Our ambition is to get more Mac apps on to vnunet.com/downloads in the future. At the moment, we have small selection of some of the better apps available. Many of these were updated at the weekend and we briefly touched upon the fantastic Delicious Library 2.03 which will enable you to catalogue your entire media collection.

Other highlights include Sparkle 1.5b6 which is still in beta. This tool will enable Mac-based developers to add an auto-update facility in to their software, so that end-users can automatically check for new versions of their installed software. ForkLift 1.5.3 was updated, which is a superb replacement for your Finder. If you're a web developer, we seriously suggest you take a look at Coda 1.5.1, which is an old-school development tool that will enable you to code up and preview your work, as you progress.

iSale 5.2.1 will enable Mac users to promote and manager their eBay auctions, whilst Flow 1.03.1 is a simple FTP manager. Rapidweaver 4.1.3 is a tool that should help users design and publish their own professional-level homepage.

It's really easy to do; you have a party and people browse your CD and DVD collection, then ask if they can borrow them and for you to forget who borrowed each item. One easy way of tracking your media collection would be to create some kind of database and then type in the details. An easier way would be to use a dedicated media cataloguing tool which will enable you to scan in using the barcode on the DVD or audio CD, extract the information from Amazon, then display in your virtual catalogue.

MediaMan 3 is a brand new version of the PC-only media cataloguing tool that will not only enable you to store and view your media collection via a 'virtual shelf', but also track who has borrowed each item. There's a Mac equivalent of this application called Delicious Library, which is also worth a look.

MediaMan 3 and Delicious Library 2.0.3 links.

There are a rising number of PC users moving over to the Mac and using the Intel-based system to run Windows in native mode on their computer, through the Bootcamp technology. In fairness, you could also use virtualisation to run Windows XP without a great deal of slowdown. It works effectively. Of course, you could use the Mac OS X operating system for your daily OS. This is an option I've attempted on numerous occassions, but then end up back using Windows for various reasons. Still, I'm using Windows on a dual-booting iMac, so I'm half way there.

Mac OS X Leopard 10.5.2 has been released and this is a mammoth upgrade, weighing in at 353MB. However, it doesn't just fix a few bugs and issues, it also adds a few new features, such as the new list options for Stacks, a non-transparent menu bar and more. So, if you have Leopard installed and have turned off your auto-update tool, grab the download yourself.

Mac OS X Leopard 10.5.2 download.

You may have noticed a handful of key Mac applications online over the last few days. Mainly as I've been testing Leopard and running XP and Vista under virtualisation, on my Mac. So, this has given us the chance to put some key Mac applications online. The kind of apps that make you wish you owned a Mac, partly as they are so well made. These include Remote Buddy 1.8.8, updated this morning. This tool will enable you to control your Mac via a remote control. Remotes include the iPhone or iPod Touch.

iSale 5 is a superb eBay auction management tool that will enable you to design, upload and manage your various eBay auctions. It not only enables you to maintain the auction, but all the post-auction chasing required for payment and posting of the item(s). It's ideal if you want to sell more than one item on eBay or if you're a PowerSeller.

If you're not a Mac user, don't worry as normal service will resume soon. Hopefully when we make some changes to vnunet.com/downloads during 2008, we can separate Mac, Linux and Windows downloads.

iSale 5, Remote Buddy 1.8.8 links.

Mac OS X is designed to be so straightforward that users can get in to the operating system with the minimum of fuss. Some could say it's a tad too 'glossy', which means that hardened users work with the command, rather than the Finder. The Finder was improved with Leopard, but still doesn't please all. Anyone who has used Directory Opus on Windows will know that this true Explorer replacement offers so much flexibility and power over the standard Explorer based system. For instance, simply double-click on the desktop and an Opus window will launch.

