November 15-16, 2003

On The Net

xScope 1.0 - Wholey cow! The pixel people from The Iconfactory just don't know when to quit when it comes to GUI fun! In conjunction with ARTIS Software, The Factory folks have announced the introduction of xScope 1.0 for Mac OS X. xScope is a powerful set of tools for designers that are ideal for measuring, aligning and inspecting on-screen graphics and layouts. The software consists of six tools in one:

• Rulers - On-screen rulers that measure distances and angles
• Screens - A dynamic view of smaller screen sizes & browser content areas
• Loupe - A magnifying glass that gives you a close-up view of your work
• Guides - Markers for precise horizontal and vertical alignment
• Frames - Markers for precise width, height & origin alignment
• Crosshair - Finds the exact location on screen

All of xScope's tools are easily accessed by handy menu bar icons, a floating toolbar, or via powerful user-definable hotkeys. xScope's tool set is quickly and easily available at any time and is a valuable asset to any graphic or screen designer using a Mac and OS X. This is a must have tool for all of you pixel pushin' people! Get yourself over to The Iconfactory and grab a copy of xScope 1.0 like ASAP!

Monkie Business

Raining Cats and Dogs - There are more than 100 million dogs and cats in the United States. Americans spend more than 5.4 billion dollars on their pets each year. Hey! What about us Monkies?!

Moon Walk: One Giant Step - The footprints left by the Apollo astronauts will not erode since there is no wind or water on the Moon. The footprints should last at least 10 million years.

Facts: Twisted Sister - Get your facts first and then you can distort them as much as you wish.

- Mark Twain

November 14, 2003

Icons | Community News | On The Net | Bananas

At The Top - Ahhhh...Are you catching the cool refreshing feeling of the Friday fuzzies? Gads! Did I just say that?? It must be what happens when one turns 147 years of age. Or maybe it's just that it's a great feeling to know that the weekend is near and that our Friday Icon Edition is but seconds away. And all ya gotta do to grab the News, Humor, and GOO is put on a little Poli-Grip, get out your walker, and let the good time GUI roll!

New GOO!

New Icons - Do you yoohoo? 'Cuz this week's platter of GOO is yoohooin' you with 3 Fantabulous New Icon Sets that will knock your GUI socks off! So before your toes get cold, let's get to this week's hot collection of pixel wonders. Shall we?

Steve Ansell - With Steve Ansell's latest package of creativity, your eye candy enjoyment is all in the bag! Baggies 2 is packed with the freshest of ideas and makes for the perfect place to put all of your storable goodies. These fine set of zip locks contain just the right pixel recipe and will put Reynolds Wrap to shame!

i...mac@dam - Appréciez-vous l'excellence dans les icônes? Why of course you love excellence in icons! And that's just what you will get from Isabelle Laffy of i...mac@dam. Sporting the supermini Yaris, Isabelle revs up your pixel engines with her fine design and plenty of gas mileage for all your desktop needs!

miX the piX - Cool cat and master miXer Hein Mevissen has quite the flare for taking the best and making it even better! With all his pixel prowess, Hein adds an all new shine to the best X on the spot with Panther 1.0. This X-cellent collection from the galleries of miX the piX will make your pixels purr with pure Panther pride! Enjoy!

 

Thanks Department --

Isabelle, Steve, and Hein...

The pixels have NEVER looked better!

You're the best!

THANK YOU!!

Send Us Your Icons!

Community News

Mandolux - Mando Gomez does it again with another week of wonderful desktop additions at the galleries of Mandolux. Added this week:

Mandolux has issued three new desktops: one Cruising (New theme), one ViDRIO (Ice/Nature), and one CAP (Florida State).

The latest entry introduces a new killer theme: Cruising. The first desktop is titled Ballistic Morning. This is a long-exposure photograph taken really early in the morning of traffic (head-on) at a junction connecting the 405 and 105 Freeways in Southern California. Hit the cyber highway and cruise to Mandolux for all these must have selections!

