When I create images for MacStories, I either keep them at a single size between 600 and 650 pixels, or use two separate versions: the original larger size, and a smaller one that links to the full version. In either case, images are uploaded to our CDN with Cyberduck, which I have been using for years and that has never failed me. Until last month, the process of duplicating the larger image and saving it to a smaller size was entirely manual – something that, I later realized, was surprising considering I try to automate as many aspects of my daily workflow as possible. I decided to fix this before the Apple earnings call because I knew Excel was going to export our charts as large PNGs – but, mostly, because it really didn’t make sense to keep on manually clicking menus and selecting sizes after all these years of writing for MacStories.

Shauna James Ahern's Chile-Lime Shimp recipe in Gluten-Free Girl Every Day is one of eight unique stir-fries in the book. Heavily laced with lime juice and spicy from the ginger and chiles, this shrimp dish is far from chewy and bland. Add a handful of sweet and meaty chanterelle mushrooms and a bunch of bok choy, and you'll have an easy (and pretty healthy) meal in no time.

Kolmi Na Kevaab is an easy-to-cook Parsi favorite that will inspire many requests for seconds. It's mildly spicy, soft on the inside, and slightly crisp on the outside. It does have the typical Indian flavors of cumin and chilli, but the addition of Worcestershire sauce gives it a unique twist. Have it as a starter or as a side to brown rice pilaf, dhansak masala daal (recipes for that coming soon) and end with a quick snooze if it's your Sunday lunch menu.

Firm polenta cakes, briefly fried until golden on the outside, are really nice as a carb in a bento. If you have some tomato sauce also it makes a very nice accompaniment. Below is my basic polenta recipe (I use some garlic in there to boost the flavor), but please use your own polenta recipe.

However, there is still confusion surrounding the setting of printer options from the command line, as a poster to Debian bugs pointed out back in 2006: lpoptions documentation doesn’t. After doing some testing, here’s the two main takewaways:

If you use lpadmin and specify options with “-o” the PPD is altered and OS X will recognize the options for the printer.
However, if you setup the printer using lpadmin without any options and later use lptoptions to set the options, they are not written to the PPD and the GUI is unaware of the printer’s options.

In an earlier article, I started building out a skeleton script that would have the basic functions needed for any decent shell script you might want to create. I started with command-line argument processing with getopts, then explored syslog and status logging as scripts. Finally, I ended that column by talking about how to capture signals like Ctrl-C and invoke functions that can clean up temp files and so on before actually giving up control of your shell script.

This time, I want to explore a different facet of signal management in a shell script: having built-in timers that let you specify an allowable quantum of time for a specific function or command to complete with explicit consequences if it hangs.

When does a command hang? Often when you're tapping into a network resource. For example, you might have a script that looks up definitions by handing a query to Google via curl. If everything's running fine, it'll complete in a second or two, and you're on your way.

But if the network's off-line or Google's having a problem or any of the million other reasons that a network query can fail, what happens to your script? Does it just hang forever, relying on the curl program to have its own timeout feature? That's not good.

So this time, let's start with that topic. The behavior to emulate here is something a lot of utilities do without you paying much attention: they behave differently if their input or output is a pipe or file than they do when it's stdin (the keyboard) or stdout (the screen). Try ls versus ls|cat to see what I mean.

What’s more, color can be one of the elements that designers forget to focus on, in favor of the typography, layout, or imagery. And yet a gorgeous color palette can make the difference between a bland and a strikingly original design.

So if you find yourself in need of a color inspiration boost, not only will this roundup of great sites provide you with all the palettes and images you could ever wish to see, they’re also great resources for manipulating, creating, and sharing color.

The tool is javascript-based and runs from the browser.

Helium accepts a list of URLs for different sections of a site then loads and parses each page to build up a list of all stylesheets. It then visits each page in the URL list and checks if the selectors found in the stylesheets are used on the pages. Finally, it generates a report that details each stylesheet and the selectors that were not found to be used on any of the given pages.

Nutella makes most things better. This is something most of us already know.

Another thing we can agree on: toasting things in butter makes better things even more better. So why not take her great sandwich idea, apply a bit of butter and heat to the equation, and see what we get?

Rather than my normal choice of white sandwich bread, I like the heartier texture of a french-style loaf here. More pores for stuff to ooze into, you know? The key is to slice the bread extra thick and grill extra slow so that the melted cheese and chocolate drip in and out of every nook and cranny. I'm not going to lie: this is a delicious mess of a sandwich.

