BOBZOZUS  For Those Ticked off About the Drive Genius Upgrade Policy.

PolkaDot below offers a free way to update Drive Genius 2.1 to

2.1.1 without paying the upgrade fee. Big thanks goes to him!

Be sure to read the replies to his post- as they offer further

clarification of how to burn the new drive genius 2.1.1 start-up

disk. It works- and is fairly easy to do!  
(Version 2.1.1)

BOBZOZUS  Thanks, Zom, for getting back to me...

1. No, I don't think the slider is obtrusive at all. My problem on my system is that it does not float above all the other windows- like it did in Tiger. In other words, when I switch to an app that takes up the whole screen- it disappears. Unfortunately, that limits greatly the use of the slider.

2. And, with regard to the upper right hand side of my menu disappearing- I'm not sure where I would get such a log. I'd be glad to search for it- if I knew how!

3. Glad you are thinking of adding an updater.

I really miss Mousequeak. I do hope that I can again use it- soon!

With respect and admiration,

Bob

P.S. I'm glad you explained the logic behind the name. Makes sense. However, not sure if it would work in the U.S. should you decide to market Mousqueak in the U.S. as a shareware app.  
(Version 1.0)

BOBZOZUS  I've determined that on my system, at least, the problems seem confined to Leopard. Tiger still seems to be fine!  
(Version 1.0)

BOBZOZUS  Hi Zom!

Thanks for continuing to work on this. I do like the modular design that you are working towards- to reduce potential conflicts with other programs- I bet. Nice.

However, a few thoughts on the transition and new program.

1. It would be nice if there was an easy way to know there are updates to Mousquek. Sparkle, perhaps. Or, at least a link that would allow one to know if you updated the app.

2. The name- I'm sorry, I just don't get it. What about "ITunes Slider Control" or the "ITunesSlider" or even "ITunesSlider Control & Display"?

3. Just recently, I had both ITunesVolume 1.22 & Mouseqeak break on me so that I can not use them. Specifically, it won't do the following:

a. Stay above all the other application windows. No matter if I ask it to stay above the menu- or float.

b. And, it destroys the right side of my finder menu. Once I run Mousquek, or ITunesVolume for that matter- the right upper side of my Finder menu disappears- in all apps. Very frustrating. No more time, date, etc.

Anyway, I will keep an eye on your efforts. Your program, in comparison to all the other myriad ITune products out there does some things outstanding (or has, in the past). They are:

1. Animate the album art when the song changes. Great effect!! If possible, a feature request would be to allow the possibility for the effect to be invoked with each song change- not just each album change. It is so cool having the album artwork hurdle towards you- no other app does this- to my knowledge.

2. Best implementation of showing the lyrics and artwork to an album by simply putting your cursor over the slider. Outstanding. Now that I can't use your app- I go to the Dashboard to look at Lyrics & artwork. Not as convenient.

3. Only Itunes controller app that I know of that allows switching of playlists without using a menu item.

For each of these three things- your app stands alone. I am sorry that I can no longer use it for these three functions- in particular. I know of no alternative programs that allow this functionality.

Good luck with further development. I'll be watching. And, thanks!!

Bob Zozus

  
(Version 1.0)

BOBZOZUS  My download link for Pearlyric .6.3 was blocked out of the last missive. So, I will try to spell it out. You can download it at the Softpedia website. Mac Os- then dashboard widgets- then under music- on the second page- you will find Pearlyric .6.3. You also might try iLyrics 2.4 (don't try to Download from MacUpdate- it sends you to a site where the file seems unaccessible) & iTunesLyrics 3.2- both found on the first page of the widget section for Music on the Softpedia website. Hope this helps someone!   
(Version 0.6.5)

BOBZOZUS  My download link for Pearlyric .6.3 was blocked out of the last missive. So, I will try to spell it out. You can download it at the Softpedia website. Mac Os- then dashboard widgets- then under music- on the second page- you will find Pearlyric .6.3. You also might try iLyrics 2.4 (don't try to Download from MacUpdate- it sends you to a site where the file seems unaccessible) & iTunesLyrics 3.2- both found on the first page of the widget section for Music on the Softpedia website. Hope this helps someone!  
(Version 0.6.5)

BOBZOZUS  Still a great app. However, the developer has been hassled by the record companies- which claims that this little app violates their copy write protection. What? Anyway, this version does not work anymore- it may have been disabled. The good news is if you use version .6.3- it still works. It can be downloaded from this site- the only one I have found that still has it: ! If, for some reason, you can't get it there- I will be happy to send you the dmg. I can't believe this freeware developer is being hassled for providing a service to the Mac community- which makes ITunes that much more enjoyable. No wonder they will all be subsumed by direct to marketing in the coming years. Good riddance! P.S. Sorry about the diatribe- this is just one of life's little injustices that just crawls under one's skin....  
(Version 0.6.5)

BOBZOZUS  Hello! I have the dmg file for SRS IWoW. I'd be glad to email it to you if you can get me your email address.

