Support NeoGAF

[dangrib]

Small question:

I have a MacBook Pro with a defective 8600M chip, which is covered until 3yrs after the purchase date. The screen will sometimes not turn on, indicating a bad chip according to this document:

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377

The problem is that the issue is intermittent (often when booting cold). Will they look at fixing it or just reject any repair until it's a permanent problem ? It's going to be past that 3yr date in about 2-3 months, so it's sort of urgent that I get it repaired.

(Also, no Apple Stores here, so it's Authorised Service Provider for me).

im an apple tech in australia. there is a specific test to perform that will generate a code. sometimes it takes a few tries but it basically pushes the GPU to the limits. it'll fail

btw i see at least two of these a day at work

 

[Burger]

im an apple tech in australia. there is a specific test to perform that will generate a code. sometimes it takes a few tries but it basically pushes the GPU to the limits. it'll fail

btw i see at least two of these a day at work

Are you still replacing logic boards with bad 8600M's ? Or will I get a new computer ?

I would hate for a defective part to be replaced with a defective part...

 

[SnakeXs]

hold cmd and you can drag around icons in the menu bar

Yeah, I'm aware for built in items. Third part ones, though, like Dropbox or iStat Menus, won't budge, even amongst themselves.

 

[LCfiner]

Small question:

I have a MacBook Pro with a defective 8600M chip, which is covered until 3yrs after the purchase date. The screen will sometimes not turn on, indicating a bad chip according to this document:

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377

The problem is that the issue is intermittent (often when booting cold). Will they look at fixing it or just reject any repair until it's a permanent problem ? It's going to be past that 3yr date in about 2-3 months, so it's sort of urgent that I get it repaired.

(Also, no Apple Stores here, so it's Authorised Service Provider for me).

I had a friend who had this problem intermittently as well and the apple store (I know, you don’t have one nearby) had a special test kit to check if the 8600M was defective. they plugged it in and a big FAIL screen pops up.

so, an authorized dealer should have a similar troubleshooting kit. if they don’t, an apple service center will and you can force them to run that test (they didn’t run it at first for my friend) and then get a replacement/ fix.

 

[Mobius 1]

Are you still replacing logic boards with bad 8600M's ? Or will I get a new computer ?

I would hate for a defective part to be replaced with a defective part...

Probably replacement.

 

[Burger]

Probably replacement.

Replacement logic board or replacement computer ?

I'm not sure I'd like a replacement logic board, as far as I'm aware the 8600M package was never fixed, as the chip would have had to be redesigned in order to use a solder that wouldn't fail.

 

[mrkgoo]

Replacement logic board or replacement computer ?

I'm not sure I'd like a replacement logic board, as far as I'm aware the 8600M package was never fixed, as the chip would have had to be redesigned in order to use a solder that wouldn't fail.

I so want my graphics chip to fail at this stage. I don't think I've seen it glitch much though. Occasionally I see some weird graphics but I could count them on one hand. Maybe I can just bring it in to check.

I've upgrade my RAM and Hard Drive, dos it matter to an authorised Apple Repair about that stuff?

 

[scorcho]

I so want my graphics chip to fail at this stage.

you have the 8600M? just loop a 3D demo and throw the macbook in a sealed container. that'll do the trick.

 

[Burger]

I so want my graphics chip to fail at this stage. I don't think I've seen it glitch much though. Occasionally I see some weird graphics but I could count them on one hand. Maybe I can just bring it in to check.

I've upgrade my RAM and Hard Drive, dos it matter to an authorised Apple Repair about that stuff?

Oh yeah I forgot about that. I replaced my HDD. I hope it doesn't end up fucking me.

 

[mrkgoo]

So I checked with an authorised apple repair centre - they said they didn't have a diagnostic test for the failure and that I have to wait until I see symptoms of failure.

 

[Vox-Pop]

I'm getting a "device failed to calibrate the laser power level for this media" message while I'm try to burn a cd.

What do I do?

