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Software Pick of the Month: DragonDrop

by Krishna on May 10, 2012 at 10:35 am

If you’ve ever been in the process of moving your files and realized midstream that you need to open a folder on your hard drive, you’ll come to appreciate the power and simplicity of DragonDrop.

DragonDrop is an elegant and useful Mac app that lets you set down what you are dragging without worrying about keeping the mouse button held down. It works great with files, folders, text snippets, etc. and has already improved my productivity ten-fold. It sells for $4.99 at the Mac App Store, and is easily worth its asking price.

How does it work?

Drag a file or set of files and shake your mouse cursor back and forth. A transparent DragonDrop window appears. Stuff your contents in the window and retrieve them when you’re ready to move them into their proper location. That’s it!

If you’re not a “mover and shaker”, you can use DragonDrop’s Menu Bar icon instead. DragonDrop’s prefs (shown below) are simple and self-explanatory.

In the snapshot below, I’ve selected three files and shaken my mouse cursor. The DragonDrop window (or portal, as I like to think of it) appears.

Drop your files into the portal until you are ready to retrieve your files.

DragonDrop is one of those little apps that quickly makes itself indispensable. I can’t imagine using any Mac without it. DragonDrop has eliminated the need for me to use a dual-paned window (a la Forklift or PathFinder) to move files because I can invoke it at a whim.

I’ve tested DragonDrop version 1.1.5 for about a day now and I’ve already given it a hefty workout. I haven’t run into any snags or bugs in my usage, but I’ll update this review if I run into any problems.

Conclusion

If you move files on a regular basis (and who doesn’t, really?), DragonDrop is easily the best $5 you’ll spend and earns a mighty 5 Bob Weiners. Highly Recommended.

-Krishna

└ Tags: Mac productivity, mac utilities

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Review: Alfred: The Launcher for the Rest of Us

by Krishna on March 30, 2012 at 11:41 pm

Posted In: News, Reviews

Product: Alfred
Manufacturer: Running with Crayons
Date Reviewed: 3-30-2012
Retail Price: FREE!

Mac users love their productivity tools, and I’m no exception. As a self-described “power user” (read: Mac nerd), I’m always on the lookout for tools and apps that will improve and enhance my overall day-to-day workflow. And, if it’s available for free, that’s a double-bonus. Apps like that are difficult to come by, but every now and then, the stars align and a true Mac gem appears.

Alfred, by the husband-wife team of Andrew and Vero Pepperrell, is just such an app.

So… what is Alfred?

Simply put: Alfred, at its core, is a keyboard-based launcher. Invoke a custom keystroke (such as Command-Tab), type a few letters, and instantly you are presented with a floating window that lets you quickly find apps, contact info, search a website, or even compute an equation.

Alfred’s searches are fast and efficient. Typing ‘fi’ in the launcher window results in Firefox showing up at the top of the list. Hitting ‘return’ will launch the app, or I use the mouse (or type Command-3) if I were interested in launching the Finder.app.

With Alfred, the user is not limited to searching for apps. Alfred can also parse Google, Amazon, or Wikipedia at the touch of a keyboard.

Alfred even handles arithmetic computations on the fly. Type the equation and the result shows up straight away, without the need to launch the calculator app. How’s that for service?

Behind the Scenes

Now that you know what Alfred does, it’s time to take a peek at the app itself. Alfred is an application, first and foremost. Its menu can be invoked by clicking on the Alfred app or via the Alfred menulet on the menubar. (You can toggle the visibility of the icon / menulet within the Alfred preferences.)

Speaking of which…

Alfred has a comprehensive set of options tucked away inside its tiny 3.4MB footprint. Outside of customizing the keyboard shortcut to invoke the app, I’ve also configured Alfred to launch at login.

You can choose to let Alfred know which results you want to be shown, along with defining the locations where you want Alfred to look when it’s performing searches.

Like any highly-polished Mac OS X application, you can customize Alfred’s look via three built-in themes: Light, Dark, and Lion. Personally, I prefer the Light look. Of course, Alfred can also utilize custom Alfred themes, via the paid PowerPack module. Plenty of Alfred themes abound if you perform a search.

