Archive for the ‘Apple’ Category

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Problem Connecting to a Network Drive using SMB on Mac OS 10.5 Leopard

Tuesday, November 13th, 2007

Update 18 December 2007:

I’ve discovered a better way to force Finder to browse the contents of a network drive. You can read more here.

Today I bought a new network hard drive. I bought it because I was getting tired of dragging my old USB external drive from room to room when I needed it. Having a network accessible hard drive makes it so much easier to share data between multiple computers using multiple operating systems.

Initially I set it up from my Windows machine, as I was working on that at the time. Setup was easy enough, and within a minute I was backing up my data over the network.

My problems started when I tried to access the hard drive from my Intel MacBook running Mac OS 10.5. I could connect to the drive and the shares with no problem, but when I tried to browse the contents of the share, it appeared to be empty. Now, I know it’s not empty because I just copied data onto the drive from my Windows machine. First of all I though that it may be the Mac OS firewall that was causing the problem, but even after disabling it, I still couldn’t get Finder to see any of the files on the drive.

I tried creating a folder on the drive using Finder. It seemed to create the folder OK, but no sooner had it done so than the folder disappeared. I checked the drive using Windows XP and the folder was there. It just wasn’t visible to Leopard.

The drive that I bought has a built in FTP server, so I tried to browse the drive using my FTP program and it worked. Using Finder to connect via FTP also worked. In both instances I was able to browse OK, but I could only add new files and folders with my FTP program.

I also tried mount the drive from the command line using:


mount_smbfs //user:password@drive_name/share_name /Volumes/NAS

(BTW, I had to manually create the /Volumes/NAS directory first)

No error messages were returned by the command and the hard drive showed as being connected in Finder, but once again, the share contents were “missing”. I also tried connecting using the CIFS protocol, but the same problem occurred. In desperation, I even tried using the Apple AFP protocol, even though I had an inkling that the drive wouldn’t support it. Unfortunately I was right.

I’ve been browsing the web for a bit looking for a solution, and it looks like I’m far from being the only person with this problem. There’s a thread on the Apple forums with some possible solutions, but none have worked for me.

So for the time being it looks like I’m stuck with browsing my new hard drive via FTP from my MacBook, while my Windows machines will have no problem connecting.

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Posted in Apple, Mac, Mac OS X, Networking, Technology, Windows | 3 Comments »

Google Earth and Mac OS 10.5 Leopard

Friday, November 9th, 2007

I tried running Google Earth today for the first time since I upgraded to Leopard. It quit unexpectedly without an error message. I tried re-installing from the original .dmg image but did not resolve the issue. Apparently I’m not the only one with this problem.

According to Google, version 4.2 of Google Earth is compatible with Leopard. Downloading and installing this version resolved my problem, but there are others for which this solution did not work. According to one poster on the Google forums, the following may help:

  • Delete the entire ~/Library/Application Support/Google Earth/ folder
  • Delete the ~/Library/Preferences/com.Google.GoogleEarthPlus.plist file
  • Restart Google Earth

If you delete these files, be aware that you’ll need to reload your myplaces.kml file from a backup. (The myplaces.kml file is saved in the “Google Earth” folder listed above).

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Posted in Apple, Mac OS X, Software, Technology | 3 Comments »

Reinstate the 2D Dock in Mac OS 10.5 Leopard

Tuesday, November 6th, 2007

After giving out about the new 3D Dock introduced in Leopard, I came across this hint to reinstate the 2D dock. Open a terminal window and type:


defaults write com.apple.dock no-glass -boolean YES; killall Dock

The Dock will restart with the 2D look, albeit with the blue luminous application indicators still in place.

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Posted in Apple, Mac, Software, Technology | 2 Comments »

Leopard: Data Loss Bug

Tuesday, November 6th, 2007

With any new OS there’s bound to be a few problems. Now that hype is dying down a bit, and as Leopard users get down to using the new OS, the bugs are beginning to surface. The biggest one reported to date involves data loss when moving files between different file systems.

So until Apple release a fix, if you have to move files, then stick to copy and delete.

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My Initial Reaction to Mac Os 10.5 Leopard – Part 2

Monday, November 5th, 2007

Apart from the new look to Leopard, Apple have also introduced some new features with the latest instalment of their OS. The big ones are Stacks, Spaces and Time Machine.

Stacks are a new way to browse folders that are saved in the Dock. Instead of opening in a Finder window, the folder contents are displayed as either a fan, (for folders with less than 8 items), or as a grid, (for items with more than 8 items).

Stacks using Fan Layout

Stacks using Grid Layout

If you come from a *nix background you’ll be familiar with the concept of workspaces and virtual desktops. Apple have incorporated this idea into Leopard. You can now group your applications into their own virtual desktops. Spaces also allows you to specify which desktop an application should always open in. So if for example you want your email client to open on another desktop, then you can do so in the Spaces preferences.

Spaces Settings

By default Spaces is turned off, so if you want to use it, you’ll have to enable it in System Preferences -> Expose and Spaces. The initial configuration allows for 4 Spaces, but this can be increased up to a maximum of 16.

And then there’s Time Machine. Everyone is talking about Apples new backup program. It’s proving to be the killer application for Leopard and it’s easy to see why. Time Machine has turned a chore into something that’s almost fun. Time Machine does nothing more than make incremental backups of your Mac – hourly, daily and weekly snapshots are taken – and it does it very well.

In order to use Time Machine a large external hard drive is required. The disk also needs to be formatted with the Mac OS Extended File System. Once you attach the drive to your Mac, you’ll be prompted to use it as your backup disk:

Time Machine Prompt

From there it’s just a matter of letting Time Machine do it’s thing. If you need to restore a backup, then starting the Time Machine application opens a new window that allows you to browse all the previous backups. It really is something to behold. Unfortunately I can’t show you a screenshot, but you can get an idea of what it looks like here.

