Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Macbook

What lightweight but powerful laptop should I buy?

bkudria — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:36:10 -0800

Which light-weight yet powerful laptop should I buy? I like the Sony Vaio Z, followed by the MB Air and the Thinkpad X200. Am I missing any models? I'm looking to replace my current work laptop - I use it for web development, so I need to be able to run Apache, MySQL, PHP, and some other stuff. I also use Chrome pretty heavily, and of course I watch a DVD every now and then, play music, etc. I don't run an office suite or play any games.

I carry my laptop to and from work every day, and my current HP is pretty heavy, so I am looking to buy the lightest laptop possible that still has a real CPU (e.g. no Atom, ULV, etc). I don't want anything at all resembling a "netbook". What I'm not considering at the moment is price - I'm happy to pay extra for a nicer, lighter, laptop.

At the moment, the best option I could find is the Sony VAIO Z-series. It weighs 3.3 pounds, not the lightest on my list, but it has a nice CPU (a T9900 @ 3.06 GHz). The MB Air is 0.3lbs lighter, but the CPU clocks in at 2.13 GHz and as expected does slightly worse in benchmarks. The Z also has a higher-res screen. I use an additional external monitor, but it is a nice extra. The Lenovo Thinkpad X200 and X200s are lighter even than the MB Air, but have even smaller screens and slower CPUs.

(Note: I am aware of the Z's in-BIOS VT block. I have no problems with patching the BIOS to work around this. I don't consider it a downside.)

Additional details: I plan on running Linux, so gross Linux incompatibilities are a no-go, but I think I can handle anything merely pedestrian. Also, I plan on swapping out the HDD with an SSD some point in the future, so if that has any bearing on anything, I'd love to know. I'm still in the research phase for that.

In short: I want a light yet powerful high-quality workhorse laptop. The VAIO Z looks to be a good balance.

My question: Am I missing anything in my analysis? Do any of these laptops have any glaring flaws? Are there any other models that have solid build quality and similar or better specs?

Thanks!

Second time's the charm?

The Winsome Parker Lewis — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:58:36 -0800

Please help me rearchitect my Apple-specific wireless home network and iTunes library! Eleven paragraphs of geeky details within (sorry!). I have a big (~100GB) iTunes library I've been accumulating over at least a decade of ripping all my CDs and, in more recent days, my DVDs as well. That project is still ongoing and may never end. I've invested a lot of hours in encoding and cataloging my physical media, and I want to keep it safe for, well, forever. I'm motivated by a teeny bit of paranoia that my discs will scratch and I'll lose something. I keep a tidy house but I guess you could call me a data hoarder. ;-)

This summer I decided to free up room on my MacBook (occupying that much disk space just for iTunes was pretty ridiculous). I bought a WD My Book Mirror Edition and moved the library to it. I configured RAID mirroring for the dual drives so I'd have a backup in case one failed. Before the move, I regularly backed up the library onto my Time Capsule (using Time Machine) along with all my other non-iTunes stuff; the RAID mirroring made that seem redundant so I deleted the backup and excluded it from all future backups. Also, instead of connecting the MyBook straight to my computer, I plugged it into the Time Capsule USB port so I could carry the laptop around the house and still use iTunes wirelessly.

I was really proud of this setup until a couple issues reared their heads:

Latency. Playing music in iTunes over this network works mostly fine apart from the occasional stutter. There's also often a very long delay (30 seconds or more) between when I tell a new song to play and the audio actually begins. Similar delays between when I "get info" on a file and the info window appears. iTunes beachballs frequently now, completely unresponsive while it does... stuff. If I wait, it eventually takes care of whatever it was doing and becomes usable again. So annoying.

Latency's an even bigger issue when watching movies. By default, the Time Capsule was configured for 802.11b/g/n compatibility and movies were unwatchably laggy. I found that forcing pure 802.11n improved performance a lot and movies ran almost as smoothly as music, with only occasional, forgivable hiccups and long delays for play/pause, scrubbing, etc. The downside of killing 802.11b/g compatibility is that my iPhone 3G can no longer use the network, as it only goes up to g. I really miss that functionality, for things like Airfoil Speakers and iTunes Remote.

Another issue is the unfamiliarity of maintaining a network drive that's out of sight, out of mind. Whenever I want to use iTunes I have to mount the drive (I run a script to do it automatically at logon). Whenever I leave the house I have to unmount it. I've forgotten a couple times and disconnected improperly. There were also a couple times when I had trouble getting online and reset the Time Capsule, forgetting that the disk was mounted. Which leads us to the next sad, sad paragraph...

