MacRx

Read Cult of Mac’s latest posts on MacRx:

When your Mac runs slow, give it a tuneup

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Mac Tune Up
Tune up your Macintosh and clean out the cruft.

Macs are solid machines, but just like their owners they have a tendency to get lethargic as they age. Launching and switching programs takes longer, simple tasks become arduous, and the dreaded beach ball of doom appears more often than it did when your machine was new. The operating system just starts to feel crufty, and can get worse over time. I see these issues in my IT consulting business regularly.

You may be asking, why does this happen? There are many reasons, but some are more common than others. Sometimes your hard disk (or solid-state drive) gets too full and interferes with normal computer operations. Crashes or misbehaving programs can corrupt the disk directory or application cache files. Remnants from old software may still be running behind the scenes, or you don’t have enough RAM to deal with your OS and workflow.

Is there some sort of tune-up you can do to sort it out? Your tech always tells you to just reboot the computer, but there’s got to be more than that. The good news: Yes, there are some things you can do. And, perhaps, adopt some more-efficient computing practices for yourself along the way.

Apple Fixes: Paving The Way To A Smoother Work Day [MacRx]

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The workplace can be stressful enough, without adding computer snafus to the mix. As an IT consultant, I hear about a lot of them, usually after disaster has struck.

Here’s how to deal with some of the more common workplace issues – email problems, contacts not syncing, WiFi headaches, deleted files – and keep rolling with your Mac.

When Your Mac Slows Down, Give It A Tune Up [MacRx]

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Mac Tune Up
Tune up your Macintosh and do a bit of spring cleaning
This article first appeared in Cult of Mac magazine.

Macs are solid machines, but just like their owners they have a tendency to get lethargic as they age. Launching and switching programs takes longer, simple tasks become arduous, and the dreaded beach ball of doom appears more often. The Operating System just starts to feel crufty, and can get worse over time. I see these issues in my IT consulting business regularly.

You may be asking, why does this happen? There are many reasons, but some are more common than others. Sometimes your hard disk (or SSD) gets too full and interferes with normal computer operations. Crashes or misbehaving programs can corrupt the disk directory or application cache files. Remnants from old software may still be running behind the scenes, or you don’t have enough RAM to deal with your OS and workflow.

OK, so is there some sort of tune up or spring cleaning you can do that sorts it out? Your tech always tells you to just reboot the computer, but there’s got to be more than that. The good news: yes, there are some things you can do. And, perhaps, adopt some more efficient computing practices for yourself along the way.

How To Fix Mac Missing Plug-In Errors [MacRx]

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Missing Plug-In

If you’re a Mac user on the Internet, chances are you’ve come across a few websites where embedded content isn’t displayed correctly. Instead you get an icon or an error message saying Missing Plug-In, often with few additional details about exactly what is missing.

While there’s no single installer which will solve all missing plug-in problems, there are a few common things to start with. If those don’t work you can delve deeper into non-common formats or the forgotten codecs of yesteryear.

I Can’t Reinstall Snow Leopard After Installing Lion [Ask MacRx]

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Now here’s a bizarre headscratcher. A reader’s Mac Pro was upgraded from Snow Leopard to Lion, then refused to subsequently boot off the Snow Leopard DVD to reinstall the older OS on another drive. Despite many different attempts, for this one Mac it appears perhaps you can’t go home again…

I use Bryce occasionally to produce art for friend’s projects. I just discovered it crashes under Lion. DAZ, the manufacturer acknowledges the problem but has no date when the fix will be made. Thinking I could install Snow Leopard and run Bryce under it, I set up a partition on an external drive and attempted to install SL. Lion was having none of it. I also attempted to boot from the SL install disk. It was also rejected out of hand.

Thanks for any help you can provide,
Mike

Why Doesn’t My Mac Wake From Sleep? [Ask MacRx]

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When your Mac doesn’t wake from sleep, the reason could relate to uncooperative hardware or unstable software. When people don’t wake from sleep, it could be the sign of a Monday morning or an upcoming exam…

Sometimes when my mac goes to sleep it doesn’t want to wake up and the screen stays black. I have to turn off computer then turn it back on. Why does it do that?

