Growl

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Hey guys...

A friends suggested Growl to me as a nice application to have installed...
Considering I'm new to the Mac scene and do not know much about the mac applications, could someone tell me exactly what is growl and how does it work??? Is it of any use to any of you???
 
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growl is basically a notification program. Applications such as iTunes and Adium will work with it - so when certain events occur, growl displays a message of that event. A new track for iTunes starts, it'll show the track info and cover art. A friend signs on to Adium (in case you don't know, this is a superior alternative to MSN for mac) and a little message pops up letting you know. There are a number of themes to choose from for growl appearance. It's a great little app that really helps you keep an eye on what's going on on your mac.

From system preferences, you can turn growl on and off for certain applications, and I think you can even choose which events to set it for. If it starts to get annoying for a message to pop up when a friend signs off, I think you can turn that event notification off.

It's a very useful app. Not really for everyone, but I highly recommend it, especially if you don't want to be constantly switching apps to check what's happening. Considering it's free, contains no bugs or flaws I've ever encountered or heard of, it's definitely worth trying.
 

eric


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completely agreed with dtownley.

works nicely with cog too (audio player app).
 
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when i installed adium it automatically downloaded growel. I never really touch the program myself but adium uses it and i find its a good little tool
 
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I love Growl! :D

I use VirtueDesktops, so having Growl notifications is really useful, especially with Adium as I don't have to switch desktops just to read my IMs. My Mac experience has been greatly improved due to Growl, and the many people who I have recommended it to will agree.
 
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I use growl too, i also love it.
 
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i like it. Although it would be even better if anyone knows how to get it to tell u when you have mail.

thanks
 
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I would like to make Microsoft Messenger work with Growl.... Any idea how I add it to the applications list??
 
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im not sure but have you tried the latest version of aMSN - very good program
 
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knightjp
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I don't like it for itunes notification because (I guess) iTunes doesn't broadcast the song/title often enough, so when I switch songs using the keys combo I set it doesn't pop up the message right away. It's annoying because I'll switch the song and 5 seconds later a box will pop up. I went back to using synergy, which polls iTunes.
 
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Thanks for everyones input! This is a perfect example of why I love this site/forums. I was wondering what Growl was on my computer and I knew if I popped on here and searched, you'd all have all the info I need! Yay Mac-Forums! :)

Thanks!
 
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I dunno, I don;t really see the point of growl here, maybe I don't have a real use for it...
 
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I noticed i had this app too on my MBP.

I don’t use my laptop for much other than browsing the web and the odd download. I only use MSN for chatting and use google mail and hotmail as my Email.

I have just updated growl and switched it on.


What can a simple laptop user like me expect???
 

vansmith

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Growl is useless unless an application is developed and installed to use it. If you go to the Growl pref pane (System Preferences > Growl > Applications), you should see what applications are enabled and using Growl.
 
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Growl is useless unless an application is developed and installed to use it. If you go to the Growl pref pane (System Preferences > Growl > Applications), you should see what applications are enabled and using Growl.



Just did that and the only thing that is enabled is GROWL!!! haha

For someone like me am i better off just deleting it?
 

vansmith

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Depends. It really is an "application of choice" - you don't really risk anything having it installed and you only need it if you want it for notifications. The choice is up to you.
 
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Depends. It really is an "application of choice" - you don't really risk anything having it installed and you only need it if you want it for notifications. The choice is up to you.


I’ll just keep it then, but leave it off.............. just incase i ever do learn anything about the whole interweb and computers!! haha
 

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