You could saute the paneer in oil or ghee till golden brown before adding to the vegetables or use paneer that has been dunked in warm water for 15 minutes. And please do not omit roasted fenugreek powder aka kasuri methi when making this easy vegetarian dish.

In this post I'm going to delve into some of the more complicated parts of CSS transitions, from chaining and events to hardware acceleration and animation functions.

Letting the browser control animations sequences allows it to optimize performance and efficiency by altering the frame rate, minimizing paints and offloading some of the work to the GPU.

The preference pane creates the audit config files in their normal places (/etc/security) and aids in creating the files for later distribution or for individual configuration.

This isn’t taught on a lot of computer science courses — it isn’t strictly computer science so that’s understandable — but it’s incredibly important for your efficiency, effectiveness and ability to remain a happy, motivated programmer. Too many tedious tasks cloud and distract from the real problems you’re trying to solve.

In this post I want to focus on the workflow-improving plugins I use with Sublime Text 2 to make my navigation around rails and ruby projects fast and efficient. I’m not going to focus on debugging, validating, snippets or the plethora of other aspects that are also important for good coding. Instead I’m going to focus specifically on how we navigate around our projects and have all the info we need at our fingertips as quickly as possible.

Alcatraz is an open-source package manager for Xcode. It lets you discover and install plugins, templates and color schemes without the need for manually cloning or copying files. It installs itself as a part of Xcode and it feels like home.

It is currently packaged as an application bundle, because NSUserNotification does not work from a ‘Foundation tool’. radar://11956694

The Notification Center always uses the application’s own icon, there’s currently no way to specify a custom icon for a notification. The only way to use this tool with your own icon is to include a build of terminal-notifier with your icon instead.

This tool will be used by Kicker to show the status of commands which are executed due to filesystem changes. (v3.0.0)

One of the neat Sublime Text features is that it provides you with a list of commands which you can extend (or write your own) and assign them to different key binds.

In this blog post I will go over configuring key binds and use insert_snippet command to generate some debug statements and then we will write few lines of python to extend insert_snippet to use text from clipboard as well.

Reading through Fuchsia Dunlop's Land of Plenty, I came across a technique that I knew would set this stir-fry apart. Briefly listed as a variation for hot-and-numbing tiny fish, there was a recipe for crispy shrimp with salt and Sichuan peppercorn. The shrimp are marinated for 15 minutes, tossed in flour, and deep-fried until golden and crunchy. They are then sautéed quickly with chilies and Sichuan peppercorn. This results in crunchy shrimp, both spicy and numbing.

All I had to do was incorporate the snap peas into the picture. I decided to cook them before the fried shrimp were added back to the pan, along with a handful of bean sprouts. This mostly worked, but since there was no sauce to tie everything together, the peas came off as a little bland. Fortunately, a simple drizzle of soy sauce at the end solved the problem, coating the vegetables in the same addictive blend that adheres so easily to the the shrimp.

They help form a common visual language between the designers and the stakeholders and provide a catalyst for discussions around the preferences and goals of the client.

BetterTouchTool includes many goodies, like window snapping or an integrated window switcher.

This list is far off being complete and will be extended permanently. So if you like it you should take a look at it from time to time. (-:

If you don't want to host your own buttons, we still have a hosted version you can use if you don't want to go through the process of setting it up yourself. Just follow the same configuration process, and use our hosted JavaScript.

I've just started trying out Sublime Text 2 though, and it's been pretty nice (although I still have reservations). Something I can't stand in a developer application though, is for an application to re-open all the files you had open last time the application was used. Sure enough, this is something that Sublime Text 2 does.

I needed lunch, and I needed it STAT.

My usual omnivorous go-to in those situations? Easy. Some simple cooked pasta with whatever vegetables we happen to have in the fridge, along with an easy emulsified butter sauce. The technique couldn't be simpler: blanch the vegetables, cook the pasta in the same pot, drain it, reserving some liquid, then mix it all back together, adding a knob of butter and a few big twists of black pepper. The magic happens when the butter emulsifies with the starch-laden cooking liquid and forms a sauce that clings to the pasta, delivering peppery bite and slick texture to each and every piece.

Now, I do like my butter as much as the next guy, but in all honesty, I'd pick olive oil over butter any day in terms of sheer flavor. Good olive oil, that is. Luckily, I happen to be somewhat of a collector and obsessive when it comes to good olive oil, so there's never any shortage in the López-Alt household.

The technique outlined below will work on Windows 7 and Windows 8. It will not work on Windows XP, but an alternative for Step II has been briefly outlined at the bottom of this tutorial for Windows Vista.

