Steff.me

I was going to do two separate articles covering this topic but I decided that I’d do a rather extended one instead. It’s also a first for me, I’m going to branch into the use of images. If it doesn’t work out (ie: it doesn’t look quite right on your browser), please email me or leave a comment and I’ll have a look in to it.

My Desktop

Before I begin I’d just like to show you what my desktop looks like. I like to keep it completely clear of icons and folders, bar system ones. The only time my desktop has things on it is when I’m busy working on something - it’s only used as temporary storage before I put things where they need to be.

The current wallpaper is called Retro Futurism, available from the aptly named Insanely Great Tees website. I also bought the t-shirt of that design, in fact. As with the simple look of my desktop, I need to make sure that it’s also clean. I make sure I don’t have too many menubar items running (because I don’t like the clutter) or, if they have preferences to hide them I do that instead. I also keep my Trash empty; no one likes to see rubbish lying around!

What’s in your Dock?

I like to keep my Dock much as I do my entire computer. I like it simple, I like it clean and most of all completely uncluttered. When I first bought my Mac, everything I used went in my Dock. I left all the default items there, such as iPhoto, iCal and then added absolutely everything I used to it. When my Dock barely fitted on the screen, I decided there had to be a better way to do it. There are, indeed, many ways. Using a combination of various utilities, I managed to get my Dock down to just the few key applications that I run when I wake up and stay open throughout my day.

When I’m not working on something for University or my website, I don’t really like to see the applications. They always make me feel like I should be, well, working. The only applications I like to have lying around constantly in my Dock are the ones that I feel comfortable with. So what makes the cut?

First off, iTunes. Whether I’m watching some podcasts (ie: Diggnation or Ask A Ninja), listening to some music in the background while working or really “pumping out the tunes” with my harmon/kardon SoundSticks, it’s always nice to have that sitting there. It’s open way too much for me to remove it from the Dock, so it gets its place.

NewsFire. A new addition to my Dock. I have only just bought this application through the MacHeist bundle but it’s already what I deem to be “dock worthy”. I like to wake up and check what’s going on with my favourite blogs and news sites and this application is so nicely presented that it just had to be kept. I used to just use Safari and just open all of my favourite RSS feeds when I launched it but that grew very tiresome. It’s only now that I’m really in to blogging myself that I have started using an RSS aggregator and I really wish I’d found it sooner. NewsFire is a must have. As I’ve customized the icon to NewsFire, I don’t get the alerts of how many feed entries I have to read - but that was one of the reasons I changed the icon, I only want Mail having numbers on it but that’s just me being pedantic.

Mail. This goes without saying. I like to check my emails when I wake, when I have a spare minute and even when I should be doing work and I want to put it off while I look for something slightly more interesting to do. My most used Mac application, as it never gets closed unless I’m away from a WiFi point or I turn off my laptop. I just need to have this in my Dock, constantly.

Safari. Another one that really doesn’t need explaining. Most of my time on the Mac is spent online, browsing or working. It’s very rare for me not to have this open, so I had to keep it.

Adium. Probably the best chat client out there. This was my first piece third-party software that I installed when I bought my PowerBook. MSN for Mac is just awful and it went within seconds of launching it. It allows me to connect with all my friends on MSN, Yahoo!, AIM and (during lectures) Bonjour; simple configuration and very customizable. The only drawback to Adium is lack of webcam support, which I can live without for now. It’s opened as soon as I’m awake enough to talk to people.

And that’s it, my Dock! Simple and yet it does everything that I want. I’ve never been a fan of customizing the look of icons with various themes, however you’ll notice I have changed two. I decided to change NewsFire to the “Burn” folder from the Amora icon set. It just looked right, so I went with it. I also changed Adium to a more simplistic look and not that little duck. I do use the Adiumy Smiley emoticon set, so I don’t feel I’ve completely abandoned the duck.

How do you increase your productivity?

As you can see, my Dock is actually fairly empty. I do, however, use a variety of applications to ensure that whatever I need is still right at my finger tips.

Hi, Ho, Silver… Away!
I guess the most powerful utility of this nature would be Quicksilver. I really did dislike this application at first because of that out-of-place, over the top splash screen and the default look (when I first tried this application, I was new to the Mac and still a bit of an idiot, I didn’t look into changing it’s preferences). Quicksilver has now become an essential part of using my Mac. It’s how I access the majority of my applications and documents.

Just to note, the splash screen still irritated me so I opened up the application (”Show Package Contents”) and deleted the file /Contents/Resources/QSLigature.png and, to be safe, I also deleted the file QSSplash.qtz. Now I don’t have that rotating Q flying at me every time the application starts. I know full well that Quicksilver isn’t just a basic launcher but that’s how I’m using it; it really is the best way to launch applications in the Mac… if you can remember their names.

It began with an “a”.. or..
However, sometimes, I can’t. Sometimes I just want to view the applications I have for certain tasks I need to do for my work. If I want, for example, to see all of my applications to edit images or whether I want to see all my documents for different projects I’m working on. Enter Overflow. I’ve only used this application since it was given away free at My Dream App but it quickly became one of my favourites. I use Overflow to create different “Categories” for my applications and some of my folders of documents. For example, I have a category by the name of Web Development. Under this I have CSSEdit 2, CSSEdit 1.6, Transmit, TextMate and more. Each one can be launched at a click of a button. I also have another category, named Projects, which houses all of the current things I’m working on, such as my website, Mac apps and University work.

Overflow is a great looking application, too, and very customizable. If you’re not happy with the default black, you can change it’s look to match your mood or style. It’s quick to load, so it makes launching multiple applications easy and it’s just a great way of organizing files and applications. Overflow is only $14.95 and believe me, it would be well spent.

The glue that holds it together…
To really make the most of those two fantastic utilities, Quicksilver and Overflow, I use one more! One Key. One Key is a simple button-press application launcher, which ties in perfectly with the other two. It only costs $5, which really is nothing when compared to how much I use it.

So what’s my set up?

As can be seen, I launch Quicksilver via F1. I have the hot key in Quicksilver set to nothing, that way I can launch it only using One Key, stopping me from getting confused. The reason I have One Key launching Quicksilver is that I don’t allow Quicksilver to run at system start up. One Key will allow me to launch the application at the press of a button and show/hide it all using just F1.

I use F2 to launch Overflow. Again, as with Quicksilver, F2 will also show and hide Overflow. As you can see, I also hot key a few other favourite applications just to make my life easier.

You may be asking, “Why let One Key do it, when Quicksilver and Overflow have hot keys?”. The reason is simple, even though both applications have a “launch at login” ability, I don’t want anything to slow down the time it takes for my system to start up. As you’ve seen, I’m overly pedantic about certain things and I don’t want my system to be running irrelevant processes when I haven’t asked it to do anything. As I’m making use of One Key, I can launch Quicksilver and Overflow (along with the other apps) with single button presses, which also hide and show the application. The applications that did make my Dock are there for a reason, I want them all to launch within a few minutes of me starting my computer, usually, so they get to stay there.

So, there you have it. That’s what my desktop looks like and that’s how I interact with my Mac. I’m just some crazy guy that likes everything look pretty. What’s $20 of shareware applications anyway? If it goes to support some good pieces of software and third-party companies, I’m all for it.

—

Oh, as a last point, I’ve just started using another little application to help increase productivity. I’ll write a review shortly but this is it’s new home on my desktop:

It does look cool, but was it worth the wait?

What does your desktop look like? What is in your Dock or toolbar? Feel free to leave comments, as ever!