There are a number of free Mac apps that allow you to download videos from YouTube, but finding the right one can be a challenge. Fortunately, we’ve navigated through the shark-infested waters and have found two Mac apps that are not only free but also safe.
They say the best things in life are free. And that’s certainly the case with many Mac apps. If you want the best you often don’t have to pay a cent. This entire site is devoted to free Mac apps, but we’ve compiled a list of the 10 we think should be on every Mac user’s computer.
If you’re adventurous, you might want to try out some of the games at Erich’s Blog and Digital Home. Most are for Windows, but some are for Mac: Dagnabbit, Starport Defender, Alien Sizzle, Ninety-Nine, Bricks & Bugs, and — coming soon — Astrosmack. Check out the screenshots before you download.
At first the Utilities category was the clear leader in our ongoing poll (scroll down in the sidebar) asking readers which category they consider most important for Mac freeware. Lately, though, Games have surged into the lead.
I’m not ignoring you, game fans. I’m constantly on the lookout for good ones to add to the collection, but they seem to be few and far between these days. A number of factors could be in play, but the Mac App Store seems to be the main culprit.
I suspect many game developers are hoping to make at least a little bit of money from their efforts by placing their games in the Mac App Store and charging a buck or two. There are free games in the store, but some are of such low quality that I can’t bring myself to put them in the thriftmac collection. Others are free only temporarily, some are more like demos for a paid game.
Whatever the reason, free Mac games have become scarce. So I’m asking thriftmac readers to pitch in. If you know a good free game not yet listed here, let us know in the comments or send an email. Just remember that it has to be totally free — not a crippled version, not a demo, not a temporary offer, not a beta.
I’ll be sure to check every suggestion.
We’re celebrating Black Friday here at thriftmac by offering 100-per-cent discounts on every app and program. There are no hordes, no trampling and no pepper spraying — just a wide selection of the best Mac freeware we could find during five years of service. Price: zero. And if you miss today’s sale, come back any time of the year for the same great bargains.
Everyone knows you can launch apps with Spotlight. Just tap Command-Spacebar, type in enough letters for Spotlight to find it, then hit enter. Why, then, are there so many launchers available that do much the same thing?
I can tell you why I started looking. It’s because Spotlight — at least on my iMac — often goes into a tailspin of a few seconds before it finds what I’m looking for. A few seconds is not much in the grand scheme of things, but the point of a shortcut is to make things faster.
Another problem with Spotlight is that it doesn’t seem to learn. I have to type “photosh” every time for it to make Photoshop the top hit.
So I took a look at some freeware launch apps for the Mac and tested each of them three ways: 1) Speed, 2) find and launch Photoshop, and 3) find and launch a file called pastorfile. For the sake of comparison, I’ve included Spotlight.
Here are the other apps I tried, divided between not recommended and recommended:
MOappsAppLauncher (not recommended)
Speed: Slow to launch and no indication that it is still starting up. You can wind up flailing away, trying to activate it, when it’s not yet ready.
Photoshop: Needed to type “ph” first time. Next time “p.”
pastorfile: Could not find it. (App launcher only.)
Namely (not recommended)
Speed: Initial launch takes a few seconds, but speedy after that.
Photoshop: Needed to type “photosh” first time. Next time “p.”
pastorfiile: Could not find it. (App launcher only.)
Launchy (not recommended)
Speed: Initial launch takes a few seconds, but speedy after that.
Photoshop: Needed to type “photosh” first time. Next time “ph.”
pastorfile: Could not find it. (Should launch files as well as apps.)
Chuck (not recommended)
Speed: Starts up and works quickly.
Photoshop: Needed to type “photosh” every time. Could set up “p” as shortcut.
pastorfile: Could not find it. (App launcher only.)
Google Quick Search Box (recommended, but barely)
Speed: Slow to launch.
Photoshop: Got it with “p” on second try.
pastorfile: Found it with navigation.
Quicksilver (recommended)
Speed: Initial launch takes a few seconds, but speedy after that.
Photoshop: Needed to type “photos” first time. Next time “ph.”
pastorfile: Found it with navigation. Can set up hotkey (e.g. Control-P).
Launcher (recommended)
Speed: Starts up and works quickly
Photoshop: Needed to type “photosh” every time. Could set up “p” as shortcut.
pastorfile: Could not find it. Could set up “pa” as shortcut.
Spotlight (recommended)
Speed: Can be speeded up by limiting searches in preferences
Photoshop: Must type “photosh” every time to make it top hit.
pastorfile: Must type “pastorf” every time to make it top hit.
Alfred (recommended)
Speed: Starts up and works quickly.
Photoshop: Got it with “p” on first try.
pastorfile: Found it. Can go directly to files by first tapping spacebar.
In the end, I went with Alfred. It learns fast and has a system for quickly finding files. It has the best chance of finding what you want with the fewest keystrokes. But I still like Spotlight for backup because I can absolutely count on it to find anything I’m looking for, including files and folders. I don’t yet have confidence that Alfred will do the same.
Alfred, of course, is just a personal preference for now. I like the way you can set up shortcuts in Launcher and hotkeys in Quicksilver — making both of these impressive alternatives. Also, if you’re looking for app launching only, I would go with Chuck. It’s very fast and has handy shortcuts.
Several years ago, when the first iMac came out, I happened to spot one displayed outside a computer store in a mall. Being a Mac fan, and hoping the iMac would help revive Apple, I was of course drawn to it.
As I admired the Bondi-blue baby, the store owner — wearing a Microsoft T-shirt — came out and immediately started in about how Apple was dying and there was no point in buying this computer. I’d be better off buying the special cord he had used to plug in the iMac, he insisted.
At the time, I considered it to be my worst ever retail experience. So I wrote the details in an email and fired it off to Steve Jobs. I have to think that reports like this must have rankled a perfectionist like Jobs. Today, Apple stores provide one of the best experiences you can imagine.
Why would I have thought that Jobs would have any time for my little problem? It was because I believed that he genuinely cared. I’ve always had that sense about him. He was an idealist who triumphed in an age of cynicism.
One of the most popular free Mac games ever is no longer available for download from the developer. Quinn is based on the classic falling blocks game Tetris, and as such has been the target of legal threats from the owners of the original Tetris.
Developer Simon Haertel says he simply doesn’t have the time or money to fight these guys, so he’s stopped distribution of Quinn. One glimmer of hope is that Haertel says he has ceased distribution “for the time being,” which implies the situation could change some time in the future.
Meanwhile, the game is still available from the Softonic servers, but you should grab it while you can — the Tetris legal team is bound to find out.