This past weekend, tragedy struck. I think it was related to an improper disconnect while data was being written. Suddenly iTunes refused to read the drive at all. Time Capsule reported a "problem" with the drive. I plugged it into the MacBook and ran Disk Utility. It failed to verify or repair the disk and said I would have to format it. What's worse, the mirrored drive was identically corrupted too. I lost my whole library and the supposed "failsafe!" Crap! I really botched this one up.

I'm investigating data recovery options. I should be able to restore my files. Not sure how this is going to play out but it makes my heart ache. Any suggestions for cheap-as-in-free ways to get my library back in working condition would be appreciated.

But what I'm really asking for in this question is the best way to prevent this from happening again and in a way that works better than my first attempt. Assuming the drive is not mechanically broken and I'll be able to get my files back, how can I redesign my network to do all of the following:

Access my iTunes library wirelessly
Minimize latency
Keep a backup of the library that's actually safe and won't give me any more headaches
Use my iPhone on the network
Require no additional hardware purchases if at all possible

I can't think of a single way to fulfill all of those requirements. Maybe it's impossible. But you are smarter than me, I trust. If it makes a difference, the MacBook is a late 2007 Santa Rosa model, 2.2 GHz, running Snow Leopard. Let me know if I've left out any other details that could be helpful. Thanks!

Does a 3 mm height difference matter for Macbook pro hard drives?

Phire — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:45:10 -0800

Will the 15" Macbook Pro 4.1 (early 2008) be compatible with a 2.5" Form Factor internal hard drive that's 12.5mm rather than the standard 9.5mm? I can't find this information anywhere and I'm asking for a friend. He ordered this hard drive not realizing at first that it was thicker than normal, and now he wants to know if he should go through the rather arduous process of cancelling the order and getting a new one or if the Macbook chassis will accommodate the extra height. Thanks in advance!

The protection question.

Gordion Knott — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:18:03 -0800

New 13.3 inch unibody MacBook. How can I protect its case from scratches, but at the same time preserve the aesthetic beauty of the laptop? The new "unibody" MacBook, if you've seen it in retailers, is enclosed in a slick, white case that simply rocks. It deserves to be seen--and protected.

I'm not worried about dropping the device, since I'm careful with computers. I'd simply like to protect the case from the occasional scratch or scuff. But I'd like to do so in a way which preserves the visibility of the case from the outside, and the Apple logo, of course.

What are the best solutions for protecting a device like this? I'm assuming that a transparent, low form factor case of some sort will do the job, but maybe a protective sheet (like those used on iPods) will work just as well.

Given that I'd like to see as much of the machine from the outside, which manufacturers and products should I be looking at?

Is my computer going to die when I need it most?

waterandrock — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 09:07:05 -0800

Will my Macbook be alright after dropping it a few times? I've dropped my white macbook for the third time from a height of a foot and a half. This is the result of being stressed with school work and having to get up from the couch numerous times due to an unusual increase in the number of phone calls I've been receiving (as the result of a personal event). There hasn't been any trouble with my white macbook yet - nothing at all - but should I be preparing for trouble? I've also dropped my boyfriend's macbook pro once a few weeks ago, which slid off from the coffee table - no trouble there either. They were both on, but not busy processing anything significant at the time, with only a web browser or word processor window open. They're both a couple of years old. (I have taken steps to avoid dropping laptops again.)

Am I being too uptight about my Macbook screen?

4ster — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:46:59 -0800

I have an appointment to see the Mac Geniuses tomorrow regarding my Macbook's screen, which looks rather dim. However, I'm not sure if I'm asking too much, since I know the older displays dim over time. I have some photos inside comparing my Macbook to an almost identical model that is one year older than mine. Could you take a look at these pics and let me know what my chances are of getting a repair? Other stuff:

Both are 13.3" polycarbonate white Macbooks. Mine was purchased in spring of 2007, the other was purchased sometime in 2008.

I have AppleCare.

The Apple store is a 150 mile round trip.

I checked the color calibration settings, and they are the same.

Please let me know what you would do if you were me. Other experiences with dimming screens would be appreciated as well.

Thanks for your help.

Photos are here and here.

The first photo was taken in the dark and the second was taken with the lights on.

