KeyCue is a handy tool for learning and remembering keyboard shortcuts. Whenever the command key is kept pressed for a while, KeyCue displays a table with all keyboard shortcuts available in the currently active application.
iKey is a popular macro program that lets you perform custom action sequences with hotkeys. As with menu shortcuts, when you have defined a lot of useful macros, remembering all the hotkeys for invoking them becomes a challenge.
Starting with version 5.2 of KeyCue and version 2.5 of iKey, the two applications work together allowing KeyCue to show the currently active iKey shortcuts. The new version of KeyCue comes with a number of enhancements and fixes, including improved compatibility with FileMaker Pro 11 and Keyboard Maestro.
“With KeyCue, it has always been possible to display and explore available shortcuts on your Mac. With iKey, you can automate repetitive actions by creating shortcuts. The cooperation with Plum Amazing allows us to make KeyCue’s functionality available also for iKey shortcuts,” said Günther Blaschek, CTO of Ergonis Software. “This combination will take the productivity of our joint customers to a new level.”
“On the Mac, there has always been a mystery what hotkeys are being used and for what purpose. KeyCue solves this mystery in a very elegant way, by showing all the available hotkeys in one place. iKey automates repetitive actions or series of actions and assigns them to hotkeys. The integration of KeyCue with iKey gives Mac users a boost in productivity. iKey owners get a way to see all their shortcut hotkeys in one place when they also use KeyCue. Together, KeyCue and iKey are a great team,” said Julian Miller, CEO of Plum Amazing.
The productivity paradox of keyboard shortcuts is that shortcuts were designed to increase productivity. However, productivity actually decreases when applications provide large numbers of shortcuts, in particular when the shortcuts are defined inconsistently across applications. KeyCue’s elegantly simple solution is to detect and display an instant overview of all shortcuts, i.e., the overall functionality of any application. Over time, KeyCue users will automatically remember frequently used shortcuts and start working more efficiently.
KeyCue has already received many awards, including a 4.5-Mice award from MacWorld magazine.
Availability and Ordering:
KeyCue 5.2 requires Mac OS X 10.4 or newer. Mac OS X 10.6 or newer is recommended. KeyCue 5.2 is a recommended update for everyone running on Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard).
KeyCue can be purchased securely on the Ergonis Software website. The upgrade to KeyCue 5.2 is free for anyone who has purchased KeyCue in the last 2 years. For information about purchases, including enterprise licenses, volume discounts, and upgrade pricing offers, see http://www.ergonis.com/products/keycue.
iKey is available from Plum Amazing at http://plumamazing.com/mac/ikey.
Videx announces the CyberKey Vault ‘Single’ Electronic Key Cabinet that offers a cost-effective way to have access and key control exactly where it’s needed. One electronic key can be docked in the Vault. An RFID card must be presented to open the Vault and request the electronic key. The key that is released contains access permissions specific only to that person so they can do their job: what locks they may open and when.
The electronic key can be shared by any number of employees, shift-to-shift. Management can issue one RFID card to each authorized employee. The Vault recognizes what access permissions are to be programmed into the key by the person’s RFID card. When the key is returned to the Vault, the administrator receives feedback of when the electronic key was released, what locks the key opened, and email notification if someone forgets to return the key.
Mechanical keys can be attached to the electronic key for safekeeping and use. The electronic key can be used to open electronic locks and the mechanical keys used to open mechanical locks at a facility. By extension, a company not only has control over who uses their mechanical keys but the Vault reports when and to whom the mechanical keys were released and later returned to the Vault.
The Vault keeps management informed through the audit reports and alerts that are automatically sent to them. At the end of the work day, when the employee returns their electronic key to the Vault, an audit report of their entire key activity, lock openings, including exceptions such as unauthorized attempts to enter is automatically sent to management. As soon as the Vault reports back to management, the key’s memory is cleared. It remains in an un-programmed state until another authorized employee presents the required RFID card.
LaCie gets the key USB drives. It made them into keys. No bulk on your key ring and no hassles plugging it into crowded USB ports. Now LaCie has introduced some new keys, CooKey and WhizKey, with some great features, namely Wuala online storage and fast transfer speeds of up to 30MB/s with USB 2.0 or higher. Add waterproof and a sturdy metal design and you have some pretty sweet keys, er, USB memory sticks.
Availability
The LaCie CooKey and WhizKey will be available in 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities through the LaCie Online Store, LaCie Reseller+, and LaCie Corner, starting at the suggested retail price of $19.99 (excluding VAT). For more information, visit www.lacie.com.
