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July 25th, 2013
 Version 4.5.10 of Default Folder X is now available, updating compatibility with the latest developer release of Mavericks (if you’ve been under a rock, that’s the next version of OS X currently in development at Apple). This release also fixes a bunch of annoying little things that affect folks using all versions of OS X, so it’s something you want to grab even if you’re not a developer. The most significant changes other than Mavericks support are:
- Default Folder X no longer pauses for long periods when the OS X metadata server (mds) is very busy.
- A glitch in the rebound feature is fixed. This one was really annoying because rebound would work most of the time, then unexpectedly fail to select a file once in a while. That really bothered people who’d come to depend on it (which is apparently a lot of people :))
- The background for previews of text files is white again. They’d become transparent in Mountain Lion because of a minor change in the Cocoa framework, making it pretty hard to read the text.
- The “DFX” AppleScript applet that puts Default Folder X in your Finder toolbars was misbehaving due to a change in AppleScript in Mac OS 10.8.4 – that’s been fixed. You’ll find the updated version in the Extras folder on the Default Folder X disk image.
- And finally, for the many people that were upset that Default Folder X is no longer available in their Dock, I’ve added an unofficial setting to put it back. See the Read Me for details – and don’t blame me if Default Folder X doesn’t show up in full-screen applications under Mountain Lion. There, you’ve been warned.
Since I’ve been a slacker about blogging, there have also been a number of other Default Folder X releases since the last time I posted, including some important fixes for Preview, TextEdit and other sandboxed applications, support for Java apps, better keyboard traversal, correct behavior in full-screen mode, and more. Just grab 4.5.10 and install it – a bunch of stuff works better. You can get it on the Default Folder X page.
Posted in Default Folder X | No Comments »
April 21st, 2013
 Someone asked about this today – it’s useful stuff that’s not obvious, so I figured I’d share it here. If there are navigation keys or shortcuts that I’ve missed, please comment.
There are a number of keyboard navigation keys that are standard in all Open and Save dialogs, but they vary a bit depending on the view mode you’ve got selected.
In List View:
- Up and down arrows move up and down the file listing
- ⌘+Right-Arrow displays the contents of a folder without opening it (it turns the little twisty-arrow next to the folder)
- ⌘+Up-Arrow goes up to the parent folder
- ⌘+Down-Arrow opens the selected item
In Column View:
- Up and down arrows move up and down the file listing
- Left and right arrows traverse left and right in the column listing
- ⌘+Up-Arrow goes up to the parent folder (when you’ve gotten all the way to the leftmost column)
- ⌘+Down-Arrow opens the selected item
In Icon View:
- Up, down, left and right arrows traverse among files
- ⌘+Up-Arrow goes up to the parent folder
- ⌘+Down-Arrow opens the selected item
And of course, when keyboard focus is on the file list, typing the first few letters of a file or folder’s name selects it. Note that in Save dialogs, this requires tabbing 3 times (usually) to get the keyboard focus from the filename edit box to the file list.
There are also some command key shortcuts, I’ve borrowed this list from http://www.productivityorchard.com/keyboard-shortcuts-for-mac-os-x-open-save-dialog
- Spacebar – View the selected item in Quick Look
- ⌘+D – changes focus to your Desktop
- ⌘+Shift+A – Changes focus to your Applications directory
- ⌘+Shift+H – changes focus to your Home directory
- ⌘+Shift+N – Creates a new folder.
- ⌘+Shift+Period (.) – Toggle hidden files & folders on and off.
- ⌘+Shift+G – Brings up Go To Folder window
- Tab – Tab key auto-completes paths and file names from the aforementioned Go To window
- ⌘+R – Reveals the file in Finder
- ⌘+F – Move the cursor to the Find field
- ⌘+Period (.) – Close the Open/Save dialog window
Posted in Default Folder X, Tips | No Comments »
March 7th, 2013
 Default Folder X 4.5.5 is now available, fixing a couple of vexing little problems that have driven me (and some of you) crazy for far too long.
First, the easy one: Rebound in version 4.5.4 did not always work – there were occasions when it’d fail to select anything. That’s now fixed. There was a subtle error in Default Folder X’s internal logic that could leave it with no rebound information for an application until after a file dialog came up – not very helpful if it’s supposed to re-select your last selected file before the file dialog appears!
