I live in a house divided. I use both Mac and Windows, but my spouse is strictly Windows. Recently, I upgraded her aging PC with a new video card for better Windows 10 support. All seemed to go well — until I realized I’d booted the system but not plugged… Read More
Mac OS X
Learning the Commandline – Looking at files
By now you should know your way around the file system and how to move around (if you don’t, go back and read the other articles. This is a series after all 🙂 ). You may have wondered, “I have all these files, how do I see what’s inside them… Read More
Learning the Command Line – Editing files
In this session we are going to learn one way of editing text files in Terminal. Back in the day there was pico. This was the editor part of the Pine mail program used in *nix. It was a very simple plain text editor used to create mail and text… Read More
Learning the Command Line – Bash Prompts (1)
NOTE: This article assumes you have been following the other articles in this series. Another Note: I can’t take credit for this. I got it from a now defunct website called dotfiles.com. I don’t remember who the original author was and I’ve edited it to suit me. I won’t be… Read More
These Permissions Are Not The Repairs You’re Looking For – A Critical Look at Permissions in OS X
So, your Mac is acting up. Indeed, a Mac is no more impervious to Murphy’s Law than a non-Mac PC (I use PC here in the literal sense to signify personal computer). What do you do when the inevitable occurs? The first response for many to this will differ –… Read More
Learning the Command Line – File Permissions
Ever have a file you can’t do anything with? Can’t change it, can’t delete it, can’t even look at it? We’re going to find out why. FreeBSD, and by extension, OS X (which is loosely based on FreeBSD), uses file permissions. This lets the system control access to files and… Read More
The Mysterious File:/// Bug
Recently, there has been a rather silent but important story floating around about an odd bug built into Cocoa (OS X’s application programming interface that, in part, includes the user interface elements of OS X including things like buttons and text boxes). Although not generating a lot of news, this… Read More
OSX Lion Server Part 03 – Getting the Router Prepared
OSX Lion Server part 03 – Getting the Router Prepared We’ve dealt with the types of server installs in part 01 of this series and the network set-up we need to have in place in part 02. Before we jump in and actually install the software there is one final… Read More
OS X Lion Server Part 01 – What Type of Server
Preamble OS X Server, the server for everyone. Well, nearly right because it is and it isn’t. OSX Server is certainly one of the most user friendly server installs out there, but it’s still a server, and setting it up has its own pitfalls that you can easily fall into.… Read More
Make The Most Of Spotlight
Spotlight can be a very useful tool but it can be a little daunting for a beginner. Simple math equations, file searches, launch applications; it can all be done from Spotlight. To get started, either click the magnifying glass in the top right hand corner of your screen or push Command+Space on your keyboard. Read More