Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with os

How can I upgrade Mac OS 10.5.8 to 10.6 with a broken CD drive?

figTree — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 18:35:33 -0800

I would like to upgrade my Mac OS 10.5.8 to 10.6. I've been told that the way to do this is to order the CD from apple. However, my CD drive is broken (all else is fine with my Mac). How can I upgrade to 10.6 another way?

Does this feature which exists for Word for Windows exist in Mac Word?

professor plum with a rope — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 18:15:24 -0800

If I'm using Word for Windows, I can double click at the bottom of a page to create one big page. But if I double click at the bottom of a document inside Word on MacOS it opens up the footer prompt. Does Word for Mac have a similar "join pages" feature?

MacOSX: Create a new user, move safest bits over from my old user?

sdis — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 08:47:03 -0800

MacbookProFilter: I migrated my old user onto my new macbook, and carried with it a bunch of problems (slow startup, rapid battery life loss, etc.). Is there a clever, systematic way to migrate chunks of my user account to a new user? I don't exactly need to find the culprit(s) that are causing all the issues; I just want a machine that works well, but I'd rather not just delete all my preferences and passwords and start over from scratch completely if it's not necessary. Is there some app or guide that shows precisely which parts of a user account are 99% safe to migrate?

Can you annotate folders in OS X?

bluefly — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 09:02:42 -0800

On my work computer (Mac OS 10.7.5), I usually organize my projects by putting all the files related to a single project in a single folder. I try to give the folder a descriptive name, but sometimes this is difficult if there are two projects that are kinda similar. Is there a way (either natively or using some tool that I can download/buy) to annotate folders with a longer description? I'd like it if I could search these annotations in Spotlight. Right now, I just have an Excel sheet with the list of folder names and their descriptions, but sometimes when I'm working quickly, I wish I could just right click and write a quick sentence to describe the project. And it would be cool to right click or hover or whatever on a folder and get its description. Some tool/feature like this should already be invented; what is it?

Help a relative server n00b keep his Mac Mini safe.

nevercalm — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 11:00:19 -0800

I'm planning on getting a Mac Mini with Lion Server. I don't have much experience with security or setup. Point me to some basic articles, sites, or books, please. I'll also take any advice the hivemind might have as well. This is for a household with multiple Macs, iPods, iPhones and an iPad.

My interests are for backup, as a household media server and as a drive I can access from outside the home, as well as the small, energy efficient footprint that fits anywhere. I've done enough research to know that this pretty much fits the bill.

How do I keep it secure, yet still be able to access it anytime I like?

I have lifelong (since the first Macs, as a kid) experience with computers and am pretty savvy, and know enough to know that I could get myself in a lot of trouble.

Upcycle an old HP laptop for my kid?

cyclotronboy — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 09:05:50 -0800

Hey all - I have an old HP laptop from 2005, still working, but quite old now. I was tempted to recycle it, but I have a chance to give it a new life. I also have a kid on the way, so I was thinking about wiping it and making it the kid's computer in 2-3 years when he's likely to be interested in it. Thoughts, suggestions? I saw similar questions in 2009 and 2011, but I'm questioning whether or not a 7 year old laptop is even worth the effort. I'd also like to make it kid-friendly in some way, but haven't looked into kid-friendly OS options or content filtering or games or anything else. Help a first-time-father out...

Best way to upgrade to a Solid State Drive?

Rhaomi — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 13:18:22 -0800

What's the best way to go about installing a solid state drive in a new laptop? (And is this even a good idea?) After six years of solid service from my workhorse Dell Latitude, the combination of wonky ports, depleted battery, slowing performance, and an intermittent Disk Click of Doom has convinced me it's time to finally upgrade. Luckily, I found a great deal on a snazzy new IdeaPad Y580. According to this exhaustive review, it's got everything I'm looking for: decent screen, powerful CPU and GPU, similar form factor, and priced hundreds less than comparable machines elsewhere.