 

[Ashhong]

Be careful with those, I've read many times that eBay applecare won't work. I mean, you can activate them and everything, but if your machine dies and you really need to use the Applecare, they will check the number and they will tell you to gtfo because you didn't get a proper code.

hm, never heard of that problem before. thanks for the heads up, ill do some more searching about that..

 

[Vox-Pop]

Can I use a fat32 external hardrive to transfer songs from my mac to pc?

 

[SnakeXs]

I'm getting a "device failed to calibrate the laser power level for this media" message while I'm try to burn a cd.

What do I do?

I remember this from a long time ago. If I'm not mistaken the fix was something crazy with the languages you have. I wish I was kidding. Absolute weirdest fix I ever saw but it did it for me. Wish I remembered more.

Can I use a fat32 external hardrive to transfer songs from my mac to pc?

Yeah. Just at the mercy of its native flaws, namely file size.

 

[Ashhong]

Yeah, I'm aware for built in items. Third part ones, though, like Dropbox or iStat Menus, won't budge, even amongst themselves.

hm? i can move the istat menu icons that i use at least. i only use the calendar and the battery though

 

[SnakeXs]

hm? i can move the istat menu icons that i use at least. i only use the calendar and the battery though

Holy crepes, an exception. This is glorious. None others have done so, right now Dropbox, I used to have smcFanControl, and a few others over time.

Hmm, well so third parties can do it. Awesome. Now why don't more. >=[

 

[Celine]

Can I use a fat32 external hardrive to transfer songs from my mac to pc?

Yes but i highly suggest to use MacFuse / NTFS-3G so you can use NTFS for your external HDD for both Windows and OS X.

 

[Celine]

I'm getting a "device failed to calibrate the laser power level for this media" message while I'm try to burn a cd.

What do I do?

I got the same. Don't know the cause though.
So I'm interested in it too.

I hate Matsushita DVD drive.

EDIT:
Mmh maybe Snake is right ...
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-10329962-263.html

 

[Ashhong]

Holy crepes, an exception. This is glorious. None others have done so, right now Dropbox, I used to have smcFanControl, and a few others over time.

Hmm, well so third parties can do it. Awesome. Now why don't more. >=[

yea i know what you mean. about half of the third party ones i use can move. makes me sad that i cant move the stupid caffeine icon..

 

[MCX]

GAF, when I watch videos on Hulu my MBP temp skyrockets from ~130 to ~180 degress fahrenheit. Is this normal?

 

[Keylime]

GAF, when I watch videos on Hulu my MBP temp skyrockets from ~130 to ~180 degress fahrenheit. Is this normal?

Normal.

Flash runs like anus on Macs in general.

 

[Macho Madness]

GAF, when I watch videos on Hulu my MBP temp skyrockets from ~130 to ~180 degress fahrenheit. Is this normal?

Try Hulu Desktop and see if that helps.

 

[Jasoco]

I'm sitting here at the Barnes & Noble using their Wi-Fi with my new MacBook Pro 13" (With the 10 hour battery) testing out just how long the battery actually lasts, and have been doing some tests with Flash. I have FlashBlock in Chrome, but still have some sites whitelisted. And every time Flash shows up in my Task Manager in Chrome, my battery's estimated time left drops significantly. And when I quit the Flash process, it jumps back up every time. Apple is right to be mad at Adobe. Flash on OS X is terrible at battery life, and I am glad it's not available on the iDevices. I just wish Chrome or the FlashBlock extension had a switch I could hit to turn Flash off completely temporarily. So when I am out on battery, I can just turn it off all together for the time being.

Could I just move the Flash plugin from the Library and start Chrome without it? Or would it complain all the time about needing Flash and offering to take me to the Adobe site to download it? Would be neat if OS X had more options for when you change to battery. Something like "Disable Flash when on Battery" would be amazing.

Also, I wasn't sure whether I should have posted this in the OS X thread, the Chrome thread, the MacBook Pro thread or the Flash thread. :lol

BTW, with the keyboard light off, the brightness to 1 and Flash killed for the most part, I'm getting almost 4 hours so far. (With an estimated 2 hours left.) Guess as long as I kill everything not needed and don't visit video sites, I can squeeze it pretty far.

