Reprinted from TidBITS#1006/07-Dec-2009 with permission. Copyright (C) 2009, TidBITS. All rights reserved. http://www.tidbits.com/ TidBITS#1006/07-Dec-2009 ======================== Issue link: It's time once again for the TidBITS Gift Guide, offering community-driven suggestions for the Mac and iPhone users on your gift list. Also in this issue, Glenn Fleishman reports on the acquisition of the collaborative writing tool EtherPad by Google, and guest contributor Robyn Weisman explores how third-party SDKs are being used to add useful features to iPhone apps when Apple hasn't provided the functionality. Notable software releases this week include Dialectic 1.5, HandBrake 0.9.4, Labels and Addresses 1.5, Electric Sheep 2.7b21, Java for Mac OS X 10.6 Update 1, Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 6, Rumpus 6.2, TweetDeck v0.32.0, MarsEdit 2.4, and Mailplane 2.1.1. Articles EtherPad Open-Sourced after Google Acquisition Third-Party SDKs: The Future of iPhone Apps TidBITS Gift Guide 2009 TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 7 December 2009 ExtraBITS for 7 December 2009 Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk for 7 December 2009 ------------ This issue of TidBITS sponsored in part by: -------------- * READERS LIKE YOU! Support TidBITS with a contribution today! Special thanks this week to Pizza Dreams, John Joseph Howard, Fritz Mills, and Scribner A. Messenger for their generous support! * Fetch Softworks: Fetch 5.5 makes FTP and SFTP easy! Upload, download, mirror, and manage your Web site. Dozens of new features to make file transfers easier and more reliable. Get your free trial version at ! * WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks Create a complete social network with your company or group's own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable. Take a guided tour today * THE MISSING SYNC: If you have a smartphone, we can sync it! Sync your address book, calendar, notes, music, pictures, and more between your BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Symbian OS or Palm OS phone and your Mac. * Microsoft's MacBU: Supporting Mac users with Office 2008. Straighten up your Office with the latest updates to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage. Update today at Mactopia! * It's time to speak up with MacSpeech Dictate! Get the all-new MacSpeech Dictate with spelling and phrase training. Speech Recognition so good, the only thing it can't do is speak for you. Learn more at * StuffIt Deluxe 2010 gives you a free file-transfer service, built right into your Mac! Introducing StuffIt Connect, the easiest way to share large files online. Compress, secure, and send any file. Only $39.99 until 01-Jan-10! ---------- Help support TidBITS by supporting our sponsors ------------ .