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[SnakeXs]

Do yourself a favor and set up some Expose hot corners.

 

[LCfiner]

I always hated the taskbar because having, say, 5 adobe pdfs open it became impossible to know which was which by using it - there’s no visual cue (there is in win7 with Aero preview but not in XP which I still have to use at work). I prefer the visual expose method, which allows me to see all windows open and more quickly pick the right one.

also, new to 10.6 is the ability to use expose via the dock. click and hold on an icon and all windows for that app are brought to the front (minimized ones show up along the bottom of the screen). works well if you have a lot of windows open in a single app

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Actually, this is my preferred way to use the Taskbar in XP (ubar doesn't support this use case yet):

1. Turn off "group similar taskbar items." So if I have 7 Windows Explorer (or Chrome, or whatever) windows open, each gets its own little button in the taskbar.
2. Auto-hide off. So the taskbar is always visible.
3. Enlarged to as many rows as I need. At work my taskbar is 3 rows tall.
4. No Quick Launch buttons except for Show Desktop.

With this setup, not only do I have literally 1-click access to every single window, minimized or not, but I can also glance down and see what all those windows are, at any time, without having to press a single button.

 

[aparisi2274]

I had a similar situation last year.

time for a hard drive replacement, I bet.

make sure you have your shit backed up before the HDD shits the bed!

I too have a March 09 24" iMac, and while I am not getting the crazy amount of beachballs that the other poster is getting, I would like to know the best way to back up my shit.

I have an external 1TB HDD that I use to backup my pictures, and music and any articles I've written, but I would like to know if there is way to do it all through the mac? I know that there is that backup icon on my taskbar, but when I initially clicked on it, I don't think I was able to customize what I wanted to back up, unless I am doing it wrong.

Basically I would like to keep the folders and files I have on my external HDD as is, and create a new folder on the HDD that is called 'backup' and then click that icon on my taskbar and let it back everything up to that folder...

Does anyone know if that is possible?

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Also, since I still use Windows almost every day, having a taskbar at the bottom of my Mac screen makes it easier to switch between computers.

 

[luoapp]

Actually, this is my preferred way to use the Taskbar in XP (ubar doesn't support this use case yet):

1. Turn off "group similar taskbar items." So if I have 7 Windows Explorer (or Chrome, or whatever) windows open, each gets its own little button in the taskbar.
2. Auto-hide off. So the taskbar is always visible.
3. Enlarged to as many rows as I need. At work my taskbar is 3 rows tall.
4. No Quick Launch buttons except for Show Desktop.

With this setup, not only do I have literally 1-click access to every single window, minimized or not, but I can also glance down and see what all those windows are, at any time, without having to press a single button.

Once you set up the hot corner, you can activate expose without thinking. And it's like the whole screen is your "taskbar", and moving your mouse over shows the title. The only thing might be inconvenient is the position of one particular window -- Mac OS rearranges the windows after a window closes or a new one opens -- so you might need to search for it. Anyway, just give it a try.

 

[LCfiner]

I too have a March 09 24" iMac, and while I am not getting the crazy amount of beachballs that the other poster is getting, I would like to know the best way to back up my shit.

I have an external 1TB HDD that I use to backup my pictures, and music and any articles I've written, but I would like to know if there is way to do it all through the mac? I know that there is that backup icon on my taskbar, but when I initially clicked on it, I don't think I was able to customize what I wanted to back up, unless I am doing it wrong.

Basically I would like to keep the folders and files I have on my external HDD as is, and create a new folder on the HDD that is called 'backup' and then click that icon on my taskbar and let it back everything up to that folder...

Does anyone know if that is possible?

this very recent article at daringfireball details a pretty robust setup involving superduper, diskwarrier and dropbox (online storage)

http://daringfireball.net/2010/03/ode_to_diskwarrior_superduper_dropbox


myself, I’m a simple man without the need of a bootable backup to be ready within minutes. so I just use Time Machine. it’s saved my butt twice the last couple years.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Once you set up the hot corner, you can activate expose without thinking. And it's like the whole screen is your "taskbar", and moving your mouse over shows the title. The only thing might be inconvenient is the position of one particular window -- Mac OS rearranges the windows after a window closes or a new one opens -- so you might need to search for it. Anyway, just give it a try.