Bob at zozus at myway dot (you know how it ends- hint- not in net)  
(Version 3.0)

BOBZOZUS  I too was perfectly happy with version 2.02 of SRS IWow that I received in a MacUpdate bundle. I too installed 3.0- much to my chagrin. Didn't add much. Had the same trouble as you all in reinstalling version 2. However, I finally was able to do so- don't know if it is a fluke- but perhaps it will work for you:

1. Used the unistaller for version 3.

2. Trashed the com.srs.iwow.plist file from my user library preference folder.

3. Trashed the Install SRS iWOW.pckg file from the receipts folder from the Library at the Root Level (Macintosh Hard Drive).

4. Emptied trash

5. Restarted

6. Reinstalled v. 2

If I am right, you have to trash not only the user preference file for SRSIWow- but the install package in the system library receipt folder entitled "install SRS IWow.pckg"- tricky, indeed. Especially because the pckg name starts with install & seperates the SRS & Iwow- rather than concatenating them like srsiwow is found everywhere else- foiling simple searches. If I'm correct, mighty devious, indeed!

Oh, yes, including the uninstall app that works like sh*! is a mighty fine touch!  
(Version 3.0)

BOBZOZUS  I had the same problem as you. No response from tech support (Michael Bingham). However, I followed the following steps, much like you:

"So I uninstalled v.3, deleted the .plist and application support folder from my User Library, rebooted, emptied the trash, then tried to reinstall v.2. It doesn't work. I receive a message that says I can't install v.2 because I already have a more recent version installed."

However, I went one step further- I deleted the package receipt in the admin library entitled "install srsiwow". Voila, I was able to reinstall version 2. Hope this helps you- perhaps I was just lucky!  
(Version 3.0)

BOBZOZUS  Dear Zom: Great Work! I find the slider much more responsive under Tiger! It just works!! Thanks again...

If you do decide to polish the app further- I would suggest the restoring some of the functionality that was present in earlier incarnations of Itunes Volume. There are only two:

1. Allow the slider to be positioned horizontally, as well as vertically.

2. When you slide the cursor over ItunesVolume, besides showing the album cover, and info balloon connected to the cursor- could you please restore the window showing the song's lyrics. That would be great!

Thanks again for your hard work. Your app is now quite polished from where it began. I'm very impressed- and hopeful that you will continue the fantastic work!  
(Version 1.2.1)

BOBZOZUS  First off, Kudos to the developer. One of the few Mac programs that unfortunately has little buzz- but is worthy of much praise.

I have been particularly impressed that in my brief time knowing of EagleFiler- 2 months- it has been updated a total of four times! With no upgrade fee. And, the price- for it's functionality- is very reasonable.

Why do I feel EagleFiler is such a value. First, the developer is extremely responsive to concerns. I had a difficulty with EagleFiler- and he was quite responsive in trying to solve it. On my particular system we could not solve the issue- but his responsiveness made me even more confident in the Eagle Filer.

Other reasons I like using Eaglefiler. Ease of import from web pages, Word Documents, PDF (from Skim) & RTF files into Eagle Filer. Very impressive. Import is accomplished with a few keyboard controls. Allows one to specify tags quite easily in the process.

Very accurate search and retrieve. Many different types of search strategies can be utilized- including a very useful "search by phrase." Top notch.

I like to keep a nested hierarchy of information. Eagle Filer does so easily.

Most important- it keeps the information it archives in the original data format in which the material was made. It does not translate your material into it's own proprietary format. For this reason, alone, EagleFiler is much superior to it's competition. Should you decide not to update to the latest version of EagleFiler- or chose not to use it in the future at all- your data will still be organized (in the hierarchy nests you specify), and easily accessed in the data format the file was originally created. Unfortunately, I had previously used SOHO notes. In order to transfer my data from this program to EagleFiler- I had to convert each and every file individually from SOHO notes format to an RTF file (340 notes in all). And, only then could import into EagleFiler. What a pain! A pain I will never have to endure while using EagleFiler.

Allows one to archive important Email folders. Obviates the need to purchase another program to do the same- such as Email Commander (which I think saves me at least $40 in itself). Nice!!

The way in which the data is saved is very reliable. And, I have had a few catastrophic crashes where I had to restart the computer after another program hanged (I know, not supposed to happen in X- but I found a way!)- and the data I had been working on in EagleFiler was saved. Quite unexpected and pleasant- to say the least.

Finally, it strikes me that I would remiss if I did not note that I have found the capture technology much quicker and useful than using, for example, then using DockNote or QuickNote in SOHO notes. Using a few keyboard controls, EagleFiler allows one to import into one of several libraries- to drill down and place the material in the appropriate subfolder- to specify tags to be associated with the material- and to use a color code should one wish.

Oh, I should also note that EagleFiler is quicker in my experience than SOHO notes. As long as one loads EagleFiler on log in. And, EagleFiler will load all pertinent libraries automatically on start up. I have several libraries that contain specific types of information- which also speeds up EagleFiler.

I should also mention that I have a PowerPC G4 (1 ghz)- a relatively slow & old computer- EagleFiler works well. An added bonus- since I use Tiger- the latest version of EagleFiler is still relevant. With SOHO notes- the newest version only works on Leopard.