The only real flaw is storage. I've heard phenomenal things about SSDs -- lightning speed, low heat/noise emissions, shockproof, etc. -- and definitely wanted to make one the centerpiece of any new laptop purchase. But the Y580 only ships with a standard mechanical drive, which the review identifies as a significant performance bottleneck in an otherwise speedy package.

One potential solution is to go for the premium model, which includes a 32GB "caching" SSD as a supplement to a whopping 1TB mechanical drive. But I get the impression that such a set-up isn't nearly as responsive as an all-SSD environment -- faster boot-up, maybe, but not a "Best. Upgrade. Ever." system-wide turbo boost. I'd also like to avoid, in light of aforementioned Disk Click of Doom, returning to the relative frailty of physical drives for storing all my files. (And frankly, I don't fully understand how one manages a hybrid set-up. Installing the OS in one drive and media files in another? Where do programs go? It sounds awkward.)

Given these misgivings, what I'd really like to do is just buy a lower-tier Y580 with a small HDD, use the savings to acquire a full SSD separately (256GB sounds good), and swap it in when the new laptop arrives. But this has complications of its own. So here are my core questions:

- What's the most reliable ~256GB drive available today? Not necessarily the fastest -- the difference between SSD models is peanuts compared to the step up from HDDs -- but the one most likely to last at least a few years, given reports of perilously high failure rates in earlier years. Intel is the most respected name and offers a five-year warranty, but they're relatively pricey at well over $1 per GB, so I'd be interested in hearing about other brands with respectable track records (as well as those with high failure rates to steer clear of)

- What's the best way to install a new SSD in a new laptop? Should I clone the stock hard disk to the SSD with a migration tool, or would it be better to just install Windows 7 on it fresh? What about transferring files from my old laptop? What's the process for swapping out the drives themselves? Also, are there any tweaks I should do to the SSD that would normally be done by Lenovo pre-shipment in order to optimize it and prolong its lifespan?

- Is there any reason I shouldn't prefer a large SSD over the hybrid HDD+caching SSD? Apart from sheer cost, obvs. I'm really trying to "future proof" this purchase and get the biggest possible performance leap that will last a good number of years, but if a hybrid drive offers ~90% of the speed of an SSD or avoids some major pitfall, then I might be willing to settle. I'd really like to shockproof my data and reduce noise/heat/power consumption, though, so it would have to be a pretty big pitfall.

How to transfer OS to a new drive but preserve current data?

_DB_ — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 17:47:39 -0800

How can I go about transferring my OS to a new SSD but leave my other programs without totally breaking everything? My current system has my Win7, program files, documents, etc all on one drive. I picked up a SSD with the intent of moving my OS there (let's call it C:) but still having my program files (lots of steam games - maybe 120GB that I don't want to redownload) and whatnot on the original drive (let's call it D:). What is the easiest way to do this without losing all kinds of links/references/etc?

These are the options I can think of:

1) Install Win7 on the new blank drive and boot from it; mount D: as a slave and remove all the old OS stuff from it, effectively making it a storage drive (as it should be). Somehow I'd need to tell the new C: Win7 to use the program files on the D: drive, not sure how to do that.

2) The D: drive has less stuff on it total than the C: drive. I could make an image of things as they are now, image it to the C: drive, then restart the computer as if nothing has changed. At that point, how do I remove all the stuff from C: that I want on D: (which will still be on D:) and make sure the OS finds it?

3) _.,-~"~-,._ MAGIC! _.,-~"~-,._

Any help is greatly appreciated :)

for the love of god, make VLC 2.0.2 work on my finicky mac minis

bhance — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 17:23:48 -0800

Help me make the finicky mac minis play well with VLC I have several mac minis, all the same model (mac mini aluminum, macmini4,1 - Intel core duo 2.4) running OS X 10.6.6. Yes, they're behind a few versions, frozen there for a specific app incompatibility. This cannot change. And they've all got nvidia geforce 320m's in them.

All but a handful of these mac minis run VLC 2.0.2 (pointed at multicast streams) just fine, with no errors. The two that don't give me an error: "Your video output is not supported. Your mac lacks quartz extreme acceleration, which is required for video output."