In the Options tab, you can toggle the visibility of Alfred’s icon, choose how Alfred acts (i.e. toggling auto-highlight and window fade options) as well as specify the number of visible search items returned from a query.

The Advanced tab lets you rebuild OS X Metadata, if Alfred has trouble locating your apps and such. I haven’t had need to do this, because in my experience, Alfred found every app I queried.

Alfred’s Usage button is a neat touch: at a glance you are presented with a graph that shows the number of times Alfred was invoked, along with a running average. Not necessary, but certainly a welcome addition for a Mac nerd like myself.

Alfred vs. Launchbar vs. QuickSilver

I am not new to keyboard based launchers. I first started using them right after a little program called QuickSilver was released. After QuickSilver suspended its development, I invested in Objective Development’s Launchbar and have been using it without complaint for the past several years. (Note: QuickSilver is being actively developed again.)

Mac geeks are passionate about their keyboard launchers; everyone has a favorite.

For me, I choose Alfred. QuickSilver and Launchbar are both excellent, powerful launchers, but in my opinion, those extra, nifty powers are compromised by the steep learning curve. I think I made it to page 3 on the Launchbar / QuickSilver docs before my eyes started to glaze over.

While QuickSilver and Launchbar could arguably trounce Alfred in terms of the raw power they both wield ‘out of the box’, Alfred appears to be much more intuitive to use for the tasks that I perform regularly. Put another way: if I had to install a keyboard-based launcher on my parents’ computer, Alfred would cinch it. It’s really simple and fun to use, and from a usability stand-point – it’s much easier to see, with fonts appearing at a larger point size compared to both Launchbar or Quicksilver.

If I ever wanted to expand Alfred’s capabilities, that option is readily available via the (paid) PowerPack module (which I haven’t obtained for testing).

Closing Thoughts

Alfred is a terrific, easy-to-use keyboard-based launcher. It’s fast, it’s free, and it exudes a professional polish that really makes it a pleasure to use day in and day out. It’s a must-have gem of a program that no Mac user should be without.

Alfred earns the distinction of a solid 5 out of 5 Bob Weiners.

-Krishna

└ Tags: Alfred, keyboard-based launchers, Launchbar, QuickSilver

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Five Reasons You Should Buy the Wacom Intuos5 tablet

by Krishna on March 17, 2012 at 1:11 pm

Posted In: hardware, News, Reviews

Two weeks later, I’m incredibly satisfied with my decision to purchase the Wacom Intuos5 tablet. If you’re still on the fence, whether you own a Bamboo or an earlier model Wacom Intuos tablet, I’ll give you five reasons why you should seriously consider upgrading to the latest model.

The drawing surface: The biggest gripe most people have about the earlier model Intuos tablet models was the tendency of its plastic surface wearing down after prolonged usage. The Intuos5′s tablet surface is made out of a dense, rubberized material that holds up really well against stylus scuff marks.
The touch sensitive HUD display: The Intuos5′s touch-sensitive buttons are a vast improvement over the illuminated buttons because I no longer need to look at the tablet to make use of the button controls on the tablet. As a result, I use the buttons on a regular basis. I have custom keyboard shortcuts mapped to my Intuos5′s buttons, including one to create a new layer. Two of the buttons on the top and bottom of the tablet have grooves, making it easy to know where you’re hovering over. As a keyboard shortcut junkie, using the Wacom’s buttons took some getting used to, but now it’s firmly mapped to my muscle memory.
Gestures: Simply put, there’s no need to purchase a Magic Trackpad if you have the Intuos5. Gesture responsiveness is smooth and every bit as good as the Magic Trackpad. (I have both.) I only use a handful of gestures (pun intended), but the ones I use work well. Something else to note: If you run a dual display setup and you’ve mapped the tablet’s stylus to one display, the gestures (moving the mouse, etc.) will still work across both displays. This is really awesome and shows that Wacom’s put a lot of thought into the touch capabilities of the Intuos5. My Intuos5 tablet has replaced my Magic Trackpad.
The wireless capabilities: Although I haven’t purchased the wireless accessory (it comes separate from the tablet), it’s nice to have the option to make the tablet fully wireless. I have enough wires on my desk, so it’s only a matter of time before I spring for the wireless module. If you’re buying a new Intuos5 tablet, factor the extra $39 in your purchase price.
The responsiveness: While there is no difference in terms of the pressure sensitivity compared to the Intuos4 line, the tablet’s surface makes for a much more responsive (and pleasurable) drawing experience. Drawing long lines, circles, etc. used to require multiple attempts, but with the Intuos5, I’m able to quickly realize my vision without having to repeatedly hit Command-Z.

