Macintosh

A Geotagging Roundup: Aperture 3, Casio Exilim EX-10HG
Aperture 3 was released earlier this month; the new release adds the geotagging features we previously saw in iPhoto ’09. (Previous versions of Aperture required plugins — for example, Maperture.) An important difference, noted by CNet’s comparison of the “carryover…
myTracks 2.0
You may recall that iPhoto ’09 supports geotagging, but requires manual input or a camera with a built-in or connected GPS unit — GPS loggers aren’t supported. Enter myTracks 2.0, a 10€ program that supports a number of GPS…
Ortelius: Mac Mapping Software Is Now Available
Ortelius, the Mac mapping application I first blogged about two years ago, is finally available. I’ve downloaded the trial version (it’s only a 30-megabyte download); I’ll play around with it and tell you what I think (which should be…
Derrick Story on Geotagging
A couple of articles by Derrick Story about geotagging went up on Macworld’s website back in April: one that looks at four automatic methods of geotagging, and one on using the geotagging features of iPhoto ’09, taking manual geotagging as…
Free Mac GIS Software
The Mac isn’t exactly known as the most GIS-friendly platform out there, but Leszek has compiled a list of free, Mac-compatible GIS applications (most of them are cross-platform rather than Mac-only)….
Review: Maperture
Maperture is a free geotagging plugin for Aperture, Apple’s pro-level photo management application. It allows you to click on a map (Maperture uses Google Maps) to assign geographical coordinates to your photos. Maperture worked as advertised on two batches of…
TomTom Home for the Mac
When it comes to Macintosh compatibility with GPS units, past entries have largely focused on Garmin’s Mac support. But Garmin certainly isn’t the only game in town on the Mac. Macworld reviews TomTom Home 2.5 for the Mac, which “allows…
CoreLocation and Snow Leopard
It’s an Apple rumour, so take with the usual mountain-sized grain of salt, but if the next release of Mac OS X (10.6 “Snow Leopard”) includes the CoreLocation framework previously seen on the iPhone/iPod touch platform, says rumour site AppleInsider,…
iPhoto, Geotagging, GPS and the Mac: A Post-Macworld Roundup
For our purposes, the big news from Macworld earlier this month was iPhoto ’09’s built-in geotagging. iPhoto is not the first application to support geotagging, but it’s the first to provide a compelling answer to the question of what geotagging…
Cartographica: GIS for the Mac
Ogle Earth points to the preview release of Cartographica, a GIS application for the Mac. You’ll have to make do with Stefan’s first impressions; I’m even less of a GIS pro than he says he is, and have no…
Google Earth Browser Plug-in Now Mac Compatible
What’s this? The Google Earth browser plug-in now works on Mac browsers (Safari 3.1, Firefox 3.0)? Now I’ll (finally) be able to view certain Web sites properly. Digital Earth Blog, Google Earth Blog. The combined Intel/PowerPC download is apparently 47…
Macworld on Geotagging
Macworld’s Ben Long takes a look at geotagging; it’s another one of those big-picture introductions, briefly noting a couple of cameras with built-in GPS before going on to spend most of its time on software solutions; a couple of gadgets…
GiSTEQ GPS Loggers Now Mac-Compatible
GiSTEQ PhotoTrackr devices — they’re GPS loggers for geotagging — are now Mac-compatible, with the release of PhotoTrackr software for the Mac; MacNN, MacCentral. Richard notes that the software “is actually a special version of JetPhoto that adds a GiSTEQ…
Mac Software: GISLook & GISMeta, GPSInfo and GPS2Aperture
Stefan looks at three GIS and GPS applications for the Mac: GISLook & GISMeta (shapefiles in Cover Flow and Quick Look), GPSInfo (geotagging photos), and GPS2Aperture (ditto)….
Mac Software Updates: Geophoto 2, MacGPS Pro 7.6
Geophoto has reached version 2: MacNN reports that it now features simpler tagging, “now sports closer integration with iLife ‘08 and .Mac Web Galleries, and can import photos from Aperture and Lightroom”; at $25, it’s also half its previous price….