Sure, I'll give it a shot.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Hot corners will take some getting used to since I have a habit of flicking the mouse all the way to the edge of the screen so the cursor's not "in the way" of whatever I'm reading.

 

[SnakeXs]

Hot corners will take some getting used to since I have a habit of flicking the mouse all the way to the edge of the screen so the cursor's not "in the way" of whatever I'm reading.

You still have sides.

 

[luoapp]

Hot corners will take some getting used to since I have a habit of flicking the mouse all the way to the edge of the screen so the cursor's not "in the way" of whatever I'm reading.

I only use "application windows" and "show all" since I don't put stuff on desktop or dashboard, so only two corners are "hot".

 

[Parallax Scroll]

And it looks like Snow Leopard has VNC built in. Cool. Trying it out now.

 

[luoapp]

And it looks like Snow Leopard has VNC built in. Cool. Trying it out now.

I'd like to know how that works out. Thanks.

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

Windows's "no bullshit" alt+tabbing is perfect for when I'm doing web design and have to use a few different programs with their own tabs and windows all at once.

On Macs, I have my top-right corner set to Expose. I also use Cmd+tab to get to the application I want, then Cmd+~ to change between windows. I think Windows is sort of going to this system without even realizing it since everything has tabs now.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Windows's "no bullshit" alt+tabbing is perfect for when I'm doing web design and have to use a few different programs with their own tabs and windows all at once.

On Macs, I have my top-right corner set to Expose. I also use Cmd+tab to get to the application I want, then Cmd+~ to change between windows. I think this system works best for how Macs like you to never really close an application, so it's easy to find the one you want in the cmd+tab list and then narrow it down further from there. Navigating multiple Finder windows seems easier than multiple Windows Explorer windows. I think Windows is sort of going to this system without even realizing it since everything has tabs now.

Should I bother quitting Mac applications if all their windows are closed? Is there any real performance impact of doing so?

Edit: Gotta remember that Cmd-~. It's right next to Tab so it should be easy to remember.

 

[luoapp]

Should I bother quitting Mac applications if all their windows are closed? Is there any real performance impact of doing so?

I guess not, if you have enough memory.

 

[SnakeXs]

Should I bother quitting Mac applications if all their windows are closed? Is there any real performance impact of doing so?

Edit: Gotta remember that Cmd-~. It's right next to Tab so it should be easy to remember.

Unless you're in dire need of the memory, don't worry about it.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Unless you're in dire need of the memory, don't worry about it.

This iMac is maxed out at 2GB and I tend to open tons of shit at once.

 

[SnakeXs]

This iMac is maxed out at 2GB and I tend to open tons of shit at once.

Do you notice things slowing down much?

 

[Parallax Scroll]

posting via vnc on my iphone

 

[Parallax Scroll]

Do you notice things slowing down much?

When I have enough stuff open, task switching can be slow. I assume it's swapping the new window back into main memory. This assumption is reinforced by the observation that programs/windows that have sat in the background for a few hours tend to load back up much slower than things I've used recently. It's less annoying than in XP or Vista.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

I also set up VNC port forwarding and was able to connect with my iphone over 3G. Now I'm posting from my Vista laptop on UltraVNC from behind the firewall. RealVNC Free didn't work for some reason. Only thing left to try is the laptop from outside the firewall. =)

 

[Jill Sandwich]

I don't know when it happened, but I don't get the cube effect anymore during fast user switching. It's enabled, and we both have the same resolution/colour profile, but it just flashes to blue between switching.

 

[mrkgoo]

F9, F10. I see. That's actually very useful.

My opinion may change once I've used expose a bit more, but I think the taskbar starts to trump expose for the way I work once lots (say, 10+) of applications and windows are open at once. With many windows open, the thumbnails shown by expose start to shrink, and it becomes harder to quickly pick out the one I want. With the taskbar, it's easy for me to remember that Word is the one all the way on the left, Chrome is the one next to that, and so on. So even with 40 or more windows open, I can very quickly click on the exact window I need.