Questions about the Intuos5? Hit me up in the comments and I’ll do my best to respond.

-Krishna

└ Tags: intuos, intuos4 vs intous5, wacom intuos5 review

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Wacom Intuos5: Unboxing Photos and First Impressions

by Krishna on March 10, 2012 at 10:51 am

Posted In: News, Reviews

My Wacom Intuos5 (medium) tablet arrived last night. I haven’t had a chance to really put it through its paces, but in the brief 10 minutes or so I had last night – Wacom has a winner. My cursory impression is that the Intuos5 tablet is well worth the upgrade from earlier models, including the Intuos4. But, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start with some unboxing photos:

Beautiful packaging is a hallmark of Wacom’s products, and the Intuos5 is no different. The packaging was clean and inviting. I felt like I was unboxing an Apple product.

The Intuos5 stylus feels identical to the Intuos4 model. Included with the pen is a pen holder, which houses 10 replacement nibs inside it.

Also in the box is a driver disc, an installation booklet, and a USB cord (more on that in a moment).

The USB cord is reinforced and feels much sturdier than its Intuos4 counterpart. The USB connection is on the side, placed in the middle of the tablet. From a structural standpoint, the connection feels solid and there’s less chance of the cord strain with the new design compared to the Intuos4 model.

In terms of the tablet itself, the Intuos5′s surface is a pleasure to draw on. Again, I’ve only spent 10 minutes testing this out, but my first reaction was “WOW!” – my hands glide across the surface instead of sticking to it. Gestures also work – but I haven’t tested this beyond zooming in and out of the canvas. The heads-up display (HUD) is a huge improvement over the buttons on the Intuos4. Hovering your hands over the appropriate “buttons” will show the HUD display. You can use the default button settings or customize them to the app you are working in. I have a feeling I’ll be using the HUD quite a bit, because I don’t have to keep looking at the tablet to know which button I have to click.

Again, these are my first impressions. I hope to have a more thorough review posted, after I’ve had a chance to use the tablet on a few real-world projects. In short, I’m super glad I went for the upgrade.

-Krishna

└ Tags: first impressions, Intuos3, Intuos4, Intuos5, Wacom

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Review: Palua 3.0

by Krishna on February 27, 2012 at 10:17 pm

Posted In: Mac, News, Reviews, software

Out of the box, Apple keyboards are setup to where the function keys operate in Apple Mode. Within Apple Mode, users can use their function keys to perform a variety of tasks, like play or pause iTunes, adjust screen brightness, and even invoke Dashboard or Mission Control. To access the function keys as function keys, particularly on a Mac laptop or small-sized Apple keyboard, you’ll have to press the Fn key along with the function key.

As a Mac power user, I regularly make use of my keyboard’s function keys. Programs like Flash and Photoshop have various keyboard shortcuts that are specifically assigned to function keys, and it’s a pain in the tookus to have to hit the Fn key + Function Key (i.e. F1) each and every time I need to invoke a specific function.

The developers at Molowa must have experienced my pain, because they are the developers behind Palua, a little Mac software gem (99 cents at the Mac App Store) that lets the user easily toggle the functionality of the Function keys on the Apple keyboard.

Palua installs as a menulet on the Mac’s menubar. Here’s how it works:

Hit Command-Option-Tab (or make up your own keyboard shortcut) and your Function keys toggle to one of two modes:

function key mode
Apple mode (adjust volume, brightness, etc.)

Once toggled, the keyboard stays in the specified mode until you toggle it back. Bliss!

This functionality, by itself, is pretty nifty, but Palua goes several steps further to earn its status as a Mac gem.

