If you’re anything like me, you use the Messages app in OS X Mountain Lion to keep chatting with those iMessage-happy iOS users in your group of friends when you’re at your computer. Nothing’s more annoying than having to pick up my iPhone while I’m on my Mac, just to text someone back.

With the OS X Messages app, I can just chat with them as if they were on any other instant message client, using the full keyboard on my app instead of the tiny one on my iPhone. Sometimes, though, friends might send along a web link. When I don’t want to have to click through to see it in Safari or Chrome, I preview it right in Messages.

When someone sends you a URL in Messages, it will look like a blue link within the blue Messages chat bubble. If you hover your mouse over the link itself, a little black triangle will appear near the end of the link.

Click on that triangle, and a popup window will appear. It will load the linked web page right there for you, and even give you a couple of buttons, one to open in your default web browser, and one that will let you Add to your Safari Reading List. How cool is that? So, if you’re busy with the chat, or some other work-related thing, you can check the link out real quick, decide if it’s worth clicking through to, saving for later, or just skipping altogether.

One of the wacky things you may notice if you’ve just gotten a new iPhone is the default double alert whenever you get a text message, whether iMessage or SMS. Why Apple has this as the default, I’m not sure, but it kept freaking me out before I figured out how to turn it off.

However, I’m willing to see that you might want the double alert, or more (shudder), and there’s a simple way to make that happen, as well.

Here’s how.

Launch your Settings app, and tap on Notifications. Tap on Messages, then scroll down to where it says, Repeat Alert. Tap there to open the preference pane.

Here, you can tap on Never, Once, Twice, 3 Times, 5 Times, or 10 Times. Note that if you tap on Once, you’ll get the original alert for the text message, and then one Repeat alert. If you tap on Twice, you’ll get the original alert, and then two repeat alerts. And so on.

Personally, I leave this set to Never, since I always think the repeated alert is another text message coming in and it adds to my stress level. However, if you need to be reminded more than once, have at it!

Via: OS X Daily

Now that you’ve jailbroken your iOS device running iOS 6, it’s time to check out some tweaks and apps in Cydia, the jailbreak alternative to the App Store. There’s a lot of stuff to try in Cydia, and sometimes it can be hard to weed out of the very best tweaks from the rest.

We’ve gathered some jailbreak tweaks you need to take a look at on iOS 6:

Editor’s Note: Not all of these tweaks have been updated for the new hardware Apple released since the last jailbreak, like the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. iOS 6 compatibility is guaranteed, but there may be some incompatibility issues on certain devices.

Auxo – $1.99

Auxo is the way Apple should do the app switcher in iOS.

Instead of app icons, Auxo displays live app preview cards that can be closed with simple gestures. There’s enhanced music controls and minimal toggles for settings like WiFi, Bluetooth, cellular data, and even screen brightness. The whole tweak is incredibly polished and good looking. It’s hard to imagine Apple doing a better job.

Emblem – $1.99

Notification Center on the iPad just doesn’t work. Apple merely ported the iPhone layout to the iPad’s larger display, and the system just doesn’t translate well. A jailbreak tweak called Emblem makes receiving and interacting with notifications more intuitive and less obtrusive on the iPad.

Instead of iPhone-like banners, Emblem brings OS X-like notification bubbles with gestures and message handling. Incoming notifications appear as banners on the right side of the screen. A group of notifications can be stacked and scrolled through with ease in one banner cell, and you can select to close a notification before it queues in Apple’s Notification Center.

Dashboard X – $1.99

Live widgets. It’s something that many have clamored for Apple to implement, but jailbreakers can already use Home Screen widgets with a handy jailbreak tweak called Dashboard X.

Once installed, you can install custom widgets that float next to app icons on your iPhone or iPad’s Home screen. There’s a whole catalog of compatible widgets available in Cydia. A widget like NCSettings gives you quick access to Settings toggles. Dashboard X widgets let you check on stocks, control your music, and more right from the Home screen. As you can imagine, the concept of live widgets works much better on the iPad’s larger display.