Yes, I've Googled this to death, and the solutions haven't worked - i.e. try prior VLC versions, try adjusting screen resolution, try setting specific output modules under preferences - output modules etc. All those links in the VLC forums that you may be about to add here, I've seen them, and tried them. Still failing.

No, there is literally no difference (software or hardware) between these mac minis and the rest that I can find.

Has anyone else seen this? Anyone have a fix?

iMac Mac OS and Windows 7

matthelm — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 19:21:02 -0800

I just bought a new iMac for home. I use one at work(Boot camp Windows 7) with programs like Maya, After Effects, Premiere etc and love it. Now with one at home I would actually like to use both Mac and Windows OS but have a hard time deciding what software to put where... Can someone help me figure this out? So...I want to stay with Windows for Maya, After Effects, and Premiere, but maybe use mac for all things music, movies, and maybe pictures? Please help me with ideas as to what the mac os is best for....what programs utilize the mac os? Any and all answers are highly appreciated... I know this question is a bit vague and leans towards personal preferences, but I would really like to know what people love using the mac for....

upgrade iMac OS without App store?

toastchee — Wed, 02 May 2012 09:24:29 -0800

How do I update my iMac to latest OS? I have a 24" iMac that I'm very happy with. I also have a newer MacBook Pro that I love.

For the MBPro, it was a simple matter to buy OSX Lion in the app store for 29.99 and install it.

The iMac does not have the app store and is running 10.5.8.

I would love to find a way to update the iMac to Lion without purchasing it again. Can someone provide an easy explanation of how to do this?

Clicky clicky

littlerobothead — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 07:32:29 -0800

Moving windows or palettes around in Photoshop CS5.1 on Mac OS X 10.7.3 is a total nightmare. This is the only app giving me this problem. Halp. This is a Macbook Air with Lion 10.7.3 on it. I use an Apple Magic mouse. The problem is that when I attempt to drag any window or palette around the Photoshop workspace, it's as if I've released the mouse button too early. The window moves a few pixels and then jumps back to it's original location. I've dumped my PS settings, fiddled with the mouse Control Panel; I've got no ideas at all at this point. My other machine is a 24" iMac that's otherwise identical in terms of setup and it does not have this issue.

By the way, the Macbook Air does this even when I'm using the trackpad.

Any ideas before I pull all my hair out?

Help me with me new (used) MacBook Pro

dbirchum — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 04:30:45 -0800

Inherited a MacBook Pro! Looking for some help/guidance for a PC user. Greetings all. I have been a lifelong PC user (out of necessity - cost/affordability of PCs). I used a Mac for a couple of years when I was in university (15+ years ago) and loved them. I vowed to get one again when I could afford it. Long story short, I have always opted for the cheaper PC versions for my home computers and I currently have an aging laptop and fairly new desktop.

Anyway, I recently "inherited" a Mac computer from my brother in law! I helped him move this weekend and he gave me his "old" Mac laptop for assisting him (and doing all of the heavy lifting). He recently purchased a MacBook Air which he is in love with and he also has an iPad 2, so there was no need for him to have the older Pro. Granted, he did say it has been giving him some "issues" recently (he didn't elaborate) and that the battery no longer performs that well (which I am ok with as I will mostly be using it plugged in).

Anyway, I am completely new to the Mac world. I literally plugged it in the other night, turned it on, went through the set-up process and checked my email through Safari. Everything went smooth thus far (I think).

Without sounding like a total idiot, I didn't even know what "type" of MacBook Pro it was (what year it was released, how old it was, the monitor size, if it was one of those aluminum ones, what version of OS it ran, etc). I did some basic Google searches and found out (with the last 3 digits of the serial number YJX) that it is a MacBook Pro Core Duo 2.4 from 2008? (I think). I know it is running Mac OS X 10.5.8 (as I checked it last night).

Therefore, as a long PC user and relatively new to the Mac environment (I have an iPhone and had several iPods including a Touch, so I am not completely new to the Apple, iTunes and the App world), is there anything I should know? I am finding the layout of the file management system a little weird, but I am sure I can get used to it.

