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Review
Monkeybread Freeware
Issue: 3.3 (January/February 2005)
Author: Toby Rush
Article Description: No description available.
Article Length (in bytes): 5,684
Starting Page Number: 9
RBD Number: 3305
Resource File(s): None
Related Web Link(s):
http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/
http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/
http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/
Known Limitations: None
Full text of article...
Monkeybread Software has been busily releasing and updating the company's suite of simple freeware utilities. Most of them are narrow enough in focus that it's hard to devote an entire review to a single program, but many are too good to not mention.
IP in Menubar 3.0
This utility takes its place among the category of programs whose entire feature set is described by the program's name: it displays the current IP of your computer among the icons on the right-hand side of the menubar. While most users might think this information to be esoteric and useless, there are quite a few people for whom this is an extremely helpful bit of software. Network administrators deal with IP addresses on a daily basis and dealing with server communication is much easier when one doesn't need to dive into the System Preferences application to find the machine's current address. As VPNs and wireless networks become more commonplace, even the average user is being confronted with knowledge of IP addresses and subnets.
IP in Menubar does have a small amount of configurable options: clicking on the IP address brings up a menu which allows you to display only a portion of the IP address, copy the current address to the clipboard, or specify whether or not your computer is behind a router (which would affect what IP address is being shown).
The utility is event-driven, meaning it automatically updates the displayed address when something changes in the network setup (like the ethernet cable being plugged in or a wireless network being detected). The menu also allows the truly paranoid user to force an update of the address.
Fullscreen Movie Player X and Desktop Movie Player X
The standard version of the QuickTime Player has a notable omission: it will not play movies using the full screen. To get this benefit one has to upgrade to the professional version. Fortunately, it is a simple affair to create a full-screen player in REALbasic, and Monkeybread Software has done exactly this with Fullscreen Movie Player X.
There are many, many other programs out there that do the same thing, and many of them are done in REALbasic. What sets Monkeybread's submission apart is that it provides a very comfortable and predictable interface. (And in the interface business, "predictable" is a very good thing.) After you open a movie file, it is displayed using the whole screen, and the menubar and dock are hidden. The standard QuickTime control bar is available at the bottom of the screen. Moving the mouse to the top of the screen brings the menubar and dock back into view. There are a few menu options available for looping the movie and changing the volume.
A slightly odder variation of this program is found in Desktop Movie Player X, which does the same thing, except the movie is played in the background as the desktop picture. Other programs are more or less unaffected, so you can continue to work as usual... assuming you aren't distracted by the show taking place under your spreadsheet or e-mail client. This utility begs for slow-moving QuickTime movies of background scenes: a field with wind making gentle waves through the grass, or perhaps a cityscape with moving clouds and traffic.
IN BRIEF Products IP in Menubar 3.0 Manufacturer Monkeybread Software Price Freeware Contact Info http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/ Pros Lightweight, simple, configurable Cons Takes up valuable menu bar real estate Rating (1.0-5.0): 5.0 Products Fullscreen Movie Player X Manufacturer Monkeybread Software Price Freeware Contact Info http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/ Pros Simple, intuitive Cons Not as feature-rich as QuickTime Player Rating (1.0-5.0): 4.5 Products Desktop Movie Player X Manufacturer Monkeybread Software Price Freeware Contact Info http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/ Pros Simple, intuitive Cons Processor-intensive Rating (1.0-5.0): 4.5
End of article.
Article copyrighted by REALbasic Developer magazine. All rights reserved.
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