Off topic

Punakea on sale today only

PunakeaPunakea, one of the first file system tagging solutions available and now an OpenMeta-driven shareware option, is being sold for 36% off today July 27th, 2009 only over at MacUpdate Promo.

Particularly if you were disappointed at Punakea’s switch from free beta software to paid shareware, this is a good opportunity to get it at a reduced price. Punakea is a handy “tag and quick search” app in the vein of Tags or TagIt / Fresh.

Tags on sale today only

TagsTags, my favorite solution for file system tagging, is currently on sale at MUPromo for 45% today, June 26, 2009 only.

Tags is compatible with OpenMeta tagging apps like Leap, Default Folder X, or the newly released Punakea and is my favorite solution for tagging files after the fact (Default Folder X being the best option for tagging them as you first save them). Of course, you should be aware of the downsides to OpenMeta; as powerful as Tags and similar programs are, they aren’t something you should use without being aware of how they’re accomplishing their magic.

Default Folder X on sale today only

Default Folder XDefault Folder X, one of the applications I find absolutely essential to my workflow, is on sale today, October 27, 2008 only for $19.95 over at the MacUpdate Promo.

Default Folder X has a slew of great features, but the one interesting to taggers is that you can define Spotlight comments when you save a file. This is possibly the best way to maintain a tagging system, since tagging when you save removes the need to go back over your files and organize them (which is unlikely to happen for most of us). If you haven’t tried Default Folder X yet, I strongly recommend it even for those people who aren’t interested in file system tagging. This is one of those applications that I wasn’t really sure if I needed, but then after I’d used it for a few days wondered how I’d survived without it.

PackRat receives price drop

PackRatPackRat, the desktop frontend for 37signal’s Backpack, has received a price drop from $24.95 to $14.95.

Aside from the benefit of an OS X rather than web-based interface, PackRat also offers the ability to access your Backpack information offline. For more details about the program, see the PackRat website.

StoryMill sale

StoryMillAs you may or may not be aware, StoryMill is one of my favorite tagging applications (I love writing fiction, and for years StoryMill has been hands-down the best solution for keeping myself and my writing organized). Since its update to version 3.0, however, StoryMill has been a bit more pricey, which makes it harder for me to recommend to Average wanna-be-a-novelist Joe.

However, from now until August 18th, 2008 StoryMill is on sale for $29.95 through the Mariner Software online store (both boxed and digital download versions). This is about a 60% discount (reg. $49.95 for boxed, $44.95 for digital download), so if you’ve been thinking you need a better tool for getting your fiction out of your head and onto the page give StoryMill a look-see.

Keyword Manager on sale today only

Keyword ManagerKeyword Manager, a standby for iPhoto-related tagging, is on sale today, May 5, 2008 only for 50% off over at MacZot.

Definitely a good deal if you’re interested in an easier way to tag your photos than iPhoto’s built-in keywords functionality. Keyword Manager provides an attractive HUD interface, hierarchical keywords, and more.

MacUpdate Parallels Promo

Today the MacUpdate “Parallels” Promo was launched. This bundle is a surprisingly good one, and includes a number of useful tagging applications including Leap, StoryMill, and Hazel. The apps that become unlocked if the bundle does well are also extremely appealing (Sound Studio and Parallels Desktop are both apps that I use myself). And MenuCalendarClock iCal is one of those apps that you’ll install and forget it’s there because its functionality should have been written into the OS.

I highly recommend the MacUpdate promo bundle if only for Leap and StoryMill. Leap in particular is probably the best file system tagging solution available, and StoryMill is my favorite creative writing software (and uses tagging for its primary organization). Assuming the bundle sells well enough to unlock all ten apps, you’ll be getting $474.76 worth of software for $65. Most surprising is that more than 50% of the apps are worth buying (normally with these bundles two or three are worthwhile and the rest are all fluff). FYI: the MacUpdate link in this post is an affiliate link because while I would have recommended this bundle anyway, I’d love it if someday Tagamac at least paid for its hosting costs. Click through from here if you want to show me a little love, or just visit MacUpdate on your own if you hate affiliate links in your soul.

StoryMill on sale today only

StoryMillStoryMill, my favorite creative writing software that incidentally features tagging, is on sale today March 7, 2008 only for $24.95 at MacZot (50% off the boxed price). This is a great deal; if you’re a fiction writer, I highly recommend taking a look at StoryMill.

People inevitably end up comparing StoryMill to Scrivener, but they’re really very different tools. Scrivener uses the metaphor of a 3×5 index cards and then makes you create your own structure. StoryMill uses the metaphor of scenes within chapters, and provides a structure, which for me at least makes writing easier since I spend less time worrying about how to organize things. StoryMill’s timeline feature is also the only one of its kind in creative writing software at the moment. If you’re a writer, this isn’t a sale you want to miss.

TaskPaper on sale today only

TaskPaperTaskPaper, the ultra-slimmed down task management software from Hog Bay Software, is on sale today, February 25, 2008 only for $12 (down from its current introductory price of $18.95) over at MacZot.

Been a while since MacZot had anything halfway worthwhile, but TaskPaper is definitely a well-designed app. Although TaskPaper isn’t fully-featured enough for me, for some people it’s the perfect minimalist way to keep track of your tasks. Even if you don’t end up buying it, I highly recommend trying to use it for a week just to discover which features actually matter to you in a task management app and which you can happily live without.

Beckism.com completely redesigned

This has nothing to do with tagging. Sorry. I’m in the process of writing a couple awesome articles, if you care, but they aren’t ready for public consumption. Anyway, while I may write about tagging a lot here on Tagamac, I also have another place on the web where I write stuff called Beckism.com. I tend to write about web design, Mac software, fiction, and occasionally me. Basically the stuff in my life that I care about that isn’t tagging.

Check out the new design or read the redesign announcement for yourself! If you’ve visited before, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.