TUAW Tip: Make iPhone ringtones with GarageBand

An earlier post about PocketMac Ringtone Studio for iPhone reminded me of how I put together ringtones for my iPhone. I just fire up GarageBand and iTunes, do a little quick magic, and out come the ringtones I want.This doesn't work with protected files such as those you've purchased from the iTunes Store -- hell, Apple wants you to spend $0.99 for the tune and another $0.99 to turn it into a ringtone. The method described here works very well turning those CD snippets that you've ripped into iTunes into ringtones. Follow along after the break for the step-by-step.Continue reading TUAW Tip: Make iPhone ringtones with GarageBandPermalink | Email this | Comments

Found Footage: Apple sounds "song"

Some might argue that the Apple sound effects found in the "Sound" preference pane can get a little annoying over time. However, a YouTube user has turned those "annoying" tweets and chirps into somewhat of a song. The song project, created in GarageBand, is available for download from the creator's website. While there, you can also download an m4a audio file of the song -- who knows, this might make a really good iPhone ringtone!Of course, this guy isn't the first to pull such a stunt, as a Windows version has existed for a while. Now, if you want that on your iPhone, we've got to talk.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Time-Saving Tips: Get creative with iLife

Working with photos and editing video can be fun, but that doesn’t mean you want to spend all your free time in front of the computer. Here are 18 simple iLife tricks that'll speed you through the boring parts.

Creating a ringtone using only iTunes

Remember the days when getting a ringtone up on the iPhone was about as hard as, say, fixing the economy? There were all kinds of programs you had to mess around with, and sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't, and most of the time, it just wasn't worth the trouble. Cut ahead a year from those days of yore to right now, and look at this -- all you need to get a ringtone of almost any song you want is iTunes itself.If you want to do anything more fancy, you'll need GarageBand (and you've got it anyway, so follow Steven's guide if you'd rather do that), but as CNET shows, iTunes will let you choose the start and stop times of a song, and converting to AAC from mp3 will let you cut it down to just those times. Pull it out of iTunes, rename the extension, drag it back into iTunes (making sure to delete the version that's already in there), and voila, custom ringtone.Note, however, that it doesn't work for music with DRM on it, but it does work for music you rip from a CD. One favor to ask, though: don't really put Young Jeezy on your ringtone -- those 'tones are obnoxious. How about a little Miles Davis instead?Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

App Store free apps round-up - September 26, 2008

Section: iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone + Communications, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, OriginalsAnother week, another article full of great freebies on the App Store. Why pay when you can get pretty much everything you need for free? I can’t really think of a good reason. Well, unless you just like buying apps. Wait, are you looking at me? Okay, fine, guilty as charged. But, you don’t have to buy apps to have a happy iPhone. Here’s my list of free apps to help destroy your weekend. Beat Tapper - Trying to record a song with Garageband, but you just don’t know how many beats per second you’re playing at?  No sweat, just download this app and as quick as you can tap a few of the beats, you’ll have the BPM. Simple and effective. Fuzzle Lite - A challengingly simple game. All you have to do is line up 5 balls of the same color. The catch is that every other move results in more balls being added to the board. This is the Lite version of the regular game and is limited to 400 points on easy, but you can get a feel for things to see if this is your cup of tea. iGolf - Is that a golf club in your pocket or are you just happy to see me? iGolf turns your iPhone into your own personal driving range. It’s like having a mini Wii in your pocket. Just swing your device and the ball on screen responds to your motion. Who needs real golf when you can look like a fool flailing around aimlessly with your iPhone? Caution, you might want to play this one in private. Your friends may never look at you the same way again. iSlots - Why waste your money on pushing a flashy button when you know you’re just going to lose anyway? Watching those virtual wheels spin isn’t worth the price of admission. Well, unless that price is free. Now, it is. This is a beautiful game that recreates a slot machine for you to waste your virtual money on anytime you please. You won’t win any real money, but you also won’t lose any either.  And with your luck, that’s a good thing. Am I right? Quip - Apple knows you want MMS on your iPhone, but apparently it just doesn’t bother them that much quite yet. Not to worry, you’re wait is over. Send pictures to your friends with Quip. Your friends don’t even need MMS. SMS works just fine, since you’re just sending a clickable link to your picture.  If this sounds awesome to you, you’d better act fast. This one is only free for the first two weeks. Then, it’s up to $4.99. Speed Dial #1 - Who’s you’re #1? I’m betting it’s either your other half or your mother. If I were you, I’d pick your other half, but hey, who am I to stop a fight. In any case, use this app to instantly dial a specified number. The first time you run the app, you configure which number to call, and every time there after, it automatically dials. No need to go to your favorites list in the phone section of your iPhone. That would take way too long. And, if you need more than just one of these icons, don’t worry, because relief is on the way. 2,3 and 4 are on there way to the App Store, and they are all going to be free...forever! WeightMan - If you’re trying to lose weight, a very good way to keep yourself motivated is to constantly remember just how much you weigh. This app can keep track of how much you weigh every time you weigh yourself. It keeps a graph of your weight history, and serves as that constant reminder. The only thing it’s missing is that notification number on its icon (like unread e-mails in Mail) to display your last recorded weight, then you could never escape that blasted number. Full Story » | Written by Jake Gaecke for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Go Hollywood with a free "In a world" ringtone

You know those movie trailers that begin with the narrator intoning the familiar words "In a world...."? Beau Weaver, a Hollywood narrator and diehard TUAW reader who does a lot of those trailers, was asked by his friends to create an iPhone ringtone that played on the same phrase. He did, and he'd like to share it with TUAW readers for free.Just pop over to Beau's website at http://www.spokenword.com/ringtone/, listen to the ringtone, and if you like it, follow our TUAW tutorial on how to create an iPhone ringtone from an MP3 with GarageBand. To download the MP3 for slicing and dicing in GarageBand, just Control-click the link and select Save Link As. Thanks for the fun freebie, Beau!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments