Life is a Prayer.com - Mac

My Workstation (at Work)

Jeff Geerling — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 05:17:29 +0000

Here's an older shot from my previous setup at home (much has changed since then... but most things are the same—in principle! The core tenets of a Geerling computer workstation are:

Multiple Macs.
One of the Macs must have at least a 24" display.
Complexity (like messy cables) should be hidden as much as possible.
Screen real estate trumps everything else.

Mac OS X Mail App: Deleted Messages Showing in Inbox

Jeff Geerling — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 04:13:13 +0000

Earlier today, when I was working on fixing a few little inconsistencies in my mail inboxes (I currently sync 5 different accounts (with a plethora of email addresses feeding into the various accounts)), deleted messages started showing in some of my inboxes in Mac OS X's built in Mail app. They were greyed out, but not enough so that I could easily distinguish non-deleted messages...

After looking around online for a while, and not finding any fixes for this problem (I get so many emails that showing deleted messages basically makes my inbox unusable), I thought to search the Mail help for an answer.

Pesky little menu options!

I found a little menu item labeled "Show Deleted Messages" (Command-L keyboard shortcut), which somehow had been selected at some point (I can't think of why I would hit command-l in Mail... but I guess I did). Unchecking that hid the messages. Problem solved!

How to Avoid Spyware, Adware, Viruses, etc.

Jeff Geerling — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:53:28 +0000

This article will help you to discover ways to avoid malicious software that can cause your Mac or Windows PC problems.

Most Windows users will encounter malicious software at some time or another. But the frequency of these encounters can be greatly reduced by keeping in mind some general tips.

Tips for Avoiding Malicious Software

You should keep in mind a few important things while using your computer to check email, install programs, browse the Internet or chat:

Windows PC only: Use programs such as Norton AntiVirus (or McAfee VirusScan), Lavasoft AdAware and SpyBot-Search an Destroy to scan for malicious software and to immunize and protect your PC from viruses, spyware, adware, worms, etc.
Always keep your computer up-to-date, with the latest software updates. On PCs, use Windows Update (in the Control Panel). On Macs, click on the Apple Menu and choose "Software Update..."
Never open any attachments on emails that either you don't know who they're from or you don't already know what is in the attachment. Some malicious software can even make an email look like it was sent to you from a friend or relative! Better to be safe than sorry.
When installing new software, ALWAYS watch the installer and make sure you know what's being installed. Some programs will ask you if they can install additional software. This additional software is often unnecessary and can cause problems on your computer.
Don't use Internet Explorer unless you absolutely HAVE to. Internet Explorer is full of vulnerabilities and bugs. Plus, alternative browsers such as Safari (Mac only) and FireFox (Mac or PC) are faster, offer more advanced features, and are more secure than Internet Explorer.
If you chat using AOL Instant Messenger, MSN Messenger, Yahoo! IM or another service, don't click on links sent to you by friends unless you are absolutely sure your friend intended to send them!
Windows PC Only: If you see a window pop up while you're browsing the Internet, or if you close your web browser window and you see a window that looks like an error message, warning, or otherwise legitimate window, beware—it could be a link to spyware. If you see the link cursor instead of your mouse button when you move your mouse over the 'cancel' or 'X' button, DON'T click! Instead, you may have to force-close the window by pressing 'Control-Alt-Del' and quitting it via the Task Manager.
Don't download 'free' software unless you really need it and/or it doesn't seem 'too good to be true'. Many 'free' programs, such as the WeatherBug, the MySearch bar, and many file-sharing programs (such as BearShare, Kazaa, and LimeWire) can make your computer run slow and also send information from your computer to marketing companies (including personal information!).

Cleaning Your Desktop or Laptop Computer

Jeff Geerling — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:51:36 +0000

This article will help you to properly clean your computer, monitor, keyboard, mouse, trackpad, etc., to keep them looking and working like new.

Keeping your computer clean can not only make it look great, but it can also help your computer to run great. I've seen many really dirty computers (both inside and out) that have problems simply because they are dirty; dust, grime and electricity don't mix well. It is also very hard to see what's on your screen if you have a layer of dirt or grime. And don't get me started on sticky keyboards and mice! Ick!

