,

New to Mac from PC?

,

"If you're new to the Mac and just came from the Windows world, you are likely to miss using some of the applications that you used in Windows," so begins John Carter.  He continues, " Never fear, help is near.

"There are (at least) three applications that let you run a Windows application right alongside the Mac. (With Boot Camp, you have to reboot the Mac as Windows to run a Windows application.) These are VirtualBox (free), VMWare Fusion ($79), and Parallels Desktop for Mac ($79). Of these, both VMWare and Parallels makes running Windows applications look like a Mac application.

"There is a quiet war between VMWare and Parallels regarding which one is faster and better and easier to use. VirtualBox is not in the same league with either of these (yet), so not much attention has been given to comparing the performance of VirtualBox with the other two.

"The latest performance test of VMWare and Parallels is out. The bottom line is that Parallels got the thumbs up in most of the tests, so much so that Parallels gets the nod overall. You can read all about it here."

What Could You Share?

As you know, your PMUG leadership is always looking for interesting presentations for our monthly meetings.  What could you share with us?  John Carter asks, "Can we beg the more advanced users in the membership to do presentations within their field of expertise? Possible topics are: using a Mac efficiently in a home-based business; setting up a LAN; remote printing; sharing files with Windows machines; wireless access in the home and on the road; remote access to a home computer while away from home; discovering speech to text; now that you have a Mac, what are you going to do with it? And many more."  Got ideas?  Let us know.

Would You Like a Swap Meet?

What do you think of us having a Swap Meet for members to sell Mac related items?  The question came up at today's PMUG Board meeting.  To sell something you'd have to be a PMUG member, but of course we'd welcome anyone to come and buy.  We'd like suggestions on time, place, etc.  Do you have items you'd like to sell?  Jot down ideas and bring them to Saturday's meeting, or email ideas to the Board. We value your opinion.  Thanks.

,

Make Your Own WiFi Hotspot

,

Here's a short video from CNET on how to turn your Mac or PC into a WiFi hotspot. Jim Hamm explains, "This can be useful if, say, you're traveling and in a hotel room with one ethernet connection and two computers. Instead of arguing as to who gets the ethernet first, just remember this tip. This has happened several times to Zee and I (not the arguing, just the circumstance. She gets the ethernet first......) I sure could have used this tip then.

"I also wonder if this wouldn't be a convenient way to transfer documents from one computer to another? For example, I occasionally want to move a document--say, an email or picture--from one of my Macs to the other. What I've been doing is just emailing it to myself. I don't subscribe to MobileMe, and I haven't tried Google Docs or DropBox yet either. This just might work."

Apple/Adobe Situation

Here's Jim Hamm's take on the Apple/Adobe controversy.  "Recently I read an email regarding the Apple/Adobe situation wherein it stated 'sounds too much like a family feud...'  I agree, and it is sad to read how vituperative some blogs have become on this subject. If you might have interest in reading more about this, here's couple of articles that shed further light on the situation: DaringFireball and MacDailyNews.

"I think Gruber's article makes sense. Apple doesn't want another platform between an Apple device's platform and the developer, whether it's Adobe or someone else. Apple doesn't have to make their products, programs and platforms available to everyone on everyone else's terms. It's Apple's products, after all. If consumers want Adobe Flash, that's fine. Let them buy products that support Flash. Let consumers speak with their wallet. I think the blog from an Adobe spokesperson wherein he told Apple to go 'screw yourself' was childish and served no useful purpose, other than to vent his anger. The squabbling seems to be all on Adobe's part.

Jim goes on to give a good analogy: "I think Apple's restrictions on apps for the iPhone, etc., and on software programs are, on balance, a good thing. I think this is highly analogous to CCRs for a housing community, like Hidden Valley Ranch, where we live. The CCRs are very restrictive, and one can become frustrated sometimes with them. But I think they keep the area looking nice, clean and a good place to live. Go look at communities that don't have CCRs--old cars up on blocks, RVs parked in the yard, junk everywhere, etc. We have to agree to these CCRs before we buy the property, so we shouldn't complain afterwards.

