iTips

Useful tips for users of iTunes, iMovie, iDVD, iPhoto, iCal & Backup

iTunes

Add Ogg Vorbis support to iTunes with this plug-in for QuickTime 6.x
Add new visualizations with iTunes plugins such as G-Force and WhiteCap.
iTunes' (v3.0 or earlier) window resizing can be pretty slow. But not if you hold the Command key while resizing, notes Dr. Mac.
Crop' Songs with iTunes using the little-used Start Time and/or End Time options in the Get Info/Options dialog. [Attribution: Mac iLife]
Sync iTunes to a PocketPC with MarkSpace's The MissingSync for PocketPC. This US$39.95 application allows data synchronization between a Microsoft-based PocketPC and various Apple iApps. Along with Address Book, iCal, and iPhoto syncing, The MissingSync also supports iTunes syncing, allowing a PocketPC to interact with iTunes in much the same fashion as an iPod does. [Attribution: ipodhacks.com]

iMovie

iMovie clips are limited to 2GB each. However, as noted in the forums at Insanely Great Mac, multiple clips can be added to the timeline to work around this limitation.
Import any movie. QuickTime Pro can take virtually any QuickTime movie, and export it to DV for iMovie. For example, you could import a movie that was created on a PC with Windows Movie Maker, or any other program that includes the ability to export to a DV-compatible file. This non-proprietary DV-AVI file opens directly in the QuickTime Player on a Mac, with sound and video intact. QuickTime Pro users can then save the movie in their choice of format(s).
See the iMovie FAQ for more tips, including solutions for audio/video sync problems (our advice: update to iMovie 3.03 and QuickTime 6.3), burning Video CDs and more.

iDVD

FreePlay has a collection of royalty-free music well-suited for use as background clips for iDVD. Read more....
Add your own custom Themes to iDVD2, or restore the original themes from iDVD version 1, which Apple did not include in the updated version. Read how here. http://homepage.mac.com/dvd_edit/ has additional tips, including an AppleScript that automates the conversion of iDVD1-to-iDVD2 themes. Presumably, a modified application of this technique would work with iDVD3.
Change the length of looping motion menus or make continuously looping movies by editing the "30" (second) value at the bottom of a file named ProjectData, in the iDVD Resources folder. MaciLife.com has details.
iDVD 3.0.1 allows Macs without an internal SuperDrive to create, edit and save DVD layouts. (It still doesn't support external drives, though.) You can install iDVD 3.0.x on any Mac with a DVD drive by double-clicking the iDVD.pkg installer (instead of the main installer), then update to the newest release on Apple's website. Copy your source clips and iDVD project document to a Mac with a SuperDrive when you are ready to burn your movies onto disc. The AppleCare Knowledge Base provides detailed instructions.

iPhoto

An easier way: Press and hold Command and Option keys while dragging the new iPhoto Library folder onto the iPhoto icon in your dock. Another means of switching the library is discussed in this hint.
Creating an iPhoto book? Use these fonts:
- Helvetica
- Helvetica Neue
- Century Gothic
- Papyrus
- Gill Sans
- Markerfelt
- Baskerville
- Brush Script
Apple warns that using any fonts other than those listed above could result in truncated text, other printing issues, or a canceled order.
Apple's List of iPhoto compatible cameras, while extensive, is not complete. We've received reports of other devices, including some Sony Digital HandyCam models with snapshot features, that also work. So, give your camera a try.
Burn CDs directly from iPhoto 1.0 with ElGato's free iPhoto plugin. It enables iPhoto users to burn directly from iPhoto with Roxio Toast Titanium. Get it at http://www.elgato.com/toastexport. A better solution, overall, is probably to just get iPhoto 2.0.
Ten Cool Things You Can Do In iPhoto - I Bet You Didn't Know Apple's Little App Could Do This!, writes TheMacMind.com
iPhoto Editorial: "As an Apple enthusiast, I find iPhoto (1.x) embarrassing," confesses Right On Mac!

iCal

Jumping to iCal dates One of the first weaknesses we noted in Apple's iCal (well, aside from its sluggish performance) was its lack of a "Go to..." menu item. How, we wondered, can you jump quickly to a date more than a few months away? An AppleCare Knowledge Base article entitled "iCal 1.0: How to Go to Any Date" provides the answer.

Backup

Otto Moerbeek offers a tip that, even if you don't use it, is useful if only to marvel at the endless inventiveness of some Mac users. Here's discovered how to Run Apple's Backup without a .Mac account.

iChat

Apple says that digital video cameras can't be used with iChat AV on a G3-based computer. Fortunately, this isn't true. The solution is at ecamm.com, where you will also learn how to use USB webcams with iChat AV.
You might need to Open a port in your firewall to let iChat AV audio/video or QuickTime Broadcaster content through.

Image Capture

Sharing your camera on the network. An Image Capture 'Easter Egg' Allows Camera Sharing in Panther (only), notes The Mac Observer. Here's how, as detailed by David Pogue: hook [the camera] up, choose Image Capture > Preferences, click the Sharing tab, turn on "Share my devices," and select the camera in question. (This trick works with scanners, too.)
On the other Mac, open Image Capture and choose Devices > "Browse shared devices." Open the flippy triangle, select the camera, click OK, and open Safari (Apple's Web browser). When the thumbnails appear, you can proceed to view and download the photos exactly as though the camera is connected to your Mac.
With some newer models such as the Canon A60, A70, S400, S50, and G5; HP C618 and 912; Kodak DC280, DC4800, DC5000; and Nikon D1, D1X, and D1H, you can even control the camera remotely. Read more....

For Further Reading:

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