An outstanding article over on the The Apple Blog cites 10 must-have software tools. Author Samuel Cohen brings us the best of what’s out there to make the most for the user who is “forced to make certain sacrifices in usability, power, and efficiency.”
Sidetrack: This is a free (provided you put up with the nag screen) or $15 shareware utility that adds scrolling functionality to the borders of the trackpad.
Menufela: A $5 program that makes the very most out of a smaller screen (such as a 12 or 13 inch PowerBook, iBook or iBook laptop). The application autohides the menu bar until the mouse is positioned over it in an effort to show every possible pixel to the user.
Stoplight: This is a free program that lets the user adjust the behavior of the red-yellow-green buttons at the upper left hand corner of each Mac OS X window.
Letterbox: This is a free user interface adjustment for Apple’s Mail program that switches the default view to a three-column view and helps make the most of screen real estate.
Virtue Desktops: Until Spaces arrives in Mac OS X 10.5, this will pave the way and show you just how cool multiple desktops truly are. Virtue Desktops is a freeware multiple desktop manager that helps consolidate mulltiple windows and gives the selected window the full screen while putting the others in the background to work with later.
Quicksilver: THE application launcher and one of the most useful programs ever written for the Mac. Type in a word found in a document or application name and it’ll find it, then suggest several actions that can be done with it. The program is donation-ware, so if you like it, throw a little bit their way.
CornerClick: A free program that adds programmable functionality (such as applescripts, file launches, etc.) to clicks made at the four corners of the screen.
Sidenote: A free program that acts as a miniature notepad which can be easily hidden throughout the screen and revealed by moving the mouse over its location. Items such as text, images and links can be hurled into Sidenote, which helps consolidate everything and makes the desktop more easily navigated.
fKeys: A free program that remaps the enter key (the one on the number pad of a fully sized keyboard). This allows the user to use a function-return key combination instead of having to hunt for the oddly-placed enter key.
And, finally:
Noise: A free application that makes white noise to help blend out surrounding noise or conversations.
If you have any suggestions for must-have programs you routinely use, let us know.

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According to a report from MacNN, Apple is changing its refurbished inventory of older MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops since the company released updated units powered by Intel’s Core 2 Duo processors this fall.
The company is currently offering its 15″ 2.0 GHz MacBook Pro with 512 MB of RAM, an 80 GB hard drive and ATI Mobilitiy Radeon X1600 with 128 MB of onboard VRAM for $1,449in both standard and glossy finishes.
A higher end 17″ 2.16 GHz MacBook Pro with 1 GB of RAM, 7,200 RPM 100 GB hard drive or 5,400 RPM 120 GB hard drive and an ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics card with 256 MB of onboard VRAM available in both standard and glossy finishes is available for $2,199.
The popular 15″ 1.83 GHz MacBook Pro model, formerly $1,399 is no longer in stock.
Available refurbished MacBooks include the 1.83 GHz white model with 512 MB of RAM and a 60 GB hard drive for $849, a 2.0 GHz white model with 512 MB of RAM for $899 and the ever-cool 2.0 GHz black model with 512 MB of RAM and an 80 GB hard drive for $999. The refurbished units are based on the Intel Core Duo processor.

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Another intreresting WSJ article is Nick Wingfield’s “Mac’s Moment?”

Some companies like Aozora, though, are embracing the latest Macs, citing that they are much less susceptible to crashes, offer more functions that businesses need and are viewed as more secure in terms of viruses and spyware than PCs that run on Windows. What’s more, Apple is in the process of moving its entire line of Macs to microprocessors, or the brains of PCs, made by Intel Corp. Those chips are allowing Apple to create Macs that could appeal to more businesses — smaller, thinner machines that consume less power and perform functions faster. So with Mac OS X and the huge hardware transition under way, both Apple and analysts believe the company may have its best shot in years at expanding its tiny share of the business market.

Read the rest of “Mac’s Moment?” at WSJ.com (subscription req’d).

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