I did an "update" last night (under the Apple icon for the software update) and it now seems to be up to date (I downloaded ALL of the recommended updates). Some of the things that I am wondering:

- Are there any basic scans that I should do to see if this Mac is running smooth and there are no underlying issues with it? (as I said, he noted that he had been having some issues with it lately)
- Are their any basic tests I can do to see if the battery life is a problem (and if it is, can I buy a battery and replace it myself?)
- Is there any software that I should get for the Mac (including an apps I should buy from the Mac store)?
- I have been hearing that Macs don't get viruses as often as PCs. Is this really true? Or should I get a virus scanner and/or Malware scanner?
- I am trying to get iChat started, but I can't (it seems to have skipped the initial set-up stage – I wasn’t given the option to set it up) and I don't know how to get back to set it up
- I want to check out the Mac App store but I don’t think I can from my computer/software. Is this the case?
- Is this the reason why I can’t use FaceTime?
- What about accessories? Do I need a keyboard cover/protector, etc.

Again, I am looking for BASIC information, as I have this beautiful machine sitting home waiting for me to play with it and i have NO idea what to do?

Anyway advice would be appreciated (and please be nice)...Thanks!

I'm sorry Dacoit, I'm afraid I can't do that ...

dacoit — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:04:03 -0800

Please hope me! Far from home and locked out of my Mac due to international language keyboard issue. Thanks for reading ... and here's a puzzle for you advanced Mac-heads out there:

I'm visiting Istanbul and learning Turkish, so I've had my (recent model) MacBook Air's keyboard set to "Turkish-QWERTY", and my account login password was a Turkish word ("hoşgeldiniz"). All of which worked great until the other day when, before writing an email in English, I switched the keyboard setting back to "standard US".

Oh no! Ever since, every time I try to log in to my Mac I get rejected. That's because the US keyboard can not, in any way, make the ş in my password. And the big catch-22 is that it seems to be impossible to switch back to the Turkish keyboard without first logging in!

I can't believe that something so simple would brick my computer. Worst of all, I don't have any kind of system recovery chip, and I'm in Istanbul where there's no Genius Bar. And finally, just to round things out, I have the flu and am running a 102º fever. Help ...?

Starting GeekTool in the background?

tommasz — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:09:52 -0800

I have GeekTool v3.0.1 running on 10.6.8. How can I get it to start up on login and just run in the background? I added it to my startup items and it starts up just fine but it starts up in the "edit" mode and I just want my geeklets to run, not edit them.

I have the version installed from the Mac App Store that isn't a Pref Pane but a .app, if that's significant.

You'd think I'd get twice the podcasts, but instead I'm getting none.

Ash3000 — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 09:32:06 -0800

In the last few weeks, I suddenly have *two* Podcasts categories in my iTunes - and when I try to update the original one, my iTunes crashes. My google fu would indicate this is a rather rare problem. Help? This all started when I went to a friend's site to subscribe to her podcast - instead of opening the podcast in my existing Podcasts category in iTunes, it established a new, second Podcasts category, which contained only that one Podcast. (A picture of what I mean is linked here.)

This wouldn't be that big a deal, if it weren't for the fact that A. I can't find a way to remove one of the categories, B. when I try to 'refresh' the original Podcasts category to get new episode, my iTunes crashes, and c. I can't find an easy way to transfer all the podcasts from one category to another. I've updated my iTunes to the most recent version, but, alas, the two categories are transferred over as well. (I've also updated my OS to Lion, but no dice.)

Any help would be much appreciated - thanks!

fix my chrome!

HuronBob — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 19:00:52 -0800

I'm using Chrome (14.0.835.202) on os x (10.7.2). For a while now, I've noticed that, typically, when I do a google search, wanting to just check the wikipedia page for that search term, I type the term in, along with the word wikipedia (such as "whatever wikipedia") in the past this always brought me to a search page with the whatever wikipedia page as the first hit, and now the following happens: for a second or two I get a result page that will show, as the first search item, the wikipedia page for "whatever," but, within a couple of seconds, the search result page changes (with my doing nothing) with other search results at the top (I just went through the first 8 pages of search results for "metafilter wikipedia" and the metafilter wikipedia page doesn't show up at all (although it did flash for a second before that result page refreshed and changed without being asked to!). This used to work like a charm for me, what's changed and how can I change it back? Things are normal in firefox, it responds as I expect it to...