ForkLift 1.5 beta is the first public preview of the forthcoming Finder alternative for Mac OS X. Note that it's an alternative rather than a replacement, so if you click on your Macintosh hard drive, Finder will still launch. ForkLift goes far further than Finder and is a powerful alternative. Hopefully even more functionality will be included in the future and, we hope, an Opus-like double-click on your desktop to open a ForkLift window.

Up until this week, I've always used either Windows XP or Vista as the primary operating system for my desktop computer. My laptop has OS X installed, which is enough for web browsing, email and access to our internal CMS. Someone once mentioned that Windows XP running under virtualisation on Leopard worked effectively. Indeed, using the Unity feature of VMware Fusion, you can run your Windows applications on the Mac desktop, alongside your Mac software.

Surprisingly, this is really effective. The Unity feature really does enable you to open, say, a Windows Explorer window right on top of your Mac desktop. Ok, resizing the window takes more redrawing than it would on a native Windows OS, but it's fast enough to use on a daily basis, enabling you direct access to both operating systems on one machine.

Only a few years ago virtualisation was too slow to be used for work purposes. Basic testing perhaps, but no more. These days we can run our Windows apps - along with their Windows UI - at a realistic speed on another operating system. I can't explain how interesting, useful and surprising this feature can become, until you experience it for yourself.

VMware Fusion 1.1.1 link.

If you follow our advice, we often recommend you go to the Apple Refurbished store, pick up an iMac or MacBook for around 20% off the standard retail price and then, if you need Windows, pick up the OEM edition of Windows XP or Vista and install through Bootcamp. You'll then have native versions of both OS X and Windows installed. Better still, you can access your Windows partition through OS X. However, there will be times that you want to write files back to your Windows partition, and you can't do this if it is NTFS formatted (as most drives are under XP or Vista).

Paragon NTFS for Mac is nothing more than a simple add-on to OS X, but what it does do is enable you to write files back to your Windows partition or any Windows formatted drive, including external drives. This means you can read, write and move files around both your OS X and Windows partition.

Paragon NTFS for Mac link.

We've been waiting for OS X Leopard for months, now it's finally available and it's a major upgrade and adds value to your old Mac. The snag is, it's a first revision product, with new features, so is bound to ship with a number of issues, problems and possible security hazards (for instance, the firewall has received bad press since launch). It was only time before the first update was released - the first update for Tiger was released 3 weeks after launch - and 10.5.1 is now available and is essential for any Leopard user.

Apple Mac OS X 10.5.1 is available as a 110MB download (although it was only 37MB for me, through the Apple automatic update) and, if you're planning on downloading it manually, head to the Apple 10.5.1 support page for more information.

We need to be more organised and in control of our personal finances, tasks and projects. Tools such as Microsoft Outlook are designed to enable us to send emails, but also track our events, meetings, tasks and other 'to do' items. We can invite other users to meetings, track their invitations/declines and more. However, there are few tools that enable us to do this on a personal level. There are a number of apps that will enable you to track your media collection, such as Libra or MediaMan, but these only offer a certain level of flexibility.

Bento is a new application designed specifically for Leopard, the new Mac OS X. It is a personal database and management application, but designed to work alongside your iLife applications, so it integrates with iPhoto, iCal and so on. It's going to be a commercial tool, but the preview has been released free of charge, so take a look for yourself.

If you're an Apple Mac user, we'd certainly recommend you go out and test Leopard. It's a fantastic new operating system that contains a number of worthwhile new features that will justify and upgrade. We're quite impressed. However, the problems with compatibility exist for every new operating system. In fairness, Vista has been a 'mare and we wouldn't have upgraded if we'd known how many third-party apps would need upgrading. With Leopard, most apps will work, some will need an update. Virtualisation software will need an upgrade and both Parallels and VMware have released updates.

VMware Fusion 1.1 build 61385 is a beta version of the new Mac OS X virtualisation software that will enable you to run Vista or Windows XP SP2 on your Mac. The new version has early support for Leopard, along with improved Vista support under Bootcamp and more.