Help me Bag an Apple

GJSchaller — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:58:20 -0800

Looking for a good backpack for a 17" MacBook Pro I'm looking for recommendations for a durable, long-lasting, and comfortable backpack that can contain a MacBook Pro, as well as the rest of my geek gear. I'm not a HUGE gadget freak (I don't carry an entire IT closet on my back), but I do have some accessories, and some occasional books. I am not fond of shoulder slings or messenger bags. The 17" requirement makes things a bit trickier.

I've found several bag suggestions online, but need feedback on which are actually good (outside of on-site reviews). I live in NYC, but the Apple Store doesn't have a wide variety in stock - I'm trying to think outside the box for better bags that might not be sold in retail. One of the sites I've seen is Tom Bihn's Brain Bag - has anyone had any experiences with them?

Macbook wireless, what gives?

Brandon Blatcher — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 06:17:51 -0800

Macbook wireless connection has gotten considerably weaker and flakier recently. Suggestions on how to fix, please! It's a late or early 2008 Macbook, running 10.5.8, has generally worked fine. For the longest time, it was on a wireless network hosted by a Linksys wrtg and things were fine. Sometimes upon waking or starting up the wireless connection would be flaky, but after a minute or two, it would settle down and things would gone.

Recently, that router died for unknown reasons, so the network is now hosted by a Airport Express (with an Airport Extreme acting as bridge for an older mac), all under WPA2 security, and the wireless connection for the Macbook has gotten terrible.

Now, if an url is entered, even for large, stable sites, like CNN or Gmail, the site may take a full minute to come up, if it come up at all. Often there is a message about being unable to reach the site because the computer isn't connected to the internet. Hitting the refresh button 4 or 5 times often doesn't help, the computer hangs or the message about not being connected to the internet comes back up. The Airport status symbol in the menu bar usually shows the connection as being at full strength. This happens throughout the house, whether the computer is as far from the router as it can be, or sitting two from it, i.e. the connection is flaky and crappy.

However, the connection works just fine if you click and hold onto the Airport status symbol in the menu bar. Go figure.

Other wireless Macintosh computers on the network work fine, no problem. There is one wired device on the network which is connected via an Airport Extreme bridge to the network and that works fine too.

Any ideas on what the problem is and how to fix it?

Help me to build the ultimate IT Help Desk for a 1:1 Laptop program at a K-12 private school.

mrbarrett.com — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:42:58 -0800

Help me to build the ultimate IT Help Desk for a 1:1 Laptop program at a K-12 private school. We're doing a 1:1 laptop program for Fall 2010. We'll be using the new MacBooks just released by Apple. Every student from 4th-12th grade will receive one.

And so we're now planning the building of a "Tech Center" at our Middle School and Upper School campuses. Inside each of these "Tech Centers" will be a manned IT Help Desk where students can come for hardware & software problems. It will be manned from 8am - 5pm every day.

I have quite a bit of space to work with--a room about 50 feet long by 14feet wide. We'll be purchasing all new furniture, partitions, storage cabinets, shelving, etc.

What features define the best IT Help Desks you've seen? What works? What doesn't work? How have you handled intake, repair, storage, pickup logistics? If you could build the ultimate IT Help Desk, what would it look like?

How can I tell if someone is trying to hop onto my wireless signal?

invisible ink — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:46:16 -0800

I have a MacBook Pro running OS 10.6.1, and an Airport Extreme Base Station. Is there a user-friendly way to see if someone is trying to use my internet connection or hack into my network? I live in a large apartment building, and am curious to see if anyone has tried to hop onto my wireless signal. Thanks in advance:-)

Best way to eliminate personal data on Macbook Pro?

UMDirector — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:44:02 -0800

After problems with my old laptop Apple sent me a free replacement, whats the best way to migrate my data, eliminate personal info but leave potential problems intact? So my 2007 MacBook Pro has been a nightmare, multiple logic boards, wireless card outages etc. So they replaced it with a brand new current model MacBook Pro. My initial plan was just to dump my time machine backup onto the new machine, but I am wondering if that would instantly slow down the new machine by adding all the old pref files and junk that accumulates over the years to slow down machines? Should I worry about this? Would it be better to do a pile of fresh installs and manually copy music directories and such?

Also I want to send me old machine back to Apple as intact as possible. I would hate for the current wireless card issue to be a software problem and then I do a entire install and wipe and it fixes it. So I want to send it back as is but delete my personal data, passwords, etc. What's the best way to do this?

Mac and MMO's don't mix.

