Airfoil has been well-reviewed by Macworld before (receiving 4.5 out of 5 mice in both 2006 and 2008), but today Kirk McElhearn has really nailed it.

In this article, Kirk goes over the basics of using Airfoil to send any audio to your AirPort Express, Apple TV, or other Macs, Windows and Linux boxes, as well as using Airfoil to send audio to an iPhone or iPod Touch. Head over to Macworld’s website and have a read to learn more about Airfoil, then come back here to download the free trial and try it out!

Today we’ve got two big releases, Airfoil 3.3.3 and Audio Hijack Pro 2.9.3. These updates bring us to full compatibility with Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard), so we’re now encouraging all our users to upgrade both our software and if they like, their OS as well.

Both updates feature a new version of Instant Hijack, version 2.2.1, for grabbing audio from already-running applications. Also included is a Snow Leopard-compatible version of SoundFlower, the extra needed for capturing all System Audio. You should be prompted to update Instant Hijack and Soundflower if you have them installed, but you can also install by choosing Install Extras… from the Airfoil or Audio Hijack Pro menu.

The Airfoil update also fixes several small but important issues that cropped up on Mac OS X 10.6. DVD Playback in Airfoil Video Player will now play with proper colors, and the Mute option in Airfoil Speakers now remembers the previous state.

Of course, these are free updates for all licensed owners of Airfoil and Audio Hijack Pro, so everyone (on Mac OS X 10.5 or higher) should update. Just choose Check For Update from the Airfoil or Audio Hijack Pro menu, or download from our site. Of course, if you haven’t used Airfoil to send audio all around your house, or Audio Hijack Pro to record any audio, you can download free trials as well.

Additional Notes

If you use the Instant Hijack functionality to grab audio from already-running applications, you may notice a small difference on Mac OS X 10.6. When hijacking Safari and QuickTime Player, the application will still need to be restarted in order to have its audio grabbed, even if Instant Hijack is installed.

This occurs because these applications run with multiple processes in 64-bit mode, preventing us from grabbing their audio. Restarting forces them in to 32-bit mode, and their audio can again be grabbed. We’re currently investigating ways to better handle this, but it’s not clear if it will be possible to hijack multi-process apps in 64-bit mode in the foreseeable future. For more information, please see this page.

It’s also worth noting is that both Airfoil and Audio Hijack Pro now require Mac OS X 10.5 or higher. It’s been our general policy to support the current OS as well as the previous OS, and with the release of Snow Leopard, that means we’ll be support Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac OS X 10.5. So if you’re still on Mac OS X 10.4, be sure to stick with Airfoil 3.3.2 and Audio Hijack Pro 2.9.2 until you update your OS.

Today we’ve released an update to Nicecast, in the form of version 1.9.8, which brings with it full Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) compatibility. This update features a new version of Instant Hijack for grabbing audio from already-running applications. You should be prompted to update Instant Hijack if you have it installed, but you can also install it by choosing Install Extras… from the Nicecast menu.

It’s also worth noting is that Nicecast now requires Mac OS X 10.5 or higher. It’s been our general policy to support the current OS as well as the previous OS, and with the release of Snow Leopard, that means we’ll be support Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac OS X 10.5. So if you’re still on Mac OS X 10.4, be sure to stick with Nicecast 1.9.7 until you update your OS.

This is, of course, a free update for all licensed owners of Nicecast, so everyone (on Mac OS X 10.5 or higher) is encouraged to update. Just choose Check For Update from the Nicecast menu, or click to download from our site. If you haven’t used Nicecast before, check out the easiest way to broadcast audio from your Mac, with a free trial.

And fear not, Airfoil and Audio Hijack Pro users – updates for both these applications are coming very, very soon as well.