In addition, this technique is fairly technically advanced. Although it should be perfectly possible for anyone to complete provided you follow carefully the instructions given, if you require further clarification of any particular steps, or run into any sort of difficulties, please do not hesitate to ask us for help.

This dish started life as a Delia Smith recipe, and it hasn’t strayed too terribly far from its origins. It’s just that as I cooked it for the first time—following Delia’s recipe to the letter—I found myself wondering “Why?” a whole lot. Why not cook the chorizo first and then take advantage of the flavorful fat to cook the chicken? Why use sun-dried tomato paste and sun-dried tomatoes? Why not reduce the wine, and actually, why use wine at all instead of sherry, which would add a richer, “meatier” flavor? And finally: why use regular paprika instead of smoked?

I couldn’t come up with any plausible answers to these questions, so as I’ve made and re-made this one-pot meal over the past year, I’ve adapted it to fit my tastes and my cooking style. I think the version I’ve come up with is not only (ahem) tastier and more straightforward to cook, it’s also just different enough from Delia’s to warrant its own entry here. So without further ado: Chicken Basque a la Delia a la Jessica.

Recently, I created a website called whyamicrazytoday.com. It’s basically a way for me to check the current moon phase. Unfortunately, because it’s a website, I never check it. So I created ‘Why am I crazy today?’ for Status Board.

Status Board supports custom panicboard:// URLs that install data sources into the app from anywhere on the web with a single tap.

This site serves as a public registry of all panicboard:// URLs available on the web.

Reflector for Mac – It turns a Mac into an AirPlay target for the iPhone 4S, iPad 2, and anything newer
Screenflow – If you want to spice up your iOS video with audio commentary or Michael Baysian explosions, you’ll need some kind of video editor. For screencast work, Screenflow is my favorite so far; it’s iMovie tuned specifically for making videos about software. Also: I linked the Mac App Store, though Screenflow has a “free” demo and you can buy straight from them, but I don’t recommend it. Their draconian licensing system is a poster child for buying in the Mac App Store
GIF Brewery (optional) – The only Mac GIF tool I know of (examples). It’s not quite iMovie for making GIFs, it’s probably more like QuickTime for making GIFs. But it’s good

To easily enable (and enforce) administration over SSL, there are two constants that you can define in your blog's wp-config.php file. It is not sufficient to define these constants in a plugin file; they must be defined in your wp-config.php file. You must also already have SSL configured on the server and a (virtual) host configured for the secure server before your site will work properly with these constants set to true.

Thanks to some JavaScript advice from a friend, I finally have it working!  When you run the little app, you’re given the option to check the status of the Mac you’re on, or manually enter a Serial Number.  

Then, it opens a page in Safari, submits the information (after a few seconds delay), and pulls up the response.  Make sure that you wait when you run it, don’t think it’s not working just because it waits.

So thanks to Tim the Tool Man for his help, and enjoy the automation!

I like to serve mine in taco form on a bed of peppery arugula. Just slip them from the skewers, pop the tails off, and envelop them inside the tortilla. You can also remove the bacon-wrapped shrimp from skewers, discard the tails, and chop them into bite-sized pieces for filling tacos.

Alternately, eliminate the tortillas entirely. Instead, serve shrimp on a bed of arugula alone. Just add some cherry or grape tomatoes and use the aji as a vinaigrette.

Be careful not to overcook the shrimp or they'll be rubbery. That said, you do want the bacon to achieve a light char and crispness. Achieve this by keeping shrimp just off of direct heat. Keep the grill heat moderate, and don't walk away when cooking, because bacon fat may cause flames to ignite.

Try a few sautéed onions and peppers or a spoonful of creamy soft leeks; it's really about what you have on hand or what you're in the mood for. Personally, I like to use this technique for the egg portion of huevos rancheros as well.

Microwaving the bacon on a paper towel-lined plate is the easiest way to render out some of the fat before baking. But you could also gently cook the bacon in a skillet—just make sure to not cook it too long.

The sweet, pungent marinade for these chicken satays includes fish sauce, lemongrass, sugar, lime, and turmeric, which embeds the chicken with flavor even after a relatively short soak of only an hour. On the grill, in order to maintain juiciness, a careful eye must be kept to ensure the chicken is pulled off when just cooked through. Even if you go over just a little, the skewers are still plenty good, thanks to the powerful marinade. A dip in a spicy peanut sauce also added to the success here.

The pairing of the earthy and bright chicken with a creamy, spicy, and sweet sauce produced a chicken skewer that has the ability to change your mind about chicken skewers.