First up is Palua’s Preferences tab, which lets the user assign a configurable keyboard shortcut to toggle the function keys. I kept the default settings. Also within the Preferences tab, the user can elect to specify the default function key mode. (Apple keyboards are set to ‘Apple mode’ by default.)

In the Smart Mode tab, you can choose the default behavior of the function keys, depending upon the app you’re running. So, for apps like Flash and Photoshop, where I use function keys all day long, I’ve set the behavior of my function keys to operate in function key mode. For iTunes, I’ve assigned the keyboard to work in Apple mode. To sum up, you can choose which mode your function keys are in depending upon the app you are running. Yes!

But wait! There’s more! You can also change the look of Palua’s menulet icon. I chose “Black” so I can easily pick out the Palua icon from my menubar.

Palua does what it’s supposed to and then some. At a mere 99 cents on the Mac App Store, it’s a no-brainer purchase for power users. Because of its ease of use and its polish, Palua rightfully earns 5 out of 5 Bob Weiners.

-Krishna

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└ Tags: Mac productivity, Palua

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Review: Power2U AC Wall Outlet with USB Charging Ports

by Krishna on February 25, 2012 at 6:43 pm

Posted In: News, Reviews

The NewerTech Power2U, a wall-outlet receptacle replacement that includes built-in USB ports, intrigued me when I first heard about it a few months back. The idea of having a convenient USB charging outlet next to my nightstand had a lot of appeal for a gadget junkie like myself. OWC shipped my Power2U within a few days, but I didn’t get around to installing it for well over 3 weeks.

The Power2U package comes with the replacement receptacle and faceplate, already assembled. The package also includes a double-page set of directions. Before attempting the install, I familiarized myself with the install process, and also watched the OWC How-To video on the Macsales.com website.

I’ve never actually performed any electrical work on my house, so I was very curious to test OWC’s assertion that the Power2U was a 20 minute Do-It-Yourself install. To be upfront, the install took me a few hours, owing mostly to the wiring in my house than the Power2U itself. You’ll need a Philips and/or a standard (flathead) screwdriver and electrical tape. I also had an outlet tester and a pair of wire-cutters on hand (more on that soon).

It’s best to do this type of install during the daytime, so you can shut off the power mains and still see what you’re doing. Regardless of what time of day you plan on installing the Power2U, you NEED to make sure that the power to the wall outlet is OFF. Failure to do so can potentially kill you, because that’s what electricity can do to you.

Removing the old receptacle was easy enough, but things got tricky with the wiring. The Power2U documentation takes into account black, white and copper wires within the junction box, but my outlet also had a set of red wires. Unsure of what to do, I called up OWC for technical assistance. The person I spoke with was courteous, but he couldn’t help me out with determining where to connect the red wires to on the Power2U. Instead his recommendation to me was to call an electrician.

Fortunately for me, I had an electrician friend named Tony. The red wires, we determined, went to the wall switch. As I wanted the Power2U to be “always on”, I capped the two red wires together and placed a plastic wire cover to keep them from touching the other wires in the box. The physical connections to the Power2U were easy and straightforward. Putting the Power2U back in the wall housing was not. I ended up having to trim the white, copper, and black lines to a shorter length using my wire cutter, to get the Power2U to fully fit in the housing.

The other area I had difficulty with was in screwing the Power2U receptacle back into the wall housing. The included directions within the Power2U box don’t really cover this process. I had to manually remove the 2 faceplate screws first and use the supplied longer screws on the back of the Power2U to connect it to the wall housing. I wish this was better articulated in the documentation; it would have saved me some frustration. To be fair, the aforementioned OWC video shows the faceplate already detached from the Power2U receptacle, but I still think this step should be reinforced at the beginning of the video.

Putting the wires and Power2U back into the wall-housing took some effort as well; in the end it was a tight fit. Reassembling the faceplate was straightforward, and the moment was upon me: I was ready to test the installation.

I threw the breakers back on and expected a spark or two. Thankfully, instead, I had a working Power2U. I used a small socket tester to confirm that the connections were, in fact, correct. Next, I subjected my old iPod Touch as the guinea pig and plugged it into the Power2U’s left port. After success, I tested the right USB port. Success all around.

