I’m not sure if this will apply to everyone in the design world, but renaming a huge list of files can be a real pain, and I’ve found myself in need of batch editing countless times. It’s so much faster and easier to do a “Batch Rename” to save a ton of time, and a ton of clicks. OS X has a built-in utility called Automator that can do just that, among many other things. I’ll keep it simple for now, but depending on the reaction I get, maybe I can go into more detail about Automator in future posts.

Overview:

Automator is an application that runs a series of customizable scripts called ‘actions.’ A series of ‘actions’ is called a ‘workflow.’ I created a Batch Rename Workflow for anyone who doesn’t feel like making their own. You can download it here. Just unzip, double-click, choose your settings and you’ll be batching in no time.

1. Download and Unzip

Download the workflow, unzip it then double-click and it will open in Automator. (Note: you may want to save it in Automator and choose one of Automator’s default locations, so you’ll be able to find it each time you launch Automator.)

2. Choose Your Settings

You should now have the workflow open inside the Automator Application. Now all you have to do is 1) add/choose the folder where all your files are located that need renaming, 2) Choose a location for the files after they are renamed, and 3) Choose a name for the new series of files. (There are lots of naming options: sequential, replace text, etc.)

3. Run the Workflow

Once you have all of your setting in place, Click the “Run” button in the top right to execute the script and you’re done, Depending on how many files you just renamed, you probably save a few minutes at least. You might notice that this workflow makes a copy of each file before it renames them. This is so it leaves your original file intact, but If you simply want to rename without copying, just close the “Copy Finder Items” action inside the workflow.

If you’re new to Automator but you’re curious you can browse the Apple Downloads Automator section for tons of free downloads including an awesome Set of Automator Actions for Photoshop. You can batch anything from image size to color mode, orientation, file type and more. You’d be surprised.

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This might be a tip that is more useful for bloggers or tech writers than designers, but I’ve found myself in this situation plenty of times. I need an application icon to use as an image for one reason or another, I can’t find a decent one online, and all of the crappy conversion shareware software is just wasting my time. I came across a very neat trick over at Macosxhints that was super simple and no 3rd party software is required. If you have OS X you can use the Terminal App (Applications > Utilities) to convert any ICNS file to an image format that can be used in whatever Photoshop.

1. Locate Your Icon

Now I mentioned that this tip was for Application Icons, but it will simply work with any ICNS file on your Mac. The first thing you need to do is locate the ICNS file you want to convert. I recommend copying it to the Desktop, not only because it’s easy to see but we’re going to use a file path, and the Desktop is a relatively short path to type.

If you want to convert an “Application” icon, like I am, the quickest way (If the app is in your dock) is to Command + Click on the icon in your dock to bring it up in Finder. Otherwise, navigate to your Applications folder and select an application. Then Control + Click on the App itself and select “Show Package Contents.” I’m going to be using Aperture as an example.

Now you will see (in Finder) all of the files that essentially “make up” your application. Navigate to Contents > Resources. This is where all of the image files for your app are located. You will need to find a file named “Appicon.icns” or sometimes its simply the name-of-the-app.icns, (ex: Terminal.icns). I’m pretty sure the Photoshop Icon is called “PS_AppIcon.icns,” so depending on who made the software, you might have to do some searching to find the icon you’re looking for.

2. Copy Your Icon to the Desktop

You can ignore this step if you like typing really long file paths, but I recommend at least making a copy of the icon. You don’t want to ‘move’ it from the resources folder, just hold option and drag it to the desktop to make a copy, or simply copy and paste.

3. Covert Using Terminal.app

Now that you have your ICNS file on the Desktop, open Terminal.app (Applications > Utilities). Paste the code below into the Terminal window, change your username and file names, then hit enter to convert. That’s it. (assuming you did have your file on the Desktop)

sips -s format png /Users/yourusername/Desktop/Appicon.icns --out /Users/yourusername/Desktop/Aperture.png

Done

As you can see, we have a nice, big png (512 x 512px) as a result, complete with transparency. Now remember that the quality of your end result depends on who developed your software. If they didn’t follow Apple’s guidelines and only shipped their software with a 256 x 256px App icon, you might not get the best results.

Your Options:

Now I would think that PNG would be the most useful because of the transparency but you can choose to convert to any of the following image formats: jpeg, tiff, png, gif, jp2, pict, bmp, qtif, psd, sgi, and tga. Just change “png” in the code above to whatever format you choose.

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We all love those little tips that save us a click or two, and I’ve got another one for you. For those of you on a Mac, you might remember how I showed you a faster way to install Photoshop brushes. This little click saver is pretty much the same thing. Details after the jump.

Before I begin, yes, I’m one of those “side dock guys,” it’s just what I prefer. Anyway, If you’re like me, you like to keep your desktop tidy and as clutter-free as possible. I didn’t like Stacks when they first arrived with Leopard, but now that we have list view, I find them much more useful.