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My Initial Reaction to Mac OS 10.5 Leopard – Part 1

Saturday, November 3rd, 2007

Seeing as I just posted about installing Leopard, I might as well give you my initial reaction to Apples new flagship OS.

On logging in for the first time, there’s a couple of things that will strike you straight away:

The Dock has been radically changed. It now sports a 3D look, along with reflected icons. Gone are the small black arrows to indicate running applications, instead you have a glowing blue light which I find is nearly impossible to see.

Leopard Dock
Click for larger size.

The menu bar has a new “theme”, it’s now translucent, the Apple icon has been changed and the Spotlight icon has been updated. A lot of users have complained about the translucency, but my desktop picture is black along the top, so I’ve hardly noticed it.

Leopard Menu Bar
Click for larger size.

The Finder has been updated, and the folder layout on the left now resembles iTunes. The folder icons have also been updated.

Leopard Finder
Click for larger size.

So they’re the main visual differences between Tiger and Leopard. When I get a chance, I’ll post more about the other big changes.

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Posted in Apple, Mac, Technology | 1 Comment »

Installing Mac OS 10.5 – Leopard

Saturday, November 3rd, 2007

It’s been a while since I did a proper technical post, but lately I’ve had little time to devote to the techie side of my life. So to help me get back into the swing of things, I ordered Leopard from the Apple website last week. At €129, it’s a lot cheaper than Windows Vista.

I usually don’t go for installing new operating versions until they’ve had time to settle down and the developers have had a chance to release updates for the bugs that invariably crop up. This time I decided I would bite the bullet and go for Leopard straight away.

I’ve never installed Mac OS before, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Coming from a Windows background, I’ve had plenty of opportunity to reinstall Windows – and what a tortuous experience that can be. (After working tech support for so long, I have the Windows mantra down pat: “Backup, format, reinstall.”)

As it turned out, installing Mac OS was a lot easier than installing Windows: pop the disk in the drive, double click the installer icon, and click the restart button. The machine automatically boots from the DVD drive, and the install process begins.

There are three options to choose from when installing a new version of Mac OS:

  • Upgrade,
  • Archive and Install, and
  • Erase and Install.

The first option installs Leopard over your existing OS, keeping your data and applications intact. The second makes a backup of your previous installation and installs Leopard, and the third wipes your current installation and then proceeds to installation.

I went with the Upgrade option as I didn’t want the hassle of reinstalling my applications and starting again from scratch. Once you click the “Continue” button, that’s it, no further user interaction is required. In all, the process took about an hour to complete, and when my MacBook rebooted at the end I was straight into Leopard.

Some users have reported problems with their installs hanging after the reboot, but apparently the problem is due to an unsupported extension for Logitech mouse drives. More seriously, there have also been issues with the built in firewall, so if you’re using your Mac on an unprotected network, you might want to invest in a full firewall product. The only problem I had was that I had to re-enter the encryption key for my wireless network connection, even though it was already stored in my keychain. Apart from that, I had no installation problems. Now it’s time to play with the new OS.

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Leopard Cracked to Work on PC’s

Tuesday, October 30th, 2007

Apple’s new OS, codenamed Leopard, has barely had time to cool down after coming off the presses, and already some enterprising individuals have managed to get it running on a PC. The method is a bit tortuous, but it can be done. The Register, and OSX86 Scene Forums have more.

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Syncing a Windows Mobile Smartphone with Mac OS X

Monday, September 24th, 2007

When choosing a smartphone you have two OS options: Symbian and Windows Mobile. Nokia and Sony Ericsson use the Symbian OS, while HP, Toshiba, HTC and Samsung use Windows Mobile on their phones. No matter which OS your phone uses, chances are that the synchronisation software provided with the phone will be Windows only. So, if like me you’re a Mac user, how do you sync your phone with your Mac?

If you’re lucky, Apples iSync will recognise your device, in which case you’re pretty much good to go straight out of the box. However, if you have a smartphone that isn’t recognised by iSync, who’ll have to splash out on a 3rd party solution.

I recently purchased the HTC S710, which unfortunately, it isn’t recognised by iSync. After a quick Google search, I came across “The Missing Sync for Windows Mobile“. Missing Sync allows you to sync via your Network, Bluetooth or USB. Providing plugins for your Contacts, iCal, and all your multimedia content, Missing Sync has all the bases covered. If you have Microsoft Entourage installed, it will also provide a conduit to sync your data directly with Microsofts attempt at a PIM for the Mac OS.

Setting up your device is straightforward and I was up and running within minutes of downloading the program.

Costing $39.95 for download, or $49.95 for the CD version, it’s certainly worth it if you have to sync your smartphone with your Mac.

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Posted in Apple, Mac, Software, Technology, Windows | 2 Comments »

iPhone Sim Unlocked – Twice in One Day

Friday, August 24th, 2007

Various media outlets are reporting that the iPhone has been cracked to allow any SIM card to be used.

First some back story, when Apple released the iPhone, they did so in the US only and with the condition that coverage was provided by AT&T. To ensure this, the iPhone was locked to prevent SIM cards from other mobile providers being used in the phone.

Since the initial release there have been plenty of attempts to circumvent the SIM lock on the iPhone. Today there were two announcements made in relation to the SIM lock being cracked. The first involves a hardware crack and the second involves a software update. Apparently the hardware hack takes about an hour to complete, while the software update takes a couple of minutes.

So what’s the fuss about? Half the planet went pretty much insane when it was released. But because the iPhone is SIM Locked, it can only be used in the US. With an unlocked iPhone it can be used anywhere in the world, and within the US, it can used with any provider.

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Posted in Apple, Hardware, Software, Technology | Comments Off

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