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:23:54 -0800

I'm a gamer. I bought a mac. After going through a lot of hassles with Boot Camp, I've decided to switch back. I'll get around $1700 for returning the mac... My question is, would it be better to buy a laptop around this price or sell my desktop as well to up my budget? Quick note: This question is anonymous because my entire social circle knows about the situation, and I don't want them knowing about my other, more personal questions on the main account.

I did get boot camp to work for awhile, but then I ran out of hard drive space on my Windows partition. Low and behold, you can't dynamically resize drives. Instead of going through the reinstall when I run out of space again (or giving my mac partition a measly 5GB... What is it even there for?) , I decided to just buy a gaming laptop.

I've been looking at the G71GX and the G51Vx.(http://usa.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=0rtKwgmuen69jiqw).

Around May of '08, I built a desktop with top of the line gaming equipment at the time (specifically, to run Age of Conan.) I'm away in college now, so most of the time it sits collecting dust. However, I'm worried that if I do sell it, I'll find the laptop doesn't measure up and regret it... Anyone have some experience with this that can chime in? (I've never bought a laptop for gaming before.)

Also, I mention the date/equipment because I'm trying to guestimate how much it'll sell for. My guess is around $500-$600, but could it be even less than that? (I can give specific specs if need be.)

Can you swap one apple power adapter attachment for another older one?

ndicecco — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:13:47 -0800

Is it safe to swap the power adapter attachment between an iBook G4 and an intel MacBook? Please bear with me, because I'm not sure of the proper terminology: my girlfriend has an intel-based MacBook (2 or 3 years old - from just after the switch to intel). She was unplugging her power cord and the casing came off the power adapter attachment... I'm referring specifically to the piece that can be swapped out for a longer cable (if this is still unclear, let me know).

I have a seemingly identical piece from my old iBook G4 - both say "2.5A 12.5V-" on the bottom. The piece fits perfectly, but is it safe to use? Will it void her applecare? She's going to call them tomorrow to see if they will replace the piece, but I don't see why they would. She still has the long cable, but she would prefer not to carry around the extra weight.

Can anyone lend me a hand in designing my new home network computer setup?

decrescendo — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:54:03 -0800

Can anyone lend me a hand in designing my new home network computer setup? I have two computers right now.

1. Macbook Pro from about a year ago. In awesome shape. Bought it new. I currently use it mostly on travel and in my living room when I'm watching TV and browsing the net.

2. Desktop I built myself in 2006. I use this computer to store all of my music and listen to said music through speakers that are hooked up to it. I also have tons of pictures and videos stored on this machine. 3 harddrives, around 1.5 TB of space I believe.

I'd really like to make this Macbook Pro my primary computer. I spent too much money on it to use it for browsing the net in my living room. I want to be able to have access to the videos, pictures, and music that are currently on my desktop wirelessly while I'm on my Macbook.

How would I best go about this? I can see retiring this desktop or using parts of it to create a server. I envision this server living in my closet somewhere with a lot of storage and backup capability. I'd like to be able to access the data on this server wirelessly via my Macbook anywhere in the world.

And if I have speakers in my bedroom and a 7.1 system in my living room, how can I "beam" music on my server to these seperate speaker setups via my Macbook (basically it would sorta function as a remote control). I don't want to listen to music THROUGH the laptop or speakers connect to the laptop; I want it to come through other setups.

Also, would swapping out my laptop for a new one in a few years be an easy way to tech refresh this system since the server probably wouldn't have to be built from the most up-to-date components? The laptop is going to be what accesses the internet and edits video and what not.

So can I make this setup work and is it easy? (And does anyone have any good resources for building this server?)

I can't click and drag on my MacBook!

iliketolaughalot — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:44:02 -0800

I can't click and drag! I have a silver MacBook that I got in October. A few days ago, the trackpad stopped working and wouldn't let me click. I restarted, and it works for everything but clicking and dragging. (Does that make sense? I can't highlight text, or make a box to take a screen shot, or do a drag and drop, or anything that requires clicking and dragging.) I plugged in an external mouse to see if that would fix it, and it didn't. I did some googling and someone suggested Main Menu. I tried this and it didn't work. I still can't drag and drop! I would rather avoid the Genius Bar, though I am still under warranty. Can you help?

