Have you checked out Dromaeo.com?  It’s a Mozilla owned site that runs a set of JavaScripts and test out how fast your browser is.  I tried it on my iMac, 1.83 Intel Core Duo with 1.5 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, and found Firefox 3 beta 5 to be the fastest browser.  Oddly enough, Firefox 2 was the slowest, even behind SeaMonkey!

Granted, this is no professional test.  Firefox 2 has the  most extensions on my computer and that could cause slowness.  There are always a lot of factors to take into consideration, but this is what my tests show.

So what do you use that magnet on the side of your iMac for? I know my remote isn’t hanging on it. Who knows where that is. However, Scott sent me a video of his iLEVL Copy Holder. It’s a simple metal paper holder that sticks to that magnet in your iMac.

That got me thinking, what would be even cooler? I work in a paperless office, so a paper holder isn’t exactly what I need. What about…

Ever since I upgraded to Leopard, my Safari has had an odd font issue. I ignored it for a while and even once thought it was coded that way on websites. Now I’m just getting more annoyed.

Check out the screen shot I took from wordpress.org. >

See how bold words are showing up in a weird font? I checked my appearance settings in Safari’s preferences and that looks OK. I’ve also used OnyX to run all maintenance scripts and that didn’t help either.

After reading Hawk Wings Five favourite time-saving Leopard Tips, I decided to write my own six cool Leopard items. These are small features, but nice none the less.

Smarter Renaming of Files

When changing a file name in Leopard, the OS selects just the file name and not the extension. Vary handy for those that want to keep the extension intact.

Spotlight Selects The Top Hit

In 10.4 Spotlight would suggest search results and then default to Show All. In 10.5, Spotlight by default selects the Top Hit. This is a very welcome feature and, with the new Spotlight search speed, I haven’t had to launch Quicksilver.

To my surprise today, I filled up my hard drive. I had less than 500MB left! Shocked, I quickly tried to find out why as it didn’t make any sense. Then I saw it. After installing Mac OS 10.5 Leopard, via an archive and install, it seems he left behind a ‘Previous Systems’ folder. That folder alone takes up over 4 gigs worth of space on my iMac!!

I tried burning it to a DVD and it yelled at me as I didn’t have enough permissions for some files. So I tried to compress it and again I was yelled at for not enough permissions. Umm… Apple, I own the computer and OS. How am I not allowed access?

I’m a big fan of open source, or alternative, software. I’m not a fan of paying hundreds of dollars for an application. Needless to say I’m not a big fan of Microsoft or Adobe.

So what’s a good open source graphic design application? I’ve tried a lot of programs and now I’m looking at GIMP. GIMP is the free alternative to Photoshop. But how well does it work?

A friend said that it’s hard to convert from Photoshop to GIMP. Since I’m a Fireworks fan, I guess I don’t have to worry about that one.

I stood in line last night like a good Apple geek to get Mac OSX 10.5 Leopard and a free t-shirt! I installed it this morning and it’s running great. I did the archive and install option and it’s all wonderful.

I love the new dock and the rounded corners on the menus. Small things I know, but Apple is known for the small details.

Safari 3 also rocks along with the folder quick view and stacks. I have a lot more features to go check out so I’m going to go play.

I’m always looking for cool applications and ways to make my life easier. I’m a big fan of Fireworks, but launching the application every time I want to make a quick image edit seems to be too much work sometimes. That’s why I found Chocoflop.

Chocoflop is a free image editor for the Mac. It loads quickly, has all the basic bitmap editing tools and doesn’t seem to take up many system resources.

When my Mighty Mouse stopped scrolling down, I was sad. When I broke it trying to clean it, I was depressed. But now I have a Microsoft Wireless 5000 Laser mouse and I’m pretty happy once again.

I’ve never been a Microsoft Fan. I refuse to install Word or Excel on my iMac and, come to think of it, the I don’t have anything Microsoft installed. That was until I installed the Microsoft Mouse driver.

The Microsoft 5000 mouse is wireless, has five configurable buttons and a very nice scroll wheel that goes vertical and horizontal. For only $2, this thing rocks! That’s right, $2 on eBay.

Yes, I really asked that question. Why don’t iMacs have batteries?

The reason I ask is because things happen. Someone is building a building and cuts the power to a whole city block. Oops. Or a storm brews up and knocks down a tree and the lights go out. It happens, the power goes out and then my iMac goes dead. So why don’t desktop computers have batteries?

Now, I’m not asking for much. Just a small battery that lasts maybe 10-30 minutes. Giving the user just enough time to save everything and shut down the computer safely. I’d think there would be enough room for a mini battery inside my iMac.