Below are all the results for tag: "productivity"
Date : 4th September 2026
Duration: 39:38
Show ref: SCOM1601
In this video, Lee returns to OmniFocus for the first time since version 4 landed, and finds an app that has changed a great deal more than its version number suggests. The headline is Planned Dates, a third date that sits alongside Defer and Due and answers the question neither of them ever could: when you are going to sit down and do the work. Lee shows why a task with a planned date and no due date is a far more honest entry than one carrying a deadline you invented to make yourself act.
With Mutually Exclusive Tag Groups, you can stop a task being both High Focus and Low Focus, the Repeats feature can finally end after a set number of occurrences (or on a chosen date) and the Forecast perspective gains summary dots and drag to reschedule, with modifier keys to choose which date you are moving.
Lee concludes with a short dip into Omni Automation. He goes through installing a plug-in from the library, running it, and going a step further with something that makes these plug-ins do what you want rather than what their author originally intended.
Date : 4th August 2026
Duration: 12:04
Show ref: SCOM1592
If you have ever tried adding a new entry to a Numbers spreadsheet on your iPhone, you will know how fiddly it can get: tiny cells, lots of zooming, and taps that often land in the wrong place.
Lee shows a feature built right into Numbers on iPhone and iPad that tackles this problem directly, using a growing vinyl record collection as his real world example.
Along the way, you see how a form can adapt to different kinds of data, handling everything from simple text and dates all the way to specialised entry controls. It is one of those features that is easy to miss, but once you know it's there, you're likely to never go back and type straight into a table.
Date : 31st July 2026
Duration: 34:48
Show ref: SCOM1591
BBEdit has a reputation for being a developer's tool, but this second installment shows just how useful it can be for anyone who works with text.
In this video Lee dives into grep (a way of searching for patterns in text instead of just exact words) and shows how it can untangle a genuinely messy real-world document in ways a normal Find and Replace was never designed to do.
From there, things move on to transforming text automatically, building up sequences of changes that can be saved and reused whenever you need them. It's the kind of feature that quietly saves hours once you know it's there, and there's plenty more still to come in the BBEdit videos ahead.
Date : 17th July 2026
Duration: 42:43
Show ref: SCOM1587
BBEdit has been the gold standard Mac text editor since 1992, and version 16 is the best it's ever been. In this first of a multi-part series, Lee takes you on a complete tour of the app from the ground up, starting with what BBEdit actually is and why it's useful to far more people than just developers and coders. Whether you're a writer working in Markdown, a blogger managing a website, or simply someone who works with text and wants a tool that gets out of the way and lets you get on with it, BBEdit probably has something valuable to offer you.
Lee covers everything you need to get comfortable and productive in BBEdit 16: the window and all its components, the Navigation Bar, Text Options, the Status Bar, File State, working with multiple files, and much more. You also learn about using BBEdit as a writing tool, including Markdown editing and the built-in live preview.
Date : 23rd June 2026
Duration: 17:48
Show ref: SCOM1580
PopChar from Ergonis Software is a Mac utility that gives you instant access to every character in every font installed on your Mac, all from a single click on a small "P" in the menu bar. Whether you need currency symbols, accented letters, arrows, mathematical notation, or typographic punctuation, PopChar puts them all at your fingertips without hunting through menus or memorising unusual keyboard shortcuts.
In this tutorial, Lee walks through everything you need to get up and running with PopChar. This includes inserting your first character, searching the full Unicode library, building a collection of favourites, as well as using the HTML insertion mode for web work. He also covers two power user features: finding which of your installed fonts support a specific character, and the Shape Finder for identifying characters you can see but can't name.
PopChar is available via Setapp. At the time of this recording, you can also purchase directly from the developer with a one-time payment of $39.99 for the current major version, or take up an annual subscription for $19.99.
Date : 19th June 2026
Duration: 36:01
Show ref: SCOM1579
In this second screencast on Claude, we dive deeper into the more powerful and more customizable features that can really help you level up your productivity. We'll be looking at Claude Skills and show you how to build your own, briefly touch on MCP (model context protocol) to show you how connecting to other tools can give your Claude new abilities, and show you how you can schedule tasks that use these skills and MCP connections to get things done while you're away from your computer. We'll even show you how to use Claude Code to vibe code a complete web app from scratch without knowing any code.