Oh, yes, I forgot to mention that Eagle Filer uses an ingenious method of encrypting sensitive data libraries. This allows me to password protect not only the individual files- but the EagleFiler directory upon which holds the file. Sweet! Allows another layer of confidentiality and organization to sensitive and important information one wishes to organize.

There are many other ways in which EagleFiler is a most thoughtful and well-implemented program Take the 30 day test drive- and see what you think. I did, and am not regretting my decision one bit. EagleFiler is well worth the investment in both time and money- to me!! Thanks, Michael Tsai!

  
(Version 1.3.5)

BOBZOZUS  On my previous review, the web sites where EagleFiler could be found- did not come through. You can simply search MacUpdate for EagleFiler (all one word)- or check out the developer's web site at c-command.com/eaglefiler/. Anyway, to reiterate- this program does not use a proprietary format to store your valuable data. It is extremely reliable- and much quicker than SOHO Notes. Great search capabilities- tagging- nested folders- easy import of information into the data base. And, works for Tiger as well as Leopard. I'm free!!  
(Version 7.0.2)

BOBZOZUS  I must concur with those who find SOHO Notes slow, buggy, and expensive. I particularly do not like the fact that SOHO notes requires one to create notes using the SOHO notes data base format. Particularly a problem in that the format of this data base changes during each- expensive- upgrade. And, for those of us still using Tiger- the newest version of SOHO notes does not even apply!

So, I am glad to report that I switched- to the excellent - and reasonably priced- Eagle Filer. It is a data based manager which keeps files in their own data format. It is constantly updated (three times in the last few months alone)- with no upgrade fee! It has powerful and accurate search, tagging and spotlight integration. I could go on- just check it out at: or . You will not be sorry that you did!

P.S. I am in no way connected with Eaglefiler, nor receive any financial compensation from the developers of this program. I have just been a long term user of Chronos software programs- Organizer, SOHO notes, even Consultant- and have always been disappointed by the wide chasm between what the developers promise- and what the programs deliver. Their unreliability, and high upgrade costs. Sorry, but after feeling had for the last ten years- I finally have broken free! It feels good....  
(Version 7.0.2)

BOBZOZUS  Thanks for the awesome work. ITunes Volume just keeps on getting better & better!!

With regard to accessing song's ratings- unfortunately- I still run Tiger. Oh, Well- at least I know that when I upgrade- I will get an even better ITunes Volume...  
(Version 1.1.4)

BOBZOZUS  I am troubled by your comments. I am sorry that you are having so much difficulty getting IClips to work under Leopard- and have not had success in getting Inventive Customer support to help you out. Unfortunately, I can not say too much concerning how IClips does or doesn't work in Leopard. However, I have had good success in contacting their customer support. I have had responsive communication with Mr. Mike Larry at email address: info2007@inventive.us. Perhaps if you tell him of your difficulties- and desire to have IClips work since it broke when you upgraded to Leopard- he can help facilitate support concerning your problem. Best of Luck- Bob  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  I am troubled by your comments. I am sorry that you are having so much difficulty getting IClips to work under Leopard- and have not had success in getting Inventive Customer support to help you out. Unfortunately, I can not say too much concerning how IClips does or doesn't work in Leopard. However, I have had good success in contacting their customer support. I have had responsive communication with Mr. Mike Larry at email address: info2007@inventive.us. Perhaps if you tell him of your difficulties- and desire to have IClips work since it broke when you upgraded to Leopard- he can help facilitate support concerning your problem. Best of Luck- Bob  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  Hi! Me again. Just had to augment my earlier review by stating my pleasure to see that ITunes Vol. is being actively developed. And, to state my gratitude to the developer for the fine work on this app!!

There are several major improvements made to ITunes Volume which I would like to briefly mention. For ease, I will number them.

1. In a most unobtrusive manner- the developer has now made it possible to donate an ITunes gift in the about ITunes window. This just serves to underscore the fact that this developer does not require payment for functionality that so many other ITunes' helpers only hope to provide (i.e., TotalTunesControl & CoverSutra- to name a few)- and require you to pay. I am going to save some money so that I can at least show the developer my appreciation for his hard work. ITunes Volume is the best ITunes helper app that I know of for my needs. And, I have tried most of the others which work on Tiger.

2. Now that I know that touching the cursor to the Volume Slide Control while pressing the Control key allows me to use ITunes Control to see the full lyrics in the Info window- I do not need to invoke PearLyric in Dashboard to check out a song's lyrics! Nice!! I still have PearLyric widget run, however- since it automatically obtains and downloads lyrics to songs that are missing such information.

3. Touching the slider control is much, much more responsive now in this most recent ITunes reiteration. Much easier to rate the music. Much easier to get to the preference controls & playlist functions. Just much easier to use!!

4. Now, the artwork flashes on the screen much more crisply- and with the appropriate random core graphics faders!! Before, it was too slow. Very nice improvement in ITune Volume programming- just like that seen in the responsiveness to slider control mentioned in 3 above.

5. The Icon is now more detailed. I can see that the brown thing next to the musical note is an accordion. Much more detailed- although I think it would be better to have a different icon. Perhaps, a generic dog "listening" to the note- which would connote better the volume and listening control features of ITunes Volume.

