Support NeoGAF

[The Real Abed]

Because I work mostly in a Windows environment and because HDDs are still relatively expensive, I've been slow on the uptake with making back ups. (Dedicating a drive strictly to HFS a new thing to me). Of course the time I finally decide to do it, the drive is out of reach. Figures!

I'm glad I have an old bootable Snow Leopard clone lying around, but now I'm having trouble with my old Mountain Lion dmg that I saved - it's failing to verify some pkg files. What a pain. lol

I just hope that, since I was able to format (and write zeros) to my hard drive, it means that the drive is healthy and I won't have to write it off. After formatting the drive, Disk Utility returned no errors when I tried to verify/repair it, but it'd be nice if there was something like chkdsk in Windows that surfaces the specifics of the drive. I don't even know if I have bad sectors on it or some other defect.

HDD's are cheap as dirt. And online backup sites work on Windows too. Either option is going to run you such a small amount of money it's crazy not to do it. You really need to get a backup because your drive is going to die. That message is usually a sign of the early stages of death. But not always. You can still use the drive, but you may going to have corruption as time goes on. Then again, it might just be a fluke. Who knows exactly how these things happen.

I have a family plan on CrashPlan which lets me have 10 computers with however many drives I want from each. With that plan, which is still pretty damn cheap, you could backup both your Mac and your Windows files AND download them to either machine from anywhere. CP has paid for itself for me. The iOS and Android apps are amazingly useful too as you can download any file your computer has backed up from anywhere. Useful for many file types like images and any video iOS can play out of the box.

Basically, you should easily be able to afford an online backup plan really.

Are your Windows and Mac computers the same machine or different machines? Because CP also lets you backup easily to another machine no matter what its format is. So basically on your Windows machine you could have a drive with NTFS or FAT or whatever and if I'm not mistaken, CP will be able to handle all the saving and storing of the files so you don't have to worry about OS X being unable to save to NTFS. This is actually a FREE feature of the program. I'd definitely check that out at least as it's free for local backing up. You only need to pay if you use their online feature. This would let you not have to dedicate a drive to HFS.

If they're the same machine, I'd still look into online backing up. Definitely recommended.

 

[firehawk12]

I don't know if this changed, but to use Time Machine, you need to use a HFS formatted drive, so that was what was stopping me.

For the most part, I'm already on the cloud, but in a very minor way - through DropBox and GoogleDrive - but I can see how it would be useful to go all the way to a service that is dedicated to back ups.

Seeing as I've had to start over (which isn't a big deal, but annoying), I'm probably going to force myself to get into the habit of doing monthly Time Machine backups though.

 

[The Real Abed]

I don't know if this changed, but to use Time Machine, you need to use a HFS formatted drive, so that was what was stopping me.

For the most part, I'm already on the cloud, but in a very minor way - through DropBox and GoogleDrive - but I can see how it would be useful to go all the way to a service that is dedicated to back ups.

Seeing as I've had to start over (which isn't a big deal, but annoying), I'm probably going to force myself to get into the habit of doing monthly Time Machine backups though.

I was saying CrashPlan's Computer to Computer backup doesn't require the format to be the same. So you could backup your Mac to your Windows and vice versa without needing the drive to be changed. As far as I know that is. Since the CP app will handle the file as it comes into the other machine it should have no problem taking a file from OS X and placing it on FAT or NTFS under Windows. (If your Mac and PC are separate machines that is.)

 

[firehawk12]

I was saying CrashPlan's Computer to Computer backup doesn't require the format to be the same. So you could backup your Mac to your Windows and vice versa without needing the drive to be changed. As far as I know that is. Since the CP app will handle the file as it comes into the other machine it should have no problem taking a file from OS X and placing it on FAT or NTFS under Windows. (If your Mac and PC are separate machines that is.)

Ah, I see. I was thinking more of back ups of non-essential, but still crucial files related to the system like the keychain or mail messages or app settings and whatnot. It's why I'd like to set up full CCC or Time Machine backups in lieu of putting all my working documents in the cloud.

It could make sense to have a third cloud back up though, especially offsite, and maybe I'll think about that later on. In an ideal world, I'd have my own Drobo with 8 3tb drives that I can constantly push backups too as well, so I would have backups of my backups.