 

[AlphaSnake]

Besides PaintBrush, what other free image programs are there? PaintBrush seems pretty dumb and clumsy sometimes.

 

[Kong Fisso]

There's the Gimp.

I have a noobish question. How to i type this: [ ] on a macbook keyboard? I can't figure it out - the ones above are copy pasted from another website.

 

[Karud]

Just type:

OPTION +5 = [
OPTION + 6 = ]

I highly recommend this little widget here:

CharakterPal

 

[Kong Fisso]

Just type:

OPTION +5 = [
OPTION + 6 = ]

I highly recommend this little widget here:

CharakterPal

thank you very much, worked like a charm.

I have another question. I need a decent archiving utility. Mac's native one doesn't support password protected zip archives, and I have some archives I need to add files to. Stuffit expander only extracts as far as I can tell, and 7zx doesn't seem to do it either.
I'd be happy if there's a free app for this.

 

[Celine]

Damn my Mac Book Pro display this morning seems to not work.
I fear to have fried the GeForce 8600M GT ...
:-(

 

[Ashhong]

GAF, when I watch videos on Hulu my MBP temp skyrockets from ~130 to ~180 degress fahrenheit. Is this normal?

i use Celsius, but it goes to about 80 degrees when i watch flash. forgot the conversion

 

[NJ Shlice]

I have an early 2009 Mac Mini. I ordered a second LCD monitor and its coming today (wahoo)

I already have the mini displayport to vga adapter (my other monitor is using the mini dvi port)

When I get the monitor hooked up today is it going to be pretty simple to extend the desktop onto the other monitor or do I need some form of setup or recommended software? I'm coming from Windows where all I had to do was right click on the desktop > graphics properties > extend to second monitor.

Second question:
I'm also looking to upgrade the RAM. Is Crucial the best place for mac RAM and is it a good idea to have someone at mac put it in or can I do it myself? I consider myself very tech savvy and have installed tons of hardware on my PC, but never anything on a mac. I understand putty knives are involved which doesn't scare me.

 

[Mecha_Infantry]

Holy CRAP my 15" 2.4GHz MBP is slooooow

I have no idea what's suddenly gone wrong. I am running 4GB of ram and an extra 20" widescreen monitor, with about 120GB/250GB free.

I opened iMove and iPhoto yesterday then accidental opened GIMP and it slowed to an uncontrollable speed..I know this isn't Windows, but I might have to restart her (uptime is about 8 days) or get rid of these 3rd party apps.

Firefox is damn near done for me, it's way to sluggish. I might use Camino for that Gecko experience but man....

 

[edgefusion]

I have an early 2009 Mac Mini. I ordered a second LCD monitor and its coming today (wahoo)

I already have the mini displayport to vga adapter (my other monitor is using the mini dvi port)

When I get the monitor hooked up today is it going to be pretty simple to extend the desktop onto the other monitor or do I need some form of setup or recommended software? I'm coming from Windows where all I had to do was right click on the desktop > graphics properties > extend to second monitor.

Second question:
I'm also looking to upgrade the RAM. Is Crucial the best place for mac RAM and is it a good idea to have someone at mac put it in or can I do it myself? I consider myself very tech savvy and have installed tons of hardware on my PC, but never anything on a mac. I understand putty knives are involved which doesn't scare me.

When you plug in the second monitor OS X automatically switches to a dual screen setup, or at least that's what happens on my laptop I imagine it'd be the same for the Mac Mini.

I've always bought RAM from Crucial myself but Apple won't install it for you (unless you get a friendly Genius). It's easy enough to do by yourself anyway. EDIT: Ignore me, I had no idea you have to go to such efforts to swap out the RAM on a Mac Mini. Either way Apple won't install it for you unless you buy their own RAM.

 

[Mecha_Infantry]

When you plug in the second monitor OS X automatically switches to a dual screen setup, or at least that's what happens on my laptop I imagine it'd be the same for the Mac Mini.

