The Brooks Review

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Leica Sofort 2June 13, 2024
Grand Seiko SBGX261February 23, 2023
Casio Duro MDV-106 Re-ReviewDecember 15, 2022

Recent Articles

  • Short Term Memory with Due

    My high priority reminder system.

    I’ve long owned Due, but it always just kind of sat there being unused — I often didn’t even have it installed on my phone. Lately Justin Blanton, and CGP Grey have been talking about it — in fact it was the latter of those gents that got me interested in picking the app back up.

    CGP Grey talked about how Due is great for reminding you of things, as the app notifications on your Apple Watch will tap your wrist every minute until you tell it you did that thing. Which is quite perfect if used correctly — I immediately put Due to work.

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  • Luma Legacy

    Karol Muñoz: Just as always, we value tangible objects more than files in a computer. There is a disconnect between our most precious objects and the images, songs, videos and stories that make those objects so special. Our favorite story from the research came from a woman who had lost her father a year before.…

    Karol Muñoz:

    Just as always, we value tangible objects more than files in a computer. There is a disconnect between our most precious objects and the images, songs, videos and stories that make those objects so special. Our favorite story from the research came from a woman who had lost her father a year before. Her husband wanted a way to gift her father’s last voicemail but couldn’t find a beautiful way to do this. Luma Legacy could have helped him put this file in a beautiful object to be experienced in a manner that honors it’s sentiment.

  • Day One as Running Diary

    What a neat use case.

    What a neat use case.

  • The Verge’s Mobile Web Sucks

    Joe Steel: This is not Apple’s fault. This is literally The Verge’s domain.

    Joe Steel:

    This is not Apple’s fault. This is literally The Verge’s domain.

  • Keyboard Maestro 7.0

    So. much. new. stuff. I can’t wait to dive deep.

    So. much. new. stuff. I can’t wait to dive deep.

  • A Simple Toiletry Trick — Updated

    Updated with a great tip from a reader — for the less frequent travelers out there.

    Updated with a great tip from a reader — for the less frequent travelers out there.

  • Apple Retina Laptop Shootout

    Bare Feats on why they didn’t test the MacBook Air lineup: As I indicated in the first paragraph of this article, the newest MacBook Air lacks a Retina screen. That makes it almost obsolete in an Apple product line that includes not only three models of Retina laptops but also a Retina iMac, a Retina…

    Bare Feats on why they didn’t test the MacBook Air lineup:

    As I indicated in the first paragraph of this article, the newest MacBook Air lacks a Retina screen. That makes it almost obsolete in an Apple product line that includes not only three models of Retina laptops but also a Retina iMac, a Retina iPad, a Retina iPhone, and Retina iPod.

  • Let It Be

    I am so sorry for that title — so very sorry to all those parents out there.

    I’ve started to notice and interesting trend among the people I follow on Twitter and people converse with in my small nerdverse™. The trend goes something like this: “Does anyone know how to make X app, look/work/feel/do something like Y app?”

    In other words they are looking at using a new application, but something about that new application doesn’t work how they want it to work, based only on other applications they have used in the past. It could be the UI itself, a niche feature, or any number of other things.

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  • Never trust a computer you can’t lift

    There are very few, a select few, people that put up with me. One of them is Stephen Hackett — and truthfully he is a great guy. He’s decided to go full time with his site and Relay FM. He’s started a T-Shirt drive because THAT IS WHAT YOU DO. Anyways, go buy a bunch…

    There are very few, a select few, people that put up with me. One of them is Stephen Hackett — and truthfully he is a great guy. He’s decided to go full time with his site and Relay FM.

    He’s started a T-Shirt drive because THAT IS WHAT YOU DO. Anyways, go buy a bunch and support the most authoritative source on the web for old Mac support. ((Sorry Brand, you win for Newtons though.))

  • Coda for iOS

    I’ve had the pleasure of testing this app for sometime now, and it really is stellar. One of the best iPad apps, and now it is on the iPhone. Coda on iOS is how I update the status page for this site.

