RouterNotes.com » Mac OS X

Finder restart issue

siteadmin — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:11:29 +0000

I was recently working on an issue where the finder would restart every time it mounted a server share. The restart was quick, almost like a flash. At first, I thought something was wrong with the server, but after bring up the console to look at errors, I found this error at the client end.

terminate called after throwing an instance of ‘IAException’

To resolve the probem, I just deleted the .DS_Store file in every folder of that share. But I believe that the problem could occur on a single workstation too with a corrupt .DS_Store on a volume.

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Create encrypted disk images with a script

siteadmin — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:32:39 +0000

Disk images are one the great things that Mac OS X supports natively. There are so many things that can be done with them like store important data in them securely with the built-in encryption. The encrypted disk images can be taken anywhere and can be opened on any Mac.

All of this can be done through Disk utility, but if you do it repeatedl, creating a little script can save time. For example, in Terminal:

hdiutil create -encryption -stdinpass -srcfolder private encryptedfolder.dmg

So, it would look something like this:

hdiutil create -encryption -stdinpass -srcfolder /Users/Myaccount/Documents encryptedfolder.dmg

Note that the command is entered all in the terminal as one line with a return. This will encrypt the folder to a disk image called encryptedfolder.dmg and bring up a password dialogue box for you to enter a password. If you want to enter the password in the script then try this.

echo -n “password” | hdiutil create -encryption -stdinpass -srcfolder private encrypted.dmg

This will create the disk image with the password of “password” with bringing up an interactive dialogue box. Be warned that anyone with access to the computer may be able to read this script and see you password, but that is not a problem if you take the disk image away from the computer

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10.5 Leopard installer unable to see internal drive

siteadmin — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:13:57 +0000

I finally went to install 10.5 Leopard on my laptop and immediately ran into trouble. The install utility would not recognize my internal hard drive. The ‘Install location’ was blank like there was no hard drive. I switched from the 10.5 installer to the Disk Utility on the install DVD and tried to reformat the drive, but Disk Utility was unable to format the drive, giving a ‘Resource Busy’ error.

I finally booted the laptop into Target Disk Mode and connected it an old iMac G4 and was able to format the hard drive that way. Afterwards the 10.5 Leopard intall ran without error.

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Order Pizza on your AppleTV

siteadmin — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 14:31:44 +0000

Unlike the iPod, the AppleTV certainly hasn’t been the marketing success that Apple hoped for but hackers sure love it.
From the day that the AppleTV shipped, hackers have dissected the diminutive media player and found ways to add cool and innovative features like playing new video formats, upgrading the hard drive and turning one into a fully working Mac OS X computer.
One modification enables you to order pizza directly from the AppleTV with just the remote control, perfect for the lazy college student that wants to order pizza without taking time to boot up their laptop computer.

What can a hacked AppleTV do?
Play various video formats in addition to Mp4
Order pizza
Make Skype calls
Use a web browser
Run a full version of Mac OS X
Use a keyboard and mouse
Use an external hard drive
Enable file server and web server
Getting started with Hacking an AppleTV
The first hacks for the AppleTV involved a bit of surgery and exposure to AppleTV innards. The hard drive had to be removed, mounted into a USB hard drive enclosure and special software loaded from a Macintosh before re-installation back into the AppleTV. But the process has been refined to a no-screwdriver-required method. The Patchstick Method involves installing software on a USB flash drive and plugging it into the AppleTV’s USB port which Apple reserves for repairs. When the AppleTV boots up, the thumb drive automatically loads the software needed to connect remotely to the media player and install other modifications.
Why do hackers love the AppleTV?
Apple’s media player is the perfect piece of computer hardware. First, it’s smaller than even a Mac Mini, uses low power, is quiet and is relatively inexpensive compared to other media center computers. Additionally, the AppleTV has the right video connectors to hook to a new HD TV and a remote control. Underneath the hood, the AppleTV is really a single board computer with a relatively powerful processor running an interface program Back Row. Hackers only needed to enable the parts of Mac OS X that Apple had hidden and then they had a full computer to load whatever software that they wanted. Once one of the media players has been modified to run an unrestricted copy of Mac OS X, the AppleTV becomes the least expensive Macintosh available coming in at nearly half the price of a Mac Mini.
This probably voids the warranty
Apple will make little effort to make sure that future software updates to the AppleTV do not break any modifications, so owners of modified AppleTVs may not be able to take advantage of new features and bug fixes provided by Apple. But then again, there’s always a new hack out. Check out AppleTVhacks for an ongoing list of hacks, modifications and How-To’s.

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Search for files in Unix

siteadmin — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 16:11:01 +0000

I am always having to search for the exact syntax on this command, so I want to document it. This command works on almost any any linux/unix including MacOS X/
find / -name “MyFavoriteFile”

Find is the actual command. The / is the start location. In this case, it means root of the drive, so find will search the entire volume. If you know the files is in a subdirectory, you can specify that. -name specifies to look for a name and then the filename must be in quote. Variables can be used like “*.txt”.

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Filemaker Bento: A Tasty Snack of a Database

siteadmin — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 16:02:43 +0000

Bento is the iTunes inspired database for Mac OSX.
Named for a Japanese boxed lunch with compartments, Bento is described as a personal database targeted to the home user or small business professional that needs a little more organization in their life. It comes with several pre-designed templates, including membership lists, event planning, time billing and inventory.
Many users will see Bento as the missing database from Apple’s iWork productivity suite because it integrates with Address Book, iCal, and iCal task lists. Bento can pull or publish information to Address Book and iCal, so tasks and calendar events created in the database will synchronize with iPods and iPhones.The interface is iTunes inspired and the iLife design theme is carried throughout the program with a three-panel interface. The left panel is a list of sources of information like contacts and other databases. The current database resides in the middle column and fields available to the database sit in the right column.

Bento tries to simplify record keeping, even down to the names it uses. Databases are called libraries and groups of records are called collections rather than queries or searches, much like playlists in iTunes. Saved queries are called smart collections. Custom databases are simple to create with this program, so a degree in database architecture is not needed. To modify or create a new database, just drag the data fields onto the database pane.Part’s of Bento’s magic is that it hides the fact it is creating relational databases where information is shared and synchronized between multiple information sources. Relational databases is a feature is typically reserved for larger, more costly, database programs.

Filemaker International, the Bento developer hopes Bento will fill a gap left by its flagship product FileMaker Pro, which started out as a simple form-based database like Bento, but has grown into a powerful multi-user, multi-platform business-class program. While Bento does not have any support for network or multi-user functionality like Filemaker Pro, it does share some interface design with its big brother. For, example, the calculations screen where fields can be combined will remind longtime users of the same screen in Filemaker Pro.

Previously, Apple integrated a simple database application into its AppleWorks productivity suite, but the database had its limits primarily because it could not support a relational database. AppleWorks was abandoned after Apple released its iWork productivity suite that integrated with iLife in 2005. iWork does not include a database program.
Bento is perfect for soccer team rosters, simple billing and home inventories. It retails for $49. A trial copy can be downloaded from www.Filemaker.com/Bento.

[tags]FileMaker,Bento, MacOSX, Database[/tags]

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