The Omni Group is famed for itswell-made and well-designed OS X applications, namely OmniOutliner, OmniGraffle and OmniWeb. This newest addition to the Omni product line is something a little different.
At face value, OmniDazzle is a toy. Most people, on trying it for the first time, will 'play' with it rather than 'use' it. What it does is create a transparent layer on top of all your existing windows, on to which you can scribble, draw shapes, or play visual effects. It interacts directly with your on-screen pointer or cursor, and boasts several different ways of helping you find it amid a mess of open windows.
There are effects that will have children - and adults - giggling with delight. You can add comic-style sound effect speech bubbles (ZOT! POW!), or sprinkle pixie dust over your monitor - it falls away to the bottom of your screen in a very entertaining manner.
All this comes at a cost, however. You need a pile of Ram and one of the more powerful graphics cards in your Mac to make it work. OmniDazzle's effects are processor-intensive and you'll notice your Mac warming up - and the fan kicking in to cool it down - if you do a lot of dazzling.
OmniDazzle has left people puzzled because it's not the kind of 'pro' app that we're used to seeing from Omni Group. And while almost any Mac user could probably put OmniWeb or OmniOutliner to use, not many people are going to have much serious need of OmniDazzle.
But there are some circumstances when it could be very useful. Anyone who does a lot of presentations will love to use the effects to wow an audience; and teachers will probably find them popular with school children. If you're in these niches and your Mac has the oomph required to run OmniDazzle, you'll probably find it a great value purchase.
Verdict
There are some circumstances when it could be very useful
Author: Giles Turnbull
MacUser Online