabled checking for updates) indicate that this update is available, and take you to the web page to download it. If it doesn’t, just click the Download link on the Butler web page to get it. Note that Butler now requires 10.5 or newer; if you’re still running 10.4, you’ll want to skip this update. (The older version is still downloadable from our web site, in case you accidentally upgraded).

The other news in this update is some preparation for Butler 5’s release. Butler now displays the standard Many Tricks’ software license, though it doesn’t actually do any license checking—so Butler is still unlimited shareware. There are no nag screens, nothing expires, and no features are restricted to paying customers. (And we’ll always offer a version of Butler 4 for download from our site.)

Butler 5, however, will be true shareware, much like our other major apps. Given we’re still working on features, interface, etc., we’re not sure what the restrictions will be, nor have we settled on a price for Butler 5. However, we’d like to reward those who have bought Butler 4 in the past, and those who may buy it before Butler 5 is released. To do that, we’re announcing the Butler 5 pre-sale:

If you purchase Butler 4 ($20) between now and Butler 5’s release date, you’ll receive a free upgrade to Butler 5 when it ships. In addition, as explained in this older blog post, all past donors (assuming you have proof of donation) will also receive free Butler 5 licenses. This is our way of offering some price protection against an unknown price, and rewarding both those who purchased Butler in the past and those who purchase it going forward, knowing Butler 5 is coming.

So if you’ve been holding off on contributing for Butler 4, now’s the time to do so—it’s like buying Butler 4 and an upgrade to Butler 5, but for the price of Butler 4 alone.

Posted in Butler, Products | 37 Comments »

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