On The Net

CandyBar 1.6.1 - The pixel happy folks from Panic and The Iconfactory have updated CandyBar to version 1.6.1. This ultra-popular icon customization tool is now fully qualified for use with the newly released Mac OS X 10.3.1. What's better than this? The upgrade is FREE for registered users! Get yourself on the path to your cool customized desktop and grab the latest version of CandyBar from The Iconfactory!

Silk 2.0.4 - Smoothing out all the fine print in OSX is the release of Silk 2.0.4 from the developers of Unsanity LLC. Silk allows the substituting one font with another in your applications and the changing of the font used to display menus, window titles, and other interface elements. The latest version is:

• Panther compatible
• No longer beeps all the time in the preference pane.
• Added a default exclusion for Xcode
• Delete key to remove individual font substitution rules works again

All you gotta do to get the latest version of Silk is head to Unsanity and get to grabbin'!

Bananas

Just Plain Nutz!

THINGS THAT SUCK ABOUT BEING A GUY

The Ferrari 550 Maranello lists for over $200,000.

Even if you get your head caught in an industrial wood chipper, you're not allowed to cry.

You have to wear ties.

You can't flirt your way out of a jam.

"Women and children first."

HOW TO GET A RAISE

A boss tells his new employee, "I'll give you 8 bucks an hour starting today and in three months, I'll raise it to 10 bucks an hour. So when would you like to start?''

''In 3 months.''

THE RULES (BY HER) Part I

1. The Female always makes THE RULES.

2. THE RULES are subject to change without notice.

3. No Male can possible know all THE RULES.

4. If the Female suspects the Male knows all THE RULES, she must immediately change some of THE RULES.

5. The Female is never wrong.

6. If it appears the Female is wrong, it is because of a flagrant misunderstanding caused by something the Male did or said wrong.

7. If Rule #6 applies, the Male must apologize immediately for causing the misunderstanding.

8. The Female can change her mind at any time.

9. The Male must never change his mind without the express, written consent of The Female.

November 13, 2003

Monkie News | On The Net | Network News

Monkie News

Tomorrow: New Icons - Hoo doggies! One day and counting (that's as high as I can count) till we get another fresh batch of eye opening eye candy GUI goodies! Tomorrow we roll out another fine Friday Icon Edition. Your favorite pixel pushers have whipped up tasty treats for your desktop's appetite. Plus you'll get our usual whacky tactics with News and Bananas to boot. So slap on your shoes and put on a suit. There's goin' to be a GUI party on Friday right here at MacMonkies!

Editor's Note - Oh for cryin' out loud! Turkey Lips Tina (AKA BeanHead) struck once again yesterday by breaking into the HTML vault and tattling to you all that I turned another year old (147 years old, to be exact)! Tsk tsk tsk! But even though the Bean was such a naughty little girl, I would like to thank all of you for your many B-Day wishes! You done warmed my Monkie heart all the way down to my smelly toes. And as the ZZ Top song goes, "I Want to Thank You!" Cheers!

On The Net

Speed Download 2.1 - Hang on to your seats! YazSoft releases another supercharged app update with Speed Download 2.1! This awesome app is the No.1 Download Manager for Mac OS X. The latest update includes a completely Panther optimized engine providing vastly improved features, functionality, and performance. It also introduces built-in integration to the internet's fastest growing Mac update software site, MacShareware.net. Get your clickers in motion and head to YazSoft for all the latest update info on Speed Download 2.1!

TaskTime 1.0 - The fine folks from To•The•Point Software have just announced a brand new app called TaskTime. TaskTime provides a straightforward method of tracking time spent on jobs you do for your clients. It can generate invoices which can be emailed, printed, and saved to disk. So keep your work on track. Click on over to To•The•Point Software and take a look at TaskTime 1.0!

