Particularly if you were disappointed at Punakea’s switch from free beta software to paid shareware, this is a good opportunity to get it at a reduced price. Punakea is a handy “tag and quick search” app in the vein of Tags or TagIt / Fresh.

Tags is compatible with OpenMeta tagging apps like Leap, Default Folder X, or the newly released Punakea and is my favorite solution for tagging files after the fact (Default Folder X being the best option for tagging them as you first save them). Of course, you should be aware of the downsides to OpenMeta; as powerful as Tags and similar programs are, they aren’t something you should use without being aware of how they’re accomplishing their magic.

Default Folder X has a slew of great features, but the one interesting to taggers is that you can define Spotlight comments when you save a file. This is possibly the best way to maintain a tagging system, since tagging when you save removes the need to go back over your files and organize them (which is unlikely to happen for most of us). If you haven’t tried Default Folder X yet, I strongly recommend it even for those people who aren’t interested in file system tagging. This is one of those applications that I wasn’t really sure if I needed, but then after I’d used it for a few days wondered how I’d survived without it.

However, from now until August 18th, 2008 StoryMill is on sale for $29.95 through the Mariner Software online store (both boxed and digital download versions). This is about a 60% discount (reg. $49.95 for boxed, $44.95 for digital download), so if you’ve been thinking you need a better tool for getting your fiction out of your head and onto the page give StoryMill a look-see.

Definitely a good deal if you’re interested in an easier way to tag your photos than iPhoto’s built-in keywords functionality. Keyword Manager provides an attractive HUD interface, hierarchical keywords, and more.

I highly recommend the MacUpdate promo bundle if only for Leap and StoryMill. Leap in particular is probably the best file system tagging solution available, and StoryMill is my favorite creative writing software (and uses tagging for its primary organization). Assuming the bundle sells well enough to unlock all ten apps, you’ll be getting $474.76 worth of software for $65. Most surprising is that more than 50% of the apps are worth buying (normally with these bundles two or three are worthwhile and the rest are all fluff). FYI: the MacUpdate link in this post is an affiliate link because while I would have recommended this bundle anyway, I’d love it if someday Tagamac at least paid for its hosting costs. Click through from here if you want to show me a little love, or just visit MacUpdate on your own if you hate affiliate links in your soul.

Despite my first impressions, Leap is the most exciting file system tagging app on the market and provides a great way for new users to get into tags (since it uses current folder hierarchies to supplement your tags). I’ve posted a bit more of an in-depth look at the strengths of Leap in the MacZot comments if you need more convincing. Incidentally, Leap was also updated to version 1.0.4 yesterday, but the update didn’t add much (just a couple of bug fixes).

People inevitably end up comparing StoryMill to Scrivener, but they’re really very different tools. Scrivener uses the metaphor of a 3×5 index cards and then makes you create your own structure. StoryMill uses the metaphor of scenes within chapters, and provides a structure, which for me at least makes writing easier since I spend less time worrying about how to organize things. StoryMill’s timeline feature is also the only one of its kind in creative writing software at the moment. If you’re a writer, this isn’t a sale you want to miss.

Been a while since MacZot had anything halfway worthwhile, but TaskPaper is definitely a well-designed app. Although TaskPaper isn’t fully-featured enough for me, for some people it’s the perfect minimalist way to keep track of your tasks. Even if you don’t end up buying it, I highly recommend trying to use it for a week just to discover which features actually matter to you in a task management app and which you can happily live without.

I definitely recommend trying out WebnoteHappy if you haven’t already. Although it has some limitations (like only supporting del.icio.us and not my favored Ma.gnolia), it’s still a very nicely designed piece of software with solid tagging support.

There are no release notes available. Additionally, Yep is on sale as part of the MacUpdate Promo bundle that is running from December 3 – 11, 2007. The bundle potentially features 10 different apps (if the sales are high enough), so if you didn’t spend enough money on MacSanta and Give Good Food to Your Mac head over and check it out.

The MacSanta sale is definitely a good one to keep your eye on (because you don’t have enough places to spend money in December as is), and they provide an RSS feed for those who like to keep abreast of the latest featured deals.

So take a break from tagging those pesky files, head over to Bill’s website, suggest a name for his lost dog, and win yourself a great novel. Or lose and buy it anyway. Whatever works for you. And with that minor endorsement out of the way, I’ll see if I can’t write something pithy about tagging next.

Additionally, yFlicks 3 is available today, November 20th, 2007 only for 40% off ($14.95) from MacUpdate Promo. I highly recommend giving yFlicks a spin and considering getting it at the sale price; I’ve enjoyed yFlicks 2, and expect yFlicks 3 to be even more useful. yFlicks 3 is a free upgrade for previously registered users.

I can only imagine the conversation at Omni: “Damn it, this project has been sapping our resources with no return for far too long.” “Hey, how about a Christmas bonus? I wanna buy a pony.” “Oh fine, we’ll sell a promise for less than the real thing and you can have your freaking pony.” In any case, while I’m currently hoping that Things will provide my GTD fix, OmniFocus is clearly going to be a standard-setting GTD application and is well worth checking out.

For more information, and to download the demo, head over to the MacUpdate Promo page.

Purchasing it now not only gives you access to what I’ve called the One True Tagging Tool on the Mac, but also a free upgrade to the Leopard-ready version when it’s released. Don’t miss this one.

Although it has absolutely nothing to do with tagging, I strongly recommend 1Passwd for anyone who uses the internet with a Mac. The developers are working on some pretty awesome stuff for the upcoming updates, too, so now would be a great time to buy it on the cheap.

FileSpot is a fantastic program that I highly recommend for everyone, and you can’t beat today’s price. Check out my review if you want the full scoop, or download the program for yourself and marvel at how easy it makes using Spotlight.

To be honest, LaunchBar is such amazingly good software that I’d advise buying it for the full price from the developer. However, if you need a great sale to convince you, then head over MacZot. I switched from Quicksilver to LaunchBar a month or two ago, and I haven’t looked back. LaunchBar has been far more stable, well-supported, and easy-to-use than Quicksilver ever was. Ironically, of course, it doesn’t have anywhere near the easy access to file system tagging that Quicksilver provides, but there you go. I love tagging, but I’ll take superior software over software with tagging any day.