Can't speak for Windows 7 myself.

If you're on 10.6, click and holding an icon will reveal only that applications windows.

Man, I'm currently waist-deep in some flavour of linux.

I need multiple windows open (and am using multiple desktops), and man, I have no idea how to find windows. I have multiple terminals open, and I have to manually go through crappy little tabs in the task bar, bring them up and see if they're the one I want. Windows already on my desktop somewhere? Bugger if I know how to find that dialog box I need to go to. Ugh.

I guess I'm too Mackerized. I'm dying for an expose of some sort.

 

[scorcho]

I need multiple windows open (and am using multiple desktops), and man, I have no idea how to find windows. I have multiple terminals open, and I have to manually go through crappy little tabs in the task bar, bring them up and see if they're the one I want. Windows already on my desktop somewhere? Bugger if I know how to find that dialog box I need to go to. Ugh.

I guess I'm too Mackerized. I'm dying for an expose of some sort.

install or turn on (depending on your distro) compiz on linux. their implimentation of expose is legions better and more customizable than the Mac. for starters, you can show all the windows across your virtual screens (!!!)

http://wiki.compiz.org/Plugins/Scale

it also runs buttery smooth on 6 year old hardware.

 

[Blackhead]

If I move my iTunes library to an external harddrive is it possible to keep a local cache that iTunes will recognize? I'll want a few albums, apps and podcasts always available.

 

[LCfiner]

If I move my iTunes library to an external harddrive is it possible to keep a local cache that iTunes will recognize? I'll want a few albums, apps and podcasts always available.

AFAIK, no. I did a quick search but couldn't find anything.

theoretically, after you've properly moved the library to the external drive (using consolidation in itunes), you could turn off consolidation and re-import files that you've duplicated on your internal hard drive to the library.

but that feels clumsy :\


alternately, if only a certain folder were getting large. like the movies folder, you could create a link to that folder within the library folder structure and store it on an external drive but keep all the music local.

 

[Blackhead]

AFAIK, no. I did a quick search but couldn't find anything.

theoretically, after you've properly moved the library to the external drive (using consolidation in itunes), you could turn off consolidation and re-import files that you've duplicated on your internal hard drive to the library.

but that feels clumsy :\


alternately, if only a certain folder were getting large. like the movies folder, you could create a link to that folder within the library folder structure and store it on an external drive but keep all the music local.

, I was hoping for a better solution than manually copying files. I don't have a wifi media server so i'll have connect the harddrive with a cable every time I want to play a file. My biggest problem is syncing as I get updates for the apps and podcasts almost everyday. My music and movie library aren't changed nearly as often.

Do you have step by step directions? I don't want to mess this up.

 

[Tr4nce]

This maybe a stupid question, but I can't wait to switch from PC to Imac, but what is the average lifespan of an iMac compared to a PC? I hate how PC's slow down and slowly die the longer you have them, even when you do some good maintenance every now and then.

 

[LCfiner]

, I was hoping for a better solution than manually copying files. I don't have a wifi media server so i'll have connect the harddrive with a cable every time I want to play a file. My biggest problem is syncing as I get updates for the apps and podcasts almost everyday. My music and movie library aren't changed nearly as often.

Do you have step by step directions? I don't want to mess this up.

here's the step by step for moving the ENTIRE library to the external drive.

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/moving-your-itunes-library-to-a-new-hard-drive/

 

[criesofthepast]

Finally got my iMac refurb replacement. This one is in pristine condition. It was manufactured just 10 days ago! Doesn't even look like it was turned on. The install discs were scratched to hell once again. Apple sent me new ones, though. Still a bad first impression for people to see greasy fingerprints and scratches all over them.

 

[LCfiner]

This maybe a stupid question, but I can't wait to switch from PC to Imac, but what is the average lifespan of an iMac compared to a PC? I hate how PC's slow down and slowly die the longer you have them, even when you do some good maintenance every now and then.

You should be satisfied with how well OS X holds up over long periods of use. I've never felt that it's slowed down over time. I typically only restart my machine once a month - if there's a program update or installation that requires it.

that said, if you ever find yourself using the machine more aggressively and running more stuff all at once, or using memory hungry programs like Virtual Machines, a RAM upgrade (of course) will work wonders.

