Yes, that sound does inspire warm feelings in all of us, but there are times when you'd rather not hear it. For instance, on my MacPro, the chime always plays on the computer's inbuilt speaker rather than the ones I have connected. It just doesn't sound good on that poor quality one. Also, on the MacBook Pro, if you're booting up in a meeting or library or other public place, the chime isn't something you want going off and disrupting people. Enter this little freeware app I found.
Simply install it and an icon shows up in your System Preferences allowing you to change the volume of or simply mute altogether the startup chime of your Mac.
Simple.
Links!
StartupSoundPrefPane
23 April 2008
Finder Folders First
This is an old one resurrected from a time when I had no time to write on it. How to list folders first in Finder, similar to Windows Explorer.
Rather than bore you with more senseless speech, I shall simply start saying such sayings as I simply should speak.
Launch Terminal.app and then type:
cd /System/Library/CoreServices/Finder.app/Contents/Resources/English.lproj
After doing so, type the following commands, hitting Enter with each line break:
sudo chmod 777 InfoPlist.strings
sudo chmod 777
open InfoPlist.strings
The file should open in TextEdit or a similar application. Within that file you will find "Folder" = "Foler". Change it to "Folder" = " Folder" (note the space inside of the quotes within the second " Folder"). Save the file. Next use the Control-Option-Click combination on the Finder icon in the Dock and select Relaunch. When Finder restarts, when you sort lists by type, folder should always appear on top.
Note: I have noticed that this trick only works on my local hard drives, that is, it does not work on any of my NAS drives in Finder. Nevertheless, it is still a nice trick.
Note: Another shortcut that works is to copy the file to the desktop, edit it, save it, and then copy the file back to its original location and restart Finder.
UPDATE: Alas this no longer works! If you use the list view (as opposed to column or icon) and sort it by kind, then it works. But not for any other. I prefer column view myself, so I guess we will all have to keep our fingers crossed for Snow Leopard functionality...
Rather than bore you with more senseless speech, I shall simply start saying such sayings as I simply should speak.
Launch Terminal.app and then type:
cd /System/Library/CoreServices/Finder.app/Contents/Resources/English.lproj
After doing so, type the following commands, hitting Enter with each line break:
sudo chmod 777 InfoPlist.strings
sudo chmod 777
open InfoPlist.strings
The file should open in TextEdit or a similar application. Within that file you will find "Folder" = "Foler". Change it to "Folder" = " Folder" (note the space inside of the quotes within the second " Folder"). Save the file. Next use the Control-Option-Click combination on the Finder icon in the Dock and select Relaunch. When Finder restarts, when you sort lists by type, folder should always appear on top.
Note: I have noticed that this trick only works on my local hard drives, that is, it does not work on any of my NAS drives in Finder. Nevertheless, it is still a nice trick.
Note: Another shortcut that works is to copy the file to the desktop, edit it, save it, and then copy the file back to its original location and restart Finder.
UPDATE: Alas this no longer works! If you use the list view (as opposed to column or icon) and sort it by kind, then it works. But not for any other. I prefer column view myself, so I guess we will all have to keep our fingers crossed for Snow Leopard functionality...
The Right-Click Debacle
It began innocently enough. In OS X you hold down control and left-click to right-click. Well, in Boot Camp that doesn't work. So I went out and researched a solution. Lo and behold, I found one! A little freeware application that allows you to carry that Ctrl+Click over to Windows XP with Boot Camp. Problem solved!
But it wasn't. Now when using Windows Explorer, you couldn't select more than one file at a time (other than using shift, but if they weren't in a row, you were stuck). Then, while browsing for the solution to another problem, I found the solution. I had noticed it before, using a two finger tap caused a right click, but had never successfully gotten it to work. But the place I found the information was more descriptive: you hold two fingers on the trackpad and then click. There's your right click. Problem solved!
For real.
But it wasn't. Now when using Windows Explorer, you couldn't select more than one file at a time (other than using shift, but if they weren't in a row, you were stuck). Then, while browsing for the solution to another problem, I found the solution. I had noticed it before, using a two finger tap caused a right click, but had never successfully gotten it to work. But the place I found the information was more descriptive: you hold two fingers on the trackpad and then click. There's your right click. Problem solved!
For real.
The MacBook Pro
It's pretty. It's silver. It is (or feels like) real metal. Here are the specs:
2.5 GHz Intel Processor
2GB RAM
17" Glossy LED-backlit screen
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
250 GB 5400RPM Hard drive
That's it. More later.
2.5 GHz Intel Processor
2GB RAM
17" Glossy LED-backlit screen
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
250 GB 5400RPM Hard drive
That's it. More later.
Overload! (And Getting Rid of the Voume Change Sound)
The newest acquisition to the Macintosh arsenal: A MacBook Pro!
Yes, it arrived Saturday of last week, and I have been setting it up and getting it running. With it, I have already had many issues which need to be recorded, but I haven't the time for all of that. Thus, to start with, I shall tell you how to get rid of the volume change noise.
Some describe it as a quack, others as a golf ball hitting a chalkboard, but the most accurate description I've heard is a suction cup being pulled off a smooth surface. Yes, that noise that is made when you change the volume on your Mac. In OS X, it's as simple as opening System Preferences -> Sound and unchecking the box that says "Play feedback when volume is changed." However, using Boot Camp, it is not so simple.
