Macworld's Best Small-Business Apps

ClearGuard from Moshi, $20.

This thing is so new that it is hard to get good photos of, but Moshi's ClearGuard is clearly a great idea. Basically, the ClearGuard is a $20, thin, translucent vinyl cover that slips over your laptop's keyboard to keep out all that nasty finger gunk. I don't know about you, but some simply awful stuff winds up in my machines.

This washable, durable rubber covering should end all that keyboard abuse. Better yet, my first impression was that the ClearGuard was well-engineered, had minimal effect on typing and did not seem to degrade, at least to start. I will report back about how well it holds up over time. But it is a nice idea.

MicroMemo for the Nano from XtremeMac, $30.

Just what the world needs: a better way to take dictation. But there is something oddly compelling about the MicroMemo, a microphone dock for your iPod Nano. This simple, portable docking microphone turns any basic iPod into a robust digital-voice recorder with controls, great download capacity and decent fidelity. I found this thing very handy in limited on-floor noodling. And it made me wonder if old-school dictation might just make a comeback with this thing. Watch out, admins, you may be getting a voice note sometime soon.