Network News

the WebWorld - BeanHead

Apple Among 'Popular' Picks - Popular Science magazine features the G5 Powermac as 2003's Best Of What's New pick in the Computing category. Fit for the future, Popular Science suggests that the G5 is so stylish because of its impressive speed. An entire paragraph is penned on how fast this machine can process information compared to computers of the past, crediting Apple and IBM's chip design. On a different note, Apple's iTunes Store was also picked in the Computing category for the 2003 Best Of What's New. - from Apple and Popular Science

All I Don't Want For Christmas - You better not pout, you better not cry...oh, it doesn't matter, because those who are naughty and those who are nice will both be getting plenty of spam for the holidays! While Santa prepares to stuff stockings, spammers will be stuffing computer mailboxes up to 50 percent more as Christmas comes closer. Most of the merry messages have the main topic of loan applications and gift ideas, and they will be as rampant as reindeer and as plentiful as sugar plums this holiday season. - from BBC

November 12, 2003

Desktops | Community News | Bananas

~~ SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT ~~

We at Macmonkies interrupt this update to entertain you with the exciting news that today is our Editor's

BIRTHDAY!

(That's right! The man who makes our day every day has made it to his next big day!)

Viewers are invited to take a minute out of this busy world, as our

Main Monkie

does every day, to send him Cool Congrats and Wonderful Wishes

HERE!

HAVE A GREAT DAY, BRAD!!!

We now return you to our Editor's regularly scheduled update...

At The Top - My how time flies! It's already half way through the week and I can feel the weekend quickly approaching. But that must mean there's a wee bit of fun in store for our mid-week Wednesday Desktop Edition. Oh YEAH! There's great new Desktop pics, Community News, and a twisted bit o' Banana juice to wash it all down. So as the crazy's of the eighty's would say, let's partay!

New GOO!

New Desktops - It's time to freshen up your desktop den as we roll out 6 New Desktops for your viewing enjoyment. The excellence of 6 talented artists are about to brighten your view and chase away your mid-week blues. Let's dig in!

Desktops - Our latest desktop artist, William D. Thompson, brings you quite the magnificent display of fireworks with Parrhalo. This heavenly photograph is a night shot of the Parroquia of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico sporting a halo of fireworks around the peak of the tower. An amazing piece!

It's always a trip to observe the progression of an artist's output over time. Marty Leone continues to dazzle the eyes with his latest titled Ferry Ride. This creative piece is certainly one of Marty's finest and you may find yourself wishing for a date with the subject in this piece!

Another artist that lacks nothing in the creativity department is Mr. Alan Sherwood of burntcanvasdesign. With Fracturing, Alan takes something as simple as the basic shades of gray and transforms them into an amazing work of art. Another example of fine desktop dining from Alan's creative collections!

 

3-D Rendered - It's been quite some time since we have heard from the ever artistic Todd Darland. But you will find it was well worth the wait once you get an eyeful of Midnight Solitude. This exceptional piece displays both Todd's fine Photoshop skills as well as his spaced out imagination!

And speaking of things that are out of this world, Dave Hornsby gives your desktop a spherical blast with Orbital 5. This fantastic collection of circles and shadows is certain to send your senses into an entirely different world of orbital delectation. You'll find yourself circling back for more!

I always did say: If you love something, set it free. If it comes back, it's yours. If not, hunt it down and...well, that's another story! But in the case of Bradford Wiles' latest "old but new" release, Butterflies are free to fly. May they carry with them the spirit of the little ones who never had the chance to see the new day. Enjoy!

 

Thanks Department --

William, Todd, Alan, Dave, and Marty...

I thank you from the top of my pointy little

head to the bottom of my feet for your incredible talent!

Thanks for sharing with us and the world!

Cheers!!

Have a piece you want to display?

Check out our Submissions guidelines and then send it in!

Community News

The Iconfactory - Another fabulous Icon Tuesday has hit the web waves from the fine folks at The Iconfactory! Front man and foreman of The Factory Gedeon Maheux has pulled some pixels from one of his very first icon sets originally made for the Classic Mac and brought them back to the future with a modernized Danger Mouse. This fun set comes complete with plenty of fun and accompanying desktop picts from everybody's favorite picture palace, the DeskStop! So get yer mouses ready to meet their match by makin' their way to The Iconfactory!

