LaunchBar 4 Beta

LaunchBar 4 Beta has been released, and it’s awesome. Here are some neat things you can do (and for all of these, the text [activate] means typing [command][space] to activate LaunchBar):

+ [activate] google [space]

…then type your google search term(s) and hit [return]. Safari will jump to google, and initiate your search.

+ [activate] ssh [space]

…then type the server you want to ssh to and hit [return]. Terminal will open a new window with your ssh session.

+ [activate] ping [space]

…then type the server you want to ping and hit [return]. Terminal will open a new window with your ping session.

+ [activate] safari [right-arrow]

…then navigate either Safari’s history or bookmarks.

+ [activate] henderson [return]

…then navigate Matt Henderson’s Address Book contact record. Choose an email address and hit return, and Mail opens with a new message. Choose a phone number and hit return, and the number appears in large letters on the screen.

+ [activate] www.

…LaunchBar opens the “Open Location…” tool. Finish your URL and safari opens a new window to that URL. Type “ftp” instead, and an FTP URL begins.

+ Select an item in the Finder (or Path Finder), say a spreadsheet file, [activate] excel [command] d

…LaunchBar opens the Finder selection with Excel as if it had been dropped.

And, of course, it’s all as configurable as ever. The configuration interface has been dramatically improved as well.