 

[Ashhong]

, I was hoping for a better solution than manually copying files. I don't have a wifi media server so i'll have connect the harddrive with a cable every time I want to play a file. My biggest problem is syncing as I get updates for the apps and podcasts almost everyday. My music and movie library aren't changed nearly as often.

Do you have step by step directions? I don't want to mess this up.

wait, what is it you want to do?

 

[Tr4nce]

You should be satisfied with how well OS X holds up over long periods of use. I've never felt that it's slowed down over time. I typically only restart my machine once a month - if there's a program update or installation that requires it.

that said, if you ever find yourself using the machine more aggressively and running more stuff all at once, or using memory hungry programs like Virtual Machines, a RAM upgrade (of course) will work wonders.

So the ram memory in the iMac's are upgradeable? I thought only the Mac Pro laptops could do that? Hmm, confused now

 

[RubxQub]

Oh man...this thread when it happens is going to be SO FUCKING FUN!

Researcher Set to Announce 20 Zero-Day Holes in Mac OSX

Using the controversial "security through obscurity" argument, Miller claims that Mac OS X users have typically been relatively free of malware threats due to a lack of hacker interest in the relatively small user base, not necessarily due to Mac OS X being more secure than other operating systems.

"Mac OS X is like living in a farmhouse in the country with no locks, and Windows is living in a house with bars on the windows in the bad part of town."​

 

[criesofthepast]

So the ram memory in the iMac's are upgradeable? I thought only the Mac Pro laptops could do that? Hmm, confused now

Yes you can upgrade iMac ram. The panel is under the screen. Where the speakers are. Quick screw off and done.

LC, you really keep your Mac on for a month at a time? Should I be doing that? I shutdown after every use. Turning it on/off a few times a day. Maybe I should be letting it sleep more often.

 

[LCfiner]

Yes you can upgrade iMac ram. The panel is under the screen. Where the speakers are. Quick screw off and done.

LC, you really keep your Mac on for a month at a time? Should I be doing that? I shutdown after every use. Turning it on/off a few times a day. Maybe I should be letting it sleep more often.

shutting down is sooo 1997.

I just use sleep on the laptop.

And when I had the iMac, I just let the thing run with the screen on sleep. never really a problem.

@RubxQub.

Charlie Miller has always been able to find zero day exploits for the Mac and/or Safari. As long as Apple patches them relatively quickly and no real world exploits are made, it's all good. I believe the terms of the conference are that the info is given to the Vendor to patch up.

Apple may not be as quick to release a patch as MS but, then again, there's hardly a need for daily or weekly security patches as long as these exploits never make into real malware.

 

[Blackhead]

wait, what is it you want to do?

I want to keep my iTunes library on an external hard drive and sync to it the same way I sync my iPhone with an iTunes library on a computer.

Thanks for the help, LC

 

[mrkgoo]

Oh man...this thread when it happens is going to be SO FUCKING FUN!

Researcher Set to Announce 20 Zero-Day Holes in Mac OSX

Using the controversial "security through obscurity" argument, Miller claims that Mac OS X users have typically been relatively free of malware threats due to a lack of hacker interest in the relatively small user base, not necessarily due to Mac OS X being more secure than other operating systems.

"Mac OS X is like living in a farmhouse in the country with no locks, and Windows is living in a house with bars on the windows in the bad part of town."​

Why so?

Wouldn he prove his exploits, then send the actual exploits to apple then threaten Apple that he's goin to reveal them to public on a certain date.

That date rolls around, they get revealed, nobody really cares, then Apple patches them not long after that.

Seems to be what ha happened in the past.

 

[mrkgoo]

Yes you can upgrade iMac ram. The panel is under the screen. Where the speakers are. Quick screw off and done.

LC, you really keep your Mac on for a month at a time? Should I be doing that? I shutdown after every use. Turning it on/off a few times a day. Maybe I should be letting it sleep more often.

I never turn off my MacBook pro. Sleep for fast wake, and keeping applications cached and stuff.

I don't reall see the benefit of shutting down.