"Also, if Apple didn't monitor and have to approve the apps and programming that go on an iPhone, etc., soon there would be porno and all kinds of shoddily written, junky apps available and installed. Also, the apps would cause the device to crash and Apple would be blamed for this. One can argue that Apple can't/shouldn't tell me what I can read or use. To a degree there is an element of truth in this argument, but Apple only says this for their devices, and that you agree to specific restrictions when you purchase their device and before you can use it. Think CCRs.

"The second article above is interesting also, but it's all built on speculation and rumor. But interesting to read, nonetheless."

And we picture Jim with his grin, as he concludes, "This may well be more than you care to know about this subject, and I certainly can understand that. In that case, just tap the delete button and move on."

Well, there's more.  Jim adds, "Interesting article on Apple's stance on cross-platform programs not adhering to Apples specifications. Aka the Apple/Adobe situation..."

Making It Easier to Find

"Let's say your Internet browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Opera) is set to full screen mode," so begins the latest from John Carter. He goes on, "You have been browsing in the PMUG website. You decide you want to check out the latest news in the Newsletter. When you click on the Newsletter button in the navigation bar at the top of the window, the PMUG website you were looking at is seemingly replaced with the Newsletter page.

"Now you want to get back to the PMUG site. Do you go to the address bar and enter in the PMUG URL? No! Do you quit the browser and start all over again? No! The PMUG website page is still open and hiding behind the Newsletter page. All you need to do is close the window with the Newsletter (Cmd-W) and the PMUG website page is revealed.

"If you are using Firefox, Opera, or Chrome, you may have your preferences set up to open a link in a new tab in the current window instead of opening a new window. Using Cmd-W closes the tab with the page that is being displayed in the window and reveals the page in the previous tab.

"So how many browser windows do you have open at one time? Clicking on Window in the menu bar will show you: (Chrome browser example in Snow Leopard) The check mark identifies the current window. All other entries in that section (at the bottom) are more open browser windows. Clicking on one of them displays that window.

(Chrome browser example in Snow Leopard)

"Another way to identify open windows is to right click (Ctrl-click) on the browser icon in the dock. The pop-up menu shows the open windows in the top section of that menu:

(Chrome browser example in Snow Leopard)

"If you have multiple tabs open to different web pages in only one browser window, you will see only one window in the above two examples with the name of the page in the current tab."

Thanks, John, for more helpful information.
, ,

Apple & iPhone Updates

, ,

Keeping up with the latest?  Jim Hamm forwards to us these links about features for iPhone 3G and iPhone 4. Here's the Apple sneak preview.  MobileCrunch says there have been 50 million iPhones sold so far, and their article discusses multi-tasking, iAd, a huge Mail update, and a "bunch of other stuff."  The third link takes you to a one hour video of a presentation of OS 4 done mostly by Steve Jobs.

Jim summarizes the video, "It is impressive, and really gives you a better understanding of what this new OS does. After you see this, stop and think a minute. All this comes from a phone. Remember, something we use to just make phone calls on.  Love it or hate it, the iPhone is really one amazing device."

For today's article (dated 4-12-10) that covers the latest from Apple on iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch,  iAds, and more see Barron's "Apple Throws a Potent iPunch."

, ,

Sneaky Cookies You Might Not Have Seen

, ,

Flash “cookies” can be up to 100 kb. They never expire, will never be deleted automatically, and by default they don’t have to ask your permission to save all this data. There’s no easy way to delete them yourself, your browsers are not aware that they exist, so clearing Cookies and History doesn’t help. Adobe has hidden the settings in a Flash app deep in their website. Got your attention, so far?

Also, did you know you can set privacy settings for access to your camera and/or microphone on your computer? The Maintain Blog alerted me to check out Adobe’s Website Storage Panel. The page that comes up has the information from your computer already listed. You can view and make changes in Storage, Security Settings, Global Notifications Settings, and more. Reassuringly, it says, “Adobe has no access to this list or to any information that the websites may have stored on your computer.  (Double click on this illustration to enlarge.)