Andres

Diagnosing Mac Software Memory Leaks Can Be Difficult [Ask MacRx]

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Sometimes explaining the problem with your computer isn’t easy, particularly when you’re not sure of the correct technical term used to describe an issue. It took some back and forth to assess this reader’s problem about RAM usage and availability – but I got to enjoy the affectation of “Sir” during the discussion!

Hello Sir Adam,

Hope all is well. I am in desperate need of your help. Im currently living in the TURKS AND CAICOS ISLAND and unfortunately there are no apple shop here. my problem is that since yesterday the memory (which is by the way 8 GB) keeps on falling down. I have a MBP early 2011 i7 model and just acquired it last Aug 4. Ive spent hard earned money on this one. thats why im very disappointed that as early as 5 months i have this problem. would you kindly give advice on how i can do something about this?

TJ

How Do I Install Samba Into Mac OS X Lion? [Ask MacRx]

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Apple made a number of changes to internal components in OS X Lion, including not installing Java by default and changing it’s SMB (Samba) Windows networking code. These changes have broken some previously working setups but fortunately there are workarounds:

I recently upgraded to OSX Lion, little did I know that samba was removed. Now I cant get on to my DNS 323 and my laptop is piling up with junk. I’ve seen on the net that there are way to install samba but all of them are out of my expertise. Can you help me and put it plain english steps?

Alon

Can I Access My Home Mac While I’m At Work? [Ask MacRx]

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It’s happened to many of us: you’re at work or on vacation and you realize you need something from your Mac at home. There’s nobody at the house to help. By making use of one of the remote desktop solutions on the market, a simple one-time setup can help solve this dilemma:

If my mac is on at home and connected to the internet via a wireless router, and I am at work on either a PC running windows XP sp3 or my mac again connected to the internet via a wireless router is there anyway I can log into my mac at home via the internet and use files etc remotely at work without any input from somebody at home ?

How Can I Get That ‘New Mac’ Feeling On My MacBook? [Ask MacRx]

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Sometimes when our computers have been in use for many years it can help to clean house and start fresh. Restoring from a Time Machine backup via Migration Assistant doesn’t allow for picking and choosing which data you put back, but hard drive clones can help in a situation like this:

I have been putting off this for some time… but I am finally motivated to do a clean boot on my now getting older Macbook. Over the years I have collected many extraneous files, documents, apps etc. and am looking for a fresh start with that “new mac” feeling. I was wondering if you could provide a step by step procedure on how to best prepare for doing this. Obviously there are certain files, photos, music and applications that will need to be transferred or reinstalled, but beyond that everything can pretty much go.

Will iWeb Live? The Answer Is A Mixed Bag [Ask MacRx]

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As Apple pulls us all forward into the Next Great Thing, some widely-used Previously Cool Things get left behind. It’s happened with HyperCard, PageMill, and all PowerPC-only applications. Today one reader ponders the uncertain future of his favorite program, iWeb:

I bought my first Mac in ’85… Being an Old’nAging Geezer I saw that an encroaching Class of ’61’s 50-year Reunion deserved a website so I volunteered, commandeering iWeb for the very first time (successfully aided by FileZilla and my generous wonky Mac-pal Greg) to ultimately be rewarded by several of my classmates and a few fanboys’ sporadic kudos–AND proving once again that old, time-proven saw of Macintosh’s unassailable user friendly superiority.

All that to bring me to this QUESTION: Will iWeb live?

Paul

Can I Merge Mac User Accounts After a Time Machine Restore? [Ask MacRx]

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Ask MacRx took a hiatus for a few weeks in December but we’re back for 2012 and here to help try and answer more of your Mac and iDevice questions. Today we hear from a reader who has more user accounts than desired after restoring from a Time Machine backup:

I recently replaced the drive in my Macbook, upgrading to a larger capacity drive. For the first time I used Time Machine to restore my applications, settings and data files. I was surprised to find that I had to name the restoration differently than the account named on the destination drive. I followed the on-screen prompts and successfully transferred the data from my old drive to the new one.