The following are essential items for cleaning your computer:

Microfiber cloth (found online or at computer retailers)
Compressed Air spray can (found at computer retailers)
Windex or other window cleaner (found at Target or similar retailers)
Shop Vac or similar small vacuum cleaner (found at home supply stores)
iKlear/Klear Screen Polishing Cleaner (found at computer retailers and online)
Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser (found at Target or similar retailers)
Q-Tips or other Cotton swabs (found at Walgreens, Target or similar retailers)
91% Rubbing Alcohol (72% also works) (found at drug stores or online)

Cleaning Different Parts of Your Computer

IMPORTANT NOTES: Always turn off your computer and unplug any parts that you are cleaning. Also, never use a vacuum cleaner near your computer or other devices with memory or hard disks in them (unless the vacuum cleaner is a specialty electronics kind)!

The Monitor/Display (LCD flat panel and laptop displays): Because LCD displays have a special non-glare coating, you should NEVER use any alcohol or ammonia-based cleaners on the LCD screen. Instead, use iKlear (or another approved LCD cleaner) or rubbing alcohol with a microfiber cloth if your monitor is really dirty. If there's only some dust and maybe a few fingerprints, you can dampen a soft cloth (such as a cotton T-shirt or a microfiber cloth) and wipe the screen with it. For the exterior casing, you can use most kinds of general-purpose cleaners (test on an inconspicuous spot first).

The Monitor/Display (CRT): Since these displays don't have a delicate surface that can be damaged by ammonia or alcohol, you can use Windex or other window cleaners to clean the glass screen; spray it on lightly and use a soft cloth (cotton T-shirt or microfiber cloth) to clean dirty monitors. If the monitor is only dusty, just wipe it with a soft cloth. For the casing, use general-purpose cleaners (test on an inconspicuous spot first).

The Keyboard: (Never spray anything onto the keyboard—spray it onto a cloth, then wipe the keyboard!). Keyboards and mice receive the most abuse and can become quite disgusting (especially if you get hairs and such things under the keys!). You can use most general-purpose cleaners for getting the grime off individual keys (use a paper towel or soft cloth and wipe away, with your keyboard disconnected, of course!). If there are problem areas (especially between keys), use Q-Tips with a little dab of alcohol or cleaner and wipe them. To get the dirt, dust and grit out from under the keys, use either an electronics vacuum cleaner attachment (Shop Vacs may come with these) or hold the keyboard upside-down while spraying small bursts of air from a compressed-air can.

The Mouse: If you have an optical mouse, you can simply use Windex, window cleaner or a general purpose cleaner (test on an inconspicuous spot first!) on the whole mouse while the mouse is disconnected. For tough dirt, use a Q-Tip cotton swab with a little rubbing alcohol and rub the dirt away. If you have a mouse with a rolling ball on the bottom, you may want to take the ball out, clean it in a paper towel with some cleaner on it, and use a Q-Tip to get the dirt and grime off the tracking wheels inside the ball-holding area (fingernails sometimes come in handy here).

The Trackpad/iPod Scroll Wheel: Because trackpad and iPod scrollwheel surfaces are fairly delicate and hard to replace, it's best to be very gentle with them and not destroy the surface. If you can, clean it using a soft (microfiber, preferrably), dampened cloth. However, if there is a lot of grime, you may want to use Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser (called by other names in other countries, such as "Mr. Propre" in French); dampen it with a little water, then gently rub it on the surface of your trackpad (always test a little corner first, to make sure nothing goes wrong!). Dry the trackpad with a soft cloth immediately after you do this, to prevent any problems.

The Computer (Outside): Most computers have plastic or metal casing that is very tough and can stand up to a lot of abuse and chemicals; always test whatever cleaner you try using on the outside of your computer. If there is visible dust on the computer, wipe it away with a paper towel or cloth. You can use most general-purpose cleaners on computer cases, but always test the cleaner on an inconspicuous area first to make sure. iKlear/Klear Screen polish is good for Macs and other computers with shiny plastic surfaces.