,

iPademonium

,

With a newly-coined word like "iPademonium" these guys are talking about "you-know-what."  Jim Hamm suggests we look at the Small Dog Electronics offerings.  He's purchased items from them and thinks highly of them as an Apple retailer.  They offer a newsletter you can subscribe to,  (#665 is about iPad) and their home page is here with Apple products, refurbished Apple products, and accessories for the iPad.

Notable Computer History

Going back to the very beginnings of the computer, this article starts with "The 'father of the personal computer' who kick-started the careers of Microsoft founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen has died at the age of 68.  Dr Henry Edward Roberts was the inventor of the Altair 8800, a machine that sparked the home computer era." It continues on with some fascinating facts.  Thanks to David Passell for sending this link.

iPad, First-Hand

Today was iPad Day, and here's a first-hand report from De Prez Allen Laudenslager: "I stopped at Best Buy to see about getting them to present at the July PMUG meeting, and while I was there I played with an iPad for about 10 minutes.

"The cool factor is through the roof. I started by touching the Safari icon which took me to the Apple iPad home page. By touching the bookmark tab, it brought up the preloaded bookmarks. When I touched the URL bar, a keyboard rolled up from off-screen at the bottom of the touch screen. I found that you really can't touch type standing up because the slightest touch on the screen puts that character where you are typing. I might get used to it sitting down, but I doubt it since touch typists always rest their fingers on the 'home' keys.

"I found that using my left and right index finger and hunt and peck worked well, and after entering your URL at least once, when you start to type it pulls up a list that matches what you have typed to that point. If you see the address you want on the list, just touch it and touch the 'go' key on the keyboard and zip -- you're there.

"I opened Pages and tried a new document. How do you get the keyboard to show up? Since the sales people were busy with real customers, I tried double touch and wowser!!! there is the keyboard. As a touch typist hunt and peck feels odd, but since this is not really meant to replace a full-up computer it would work just fine for me to make notes while reading the daily news.

"A neat gadget, and I recommend taking the time to drop by either Best Buy or the Apple Store to check one out. When I finally do break down and get an e-book reader it will for sure be the iPad since it does so much more than just let me read books."

Apple iPad FAQs

The David Pogue column in the New York Times caught Jim Hamm's eye, and it's a quick scan about the frequently asked questions on the iPad.  Here's the link. He gets right to the point, and ends up with, "But I'm telling you, the multitouch screen/software makes it very, very different from a laptop, and the screen size makes it very, very different from an iPhone.  It's something entirely new.  So yes, if it appeals to you, you'd have to buy it in addition to your laptop or iPhone."

Ginger Carlson finds more:  "Check out this link about the iPad."

,

Safety in Backups

,

Here's a lengthy report from John Carter, but it's worth your time to read it.  From here on we're quoting John. 

Scenario: You've had your Mac now for 2+ years and everything seems to be running just fine. Suddenly, without warning, you can no longer boot up the system. What happened?

The hard drive just failed!!! Well, maybe something else, but let's say it was the hard drive.

What's the best recovery method? Well, to get you started right away it would be nice if you could simply continue to use your computer until you have the time and the money to get it fixed. That can be done if you have an external drive ready to plug in and boot from.

To prepare an external drive as an alternate boot source, you need an external hard drive of the same size as your internal hard drive (use Get Info on Macintosh HD and read the Capacity). The external hard drive can have any configuration of inputs; USB 2.0 is the most common, but Firewire 400 is better, and Firewire 800 is best. When USB 3.0 is available for the Mac, that is even better. However, the price increases with each better interface, so it is quite all right to use USB 2.0 for this emergency external hard drive. Don't worry if the external drive doesn't say it is for a Mac, because it will be reformatted when you create the boot drive next.

The next thing you need is SuperDuper! for Mac. Download it from here. You can use SuperDuper! for free as long as you don't attempt to use any of the advanced features, and you won't need them for creating an emergency boot drive.

When the USB external drive is connected, launch SuperDuper!.

 (Double click to enlarge the illustration.) 
Notice in the image above that the Copy field points to the Macintosh HD (your internal drive) and in the To field you click on the double arrow and select the external drive you plugged in.

