In continuation of week 30, here are a few thoughts and things that caught my attention in the thirty-first week of 2024:

  • 🖼️ I’ve mentioned the image viewers Lyn and PicArrange before, but this week Musebox made the rounds. I will take a closer look at it when I get a chance.

  • 🔄 Speaking of alternatives: Diffraction might be a (currently free) alternative to Acorn.

  • 🔍 And if you only want to find (even the smallest) differences between two images, you can check out ImageDiff.

  • 🖥️ Somehow, mini apps for the Dynamic Island of various MacBooks were making the rounds this week. I came across NotchDrop (FOSS), MediaMate ($7), Notchnook ($25), and DynamicLake Pro1 ($14). Since I mostly use my MacBooks with larger monitors, I currently don’t need these apps. But maybe in the future.

  • 🌐 There is a public beta for Söka 2.0 available if you’re interested.

  • 📑 GoodLinks also received an update and now supports highlighting text on web pages after subscribing via IAP. Since I am very happy with Readwise Reader, which admittedly is very expensive, I don’t need it. If I weren’t, I would definitely take a closer look at this feature.

  • 📱 Many people were excited about Unread for Mac. I don’t want another subscription and will stick with Reeder for now.

  • 📰 Speaking of RSS, Tapestry is slowly taking shape and looks promising. However, the concept only works for me with a very limited selection of resources, and I find it very difficult to choose the right ones.

  • 📁 Nimble Commander - Free dual-pane mac file manager with classic design, charged for power users. A possible alternative for those who don’t have a license for Forklift2, Path Finder2, or Commander One2.

  • 🔍 There are countless different apps that help you find files on your Mac in addition to Spotlight. There is now another free app that promises to do just that: File Find by Pixel-Master - Search and find files fast and easily.

  • 🎨 This looks cool: Pixelorama - a powerful and accessible open-source pixel art multitool. Unfortunately, I am not talented enough to use such an app.

  • ☔ Carlo discovered Merry Sky. Looks cool, too and like a free, supercharged web version of Looks Like Rain. Well, probably the other way round - but what the heck 😇.

  • 🎮 I like the idea of a game controller that can be used with your mobile phone and a Nintendo Switch: GameSir G8 Plus Bluetooth Mobile Controller.

  • 🤦 I first thought it was a joke because it’s so cringe: Friend. Maybe they just want to get the addresses of people who urgently need psychological support? (They already have their own addresses, though.)

  • 🎧 I was about to throw away our Beats Solo3 because the ear pads were starting to disintegrate. Luckily, I learned that you can buy replacements very cheaply and mount them yourself. And If I had studied the instructions more carefully, I wouldn’t have almost destroyed them during the process 🤦‍♂️.

  • 💍 There were increasing rumours this week about The Apple Ring and Health Tracking, presumably in response to Samsung’s Ring. I would also find such a device very attractive. After my first COVID-19 infection at the end of last year and the resulting break in my streak of closing my rings every day for several years, I’m no longer as keen on achieving this, but I still pay attention to them. On the other hand, I’m getting bored with the design of my Apple Watch(es), which I’ve been wearing on my wrist for almost 18 years now. Therefore, some variety in the form of other watches or none at all would certainly be welcome. Samsung will surely not integrate its Ring into the Apple Health universe (although this would probably be possible even without DMA). So, I just have to wait for Apple or just ignore my rings.

  • 🚴 Due to my wife’s shoulder surgery, we unfortunately had to cancel our vacation. We will now have to go hiking in the French Alps another time. However, I still took three days off from work and did what I would have done on vacation: ate very well, read a book3, finished a game on my Switch, but spent only little time on the computer overall. Oh yes, I finally went for a bike ride again, which I hadn’t had time or motivation for lately.

Have a wonderful week ahead! 🙋‍♂️

  1. Lou took a closer look at the app and also provided a discount code. ↩︎

  2. also available on Setapp ↩︎

  3. many thanks to Hiro for the tip! ↩︎