When you use stacks, you might want to use the “Open in Finder” option to navigate directly to your folder in order to drag/copy files, or whatever. I do all the time.

If you want to save a click, just Command + Click on the Stack itself, and Finder will automatically open your Stack for you to browse! That’s it!

Gotta love saving a click. They really do add up over time ;)

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[OS X 10.5] While having a Volume, Brightness, Pause/Play buttons integrated into my keyboard may be convenient, it really drives me crazy that my function keys don’t, well…function like I want them to in Photoshop. (or illustrator, etc.) I want to show you a way that I managed to get around this while keeping the functionality of the media buttons at the same time.

1. Reclaim your function keys!

Like in the screenshot above, go to your System Preferences > Keyboard & Mouse > Keyboard. Now, directly below the 2 sliders, check the box that says “Use all F1, F2 etc. keys as standard function keys.”

Now your keys will act normally in Photoshop (and everything else). For example, Shift + F5 will do a fill instead of turning up your volume! (MacBook)

2. Regain the functionality of the specialty keys.

You can still use your specialty keys, but you have to hold the “Fn” (function) key to enable them. The function key is the bottom left key on a Macbook keyboard.

… as well as the wireless keyboard:

On the regular keyboards, the function key in up by the delete key:

Now, given the location of the key on the regular keyboards, this will likely require two hands in many cases. Therefore, this little workaround might be much more convenient for laptop users, but as I like to say, It’s nice to know your options. Happy Keyboarding :)

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Whatever kind of designer you are (be it web, print, 3D, multimedia, etc.), you most likely rely on quite a few different apps on a regular basis, and you’re always looking to improve your workflow efficiency. With the release of OS X 10.5, we were introduced to stacks. A feature that promised everyone a clutter-free desktop environment. I don’t know about everyone else, but I was more than dissatisfied with stacks. Good news folks. Apple released 10.5.2 today, and one of the fixes I was personally hoping for came true. Stacks have been beefed up, and we got our list view back! This really made my day. No more 3rd party apps like HierarchialDock to keep my desktop clean. Thanks for listening to us Apple!

Personally, I like to keep only the apps that I use on a somewhat daily basis in my Dock. The rest obviously reside in the Applications folder, and before 10.5.2, the Applications Stack left a lot to be desired. This update has fixed a lot of my complaints and now includes a Folder view (Shows the Folder instead of the annoying-ever-changing icon like before), List View (awesome), and more. Best of all, it eliminates 3rd party workarounds. Now if you need to use an app you haven’t used in a while, you don’t have to use finder to get there. Eliminating even a single click can add up over time, so I’m very happy with this workflow improvement. Hope you all like it too! Run that software update baby!

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We all know that alignment is a huge part of any design. The more control we have over alignment, the better. After a certain point, 100% alignment control gives way to new opportunities to make Illustrator even more useful, like making seamless patterns for example. I want to show you how “anchor points” work in Illustrator, and hopefully send you into control-freak bliss.

Understand this first:

1. If you noticed from the screenshot above, you can access Illustrator’s anchor points from the Transform palette. (or the horizontal quick menu in some of the latest versions of Illy)

2. Using Anchor Points to align objects only works when numeric values (x, y coordinates) are entered into the Transform Palette. (i.e., choosing an anchor point and then using the Align palette will not work.)

Get to Know the Artboard:

Here is an example of a default coordinate system on a 400 X 400px Illustrator artboard. Since you must use the (x, y) coordinate system to enjoy this feature, it’s important to familiarize yourself with, at the very least, where Illustrator puts (0, 0)

Example 1:

In this example (from the Transform palette) I chose the bottom left anchor point to do my alignment. I then entered in the x and y coordinates (0, 0) and I’m instantly able to be 100% sure that my shape is perfectly aligned to the bottom left corner.

You might look at the example above and say to yourself, “You can do that with the Align palette.” In this case you would be correct, but in example 2 below, you’ll see something that the align palette can’t do.

Example 2:

In this example, I chose the center anchor point, and aligned my object to the upper left corner by entering a 0(zero) x value, and 400 y value. Now my circle’s exact center is exactly aligned to the upper left corner. Why is this so special? Well, for one thing, this amount of control is great for making seamless patterns. And seamless patterns are file-size reducers, as well as time savers in most cases.

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I don’t know if this would be as useful to you as it is for me, but I leaped for joy when I discovered this little Illy CS3 feature. If you deal with client-delivered vector artwork, this could make your life a ton easier. By selecting any or all of the artwork and then clicking “New Color Group” from the Swatches Palette Options, Illustrator will extract all of the colors in your selection, and add them to your swatches in a nice, neat little group! Detailed instructions below.

1. Select Some Artwork

To select all just hit Command/Control + A, or in the menu Select > All.