I occasionally do a restart if I do some nuts installtion or messing about, though.

 

[RubxQub]

Why so?

Wouldn he prove his exploits, then send the actual exploits to apple then threaten Apple that he's goin to reveal them to public on a certain date.

That date rolls around, they get revealed, nobody really cares, then Apple patches them not long after that.

Seems to be what ha happened in the past.

I remember the last time we had a thread about "Guy hacks Safari on Mac in less than a minute in hacking competition" the thread was a total nightmare.

 

[LCfiner]

I remember the last time we had a thread about "Guy hacks Safari on Mac in less than a minute in hacking competition" the thread was a total nightmare.

yes, and there will surely be a new thread for the 2010 shitstorm to take place in. no reason for it to all happen in here.

the ignorant and indignant can scream and moan and troll in their own thread.

 

[Macho Madness]

So I could just let my iMac auto-sleep and wouldn't run into any problems? I suppose I'll try it out soon enough.

 

[mrkgoo]

yes, and there will surely be a new thread for the 2010 shitstorm to take place in. no reason for it to all happen in here.

the ignorant and indignant can scream and moan and troll in their own thread.

Meh, trolls, fanboys, haters. It's all good. Keeps the threads lively!

On another note, looks like MacUpdate has a bundle running $49.95:

Hyperspaces ($12.95) - for multplie wallpapers in different spaces.
Websnapper ($15.00) - screen cap utility for Safari
Hydra ($79.95) - HDR suite
SpellCathcer X ($39.95) - global spell checking
Parallels 5 (($79.95) - VM in a window
Timeline3D ($65) - Making visual timelines
Back-in-time ($29.00) - opening up Time Machine
ForeverSave ($14.99) - document versioning?
MacDCDRipper Pro ($9.95)
MAcScan ($29,99)

Meh.

I don't know why there are so many apps that don't really do much more than add a slightly more fleshed out version of what you've already got built-in. I tend to use mostly built-in features. I guess it goes to show how well rounded Mac OS X is.

Some utilities are 'pretty handy', but I wouldn't pay $30 for them.

 

[mrkgoo]

So I could just let my iMac auto-sleep and wouldn't run into any problems? I suppose I'll try it out soon enough.

If I had a Mac, I'd just let it sleep and never turn it off, so long as I had good security for the network.

I really don't see any benefit to shutting down frequently.

 

[luoapp]

I remember the last time we had a thread about "Guy hacks Safari on Mac in less than a minute in hacking competition" the thread was a total nightmare.

FYI, This year's Pwn2Own is scheduled on March 24th. And iphone will be one of the targeted mobile platforms.

 

[LCfiner]

FYI, This year's Pwn2Own is scheduled on March 24th. And iphone will be one of the targeted mobile platforms.

it’s kinda funny. the iPhone is one platform where a vocal section of users WANT Apple to keep security holes open, since that’s how they jailbreak.

If Apple fixes those holes, jailbreaking gets harder and harder.

 

[The Main Event]

Does anyone here know a great DVD/CD Label/Cover software that they would recommend? Been searching for a while but I'm hesitant to choose one. Don't mind if I have to pay for it.

Edit: Hmmm, thinking about going with this one: http://www.smileonmymac.com/DiscLabel/index.html

 

[bionic77]

My MBP is coming up on being 4 years old and is based on the now ancient 2GHZ Core Duo CPU with 2 gigs of ram and while I am going to buy a new 13" MBP when they are updated to the i5 or i7, I have to say that I am shocked at how well my computer still runs. A lot of times my CD Mac feels much faster than my work laptop which is much faster with a C2D cpu on XP.

I definitely can't say the same for my iPhone which feels ancient next to the 3GS, so I guess this isn't universally true of Mac hardware.

I haven't used one in a long time, but anyone still on the G4 laptops that predated the Intel ones? How do they hold up today?

 

[The_Inquisitor]

My stupid 3 year old macbook pro normally runs around 186 degrees on CPU A if I watch just a video. I sorely need a replacement, but seeing as I am buying a 600 dollar lens for my camera in the next 2 months and paying 3200 for summer school I am screwed.