This Month in the MacSparky Labs

Here’s what took place in the Labs for the month of October 2023:

  • 2023-10-31 – MacSparky Labs “Scary Fast” Meetup (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-30 – An Update on Today’s “Scary Fast” Apple Event (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-27 – The Lab Report – 27 October 2023 (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-27 – Labs FOD: Tim Stringer’s Stream Decks (Labs 2)
  • 2023-11-25 – October Deep Dive – Maker and Manager (Labs 3)
  • 2023-10-25 – The Endor Studios Recording Setup (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-24 – Building Interactive Keynote Presentations (Labs 2)
  • 2023-10-20 – The Lab Report – 20 October 2023 (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-19 – Labs Focus Session (Labs 2)
  • 2023-10-18 – Portable Zoom Station (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-17 – Testing Lex (Labs 3)
  • 2023-10-13 – Lab Report – 13 October 2023 (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-12 – Contextual Email (Labs 2)
  • 2023-10-11 – October Labs Meetup (Labs 2)
  • 2023-10-10 – Exploring Default Folder X 6 (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-06 – Lab Report – October 6 (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-05 – September 2023 Deep Dive – iOS 17 (Video) (Labs 3)
  • 2023-10-05 – September 2023 Deep Dive – iOS 17 (Audio) (Labs 3)
  • 2023-10-04 – MurmurType (Labs 2)
  • 2023-10-03 – Sparky’s Super Action Button (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-02 – Sparky’s Q4 Planning (Labs 1)
  • 2023-10-02 – Labs Focus Session (Labs 2)

If you’d like to be a part of the MacSparky Labs, you can get more information and join right here.

A Few Thoughts on Apple’s “Scary Fast” Event and Announcements

Last night, Apple did a prime-time event where they shared a little news and some new hardware. I’ve got a few thoughts:

  • The 5:00 P.M. Pacific start time was a brain-bender for me. As I went through the day, I kept forgetting there was still an Apple Event later. Is this what it always feels like in Europe?
  • I’ve already heard complaints about the fact the event was only 30 minutes. I liked it. They didn’t have more to say. They didn’t add fluff or silly demos. In. Out. Thank you very much.
  • I’m sure he’s a nice guy, but I’ve always felt Johny Srouji is just kind of scary. It’s those eyes. So, of course, on a Halloween-adjacent announcement, he starts, “Welcome to my lab!”. I love that he leans into it.
  • We got M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max all in one go. I hope that is the way of the future. I’d expect the M3 Ultra sometime next year (along with MacBook Air, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro).
  • The graphics sounds like the big winner here. If you are doing graphics-heavy work, this may be for you.
  • We got M3 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros. It appears the 13-inch MacBook Pro is now gone. In its place is a 14-inch MacBook Pro with an entry-level M3 chip. That’s a win. If you loved the Touch Bar, I’m sorry.
  • We also got news of an updated 24” iMac with the M3 chip. Same colors. Same form-factor. Just faster. I sure would have liked them to announce an M3 Pro iMac with a bigger screen to go along with it. I hear from a lot of people that want a Mac like that.
  • I expected the peripherals to all switch over to USB-C. However, it looks like that’s not happening yet.
  • Apple makes the M3 sound like a significant improvement. They are trying to convince remaining Intel chip owners and even leaning a bit on M1 users. If you’re in that second category and your M1 iMac s fine, don’t worry about it. The M1-equipped Macs are still really great computers.

Now, we can say Apple is done for the year. Before you know it, we’ll be in 2024, which will be all about the Vision Pro.

Mac Power Users 716: Workflows with Chris Upchurch

Chris Upchurch leads two lives: he is a developer, but also a river guide. On this episode of Mac Power Users, Chris joins Stephen and me to discuss the tech he uses both at his desk and on the water.

This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:

  • 1Password: Never forget a password again.
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Keyboard Maestro 11 and a Field Guide Update

This week saw the release of Keyboard Maestro Version 11. Yes, it now goes to 11.

New features include a New Macro Wizard, a new Security preference pane, a command line tool, support for Apple Text Recognition, and new actions like Prompt for Snippet, Create Calendar Event, Send Pushover Notification, Select Menu by Name, and many more. (Read the full release notes.)

I’m enjoying the new version and am working on a free update to the course with a series of videos showing off the new features. I don’t want to give a release date just yet, but it will be a little while as I’m in the middle of another project, but there is a free update is on its way for the Keyboard Maestro Field Guide.

Time Tracking Made Easy with Timing (Sponsor)

When it comes to time tracking, it’s only as useful as the data is accurate. Setting manual timers often leads to bad data. As humans, we’re not very good at throwing switches every time we mode shift.

This week’s sponsor, Timing, gives you the benefit of time tracking without the inconvenience. Timing is an app for your Mac that automatically tracks your time. You don’t need to push buttons. Timing just does its job. It’s smart, it’s beautiful, and it’s easy to use.

Just download and install Timing, and it’ll start recording how much time you spend on each app, document, and website you use.

And now Timing will import your iPhone and iPad usage from Screen Time as well! This means you’ll get the complete picture of how you spend your time across all your devices.

If you haven’t tried Timing lately, you should. They added a new vertical timeline that is really nice. It’s easy to read and easy to edit. Time tracking gives me a lot of insight about where I am really putting my efforts. Timing is a great way to do it.

If you’ve tried time-tracking before and gave up on it, try Timing. It does the work for you. I’ve even made some videos showing how the app works.

“Scary Fast” Apple Event on October 30

Apple is full of surprises this week with the announcement of a barely-October-almost-November event on October 30 at 17:00 Pacific. The new time is interesting, but I expect it is more than an experiment.

The graphics hint is the Mac Finder icon so expect Mac news. The question is which Macs are the news?

  • The 24″ iMac is still on the M1 chip and the M3 chip is rumored to be heading our way. Maybe we see new colorful M3 iMacs just in time for the holidays?
  • It seems early for an M3 MacBook Air and that’s a popular Mac. I have to wonder if they are getting M3 chips at sufficient scale to move that one up to M3 yet.
  • The rumor mill seems to think we’ll get M3 MacBook Pros. There are a lot of good reasons for that, but it would be strange seeing the new M3 chips on the upper end Macs before the lower end ones.

I don’t know anything more than what all the rumors are saying at this point. If it is a move to the 3nm M3, I approve. Back in the Intel days it took years for speed bumps. Maybe that comes faster in the age of Apple silicon?

I will add to the prediction list that if Craig Federighi makes a substantive appearance (it may just be about hardware, not software), they’ll find some way to put him in a Halloween costume. (I’ll go out on a limb and say vampire.)

Lastly, if you are in the MacSparky Labs, check your email tomorrow. I’m going to plan a Labs meetup for the day after.

Focused 189: Focus and AI

On this episode of Focused, Mike and I consider how various AI tools can help protect our focus and share what we’re using to boost our productivity and creativity.

This episode of Focused is sponsored by:

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