With Lion, we got Launchpad, and though it’s under utilized, its lack of customatization options makes it a little finicky to use. But, if you download Launchpad Control, you can sort, hide/unhide, and reorder your applications within Launchpad easily. This little app makes it easy to manually organize your apps in Launchpad.

What You’ll Need

Mac OS X Lion
Launchpad Control (free)

To begin using Launchpad Control, download the zip file from the developer’s website, and double-click on the System Preference pane once you unzip the download. Once installed, open the pane by navigating to System Preferences Launchpad Control.

Hiding Applications

Uncheck the boxes beside the application name to hide it from view within Launchpad. You can uncheck multiple apps by unchecking an entire page of applications. When you’re done, click Apply to save the changes.

Sorting Applications

There are a few ways that you can sort your applications in Launchpad from the preference pane. First, you can use the option to “Sort all items A-Z”, or you can sort the items and folders of specific applications alphabetically using by selecting the page or folder and then selecting “Sort children A-Z.”

Creating Folders/Groups

Lastly, you can also drag and drop applications on top of one another to create a folder (or “group”). You can name this group whatever you like in the pop up dialog.

After you’ve created the group with an initial two applications, you can begin filling up the new folder by dragging and dropping additional apps into the group. When you’re done, click on the Apply button to have the changes saved.

Cory Bohon is a freelance technology writer, indie Mac and iOS developer, and amateur photographer. Follow this article’s author, Cory Bohon on Twitter.

Word spread like wildfire on Wednesday that Electronic Arts was killing off its iOS-based ROCK BAND game, with users receiving a cryptic message with a May 31 target date. There’s just one problem: It was a mistake.

Cnet is reporting that ROCK BAND for iOS has received a stay of execution — the app isn’t going anywhere on May 31, and the rumors of the app’s demise are apparently much ado about nothing.

On Wednesday, word spread that the game was on the chopping block after an in-app notification appeared which states: “Dear Rockers: On May 31, ROCK BAND will no longer be playable on your device. Thanks for rocking out with us!” Needless to say, the message was like a dagger in the heart of ROCK BAND fans everywhere.

Now, Electronic Arts has stepped forward to clear the air — and it turns out the whole thing was just a mistake.

“ROCK BAND for iOS will remain live — the in-app message users received yesterday was sent in error,” a company statement explains. “We apologize for the confusion this caused. We’re working to clarify the issue that caused the error and will share additional information as soon as possible.”

Curiously, the May 31 cutoff appeared to be all but confirmed according to a FAQ page on the company’s website claiming EA was “suspending support of ROCK BAND after May 31 and focusing resources on other EA titles.” That wording has since been replaced with the statement above, so it seems that the game is safe from the executioner’s blade for now.

Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter

(Image courtesy of Cnet)

Owners of the iPad have a reason to rejoice today, as they are finally able to join their music-loving brethren on Mac and iPhone in the phenomenon that is Spotify. After a less-than-satisfying release of an iPhone app that wouldn’t run natively on iPad, the music streaming giant sat down and built an app from the ground up to give Apple’s tablet crowd access to 17 million streaming songs. While the wait was lengthy, the app appears to be worth it.

Building off of the existing functionality of the iPhone app, Spotify for the iPad takes full advantage of its new platform. The sizable and pixel-perfect display of the iPad inspired a Retina-optimized interface and a new full-screen “now playing” view that presents cover art in beautiful high definition. The iPad version also boasts some extra settings that until now have been desktop-specific, including the ability to set the length of crossfading between songs — between zero and twelve seconds — and gapless playback. Songs will also come through better than ever if you so choose, thanks to the ability to pick the download quality — the highest being “extreme,” at 320Kbps.

While there are a handful of new features that are absent in the iPhone version, Spotify still delivers the familiar layout and functionality that have made it such a hit on other platforms. Delving further into the never-ending pit of music that Spotify possesses is just as easy as it was on the iPhone, if not even easier. You’ll start each session with the “What’s New” tab, which presents all of the best offerings from trending artists and worthwhile playlists. One tap will take you into a band’s discography, while another sends you off to one of their main collaborators’ projects, and then to the solo album their drummer released — it really goes as far as you’re willing to take it. Luckily, swiping back allows you to climb out of the hole just as easily as you fell into it.

The social features that have carried the service’s popularity since it first launched for Mac and PC are still ever present. Sharing songs across social networks is as easy as making two taps, or you can send songs to individual Spotify users within the People list. If you’ve got friends over and want to save the effort of sharing in the device, just stream the songs over your speaker system with Apple’s AirPlay.

Like the other versions of the Spotify app, you’ll be required to subscribe to the premium service after the 30 day free trial. It’ll run you $9.99 a month, but with how slick the app is and how much you can conceivably pull from it, that might be well worth it. The free universal Spotify app is available now from the App Store.