Second, there’s been this troubling little problem with Default Folder X’s status menu (the “D” menu in the menubar) since the release of Mac OS 10.7. Every once in a while, seemingly at random, it’d just refuse to do anything when you clicked on it. Clicking a second time would bring it back to life, but of course you shouldn’t have to do that. As it turned out, the problem wasn’t actually random (of course). The OS X window server will apparently get confused if you click on a floating, non-activating window to pop up a menu, select something from that menu, dismiss it without clicking anywhere else on the floating window, and then hide the frontmost application. Mind you, it doesn’t get visibly confused, just flummoxed enough that if you try to pop up a status menu from the menubar, that menu doesn’t track the mouse correctly. Go figure.
Long-time Default Folder X user Kimron Shapiro had a keen enough mind to actually discover this sequence of steps – I owe him a HUGE thank-you (and a beer, whiskey, or whatever you drink, Kim). Finally having a set of reproducible steps allowed me to hammer away at it for a few weeks until I found a workaround. I’m thrilled to finally have this one put to rest, as I’ve been chasing it for a LONG time.
Oh, and version 4.5.5 also has a handy little “QuickLook this file” item in its contextual menus, so you can right-click on a file in a save dialog (even if it’s grayed out) and see a preview of it. Pretty helpful if you’re about to overwrite it with a new file and want to make sure you’re not wiping out the wrong file.
Enjoy the fixes, and keep the suggestions coming!
Posted in Default Folder X | No Comments »
January 15th, 2013
 Version 1.3.2 of App Tamer is out, sporting high resolution graphics for all you lucky Retina Display owners. It also lets you scroll the windows of applications that are stopped in the background. This lets you read web pages while Safari is in the background, for example, even if you have App Tamer’s AutoStop feature set to stop it so it doesn’t use extra CPU time.
I’m also excited about an upcoming feature I’m working on for App Tamer 2.0. It lets you set a maximum amount of CPU to give an application – it doesn’t stop the app, but just slows it down if the app starts sucking down too much processing power. I’ve found it very useful in keeping Spotlight from taking over my machine while I’m working, and limiting churn from other applications that inevitably spike the CPU right when I’m trying to get something done. It’s still in need of a lot of integration – the feature works but there isn’t any real UI for it yet (it currently just limits Mail, mds and the Finder to no more than 10% CPU as a proof of concept). It’s very cool to watch it do its thing, though!
Posted in App Tamer, Development | No Comments »
January 13th, 2013
From time to time I get requests to make Default Folder X automatically type the date or some other information into new filenames in Save dialogs. While this may be a good idea for a handful of people, the complexity and number of variations I’d have to support would result in a lot of additional settings in Default Folder X’s already crowded preferences.
Not only would it add complexity to Default Folder X, but there is already an easy solution to this – text macro utilities. I personally add the date to some filenames using Typinator, a “text expander” application from Ergonis Software. I just type “dt” and it automatically expands to the current date – and not just when I’m typing a name for a file in a Save As dialog – it’ll expand that shortcut wherever I type it on my Mac.
If you need this sort of shortcut when you’re saving files – or writing emails, filling in web forms, taking notes, etc – check out one of these tools (there are others – these are just a few of the major ones):
Typinator
TypeIt4Me
Keyboard Maestro
TextExpander
If you’ve got others you think should be added here, don’t hesitate to post a comment or give me a shout @stclairsoft
– Jon
Posted in Default Folder X, Tips | 1 Comment »
October 29th, 2012
After far too many beta iterations, Default Folder X 4.5 is finally available for download.
One of the things I’m happiest about in this release is a “quiet” feature – there are no controls for it and no fancy user interface – it just works. Since the release of Mac OS 10.7 Lion, I’ve found that OS X sets the default location for file dialogs somewhat randomly in some applications. Choose File->Open and you’re taken to your Documents folder, or your Home folder, or the folder you used last, or a folder on your neighbor’s file server – it always feels like a bit of a crap shoot. So now Default Folder X does it for you – intelligently. It keeps track of where you’ve been and puts you back there the next time you Open or Save, and it does so reliably.
Oh, and that business in Mountain Lion where it forces you to iCloud every @!$# time you want to save a file? No. If you saved to iCloud last time, that’s where it’ll direct you. But if you saved to a folder somewhere on your hard drive, that’s what you’ll see the next time you choose File->Save. That makes sense. Yay 🙂 A big thanks to Ted Laundau for bringing this into focus and helping define what the correct behavior should be.
