Egg Freckles

Google Reader is dead. NetNewWire is a shadow of its former self. For the last couple of years I have been using Shaun Inman‘s Feverº to access my feed from any browser. Install Fever is not your ordinary web app. You have to install it on a hosted server you control. The system requirements are pretty standard,¹ but you don’t need command line access to get started. If you have ever installed a web based CMS like Joomla!, or WordPress you can install Feverº. Setup is straight forward. Create an account on feedafever.com. Download the Feverº compatibility suite. FTP the Fever directory up to your server, and change the permissions on the directory to full read and write access (777). Visit yourdomain.com/fever/boot.php in your web browser, and enter your MySQL database connection details as prompted. If your server meets the requirements you will be given a compatibility confirmation code to enter at feedafever.com. This code tells Shaun that your server is Feverº compatible, you know what you are doing, and you are ready to purchase. After your payment is processed you will receive an activation code you can use to complete the Feverº installation on your server. Some potential customers might complain the $30 price tag is too high, the purchase process is too difficult, or that Feverº needs a trial period/refund policy. Feverº is a speciality product, and if those are some of your concerns Feverº might not be the right RSS reader for you. It would have been nice to try Fever before you buy, but a self-hosted demo version would contain all of Feverº’s un-obfuscated PHP code and Shaun would lose his shirt. If you are still interested in Feverº after reading this review get a second opinion by reading what my friends Shawn Blanc, and Pat Dryburgh have to say. Setup Feverº is not your ordinary feed reader.

Your current feed reader is full of unread items. You’re hesitant to subscribe to any more feeds because you can’t keep up with your existing subs. Maybe you’ve even abandoned feeds altogether. Fever takes the temperature of your slice of the web and shows you what’s hot.

The majority of the feeds I imported from NetNewsWire using an OPML subscription list became the basis for my Kindling. These are the feeds I read daily, and never miss an article. Feverº preserves the groups I created in my old newsreader and lets me create new groups with specific views tailored to each group. > Sparks is where you keep your occasionals, the more superfluous hit or miss feeds. Sparks serve to compound and amplify the items in your Kindling that are likely to interest you.

The remaining high-volume feeds from NetNewsWire became the basis of my Sparks. As a NetNewsWire user I could never subscribe to sites like Engadget, The Verge, The Next Web, or Macworld because I would quickly become overwhelmed with reading material. Feverº looks at common links in my Sparks and sends Hot Topics boiling to the top. It doesn’t matter how many Sparks I subscribe to, Feverº knows what’s hot. Use I use Feverº to follow the news in two different ways. First I read all of my Kindling just like I would on a conventional newsreader. I control how my feeds are ordered, how content is displayed, and the appearance of unread counts in all of my groups. Feverº includes keyboard shortcuts and mouse free navigation. I can choose to Mark as Read, Save, Blacklist, or send to Instapaper, Email, Delicious, or Twitter all with a few simple keystrokes. The Feverº interface makes it easy to hide superfluous feeds, and previously read content so nothing gets in the way of what I want to read. The second way I follow the news using Feverº is by using the Hot View. > Feverº scans your feeds and identifies links of interest. Temperatures based on the optimum human body temperature of 98.6º Fahrenheit are assigned to links determined by the amount of relinking and discussion they generate. All the items that point to, or talk about the hot links are aggregated so you don’t miss out on the range of opinions and reactions.

The more feeds I follow the more informed Feverº is about the stories that interest me, the more influential the story the higher the temperature. The Hot View is a great way to look over the most influential stories of the past day, week, or month, especially if I was away from a computer during that time.< Since the shutdown of Google Reader it has been challenging to maintain a consistent newsreader environment across multiple platforms without the aid of a universal sync. Although it is possible to sync feeds across multiple Macs using Dropbox, this leaves mobile RSS reading out of the loop. Web based news readers often lack the consistency and OS integration of their desktop based competitors, but Feverº does a good job of including the most valuable desktop features like OPML import/export, automatic updates, keyboard shortcuts, mouse free navigation, and integration with popular web based services. Its specially designed web view is tailored for the iPhone and iPod Touch.² For Mac OS X users looking to break free from their browsers, Feverº integrates with the single-site browser factory Fluid.³ Feverº might not have all the features or polish of NetNewsWire, but it is a platform I control, with a public API developers can use to extend its potential. If you are the kind of person who wants to control your newsreader experience, or who needs a helping hand sorting through your feeds, Feverº might be the right RSS reader for you.

1. Fever requires a Unix-like server (no Windows/IIS) running Apache, PHP 4.2.3+ (preferably compiled with mbstring and GD with PNG support) and MySQL 3.23+.
2. Feverº can overcome iOS’s multitasking limitations with a carefully crafted cron job that refreshes feeds in the background so you don’t have to wait. curl -L -s http://yourdomain.com/fever/?refresh
3. The total number of unread items is updated in the Dock in real-time.

You have heard it on The Talk Show. The loud clickity-clack of John Gruber’s Apple Extended Keyboard II. The keyboard that Daring Fireball was written upon. Known for its massive size and generous weight, the Apple Extended Keyboard II is a behemoth compared to the minimalist “Chiclet” inspired keyboards made popular by MacBooks today. Its mechanical key switches produce a reassuring sound that has not been heard by most Macintosh users for more than a decade. Code named “Nimitz,” after a United States supercarrier, the Apple Extended Keyboard II was born in a time before USB, when keyboards and mice were connected to Macs via ADB. Keyboard connoisseurs, like John, who continue to use an Apple Extended Keyboard II today must rely on an ADB to USB adapter like the Griffin iMate to use their keyboards under Mac OS X.