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Spotify for iPad

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  Finding music from your favorite artists and similar music-makers is easy with a search of Spotify’s extensive library.

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  The iPad’s display is put to work with the new full-screen feature and high-definition images.

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  Sending your favorite tunes over to your friends and followers is as simple as two clicks, so you can easily let everyone know how great your taste is.

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  Scroll through your friends and fellow Spotify users to take a look at their favorite artists and published playlists.

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  Settings that are new to the portable app include customizing the crossfade options and the ability to have gapless playback.

We all know Ashton Kutcher will soon be playing Steve Jobs, but did you know the enigmatic Apple co-founder also has a rare acting cameo to his name? Thanks to a long-lost in-house short film called “1944,” the truth can finally be revealed as Jobs portrays his own version of President Roosevelt during World War II. This and a whole lot more make up the news for this hump day on Wednesday, May 2, 2012!

Target Phasing Out Kindle Products

The Verge reported on Tuesday night that Target stores may soon be phasing out Amazon Kindle-branded products this spring. Turns out the rumor was true, and Target has issued a statement confirming the change. “Target continually evaluates its product assortment to deliver the best quality and prices for our guests,” the statement reads. “Target is phasing out Kindles and Amazon- and Kindle-branded products in the spring of 2012. We will continue to offer our guests a full assortment of ereaders and supporting accessories including the Nook.” Many took the news to mean that Target would be more focused on Apple’s iPad, but wording from the company’s statement appears to show more interest in Barnes Noble’s e-reader platform, which will certainly help boost its market share in the near future, we’d guess.

Parallels Mobile Now Optimized for New iPad

Developers continue to roll out Retina Display-ready updates for the new iPad, with the latest being Parallels Mobile, the iOS companion app to the company’s popular virtualization software that allows running Windows 7, Linux and even the Windows 8 Consumer Preview on your Mac. Parallels Mobile is now fully compatible with iOS 5 and optimized for the new iPad, while also connecting to your Mac easier than ever before. The $19.99 app is still being offered at the special introductory price of only $4.99 from the App Store, so if you’ve been on the fence about buying, you might want to hurry.

Amazon Releases Cloud Drive Desktop App for Mac, PC

Apparently feeling left out of the recent infusion of cloud apps, Amazon today introduced its own Amazon Cloud Drive Desktop app for Mac and Windows. The free app requires Mac OS X 10.6 or higher and allows quick access to your cloud drive, including easy uploading of photos, documents, videos and other files via drag-and-drop. Files can also be added by Control-clicking files or folder from the Finder (note you’ll have to restart your computer or relaunch the Finder for this option to appear). Amazon’s Cloud Drive app isn’t quite as integrated as Dropbox or its score of competitors, since no icon appears on your hard drive — just a little fluffy cloud in your menu bar where files can be dragged. It’s a shame Amazon didn’t get this out before now — we have a free 20GB storage bump from last year which expires in July, so no sense filling up our cloud now when it’s going to drop back to the standard 5GB then.

Steve Jobs as FDR? Internal Apple Video “1944” Resurfaces

Network World has a rare treat for Steve Jobs fans today, with a nearly nine-minute in-house video Apple made back in 1984. In the video entitled “1944,” Apple does a retro spin on its iconic “1984” commercial, set during World War II as Cupertino bravely fights its war against IBM. Rumored to have cost $50,000 at the time, the highlight of the video has to be Steve Jobs playing President Franklin Delano Roosevelt — “right down to the cigarette holder” — which was made to “fire up Apple’s international sales force at a 1984 meeting in Hawaii.” The video comes courtesy of former employee Craig Elliott, now CEO of cloud startup Pertino Networks (ironically, based a mere two blocks from Apple’s Cupertino headquarters), who worked at Apple from 1985 to 1996. Definitely a lost gem from a lost era, the website offers both the full video as well as a shorter piece with Jobs’ cameo role, for those of you in a big hurry.

PSA: Adobe Photoshop CS6 Beta Download Disappears Thursday!

With Adobe Creative Suite 6 not only announced but available for preorder, it was just a matter of time before that super-cool Photoshop CS6 beta sailed away into Adobe Labs heaven. As it turns out, that day is coming on Thursday, May 3, with Adobe announcing the final 24 hours to download the beta version before the real thing comes out. No word on when the beta actually stops working, but we’ll assume shortly after the official release. So when will that be? Adobe isn’t saying, but the CS6 software and new Creative Cloud is listed as shipping in “early May” and Adobe promised release within 30 days of the announcement on April 23. Given that the Photoshop CS6 beta is going bye-bye, we’d say next week looks quite promising, but don’t hold your disappointment against us should that prediction fail to pan out. In the meantime, head over to Adobe’s online store to preorder CS6 or Creative Cloud so you’ll be among the first to grab it.

Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter

(Image courtesy of Network World)