They may not be glamorous, but these simple tools help you keep in touch, view web content and perform tasks on your Mac.
Twitter lets you post tweets and keep up with all the people you follow. Matching iOS apps. Free. Also check out Twitterrific.
Skype helps you communicate with those non-Apple users who don’t have FaceTime. Free.
Dropbox is cloud storage for apps that don’t support iCloud. Keeps files in sync between your computer, iPhone or iPad. And makes it easy to share files with others. Matching iOS app. Free. Learn more. Also check out Google Drive and learn how to use it.
Google Chrome and Firefox aren’t really designed for Mac but they’re good to have around in case some rogue site doesn’t play well with Safari. Google Earth shows aerial photos and 3D modeling of terrain. Free.
Adobe Flash Player is declining in popularity, but you still may need it for certain YouTube and other pages. Learn how to install it for free. Microsoft Silverlight lets your Mac play Netflix, Hulu and other videos. Free. Also check out Flip4Mac plugin for WMV Windows Media and other Microsoft formats.
Evernote helps you create & organize thousands of notes. Snap a picture and let Evernote handle text recognition. Share notebooks with others. Mac, Windows, iPhone & iPad. Learn more.
AppFresh extends the Mac App Store convenience by checking and updating all software on your computer. Shareware. Learn more.
Cyberduck is a great way to upload files to a web site with a very simple interface. Easier than Fetch, cheaper than Transmit. Shareware. Learn more.
Cocktail is general maintenance for Mac. Cleans caches and repairs disk permissions. Also helps delete locked & invisible files. Shareware. Learn more. Also check out FontNuke for font problems.
iTube Studio lets you download Flash video from YouTube or other sites? Use iTube Studio, then organize clips and convert for iMovie, iOS & standard formats. $29.
MacDVDRipper Pro quickly rips movie discs you own, removes copy-protection and burns copies. Or
convert for iOS & other formats. $25. Learn more.
Ember is an image clipping tool. Grab images from the web or your screen, catalog, crop, mark up and share them online. $50.
Screenium lets you capture any video on your screen, add voice-over, make light edits and post online. Great for creating tutorials. $40.
Also check out Apple apps, business apps and creative apps. Learn how to install new apps and keep them up-to-date.