The Computer (Inside—does NOT apply to laptops): (Make SURE the computer is turned off and unplugged!). Sometimes, computers in dusty environments can become unstable because of the amount of dust in them. To get rid of dust in your computer, you need to take the outer casing off (follow your computer manual's instructions if you don't know how), then use a can of compressed air to spray dust off internal components; if there's a LOT of dust, you can hold the hose of a vacuum cleaner near where you're spraying to suck up the airborn dust (however, be sure to keep the vacuum far away from the computer, and don't stick the hose near any components). Be sure to spray fans from both directions (inside to out and vice-versa) if you can). When spraying the compressed air, spray in short bursts, and NEVER hold the can upside-down, as this can spray a freezing, moist spray that could possibly damage internal components.

The Cables: Many people often overlook cables when cleaning or making sure things are working properly. Many cables, especially mouse cables, can become extremely dirty and grimy over time. The key to cleaning them is to not bend, twist, kink or apply too much pressure to them. Use a soft cloth and some general cleaning solution (such as Windex), and gently pull the cable through the cloth while slightly squeezing on it. Be sure to pull on the cable, and not on the device the cable's attached to (or the plug on the end of the cable. Cables can sometimes be too dirty to clean; in this case, either live with it or buy a new cable!

Other Stuff: Use common sense for cleaning other things; if something is delicate or seems like it could corrode because of certain cleaners, don't use those cleaners. Always test cleaning solutions on inconspicuous, out-of-the-way areas to make sure they won't damage the surface you're cleaning. For advanced cleaning of electronics, you should either take your parts to a repair center or use special alcohol-based electronics cleaners.

Ways to Maintain Cleanliness

Here are some good guidelines for keeping your computer and your peripherals clean:

Never get any of the electronics inside your computer (or other devices) damp or wet, and keep pets and smoke away from your computer. (If you are a smoker, make sure the computer is in a well-ventilated room away from where you smoke).
Never eat food or drink liquids around your computer, ESPECIALLY near your keyboard—it's an accident waiting to happen (trust me!).
It's better to be safe than sorry: always test cleaning solvents and solutions on a small, inconspicuous area of whatever it is you're cleaning. If you do this, you may prevent ruining the whole surface of whatever it is you're cleaning!
Replace the air filter in your Heater/Air Conditioner when it becomes dirty; this will help keep the air in your house or room less dusty.
Keep the area around your computer well-ventilated (especially if the computer is under a desk); this will prevent dust from settling as much.
Keep your computer away from direct sunlight or other sources of heat.

My Mac is Running Really Slow - Help!

Jeff Geerling — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:49:30 +0000

This article will help you to diagnose common problems such as lack of maintenance, permissions conflicts and Hard Drive glitches that cause your Mac to run slowly.

There are two main routes to take to make your Mac as lean and mean as it was when you bought it (or even more so!)—hardware upgrades and software maintenance. One of the easiest things to do is to purchase additional RAM. As a rule, I say you can never have too much RAM. If you don't have at least 2GB of RAM, you should immediately upgrade. In addition to RAM, you should consider getting a faster/larger hard drive, or video card. If your Mac is more than four years old, however, you might want to consider purchasing a new one, especially if you're running newer applications or the latest OS X operating system.

The following are essential utilities for keeping your Mac running smoothly (Click the links to go to their download sites):

~~Anacron~~ (not needed if you have 10.5 'Leopard' or later)
OnyX
Macaroni
~~MacJanitor~~ (doesn't work on Intel Macs - and not needed anymore for newer Macs)
Monolingual

Running the Above Programs

OnyX is another free utility for running regular maintenance, although you must manually run this program's routines once a week or month (depending on your computer usage). One good thing about this utility, though, is that you can perform all the maintenance routines you'd need with one click in the Automation tab; after you do this, restart your Mac and see if everything's better.

Macaroni costs less than $10, but allows you to run all the necessary maintenance tasks automatically; it's kind of like combining both Anacron and OnyX, but Macaroni is easier to configure and use than both, and will make sure all the important maintenance tasks are run when the should be.

Monolingual is a free utility that allows you to delete unused 'localization' files—files that allow your Mac to operate in many different languages; if you only live in one country and speak one language, you can free up a lot of hard drive space (sometimes more than 1 GB!) by deleting languages you don't use. Macaroni also performs this task.

