Twitter Native App for Mac

I was intrigued by this app since Twitter announced it on their official blog. The app overall looks is strikingly similar to Tweetie (I don't imagine this will do well for their app sales), you got the bar on the left hand side

The differences are:

App is free (hooray to that).
You can add multiple accounts.
You can set photo hosting like TwitPic, Posterous, etc.
Photo services immediately load on the app, instead of opening in web browser, unless it is an unrecognized service.
You can see you Twitter list, a feature that Tweetie doesn't have.
However you can't see if a new followers is following you or not, I'm hoping they will change this. (It's a plus for Tweetie as I like this feature a lot.)
You can search for topics or users, but upon opening search window you get to see the top trending topics on Twitter.
I do like the new twitter message composer floats on top of your window, which is handy when you want to pull things from web or other contents. (Short url are automatically posted.)
Performance wise it's pretty quick to load.

Ideas for Twitter on the next update:

URL shortener flexibility as people like to use Bit.ly or other services (weird thing is they have it for the iPhone and iPad version).
Check Twitter follow and follow-back, maybe integrate Klout feature.
Preview of URL content even if it is a website, like the iPad app where you don't need to go to your web browser to see the content.
Tweet posting scheduling like HootSuite perhaps.
Adding people to list via the app directly.

This app is only available for download via the Mac App Store.

(download)

Mac App Store

I finally got the chance to update my Mac OS X and install the Mac App Store.

Quick overview:

Looks a lot like iPhone and iPad App Store.
Main page is layout like iTunes, you get the featured apps, new comers or top grossing, etc.
Each app gets their own page, with developers, screenshot and user ratings.
You will need an Apple ID like the usual.
Download is easy and instant.

Overall its pretty easy and I guess these days software selling age has shift a long way from CDs to online streamline. I'd be interested to see if Microsoft will be launching similar soon for WIndows 7? But of course Microsoft has been busy with the wedding planning with Nokia.

(download)

Flock Social Media web-browser

After raving reviews and heighten buzz of RockMelt (which by the way made 2010 top 10 Twitter technology trends).

It appears a similar web browser has been around - Flock, founded back in 2005 (so yes Flock has been around a wee bit longer than RockMelt).

It has more or les the same concept as RockMelt, but instead of focusing on Facebook and Twitter, it also integrates other social media site - Flickr, YouTube and Linkedin.

I was pretty much surprised by Flock, with Chromium based technology it is incredibly fast.

You also get the benefits from Google Store of different apps you can install to your web browser. I have already found several apps that I really like - Awesome Screenshot, url shortener and Delicious bookmarks.

I also like the clean-cut design, compared to RockMelt which splits and takes up your left and right side of the bar. Flock's design is simple enough that everything is all on the right-side, you can gaze at your convenience, you can sort by your favorite channels and it streams live. Aside from that you can also add your favorite RSS and ATOM feeds, so it does offer a lot more. You also get the option of creating your online secure profile, where you get to store your bookmarks and other channel preference so you can travel easier.

I am still test-driving it but it is looking pretty good so far and with my bookmarks now saved under my Delicious (but I am a bit pissed that Yahoo! is abandoning Delicious sucks that I have to switch), I am thinking of switching from Firefox to Flock... should I?

I have to admit the constant updates from your multiple streams can be a bit overwhelming as it constantly flows on and on, although you get to switch off/on what you want to see.