Date : 12th June 2026
Duration: 39:28
Show ref: SCOM1577
MindSpace is an incredibly powerful mind mapping app that imports maps from Markdown, OPML, TXT, FreeMind, iThoughts, and more. It works across macOS, iOS, and iPadOS and has Family Sharing support.
The interface is intuitive on all platforms and supports many common keyboard shortcuts to add and move nodes around, and even fold and reveal nodes at different levels.
You can define relationships between nodes with arrows of different formats, as well as create summaries of a collection of nodes with curly brackets. You can add images, web links, and comments to nodes, and much more.
MindSpace has all of the other mind mapping capabilities you expect, like the ability to work in outline view, fabulous search tools, and the ability set a focus node to get rid of distractions. At the time of recording, the subscription pricing starts at a minuscule dollar US per month, or you can get a lifetime license for $13!
Date : 9th June 2026
Duration: 14:40
Show ref: SCOM1576
Building on the folder automation foundations laid in shows 1528 and 1548, Lee brings you three new automations demonstrating just how versatile Shortcuts can be in macOS 26 (Tahoe). The first two work as a pair, both watching dedicated drop folders and automatically compressing incoming files into date-stamped .zip archives. The third moves away from folder triggers entirely, using the External Drive trigger to automatically back up a chosen folder every time a specific drive is connected to your Mac.
Together these three automations cover two of the most common file management headaches Mac users face: keeping archives tidy without cluttering up your folders, and making sure backups actually happen consistently. Open Shortcuts and follow along with Lee and build these useful shortcuts with him!
Date : 29th May 2026
Duration: 29:05
Show ref: SCOM1573
The macOS Dock is something you use dozens of times every day, but how much thought have you given to setting it up properly? In this episode, Lee walks you through customising the Dock, from the essential options to a handful of hidden tips and tricks.
He then introduces DockDoor, a free, open-source app that adds one of the most-requested missing features on the Mac: live window previews right from your Dock! Hover over any Dock icon and instantly see every open window for that app, switch between them with a click, and even close or minimise windows without leaving your current app.
DockDoor goes well beyond basic previews. An enhanced Option+Tab window switcher brings Windows-style app switching with live thumbnails, and you can optionally replace the native macOS App Switcher with a richer version, too. There's a lot to discover with DockDoor, so definitely worth a look.
Date : 15th May 2026
Duration: 42:23
Show ref: SCOM1569
Claude is one of the most powerful AI assistants around, but you might only be using a small part of what it can really do. In this episode, Mike gives you a tour of the features that matter most: Projects, Artifacts, and Connectors. You also meet the Cowork agent, built around practical, real-world examples you can adapt, and available in the Claude Mac desktop app (subscription required).
Whether you’ve been curious about Claude but weren’t sure where to begin, or have been using it for a while and suspect there’s more to discover, this video will give you a clearer picture and a solid head start.
Date : 12th May 2026
Duration: 13:56
Show ref: SCOM1568
After looking in detail at how Superwhisper works on macOS, it's only right that its iOS counterpart should get some attention. Being able to capture text accurately on the move is a wonderful ability to have. Whilst not as full-featured as the Mac version, Superwhisper on iOS allows you to capture text both in-app and via the dedicated keyboard.
In this video, Lee walks you through the basics, and show you how to configure a shortcut to allow you to easily specify the mode you want to use with Superwhisper on iOS.
Date : 8th May 2026
Duration: 33:38
Show ref: SCOM1567
In Part 1 of this double-header, you learned the basics of getting started with Superwhisper. In this video, Lee takes it further by showing you the two remaining modes, Super and Meeting. You also learn how to create your own modes that can be configured to transcribe your dictated text in any number of ways.
By combining customised AI prompts with high-powered voice models, Superwhisper can output your words any way you like and allow you to build some powerful workflows.
Date : 5th May 2026
Duration: 12:42
Show ref: SCOM1566
Spotlight in macOS Tahoe 26 isn't just for finding files anymore. With Spotlight Actions, you can send messages, fire off emails, capture reminders, and trigger your favourite apps, all from a single keystroke.
Lee demonstrates in this video the most useful actions across both Apple's native apps as well as some popular third-party ones like OmniFocus and Drafts.
Date : 1st May 2026
Duration: 34:34
Show ref: SCOM1565
Lee has been looking at taking the plunge with a dictation application for a while now. However, with an above average typing speed, coupled with a distrust in the quality of the dictation apps available, he's never pulled the trigger. That is, until now.