Springtomize 2 – $2.99

Springtomize is like the Swiss Army knife of jailbreak apps, and teenage developer Filippo Bigarella updated it to version 2.0 last year. A recent update means that it’s fully compatible with iOS 6 as well.

Springtomize isn’t really an app; it’s more like a giant package of jailbreak tweaks. You can control everything from how many app icons are on your Home screen to change the look and feel of Notification Center. It works on any jailbroken iPad, iPhone or iPod touch.

If you have a jailbroken iOS device, you need Springtomize 2. It allows you to tailor and tinker with how you interact with your device at the OS level. It’s an essential tool.

Stride – $3

Android users have always flaunted the ability to unlock their handsets with a gesture. Stock iOS will only let you slide to unlock your iPhone, but Stride brings customizable gestures to the lock screen in an elegant package.

Once you draw your own unique password, your jailbroken iPhone can’t be unlocked without the specific gesture you create. Stride is really solid and actually feels better than Android’s implementation of the feature. Make sure to get Stride in Cydia and show it off to all your Android friends.

CameraTweak – $1

The iPhone’s built-in camera is pretty good, but Apple offers very few options while taking photos and videos in its stock Camera app. That’s why you need CameraTweak, a Cydia tweak that greatly enhances the Camera app with features like time lapse, a timer, and more. You can even set a custom frame rate, aspect ratio, and resolution while shooting video.

The tweak is really full-featured with exposure combinations and enhanced composition overlays to help you structure the look of your photography. Any serious iPhoneographer will want CameraTweak.

biteSMS – $8 with free trial

Many people jailbreak just for biteSMS. It’s a legendary tweak that has become the most robust Messages app enhancement available. With biteSMS, you can quickly reply to incoming texts from anywhere in iOS. So no more having to go into the Messages app to shoot off a reply. You can also mark messages to read later, and biteSMS will show you an unread messages notifier in the iOS status bar.

That’s only what biteSMS can do on the surface level. There’s a whole lot more to this tweak that will make you want to never use the stock Messages app again. The good news is that biteSMS is fully compatible with iOS 6 and the iPhone 5!

CallBar – $4

Have you ever wished that the iPhone didn’t overwhelm your entire screen when you get an incoming call? CallBar is a pretty inventive jailbreak tweak that makes iOS treat an incoming call like any other normal notification. You can customize the look of the notification banners, and CallBar allows you to initiate calls without ever entering Apple’s Phone app.

MyWi – $20

MyWi is the leading jailbreak app for tethering, and it’s fully compatible with iOS 6. When you jailbreak, one of the many pros is that you can tether without your carrier’s permission. MyWi allows you to do this by creating a Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or USB hotspot with your iOS device’s cellular connection.

If you bought MyWi after December 1st, 2012, then the iOS 6 upgrade is free. Earlier customers have to pay $4.99 for the upgrade.

QuickPhoto is a new tweak for jailbroken iPhones that brings the camera roll to your keyboard for super speedy image uploading. Once installed, you have one-touch access to all the photos you’ve taken on your device — just hit the same globe key you would use to access an international keyboard.

It’s pretty easy to send a photo from an iOS device, but as QuickPhoto proves, it could be even easier. With support for a number of popular apps — including Messages, Twitter, Tweetbot, Facebook, and Mail — QuickPhoto allows you to access your camera roll and all the images you’ve snapped on your iPhone using just one tap.

Check out the demonstration video below from AppAdvice to see QuickPhoto in action.

Pretty neat, isn’t it? It makes accessing your camera roll within supported apps much easier, so it’s even easier to send or upload your photos. It’s a shame QuickPhoto doesn’t support more apps — such as WhatsApp, Skype, and other popular Twitter clients — but I’d expect support to grow as the tweak becomes more popular.

QuickPhoto is compatible with iPhones running iOS 6, and it’s available to download now from the BigBoss repository within Cydia. Its regular price is $4.99, but it has an introductory price of $3.99 for a limited time. That’s a little more than you’d normally pay for jailbreak tweaks, but for many, it’ll be worth it.

Via: AppAdvice

Samsung’s Android smartphones have this nifty feature that lets you quickly make calls from within contact cards and messages simply by raising the device to your ear. And thanks to a new tweak called RaiseToCall, you can now get the same feature on your jailbroken iPhone.

