FastTasks 2 adds commonly used Terminal commands to the Mac's menu bar. If you've read some of our Mac hardware and software guides, troubleshooting tips, or performance guides, you may have noticed that we frequently use the Terminal app, which is included with OS X. That's because Terminal provides access to OS X's command line, where we can manipulate many of the basic features of the operating system.

Of course, one problem with using Terminal is that many commands are very cryptic, making them difficult to understand, and in some cases, downright impossible to remember. That's where FastTasks 2 comes in. It has some of the common Terminal commands we use here built in. Just select a command from a drop-down menu and FastTasks 2 will execute the command for you. No typing, no complex string of text to remember, and no need to launch Terminal; FastTasks 2 takes care of everything for you.

FastTasks 2 doesn't include all of the Terminal commands that we have in our guides, but it does include some of the commands that we use most often, such as making a Library folder visible, making files and folders visible, and flushing a DNS cache. These and other Terminal commands are just a menu-click away.

The app also provides access to useful system information, such as how fast your Mac fans are turning, your current IP address, and the version of OS X that you're running.

FastTasks 2 is free. A donation of $1.99 is suggested.

See other software choices from Tom's Mac Software Picks.

(07/12/2014)