John Gruber won his first Apple Extended Keyboard II during a legendary game of Madden in the dorm rooms of Drexel University in 1992. It lasted him through multiple Macs and 14 years of use until the “E” key “got flakey,” and the whole keyboard had to be replaced in November 2006. The replacement Apple Extended Keyboard II he stored away in his closet for just such an occasion has never felt the same. Great authors have always had affection for their tools, and John’s attraction to his keyboard is no different. The Apple Extended Keyboard II is a great keyboard, but it is an inferior sequel to the to the greatest keyboard Apple has ever made.

The original Apple Extended Keyboard is the best keyboard Apple has ever made. Code named “Saratoga,” it is larger in size and heavier in weight than its successor. The Apple Extended Keyboard features the same 105 key layout as later models, but unlike the Apple Extended Keyboard II it only contains the superior Alps Electric Co. brand mechanical key switches. When you purchase an original Apple Extended Keyboard you are guaranteed quality. When you purchase an Apple Extended Keyboard II you are taking a risk on inferior key switches.

Early model M0312 Apple Extended Keyboard IIs were manufactured with the classic Alps mechanisms. Later model M3501 Apple Extended Keyboard IIs were manufactured with either Alps or subpar Mitsumi mechanisms. If you have a model M3501 Apple Extended Keyboard II you cannot be certain of the key switches it contains without breaking it open. This might account for why John’s second Apple Extended Keyboard II never felt the same as the original. You can always tell the Apple Extended Keyboard and Apple Extended Keyboard II apart by the sounds they make. The original Apple Extended makes a satisfying “clickity-clock,” while the Apple Extended Keyboard II produces a slightly softer “clickity-clack” sound even if it contains Alps switches. Both the Apple Extended Keyboard and Apple Extended Keyboard II require an ADB to USB adapter in order to be used with modern Macs, but only the Extended II contains a crude height adjustment mechanism that often locks up, or fails to keep a consistent elevation. The Apple Extended Keyboard contains no height adjustment, and is a far more sturdy typing platform.

Other differences include the placement of Apple logo on the keyboard, and the choice of power key. The Apple Extended Keyboard II has a sloping curve in the top part of its plastic casing leading up to the Apple logo on the left and unconventional power button on the right. The original Apple Extended keyboard has a straighter curve with the Apple logo in the lower left hand corner, and a power button that resembles every other key.

Another way to tell the two keyboards apart is the labels under the first four function keys. On the original Extended you can find “undo” under F1, “cut” under F2, “copy” under F3, and “paste” under F4. None of these labels are present on the Extended II. On either keyboard there is plenty of room to accommodate large template guides over the top row of function keys displaying shortcuts for many popular historic software packages. The dedicated number pad on both keyboards are equally well spaced and easy to use. And best of all the Caps Lock key on both keyboards locks down when in use.

The assurance of Alps key switches, the larger design, and heavier weight of the Apple Extended Keyboard might seem like minor differences when compared to its predecessor, but there is one unheralded feature of the original Extended keyboard that its sequel can’t match. The Apple Extended Keyboard can be taken completely apart for cleaning. By removing four sturdy screws its key switch mechanisms can be completely removed from the case. The Apple Extended Keyboard II on the other hand relies on a single screw and several plastic snaps to hold it together. Its key switch mechanisms cannot be easily removed from the case. Each Alps keyswitch is rated for 10 to 15 million keystrokes. It is important to be able to clean your keyboard when the expected lifespan is 15–25 years.

The Apple Extended Keyboard was only sold for a short time as an optional accessory. It is much harder to find than an Apple Extended Keyboard II which was manufactured from October 1990 all the way until January 1999. I am lucky enough to own one of each, with a untouched spare Apple Extended Keyboard II hidden away in the closet for a rainy day. I may not be a great author, but I have a great keyboard.

While attending Macworld 2012, I met John Gruber. I was waiting outside the men’s room in an upscale hotel lobby. I was not alone. Stephen Hackett, and Pat Dryburgh were with me. We were all waiting for Shawn Blanc and Ben Brooks who were attending a private get together in the hotel bar across the room. We should have been having a drink ourselves, but instead we were sitting on a sofa outside the men’s room looking rather lame. John Gruber on his way to said men’s room quickly commented on my Daring Fireball t-shirt before walking through the door. On his way back to the bar he came over, introduced himself, and thanked me for being a reader of Daring Fireball. After I returned the introduction, he told me he had visited Egg Freckles and considered linking to my site in the past. I said I was honored, I didn’t know what else to say. He kindly invited us back to join the group and have drinks at the bar. Introducing us as “look who I found over there by the men’s room.”

The moral of this story is that when you meet someone from the internet you admire, try to be cooler than a guy waiting outside the men’s room in a fancy upscale hotel lobby. At least buy yourself a drink. The people you know from the Internet are more interesting in person. Try to act the same.

For me Macworld 2012 was all about meeting new people. I didn’t come to see new products or hear the latest announcements. I know I am not alone. The Internet has replaced conferences as the way to get the word out. As events like Macworld reconfigure, it is important to remember their value is in the people who attend under a common interest, and not the wares, booths, or babes, that are the background noise of any show.