To Improve ITunesVolume, I would like to see the following. They are listed in order of importance:

1. Add the tunes user star rating to the Artwork that flashes onto the screen. This would be great!! However, if too difficult, than perhaps adding the song's user star rating to either the Info Window- or the Info Balloon (which is a cool new feature, by the way!)- would suffice. As it is now, one does not know how the tune was rated in the past- or whether it needs a rating. To get this information now, ITunes Volume requires one attempt to give a song a rating- an active proposition to information which should be shown more passively. Further, since I feel the vast majority of my music rates a three- I do not bother to rate any music that is not 2, 4, or 5 stars (I do not keep music that only rates a star). Thus, I do not actively engage in rating the vast majority of my music.

2. Restore the ability to have the slider control be horizontal, as well as vertical. On my system, having ITunes horizontal makes it less obtrusive when working on other applications.

3. Add a way to invoke the shuffle feature of a playlist. Because ITunesVolume lacks this functionality, I still need to invoke ITunes when switching playlists- because I can not toggle shuffle on and off from ITunesVolume. This negates the usefulness of being able to access playlists from ITunesvolume- which otherwise is a fine feature. Fortunately, since I do not need to change playlists often- this problem is not nearly as important as the previous two.

3. Improvements to the information balloon feature. On my system, sometimes the "Display Attached to Slider"- which keeps the Info Balloon showing even when the cursor is not touching the slider- flips on. This is annoying- but easily fixed by going to preferences to turn it off. Still, the only unpolished part of ITunes Volume I have identified.

4. As an adjunct to Number 2 above, it would be very cool if ItunesVolume could allow rating of all songs in a playlist en masse. I could then go through the playlist and rate music without waiting for it to be played. Perhaps there is another program that allows that now. If so, I haven't found it!

5. Memory usage. It uses around 23 mb. of real ram consistently, and about .5 to 5% of CPU processing power. The processing power seems o.k. About as much as utilized by my Temperature Monitoring Application- for example. However, sometimes it will use up to 32 mb. of real ram. ITunes itself only uses 34 mb. of ram. I wonder if this ram usage could be decreased?

6. The following functionality is found in the wonderful ITunes helper called IController (found at ) However, if ITunes Volume goes commercial as a complete solution to ITunes control- the developer might choose to include these functions. Not as important, however, if this software is to continue to be listed as free. Just do as I do, use IController (which is also free- by the way) in conjunction with ITunes Volume:

a. The ability to have the current ITunes song and artist scroll on the menu bar. IController has an especially useful interface allowing great customization of this feature.

b. Allow system wide "hot keys" be set up that allow the ability to change the track being played to go one back or one forward- and to play/pause ITunes. An additional neat hotkey would allow one to quit Itunes without having to go to Itunes itself.

c. Growl support- which would again afford another opportunity to show the Itunes Star rating in another passive type condition. Either this method- or on the CD artwork which flashes on the screen during track changes, would constitute the best ways to showcase user song ratings.

And, should the developer go to a paid model for ITunes Volume- it would make a great deal of sense to notify users before upgrading that upgrading will result in a payment requirement. The developer of TotalTunesControl went from a free to paid model- and did so without notifying his installed base that he was doing so. Incurred the wrath of many who upgraded- only to find that now they owed money when previously they did not.

Whew! I've gone on way too long. Anyway, my heartfelt thanks to Zom!! You have indeed produced a well-designed app which I find useful each and every day!! And, the recent improvements in the app are immense!! Thanks again!!!!

  
(Version 1.1.3)

BOBZOZUS  At least under Tiger, I believe that the previous reviewer is correct. The Mac OS provides similar functionality. The only benefits I can see from PopChar over the character palette is the fact that PopChar does not take space on your menu bar- and does offer a more complete listing of possible character types to insert in a document.

For those thinking of purchasing- I would first try the Mac OS Menu bar solution. And, then try PopChar. Only then can one judge whether PopChar is worth $45. I think that price is quite high, actually.

I bought PopChar as part of the Macility bundle- which costs around $70 USD for PopChar, KeyCue, & Typinator. This is one of those times where I believe I made a mistake in my software purchase. PopChar is not such an improvement over the Mac OS system functionality that it is worth more than $20 USD to me. Rather than Typinator, I use TypeIt4Me- which has the ability to select your abbreviation from the menu item- and is just generally a more robust type expander- in my view. KeyCue is useful rarely to remind me of keyboard short-cuts: but to be honest, has only proven useful a few times in about 6 months of use. I think it would be worth $10 USD for me. So, I paid $70 for what I think should have cost me- at most- $30 (since I just use PopChar & KeyCue)! Of course, your mileage may vary. That is why it is so important to utilize shareware before you buy. That is why I wrote this- to encourage those interested in this app- or the Macility Bundle- to try it on for size before purchasing. Do not buy without kicking the tires. I wish I did. Have no one to blame but myself!  
(Version 4.0.1)

BOBZOZUS  I found several comments recently made about IClip to be unfair. I have no vested interest in the software, other than the price I paid to purchase it.