Mandolux - Master desktop crafter Mando Gomez hits another home run in the galleries of Mandolux. Just added is a new addition to the CAPS theme: Florida State. This great new selection will have your desktop cheering and waving their caps with a proud sportsman appeal. So now that the vote is in, grab this new winning piece at Mandolux!

Bananas

Just Plain Nutz

FRESHMAN

A huge college freshman figured he'd try out for the football team. "Can you tackle?" asked the coach.

"Watch this," said the freshman, who proceeded to run smack into a telephone pole, shattering it to splinters.

"Wow," said the coach. "I'm impressed. Can you run?"

"Of course I can run," said the freshman. He was off like a shot, and, in just over nine seconds, he had run a hundred yard dash.

"Great!" enthused the coach. "But can you pass a football?"

The freshman rolled his eyes, hesitated for a few seconds. "Well, sir," he said, "if I can swallow it, I can probably pass it."

OUCH!

What Do Fish Say When They Hit a Concrete Wall?

Dam!

ADULT EDUCATION Part III

Things I've Learned from My Children

13. Garbage bags do not make good parachutes.

14. Marbles in gas tanks make lots of noise when driving.

15. You probably do not want to know what that odor is.

16. The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earthworms dizzy.

17. It will, however, make cats dizzy.

18. Cats throw up twice their body weight when dizzy.

- From an anonymous Mother in Austin, Texas

November 11, 2003

Veteran's Day | Monkie News | On The Net | Network News

Veteran's Day 2003

.
.

To all of you who have gone on before to protect the freedoms of this country and the world, we owe a great deal of gratitude and give you a hardy salute!

Monkie News

Tomorrow: New Desktops - Ah tomorrow...The GUI goodness never stops! The day following today, umm...guess that qualifies a "tomorrow," we have another fine selection of desktops for our Wednesday Desktop Edition! Am I sounding like a broken record? Nah. It's just a figment of my hallucination (too much coconut juice). But we're certain that you'll be rather pleased with what you will find. See ya tomorrow!

On The Net

Mac OS X 10.3.1 - Just released from Apple is the most recent update to OS X with the 10.3.1 Update. The list of improvements in this release include:

The 10.3.1 Update delivers enhanced functionality and improved reliability for the following applications, services and technologies: FileVault, Printing, WebDav, and FireWire 800 drives. This update also includes the latest Security Updates.

You can get the update by using the Software Update panel in the System Preferences.

If you are using CandyBar from The Iconfactory, you may choose to restore the default OS X icons BEFORE updating to 10.3.1. We noticed that after the update, most custom icons set by CandyBar appeared normal. However, the hard drive icons reverted to the default set when the OS is installed. We're sure that The Factory will be out with an update for CandyBar for Mac OS X 10.3.1 very soon. We'll keep you posted as we get word.

Network News

the WebWorld - BeanHead

iTunes Outnumbers Opposition - Facts obtained from the first week of Napster's songs sold failed in comparison to the tunes rolled out by iTunes that week. Statistics showed that five times as many tunes were sold on iTunes than on Napster, equaling well over a million songs for the iTunes Store. Perhaps Napster would have had an edge over iTunes being that it has a PC audience, but that edge was taken away when Apple opened iTunes for Windows. Apple actually has the advantage of a larger audience now. - from PC Pro

Microsoft Domain Past Due - Microsoft may have the market on most software but it needs more work when it comes to mundane things, like renewing domain names. Microsoft recently forgot to renew it's hotmail.co.uk domain name even after hotmail sent numerous reminders. The domain went public and was purchased by an average Joe, who was snubbed by Microsoft when he tried to sell the domain back to the company. Microsoft came back begging for it's domain, but only after inquiries from an outside source. - from The Register

November 10, 2003

Community News | Monkie News | Monkie Business | Bananas

At The Top - Okay, like, good day eh! Like, it's time to start out another week. Don't know what it is about startin' off things on a Monday, but it's like we don't have any choice. Ya know what I mean? Am I ramblin' again? Am I stalling for time? Trying to put off the mundane Monday's? Nope. Just cleanin' the wax out of my ears and wigglin' my toes. Ya know? And then there was the time...