I learned a few new things during this install. I got my hands dirty and went off the beaten path trimming electrical wires and such. If you’re not feeling as adventurous, I’d strongly recommend you to go with a licensed electrician. But, if you’re a geek at heart, and practice safety and patience, you’ll find the satisfaction of doing it yourself to be a worthwhile endeavor. To be perfectly honest though: If I had to do it again, I’d probably call an electrician.

The Power2U retails for $27.99 at Other World Computing. Overall, I’m very happy with the unit; but the Power2U gets one star off for its documentation. The NewerTech Power2U earns 4 out of 5 Bob Weiners.

-Krishna

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Micro Review: Patriot XT 16GB: The Best Little USB Flash Drive Ever

by Krishna on February 14, 2012 at 6:47 am

Posted In: News, Reviews

USB flash drives are disposable commodities, but I think I’ve found one that I’m really satisfied with. I’ve been using the Patriot XT 16GB flash drive for the better part of two weeks. The Patriot XT’s case is rubberized, making it easy to grip. It includes a cover, which fits the USB housing as snug as a bug. But the best part about this drive is the file-transfer speed. Copying files to and from Patriot XT is unusually fast for a USB flash drive, especially when compared to my Corsair Voyager (“Slow As Molasses”) 16GB flash drive. I don’t have quantitative numbers, but I’ll add some if there’s interest.

My only wish was that the Patriot XT included a lanyard. Thankfully, it includes a rubberized support ring to add your own.

In summary, the Patriot XT is easily worth the $20. If you’re looking for a rugged, speedy USB flash drive at a decent price, look no further.

-Krishna

└ Tags: USB flash drive review

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Review: SmudgeGuard2

by Krishna on December 11, 2011 at 9:27 am

Posted In: News, Reviews

Product: SmudgeGuard2
Manufacturer: Smudge Guard LLC
Date Reviewed: 12-11-11
Retail Price: $16.99

There’s nothing worse than having wet hands while trying to draw on a tablet. (Okay, I suppose there are worse things, but this is a family friendly website.) When your hand sticks against the surface of your tablet, it can impact your overall line quality.

Not a good thing.

Fortunately, there is a solution: the SmudgeGuard2 (SG2)

The SG2 is a two-fingered glove made with 84% Nylon and 16% Spandex that covers both the ring finger and pinky finger. The SG2′s material is porous, allowing your hand to “breathe” while working. The SG2 fits both left and right-handed artists and comes in XL, L, M, S, and XS sizes. (I purchased the large version.) It’s also easy to wash; just use cold water with soap, rinse and air dry. (A one fingered SmudgeGuard, which covers only the pinky, is also available.)

In my usage for the past two months, the SG2 does exactly what its says it will do. Wearing the SG2 is comfortable, particularly when working on my tablet for hours on end. The material build is flexible and durable, showing no signs of visible wear. Best of all, my drawing hand no longer sticks to the surface of the tablet. As a result, my lines are more precise and smooth. I don’t have a Cintiq, but I’d imagine the results would be just as good for users of that product. The SG2 also works well with pencil / paper, preventing undue smudges that would otherwise occur.

To summarize: if you spend a considerable amount of time drawing with a tablet or Cintiq and you’re frustrated with your hand’s friction against its surface, you owe it to yourself to buy the SmudgeGuard2.

The SmudgeGuard2 earns a solid 5 out of 5 Bob Weiners.

└ Tags: accessories, Wacom

3 Comments

Review: NewerTech NuGuard GripStand2 and GripBase

by Krishna on November 25, 2011 at 5:01 am

Posted In: ipad, News, Reviews

My family and I have spent 6 months living with an iPad2 in our house and, in my opinion, Apple’s latest gadget has lived up to its hype. We use our iPad on a regular basis for many tasks: watching Netflix videos, video chatting with family members, reading eBooks, surfing the web, and even playing an occasional game or two. It has been a worthwhile investment, and I’m glad I own one.