First, with regard to comments that IClip should be considered "abandonware." I can certainly refute that notion. I had difficulty with my Mac, and had to have the hard drive replaced. Therefore, I had occasion to contact the people at Inventive software. They were responsive.

I further contacted them once again with concern about IClip Leopard compatibility- for when I finally upgrade. They stated in no uncertain terms that IClip is fully compatible with Leopard. That they have not released recent bug fixes or revisions because there was nothing to fix. And, as I looked at their past software release cycle- it seems that they are not due another release of IClip until early 2009 (as they seem to release software on a 2 year cycle).

So, I wrote because of fairness. And, because, for me, I did not find CuteClips 3.0b17, CopyPaste + YType v. 2.75, or PTHPasteboard 4.4 to come close to meeting my needs as well as IClip (please see my earlier review if interested as to why). Since I only run Tiger, I have not been able to evaluate IClipboard. O.k., enough said to provide an alternative view of IClip.  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  To be truthful- lyrics have always just shown up when I put my cursor over the slider. In the preference pane, under the information window- where the lyrics will show up- it says that clicking on the slider may restore the information window. I would try that first. If not, then perhaps the lyric window is just off the edge of your screen- in essence, hidden from your view. I had that happen to the slider once. Had to search the edges of my screen to find it. It had all but disappeared from view. Remember, I am running Tiger. All bets are off for Leopard. Since the App has not been updated in a very long time- I would doubt it works in Leopard. Another thought. To be honest, I do not use ITunes Volume for my lyrics. I use a dashboard widget from PearLyrics to look at song lyrics that interest me. If I wish to search through my Lyrics- I use FetchYourLyrics. Both are free, and obtainable from MacUpdate. Hope all this helps!  
(Version 1.0.2)

BOBZOZUS  Thanks for your insightful comments and corrections to my original posting. I do agree- that different shareware programs- with essentially the same functionality- will work better for different users based upon their individual quirks and needs.

And, yes, for some reason- ClipBoard Managers evoke impassioned partisanship. To be honest, I tried to make PTH Pasteboard to suit my work style. And, I couldn't. I wanted to- as free is always better in my book. I'm a fairly sophisticated user- but just had difficulty getting the application to be as intuitive and useful as IClip. However, that may speak to individual differences.

As far as their update cycle- I agree, PTH Pasteboard is more well supported in that respect as it has had updates within the past month- I believe. All the other players have not had updates in about a year. CopyPaste + YType is still version 2.75 from 8/2006- I did not see mention of a downloadable beta version on their web site. For those Leopard users, which I think are now a majority of Mac OS X users- this must be of concern.

Anyway, I appreciated your comments.

Bob Zozus  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  I must say that I am most chagrined that this will be the last build of Netscape- and that I just decided to give it a try now. I can not believe how much better it is on my system than Firefox. It does not make sense, but it is true! On Firefox- I was getting significant pauses on loading pages that have been somehow fixed by using Netscape 9.

At first, I thought it was because I had different add-ons in Firefox than what I was using in Netscape. Well, I found out that Netscape does use the same plug-in that are available in Firefox. Netscape was quite easy to set-up like Firefox.. In fact, they really are indistinguishable in look.

I also tried the Firefox 3 beta. To be honest, I still had the same performance issues. And, both Firefox browsers had an annoying leak where java script would bleed to other applications after switching from Firefox. Netscape does not have this difficulty, either.

Well, AOL does seem to have gotten this browser right, as well as their excellent AOL radio client. I am sorry to see Netscape go. However, it and Safari will be my main browsers until Firefox eclipses it in performance and features. In my opinion, it does not even come close to equally the stellar performance of Netscape 9. May she rest in peace!  
(Version 9.0.0.6)

BOBZOZUS  Thank you so much for one of the more informative posts that I have seen on MacUpdate! I know you made it almost a year and a half ago- and it is still making a difference! Cheers!!  
(Version 2.5)

BOBZOZUS  One last comment about the comparison between CopyPaste & YType vs. Iclip. MacUpdate has again stepped up to help make sofware affordable ”for the rest of us.“ They worked out a deal with IClip where they will discount the software to $21 from it's regular $30 price- which is the cost of CopyPaste + YType. Way to go MacUpdate!! As far as upgrade policies for previous users- I do believe that CopyPaste offers a discount for previous users. I do not see any explanation on the IClip web page concerning upgrade costs or discounts. Well, there you have it. MacUpDate rules!!  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  Thanks! I hope others find them useful, as well. I think I have one more in me. At some point & time I will be comparing TypeIt4Me vs. Typinator vs. TextExpander. Text expansion seems to be one of my fortes!! Can't you tell by the length of my reviews. Yes, that's exactly what I need- a good text expander :)  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  O.K. To begin with, I am using Tiger. So, for the Leopard users (I'm waiting for all my favorite apps to be stable under it- as well as for a few more Apple Revisions :), you may not find this worth your time.

Why I wrote this review. Well, I really like this app. And, I have spent a far amount of time evaluating alternatives. After doing so, I came to the conclusion that IClip is certainly my choice. And, the belief that some on this forum may have been unfairly critical.

