BILLYFUSTER  This is a fantastic and essential editor for anyone working with XML and its related technologies (XSLT, XQuery, XML Schemas, RelaxNG, DTD). If you work with TEI, DocBook, or DITA, oXygen ships with up-to-date versions of these schemas and templates. oXygen natively understands (and learns) XML structures, so you'll notice it suggesting element and attribute values as you edit. It's also an excellent XHTML, CSS, and plain text editor. Its built-in ability to browse and query native XML databases (such as eXist and Mark Logic), SQL databases, and SVN repositories make it a tool for the power user.

While Java-based and thus visually non-Mac in UI, the developers are listening to the requests of mac users in their forums. Like many specialized tools, oXygen's many views and palettes let you customize your UI to expose only what you need to get your job done.

Lastly, don't let the price scare you away! There price listed here is for the professional commercial license. The personal/academic price is much lower (currently $48). The fact that this license is cross-platform means that if you have a windows machine you can install it there too and get work done.

Since I purchased in November, two point releases have come out - 9.2 and 9.3 - and I've been impressed with the steady progress they've made. 9.3 is able to open MS Office XML files in their zipped state from within oXygen. They're also adding more options for WYSIWYG-like XML editing, which make it nicer to edit XML files (and to train XML newbies to edit XML files).

My only problem cropped up when I began editing a fairly large XML file - I started getting out of memory errors. This was solved by a quick edit of a config file (oxygenmac.sh) in the oxygen directory... Java apps apparently can't adjust their memory as needed as native mac apps can. But the steps for doing this were well laid out in the included documentation.  
(Version 9.3)

BILLYFUSTER  The application's help notes the following:

OmniPatch Limitations

Currently, OmniPatch cannot create a patch between two folders or application bundles.

Also, file resource forks are entirely ignored by OmniPatch.

These issues may be addressed by a future version of OmniPatch.  
(Version 1.0)

BILLYFUSTER  With version 2.2 Mellel's bibliography and citation features are now top-rate. It integrates beautifully with Bookends 9.2 (also just updated and packing many great new features). Now Mellel lets you toggle back and forth between temporary citations and final-formatted citations. No more generating a 2nd document to format the citations.

2.2 also implements other highly requested features, styled auto-titles and highlighted text (aka 'markers'). They also managed to throw in a massive number of character-level options, such as character fill and dashed outlines.

The Redlers continue to add features but the application stays solid, scalable, and responsive.   
(Version 2.2)

BILLYFUSTER  Version 1.0.12 fixes the problem reported below where ads loaded in the browser. I wrote to the developers late last week reporting this, and while they didn't acknowledge my e-mail, this new release shows they were listening! Thanks!  
(Version 1.0.12)

BILLYFUSTER  This idea of starting WriteRoom 1.0 and working with one document was great... until you had to work on another document. How can you fit a one-document model into a multi-document world? That's what prompted 2.0.

I've been following the development of the beta, and it has really struck the right balance between the 'distraction-free writing' of 1.0 and the need to work with multiple plain- or rich-text documents.

Most of all, I'd say: If there's some specific feature you want implemented in WriteRoom to make it more to your liking, write up a careful detailed feature request and post it on the WriteRoom forum. If you can convince other users and teh developer that it's a good idea, it's got good chances... No joke.  
(Version 2.0b)

BILLYFUSTER  "a better user interface. It is clunky and by far is one of the worst and less user friendly of all apps that I use."

A singularly unhelpful comment. You should say what exactly bothers you, what strikes you as clunky about the interface, if another app does a better job. Back it up, and I'll understand the low rating you give it.

FYI - you're protected from becoming a supernode if you work behind a router with NAT traversal. This is basic network security common sense.  
(Version 2.0.0.3)

BILLYFUSTER  (Forgot to add stars to my original post.)

One last note: While CaminoSession will appear in Camino's preferences immediately after you install it, CaminoSession does not log windows/tabs until after the 1st restart of Camino after installing CaminoSession. In other words, restart Camino after installing CaminoSession.  
(Version 0.4)

BILLYFUSTER  Finally, with CaminoSession, Camino users never again will worry about losing open tabs and windows after quitting or crashing. Other browsers (Omni and Opera I believe) have it, and shareware add-ons for Safari (Saft) have it. When you think about it, it should've always been in browsers; just as many apps have the option to open the last-opened apps.

Note: CaminoSession doesn't reload pages from cache, just their URLs - so it reloads every web page.

Request 1: It would be nice if Camino could just pop back open where you left off - i.e. with text fields still partially filled, etc. (but perhaps this raises other problems, such as pages whose cookies have already expired)...

