![]() I could have selected the text from within TextEdit, copied it, switched to DEVONthink, created a new note, and then pasted the text into the note. In doing so, I often found useful information about an application that I wanted to remember for later. I also spent a good deal of time reading the ReadMe files that come with shareware, freeware, and commercial software. In writing this book, I used a database program called DEVONthink to keep track of notes and tidbits of information that I might include in the book. Perhaps an example will make this a bit clearer. In some cases you can even use the functionality of another application without leaving the one you're currently working in. For example, you can select text in one application, and then send it to another application to work with it. ![]() ![]() #FIND TYPEIT4ME FILES MAC OS X#(That's my disclaimer, by the way, if the next few sentences are a bit hard to grasp.) Basically, Mac OS X allows applications and the system to provide services to other applications from within those applications. What are Services? They're one of those things that are harder to explain than they are to use. Or, because the Services menu item always exists, but only works in Cocoa or certain Carbon applications, many people think that Services are "broken" or don't work properly. Services, available from Application Name ➣ Services, provide some of the coolest features of Cocoa applications, but (seeing a pattern here?) most people don't even realize they exist. You can also access Mac OS X's Character and Color palettes from the Extras … pop-up menu. You can also take advantage of the Favorites collection: add a favorite font style by choosing Add to Favorites from the Extras … pop-up remove it by selecting it in the Favorites view and choosing Remove from Favorites. You can add or remove fonts to or from collections using the arrow buttons. ![]() Click the + button to add a new collection, or select an existing collection to rename or remove it using the - or Rename buttons. To create your own collections of fonts, select Edit Collections … from the Extras … menu. By selecting Edit Sizes … from the Extras … pop-up, you can add or remove font sizes, and choose to view font sizes as a list, a slider, or both. You can also customize other parts of the Fonts Panel. (If you want to apply a font to a certain section of text, highlight the text and choose the font and style.) What makes the Fonts Panel especially useful is that it's a floating window, meaning you can keep it open all the time when you want to use a different font, you just select it from the panel. If the preview text is too big to fit in the current preview area, click and hold on the area just below the preview area you can drag downwards (or upwards) to resize it. You can change the preview text by double-clicking in the preview panel and typing your own text. In addition, if you select Show Preview from the Extras … pop-up, you get a small preview area that shows you the font, font style, and font size you've selected, along with a preview of your selection. ![]() Resize it to its largest size, and you get scrolling panels for each item, along with a Collections panel (you can create collections of fonts-those that you tend to use together-for quick access). If you resize it to its smallest size, you get the most basic font dialog: pop-up menus for font family, typeface style, size, and extras. Accessible from any Cocoa application (and some Carbon apps) via Format ➣ Fonts ➣ Show Fonts, OS X's Fonts Panel is incredibly useful. ![]()
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