First, the reasons why I like IClip so much. Foremost, it is unobrusive (which is an attribute only shared by CopyPaste, in my opinion). And, it is extremely flexible. I now have the left side of my Ibook screen accessing the hidden dock, and hidden in the bottom of my screen is IClips. Works well, as it maximizes my screen space and does not interfere with scrolling- which usually takes place at the extreme right.

The above is worth strongly considering the app, but making it a good buy is the fact of what you can do quite easily with IClips. It has one function that I have not found implemented well with any other clipboard manager (except for CopyPaste + YType- see below). It allows you to easily edit the clippings that you paste into it. This is extremely powerful when used in combination with the ability to concatenate several clipboards into one file (which indeed, is unique to IClips). Extremely useful, for example, in comparing track listings of different CD's obtained from different Internet sources. This just rocks. Saves tons of time- and I am finding more applications for this functionality as I go. Amazing!

So, what about the poor reviews. First, I must admit, I am not a graphics artist needing to copy and paste art of 100 mb's of information. Usually have no need to copy more than a few mb. of info at a time- at most. So, those users who have such problems have little relevance for me. And, in the interchange between a disgruntled user and the IClips ”support guy“ detailed in an early review- I must say the IClips support guy seems to be working really hard to try and fix the problems this user was experiencing. Very hard. I'm sorry that this user's problems were not ameliorated. However, I do think that there was a willingness to try and help- and keep on doing so before the user discontinued their dance of frustration. And, besides, I have been in contact with IClip's support this week- and they responded in a reasonable amount of time with good cheer.

O.K. Some have thought that the program was a memory hog. Well, I guess they have a point- although not very important to me. It consistently utilizes about 20 mb. of real ram computer resources- vs. the 13 mb. used by what I consider it's closest competitor- CopyPaste + YType (I have paid for CopyPaste registration- and was using it solely before switching to IClip). However, interestingly for me- the Activity Monitor indicated that IClips was only said to be using .10 to % of the computer's CPU; vs. 1.0 to 1.5% of the CPU processing power utilized by CopyPaste + YType. This is of course state when neither program is called- which of course increases their CPU use appreciably- although that is to be expected. I am not a programmer, but the Activity Monitor seems to indicate that although the program does take up comparably more RAM, it is a much more efficient user of computer processing time. And, as regards RAM, 10 to 20 mb. more out of 1 g. Ram is not really going to hurt performance any. Especially since if CPU processing power is being used so efficiently.

As regards concerns about the IClip interface, I just have to say that the interface themes for IClips 3 must have been simply amazing!! I find the themes in version 4 to actually be quite pleasing, and somewhat configurable. I have set up the pallet that jumps out when the curson “un-hides” IClips- to be a large rectangular shape with maximum transparency. This allows me to see best what is in each clip- and yet only when I want to.

On my Ibook, Menu room is at a premium, and I was given the option not to have the Icon show up there. Essential- as it simply is redundant when you can call up IClip by keyboard hot switches or by simply pointing to the bottom of the screen. And, yes, I really appreciate the simplicity of the keyboard controls. I have set up keyboard hot switches for copying and pasting. Whenever I use these switches, IClips immediately shows it's clipboards, along with a number associated with each. At that point, I just chose a number- and the clip is either pasted to or from that particular clipboard. Nice. I don't have to move my hands from the keyboard to easily move data to the clipboards. And, I can easily see what I am doing as it happens! Wow, elegance and simplicity.

So, why do I think it better than the competition. Since IClipboard is Leapord only, I couldn't evaluate (and I wish that weren't so, since I am reasonable happy with SOHO notes- also by Chronos). I could not get ShadowClipboard & CuteClips to work, and both programs seemed dated. I really did not like the interface of PTHPasteboard- and it certainly did not offer the functionality of IClips. It is keyboard driven- and I assume, with practice, works well as a free alternative for some. I just felt that the value added by IClips to my computing experience was well worth the money I would pay. And, besides, PTHPasteboard does cost $25 if you wish to have a registered copy. In any event, even if free, I found IClips to be the better value for my needs.

So, that leaves CopyPaste + YType. I have used this extensively, and so understand it's functions. First, it does offer more text processing options than IClips. However, I do not need the extra functionality. The YType editor is simply a system wide spell checher- with the option of replacement of words with suggested alternatives. Some may find this useful. However, for me, it is not that important. And, since I have TypeIt4Me- it provides the same functionality- plus offers me an easier manner to utilize “snippet” short-cuts. And, for me, I could not get TypeIt4Me and CopyPaste to co-exist peacefully.

CopyPaste also offers many functions that can be utilized on any document that you are preparing. It cleans, dices, and parses. No really. It strips text formats clean, decrypts, encrypts, creates all upper case, all lower, undo's email comment, email indentation. You get the idea. Unfortunately, I have little need for all these functions. And, when I did, I had some difficulty in getting CopyPaste to do what I wanted. But, then again, I was not too motivated to learn. For some, all this extra text processing functioning can be useful. Just not for me. Especially if it meant that I could not use TypeIt4Me.