Request 2: I wish there were an additional preference to select/de-select tabs or windows when reopening Camino after a quit. (You do get this choice after a crash - which is smart, since one of the pages might've caused the crash to start with.)   
(Version 0.4)

BILLYFUSTER  This program is an essential tool in the arsenal of students, scholars, and multilingual users who need to work with traditional and simplified Chinese, classical and modern Japanese, and/or Korean on the computer.

Often times online databases or dictionaries restrict you to entering one of these forms (i.e. simplified Japanese versions of characters), but if you enter, say, the traditional Chinese version of the same character, you're stuck. Rather than activating another input method, you can paste your character into this program and get the variant that you need. It also helpfully lists pronunciations and basic meanings of characters.

The program uses Unicode.org's unihan.txt as the basis for its database of variants as well as other publicly available lists on the net. None of these lists is 'complete' (the problem of variants is an ongoing unresolved CS/linguistics nightmare), but this program is very practical in 99.9% of cases.

The developer is very kind and developed this program for free. Please share your appreciation by letting him know.  
(Version 1.0)

BILLYFUSTER  (I forgot to rate the program in my last e-mail)  
(Version 3.20)

BILLYFUSTER  The primary reason I use WordLookup is because it allows me to search EDICT, ENAMDICT, and CEDICT in one program. (ENAMDICT is a specialized dictionary and very huge, and I appreciate being able to separate its results from the general dictionary results of EDICT.) I can search in one language and then copy and paste into the other. When Chinese and Japanese forms are different I use the Unihan Variant Dictionary to generate the variant than I can then paste into the other.

The developer is very responsive; when I requested user-definable key shortcuts to switch between dictionaries, he added them. (Cmd-1, -2 and -3 switch between the three dictionary windows.)

If you ever need to print, WordLookup generates very nice output. Its copy and paste is also very clean, so moving search results into word processors or e-mails is a cinch.

For all of these features and the great support, the $14 registration has been well worth it. I use this program every day.  
(Version 3.20)

BILLYFUSTER  Free is free, but there's already a Mac game called Bubble Trouble!

http://macupdate.com/info.php/id/7805  
(Version 1.0.1)

BILLYFUSTER  Sorry - I mentioned 3gp because my phone won't let me use mp3s as ringtones, but 3gp files converted using Make3gp (available via MacUpdate, free license) work like a charm.   
(Version 1.0.3)

BILLYFUSTER  Strangely Ringtone Chop Shop can't directly save the resulting mp3 onto your computer; the documentation suggests you're supposed to e-mail it to your phone's e-mail account (perhaps because in pre-bluetooth days it was difficult to transfer files from computer onto phone), but you can enter any e-mail address. The e-mail you receive will contain a URL; you can open the file in a web browser but unless you have QuickTime Pro you can't save the darned file; then again, QuickTime Pro can also save mp3 files as 3gp, making this program unnecessary for those with QT Pro. So use "SimpleWget" (also available on MacUpdate, free license) to grab the file. Feed thru Make3GP, and you're set.  
(Version 1.0.3)

BILLYFUSTER  Very nice program - you can use it to convert mp3 files to 3gp files for use as ringtones. Many phones apparently restrict you from using mp3 files supplied by you (as opposed to bought from them) as ringtones, but 3gp is allowed. On my Samsung T509, mp3s I upload are greyed out in the ringtone selection screen, but 3gp files created by this program work. I use "Ringtone Chop Shop" (available here on MacUpdate, free license) to create the source mp3. Strangely Ringtone Chop Shop can't directly save the resulting mp3 onto your computer; the documentation suggests you're supposed to e-mail it to your phone's e-mail account (perhaps because in pre-bluetooth days it was difficult to transfer files from computer onto phone), but you can enter any e-mail address. The e-mail you receive will contain a URL; you can open the file in a web browser but unless you have QuickTime Pro you can't save the darned file; then again, QuickTime Pro can also save mp3 files as 3gp, making this program unnecessary for those with QT Pro. So use "SimpleWget" (also available on MacUpdate, free license) to grab the file. Feed thru Make3GP, and you're set.

My only suggestion to the developer of Make3GP program would be to add a *file* selection dialog instead of the current "drag & drop" of source and destination *folders*. I don't need batch conversion by default -- I just want to convert an occasional file.

But thanks! Hope this helps folks.  
(Version 1.0.3)

BILLYFUSTER  Along with some previous reviewers, I experienced conflicts between megazoomer and VLC's full screen mode and some system instability. This new version fixes the VLC problems for me, and so far there aren't problems with other apps. The developer's list of changes makes it sound like he has managed to implement lots of fixes.   
(Version 0.4)

BILLYFUSTER  Mail crashed on startup for me too, until I removed the plugin. I had already applied the terminal settings for another Mail plugin (AttachmentScannerPlugin) - the directions were the same. By the way, I'm using Mac OS X 10.4.6 with Mail 2.0.7 (746.2/749.3).   
(Version 1.0)