DavePress

I am trying to find all the software I need to make my Macbook as useful to me as my Vista laptop is. Obviously some things are made much easier, like making Skype calls (no longer any requirement for a headset) or video (built in camera, no webcam needed!), but others are proving hard. I need replacements for my social media toolkit.

So far, I have been having most difficulty finding a decent offline blog editor. I guess you might question why this is necessary when WordPress has a perfectly adequate built-in online one, but for some reason I find blogging a much calmer activity when using a desktop editor. I never claimed to make sense

So, I have downloaded MarsEdit, Qumana and Ecto and will be trying these out over the next week or so. I think it is going to be a compromise choice in the end, as it doesn’t look like any of them offer the functionality of a Windows Live Writer or a BlogJet. Ecto has already failed to publish this post once, and crashed, so I would say its days are numbered (not least because it also ballsed up the paragraphs on the post so I had to edit it online anyway. Grr).

Another hunt is for an FTP client, and on this score things are going much better, thanks to my Twitter buddies Laura, Ed and Jenny. I have downloaded Fetch, Transmit and Cyberduck and all seem perfectly adequate. Think it will come down to which I feel most comfortable using rather than functionality.

I have also installed Skype, something called Skitch which I think will let me take screenshots like SnagIt does, and something called TextWrangler for making notes with.

Being a blogger is about far more than just words. To that end, you need tools which you feel comfortable with to enable you to create in any number of different media. Here’s some of the software I use to create my blogs and other online content. It would be cool to know what other options are out there, so do let me know what you use in the comments!

1. Firefox. My window onto the web. Of course, the various plugins I use make Firefox into a better tool for blogging. But that’s for another post…
2. FeedDemon. My RSS reader of choice. Of course, now it’s free, it should be yours too Being a desktop based reader, as opposed to web based ones like Google Reader and Bloglines, has a number of advantages - like downloading feed items to read when you are without the web - but to be honest I like it best because I am used to it. How pathetic is that?!
3. Windows Live Writer. This is a new one for me as I always used to be a BlogJet fan. But I gave the latest version of WLW a try a month or so back and I love it. How come MS can get some stuff, like this, so right - and yet others so badly wrong? Using an offline editor just works better for me that using the inbuilt WordPress online offering. One advantage is that I can write blog posts without an internet connection, like right now when for some reason the connection’s dropped…
4. Paint.net. A great free image editor. Much easier to use and more stable than the Windows version of the GIMP. Paint.net is easy to use and packed with features.
5. SnagIt. Lee Hopkins tipped me off to this one and it’s the most recent addition to my toolkit.Snagit is a great little bit of software that makes taking screenshots a doddle. No relying on the PrtSc key any more! Snagit lets you copy just a portion of the screen, or even an entire web page that scrolls a number of screens. You can then use SnagIt to resize, crop and add effects as you see fit without having to fire up another image editor.
6. FileZilla. A great little open source (free as in speech, as well as beer) FTP client.
7. Audacity. It’s always cool when an open-source bit of software is also one of the best available, and Audacity is one of those. An audio editor which makes producing podcasts child’s play.
8. BB Flashback. This lets me produce screencasts - videos of what I am doing on my PC screen. Great for producing demos and tutorials. Not sure if this is the best package on the market - lots of people use Camtasia - but this was more reasonably priced
9. Windows Movie Maker. OK, so I need to get some better video editing software
10. Evernote. A lovely note-taking application. It lets me clip things as I am browsing through the web, whether text or images. Handy for pulling together thoughts for blog posts.

Photo credit: Saffanna

Are, according to Download Squad:

1. Acrobat Reader
2. iTunes
3. Real Player
4. Internet Explorer
5. Outlook

Some pretty easy targets there. I use only iTunes out of this list on a regular basis, which I have to because I have an iPod, as far as I am aware. Otherwise I occasionally use IE for sites which don’t like Firefox, but that’s more or less it.

Instead of Acrobat Reader, which I agree is a total nightmare, I use Foxit Reader; and for Real Player I use GOM Player. My email is handled by Google’s Gmail interface.