Developed by Kaushal Trivedi, RaiseToCall is designed to make it simple to instantly turn a text message conversation into a real one. Once it’s installed, you can call friends from within a text message just by lifting your iPhone to your ear — no more scrolling to the top of the thread to find the call button.

RaiseToCall works with Apple’s built-in Messages app and BiteSMS as well, and it automatically disables itself when your iPhone is in landscape mode. This prevents the device from thinking your hand is your head when you’re typing and calling someone accidentally.

The tweak is almost invisible once you’ve installed it; there’s no home screen icon or any options in the Settings app. So if you decide you don’t like it, you’ll need to uninstall it again within Cydia.

You can download RaiseToUnlock now from Cydia’s BigBoss repository, and it’s priced at $1.99.

Via: iDownloadBlog

One of the wacky things you may notice if you’ve just gotten a new iPhone is the default double alert whenever you get a text message, whether iMessage or SMS. Why Apple has this as the default, I’m not sure, but it kept freaking me out before I figured out how to turn it off.

However, I’m willing to see that you might want the double alert, or more (shudder), and there’s a simple way to make that happen, as well.

Here’s how.

First, launch your Settings app, and tap on Notifications. Tap on Messages, then scroll down to where it says, Repeat Alert. Tap there to open the preference pane.

Here, you can tap on Never, Once, Twice, 3 Times, 5 Times, or 10 Times. Note that if you tap on Once, you’ll get the original alert for the text message, and then one Repeat alert. If you tap on Twice, you’ll get the original alert, and then two repeat alerts. And so on.

Personally, I leave this set to Never, since I always think the repeated alert is another text message coming in and it adds to my technology loop stress. However, if you need to be reminded more than once, have at it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jT0JT3N47g

Via: OS X Daily

LockLauncher, a handy tweak that allows you to run apps from the lock screen on jailbroken iPhones, has today been updated to add support for the iPhone 5 and iOS 6. You can download it now from Cydia’s BigBoss repository.

LockLauncher lets you place up to four app icons on your lock screen, which you can tap to instantly open an app — rather than unlocking your device first, then finding the app you want and launching it from the home screen.

It also allows you to “queue” multiple apps to open simultaneously. So you can open Messages, Facebook, and WhatsApp as soon as you unlock your device, then just double-tap the home button to switch between them. Check out the demonstration video below.

LockLauncher doesn’t bypass your passcode lock, so it doesn’t make your iPhone any less secure. It just makes it quicker to access your apps.

LockLauncher is priced at $1.99, and it’s available to download now from Cydia.

Via: iClarified

Popular jailbreak tweak biteSMS just got a new update that introduces a quick compose widget to your iPhone’s Notification Center. The feature promises to be a simple and convenient way to send text messages in a pinch.

For iPhone jailbreakers, biteSMS is the best way to supercharge your text messaging, which is why the app has become so popular. And its latest update makes it even better.

With the new quick compose widget, you can send text messages from within any app by tapping a button in the Notification Center. You can even create shortcuts to your favorite contacts to make the process even faster:

NEW: Quick Compose Widget. Just a simple convenient way to launch a Quick Compose with a favorite contact (managed via Phone > Favorites). It’s a Notification Center Widget (managed via Apple > Settings > Notifications > Quick Compose Widget).

The new feature is only available in beta form at the moment, so if you want to get your hands on it, you’ll need to add the biteSMS beta repository to your Cydia sources. The address is: http://cydia.bitesms.com.

Via: AppAdvice

Viber, the popular cross-platform messaging service for smartphones, is no longer just for smartphones. The company has today launched new desktop applications that allow you to chat with friends; send stickers, emoticons, and photos; and make calls from a Mac or PC.

The great thing about Viber for desktop is that it syncs all of your messages with your mobile devices, so all the conversations you were having on your iPhone on the train into work can be picked up on the PC in your office — right where you left off.

The desktop applications give Viber a massive advantage over some of its biggest rivals, including WhatsApp, the most popular messaging service on mobile, which has previously shunned desktop support. It also gives the company a better chance of competing with the likes of Skype.