I've always bought RAM from Crucial myself but Apple won't install it for you (unless you get a friendly Genius). It's easy enough to do by yourself anyway. EDIT: Ignore me, I had no idea you have to go to such efforts to swap out the RAM on a Mac Mini. Either way Apple won't install it for you unless you buy their own RAM.

Replacing the RAM will void his warranty, unless he is uber careful

I think Apple desktops should be easy enough to replace RAM and HDD....just like it is on the laptops

 

[mrkgoo]

Damn my Mac Book Pro display this morning seems to not work.
I fear to have fried the GeForce 8600M GT ...
:-(

This is my dream, as it means a likely free new computer.

 

[AlexMogil]

Hello brethren. Longtime Windows user here, and I will continue to be one. Windows is great and it is my livelihood.

But this last Sunday I bought a Macbook Pro 13". Wow.

Computers are fun again. I want to play with them again! It reminds me of the first time I used Compiz, or actually any GUI in Linux. So much fun. Fusion makes this a perfect device.

Anyway, one nagging issue that is probably me: when I install a new app, the icon in the Applications Grid view looks like the generic app icon - the compass and the piece of paper. If I look at the app in an Finder folder, or Fan view, it's fine. If I move the application OUT of the Applications folder and back in, the icon rights itself in Grid view.

Any ideas?

 

[Macho Madness]

Hello brethren. Longtime Windows user here, and I will continue to be one. Windows is great and it is my livelihood.

But this last Sunday I bought a Macbook Pro 13". Wow.

Computers are fun again. I want to play with them again! It reminds me of the first time I used Compiz, or actually any GUI in Linux. So much fun. Fusion makes this a perfect device.

Anyway, one nagging issue that is probably me: when I install a new app, the icon in the Applications Grid view looks like the generic app icon - the compass and the piece of paper. If I look at the app in an Finder folder, or Fan view, it's fine. If I move the application OUT of the Applications folder and back in, the icon rights itself in Grid view.

Any ideas?

For me anyway, it generally corrects itself overtime. Usually after launching and closing an app a few times, it appears to fix itself.

 

[AlexMogil]

For me anyway, it generally corrects itself overtime. Usually after launching and closing an app a few times, it appears to fix itself.

Thank you - I will just try to be more patient!

 

[Alfarif]

Second question:
I'm also looking to upgrade the RAM. Is Crucial the best place for mac RAM and is it a good idea to have someone at mac put it in or can I do it myself? I consider myself very tech savvy and have installed tons of hardware on my PC, but never anything on a mac. I understand putty knives are involved which doesn't scare me.

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Installing-Mac-mini-Model-A1283-RAM/1058/1

This step by step guide will help you. It's insanely easy to do. I did it back in November when I bought my late 2009 Mac Mini.

 

[Burger]

Damn my Mac Book Pro display this morning seems to not work.
I fear to have fried the GeForce 8600M GT ...
:-(

I think most of them are approaching the 3 year age. Mine officially is fried now, taking it in on Saturday.

This is my dream, as it means a likely free new computer.

I'm sure Apple has a pile of old logic boards with bad 8600M's still to fit. I'm in NZ so I have to take it to Renaissance, I'm sure they will first do everything to get out of fixing it for free...

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

Hello brethren. Longtime Windows user here, and I will continue to be one. Windows is great and it is my livelihood.

But this last Sunday I bought a Macbook Pro 13". Wow.

Computers are fun again. I want to play with them again! It reminds me of the first time I used Compiz, or actually any GUI in Linux. So much fun. Fusion makes this a perfect device.

Anyway, one nagging issue that is probably me: when I install a new app, the icon in the Applications Grid view looks like the generic app icon - the compass and the piece of paper. If I look at the app in an Finder folder, or Fan view, it's fine. If I move the application OUT of the Applications folder and back in, the icon rights itself in Grid view.

Any ideas?