    I’ve had the pleasure of testing this app for sometime now, and it really is stellar. One of the best iPad apps, and now it is on the iPhone. Coda on iOS is how I update the status page for this site.

  • Importance of Sleep

    This three part series on sleep has been making the rounds and just last night I read through all three. Wow, really interesting stuff and something I think everyone should read. Needless to say I went to bed a bit earlier last night.

    This three part series on sleep has been making the rounds and just last night I read through all three. Wow, really interesting stuff and something I think everyone should read.

    Needless to say I went to bed a bit earlier last night.

  • Ulysses 2.1 for Mac and iPad

    Great update that brings backups to Ulysses. I’ve been using it for a while and it’s yet another solid update to the best writing app money can buy.

    Great update that brings backups to Ulysses. I’ve been using it for a while and it’s yet another solid update to the best writing app money can buy.

  • A Simple Toiletry Trick

    Don’t forget your toiletries again.

    Years ago I read an article (which I sadly can’t find) about keeping your toiletry bag fully stocked at all times. I took that to heart and have, since reading that, always kept my toiletries bag ready to go.

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  • Push-Triggered Sync in OmniFocus

    Yet another reason why OmniFocus is amazing, this new push based sync system works with custom WebDAV syncing too. Full security and full convenience.

    Yet another reason why OmniFocus is amazing, this new push based sync system works with custom WebDAV syncing too. Full security and full convenience.

  • Quote of the Day: Shawn Blanc

    “If you’re also slowing down this summer to think about what’s in store for the next season of life, instead of trying to figure out how you’re going to do it all, maybe try to do one thing really well.” — Shawn Blanc

    “If you’re also slowing down this summer to think about what’s in store for the next season of life, instead of trying to figure out how you’re going to do it all, maybe try to do one thing really well.”

  • How to Cut Children’s Screen Time

    Jane E. Brody reporting: One girl among the 1,000 children she interviewed in preparing her book said, “I feel like I’m just boring. I’m boring my dad because he will take any text, any call, any time, even on the ski lift.” A 4-year-old called her father’s smartphone a “stupid phone.” It turns my stomach…

    Jane E. Brody reporting:

    One girl among the 1,000 children she interviewed in preparing her book said, “I feel like I’m just boring. I’m boring my dad because he will take any text, any call, any time, even on the ski lift.” A 4-year-old called her father’s smartphone a “stupid phone.”

    It turns my stomach to think my kids might ever feel like that.

  • Close your laptop. Handwriting could make you smarter.

    I’ve found this to be the case in my own life, and it is the primary reason why I take most notes by hand during calls and meetings. I’ve even found that I don’t need to refer to notes as often when I take them by hand. The downside to all of this though is:…

    I’ve found this to be the case in my own life, and it is the primary reason why I take most notes by hand during calls and meetings. I’ve even found that I don’t need to refer to notes as often when I take them by hand.

    The downside to all of this though is: search. It is a real pain to search through my notes and find what I am looking for, when they are hand written.

  • Daily Summary Email from OmniFocus

    Getting ready for the day with OmniFocus.

    Some time ago I tried Todoist as a replacement for OmniFocus. It didn’t stick, largely because they don’t seem to take encryption seriously, so I was back on OmniFocus. But the one thing missing from OmniFocus that I loved about Todoist was the email I received every morning telling me the tasks for the day. It was a really nice way to look at my day’s overview before I sat down at my Mac.

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  • Nox

    A neat little app was just release from Cosmic Owl called Nox. This app can send you a notification for sunrise and sunset. I loved using it while we were at Disney to know when the sun would set — typically I had the app remind me 15 minutes before sunset. It gave me a…

    A neat little app was just release from Cosmic Owl called Nox. This app can send you a notification for sunrise and sunset. I loved using it while we were at Disney to know when the sun would set — typically I had the app remind me 15 minutes before sunset.

    It gave me a good sense of when I would be slightly less sweaty.

    Handy.

  • Getting my Daily To Do List Out of OmniFocus

    This is really neat and similar to what I do — except I have OmniFocus send me a daily email.

    This is really neat and similar to what I do — except I have OmniFocus send me a daily email.