Viber’s desktop app sports an intuitive layout that places all of your contacts in a rail on the left side, so that you can quickly switch between conversations. The conversation itself then takes place in a window on the right, which is where you’ll see incoming messages, photos, and other content.

One of Viber’s best features is the ability to quickly send calls from your desktop to your mobile device, and vice versa.

Check out the promo video below.

Viber for desktop isn’t intended to replace the mobile app, and the company insists that mobile is still its focus. But unlike WhatsApp, it has acknowledged that many of us spend most of our days sat in front of a computer — and the desktop app makes it easier for us to continue using Viber in that situation.

Mac users who have tried Apple’s own Messages app will know that the ability to quickly reply to incoming messages without taking your fingers away from your keyboard is quite a blessing.

Source: Viber

Via: The Verge

iOS is a fantastic platform, but as it approaches its sixth birthday, it’s in desperate need of a lick of paint. If you jailbreak your devices, then you don’t need to sit and wait for Apple to administer that, because you can take the design refresh into your own hands by theming.

The only issue with that is finding a theme that’s as beautiful as the hardware it’s running on. There aren’t many out there that fit this description, but iMIUI from Xiaomi is one of them.

Xiaomi isn’t normally a company famous for its iOS themes; it actually develops a popular custom ROM for Android-powered devices called MIUI. But iMIUI is a Winterboard theme that aims to bring the MIUI look to your iPhone.

Xiaomi believes iMIUI could be the next Ayecon, a hugely popular theme for jailbroken iOS devices, and I’m inclined to agree. I don’t think it’s better than Ayecon, but it’s as good as.

As you can see from the screenshots below, iMIUI isn’t just a bunch of icons; it skins your lock screen, a number of your apps — including Phone, Messages, and Clock — as well as system menus, like those within the Settings app pictured below.

iDownloadBlog has been testing iMIUI and they say “the level of detail here is striking.” iMIUI is certainly worth checking out, then. To download it, you’ll need to add a new repository to Cydia. That repository is: http://cydia.myrepospace.com/imiui/.

Once you’ve downloaded the theme, you’ll be able to apply it using Winterboard. It’s iPhone only at the moment — there’s no iPad version — but it is completely free.

Via: DownloadBlog

Have you tried searching in Messages on the Mac? Well don’t try now unless you want to get really frustrated. Among the app’s other numerous bugs, Messages can tend to suddenly throw a tantrum whenever the search bar is invoked.

Flexibits, makers of popular iPhone calendar app Fantastical, have announced their next app: Chatology, a tool for searching Messages on the Mac.

The only thing that’s available right now is a teaser page with the option to get notified when Chatology is available. Knowing Flexibits’ pedigree, the app will be exquisitely designed and helpful.

I’m interested to see Chatology, because I’m honestly surprised that an entire app is being devoted to just searching Messages. Seems like a lot of work for only one problem. And Apple has released a Mountain Lion update that is supposed to fix some of the issues with Messages. I’m sure Flexibits will pull it off regardless. We’ll have more on this app in the future.

Flexibits is supposedly also working on a Contacts app replacement, which sounds delightful.

Source: Chatology

The post Makers Of Fantastical Are Working On A New App For Searching Messages On The Mac appeared first on Cult of Mac.

As the new Director of Human Interface, Jony Ive has gone from making beautifully beveled Macs, to redesigning iOS into a multi-layered Parallax operating system. By drawing from his deep well of hardware design brilliance, Jony brought a lot of his hardware philosophies to iOS, and the Messages app icon shows just how insanely detailed Jony can get.

As discovered by Brad Ellis, Jony made sure that the Messages icon’s corners have the same tapered edges which can be found on the iMac and other Apple products.

The difference is just a small number of pixels that most users would probably never notice, so Brad created his awesome comparison GIF so you can actually see the changes: 

Brad notes the difference between drawing an normal rounded corner verses the rounded corners of the iOS 7 icons:

Have you guys ever tried to redraw an iMac or other Apple hardware? You might have noticed that you can’t just draw a rounded rectangle, the corners aren’t actually quarter circles. Instead they taper off gradually before becoming flat.