New applications that you download from the Internet do not load the icon until you launch it. When you first launch it, it will give a security warning like "you downloaded this from the Internet on this date, are you sure you want to open this?" After you open it from there, it'll load the icon and act normally.

 

[mrkgoo]

New applications that you download from the Internet do not load the icon until you launch it. When you first launch it, it will give a security warning like "you downloaded this from the Internet on this date, are you sure you want to open this?" After you open it from there, it'll load the icon and act normally.

Mine stay as the generic icon for a while, even after I've opened them. I know if I log out and back in they use the new one, but I also think eventually it changes. NOt sure exactly what triggers it to update, though.

 

[mrkgoo]

I think most of them are approaching the 3 year age. Mine officially is fried now, taking it in on Saturday.




I'm sure Apple has a pile of old logic boards with bad 8600M's still to fit. I'm in NZ so I have to take it to Renaissance, I'm sure they will first do everything to get out of fixing it for free...

On the other hand, you could try a third party Apple Repair Centre. They are contracted or something by Apple, so they don't have a stake in the parts themselves. That said, a replacement is not in their best interests either. I also heard that Apple were cracking down on dodgy repairs from authorised repair centres (ie stop them from just issuing repairs willy-nilly).

How does one propose that a proper presence by Apple to be setup in NZ?

 

[dark10x]

I'm still debating over a Macbook Pro or an iPad, but I'm leaning towards the pad. As much as I would like to get into the Mac again, it's tough to justify and I can't see where I would use it. The situations were I would use a Macbook are the same as an iPad and the iPad is lighter.

I opened iMove and iPhoto yesterday then accidental opened GIMP and it slowed to an uncontrollable speed..I know this isn't Windows, but I might have to restart her (uptime is about 8 days) or get rid of these 3rd party apps.

This hasn't really been a real Windows problem with 7, you know. My desktop has been up and running without a reboot for 30 days (since I got back from my wedding, actually). I play all sorts of intensive games on there as well in addition to normal work and have it wired up to multiple mice, keyboards, gamepads, and displays in different rooms. Stable as you could want.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

I'm still debating over a Macbook Pro or an iPad, but I'm leaning towards the pad. As much as I would like to get into the Mac again, it's tough to justify and I can't see where I would use it. The situations were I would use a Macbook are the same as an iPad and the iPad is lighter.

It's hard to justify getting a Macbook Pro right now when they aren't even Quad Core, and less than a year from now, we'll have a huge speed gain in Sandy Bridge.

 

[Jasoco]

I opened iMove and iPhoto yesterday then accidental opened GIMP and it slowed to an uncontrollable speed..I know this isn't Windows, but I might have to restart her (uptime is about 8 days) or get rid of these 3rd party apps.

Why reboot? Why not just logout then back in? Does the Uptime refer to the computer being on, or the user being logged in?

 

[Macho Madness]

It's hard to justify getting a Macbook Pro right now when they aren't even Quad Core, and less than a year from now, we'll have a huge speed gain in Sandy Bridge.

Might as well not buy anything then.

 

[Chao]

It's hard to justify getting a Macbook Pro right now when they aren't even Quad Core, and less than a year from now, we'll have a huge speed gain in Sandy Bridge.

YEah, and last year people was waiting for the i7. And the next year you'll have to wait for something else with a cool name.

 

[Macho Madness]

YEah, and last year people was waiting for the i7. And the next year you'll have to wait for something else with a cool name.

Exactly. Don't buy that new car! Next year there'll be an EVEN better model! You'd hardly buy anything with a "wait until next year" mentality.

 

[mrkgoo]

So I'm considering getting a 15" MacBook pro, probably i7. I understand there is a current issue with the graphics switching and apparent freezing, locking at least the display for up to 10 minutes. Anyone here with that issue? Sounds like the automatic switching of graphics card isn't ready for prime time.

 

[AlphaSnake]

Anybody using Better Touch Tool with Magic Mouse? Pretty amazing software, pretty much what the Magic Mouse should'd been from the start. The pinching does need some work, but it is an alpha release, so it's understood.