While trying to find efficiencies in his workflows and make more time available during the day, he gave Superwhisper a try and the results are quite something. At its core, it can transcribe dictated text with unnerving accuracy due the available models. And when combined with AI processing, all of a sudden you're able to work a lot smarter, with Superwhisper doing a lot of the heavy lifting.
In this first of a two-part series, Lee looks into the origins of dictation and how it can help us, as well as getting started with the core functionality of Superwhisper. He closes off Part 1 by looking at some of the built-in modes you can enable, allowing you to dictate text knowing it will be transcribed in a format suitable for email, notes, messaging, and more.
Date : 28th April 2026
Duration: 14:12
Show ref: SCOM1564
When Freeform was released in December 2022, it was to little fanfare as it was completely unexpected and seen as a clear example of a first version of an application. Nice foundations, but not what you would call feature-rich.
Since that initial release, Freeform has received some of its most significant updates yet — including Scenes for organising large boards, Snap to Grid for cleaner layouts, and Tables arriving in iOS 26.2. And with iOS 26.4, Freeform has taken its biggest leap forward, gaining access to Apple Creator Studio's advanced AI image generation and a premium Content Hub, Users who dismissed Freeform early are giving it a second look — and those who stuck with it are finding a genuinely capable creative workspace where there was once just a blank canvas.
In this video, Lee walks you through some of the key updates that have landed since that first release.
Date : 24th April 2026
Duration: 47:36
Show ref: SCOM1563
With the rise in AI tools showing no sign of slowing, it can be easy to find yourself bouncing between tools and services in a typical day. Dia, the new browser from The Browser Company, aims to change that, by letting you chat with your tabs and get the answers you need within one application.
After announcing there would be no further development of their first browser, Arc, Dia has been growing in popularity, especially since it started including some of the features that made Arc popular - such as the vertical sidebar. In this video, Lee walks you through how to make the most of the Dia interface, before diving into how you can use Chat, Skills and Memory to browse the web and make the whole experience more efficient.
Date : 27th March 2026
Duration: 29:12
Show ref: SCOM1555
There was a time when Apple Mail was a really user-friendly email client that offered a variety of customisation options to help keep you on top of your Inboxes. This, was down to the word that the software company SmallCubed put in to its suite of plug-ins, called MailSuite.
Now, years later, they are back with their own email application that is turning heads with its user-friendly approach, called MailMaven. Taking all of the best features of MailSuite, MailMaven tries to do the impossible and make email fun again or, at least, bearable.
In the first of a two-part series, Lee first sets up MailMaven, then gives you a tour of the interface. He then looks at how MailMaven helps you process messages quickly using a variety of shortcuts. You also learn how to configure Inbox, Outbox and Keystroke Rules to ensure the right messages are in the right place at the right time.
Date : 13th March 2026
Duration: 49:48
Show ref: SCOM1551
OmniOutliner has long been the standard to which other outlining applications aspire and the release of version 6 doesn't change that fact at all. It's as feature-rich as ever with the attention to detail that is expected from the Omni Group. In this video, Lee walks through the basics of outlining from the ground up, so there is no requirement to watch a previous video.
You learn how to use some of the new features that version 6 brings, such as Connected Folders, OmniLinks and using the Apple Foundation Model for leveraging Apple Intelligence.
Date : 6th March 2026
Duration: 30:20
Show ref: SCOM1549
It's been several years since we last covered MailMate or SaneBox. But recently, Mike has been using both to create email automation more powerful than most modern AI-infused email clients.
Now that MailMate can run on macOS 26 Tahoe, it's time we shine the spotlight once more on this Markdown-based software. In this video, Mike shows you how perfectly suited it is for making the most out of your SaneBox subscription.
Date : 13th February 2026
Duration: 29:53
Show ref: SCOM1543
Lee has mentioned BetterTouchTool in a lot of videos recently, so it's finally time he dedicated a video series to showing you the many features this excellent Mac utility provides.
BetterTouchTool has come a long way since our last deep dive almost eight years ago. In the first of this two-part series, Lee walks you slowly through the interface, and demos some of the gestures you can trigger using the trackpad to execute actions on macOS. This includes launching apps and moving and resizing your windows. You also learn how to use keyboard shortcuts and key sequences as triggers, to automate almost any action you can think of on your Mac.
Join Lee on this exploration by following along in BetterTouchTool so you get the most out of this video.
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