Source: Dribble

The post Jony Ive Is So Obsessive He Gave iOS 7 Icons The Same Rounded Corners As The iMac appeared first on Cult of Mac.

The makers of Fantastical have a new Mac app.

Chatology is a brand new tool for searching Messages on the Mac without the headaches. If you’ve been experiencing bugs, random crashes, and a lack of search functionality in Apple’s chat software, then this new app is for you.

“We made Chatology because we were so frustrated searching for our messages,” said Michael Simmons, fo-founder of Flexibits. “There were no solutions to fix this so we created one, and we think all Messages and iChat users are going to love Chatology as much as we do.”

The app is pretty simple. You can search for any part of a Messages conversation and even sort by images or links. Chat transcripts for individual conversations can be quickly opened in Finder or exported as a text document. Tapping ⌘F in the Messages app to search will open Chatology instead of Apple’s built-in search once it’s installed.

The guys at Flexibits made Chatology for themselves and thought that others would be interested in using it. A Contacts app replacement from Flexibits is still in the works, as well as more updates to Fantastical, which is widely considered the best iPhone calendar app around.

Chatology is available on the Flexibits website now for $20. There’s also a free trial available.

The post Chatology From Flexibits: A New App For Searching Messages On The Mac appeared first on Cult of Mac.

Don’t forget that the OS X Mavericks beta isn’t a final version—it’s meant to be used by developers to ensure that their software will work with Apple’s latest and greatest. With that disclaimer in mind, let’s check out a new little feature in the beta.

Many apps have had access to special characters before, like iChat and Messages. You’d simply click the little smiley face, for example, and get all the fun emoticons Apple has provided.

If you wanted to type a special character in a text document, though, you’d have to remember that Option-8 is a text bullet, and Option-K is the degrees symbol, and Option-2 gives you the Trademark symbol.

Now, though, in OS X Mavericks beta, you can see visually what special characters are available to you across all applications. Here’s how.

When you’re typing in any application that can accept text, simply hit Command-Option-T (or ⌘-⌥-T) to bring up a\n extensive palette of special characters, including emoticons, emoji, and text widgets. Use the button bar along the bottom to choose the special character set you want, or use the clock icon in the far left to access recently used characters. It’s a lot like the emoji keyboard in iOS, only in any app on OS X Mavericks beta.

Slick, right?

Pro tip: If you click and drag the little pop up special character window, it will tear off from where you were entering text, and become its own window, letting you move it around on the screen.

Via: Tips & Tricks In Mavericks

The post Access Special Characters In Any App With OS X Mavericks Beta [OS X Tips] appeared first on Cult of Mac.

One of the coolest things about Messages is the cross-device functionality, in that you can send messages to and from your Mac and your iOS devices. I use it while at work to chat with folks who text me from their iPhone; it’s a really handy way to avoid using a tiny screen while at [...]

The post Send iMessages From Notification Center In Mavericks Beta [OS X Tips] appeared first on Cult of Mac.

In previous versions of iOS, the date and time stamps of iMessages you sent and received were printed right in the app, above the iMessages they pertained to. Not so in iOS 7, with only a date stamp showing up at the top of each segment of messages that come in on a particular day. [...]

The post See Timestamps For iMessages In iOS 7 Beta [iOS Tips] appeared first on Cult of Mac.

Of course you know already that you can send iMessages to your iOS or OS X using friends and family via the Notification Center, because we told you that a while ago. Did you know, however, that you can reply to iMessages sent to you in that very same Notification Center? If not, read on [...]

The post Reply To iMessages From Notification Center In Mavericks [OS X Tips] appeared first on Cult of Mac.

In the OS X 10.8 version of Messages on the Mac, you can set the background color of your own messages, and you can set the background color, font, and font color of anyone who sends you messages. Now, though, in OS X Mavericks, you can do all those things, plus send messages in your [...]

The post Set Default Font Choices For Messages You Send And Receive In Mavericks Beta [OS X Tips] appeared first on Cult of Mac.