Given that the investment wasn’t exactly cheap, protecting it from potential damage became a top priority. So, with our iPad2, we ordered an orange SmartCover to protect the display. Shortly afterward, I placed another order for a Speck SmartShell2 case to protect the unit’s back from potential nicks and scratches.

For the most part, I’ve been happy with these accessories. The Speck Smartshell is sturdy and rugged, and does a great job of protecting the iPad, and the SmartCover holds its own when protecting the unit’s front display.

But the one drawback I’ve come to realize is the SmartCover’s ability to serve as a video stand. It does work, but you are limited to viewing content vertically. And, as a vertical stand, the SmartCover simply isn’t sturdy enough. An inadvertent jostle or bump to the desk that the iPad sits on can cause the unit to topple over like a house of cards. (With a 3-year old in the house, this has happened at least a half a dozen times.)

Enter the NewerTechnology GripBase and GripStand 2, from Other World Computing. The GripBase and GripStand 2 lets you mount your iPad2 on a solid base. With the GripStand 2, you can orient the iPad2 vertically or horizontally. Both the GripBase and GripStand 2 come in white or black; OWC sells a separate version for first generation iPads as well.

I purchased the black GripBase and GripStand 2 from OWC for the holiday sale price of $29 (retail: $59.99). Let’s take a look at them both.

The GripStand 2

The GripStand 2 is a hard plastic protective shell that fits snuggly your iPad2. With its included ring handle, you can sit your iPad2 horizontally or vertically upright on your desk. Fitting the iPad2 into the GripStand 2 was a plug-n-play affair. The ring handle on the back of the unit is removable. Removing and reattaching the ring clip is a breeze – it has two side calipers that you press to attach the ring handle to the back of the iPad2. The GripStand 2 provides easy access to all the iPad2 ports and controls, and best of all, supports the existing Apple SmartCover. It’s a very solid piece of kit. The GripStand 2 is ideal for travel usage.

The GripBase

The NewerTech GripBase turns your iPad2 into a mini workstation display. With the GripBase, you can easily rotate between horizontal and vertical display positions. In the box, you’ll find instructions, the base and the vertical stand. An included screw is used to secure the base to the stand. The vertical stand lets you swivel the iPad2 for easy viewing.

The GripBase’s weighted display stand keeps the iPad2 anchored very securely. Simply snap off the ring handle from the Grip Stand 2 and attach the iPad to the GripBase. The GripBase makes sense in a stationary environment. Moving back and forth between the Grip Stand and GripBase was very easy to do.

Here’s how the GripBase looks alongside my computing setup.

The GripBase and GripStand 2 represents a solid deal for the money, if you’re in the market for a rugged protective case / stand setup. Both products compliment the aesthetic look of the iPad2. The only niggle I have is the plastic packaging on the GripStand – it was very difficult to open and I nearly cut my finger trying to get the GripStand out of its packaging.

Niggles aside, the GripBase and the GripStand2 represent a tremendous value, particularly at its current sale price of $29. I’ve been very satisfied with both units. I say that as a customer first; these were not review units. (Disclosure: OWC is a site sponsor.)

The NewerTech GripBase and GripStand 2 both earn a solid 5 out of 5 Bob Weiners.

-Krishna

└ Tags: iPad accessories, iPad2 stand, NewerTech, Other World Computing

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Operation: Phoenix Revival Part I

by Krishna on October 3, 2011 at 12:01 am

Posted In: Mac, News, Reviews

Three years ago, I purchased one of the last early 2008 model Macbook Pros (MBP), shortly after the late 2008 (aka Unibody) Macbook Pros were released. I did this for a few reasons. I’ve owned a few Mac laptops in my time, starting with a Wallstreet model (1998), moving onto a Pismo (2000), followed by the first generation Intel Macbook Pro (2006) and finally, the very model I’m writing about. Out of all the machines I’ve owned, the early 2008 MBP is easily the best of the bunch. I like almost everything about this machine, from the crisp matte LED screen to the removable battery. It’s been an incredibly reliable machine since I’ve owned it. Outside of a RAM upgrade purchased early on, my MBP has been running “stock” with its Hitachi 250GB 5400RPM hard drive.