Dragon Dictate + Bluetooth. Just need a better mic?

Tchad — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 07:40:09 -0800

Can I use any Bluetooth ear piece with my new Dragon Dictate software? I just bought the Dragon Dictate software and LOVE it. I spent all night configuring the vocabulary with the USB headset.

But now I want to be mobile. I can't get it to recognize my crappy ($12, Microcenter) little Bluetooth headset. Is this something that I just need to get a better headset or is it that I have to buy the one they have on their site? At $139.00 I would really rather not.

The input levels on the computer itself are ok, the Bluetooth is being recognized, but the voice and mic tests don't work with the one I have.

I am assuming that the one I am trying to use is just too weak and too far away from my mouth. Am I on the right track?

btw: Did this post with the software. This is good stuff.

Why is Finder on Macbook Pro so very very different in Operating System 10.7.1 vs. Operating System 10.6.7 and what can I do about it?

jitterbug perfume — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 20:28:31 -0800

Why is Finder on Macbook Pro so very very different in Operating System 10.7.1 vs. Operating System 10.6.7 and what can I do about it? I just got a new Macbook Pro to replace a shitty older Macbook Pro. Everything else about it so far is amazing, but I'm finding the "Finder" (and by extension the computer) to be almost un-navigatable. My old finder had "Devices", which showed the hard drive along with all connected drives (iPod, BACKTRACK, external harddrive, etc), then "Places", with Applications, Documents, myrealnameinlifefirstandlast, Music, and Pictures. Below that is a "Search For" section, which contains the subfolders "today" (any file of any kind I have opened that calendar day), "yesterday" (same as today but sub the word yesterday in), All Documents, Past Week, All Images, and All Movies.

This setup has worked SO well for me for so long, and it's extremely well thought-out. I've been through many operation system updates, and the Finder has remained the same. This latest update, it changed. A lot. A LOT. I, to be honest, hate the way it's laid out and have no idea why they downgraded their computers' functionality so much? It doesn't appear to me that the new Finder would be better for anyone. I am simply not ridiculous or smart enough to attempt to revert back to my old operating system. Is there any way around this? Again, my first preference would be a way to have my old finder (or similar) back. Maybe there's a customization or something that I could do? Anything to have my super-easy-to-navigate-wow-you-really-know-your-customers Finder back and this new frustrating one gone. Thank you very much for listening, and please hit me with whatever you got, I f***ing hate the main navigation tool of a computer I love!

If not, can someone (preferably multiple people) please attempt to explain the logic behind and/or how to use the new Finder?

Help me reverse engineer this UFO

Bohemia Mountain — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 11:07:57 -0800

Can you help me setup my airport wireless network without an actual H.G. Wells time machine? So my roommate moved out and took his airport extreme base station with him. I used to have an airport station of my own, but gifted it to a friend over a year ago. A friend at work brought me a new-in-box original UFO style Airport base station from 2001. It's the model that still has the built in 56k modem. It is 802.11b compliant. So I had a fun unboxing time with the original packaging, plugged it in to my dsl, and it works just fine. I can see the 'Apple Network xxx blah' connect to it and get online just fine.

The trouble is that even through Airport Admin Utility, I can't actually get in to the base station to update the firmware, set a network name, security etc. Scanning for the base station doesn't come up on my MBP using the utility. My MBP is running 10.6.6, and I have an old macbook running 10.4.11. The older macbook can see it in airport admin utility but it pops up an error saying that it doesn't support that base station. I would like to be able to access it, update it's firmware, and set it up securely.