Now I seem to have a problem with the Mac downloading updates that are corrupt. I hope that was just a fluke and not something related to my system.

 

[The Real Abed]

Ah, I see. I was thinking more of back ups of non-essential, but still crucial files related to the system like the keychain or mail messages or app settings and whatnot. It's why I'd like to set up full CCC or Time Machine backups in lieu of putting all my working documents in the cloud.

It could make sense to have a third cloud back up though, especially offsite, and maybe I'll think about that later on. In an ideal world, I'd have my own Drobo with 8 3tb drives that I can constantly push backups too as well, so I would have backups of my backups.

Now I seem to have a problem with the Mac downloading updates that are corrupt. I hope that was just a fluke and not something related to my system.

Duplicate backups are definitely recommended. Offsite and onsite have benefits the other doesn't. I have a networked CCC backup that runs a few times a day, and an off-site cloud backup in case my house burns down or I need to access a file from somewhere else.

If you only have one computer you could use the cheapest CP plan which is 10GB and just backup important files and only keep the last weeks worth or so. But if you need to also backup another machine, you'd probably need a family plan. Also, CP isn't the only one out there. It's just the best deal you can get. But it's worth it for peace of mind. I paid for the highest price plan I could get. A Family Plan with unlimited storage for up to 10 machines for $287. That's $287 once. And not again for 4 years. That's a goddamn deal if you ask me. (And do the math and see that it's basically $6 a month. Half the price if you paid monthly.) Then again I have a few machines and family members on my plan.

 

[njean777]

You guys really like to back up your data, I just set up a time machine back up and then have my important files stored on drop box. May look into google drive also.

 

[The Real Abed]

You guys really like to back up your data, I just set up a time machine back up and then have my important files stored on drop box. May look into google drive also.

I have over a TB of files I would not want to lose in a disaster. And even the most expensive CP plan is cheaper overall than the lowest pay option for DropBox. I use (Free) DB for moving files between machines. And CP for making sure I never lose access to them.

 

[mollipen]

You guys really like to back up your data, I just set up a time machine back up and then have my important files stored on drop box. May look into google drive also.

About five years ago now, I lost an external drive that has documents, videos, and photos that not only I'd never be able to get back, but that I has no record of what I'd lost. (So I still have moments like a week ago, when I realize that I need something but that I no longer have it.)

Now, all of my major files I store on an external drive, which every night at 10pm gets backed up to a second external drive. From there, important photos I also back up to Google's web Picasa service, important music/audio I back up to Google Music (20,000 audio files stored for free), and important documents I also stash on Dropbox.

(I have no good back-up solution for my larger video files yet, beyond the redundant drives set-up, which I really need to get fixe at some point.)

My internal drive only gets used for three things: Applications, email, and downloads. If I lose my apps, I just re-install, so no problem. Email is all IMAP, so no worry if I lose my local copies. Downloads, if I'm keeping up like I should, aren't there long.

If you have ANYTHING that you care about, and you aren't doing proper backups, then you're absolutely asking for trouble. The fragility of your digital life cannot be emphasized enough.

 

[komarkaze]

Before I upgraded to Mountain Lion, I was able to stream content from my IMac to my Xbox 360 using 360Connect for years with no problems. Since I upgraded, they cannot see each other at all. I made sure to update the 360Connect to 3.55 but it still doesn't work. I have no firewall enabled either. Comments on the App Store indicate Nullriver never fixed the issue since 2011. Am I screwed?

 

[Jubern]

Try PS3 Media Server.
And no, I'm not joking despite the soft's name.

 

[Hcow]

PS3 media server is pretty good if you don't mind the awful interface. I've been using Plex Media Server lately, which also works well.

 

[firehawk12]

Yeah, I just need to get Time Machine going at some point.

And funny enough, all my woes happened because of a bad stick of RAM. I haven't had to deal with bad RAM in ages so it never even occurred to me that it could fail. Too bad it had to kill my OSX install in the process though. lol

(I don't think I can be assed to redo my Boot Camp or set up Parallels again, so ah well!)