Now, CopyPaste does have an unobtrusive way to enter text into it's clipboards. And, you can use keyboard data entry. However, their is no ability to combine clipboards with other clipboards. This is the most unique feature of IClip that makes it so useful to me. But, if you need the ability to work with text across many different programs and manipulate it in many different ways- then CopyPaste may be more useful. CopyPaste also has the YType program for those challenged by speling (you know who you are, those who didn't get the preceding spelling typo). However, other programs such as the excellent TypeIt4Me do have this capability in much the same way as CopyPaste. And, IClips plays nice with TypeIt4Me. CopyPaste decidedly does not.

Well, that's about it. For me, it's either IClips or CopyPaste + YType. For ease of use and the ability to concatenate several clipboards- IClips wins. For those who have more extensive text processing needs and desire spell check- CopyPaste may be best. It's not as easy to use- but offers more capabilities as a text processor as well as a text manager.

So, here's hoping that to those of you who have read thus far, you will find it useful in making an informed decision regarding a ClipBoard manager.

And, perhaps will give you a more balanced perspective regarding IClip!  
(Version 4.0)

BOBZOZUS  Hi Mr. Administrator:

Great Job you folks are doing with MacUpdate. Thanks goes to you, too! I have been able to add to my software collection reasonably- with excellent quality- because of MacUpdate Promos.

As far as thanking me for the time I put in with my reviews today- I do appreciate it. However, it is far, far less time than I imagine these developers put into their FreeWare apps. They really deserve the thanks. My comments were only to aid the Music & Mac lovers (you know who you are- almost everybody on this site) who wish more enjoyment from ITunes- allowed by the excellent freeware I found on MacUpdate. I just hope it helps someone navigate the morass of ITune software a bit better to enjoy Music on their Macs.

Bob Zozus  
(Version 0.6.3)

BOBZOZUS  Thanks to the developer- a neat little app! I am glad that you are continuing to develop it- and that you keep it relevant for us Tiger and PPC users.

You certainly have filled a need. Although ITunes does attempt to find the album artwork for imported CD's- it does a less than stellar jobs with compilations. And, besides, it's not as fun if you have just the artwork for the compilation album itself. When ITunes Volume shows my album CD work, I truly like it when I can see the relevant Artwork for each artist in the compilation- not just the artwork for the Compilation CD itself. Just a little peccadillo of mine :)

That's where Fetch Art comes in on my system. It provides CD artwork choices. And, painlessly. I just select the songs in ITunes for which I would like artwork. I then start Fetch Art. It automatically Fetches the songs selected in ITunes. Then, it goes about its business in Amazon- searching for the missing artwork that ITunes forgot- or worse, mangled.

I check Fetch Art in 5 to 10 minutes. Viola. And, for about 25 to 50% of the CD art that ITunes couldn't find- Fetch Art finds viable, useful alternatives. Sweet!

I also like the ability to chose which (if any) of the artwork that Fetch Art finds that I will be inserting into ITunes. Very simple interface in which I can't even mess things up.

I should note that it may seem to the casual observer that 25% of useful Artwork may be a bit low. I boisterously disagree. Remember- this is for CD artwork that ITunes could not find. And, for these 25 to 50% of the CD's- it saves one having to manually search Amazon, copy the artwork, and then paste. A significant time saver. Thanks to the developer for putting so much thought into such a useful little app! Fetch Art Rocks- simple as that!!  
(Version 1.4)

BOBZOZUS  I am most pleased with this app. Thank you!

I must say, this is the first app that seems to be LoveLorn Ware. How cool- and romantic. Hope you get your girl, dude!

Now, why I like PearLyric. Let me count the ways.

Oh, before I get into that- why the need for a Lyric Manager in the first place. If you have a CD collection, or do not use ITunes to obtain your music- then you need a Lyric manager to important Lyrics into your ITunes Data Base. PearLyric happens to do this better than any other program I know.

First, PearLyric has a function where you can ask it to search for the Lyrics of all the songs in a particular playlist. Nice.

However, where it really shines is in it's implementation of a dashboard widget. First, for each song that ITune plays- it displays the full Lyrics in dashboard for easy reference.

Most importantly, the PeaLyrics widget not only monitors your ITunes play and Displays Lyrics- but it finds them automatically, too. And, PearLyrics is smart. It only searches for Lyrics not already in your ITunes data base. And, upon finding said missing Lyrics, it automatically inserts them into ITunes! Excellent. And, PearLyrics is fast as well as smart (just like I like my woman- oh, oh.. sorry for the sexist remark- ladies). Anyway, with my broadband connection- it finds Lyrics in about 10 s. or less.

About 90% to 95% of the time it finds Lyrics for the song- at least in the Genres I have been interested in: Blues, Rock, Alternative, Modern, Grunge, Southern & Classic Rock. You get the idea. Fairly popular and recent stuff.

For those 5 to 10% of the time when it can't find Lyrics- PearLyrics is still extremely helpful even when it fails you. With a click of the button-it sends you to a Google search using your favorite browser. Although you get spoiled in that 90-95% of the time when PearLyrics automatically finds & inserts lyrics into Itunes- the manual search is not bad. 95% of the time I can find, copy, and paste the Lyrics into Itunes- within a minute. I just like the fast, smart, and automatic part as mentioned above.