Next comes the easy part. Click on "Copy Now," take the defaults for any prompts that follow, and go to bed. In the morning, you may discover an error message on your screen that says, "You have been logged out..." blah, blah, blah. Just ignore that message. What you need to know at this point is that you should now be running off of the external drive and NOT off of the internal drive. This is simply a confirmation that creating the external boot drive actually worked!

To get back to working off of the internal drive, open System Preferences and click on "Startup Disk." The external drive you are running on should be highlighted. If it isn't, something went wrong with the copy process. (I shouldn't scare you like that. But if this did happen, you should still be running off of the internal drive and you should then call for help to figure out what to do next.) To boot up off the Internal drive, click on the icon identifying "Mac OS X < ... > on Macintosh HD," then click on the Restart button. When the Mac starts up again, eject the external hard drive and put it away for emergencies.

You're not done. If you ever do need to use the external boot drive, remember that the only applications, updates, and files in it are the ones at the time you created the boot drive. Maybe once in a while you might want to do this all over again? Not really. If you were also smart enough to maintain a Time Machine backup, you only need to update the boot drive from the latest Time Machine backup entry. Now you're back in business right where you left off, and maybe with just a few lost minutes (the Time Machine performs a backup every half hour). When time and money permit, take your Mac to your repair center and have them install a new drive. Be sure to also give them the boot drive you created so they can restore it to the new internal drive.

Remember, failure to protect your work with adequate backups is a down payment on future upsets.

When you are ready to purchase a suitable boot drive, do a Google/Yahoo search on the Internet for "external hard drivegb" (fill in the size - without the < and >) and consider one of the compact (thin) drives from Seagate, Iomega, Western Digital, or LaCie - because small is cute.

A NOTE ABOUT TIME MACHINE.

A recommended external drive to use with Time Machine depends on how much of your internal drive is being used and how much you expect to fill it in the next year or two (before it crashes). The size should be at least three times larger than what you expect to be using in your internal drive. Let me explain why. The larger it is, the farther back in time you can go to retrieve a lost file. For example, a 1.5TB drive used to backup a 500GB internal drive that contains 300GB of data will store backups for about the last three or four months. If your internal drive is 500GB and you're using less than 100GB, then a 500GB external drive might be adequate for short-term recovery. However, it is highly recommended that the drive has a Firewire 800 input so that performing a backup is performed in the quickest time possible. That being said, a USB 2.0 drive will work if saving an extra $50 means more. At least do a search for "external hard drive firewire 800" and look for bargains.

There's a bright side to every catastrophe. If your hard drive does fail, it could be a good excuse to buy the newest computer. You really don't need to hang onto years of photos and email anyway, right?

How to Right Click

"Some things are worth repeating," says John Carter,  "so here is an excerpt from Mac OSX Snow Leopard, the missing manual."

How to Right-Click

Every Windows computer comes with a two-button mouse. The left button clicks normally; the right button summons a shortcut menu containing commands for whatever you clicked. The Mac has shortcut menus, too, of course, but they’re not quite as necessary as they are in Windows, where the shortcut menu is often the only place you’ll find a certain command.

So when you’re running Windows on your Mac, how are you supposed to right-click?

Well, you could get yourself a two-button mouse, of course. It works fine on a Mac (in Windows or in Mac OS X). In fact, most desktop Macs sold since 2006 come with a two-button mouse, called the Mighty Mouse. It doesn’t appear to have two buttons, but you can actually click two different spots on its sloping far side. See page 340 for instructions on turning this feature on. The Mighty Mouse works fine for right-clicking in Windows.

If you have a recent Mac laptop, you can trigger a right-click using a sneaky trick: Put two fingertips on the trackpad, and then click the button. (That’s an option you can turn on or off in the Trackpad panel of System Preferences.)

Alternatively, if that’s too much to learn, just highlight whatever you want to right-click and then press Shift-F10.

If you’re stuck with a one-button Mac mouse, and none of these options works for you, use the Apple Mouse Utility program for Windows. (You can download it from this book’s “Missing CD” page at www.missingmanuals.com.) It lets you Control-click to simulate a right-click while you’re running Windows."