HandBrake is a multi-threaded DVD to MPEG-4 ripper/converter that was originally available on the BeOS but has now been ported over to the MacOS X and to GNU/Linux. All you have to do is pop in a DVD, push a button and you have yourself an instant iPod-ready movie file. Great, right? Except that it's like a Prince Charming cursed to be a frog forever, until some kind-hearted lass would grant that kiss to set him free of the spell. Well, either that or Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Phil Ryu, for the sake of metaphors, is the kiss for the HandBrake.  He, along with friend, Tom Stoelwinder, made a very palatable HandBrake icon that would replace the glass of margarita and pineapple icon that came with the HandBrake.

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And that is just the tip of the iceberg. Dress up your HandBrake with an all new User Interface courtesy of Nanovivid.

To Install:

• Control-click on HandBrake and select Show Package Contents
• Navigate to Contents -> Resources -> English.lproj
• Rename the existing MainMenu.nib file to MainMenu Old.nib
• Drag the nib file you downloaded into the English.lproj folder
• Launch HandBrake, play around.

Download:[New UI Beta 2]
Download:[HandBrake Replacement Icons]

William Restemeyer, the brains behind Resteware, is a very big fan of Unreal Tournament 2004 and this enthusiasm has lead him to make utilities for the game like UT2004Grabber V.2 and UT2004Sync V.2. UT2004Grabber V.2 allows you to download maps on your LAN and play Unreal Tournament even if you're offline. It automatically copies maps, textures, static meshes, music, sounds from your cache into your copy of Unreal Tournament 2004.

Features:

• No longer requires your (local) copy of UT 2004 to be in your /Applications folder.
• It cleans out your cache after it has copied new objects into your game.
• Now reports its progress in a window as it's running.
• Minor bug fixes.
  

And to compliment UT2004Grabber, he also gives us UT2004Sync V.2. This utility quickly syncs up everything you've downloaded to your main game.

Features:

• No longer requires Unreal Tournament 2004 to be in your /Applications folder.
• Now reports its progress in a window as it runs.
• Minor bug fixes.
  

Both of these utilities are now Universal Binaries. All you need is a Mac running Unreal Tournament 2004 with Mac OS X.

Download: [UT2004Grabber V.2]
Download: [UT2004Sync V.2]

The latest version of PodSmith from MakiEnterprise has already been released for those interested in making full use of their iPods. With the PodSmith v2.0, your iPod becomes a key for security and for accessing the different synchronization features of your Mac.

This application will allow you to lock and unlock your Macintosh using your iPod. Features of PodSmith v2.0 include the following:

• Screen Lock - The screen can be locked and unlocked by simply mounting and unmounting your iPod.
• File/Folder Lock - Some folders or files can be locked just by unmounting your iPod.
• Application Lock - This will allow for disabling all applications except those you specified not to be locked.
• Mount Lock - With this function, you can be protected from data theft or leak.
• Monitoring - Mounted drives, its contents and application usage can be monitored via PodSmith.

Requirements for the PodSmith v2.0 include a Mac OS X 10.3 or later and any iPod that's Intel Mac compatible.

You can try and download the PodSmith free trial here, but you'll have to shell out cash in order to continue using the application. Check out the PodSmith site for information on pricing and purchasing.


Download: [PodSmith v2.0 Free Trial]

Quicksilver junkies would be very pleased with the new Cube interface created by Blacktree Software. To the uninitiated, Quicksilver is a free utility for Mac OS X that allows users to use the keyboard to rapidly launch applications, manipulate files, run scripts or send e-mail. It's packed with many features, some of which we don't normally use. But the beauty of Quicksilver's plug-in architecture is that you can choose not to install those you don't need. It's fairly easy to keep it lean.

The new interface design is arguably the most eye-catching UI plugin ever created for the application. It's not yet confirmed if the Cube interface is only available to the Quicksilver developer build versions, but nevertheless, you can still access the version from Quicksilver's Application preference tab.

Here's a clip of the Cube Interface in action. If you're new to the world of Quicksilver, you'd probably prefer stability over snazzy features, so you'd have to wait until the Quicksilver team brings out the "mainstream" version.

In 1995 I purchased a first-generation Apple Power PC 8100. At the time, I worked mostly with music and graphic files, and was certain that the 750 MB hard drive would serve me well for many years...

Today, I have a G4 Graphite model with two hard drives - the original 20 GB and an additional 80 GB. And they are fillin' up fast!

Now, a full hard drive isn't necessarily a bad thing... it means you've been happy and productive. You should be proud of yourself. On the other hand, files of all kinds are not getting any smaller, and frankly, its a pain offloading everything to zip drives and other media - or having to buy a new HD at a moment's notice.