 

[The Real Abed]

PS3 media server is pretty good if you don't mind the awful interface. I've been using Plex Media Server lately, which also works well.

I highly recommend Plex. Highly. Plex. So good. And constantly updated.

 

[Ambitious]

Is there a good alternative to Preview.app for annotating PDFs? In Mountain Lion, they again removed features (colored background for text annotations). Skim sucks ass.

 

[brianmcdoogle]

File extension question: Can a m4v file encoded using handbrake with the h.264 video codec be simply renamed to mp4 AFTER the conversion is complete? I can't figure out how to make the default extension in handbrake be mp4, and I am about to do a bunch of batch conversions, and I want them in mp4 and not m4v, so i assumed the easiest way is to rename after the files are finished.

 

[jobber]

Try PS3 Media Server.
And no, I'm not joking despite the soft's name.

Oh wow. I didn't know that worked. I just switch to Boot Camp and used Windows :|

 

[Krelian]

File extension question: Can a m4v file encoded using handbrake with the h.264 video codec be simply renamed to mp4 AFTER the conversion is complete? I can't figure out how to make the default extension in handbrake be mp4, and I am about to do a bunch of batch conversions, and I want them in mp4 and not m4v, so i assumed the easiest way is to rename after the files are finished.

Yes, that's no problem. Is there a reason, though? They're essentially the same.

 

[The Real Abed]

Yes, that's no problem. Is there a reason, though? They're essentially the same.

Probably compatibility with programs that are too stupid to know what m4v is.

Either way the option is right at the bottom of the Preferences window. Change the default to MP4.

 

[Eaten By A Grue]

Anyone notice that many YouTube videos are not loading into Safari as of late? I tried reinstalling Shockwave Flash, but no luck. I wonder if it is the HTML5 videos.

 

[NawidA]

Anyone notice that many YouTube videos are not loading into Safari as of late? I tried reinstalling Shockwave Flash, but no luck. I wonder if it is the HTML5 videos.

Yup, I'm having this issue as well.

 

[jts]

Same. Switched back to the non-HTML5 version of youtube and now everything plays again.

www.youtube.com/html5

Fucking Google.

 

[lunarworks]

So, once I've got a bit of money to spare, I'm totally modifying my MacBook Pro for this Fusion Drive thing. It seems to be active in 10.8.

 

[golem]

Anyone notice that many YouTube videos are not loading into Safari as of late? I tried reinstalling Shockwave Flash, but no luck. I wonder if it is the HTML5 videos.

Same here. Had to switch back to normal

http://www.youtube.com/html5

 

[Eaten By A Grue]

Same. Switched back to the non-HTML5 version of youtube and now everything plays again.

www.youtube.com/html5

Fucking Google.

That worked, thanks guys.

 

[Majine]

Bought an Apple TV, and I have to say, to be able to beam a song from iTunes straight to the TV (With phat stereo) with the touch of a button is golden.

But the Airplay is not as useful as I'd hoped. Might be my setup, but I clearly notice lag and low framerate. Also the Airplay icon doesn't always appear on my Mac. Seems sometime I have to go into the airplay controls on Apple TV, disable and reenable for it work. Kind of a hassle, but oh well.

 

[Eaten By A Grue]

But the Airplay is not as useful as I'd hoped. Might be my setup, but I clearly notice lag and low framerate. Also the Airplay icon doesn't always appear on my Mac. Seems sometime I have to go into the airplay controls on Apple TV, disable and reenable for it work. Kind of a hassle, but oh well.

It sounds like it may be your router's bandwidth. Do you have a lot of wireless network usage in your house? Also if you have a lower bandwidth model you may want to invest in something better.

 

[The Real Abed]

Bought an Apple TV, and I have to say, to be able to beam a song from iTunes straight to the TV (With phat stereo) with the touch of a button is golden.

But the Airplay is not as useful as I'd hoped. Might be my setup, but I clearly notice lag and low framerate. Also the Airplay icon doesn't always appear on my Mac. Seems sometime I have to go into the airplay controls on Apple TV, disable and reenable for it work. Kind of a hassle, but oh well.