My MacBook Crashed And Now I Can’t Reboot The Computer [Ask MacRx]

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A crashed computer is one of life’s annoyances. A crashed computer that you can’t subsequently reboot becomes a bigger headache. Sometimes the battery in a laptop can be the culprit:

My Macbook froze out of nowhere. I have only had it for a few months. I purchased it new. I tried pushing the restart button and option/command/esc (what it says in the manual to do) but none of that works. My mac is totally unresponsive. What should I do?

Thanks in advance,
Andrea

How Do I Install an iOS App No Longer Available on the App Store? [Ask MacRx]

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Apple Giveth, and Apple Taketh Away. The Walled Garden approach Apple has taken with its App Store means that not everything you once bought is still available. However, that doesn’t mean you’re out of options for installing software that was previously downloaded:

Hello, I got the iTether app yesterday before Apple pulled it out, but my daughter didn’t get the chance to download it. How will I install it to my daughter’s iPhone? I back up my phone to my PC and I have the app in my file. Please help.

Rodante

How Do I Get Rid Of The “Other” Data Stored On My iPad Or iPhone? [Ask MacRx]

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Along with music, movies and photos, many people have some mysterious “other” data on their iDevices, which seems to increase over time. One reader is wondering how to get rid of this data and free up space:

When I look at my iTunes summary of my iPad it shows that there is 2.9GB of “Other” stored on my device. I haven’t put much stuff on my iPad and have no idea what is taking up so much space. I only have a 16GB iPad and like to put movies on it for when I travel, so space is a premium. How do I find out what is taking up so much space, and what is the best way to maximize storage space on my iPad?

Thanks, Kyle

Can I Use iTunes Home Sharing Across the Internet? [Ask MacRx]

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iTunes Home Sharing has been around for a few years and is a handy way to access your media between devices. One reader wonders about trying to use this service while traveling:

My setup is Apple based i.e. iPad/iphone/appletv2/airport extreme/imac. The iTunes Home Sharing works brilliantly. Is there a way by which I can retain the home sharing function remotely? In other words if I am on 3g and still use the be able to see the iTunes media as I would on the same wifi? I have seen various articles referring to vpn and then indicating that iTunes is not available through the vpn tunnel or through the airport extreme etc.

How Can I Transfer Contacts from my Old iPad to a New Mac? [Ask MacRx]

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Sometimes when moving to a newer computer, you realize only after the old system is gone that you’re missing some data. With the proliferation of iPhones and iPads, cloud based services can help transfer things like Contacts and Calendars if incomplete:

My old Mac Pro was running OS X 10.4.11 and my new MacBook Pro came with Snow Leopard. Using Migration assistant just about everything except Contacts transferred correctly. Now the Mac Pro is across the country in NV and I am near DC. The only thing that has my old Contacts is my iPad. How do I transfer my old Contacts from the iPad to the new MacBook Pro without losing them when I sync?

Clint

iTunes Match Can Replace DRM Protected Audio Files with Unprotected Versions [Ask MacRx]

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The new iTunes Match service is a handy way to share music among all your computers and iDevices. One reader is wondering if this feature can also be used to replace older 128kbps DRM encoded tracks with their higher bitrate, unencumbered iTunes Plus versions:

Just wondering something about iTunes Match. I’ve got a bunch of songs on iTunes that I purchased early in the game, and they are in .m4p format, so they have the DRM locks and can’t easily be converted to .mp3 format. They are only at 128kbps, which is the only thing iTunes offered back in the day. If I sign up for iTunes Match, will these songs be updated to their new DRM-free 256kbps versions, or do I have to pay for the iTunes Plus service first?