We've rounded up eleven ways for you to give your hard drive a break, check them out in the Full Article!

Flip4Mac WMV, the collection of QuickTime components that allow Mac users to play, import, and export Windows Media files, has just been upgraded to Beta v2.1.0.29. New in the latest release are:

• Universal binary support for Intel Macs
• Playback optimizations for Intel Macs
• Significant export optimizations for PowerPC Macs
• Multi language audio support in player
• Overlay when importing WMV content in trial mode
• Support for web authors to disable "save as" feature in embedded stream

A few improvements and fixes were also squeezed into v2.1.0.29. Support for MMS servers and live streams is one of those improved for this new version. Fixes include DCT blocking issue (progressive deterioration with increasing distance from previous keyframe) and encode errors when the audio bit rate is set higher than the video bit rate.

Since this is not yet the final release, there are still some things that are yet to see its inclusion in the Flip4Mac app. Among them are the updated user guide and the fix for 2-pass VBR green shift issue.

If this app strikes your fancy, feel free to download it below (it's compatible with mac Intel and Power PC OS X v10.3.9, 10.4 or later and QuickTime v6.5, 7.0 or later). After test driving it, help make the final issue better by filling up the feedback form here.

Download: [Flip4Mac WMV Beta v2.1.0.29]

I don't know about you but I like to keep tabs on my Mac. I try to keep it from burning up inside (which I usually don't have any luck with), and I like to restart my mac every 1000 hours or so. If you like to keeps tabs on your Mac then you should be using iStat.

iStat is a dashboard widget that keeps track of all your computer's important information like CPU temperature, memory usage, disk space, and run time. This new version supports CPU temp on new Intel macs (Now all I need to do is get one). And like all the greatest apps it's completely free.

Download: [iStat 1.5.1]

Flip4Mac WMV component has just been released as a universal binary beta. Flip4Mac WMV allows Mac OS X users to play Windows Media Content in the Quicktime player. Flip4Mac WMV v2.1.024 has the following new features and bug fixes:

- Universal binary support for Intel macs added.
- Significant export optimizations for PowerPC Macs are now included.
- Addition of multi-language audio support in player.
- Overlay when importing WMV content in trial mode was incorporated.
- Improved support for MMS servers and live streams.
- DCT Blocking issue (progressive deterioration with increasing distance from previous keyframe) has been fixed.

Expect the following in future beta versions:

- Optimizations for WMV playback on Intel machines.
- 2-pass VBR green shift issue.
- 2-pass VBR keyframe issue.

Although playback of local files works fine on a Mac Mini Core Solo 512 MB or RAM, some users are reporting some problems with playing some streaming content through Safari and Camino.

Make that Grammy award winning composition using Pro Tools LE software, the easiest and most powerful software to produce music made by a pro. Take advantage of a wide range of creative editing tools that comes with the software that enables you to mix, master and deliver your creation. And now, this product has been made even more powerful by updating Pro Tools 7.1.1 and Pro Tools M-Powered 7.1.1 for Intel-based Macs.

What's New in Pro Tools LE 7.1.1?

Pro Tools LE 7.1.1 software provides support for Intel-based Macs with Mac OS X 10.4.6 for Intel with the following Digidesign Pro Tools LE systems:

•     Digi 002
•     Digi 002 Rack
•     Mbox 2
•     Mbox

What's New in Pro Tools M-Powered 7.1.1?

• Pro Tools M-Powered 7.1.1 software provides support for Intel-based Macs with Mac OS X 10.4.6 for Intel with M-Powered compatible M-Audio interfaces
  

Updates are available in maker, digidesign's website via the read link.

The latest Xcode, Apple Computer's integrated development environment for Mac OS X, has already been released. Xcode 2.3 is a recommended upgrade for all Xcode users of versions 2.2.1 and lower because it addresses many known issues with the previous versions.

Changes to Xcode 2.3 are as follows:

• New DWARF debugging format for improved debugging fidelity and efficient utilization of disk space
• New Distributed Network Build (DNB) scalable build architecture
• Numerous enhancements and bug fixes

However, the Xcode 2.3 is not yet perfect. There still are some issues with this latest version. It will only run on a Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) on a Mac with either PowerPC or Intel processor but not on earlier versions of Mac OS X.

Xcode 2.3 is free to all members of ADC and includes all the tools a developer need to create, debug, and optimize their own Universal applications. For free download (915MB) and more info on the latest Xcode, just click the 'Read' link below.