I use audio only AirPlay to transmit my iTunes or iOS devices music to my Mac mini media server via AirFoil. It's great. Have never used video AirPlay since I don't have an AppleTV.

 

[Appleman]

I use audio only AirPlay to transmit my iTunes or iOS devices music to my Mac mini media server via AirFoil. It's great. Have never used video AirPlay since I don't have an AppleTV.

AirServer is pretty awesome and does AirPlay video and mirroring if you have a Mac hooked up to a home theatre

 

[SnakeXs]

So a few days ago my hard disk kinda shat itself. Disk repair wouldn't work, said to try again in recovery mode, that failed and urged me to erase and install OS X again.

Did so, first trying to restore from TM, and that failed. Did a new install and THEN restored from TM and it went fine.

No real issues, except for one:

When I plug my iPhone 5 in, iTunes says 3.3 gigs free. Syncing/backing up is... off. When it ends it then says what the image shows. Mathematically impossible, and then says revery/Apply, not Sync again as it used to.

Any ideas? I would restore from a back up but I don't know if I trust these backups its making at this point.

 

[BearChair]

I need some help with iTunes and supporting movies.

I'm bought the Game Center CX DVD set for my birthday and am in the process of ripping them to by computer to watch on my ipad.

I got several episodes ripped but have a problem.

I'd like to be able to have iTunes to support both language tracks and both subtitle tracks, but when I load them into iTUnes, they only show the English and Japanese audio tracks but neither subtitle track. However, the subtitles and audio all work fine when loaded into VLC.

Does iTUnes simply not support so many options or am I doing something wrong?

 

[mrkgoo]

I need some help with iTunes and supporting movies.

I'm bought the Game Center CX DVD set for my birthday and am in the process of ripping them to by computer to watch on my ipad.

I got several episodes ripped but have a problem.

I'd like to be able to have iTunes to support both language tracks and both subtitle tracks, but when I load them into iTUnes, they only show the English and Japanese audio tracks but neither subtitle track. However, the subtitles and audio all work fine when loaded into VLC.

Does iTUnes simply not support so many options or am I doing something wrong?

Younhaven't stated what you have done exactly. What software are you using to rip?

Actually, I'm not sure I can help, I just get a little frustrated when people ask for help, but don't clearly state what they hae done for proper identification where they may have gone wrong.

I'm guessing either formatting of the subtitles, or you could be right about multiple subtitle options. I would think you could though.

 

[kr2t0s]

I need some help with iTunes and supporting movies.

I'm bought the Game Center CX DVD set for my birthday and am in the process of ripping them to by computer to watch on my ipad.

I got several episodes ripped but have a problem.

I'd like to be able to have iTunes to support both language tracks and both subtitle tracks, but when I load them into iTUnes, they only show the English and Japanese audio tracks but neither subtitle track. However, the subtitles and audio all work fine when loaded into VLC.

Does iTUnes simply not support so many options or am I doing something wrong?

How are you ripping them? I highly suggest Handbrake - which can rip and encode.

I don't have the program in front of me (I'm at work) but there should be an audio tab that you can click on to include Japanese and a subtitle tab that shows you the options for Subtitles.

You may need to take the file into something like Subler and mark everything cleanly (English, English Stereo, Japanese, Japanese Stereo for instance - assuming you want the 2 channel and the 5 channel of both languages).

Also depending on the disc - it's usually best to make sure the subtitles are 'soft' meaning you can toggle them on/off. Again - Subler will let you specify the languages if for whatever reason the DVD didn't tag them properly (which happens all the time).

 

[BearChair]

Younhaven't stated what you have done exactly. What software are you using to rip?

Actually, I'm not sure I can help, I just get a little frustrated when people ask for help, but don't clearly state what they hae done for proper identification where they may have gone wrong.

I'm guessing either formatting of the subtitles, or you could be right about multiple subtitle options. I would think you could though.

Sorry, I thought that I provided enough information to answer the question. I ripped the separate titles from the DVD as individual episodes using Handbrake. For each title, I selected both audio options (English and Japanese) and both subtitle options (English text and Full subtitles for all speech and text).

I've added them to iTunes and when I open them, I am only given the option for the two audio options (English or Japanese) but none of the subtitles. However, when I open them in VLC, I can select either audio option or either subtitle option.