Geotagging Photos on the Mac
If, like me, you’re a Mac user with an interest in geotagging, you must drop everything right now and read Bruce McKenzie’s guide to geotagging photos on the Mac; a more comprehensive guide to the subject I can’t imagine. Via…
Meander Redux
MacNN reviews Meander, a Mac software application that, since we last saw it, has reached version 2.1.2 and has moved to another Web site and publisher. From the review: “In essence, Meander is a basic photo-editing program with a section…
An Apple/Mac Roundup
I’ve had a few items cluttering up my to-do list that relate to Apple, the Mac and Mac software, and the iPhone/iPod since Macworld; time to stop procrastinating. iPhones and iPods. The iPhone’s mapping application got a major upgrade at…
Garmin’s ‘Bobcat’ and a Mac Software Update
On the Garmin blog, Chet tantalizes us with coy references to Mac-compatible hardware and software, especially a software product code-named “Bobcat,” to be announced this week at Macworld (Gizmodo). Garmin’s been behind on its now two-year-old promise to provide Mac…
Ortelius: Forthcoming Mac Mapping Software
Philip Riggs writes to mention a new Macintosh mapping application currently under development. It’s called Ortelius (after the sixteenth-century cartographer). From the web site: It is a dedicated map-making illustration program that knows geography. Instead of building maps from…
GPS Loggers and the Mac
“The state of the union between inexpensive GPS loggers and the Mac is not so good,” Richard writes in a post looking at the state of Macintosh compatibility and support — both current and potential — for four GPS loggers….
Another Geotagging Roundup
Free Geography Tools had a seven-part geotagging series last month beginning with this post; it covered a number of Windows applications that I wouldn’t otherwise have been aware of. Richard Akerman has a couple of relevant posts on his Science…
Macworld on GPS and the Mac
An article about using GPS with a Mac from the current (September 2007) issue of Macworld. If you’ve been following this blog long enough, you will know that this is a subject dear to my heart. The article is brief…
Magrathea: Mac Geotagging Software
Another Mac geotagging application to add to an already surprisingly large pile: Magrathea. Free (donationware), integrates with iLife and Flickr. Via Geotagging Flickr. Previously: More Mac Geotagging Utilities; Geophoto: Mac Geotagging Software; GPS, Geotagging Automator Actions for the Mac;…
HoudahGPS
HoudahGPS is an OS X front-end graphical interface for the open-source GPSBabel utility. It allows you to download data from a GPS receiver to a Mac. Unlike Houdah’s geotagging software, this application is free of charge. Via Ogle Earth….
Windows Virtual Globes on the Mac
Virtual globe applications are, with the exception of Google Earth, Windows-only, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use them on a Mac. Back in the PowerPC Mac days we had Virtual PC, which ran Windows inside an emulation window: there…
A Geotagging Roundup
Geotagging links have been piling up in my note-taking application; time to flush the queue. How to geocode your photos, a long post on bike-community.net. Via GPS Tracklog. HoudahGeo is a Mac-only geotagging app. $35. Via Ogle Earth and TUAW….
Garmin POI Loader Mac Beta
Oops — another Garmin app for the Mac in beta: POI Loader, which allows you to upload points of interest to Garmin GPS from a Mac. Also via GPS Review. Keep it up, folks — I’ll get a GPS sooner…
Garmin WebUpdater Mac Beta
WebUpdater is an application that updates the system software of Garmin GPS units. Previously Windows-only, a beta Mac version is now available for download. The usual caveats about using beta software probably apply. Via GPS Review….
Geophoto Reviewed
Over on Ogle Earth, Stefan reviews Geophoto, the Mac-only geotagging photo application announced in January. “I’m conflicted about Geophoto,” he writes. “It is exceptionally simple, but it costs $50 for far less functionality than what you get in Google Earth…
Ascent
Rob Boyer writes to tout his new software application, Ascent: “Ascent is a new application written for the Macintosh that is designed to help cyclists, runners, and hikers train better by displaying, in various ways, their activities uploaded from…
More Mac Geotagging Utilities
An awful lot of geotagging utilities for the Mac (adding metadata to a file is probably not a difficult programming task). Here are two more, from the same company: PhotoInfoEditor and PhotoGPSEditor; they’re practically identical except that the latter adds…
Training Center for the Mac Now Available
As promised (see previous entry), the Mac OS X version of Garmin’s Training Center software is now available. (See also GPS Tracklog, TUAW.)…
Geophoto: Mac Geotagging Software
Also at Macworld, a new geotagging and photomapping application called Geophoto was announced: it apparently integrates with iPhoto on the one hand and Flickr and photo RSS feeds on the other, allowing you to both assign coordinates to your photos…
iPhone Includes Google Maps
During his Macworld keynote presentation today, Apple CEO Steve Jobs just announced the iPhone, Apple’s mobile phone that doubles as an iPod and Internet communicator. One of the features announced for this phone — which won’t be shipping until…
GPS, Geotagging Automator Actions for the Mac
For Mac users, some Automator actions to tell you about: GPS Automator Actions (which require GPSBabel) is a collection of scripts that automate downloading data from, and uploading to, a GPS unit and converting file formats; GeoTagging Automator Action…
Garmin: Still Working on Mac Software
Macworld: “Garmin’s recent announcement of new Mac software for runners, bikers and other outdoor sports enthusiasts has led some Mac users to wonder where the rest of their promised Mac software is. Garmin says they’re still working on it, though…
Garmin Training Center for the Mac: Real Soon Now
The Garmin blog announces the (long-delayed) availability of Training Center (the fitness software used by the Edge and Forerunner lines). Only not quite yet: “now available” (as per the press release headline) means that you can pick up a CD…
Google Earth Roundup: Automator, Rumsey
A couple of Google Earth items that made me happy. First, via Ogle Earth, the Google Earth Automator Pack, a (still-in-development) collection of Automator actions for the Macintosh version of Google Earth. Second, maps from the David Rumsey collection are…
Mac Version of National Geographic Topo! Reviewed
Grant reviews the Mac version of National Geographic’s Topo! software: “a pretty decent package, but not great.” Via GPS Tracklog. Because the Topo! series is U.S.-only, I haven’t had cause to try it out; I hope someday to find an…
That Thing About iPhoto
This post about hidden GPS and mapping settings in iPhoto has been making the rounds of the Mac rumour mill and the mapping blogs (AppleInsider, Ed Parsons, GPS Review, MacRumors, Ogle Earth). My response is, cool your jets, everyone. If…
Question: Software for a Personal Map Collection?