Community News

i...mac@dam - Isabelle Laffy has certainly been busy as of late! Just added to the Mac web world is a brand new site titled i...mac@dam. Isabelle presents a choice selection of GOO with icons and desktops. The site also has quite the unique design that's easy on the eyes. So get your clickers pointed in the right direction and grab a look at i...mac@dam!

Live Pencil - A great big "Hi" comes your way from the wonderful GUI galleries of Live Pencil! Welcoming your eyes is new work that includes:

• EMOTICONS: More desktop ICONS now as animated emoticons.
• WRITING YOUR EMOTIONS: Hand written GOOD DAY and GOOD NIGHT.
• CLIPART: More vegetation elements to create your own jungle with.
• LIVE ANIMALS: Singing Polar bear.
• HIDDEN IMAGE: A new one every week...Please look for it, keep searching!

With all the fun for everyone, the one place on the web that you'll never wanna leave is Live Pencil. Check it out!

Mandolux - Lookin' for some new desktop work to dress up your Mac? Mando Gomez has just released a killer new ViDRIO desktop titled Banon at Mandolux. The ice and photograph composition will melt you down by its sheer beauty. This awesome eye candy can be yours by chipping away at the link that points to Mandolux. Go get it!

Send Us Your Site News!

press@macmonkies.com

Monkie News

Monkie Music - The last couple weeks Monkie Musician Bradford Wiles has been busy sprucing up the Audio/MIDI section. The directories have been reorganized for better navigation and the pages are getting slowly updated. And thanks to Code Phreak B.J. Horn, some of the "junk" html code has been removed that made some of the pages display funky in certain browsers.

There are also plans for future music releases of some cool tunes that have been just been dying to be heard! The BarefootMonkies beta testing site has been removed and will be used for another purpose on down the line.

So if while you're browsin' around the Audio/MIDI department you find a broken link or three, please slip over to our Contact page and let us know. As far as the new Monkie Tunes, we'll keep ya posted!

Monkie Business

Odds and Ends

Whoops! - Actress Halle Berry turned down the role of Annie, and Stephen Baldwin turned down the role of Jack in the 1994 Speed. The blockbuster film catapulted Sandra Bullock as a major film actress, and greatly improved upon Keanu Reeve's box office appeal.

Surely You Gesture - Tourists need to be aware that, when traveling in Germany, a screwing gesture at one's head is a strong symbol, meaning "You're crazy." Often used by drivers on the autobahn to comment on the driving skills of other travelers, this gesture can get you arrested. The same gesture is used in Argentina.

Oh Cynical Me - Watch what people are cynical about, and one can often discover what they lack.

- General George S. Patton

Bananas

Just Plain Nuts

OLDEST EVER

An old man and an old woman were sitting together on their front porch.

"You used to sit closer to me," said the woman. So the man moved closer.

"You used to put your arm around me." So the man put his arm around her.

"You used to nibble on my ear."

"Let me get my teeth."

CAT HATING HUSBAND

A man hated his wife's cat and he decided to get rid of it. He drove 20 blocks away from home and dropped the cat there. The cat was already walking up the driveway when he approached his home.

The next day, he decided to drop the cat 40 blocks away but the same thing happened.

He kept on increasing the number of blocks but the cat kept on coming home before him. At last he decided to drive a few miles away, turn right, then left, past the bridge, then right again and another right and so on until he reached what he thought was a perfect spot and dropped the cat there.

Hours later, the man calls his wife at home and asked her, "Jen is the cat there?"

"Yes, why do you ask?" answered the wife.

Frustrated the man said, "Put that cat on the phone, I'm lost and I need directions."

PRETTY LOW!

What Lies At The Bottom Of The Ocean And Twitches?

A Nervous Wreck.