This past January, at Macworld Expo in San Francisco, Steve Jobs introduced iLife. More a concept than a single piece of software, iLife integrates four of what Apple calls its “digital lifestyle” applications: iMovie, iPhoto, iTunes, and iDVD. Mac OS X users can download three of the four applications for free and they’ll all work together seamlessly. iDVD is available pre-installed on Macintosh models with DVD-burning SuperDrives. Users can now use music from their iTunes library in their iMovies, iPhoto images are available within iMovie, and iMovie media can be added from within iDVD; you get the idea. As Jobs said in the press release, “iLife does for our digital lifestyle what Microsoft Office did for office productivity – they all work together.”
The iLife concept works very well, but now Apple needs to do something for this former Microsoft Entourage user. In Entourage, Microsoft’s Personal Information Manager (PIM) for the Mac, email, calendars, and addresses all are available within one application. Currently, in Mac OS X, users have Mail for email, Address Book for addresses, and iCal for calendars, but all are independent applications. There is some minor integration; clicking Address while composing a message in Mail brings up your addresses without having to launch the Address Book application, but to do real editing of the addresses, users have to switch to the Address Book application itself.
After using iLife, this switching from application to application to work with email, calendars, and addresses becomes somewhat painful.
Now, the way I run Mac OS X, with all commonly used applications always running, Command-Tabbing through the dock to access each in the foreground, you’d think that would be easy enough. But, I’d really like to have my iCal calendars immediately accessible while still in the Mail application.
Apple would do well by its users to create “iPIM,” integrating iCal, Mail and Address Book (and perhaps iChat) in much the same way they’ve done with iLife. I’d really like to be able to edit my Address Book and my iCal calendars in Mail, and send email while checking out my iCal calendar.
I don’t know; maybe I’m not doing things right or I’ve been spoiled by my previous Entourage use and I’m brain-locked into the PIM concept? Am I wrong to wish Apple would meld iCal, Mail, Address Book, and maybe even iChat into something integrated like iLife?
SteveJack is a long-time Macintosh user, web designer, multimedia producer and a regular contributor to the MacDailyNews Opinion section.
For those interested, maybe you should have a look at Crm4Mac, it may fit what you’re looking for based on this article, and comments.
I’ve written a little about it, but you can jump to the source, at [url=http://www.crm4mac.com]http://www.crm4mac.com[/url]
I think we should have iLife X its a total inclusion of all of the things a mac user may want or need it updates iPhoto with all the features of photoshop and image ready and illustrator and updates iMovie to do the same as premiere etc…also iTunes should be able to play movies no more needing to launch quicktime I mean quicktime is great and all but iTunes should also have the ability to playback movies!
Definitely a great idea to meld mail, ichat, ical, etc together. But also how about “iMoviestore” with the expanding broadband availability, it should be possible in the coming years. Bring all media under the precision of Apple and send BG crying to his momma
I’m on board with a one-stop shop for iCal/Mail/Address, but iCal and Address Book are two of the worst programs I’ve ever used on a Mac. Completely non-intuitive — do the creators actually use these programs? Mail has problems but it’s finally workable, and I like the Address Book integration, but using iCal compared to Now Up to Date or Entourage or even Palm Desktop is a joke.
I’ve migrated back and forth several times, always ending up with Apple because I have faith in what’s coming, but this development loop seems to be taking an awful long time.
<h1>Please check some relevant pages in the field of free card visa | free card visa | http://www.free-card-platinum-4u.info/ | <br/> college loans | college loans | http://www.college-loans-4u.info/ | <br/> bad credit loan people personal | bad credit loan people personal | http://www.bad-credit-loan-people-personal-advisor.info/ | <br/> consumer counseling debt | consumer counseling debt | http://www.consumer-counseling-debt-advisor.info/ | <br/> cash loan united | cash loan united | http://www.cash-loan-united-advisor.info/ | <br/> home mortgages | home mortgages | http://www.home-mortgages-4u.info/ | <br/> finance stock | finance stock | http://www.finance-stock-4u.info/ | <br/> florida mortgage | florida mortgage | http://www.florida-mortgage-e-bank.info/ | <br/> shoe | shoe | http://www.shoe-e-shop.info/ | <br/> business to business finance | business to business finance | http://www.business-to-business-finance-advisor.info/ | <br/> mortgage uk | mortgage uk | http://www.mortgage-uk-advisor.info/ | <br/>- Tons of interesdting stuff!!! </h1>
<h1>You are invited to check out the sites dedicated to electronic texas holdem | electronic texas holdem | http://www.electronic-texas-holdem-4u.info/ | <br/> phentermine 6 pm order | phentermine 6 pm order | http://www.phentermine-6-pm-order-leading-pharmacy.info/ | <br/> build texas holdem table | build texas holdem table | http://www.build-texas-holdem-table-4u.info/ | <br/> purchase of phentermine in florida | purchase of phentermine in florida | http://www.purchase-of-phentermine-in-florida-top-deals.info/ | <br/> phentermine order and ship florida address | phentermine order and ship florida address | http://www.phentermine-order-and-ship-florida-address-top-deals.info/ | <br/> phentermine with cod charge | phentermine with cod charge | http://www.phentermine-with-cod-charge-top-deals.info/ | <br/> phentermine sale | phentermine sale | http://www.phentermine-sale-top-deals.info/ | <br/> phenterminehcl | phenterminehcl | http://www.phenterminehcl-pharmacy-2003.info/ | <br/>… </h1>