I tried using the install CD for the airport setup, but it requires OS 10.1 so that's a no-go. I've been searching for the original software/system CD for my old macbook, but I can't find it, otherwise I would just back up that machine, and start from scratch simply to set-up this base station. I don't want an unsecured network. Any ideas on what I can do here? (extra detail, I've tried connecting with my macbook wireless and via ethernet cable directly to the base station, hasn't made a difference). Sub-question: anyone in Pasadena, CA running OS 10.1 who wants free beer and eternal thanks from me for coming over to help? :)

Can't install Adobe products on Mac OS 10.7 Lion

trevs44 — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 11:51:50 -0800

After installing OS 10.7 Lion I am unable to install any Adobe products, including Flash, Photoshop and Illustrator - can anyone help? Okay so I foolishly updated to Lion without realizing PowerPC wouldn't be compatible (my mistake, didn't think about it). So now I've had to repurchase Photoshop/Illustrator and reinstall.

The Photoshop CS5 installer states that "The installer failed to initialize." I followed all the previous instructions and wiped my computer clean of anything Adobe (including Library and ~/Library) but I still get the error. When I look at the logs it says that the fatal error was that it was "Unable to create PIM object." The Google says nothing about this error.

After doing tons of research people suggested reinstalling Adobe AIR and Flash. Air installed no problem, but Flash refuses to install. It will begin the installation but get anywhere from 4-12% (varies every time) before failing. That log states "Error trying to locate volume at /" which again, Google says nothing about.

I'm running as an administrator and have checked all the permissions. I've also installed and verified the JRE is working properly.

TIA

Where are the authorization files and documents for iTunes on my Mac?

Tchad — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 13:54:32 -0800

Where are the iTunes Authorization and/or Documentation files on my Mac? I have a Mac Powerbook G4 PPC.
I recently replaced the hard drive and everything is GREAT!

But iTunes is not great.

I was running OS X.3.9 and iTunes 7.something
I upgraded to OS X.4.11 and iTunes 9.2.1

I cant get the authorizations to work. There is always an error.

I emailed Apple and they gave me the runaround and then sent me an excited message that they have solved my problem! All I have to do is upgrade to the latest OS and iTunes! No Problem!

Except: Problem.

This is as high as this machine will do well. It was working fine with the Apple store before, and so I thought I would pull the authorization files from the old hard drive and put them on this - is this possible? Apple hasn't been much help.

Does anyone know where they are? In which folder?

Is it possible to mix the live iSight video stream?

SteveLambert — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 13:42:00 -0800

Using OS X, is it possible to show a photo in my live iSight video stream? (not using iChat) I'd like to create a live video stream on my site without using uStream or some other service. I'd also like the ability to switch to a photo or slide show and back to video.

I imagine there's some way I can mix the input of that video feed before it gets uploaded. I'd like to find the simplest, unbranded way I can do it without writing a program myself. Any ideas?

I realize what I want may be unfeasible so any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks!

MacBook, heal thyself. Reinstalling MacOS on a recent MacBook

baggers — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:00:24 -0800

I need to reinstall Mac OS X on my 2011 MacBook Pro urgently, but my install disc is unreadable. Previous versions of MacOS won't install on this laptop, as it requires a more recent build. What are my options? My MacBook Pro crashed in spectacular fashion, forcing me to reformat the hard drive. Unfortunately, the install disc seems to be corrupted. What can I do to get this back up and running?

Things I have tried:

- Reinstalling from a Snow Leopard DVD. Didn't work because this MacBook seems to require a later version (10.6.7, I think), and the retail Snow Leopard DVDs are 10.6.3 at most.

- Copying and repairing the DVD. It seems to be fundamentally corrupted somehow, as it can't be repaired.

- I asked Apple to send me a new install disc, but the one they sent was unreadable. Nice job, Apple.

I do have access to a 10.6 install image and the 10.6.7 combo update, but that can't be applied to an install disc: it has to be installed and updated, which I cannot do.

Any ideas?

Who'se driving this thing?

idiopath — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 18:55:55 -0800

What was the first computer operating system to use device drivers as we would recognize them today? Bonus question: when was that specific term first used?