M. Krause writes, “I’m starting a small antique map collection and would like to keep track of it on my computer (Macintosh). Is there map collection software available that will keep track of my inventory? I have searched the web…
Meander
Macworld reviews Meander 1.2, a $20 Mac application (it’s nagware) that presents an oblique solution to a common problem: drawing routes on online maps. It works on the premise — one that many of us could confirm anecdotally — that…
A List of Mac Software
Via Ogle Earth: GPS Photo Linker is software to save GPS data to a photo. iPhotoToGoogleEarth exports photos to Google Earth. You should have GPS data assigned to the photo data; isn’t it handy that you already have GPS Photo…
RouteBuddy
RouteBuddy, a new Mac GPS and mapping application, was announced today (Cartotalk; GPS Review; MacNN; MacWorld; Ogle Earth). It’s a bit of an enigma: at first I wasn’t sure what problem it was trying to solve. After all, there…
GIS on OS X
Peter Rukavina explores GIS applications for Mac OS X: “The last time I went looking for a desktop GIS application for my Mac all I found was the beast of a system that is GRASS. … Suddenly it seems that…
Garmin Mac Compatibility Delayed
Drat. Garmin’s previously announced plans for Mac compatibility across its product lines (see previous entry) have been delayed somewhat: Training Center will come at the end of the year rather than the spring (obviously), with other products to follow. See…
iMap
The announcement of version 3.5 drew my attention to iMap, and since I assiduously follow map-related software for the Mac, as you know, I should mention its existence here: it’s apparently an application that lets you generate maps from data…
Breaking News: Google Earth 4.0
News from Google’s Geo Developer Day, reported by Google Earth Blog, Ogle Earth and The Unofficial Apple Weblog: Google Earth version 4.0 (beta) is now available, with a new interface for all platforms. I say “all platforms,” because there is…
MacGPS Pro 6.4
MacGPS Pro 6.4 is a Universal Binary, which means it will now run natively on Macs with Intel processors (rather than via Rosetta emulation). Via MacNN. See previous entries: MacGPS Pro 6.1; Mac Geocaching and GPS Software; Garmin Announces Mac…
Triangulations: March 13
The Batch Geocoding Blog has a comparison of the Google, MapQuest and Yahoo! mapping APIs; it’s a quick outline of what the author sees as the pros and cons of each. Via Very Spatial. Alex Stengel says MapMemo 2.5…
Triangulations: March 10
(I’m going to try calling these link roundups “Triangulations” and see how that goes.) Via GPS Tracklog, the difference between Garmin’s and Magellan’s topo maps. The National Geographic Society is planning a “mega-map” of the Sonoran Desert region. “It will…
Google Earth Roundup
Macworld takes a second look at Google Earth; meanwhile, Google Earth, which was previously Tiger-only, has been quietly made available for OS X 10.3.9. And finally, the first book about Google Earth is finally out — but it’s in German….
Question: Ordnance Survey Maps on the Mac?