Alas, time marches on. Faster, newer unibody Macbook Pro and Air models were introduced and my beloved machine was beginning to feel a little long in the tooth. But as sexy and powerful as the newer machines are, I wasn’t willing or ready to part with my existing MBP. I wanted to give my MBP a little more oomph, but the question was “How?”.

Ever since I purchased my first solid state drive (SSD) for my Mac Pro tower, I’d been jonesing to add one into my laptop. Two things kept me from doing so:

funds (or lack thereof)
complexity

Point 1 was remedied with time, but Point 2 remained. The 2006 – early 2008 Macbook Pros didn’t exactly have the reputation of being the easiest machines to upgrade. I did my research, read a few blogs, and came across ifixit’s wonderful step-by-step documentation. I must have read that document at least 20 times. My confidence was up and I knew the inevitable would have to happen, so I plunked down my hard earned dollars to Other World Computing and took a deep breath. Upon the recommendation from Grant Dahlke at OWC, I ordered the OWC DIY 115GB SSD Bundle. This order included:

an OWC Mercury Extreme Pro 3G SSD (115GB)
an OWC On-the-Go Pro enclosure (for my old 5400RPM drive)
a 5 piece toolkit with assorted screw drivers (1 T8 Torx, 1 T6 Trox, a Philips #00, a 1.8mm straight blade, and one nylon spudger

Less than a week after my order was placed (this past Friday), my goodies arrived:

It was a fortuitous arrival; I was on academic break, which meant I could make the necessary time to work on my machine. But given that our Fall quarter was about to start, I knew that I had to install the new drive right away. My plan was to install the OWC SSD and perform a fresh install of the OS and apps and essentially start from scratch. But, I’m getting ahead of myself…

In preparation of the install, I printed out all the ifixit document pages and placed them next to my laptop. Why print when I could simply pull up the page on my iPad? Well, simply put – for my sanity. Getting into the guts of the early 2008 Macbook Pro involves unscrewing a lot of similarly sized, but different, teeny, tiny screws, like the ones below. Screws that, if left in a pile, could drive me bonkers. My strategy was to affix tape to secure the screws next to the appropriate step on the printed docs. I did this for two reasons:

to avoid losing the screws (lots of fun on thick, shaggy carpet)
to make it easier to put the whole enchilada back together again, properly

Teeny, tiny screws (I wasn’t lying – they’re small!):

These screws aren’t going anywhere:

After opening my MBP’s Speck plastic protector, I began unscrewing elements of the case, following the ifixit guide. The OWC toolkit came in very handy.

After removing about 30 odd screws (seriously, I lost count at some point), I was ready to remove the top part of the case. I started from the back and gently popped the top off. It wasn’t all sugar cookies and cream – removing the top part of the case from the front DVD latch
area took a bit of patience. Three minutes later I was staring into the belly of the beast:

I couldn’t completely remove the top case from the unit as the keyboard connector was clinging to the motherboard. Instead of removing it, I used two plastic blocks to prop up the top part of the case, like so:

And the fun was about to start…

Come back for Part 2 on Tuesday!

-Krishna

└ Tags: hardware, Mac, Macbook Pro, Mercury Extreme Pro, Other World Computing, SSD drives, SSD vs HD

11 Comments

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The Story So Far…

Funnies!

Classics

Featured Guest-Stars

Guest Strips

Archive for ‘Reviews’

Software Pick of the Month: DragonDrop

How does it work?

Conclusion

Review: Alfred: The Launcher for the Rest of Us

So… what is Alfred?

Behind the Scenes

Alfred vs. Launchbar vs. QuickSilver

Closing Thoughts

Five Reasons You Should Buy the Wacom Intuos5 tablet

Wacom Intuos5: Unboxing Photos and First Impressions

Review: Palua 3.0

Review: Power2U AC Wall Outlet with USB Charging Ports

Micro Review: Patriot XT 16GB: The Best Little USB Flash Drive Ever

Review: SmudgeGuard2

Review: NewerTech NuGuard GripStand2 and GripBase

The GripStand 2

The GripBase

Operation: Phoenix Revival Part I

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