My question is if I need to rip the DVDs a different way or whether this is moot because iTunes will not recognize so many audio options.

If it helps further, I plan on watching these videos on my iPad.

 

[mrkgoo]

Sorry, I thought that I provided enough information to answer the question. I ripped the separate titles from the DVD as individual episodes using Handbrake. For each title, I selected both audio options (English and Japanese) and both subtitle options (English text and Full subtitles for all speech and text).

I've added them to iTunes and when I open them, I am only given the option for the two audio options (English or Japanese) but none of the subtitles. However, when I open them in VLC, I can select either audio option or either subtitle option.

My question is if I need to rip the DVDs a different way or whether this is moot because iTunes will not recognize so many audio options.

If it helps further, I plan on watching these videos on my iPad.

No problem.

A quick google suggests that subtitles in iTunes is not trivial, and multiple options even more so.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/apple-tv/1611648-problem-m4v-subtitles.html

I suggest hitting up the handbrake forums for better suggestions. There must be some threads regarding subtitles and iTunes there.

Edit: I've also seen some suggestions that subtitles is not working properly in recent versions of handbrake.

 

[kr2t0s]

Have you loaded an episode onto the iPad yet? The reason why I ask is because iTunes actually isn't the greatest player and the iPad will show more options.

Ususally when I test to make sure my videos are encoded/tagged properly I check in QuickTime first instead of iTunes.

 

[dwebo]

yeah, subler is your best bet in osx. for windows, the easiest way to get subs working is with mp4box. you can import .srt subtitles and it will automatically convert them to the timed text format quicktime and ios requires. you'll need to set the language metadata iirc. also, using .m4v instead of .mp4 helps I believe

I can dig up the specific command line options if you intend to do it that way. but if you're on a mac, definitely just use subler. I don't believe handbrake ever did timed text subtitles, but I could be mistaken

 

[RukusProvider]

How can I move songs off my windows PC to ITunes on my mac? mp3's.

 

[BearChair]

So I tried loading one episode onto the iPad to see if it would work and no luck. I think I'm going to have to scrap this project for now.

After more research, it looks like I could re-rip the discs and enable hard subtitles in Handbrake, which would keep the subtitles up at all times regardless of audio. At least I know its an option for later, but I don't know if I want to at the moment.

Thanks for all the help.

 

[dwebo]

How can I move songs off my windows PC to ITunes on my mac? mp3's.

copy them over?

So I tried loading one episode onto the iPad to see if it would work and no luck. I think I'm going to have to scrap this project for now.

After more research, it looks like I could re-rip the discs and enable hard subtitles in Handbrake, which would keep the subtitles up at all times regardless of audio. At least I know its an option for later, but I don't know if I want to at the moment.

Thanks for all the help.

are you able to convert the subs into .srt format? there are lots of tools that will convert DVD subtitles semi-automatically

after that, it's really not that hard to get subs working in iOS (I do it somewhat frequently)

 

[CrudeDiatribe]

Tonight installed an SSD in place of an optical drive in a 2010 13" MacBook Pro. I'm currently cloning the backup onto the newly minted Fusion Drive (120GB SSD + 250GB HDD). This shit is pretty slick.

Edit:

So, cloning back resulted in no-booting. Downloaded 10.8.2 install from Mac App Store, made a boot disk, and tried again from scratch, with success (and booting!). Now restoring from Time Machine. Will grab anything missing from the clone.

 

[Johnny Dazzle]

Should my 2012 Macbook Pro 13" be going at 90c with 6200rpm playing Minecraft?

It's annoying that the fans are screaming on a game like this.

 

[kennah]

Yes it should. Minecraft is very unoptimized. Try running full screen instead of in a window. Might help.

 

[The Real Abed]

Should my 2012 Macbook Pro 13" be going at 90c with 6200rpm playing Minecraft?

It's annoying that the fans are screaming on a game like this.

Yes it should. Minecraft is very unoptimized. Try running full screen instead of in a window. Might help.

Also install Optifine every time an update comes out. It will help immensely.

