Crucial Mac Maintenance

I use my computer a lot. That is what bought it for. However there are ways to help keep it running well. By maintaining your computer the stress on the hardware is less, which in turn means your computer will probably last longer and operate better. If you know any other things to keep a mac running well please comment, as I am still a somewhat new to the mac scene.

1. Weekly Run of OnyX. I like OnyX because it is free, simple, and automated. I just let it do its thing. I highlight everything in the Automation Tab (Maintenance, Rebuilding, Cleaning). It takes a while, and afterwards the computer might run a bit slow for a while, because it is rebuilding a lot of indexes.

OnyX

2. Weekly or Monthly Defragment. Since I am constantly Downloading, Uploading, Copying, Moving, and Deleting Files, my fragmentation will likely start to affect my hard drive’s performance. There is a huge debate all over the interwebs about if defragmentation is really needed for OS X. I feel that it is. What defragmentation does, is move files on the hard drive closer (and in better locations) so that the hard drive does not have to search for them all over the place. This will speed up performance and also keep your drive functioning longer. I am currently using the demo of Drive Genius 2 to do this.

Drive Genius 2

Os X 10.5.7 Released!

Finally I’ve been waiting for this for a couple of days! This update fixes many things (look below). Here are the download links

10.5.7 Delta Update (Must have 10.5.6 To install this upgrade) 443mb

105.7 Combo Update (Any version of 10.5) 729mb

To figure out which version of Leopard you are running. Click on the apple logo in the top left of the screen and click about this mac. (Below is an Example)

The Version of the operating sytem will be displayed like this (mine is currently 10.5.6)
The Version of the operating sytem will be displayed like this (mine is currently 10.5.6)

Address Book

  • Improves reliability of Address Book syncing with iPhone and other devices and applications.

AirPort

  • Improves the reliability of AirPort connections, including improvements when roaming in large wireless networks with an Intel-based Mac.

Client management

  • Improves reliability of synchronizing files on a portable home directory.
  • Fixes an issue in Mac OS X 10.5.4 and 10.5.5 in which managed users may not see printers that use the Generic PPD.
  • Client computers that use UUID-based ByHost preferences now respect managed Screen Saver settings.

iChat

  • Addresses an issue that could cause an encryption alert to appear in the chat window.
  • Setting your iChat status to “invisible” via AppleScript no longer logs you out of iChat.
  • Resolves an issue in which pasting text from a Microsoft Office document could insert an image rather than text.

Graphics

  • Includes general improvements to gaming performance.
  • Includes graphics improvements for iChat, Cover Flow, Aperture, and iTunes.
  • Includes fixes for possible graphics distortion issues with certain ATI graphics cards.

Mail

  • Includes overall performance and reliability fixes.
  • Improves Connection Doctor accuracy.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause messages identified as junk to remain in the inbox.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause Mail to append a character to the file extension of an attachment.
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent Mail from quitting.
  • Improves reliability when printing PDF attachments.

MobileMe

  • Contacts, calendars, and bookmarks on a Mac automatically sync within a minute of the change being made on the computer, another device, or the web at me.com.

Networking

  • Improves Apple File Service performance, especially when using a home directory hosted on an AFP server. Important: If you are using Mac OS X 10.5.6 (client) to connect to a Mac OS X Server 10.4-based server, it is strongly recommended that you update the server to Mac OS X Server version 10.4.11.
  • Improves the performance and reliability of TCP connections.
  • Improves reliability and performance for AT&T 3G cards.
  • Updates the ssh Terminal command for compatibility with more ssh servers.

Printing

  • Improves printing for the Adobe CS3 application suite.
  • Improves printing for USB-based Brother and Canon printers.

Parental Controls

  • Addresses an issue in which a parentally-controlled account could be unable to access the iTunes Store.
  • Includes general fixes for time limits.
  • Resolves an issue that prevented adding allowed websites from Safari via drag and drop.

Time Machine

  • Fixes issues that could cause Time Machine to state the backup volume could not be found.
  • Improves Time Machine reliability with Time Capsule.

Safari

  • Improves compatibility with web proxy servers.


General

  • Includes Mac OS X security improvements. See this website for more information.
  • Addresses inaccuracies with Calculator when the Mac OS X language is set to German or Swiss German.
  • Improves the performance and reliability of Chess.
  • Improves DVD Player performance and reliability.
  • Performance improvements for iCal are included.
  • Fixes an issue when running the New iCal Events Automator action as an applet.
  • Adds a Trackpad System Preference pane for portable Macs.
  • Improves compatibility with smart cards such as the U.S. Department of Defense Common Access Card.
  • Updates time zone data and Daylight Saving Time rules for several countries.

