Everyone complains about the weather but nobody does anything about it. Sadly, that’s just the way it works. For Mac users, there are plenty of ways to get the weather on your Mac. From current conditions to historical data to the five day forecast. Here are five ways to get weather on a Mac. How many are free?
Widgets
Half a dozen Dashboard Widgets grace my Mac, just for weather information. Even Apple’s basic weather Widget works wonders (click on any image for a pop up, close up view).
What I like about Widget weather is how quickly I can get to current conditions or a seven day near forecast. Near because about all you get is the projected High, projected Low and general outlook; cloudy, sunny, rainy.
I set Dashboard up so the Widgets display when I move my mouse pointer to the right side of the screen. It’s instant gratification.
More Detail
The problem with weather, besides the fact that we can’t do anything about it anyway, is that it always changes, or is about to change. That means getting just a little more information than a sunny day or a cloudy forecast is important.
For that extra bit of information I chose the Weather Underground Widget.
Receive weather conditions, animated radar, forecasts, severe weather alerts, web cams and Wunderphotos for any location in the world—delivered right to your desktop.
It’s difficult to beat the convenience of a Widget. They’re not even a click away (click on any image for a pop up, close up view).
I’m a sucker for color and detail and beautiful photos, all wrapped up in one Widget.
Radar O’Reilly?
Sometimes it’s nice to know what’s heading your way. That’s what weather radar is for. The Radar In Motion Dashboard Widget is my choice.
Access the radar for a given city in the United States or get a regional map, including several international maps. The widget has options for displaying and updating the maps, including weather alerts and the ability to save maps for a specified period of time.
Is it beginning to look like I have a complete weather center on my Mac’s Dashboard?
Non-Widget Weather
Dashboard Widgets are not the only way to receive weather information. The Dock is a good place, too. It’s visible, requiring only a glance, and more detail is a click away.
Alwin Troosts WeatherDock provides plenty of detail, too.
WeatherDock displays weather information based on xml-feeds supplied by weather.com®. It displays textual weather information as well as icon-based. Next to the current conditions it contains 10 day forecasts with 2 day-part’s weather information.
The only problem here is that detailed weather information requires an extra click or two to retrieve.
WX Adnauseum
Tim the Toolman Taylor would say, “More Detail.” That’s the job of the Wx weather utility, one of the best, most detailed weather apps on a Mac.
Wx can be configured to track weather conditions, watches/warnings/advisories, live radar, and forecast information for up to 20 U.S. locations, and it can download up to 20 weather maps or images. Wx downloads data on-demand, and can be configured to download data automatically on a periodic basis.
This is not your father’s weathervane. It’s weather detail with detail. $17 gets you comprehensive weather data, historical data, up to 20 locations, multiple display modes, point forecasts, and much more. Just slick and sassy.
When weather is an issue and requires a little more than the Dashboard Widget, Wx is what I look at first.
What’s your choice for weather forecasts and current conditions?