It's a shame the OF programmers turned down an offer to be integrated into the full product. It's really stupid if you ask me. Letting it be integrated would have guaranteed it to be updated right out of the gate and would offer better compatibility with other mods as the other mod makers would be building their mods around the Optifine optimized Minecraft. Did Mojang not throw wads of money at them or do they really believe so much in their product that they think it's priceless?

Let's hope in time the actual Minecraft becomes as optimized as Optifine makes it. I really like OF's extra features and can't live without the clearer water, custom water and lava texture support, better grass, all kinds of stuff and its FPS boost.

 

[Johnny Dazzle]

That helped it out a little bit, the game definitely runs smoother now.

The only other games I play are TF2, L4D2, Civ 5, Torchlight and GTA:SA. They all get to 6000rpm as well, with the exception of Torchlight which only goes to about 4000.

 

[fly high ~ayunite~]

Can't find the hardware thread so I'll ask here. I need some help, this morning I got a spinning beach ball for 10 minutes just browsing the web so I turned off my Mac but when I started it up again I got the flashing ? folder error. No big deal as I was meaning to replace the harddrive anyway, so I put in a new hard drive and I still get it..the thing is, the HD that I originally started with works fine, I hooked it up to a USB SATA thingy and I can boot fine into Mac through USB but when I put it inside the Mac, it's not recognised (same with the other HDD). Is there some sort of hardware test I can do to determine what exactly is wrong, I hope it's not the connection wire (which looks fine, no visible damage and is tight).

 

[CFMOORE!]

Tonight installed an SSD in place of an optical drive in a 2010 13" MacBook Pro. I'm currently cloning the backup onto the newly minted Fusion Drive (120GB SSD + 250GB HDD). This shit is pretty slick.

Edit:

So, cloning back resulted in no-booting. Downloaded 10.8.2 install from Mac App Store, made a boot disk, and tried again from scratch, with success (and booting!). Now restoring from Time Machine. Will grab anything missing from the clone.

I just bought an ssd too (it has yet to arrive) for my aging 2007 mbp, and was wondering if I need to preinstall the os or could I pop in the os disc and install once the hard drive is connected?

 

[CrudeDiatribe]

I just bought an ssd too (it has yet to arrive) for my aging 2007 mbp, and was wondering if I need to preinstall the os or could I pop in the os disc and install once the hard drive is connected?

If you are replacing your HDD with the SSD, I would connect the SSD, clone your HDD with rsync/ditto/Carbon Copy Cloner/SuperDuper! and then install it, not bothering with a new OS install. If you do want to do a new install, you might as well install the SSD in the computer it first.

If you're replacing the optical drive and using a DVD-based installer you may wish to install the OS while you still have an optical drive.

If you are going to build a Fusion Drive, I would have everything installed in the computer before starting, as the boot partition is put on the fastest disk, and USB is a serious bottleneck.

Is there some sort of hardware test I can do to determine what exactly is wrong

Hold D immediately after the startup bong, but before the grey screen comes up to launch the hardware test.

 

[CFMOORE!]

If you are replacing your HDD with the SSD, I would connect the SSD, clone your HDD with rsync/ditto/Carbon Copy Cloner/SuperDuper! and then install it, not bothering with a new OS install. If you do want to do a new install, you might as well install the SSD in the computer it first.

If you're replacing the optical drive and using a DVD-based installer you may wish to install the OS while you still have an optical drive.

If you are going to build a Fusion Drive, I would have everything installed in the computer before starting, as the boot partition is put on the fastest disk, and USB is a serious bottleneck.





Hold D immediately after the startup bong, but before the grey screen comes up to launch the hardware test.

i plan on going the new install route. so once it is connected and i turn on the computer, i will get a prompt or something to install the OS, correct?

 

[CrudeDiatribe]

i plan on going the new install route. so once it is connected and i turn on the computer, i will get a prompt or something to install the OS, correct?

Not that I know of, just a blinking question mark. Instead, hold option after startup bong to select the installer. Then fire up Disk Utility and format the drive.

 

[CFMOORE!]

Not that I know of, just a blinking question mark. Instead, hold option after startup bong to select the installer. Then fire up Disk Utility and format the drive.

much obliged. been far too long since i've done things like this.