Richard Crawford writes, “Is there any software that will enable my Mac to open and read the Ordnance Survey Software and maps that I have on my PC? Or another program for Mac that will open .qct, .qem or .mmi…
Google Earth for Mac Officially Released
A busy day for Mac users, and not just because of the Macworld keynote. Google Earth for the Mac is now officially available (via GPS Review). Key system requirements: OS X 10.4 (Tiger), a 400-MHz processor, and 16 MB of…
Garmin Announces Mac Compatibility
In a press release, Garmin announced today “that it will immediately begin to make its line of GPS and mobile electronics devices compatible with Mac OS X version 10.4 ‘Tiger.’ This makes Garmin the first major GPS designer and manufacturer…
Mac Geocaching and GPS Software
Jeremy Atherton’s page on geocaching with a Mac lists a whole whack of Macintosh-compatible GPS software. Via GPS Review. Update, 5:08 PM: GPS Review also points to another bit of Mac software: TrailRunner, route planning freeware that apparently supports importing…
Early Reviews of Google Earth for OS X
Frank Bisono and Jaron Brass have managed to take a look at the Google Earth OS X preview that seems to be making the rounds; both have dual or quad G5 Power Macs, so naturally they report good performance. Commenters…
Google Earth for OS X Being Developed: AppleInsider
Mac rumour site AppleInsider claims that a long-hoped-for OS X version of Google Earth is under development: “Earlier this month, a pre-release version of Google Earth for Mac OS X that uses OpenGL rendering reportedly began making the rounds overseas….
Virtual Earth Dashboard Widget
A Virtual Earth Dashboard Widget for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, and a tutorial explaining how it was done. See previous entries: More Widgets; Houston Traffic Widget; Dashboard Widgets….
MacGPS Pro 6.1
Speaking of bias, my overwhelming interest in Mac software reveals itself when I point out that version 6.1 of MacGPS Pro was announced yesterday. It adds support for some USB Garmin GPS receivers (serial-port support via an adapter only prior…
Google Maps Plugin for OS X Address Book
As I’ve mentioned before, there are several hacks out there to change the Mac OS X Address Book’s address-mapping feature from MapQuest to other mapping services. (See previous entries: Map Sites: Hints, Tips and Observations; More Address Book Hacks.) The…
Question: GPS and the Mac?
I’ve talked about using a GPS with a Mac before, and even — back when this blog’s audience was a fraction of what it is now — solicited my readers’ opinions on which GPS I, as a Mac user (or…
MapMemo 2
Alexander Stengel reports that MapMemo 2 is now out. (See previous entry for version one.) It’s an interesting concept: software that allows you to geotag your files and links and display them on a map from which you can open…
Macworld Reviews 3D Weather Globe & Atlas
Macworld gives a glowing review to 3D Weather Globe & Atlas (see previous entry)….
More Widgets
If you’re running Mac OS X 10.4 “Tiger”, here are a couple more map-related Dashboard widgets. Quick lookups are the epitome of Dashboard, so it makes sense that location- and mapping-based widgets will proliferate; it’s worthwhile to keep an eye…
Dashboard Widgets
I installed Tiger last night, about which one of the big to-dos is Dashboard, a layer of HTML/Javascript-based widgets that you can call up with a keypress and dismiss just as easily: handy for things like calculators and quick lookups….
More Address Book Hacks
More scripts to change the mapping service that Mac OS X’s Address Book uses (see previous entry): this one points it at the Swiss map.search.ch (see previous entry); this one points it at Multimap. Via Mac OS X Hints….
OpenOSX GrassPro
GRASS, the open-source GIS software, has been available for Mac OS X before; on Friday, OpenOSX announced GrassPro, which, in addition to GRASS 6.0.0, adds several related utilities. Panther and X11 required….
Map Sites: Hints, Tips and Observations
A few random links about map sites this morning. Mapquest hacks, to use or avoid highways or toll routes (via Ask MetaFilter; see also this). In OS X’s Address Book, clicking on the address brings up a contextual menu in…
GPSNavX
As you know, I like to keep track of what Mac mapping or GPS software is out there. Here’s another one: GPSNavX, which is boating software — both navigation and GPS — for OS X. The folks behind this one…
Satellite Images and the Weather
A couple of links tonight; the tenuous connection is that they both have to do with the weather and satellite imagery. I’ve never heard of Software MacKiev before, but they appear to do educational software for the Mac. They’ve released…
GPS Connect for OS X
Speaking of GPS receivers. Because of poor-to-nonexistent Mac support by GPS manufacturers, Mac users have to resort to third-party software to connect to their gadgets (see previous entries: Mac Mapping Software, Mac Software Updates). One option I was aware of…
MapMemo
Alexander Stengel writes to announce version 1.0 of MapMemo, a free Mac OS X-only application which allows you to associate various files with maps. This means, for example, you could take an image file and link it to a position…
Mac Software Updates
MacMinute reported updates to desktop mapping and GPS software for the Macintosh yesterday: EarthDesk 2.5, which generates a realtime map of the Earth on your desktop; and MacGPS 5.0, third-party software for using (normally Windows-only) GPS receivers with a Mac….