Why Does iTunes Keep Restarting When I Quit the Program? [Ask MacRx]

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Software can be a cantankerous thing. Sometimes programs won’t launch when you need them, and other times they won’t go away when you’re done! One reader is having a problem with iTunes refusing to quit when asked:

I have some questions related to 10.5 iTunes. When I quit iTunes it goes about the process normally and then starts back up. iTunes is using 80-100% CPU usage when running. Could this be related to a third-party plug-in? Very frustrating and have to force restart my mini as iTunes cancels the shutdown process.

Thanks, Tim

How Do I Remove Data From My Old Mac Before Passing It Along? [Ask MacRx]

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So you’ve upgraded to the latest and greatest, and it’s time to give your old Mac to a new owner. But how do you get rid of all your old data and software before making the handoff?

I just pulled the trigger on ordering a new iMac, a nice new 21.5″ i7 quad core. Needless to say I can’t wait, even though it will be my first venture with OS X Lion. I get doing a full backup from my current iMac on my Time Capsule to load up my new iMac when it arrives, but I am wondering what is the best step by step way to prep my old iMac running Snow Leopard, to make it clean and ready to gift to the Grandkids’ family.

Can I Restrict Airport Networks to Specific Mac User Accounts? [Ask MacRx]

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Apple likes to make things as easy as possible to join WiFi networks, especially when the network isn’t password protected. However in one reader’s case this isn’t a good thing but rather a major headache:

Is there a way to RESTRICT joining certain wifi networks to certain OS X user accounts?
When using my MacBook Pro, I have two basic OS X logins. One for known SECURE wifi networks, and one for INSECURE wifi networks. The problem is that Airport settings always remember the INSECURE network, and almost always tries to connect my SECURE OSX login to the INSECURE wifi, at which point Mail (or other apps) start up and shoot my logs/passes across the air for all to see.

How Do I Disable iCal Reminder Alerts On My Mac? [Ask MacRx]

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iCal’s Reminders feature is a handy way to keep track of our To Do lists, but sometimes you get pestered more than desired. Here’s one way to quiet things down when your iDevices have nagged you sufficiently:

I love the new Reminders app for iOS, and it ties in beautifully with my use on my iPad and iPhone. However, I hate sitting down at the end of the day and having to click through all my day’s reminders on my computer through iCal. In the iCloud settings, I can only disable iCal, but I don’t want to disable my calendars, just the reminders part of it. Is there a way I can disable iCal reminder notifications on my Mac without disabling the calendar syncing? – Benjamen

How Can I Remove the MobileMe System Preference Pane? [Ask MacRx]

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So iCloud is finally here, and MobileMe is going away. This is generally a good thing, but vestiges of the old remain with the new. One reader is wondering how he can make a clean break:

I’ve successfully upgraded to Lion, to iOS 5 on my iPhone 4, and migrated from MobileMe to iCloud. BUT, I still see the MobileMe icon in my system preferences, how do I remove it?

Mark

How Can I Merge Several Different iPhoto Libraries Together? [Ask MacRx]

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Longtime Mac users often have pictures scattered across several different machines in multiple iPhoto libraries. Sometimes it’s nice to merge everything together when upgrading to a new machine:

I saw your MacRx article on Consolidating Your iPhoto Library and Removing Duplicates. How would you recommend I consolidate several different libraries? I have my first iPhoto library on my vintage Mac Mini. I have a 2nd iPhoto library on a laptop. My third library is on my new iMac. I want everything on the new iMac. What is the best way to attack this? – Deb

How Do I Migrate Accounts From Two Macs Without Duplicating Applications? [Ask MacRx]

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Apple’s Migration Assistant is a handy utility for moving data between old and new Macs, but sometimes you can get duplicates of existing applications. Here’s one way to avoid the issue:

I’ve transferred over my user account from old to new mac. I’m just about to transfer a second user account from another mac to this same new mac. The new Mac has all the applications from the first transfer in the System level Applications folder.

The second user account that I’m about to transfer also has apps in the System Level Application folder. I was wondering what would happen, would they replace the existing apps on the new Mac when I transfer the second user account using Migration Assistant? – Phillip