So, to recap. PearLyrics displays your Lyrics in Dashboard. Can search for Lyrics of all your songs in a playlist in a single bound. It automatically searches, finds, and inserts the lyrics into ITunes about 95% of the time. It's just that good!!

To be complete, since I've meandered on this long (and, you are still reading ;). Although I consider PearLyrics to be the most indispensable totally free app on my system- I should mention the not quite so free DonationWare FindYourLyric. FindYourLyric does have significant search advantages if you like to search through your lyrics for that all too significant prose. In that aspect, it beats PearLyric- as well as in the capability to save your Lyrics in RTF format. However, PearLyric is absolutely the best for automating the display, acquisition, and insertion of ITunes Lyrics. At least, it has been responsible for all of the Lyrics being attached to my 1,522 song ITunes library. I couldn't be happier. Great stuff, that PearLyric!!  
(Version 0.6.3)

BOBZOZUS  Very Nice and Simple App.

Do like it bringing growl notifications to ITunes.

Also, IController can be customized to display song title and artist on the Menu Bar- just in case you miss the Growl notification. How cool is that?

Finally, it is very easy to create certain limited key sequence controls- for play, pause, next & previous track, & Volume Control. To be honest, it is enough for me- as it is, I will never use it too control volume.

I find this a perfect compliment to the Freeware ITunes Volume (where I provide a more extensive review of my ITune Apps). Thanks for a job well done. I just hope that you are continuing IController's development, as this release is about a year old.  
(Version 0.6b)

BOBZOZUS  Kudos to the developer of this fine app! Once in awhile you come across an application that has little fan fair- but just simply does what you want. Itunes Volume is one of those apps for me. It works very well in MacOS 10.4.11 running on a PPC chip. Their are many ways that this app functions oh so well- and for free!

First, though, some oddities. The name is very misleading- ITunes Volume. Volume control is the least of which this Itunes controller does. However, it is one of the least important functions it provides. Secondly, bar none, this has to be the most ugly App Icon that I have on my Mac. It looks to me like a note stuck on a garbage can! But, the name nor the look of the Icon does not affect it's functioning. It does, however, throw one off when initially judging the usefulness of the ITunes Volume Control.

O.K., so why do I love ITunes Volume? First, it allows you to have the album art flash automatically on the screen as your ITune song changes. Very cool.

Also way cool is the ability to see the Album artwork and lyrics just by placing the your cursor over the small app. Did I mention that it's footprint is very small- and transparent. I have a 14'' Ibook, and screen real estate is at a premium. It rests just below my Date & Time Menu item and doesn't both the usability of my IBook or my precious menu bar real estate in the least!

I also very much like the fact that you can use this app to rate your ITune Music without going into ITunes. Very Handy indeed.

And, if you wish to change the playlist without going into ITunes- you can do so without ITunes using ITunes Volume. However, if you do want to go to ITunes- you just need to click the ITunes Volume Controller twice- and you are transferred to the song currently playing in Itunes.

A timer function also graces this app- allowing you to let ITunes lull you to sleep for a specified period- before it is turned off by ITunes Volume.

For those with sight difficulties- or if you are just away from your computer- you can have ITunes Volume announce the Tune that is playing. Also nice.

One niggling problem is that if the current songs lyrics are larger than your screen in length- then it is impossible to reach the Lyric box to read the rest of the lyrics by using the scroll bar. Not to fear, though, I just use the PearlLyrics widget- a great freeware app that shows me the lyrics in Dashboard.

Now, don't get me wrong. ITunes Volume can not always function as advertised. But, simply restarting the app seems to fix any problems I have. And, as with all my ITunes enhancers- I simply shut it off when not using ITunes.

It has greatly added the usability of ITunes & My Mac. I wish the developer well, and wish that he would continue to develop this app! However, it has not been updated since August 29, 2007. In fact, if he is still developing it- I would gladly give him a donation- he most certainly is deserving!

And, as noted earlier, it is not the entire way that I enhance ITunes. I also use the excellent PearLyrics for Lyric Management, display, and acquisition. I also use the free program IController- the perfect compliment to ITunes Volume. IController allows one to have the song artist & title displayed on your menu bar- as well as allow you to easily pause, play, play previous & next support. It also offers Growl support, which for the visually inclined- augments the brief album artwork provided by ITunes Volume with the Song Name. Finally, my ITunes armamentarium also includes the free Fetch Art application- which I use to search Amazon for artwork that ITunes incorrectly applies to my CD's. Doesn't always work any better than ITunes- but often enough to use it first before manually searching Amazon for needed artwork. It takes little effort to learn and use- and about 50% of the time saves me from the process of getting album art for Compilation Disks- which ITunes doesn't perform particularly well.

All in all, I am so happy with ITunes, IController, PearLyrics (the only program being actively developed), and FetchArt- that I am putting off upgrading to Leopard because I fear these programs will stop working in the upgrade. That is telling!

Hope this proves helpful. Now, on to enjoy some Tunes....

  
(Version 9.1)