Why is my Macbook Pro so slow to load applications?

shivohum — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 06:28:52 -0800

My 2.4 Ghz Macbook Pro running OS 10.6 seems awfully slow to load applications. Any advice? I have a 2.4 Ghz Macbook Pro with 4 GB of RAM, and compared to a lot of other Macs - like the 2.6 Ghz/2 GB iMac I'm typing this on - it seems awfully slow to load applications. I'm running Snow Leopard, and the problem has not gotten any different or better.

For example, if I quit Word, after opening it, and then start it again, it takes 8 seconds. On this iMac, it takes 2 seconds. They're both running Word 2008.

Firefox 3.6 often takes 6 seconds to open, compared to more or less instantaneously on the iMac. It's true that if I open Firefox, close it, and then open it again on my MBP, it sometimes then loads instantaneously, but if I wait 30 seconds, it might take 6 seconds again. Similarly, it often takes 4-6 seconds for system preferences to open up. And on and on.

I have my graphics card set to "high performance," so it should be using the nVidia card rather than the integrated card, and I have the 7200 rpm hard drive.

What's the deal? I can't think of any exceptional CPU/memory-hogging application that I'm running in the background, and activity monitor shows 85-90% capacity idle. I do run Carbonite and Growl in the background, but they don't seem to take up any CPU power normally.

I have 170 GB of hard disk space free, too, if that matters.

I have installed all software and firmware updates.

Any idea what the deal is? Thanks!

Why have my Macbook and my printer broken up?

flowerofhighrank — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:04:11 -0800

why won't my macbook and my hp officejet printer talk anymore? Wirelessly, I mean. What can I do? It's an OfficeJet J6480 and I miss the way I could just hit print...and the printing would happen. Help?

Macbook battery cover broken. Dangerous?

proj — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:03:14 -0800

The corner of the plastic cover of the battery on my Macbook has broken off. I have experienced numerous other cracks in the casing that other users have documented in the white Macbooks (~2006, 13") but this appears to be something different. You can see a little bit of the inside of the battery. Is this in a dangerous spot or can I put some electrical tape over it?

Here is a picture.

It is the corner closest to the user on the left hand side when the computer is open and sitting on a table for normal use.

How do I fix my Macbook's dark screen?

larkin123 — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:01:57 -0800

The screen of my Macbook has gone mostly dark. Is there anything I can try at home to fix it? Who in NYC (other than the Apple Store) could I go to? OK, so I have a three-year-old Macbook (specs in leftmost column here; running Tiger OS).

A few weeks ago, the screen went dark. I might have closed the clamshell while a video was running, but I'm not sure. If I shine a very bright light on it and zoom in, I can make out enough to do some basic tasks. So the screen is dark but not dead. Everything else (Mail, iTunes, Safari, etc.) seems to work just fine.

Is there anything I can try at home? I already tried deleting the sleepimage and Extensions.mkext files, based on a blog post I found, and that didn't work. I tried booting the computer off a bootable backup, and while everything else worked, the screen was still dark. I tried connecting to an external monitor, and the monitor didn't seem to notice my computer. When I emailed a screenshot to another computer, the screenshot looked normal.

I took it to the local Apple Store, and they said the inverter might need replacing. A few days later, they said replacing the inverter didn't work, and the logic board might be the problem. Since I have so lilttle cash right now, I brought the laptop back home for further internet research.

If the logic board wasn't working, wouldn't there be other problems with the computer? It looks like the display is the only problem. Besides, based on random internet message boards, it looks like Apple is usually too quick to blame the logic board, even if that clearly isn't the problem.

If I have to, I'd be willing to drive my laptop over to NYC. Is there someone who you would recommend I go to?

I'm sure I'm missing something, but this has been one of several problems I've had to deal with this month, and right now I'm having the hardest time focusing on just one issue. Thanks in advance, everyone!

Will my flight have a power outlet for my Macbook?

nitor — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 13:18:29 -0800

Will my flight have a power outlet for my Macbook? I will be flying with KLM on a Boeing (Douglas) MD-11. I don't want to take my bulky charger if I won't be able to use it on the flight. Will I be able to? I have a travel kit. Will I have to use the european adapter or will it have the US standard?

MacBook Unibody Floppy-Hinge Hacks?

lonefrontranger — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 07:50:26 -0800

The hinge on my partner's new unibody MacBook Pro is just-loose-enough to make using it in bed annoying. Solutions, cases or a hack welcomed. O hive mind, please help us comfortably enjoy our weekend morning lazy-surfing, emailing bliss with a new unibody MBP!

So, after searching Google and finding this as the first hit, and this as the second, I'm not feeling very optimistic.

