Punakea, 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.
Snippet, the snazzy new kid on the snippet management block, has been updated to version 1.1. This update includes improves on almost all of my original annoyances with the program: you can now access application functions like quitting, preferences, and so forth through the gear button (now a menu instead of just opening the preferences). Additionally you can have Snippet paste snippets directly into whatever app is frontmost rather than copying the snippet to your clipboard. And lastly you can navigate the list of snippets with simple arrow keys, and select a snippet by hitting return.
Unfortunately, there’s currently a bug that prevents you from using those two last features together, but regardless the program is much more useable now, and I highly recommend you take a look if you need to store code or text snippets. Full information about the release is available in the release notes.
Hazel, my absolutely favorite application when it comes to keeping my file system in order without needing much of my time, has been updated to version 2.3. Although this update does not contain any improvements that specifically will make tagging easier, it does contain numerous improvements to the core software such as syntax highlighting for shell scripts (and an overall improved script editor), the ability to move or copy items to the “enclosing folder” which moves them one level up in the file system, and numerous other fixes and updates. Additionally, the use of keywords has been phased out of the program, but you shouldn’t have been writing to keywords, anyway (way too likely to get wiped out by another program).
For the full story, see the Hazel release notes.
Pukka, the light-weight Delicious client from Code Sorcery, was recently updated to version 1.8. This update includes bookmark searching from the menu-bar (a la Spotlight), full Applescript access to bookmarks, and the ability to drag and drop your accounts to reorder them (with the top one serving as your default account). It additionally includes improvements under the hood like code signing and similar improvements.
For details, see the Pukka 1.8 blog announcement. Pukka is probably your best bet if you want a desktop Delicious client (my favorite bookmark manager is WebnoteHappy, but sadly its developer does not appear to be actively developing it any more), and is a very streamlined way to save and access bookmarks, particularly with the introduction of searching.
For those developers who want something with a little more dazzle and a little less cost than the venerable Code Collector Pro, the newly released Snippet may be just the thing. Snippet offers a very simple HUD-style menubar window, accessed by the shorcut control-S. When you want to copy a previous snippet, just type control-S and start typing to search for it. To create a new snippet, control-S and then command-N. The interface is universally slick, with windows popping in and out, flipping over, and generally providing eye candy, and the program has some great features, like synchronization via MobileMe. And of course the program provides easy search hinting and organization using tags.
Snippet definitely is a 1.0, though. There are no menus to speak of and some of the user interactions are anything but intuitive, so before you use it you’ll want to check out the Help documentation on the Snippet website to brush up on the keyboard shortcuts. Additionally, there is also no way yet to paste your snippet directly into the frontmost app; you’ll have to copy it to your clipboard and then paste it into the app. However, despite these downsides Snippet is certainly an interesting and polished-looking offering that’s worth trying out if you’ve ever had problems synchronizing frequently-used code between multiple computers.
Code Collector Pro, the centralized library for code snippets, has been updated to version 1.3.5. This minor bug fix release includes fixes for snippet drag and drop, switches bundle installation to use the new Textmate repository, and now remembers the sort order of groups between launches.
For more details, see the release notes. Unfortunately, it looks like a major version increase for Code Collector is unlikely to happen in the near future.
Nifty Box, a quirky alternative to some of the more popular file system tagging solutions, has been updated to 1.3; the main new feature is an enhanced ability to relocate moved files. As long as your files stay on the same hard drive, Nifty Box should no longer lose them (if you migrate to a new hard drive, it may still need a little help).
Sadly, Nifty Box has reached the end of the line. The developer has decided to pursue his true passion of working in the space industry, and Nifty Box will no longer be updated. The positive side of this is that the software is now available for free. For more information about the switch to freeware and how to transition your data out of Nifty Box, see the 1.3 blog announcement.
Tags, 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.
After one of the longest public beta periods I’ve experienced outside of Google, Punakea has finally been released. Priced at $25, Punakea 1.0 brings numerous enhancements over previous versions. The biggest difference is that Punakea now uses OpenMeta for its tag storage instead of fantastically convoluted Spolight comments. Additional improvements include the ability to Quick Look your results when browsing through tagged files, a HUD-style tagger, a global hotkey for accessing said tagger from the Finder or your web browser, and numerous bugfixes.
For more information about Punakea’s 1.0 release and subsequent move from free to shareware, see the blog posts on the first 1.0 release candidate, final pricing, and the 1.0 announcement. Release notes are also available.
Leap 2.0 was released today, finally bringing Ironic Software’s OpenMeta tagging system to their flagship product. In addition to OpenMeta tagging and ratings, Leap 2 sports a revamped, simplified interface and significant speed improvements. Tags are no longer stored in a database or cached to files on your hard drive; Leap now relies solely on OpenMeta for all of its tagging.
Leap 2 is available for $59 with a 10 day demo, or $19 for owners of Leap 1 (to get the upgrade price, install Leap 2, launch it, and click the “Upgrade Now…” button for instructions). For more information, see the release notes.