My biggest complaint for USB “thumb” drives is the difficulty getting them on my key ring. Some just don’t give you any good way to get them on the ring where others eventually fall off. The former is useless and the later is scary for security reasons. So why has taken so long for any one to get a clue on this? Thankfully, LaCie gets it and has just announced the “Keys” for what it calls “Handy portable storage”.
The passKey, iamaKey, and the itsaKey all look like common keys. With a nice little eyelet on a key “head”, sliding it on a ring should be a piece of cake. The ultra-mobile and lightweight USB thumb drives are hot-pluggable and is cross-platform compatible with full support for USB 2.0 providing fast transfer rates. The slick “keys” are designed by 5.5 Designers putting up to 8 GB of storage in the itsaKey and imaKey. PassKey has a built-in micoSD card reader allowing for more possibilities for your traveling storage needs. With transfer rates up to 30 MB/s, these could be the keys to your portable storage needs. Starting at $9.99, LaCie gets a huge round of applause from SvenOnTech for these practical beauties!
Today at the sixth annual eBay Live! Conference, eBay Inc. and PayPal announced the availability of the PayPal Security Key for its customers.
The PayPal Security Key is a small electronic token that generates a unique security code approximately every 30 seconds. Members can use this code, along with their user name and password, to sign into both their eBay and PayPal accounts, helping to prevent unauthorized users from accessing them.
This type of additional security, known as two-factor authentication, is used by leading financial institutions as additional means to protect consumers and reduce losses from online fraud such as phishing attacks.
“We’ve had a tremendously positive response to the PayPal Security Key beta program and are excited to make the device generally available,” said Michael Barrett, chief information security officer at PayPal. “While PayPal.com remains a trusted and secure environment, the PayPal Security Key allows customers to take their privacy and security into their own hands to help protect their eBay and PayPal accounts against unauthorized access.”
The PayPal Security Key is part of the VeriSign Identity Protection (VIP) Network. As part of this network, consumers use the PayPal Security Key to protect themselves on a variety of financial services and e-commerce websites.
“As founding members of the VIP network, eBay and PayPal are leading the way in giving millions of consumers the tools they need to add an extra layer of protection when online,” said Fran Rosch, vice president, Authentication Services, VeriSign. “Through the VIP Network, eBay and PayPal members will be able to use their PayPal Security Key to protect their account data at other participating sites and thereby reduce online fraud and cyber crime.”
The PayPal Security Key has a promotional one-time fee of $5.00 for PayPal and eBay account holders in the U.S. The PayPal Security Key will also become generally available in Germany and Australia with more countries to follow. More information can be found by visiting the PayPal Booth #1045 at eBay Live! or online at: https://http://www.paypal.com/securitykey or http://www.ebay.com/securitykey.
Macs and PCs are just different. Not just at the operating system level, but even at the hardware side as well. I’ve always felt Apple hardware is a superior design in computer technology but its lack of forward delete on its notebooks has been one con to using a Mac. Now, if you have a full sized keyboard, you can use the forward delete above the cursor keys (it has an X inside a forward arrow on it) but us MacBook, MacBook Pro, iBook, and PowerBook users don’t have such a key. Thankfully there are many keyboard mapping applications out there to assist in this problem.
One keyboard mapper I found is DoubleCommand. Doing more than just giving me my beloved forward delete, the freeware application sits in your System Preference’s Other section awaiting your command. Mmm, sorry for the pun. Other cool tricks include turning that ENTER key, down by your space bar and Command key to the right, into a Control, Option, or even a Function key. You can swap keys and their uses as well as make those HOME and END keys act more like they do on a PC. It’s just all good stuff, really!
Hey, I have installed and I’m a happy camper. I know you will be too when you give it a go on your system. Try it out and if you like it, give author, Michael Baltaks, a donation to keep him going.
The wonderful key fob. Yes, fob. So many in my family crack up when I tell them the correct name of that black thing attached to their key that locks and unlocks there door as well as create the all ignored “panic” alert.
Reports are, GM will be bringing even a better fob in April to rappers and gang bangers around our great nation with the next model of the Cadillac Escalade. The new fob will notify G-Kill-C3P-Oh when his tires need some air and his tank some fuel. Homie will be able to start his car from inside the crib as well as lock it from six times the distance he can today on his bunk ’07 Caddy. If he’s interested in how many miles his ride has, he’ll be able to get the 411 on dat as well as change XM to RAW all from the new fob. Now homie ain’t trippin’ that this will cost him $150 more since that’s only a few more dime bags and not a whole rock to sale. GM is also saying that if our beloved capitalist losses his fob, it’ll cost less than $100 to replace.
For all us real world folk and law abiding citizens, you’ll be able to pick this up in one of the other great GM SUV offerings as well as other models soon after the release in April, 2008. Until then, keep cool.
[Via Autoblog]