2. Extract Your Swatches

To do this, click on the Swatches Palette Options menu in the upper right corner, and select “New Color Group.”

3. Done!

You should now see your new group of swatches in your Swatches Palette, grouped together for easy reference. I have to admit that this feature would not be half as sweet as it is if they were not put into their own group. This way you can add more swatches and never lose track of your originals.

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If you download a lot of Photoshop brushes, or presets to extend any software for that matter, there is a very easy way to install them quickly on a Mac using OS X. This little OS X tip could shave off at least 1 or 2 clicks from your installation process.

If you’re like me, you might need to install a Photoshop brush or an Illustrator preset that you downloaded on a somewhat regular basis. Well, installing those presets can be redundant and annoying, so lets make it a little less of both.

After you have that perfect brush set or preset/extention/whatever downloaded, hold the Command (Apple) key and click on the Photoshop icon (or Illustrator, etc.) from the dock. You will be instantly taken to the applications folder in Finder with your app selected. No need to scroll at all.

Once you are there, all you have to do is select the “Presets” folder, drag your download to the correct location, and your done.

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When Dashboard was an infant, Apple provided developers with guidelines for developing effective and useful dashboard widgets. If you look at the “Top 50″ Dashboard widgets on the Apple Downloads site, you will find that a good portion of the most popular widgets don’t even follow Apple’s guidelines. At All.

Apple’s guidelines for developing Dashboard widgets are a good set of rules to follow, given that they will probably produce a better long-term widget, as opposed to a viral, short-lived DashToy. Not only do a lot of widget developers ignore best practices (make them small, unobtrusive, and avoid embedding flash, just to name a few), some widgets even require CPU usage when idle! By far, the worst category is obviously the games.

Here is a picture of all Top 50 running in Dashboard at once

Can you honestly say that you would use more than 3-5 of these on a regular basis? This isn’t how Dashboard was intended to be used. And things will only get worse from here. With the release of OS X Leopard, we will see even more useless widgets, given the inclusion of an easier widget making tool provided by Apple.

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I’m severely disappointed in Vista. Here’s my humorous take on it.

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You can easily set the default program to open certain file types from any “Get Info” window, from any file in Mac OS X.

It can get annoying when you double click on a jpeg from your desktop and it tries to open in Photoshop. Not only is it annoying, it can be a time waster as you close the default application and drag the file to an application on the dock.

If you want to set a default application for a certain file type to open in, control click (right click) on any file and choose “Get Info.”

In the “Get Info” options, you can easily select which application you would like to be the default for opening your file.

After selecting the default app for the single file, apply it to all files of the same type by clicking on the “Change All” button in that same Get Info window.

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This is a quick way to have easy visual access to your memory usage without having to rely on a Dashboard Widget, or even have Dashboard running for that matter. And you don’t have to download anything. This comes standard with every new Mac running OS X.

Being involved with web design, and design in general, I find myself needing to monitor my memory usage on a daily basis. (mostly because of heavy Adobe Apps) If you are like me, you want to know how much of your precious memory you have left, so as not to launch that one extra application that crashes your machine and causes you to lose unsaved work. Mac OS X ships standard with an application called “Activity Monitor,” Located in your Applications > Utilities folder. By keeping this application in your dock, you can simply Control + click on it’s dock icon and display a number of different charts to visualize the data, without keeping the application window itself open!

The Activity Monitor Dock Icon can display any of the following options, but only 1 at a time.

CPU Usage, CPU History, Network Usage, Disk Activity, or Memory Usage.

Set Up:

1. First, navigate to your Applications > Utilities folder, find the Activity Monitor application, and drag it’s icon onto your dock and release. This is what the Activity Monitor Icon looks like:

2. Control Click (right click) on the Activity Monitor Dock Icon and select the Data Set you would like it to display, “Memory Usage” in my case. Note: Not all of the options display a pie chart. If you choose CPU Usage, it shows a bar that animates in real time similar to a band equalizer on stereo equipment.

3. You should then see the icon display a chart

4. The Colors: These categories change depending on which set of data being displayed, but here is what the colors stand for, as far as Memory Usage goes.

I hope this simple tip makes your life a little “Bitt” easier. :)

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Putting your applications folder in your dock enables you to get rid of icons in your dock that you rarely use, and still have 1-click access to all of your installed applications. This not only keeps your dock clutter-free, it makes it easier to navigate to your applications folder after you install an application. (For example, a recent freeware install.)

Watch the video.

[Mac OS X] Get access to all of your installed applications without having to put their icons in your Dock. Simply add your Apps folder to the Dock.

All Videos >

1. Open a new Finder window.

2. Click on “Macintosh HD” (or your hard drive if you’ve renamed it)

3. Drag your Applications folder to the dock and release.

Important: You can’t drag it from the sidebar of the finder widow.

Important: You can’t place the Applications folder in the main portion of the dock. It must be placed next to the “Trash”

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