The new unibody MBP that mr. lfr. just bought is amazing. Really amazing. Photo processing has taken on new life, the screen is gorgeous, it doesn't get scaryhot when running video for extended periods of time, and last but not least, he's now able to run his heavy duty protein modelling software for work seamlessly on it now.

The only glitch is that he can't comfortably lie down in bed (or on the couch) with the laptop above his head because the new unibody has a seemingly "looser" hinge design than both his and my first-gen intel MBP did/do. The challenge with this is that we both tend to do a fair bit of lying around being creative (or lazy, your pick) either on the sofa or in bed, with the laptops above our heads, and the fact that he can't do that with his new one is actually fairly annoying. In fact, I am typing this question from a supine position right now on my older MBP. Also, I had planned to replace my own MBP with a new unibody soon, and this (seemingly quite minor) issue has suddenly become very important to me. Yes, I'm that lazy.

Has anyone here found a solution to this "floppy screen" issue on their new unibody? Since he already mentioned that he would like to find a case, is there potentially a (light, slim) case out on the market there that adds a little more tension/stability to the open clamshell design, to allow the screen to stay up/open when gravity takes over?

um, also please note: "get out of bed" is not really a helpful answer. He's already discovered that piling pillows to sit up and look at/down at the screen (rather than up at it) is much less comfortable and seems to put more strain on his neck.

upgraded to snow leopard, or should that be slow leopard?

nunoidia — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 23:19:18 -0800

Help! I upgraded to snow leopard and now my internet is painfully slow. A quick google search shows i'm not the only one, but the only fix I can find (to do with the firewall) doesn't help me as I don't have firewall on. There seems to be no difference between Safari and Firefox. I'm seriously considering using time machine to get back to Leopard days. As an example, pre snow leopard, a speed test measured at 1.83mb/s download, 0.16mb/s upload and 41ms latency, speed test just now says 0.46mb/s, 0.24mb/s upload and 51ms latency. Therefore it looks like my upload speed has improved by my download has taken a dial up style kicking. As I don't upload anything very often, I don't care about any improvement in this area. Can anyone assist? I'm running a January 2009 macbook if that helps.

Switching to & consolidating verything on a new external HD

amillionbillion — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 11:38:39 -0800

I'm switching to a new external hard drive. How can I consolidate all my files onto it? My current external HD is a Sony bootleg I got in China. It's been solid but I'm nervous. I want to switch over to a 500GB WD Passport.

8 months ago, I cloned my internal HD with Carbon Copy Cloner onto a partition on the "Sony" and have never updated it. I also backed up all my media files onto a separate (not bootable) partition. I then deleted a lot of my files from my internal HD (which is only 60GB). Since then, I frequently move (not copy) new files from the internal to the external's backup partition to free up space.

In short, I haven't been as systematic as I should've been and am not sure anymore what files are on the external HD's backup partition and not on the clone, which are on the clone and not on the internal, which are on all 3, etc etc. It's a mess.

Is there some app/program (or relatively efficient process) that can recognize "the difference," help me merge and consolidate everything, and transfer it all onto my new drive? Ideally, it would all be on a new clone on the new drive (so that I can boot from it when I get a new computer), as well as on a separate new backup partition for easy access.

(With CCC, you can opt to add to your clone without deleting anything from it. However, even if I were to update the clone using my current internal HD, it would be missing a whole chunk from the past 8 months (the stuff I added just to the backup partition, then deleted without cloning). And I don't have enough internal HD space to add *everything* back on, then move it onto the new drive, and am too broke to expand my internal HD for now.)

Also clearly I have been going up the cloning and backup process all wrong to create such confusion, but am not sure how I should do it from now on.

Thoughts and suggestions? (I hope my question makes sense!)

PS - tangentially related: When I do get a new computer and boot from the clone, could I access all my old apps without needing the original registration/serial #s?

Backing up a Macbook

ashaw — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 01:16:41 -0800

I've received a new 320GB hard drive that I want to fit in my Macbook which is still running OSX Tiger. I also want to install my Snow Leopard Box set. I need to back all my data up on an external HD. How should I do things? My plan of action was to:
1)Copy all files on my laptop to the external hard drive
2) Install new hard drive.
3) Install Snow Leopard
4) Access HD and transfer everything over.

Also, any programs which will make the backing up easier?

Seeing as I've never done anything like this before, I want to make sure I haven't missed anything incase I loose all my data and music (I shudder just thinking of the possibility).