Help a friend – Change an folder icon in OS X Leopard

Today My friend nader asked how to change an icon for a folder in leopard. I had actually looked this one up a couple of days ago when I first bought my mac. You can Watch the video Below Or Follow the Steps Below.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/BYxVezdGJHk" width="576" height="324" allowfullscreen="true" fvars="fs=1" /]

1. Have the icon that you want to change the folder to ready.

2. Right click on the icon you want to apply to the folder and click get info (or just highlight the file, and press cmd+I)

3. Left Click on the icon in the top left then press cmd+C

4. Open the get info dialog for the folder or file you want to change the icon for.

5. Left Click on the icon in the top left then press cmd+V

6. Close the Get info dialog.

I bought the MacHeist 3 bundle

Even though I don’t have a mac yet, I decided to buy the bundle. I have a mac mini now w00t w00t! This is because it had some nice software that I wanted once I have a mac. 25% of the purchase price goes to any of the 10 charity causes available, or split between all 10. I picked the Alliance for Climate Protection. If you use a mac, and want some great programs for very cheap, head over to macheist.com in the next 3 days. The following apps are part of the bundle Which Sells for $39 when retail they would cost $621.75:

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iSale – iSale 5 saves time, money and stress. If you’ve ever tried to go through the eBay website to submit an auction, you know where the power of iSale lies: It’s never been easier to handle all your online auctions through just one app.

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Picturesque Make Images Gorgeous.

Picturesque is a simple app with a simple goal: to make images more beautiful. Whether you are in web or print, your images can benefit from a touch of Picturesque magic.

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SousChef – It’s a digital cooking assistant

Most cooking software stops at letting you organize your recipes. SousChef helps you cook, start to finish. Find a recipe, cook it, modify it and share it with friends & family—all in one application.

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World of Goo World of Goo is a physics based puzzle / construction game. The millions of Goo Balls who live in the beautiful World of Goo don’t know that they are in a game, or that they are extremely delicious.

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PhoneView – Apple locks up the iPhone and iPod touch pretty tight, but PhoneView gives you back your data. Notes, SMS logs, your call history, disk storage, and more are now all accessible, thanks to PhoneView.

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LittleSnapper – Offering an end-to-end solution for snapping, editing, organizing and sharing images, LittleSnapper is like iPhoto on steroids for your photo workflow, and combined with the online Quicksnapper service, a photographic memory for anything visual on your computer.

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Acorn – Acorn is a photo editor built for the rest of us. With a simple interface and tools for adding everything from text, shapes, and effects, you can make the perfect picture in seconds and minutes, not hours and days.

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Kinemac – Real time, professional 3D animation has never been so simple, yet looked so good. Kinemac offers all the tools you need to create stunning animations for any audience on any medium.

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WireTap Studio – WireTap Studio is the ultimate recording utility, giving you complete control to record, organize, edit and share sound from any application or system input. If you can hear it on your Mac, WireTap Studio can record it.

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Cro-Mag Rally – Man invented the wheel, and soon he learned how to race with it in Cro-Mag Rally, a blast to the past from the makers of Bugdom and Enigmo. Get behind the prehistoric wheel with Brog the caveman and a whole lot of weapons and bonuses that are anything but primitive.

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BoinxTV – BoinxTV Sponsored Edition is a complete “TV studio in a box,” ideal for recording podcasts, seminars, and other events. With an innovative interface, live effects, and support for up to three cameras, BoinxTV Sponsored Edition takes your video production to an entirely professional new level.

The Following Two Apps are locked as of now, but once MacHeist reach $500,000 raised for charity they will be released. This will bring the total retail price to $980.70! All apps have been unlocked!

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The Hit List – Your life is complicated, but managing it doesn’t need to be. The Hit List is a task manager that is simple to use, yet powerful enough for the most demanding workaholics. Whether you just want to jot down a grocery list or you need a full-blown Getting Things Done tool for tracking every last detail of your business and pleasure, The Hit List is the perfect task manager for you.

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Espresso – Espresso is a fresh new web editor that brings equal amounts of caffeine and style to your projects. Offering a complete set of tools for coding, previewing, and publishing sites, Espresso is built from the ground up to be the flexible, powerful app you need to get the job done.

Finally you will get EventBox for free which organizes social networking all in one app!

Extra: if you have twitter and would like to get Delicious Library and Multiwinia for free Click Here