With Wry, you can interact with your stream, send posts, follow users, et al — all through the power of the command line.

Eggs in India are somewhat of an invisible fence in the landscape of vegetarianism and non-vegetarianism. While some vegetarians won't even have pastries baked with eggs, many still enjoy egg curries and egg biryanis (no meat, only eggs) and with such an array of delicious gravies and sides in Indian cuisine, who can blame them.

This dish is from the state of Kerala, which is known for using a lot of curry leaves and spice. If you use boiled eggs in this recipe, shallow-fry the de-shelled eggs in some oil before halving them and adding them to the gravy. This gives them a lovely crisp outer layer and adds to the texture party of the dish. Or you could break the eggs gently into the dish as it bubbles and cook them to the consistency you like. Either way, the gravy is finger-licking good.

This light, refreshing, simple dish combines some of my favorite ingredients: shrimp, feta and asparagus. (Anyone else love asparagus?) While I went with whole-wheat orzo, feel free to use regular orzo. Also, you can add grape tomatoes to make it a little saucier. Season the shrimp with dried oregano before cooking it to go with the Greek theme of this recipe.

It's not that I need some sort of familial approval for my love of the beast, because I don't. I claim it as my heritage but I'll just say it anyway for clarity: I…love…pork.

I love pork for its possibilities, its versatility, and most importantly, its flavor. From snout to hocks and bacon to ham there are more uses for the pig than any other animal I know. And one of my favorite uses is as a seasoning. What I mean by seasoning is not simply tossing a couple of strips of bacon in with the green beans and calling it a day. No, the pork isn't there for a cameo but instead has an important supporting role.

Firm polenta cakes, briefly fried until golden on the outside, are really nice as a carb in a bento. If you have some tomato sauce also it makes a very nice accompaniment. Below is my basic polenta recipe (I use some garlic in there to boost the flavor), but please use your own polenta recipe.

When getting away isn't in the cards, jerk stew transports you to balmy climes. Started on the stove top and finished in the oven, it's a fiery meal best served with rice. Caramelized plantains would be great companions, too.

Take the time to properly brown the meat—it'll build depth as the dish slow-cooks. If you're concerned about the heat level, remove one of the habeneros or replace them with milder peppers, such as jalapenos or serranos. Unfortunately, fruitiness of the habeneros will be lost. A splash of orange juice can help offset this, but the dish won't be the same.

If you want to cut corners, prepared jerk seasoning paste is an acceptable substitute to the spices here. If you use it, omit the allspice, cinnamon, brown sugar, soy sauce, and steak sauce from the recipe. You'll need no more than a tablespoon or so of the paste, so taste as you go.

The flavor of the stew improves the next day. Just cool it down before placing it, covered, in the refrigerator. When you're ready to serve, gently reheat the stew on the stove top, garnish it with green onions and serve it with rice that's made the day-of.

In my last column, I shared a recipe for a cheesy, baked cabbage and kale gratin. That recipe left me with exactly one quarter of leftover green cabbage, which languished in my fridge for days, the sorry sight of it greeting me each evening when I got home. What am I going to do with one quarter of a cabbage?

Slice it; toss it with a Vietnamese-inspired dressing of fish sauce, garlic, lime juice and sugar; fold it into cooked rice noodles; and garnish it with sliced tofu and chopped salty peanuts. The dish took all of 15 minutes to create and was positively addictive, the chewy rice noodles contrasting with the crunchy cabbage and the sour lime juice tempered by the sweetness of the sugar. A very haphazard lunch turned out to be something special.

This rice noodle salad is incredibly quick and easy to throw together, and the combination of noodles, cabbage, tofu and peanuts makes a filling, satisfying main course. The recipe does call for fish sauce, so if you don't eat fish, be sure to look into a vegan substitute.

In some cases, deleting backups from the Finder won't work; you also may not be able to use the rm command to delete these backups, because they are handled in a special way. Finally, even if all goes well, you may want to delete backups on a remote Mac's Time Machine disk.

In the end I'm grateful for my friend's intervention. Brown rice is indeed delicious, and it works remarkably well in this one-pot meal. For this dish, dark meat chicken thighs are browned and then tucked into the pot to simmer with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, leeks, crunchy water chestnuts, and brown rice. For the fluffiest texture, rinse the rice to remove any excess starch. Even after cooking for 40 minutes on the stove, the brown rice is still nice and chewy, and the chestnuts are incredibly crisp. (If you can source fresh chestnuts at the market, even better). Flavorful sesame oil pulls all of the ingredients together in this hearty and satisfying meal.