Our thanks to Smile for sponsoring MacStories this week with PDFpenPro 6.

PDFpenPro is the advanced version of PDFpen. PDFpenPro does everything that PDFpen does, such as add signatures, edit text and images, perform OCR on scanned documents and export Microsoft Word documents. It also has the ability to create a PDF form, build a table of contents, and convert HTML files to PDF.

The new PDFpenPro 6 adds document permission settings. When you share a PDF, you can restrict printing, copying, and editing of your PDFs. You can also use the new automatic form field creation tool to convert a non-interactive form into an interactive PDF form with text fields and checkboxes automatically added. PDFpenPro 6 is optimized for the Retina Display and now takes advantage of Versions and Auto Save available in Lion and Mountain Lion, which better saves your edits from accidental loss.

PDFpenPro 6 is available on the Smile Store and the Mac App Store for $100. A free demo can be downloaded on the Smile site. Find out why Macworld calls PDFpenPro “the crème de la crème of PDF editing and annotating applications.”

Our thanks to MacPaw for sponsoring MacStories this week with CleanMyMac 2.

CleanMyMac 2 is the successor to MacPaw’s award winning system utility, rebuilt and redesigned from the ground up to make it easier than ever to remove the cruft that’s taking up unnecessary storage space on your Mac. CleanMyMac 2 scans your hard drive, looking for unneeded temporary files, unused caches, forgotten files, and even cleans up application-specific trash in applications like iPhoto. It can also optimize your iPhoto library, removing original versions of images that you’ve since modified while editing. CleanMyMac 2 even helps you take care of plug-ins and widgets, while ensuring applications are completely uninstalled.

CleanMyMac 2 is free to try, and a single license is available for only $39.95. A license for up to five Macs is only $89.95.

For families with PCs in addition to Macs there’s also CleanMyPC, which brings the same easy-to-use interface to the Windows desktop.

My thanks to CrashPlan for sponsoring MacStories this week.

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CrashPlan lets you backup your data to your own computers and hard drives or friends & family with no storage limits. CrashPlan gives you the peace-of-mind that only comes with continuous, minute-to-minute backup. CrashPlan has been a favorite of the Mac community for years because of its “set it and forget it” ease of use and ability to provide continuous, minute-by-minute backup without interfering with normal Mac operations. Using sophisticated byte pattern analysis and data de-duplication to detect file changes, CrashPlan preserves multiple versions of files; if you don’t want to always use your Mac, the files you were just working on minutes ago can be accessed from our phone or tablet using CrashPlan’s free mobile apps.

Find out more about CrashPlan here.

My thanks to Apparent for sponsoring MacStories this week with Doxie.

Doxie is an award-winning scanner that works anywhere – no computer required – and then syncs to your Mac, iPad, and various cloud services. Doxie’s small and portable hardware comes in two models: Doxie One and Doxie Go. The Doxie’s scanning process is simple: just push a button and insert your sheet of paper to save it thanks to the Doxie’s built-in battery and memory chip.

I have been using a Doxie Go since January 2012. My paperless workflow consists of scanning quick receipts with the iPhone’s Camera and larger documents with the Doxie Go. The Doxie provides high-quality scans that I import with the Doxie Mac app, which provides an option to save PDFs with or without OCR; on the Mac, I then save everything to Evernote directly from the Doxie app. The Doxie Go is the only scanner I’ve ever owned and I’m very happy with it.

Learn more about Doxie here.

My thanks to IdeasOnCanvas for sponsoring MacStories this week with MindNode.

MindNode is an easy to use and elegant mind mapping app for iOS and OS X. With a clutter-free interface, MindNode lets you brainstorm and connect ideas on an infinitely expanding canvas that can hold as many ideas as you like. MindNode’s focus on simplicity allows you to easily move between “nodes” and mark the most important ones with bold text or bigger font sizes.

MindNode has been one of my favorite apps for a long time. I don’t use iCloud much, but I found MindNode’s implementation to be extremely reliable at keeping my maps in sync across my iPhone and iPad, allowing me to start jotting down thoughts on one device and finish on the other. Whenever someone asks me for a mind mapping app recommendation, I personally mention MindNode because it’s been a great tool for me.

Find out more about MindNode here.

My thanks to DigiDNA for sponsoring MacStories this week with DiskAid.

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DiskAid lets you transfer files to and from iOS devices via USB or WiFi. With support for files, folders, and complete file trees, DiskAid automatically detects installed apps and allows you to transfer music, movies, and podcasts (audio and video) to Apple’s apps, but also files and documents to third-party apps without having to use iTunes.

Among other features, you can access an iPhone’s call log, voicemail, and SMS history and export them to a Mac or PC. For Messages, you can generate a PDF of text messages, iMessages, or MMS that will include text and pictures formatted with iOS’ style.

Find out more about DiskAid here.

My thanks to CrashPlan for sponsoring MacStories this week.

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CrashPlan lets you backup your data to your own computers and hard drives or friends & family with no storage limits. CrashPlan gives you the peace-of-mind that only comes with continuous, minute-to-minute backup. CrashPlan has been a favorite of the Mac community for years because of its “set it and forget it” ease of use and ability to provide continuous, minute-by-minute backup without interfering with normal Mac operations. Using sophisticated byte pattern analysis and data de-duplication to detect file changes, CrashPlan preserves multiple versions of files; if you don’t want to always use your Mac, the files you were just working on minutes ago can be accessed from our phone or tablet using CrashPlan’s free mobile apps.

This week only, MacStories readers can get 33% off CrashPlan by using this special link.

Find out more about CrashPlan here.

My thanks to Smile for sponsoring MacStories this week with TextExpander.

TextExpander is the best utility to save time while typing. Why type the same thing over and over? Your email address, your phone number, your email signature can all be made into snippets and inserted with just a short abbreviation. You can use TextExpander to correct common typos (using autocorrect snippet groups or adding your own corrections to the snippet library), insert the current date in several formats with just a short abbrevation, and even quickly automate the creation of form letters with multiple choice pop-ups, optional fields, and more.

Furthermore, TextExpander is integrated in over 140 iOS apps including Things, iA Writer and others that I personally use every day, like OmniFocus and Day One. TextExpander comes with Dropbox sync, so your snippets will always be in sync across iOS and OS X.

Find out more about TextExpander here.

My thanks to Orbicule for sponsoring MacStories this week.

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Undercover is Find My Mac done right. After a very simple installation, Undercover will run in the background, constantly monitoring the location of your Mac. If your Mac gets stolen, in addition to tracking location Undercover will also snap mugshots through the computer’s built-in camera and capture keystrokes.

I personally use Undercover 5 because I like its web-based interface better than Apple’s Find My Mac. If you’re looking for a more powerful Find My Mac, I highly recommend Undercover 5.

Find out more about Undercover here.