MacStories is a daily publication about all things Apple that attracts millions of readers every month.
We rely on MacStories too
I myself (Luc P. Beaudoin) subscribe to “Club MacStories”. I look forward to their weekly email because it always contains thoughtful insights relevant to the Apple ecosystem in which I am a passionate participant.
Hook 3.0 was featured in Club MacStories
We were delighted that MacStories covered the release of Hook 3.0 in its recent weekly email (Issue 271). Managing Editor, John Voorhees (@johnvoorhees), described Hook as a powerful way to retrieve exactly what you need when you need it.
Homepage update
Today we updated our homepage to better capture this idea, saying
Hook is a CogSci Apps® invention that keeps you focused. How? Hook enables you to instantly retrieve the information you need. Whether it’s on the web or in one of your favorite apps, with Hook you don’t need to search. Just click on links to access that email, PDF, task or other item — and get your job done fast.
Compile a treasure chest of knowledge gems
We also describe Hook as a simple (addictive!) habit with countless savvy benefits. The more often you use Hook to copy links, the more time you save (directly, and by compiling an inventory of precious bookmarks).
MacStories sponsored post “Find Without Searching”
Most people are still so mesmerized by the magic of search engines that they fail to realize that searching is often only needlessly time consuming — it drains your precious brain energy and takes you out of the zone. Searching requires many steps: conceiving of search string; typing it out; ‘return’; reading and analyzing search results; selecting a search result to use (if any); clicking on a link, or reformulating one’s search. Cognitive psychologists should know that all these steps take time — but I have found that even cognitive scientists get fooled by search.
One of the major benefits of Hook is that it allows you to skip the search; and use links instead.
On MacStories, you can read about how Hook helps you Find without Searching. This is a sponsored blog post that meets the rigorous editorial criteria of MacStories.
Yet this expression only tells part of the story, because Hook is also an automatic bookmarking tool that supports search too! Unlike traditional search engines, Hook’s search database is laser-focused.
In our R&D at CogSci Apps Corp., we’ve discovered that Copy Link is the most discriminative heuristic for future information-retrieval relevance.
This is a concept upon which I expounded in my book Cognitive Productivity: Using Knowledge to Become Profoundly Effective, without referencing Hook.
A longer version of the post
Here’s a longer version of this week’s MacStories blog post.
Hook is a revolutionary CogSci Apps® invention that links your digital work. Its contextual window enables you to link information within and between your favorite Mac apps, and to instantly open linked items — without searching.
- Immediacy. Instantly copy a labeled hot link to the foreground app’s selected/open item. This properly sets the link’s label and URL. No more manually editing links with ⌘K!
- Universal Copy Link. Most apps don’t have a command for copying links☹️. Hook solves that: its
Copy Linkworks not only with entire web pages, but with almost anything, even files, objects (such as tasks and calendar entries) and emails😊.- Consistency. Unfortunately different apps use different names, locations and shortcuts for their Copy Link command (that’s if they support copying links)☹️. Hook’s
Copy Linkin contrast is uniform😊. Use the same habit everywhere.- Ubiquity. Paste links in any app: in your notes, todo lists, emails, anywhere.
- Context sensitivity. Access information with these links rather than searching.
- Two-way links (“hooks“). macOS 12’s “Quick Note” only works with Notes☹️. In contrast, Hook can bidirectionally link information from any linkable app, so you can remain in context. And Hook does so much more.
- Robust file links. macOS®
file://links are brittle☹️. Hook links work even after you move or rename the files to which they refer😊.- Deep PDF links. Hook can even copy links to specific locations in a PDF.
- Shareable links. Send file and email links to your recipients. When they click on the link, Hook will reveal the file (even to the specific location in a PDF!) or open the email! Hook Lite activates links and is free. Your recipients will save time and love you for it❤️.
- Copy Markdown Link. Instantly create a markdown-formatted link to the foreground app’s current item (web page, file, etc.)
- Revelation. While a file is open in your favorite app, invoke Hook and type ⌘R to reveal the file in Finder.
- Automatic bookmarking. Copying links is the best signal of future relevance! So Hook automatically bookmarks what you link (files, emails, etc.) It can also bookmark to Pinboard. Instapaper & GoodLinks integration coming soon.
- And much more!
Hook is an extensible native macOS app that augments you and your favorite apps! Your data stays on your devices and can be synced. Stay in the zone by using links rather than searching.
One simple habit. Countless benefits!
Cognitive productivity colophon
Curious about how Hook helps me write in a focused manner? Check out How to Create Systematically and Stay “in the Zone”.
That blog post references software by The Omni Group. But in this case, I utilized plain text files written in TaskPaper and BBEdit. I used Hook in the same manner as described in the post to quickly navigate amongst these resources.