Locomatic Manages Your Mac's Network Locations

If there's one thing that irritates a Mac geek, it's the fact that MacOS doesn't switch network profiles by default if you move between a wireless and a wired network, or even between multiple wired networks on its own. For example, when I move from the wireless network at the office to my wireless network at home, I have to change the network profile, called a "location," manually. Locomatic takes care of that irritation by detecting what network you're connected to and automatically adjusting the location to match.






For most Mac users, the fact that the locations don't switch automatically isn't a big deal; in most cases it's okay to configure your Mac to accept whatever network configuration it gets from the network's DHCP server or router. Unfortunately however, if you move between networks that require specific configuration, like custom DNS servers, static IP addresses, or a specific gateway, moving between the office and the home office might mean a trip into the Network System Preferences. That trip may not be a big deal to someone very familiar with MacOS, but it can be annoying for an expert and near-crippling for a novice.


Locomatic takes care of it for you, so your configuration profile changes automatically depending on the network you've connected to. Locomatic can handle wired and wireless connections, and can even handle networks that use proxy servers and other complex location information. As long as you configure the network profile once in the Network System Preferences, Locomatic can switch between them.


Additionally, the new version of Locomatic can even change your browser's home page and your default printer for you when you switch networks, so you don't have to take a trip into the Print and Fax System Preferences to change default printers from your office's network printer to your home printer when you head home for the day.


The developer behind Locomatic provides documentation and an older version of the software if you need help troubleshooting or learning to use the app. Locomatic is free (although the developer graciously accepts donations), and version 2.1 works with both Mac OS 10.4 and 10.5.