After much searching, I found the solution and shall relate it to you:
The sound is stored in a .dll file that can be found in C:\Program Files\Boot Camp\Boot Camp.Resources\.lproj\Resources.dll (I am using English, but if you happen to use another language, you will open the appropriate folder)
At this point, you will want to make a backup of this Resources.dll file just in case.
Open that file with a resource editor (I used Resource Hacker) and find the WAV/WAVE resource (I believe it is the first one in a folder with a number for a name, such as 435). Delete the file within it.
Reboot and you're done!
And by the way, in case you were wondering, the light sensors in the MacBook Pro are at top of the speakers on either side of the keyboard; cover them and your keyboard will light up!
Yes, it arrived Saturday of last week, and I have been setting it up and getting it running. With it, I have already had many issues which need to be recorded, but I haven't the time for all of that. Thus, to start with, I shall tell you how to get rid of the volume change noise.
Some describe it as a quack, others as a golf ball hitting a chalkboard, but the most accurate description I've heard is a suction cup being pulled off a smooth surface. Yes, that noise that is made when you change the volume on your Mac. In OS X, it's as simple as opening System Preferences -> Sound and unchecking the box that says "Play feedback when volume is changed." However, using Boot Camp, it is not so simple.
After much searching, I found the solution and shall relate it to you:
The sound is stored in a .dll file that can be found in C:\Program Files\Boot Camp\Boot Camp.Resources\
At this point, you will want to make a backup of this Resources.dll file just in case.
Open that file with a resource editor (I used Resource Hacker) and find the WAV/WAVE resource (I believe it is the first one in a folder with a number for a name, such as 435). Delete the file within it.
Reboot and you're done!
And by the way, in case you were wondering, the light sensors in the MacBook Pro are at top of the speakers on either side of the keyboard; cover them and your keyboard will light up!
28 February 2008
Negative?
A random note. Sometime you should view this blog with a negatised screen (yes, I made up that word, but in my defence, it is on Star Wars Episode III, even though a Nemodian says it) with Nocturne. For those of you out there who are Macintosh users, it is as simple as Ctrl-Alt-Cmd-8. That is, run Nocturne and then negatise the screen. Also, Microsoft Word looks far better this way as well. Much easier on the eyes.
Changing an Icon
A few days ago I updated my system to OS X 10.5.2. In this update, they changed the attached storage device icon from the nice little globe icon on a blue disc enclosure to a picture of three stick figures holding hands on the blue disc enclosure. It disgusted me. What is that, promoting the impossible goal of world peace? Togetherness?! God forbid.
Thus began the quest. First up, finding how to change the icon.
I found a helpful tutorial at MacApper on how to do it.
First, find the image you want to make the icon. Then, if it has a background, use Photoshop to remove it, and save it as either a .png or .psd. If you already have a clear-background-ed .png image, you can skip this step. Next is to download a freeware piece of software, Icns2Rsrc (and yes, the use of "2" instead of "to" does bother me).
Next you will need the Apple Software Development Kit, specifically Icon Composer. Take the image (either .png or .psd) and drag it from finder into one of the boxes. Apply it to all of the boxes, then save it as the .icns file. Here's where you use Incs2Rsrc.
Open it, then open the .icns file and save it again as a .rsrc. Once that is completed, find the file, folder, disc, etc. of which you would like to change the icon. Right click, Get Info, and then click on the icon in the upper right-hand corner of the box, so that it is highlighted. Return to Finder, click and copy the .rsrc file that you would like to be the icon, click that icon in the upper left-hand corner, and Cmd-V. Voilà! It should be changed.
In order to find the old attached storage icon, I first went to Google Images. I looked through 42 pages of images without ever finding the correct one. I found many others, in fact I found one marvelous icon that is the default hard drive image, only with an Apple logo. I like it. But I digress. In the end, I had to boot into my second installation of Leopard, on my backup hard drive containing my Boot Camp partition and copy the image from there and bring it back to my current system.
Links!
MacApper Tutorial
Icns2Rsrc
Apple SDK
Thus began the quest. First up, finding how to change the icon.
I found a helpful tutorial at MacApper on how to do it.
First, find the image you want to make the icon. Then, if it has a background, use Photoshop to remove it, and save it as either a .png or .psd. If you already have a clear-background-ed .png image, you can skip this step. Next is to download a freeware piece of software, Icns2Rsrc (and yes, the use of "2" instead of "to" does bother me).
Next you will need the Apple Software Development Kit, specifically Icon Composer. Take the image (either .png or .psd) and drag it from finder into one of the boxes. Apply it to all of the boxes, then save it as the .icns file. Here's where you use Incs2Rsrc.
Open it, then open the .icns file and save it again as a .rsrc. Once that is completed, find the file, folder, disc, etc. of which you would like to change the icon. Right click, Get Info, and then click on the icon in the upper right-hand corner of the box, so that it is highlighted. Return to Finder, click and copy the .rsrc file that you would like to be the icon, click that icon in the upper left-hand corner, and Cmd-V. Voilà! It should be changed.
In order to find the old attached storage icon, I first went to Google Images. I looked through 42 pages of images without ever finding the correct one. I found many others, in fact I found one marvelous icon that is the default hard drive image, only with an Apple logo. I like it. But I digress. In the end, I had to boot into my second installation of Leopard, on my backup hard drive containing my Boot Camp partition and copy the image from there and bring it back to my current system.
Links!
MacApper Tutorial
Icns2Rsrc
Apple SDK
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