Version 4.5 also fixes a bunch of things that got flaky when some underpinnings in Mac OS X changed with the 10.8.2 update. It works reliably on Mountain Lion, smoothly handling the expanding array of sandboxed and iCloud-aware applications and increased OS security. It’s also pretty easy on the eyes, with hi-res graphics and controls for the Retina displays now delivered on the MacBook Pro 13 and 15. I have to admit that I scoffed at the HiDPI stuff at first, but after getting it all working in Default Folder X, I must say the crisp look is pretty sweet.
So, go grab your copy of Default Folder X 4.5. If you have a license for Default Folder X 4, the upgrade is free. If you don’t, go buy one – it’ll save you a lot of time opening and saving files 🙂
Posted in Default Folder X, Mountain Lion | 2 Comments »
October 5th, 2012
A new public beta of Default Folder X 4.5 is available, resolving a number of issues that have been occurring when running under Mac OS 10.8.2 “Mountain Lion.” It fixes problems with Default Folder X appearing intermittently or refusing to respond to mouse clicks when you use it. It also properly accesses iCloud items, adds support for additional applications, and resolves a number of bugs.
Complete details and download links are on the Default Folder X Beta Testing page.
Posted in Default Folder X, Development, Mountain Lion | 4 Comments »
October 2nd, 2012
So after 4.5 weeks and a few prodding email exchanges back and forth with Apple, they finally got around to reviewing and approving the update for Jettison that adds support for Mountain Lion. Customers that purchased Jettison via the Mac App Store will now be notified that there’s an update and will be given the option to download it. If you’ve already visited our site and downloaded version 1.2.4, you’re up to date and don’t need to do anything more.
For more information on Jettison, or to download a demo or purchase a copy, take a look here: http://www.stclairsoft.com/Jettison/ If you prefer to find it on the Mac App Store and buy it there, by all means do so, but please be aware that you may get updates and bug fixes a month or more later if you buy it from Apple instead of through us.
Posted in Jettison, Mountain Lion, Random Ramblings | No Comments »
September 12th, 2012
 So, I released Jettison 1.2.3 three weeks ago. It fixed some problems that Jettison was having with Mac OS 10.8.
I simultaneously submitted version 1.2.3 to the Mac App Store, since we sell it both directly from our website and through the App Store. Then I waited for it to be reviewed and approved. And waited. And waited. Customers who purchased Jettison through the Mac App Store sent emails, asking when the update would be available for them. The version available from the web site didn’t know that they’d purchased Jettison from Apple because we’re required to use a different licensing scheme for the Mac App Store vs. our direct-sale version. “I don’t know,” I replied, “I’m waiting for Apple to review it and approve it for sale.” These customers were understandably annoyed, since the version they have doesn’t work well on Mountain Lion.
Yes, notice the present tense in that last sentence. “The version they HAVE…” Folks who bought Jettison through the Mac App Store still don’t have an update, three weeks after it was finished and submitted for review.
So I’m sick of waiting and telling our customers to wait for the update to be available via the Mac App Store. Here’s Jettison 1.2.4 – it fixes a sound problem when you’ve got your speakers muted, but more importantly, it recognizes the receipt embedded in versions of Jettison purchased through the Mac App Store. That means that people who purchased Jettison via the Mac App Store can now upgrade to this version by simply downloading a copy and running it once from the disk image before copying it to their Applications folder to replace their old copy.
I have no idea why Jettison 1.2.3’s status in iTunesConnect is still “waiting for review.” When I asked, Apple sent a non-committal email saying “Please be assured that your app has not been forgotten. Unfortunately we cannot provide an estimate of when a review will start or how long it will take to complete due to the variety of factors that contribute to the review process.” Thanks guys.
If you want real customer service and timely updates, buy software directly from the developers. We want to support our products and give you timely updates. The Mac App Store makes it harder to do that.
Posted in Jettison, Mountain Lion, Random Ramblings | No Comments »
July 26th, 2012
St. Clair Software recently moved to the Denver, Colorado area. The tragic shootings at a theater in Aurora, Colorado happened only 25 miles from us, and the non-profit service organizations that are assisting the victims could benefit greatly from your financial support. Please go to the Aurora Victim Relief Fund and click on the Donate Now button to contribute to organizations providing medical, psychological and community service to the victims and their families.
Thank you!
Posted in Mac Community | No Comments »
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