Disk Utility comes installed on Mac OS 10.3 or later, and allows you to verify your hard disk or repair permissions by clicking on your hard drive and then clicking on the "Repair Disk Permissions" button.

Every Mac user should make sure he runs three basic maintenance tasks:

'Cron' scripts: Mac OS X is a UNIX operating system, and there are 'cron' scripts that clean up messy log files, optimize certain parts of the system, and accounts for user activity. There are three tasks - one that should be run daily, one weekly and one monthly. Anacron, OnyX, and Macaroni perform this task, but with newer Macs running 10.5 'Leopard' or later, this is no longer necessary to be run manually—your Mac takes care of it.
Optimize Prebindings: Every time you install an application in Mac OS X, the installer will finish the installation by 'optimizing your system;' this is a fancy name for optimizing prebindings. Doing so will speed up application start times and keep things running smoothly. Macaroni does this.
Repair Permissions: Because Mac OS X allows multiple user accounts, and because OS X has UNIX underpinnings, file 'permissions' can become messed up sometimes, especially if you have many different users on your computer, and they use the same programs. Sometimes, really weird things can happen as a result of your permissions being messed up, and this can also slow down your computer. OnyX, Macaroni and Disk Utility perform this task.

One last thing you can do that will not necessarily speed up your Mac, but will free up a considerable amount of hard drive space, is to erase the thousands of foreign language files that are installed with every application and utility on your computer. Sometimes, this can free up more than a gigabyte of hard drive space! Use Monolingual to do this.

Ways to Keep Your Mac Running Fast

In addition to using the above programs, you should keep in mind a few important things while using your computer to check email, install programs, browse the Internet or chat:

Never open any attachments on emails that either you don't know who they're from or you don't already know what is in the attachment. Some malicious software can even make an email look like it was sent to you from a friend or relative! Better to be safe than sorry.
When installing new software, ALWAYS watch the installer and make sure you know what's being installed. Some programs will ask you if they can install additional software. This additional software is often unnecessary and can cause problems on your computer.
Don't use Internet Explorer (on Mac or PC). It is not being updated or supported for the Mac anymore. Use Safari, Chrome, or FireFox instead; these browsers are faster, offer more advanced features, and are more secure than Internet Explorer. (Plus, Safari is just darn cooler!).
If you chat, don't click on links sent to you by friends unless you are absolutely sure your friend intended to send you the link!
Upgrade your computer's RAM (Click on the Apple Logo (top right of the screen) and choose "About This Mac" to see how much you currently have). The more RAM you have, the less your computer will have to access the hard drive to run programs (especially if you run more than one program at a time!). This might actually be the best thing you can do to speed up an old Mac.
Make sure you have about 10-20% of your hard drive empty. Mac OS X automatically defragments most of your hard drive files, but it needs some free space so it can do this; plus, your computer will swap files with your RAM and hard drive to make certain programs run faster, so you need some free space for that. If your drive is almost full, you should consider getting a new drive; larger, faster drives can be very inexpensive when on sale at retailers such as Best Buy, Micro Center, Fry's and others.
Keep your computer clean; if you have never opened your desktop computer and cleaned the dust from the inside, you should do so—you might be surprised at how much dust you find! You can use a Shop Vac and soft brush (keep static away, though!) or a can of compressed air (a few bucks at a computer store) to get rid of all the dust bunnies. Dust can cause a LOT of problems with a computer! Read more tips for cleaning iMacs, flat screen LCDs, iPods, and other Macs.

Laptop Temperatures: What's safe? How do I avoid overheating?

Jeff Geerling — Wed, 02 May 2007 03:44:00 +0000

A question oft asked on the Apple Discussion boards (and other online computing forums) is: "My laptop seems really hot on the bottom* - is this safe?" This page will attempt to answer this and many other questions about iBook temperature concerns.

Why is it important to control (to a certain extent) your computer's temperature? Because a computer is like a car: if it's too cold, it won't run, and if it's too hot, it will overheat. As with all physical objects, a computer must obey the laws of physics, and when the temperature is too high or too low, things inside the computer won't work well. The optimal operating temperatures for your specific computer should be listed in the computer's manual.

Temperature Monitoring Software

There are many free software programs to help you monitor your Mac's temperature (whatever model it may be). My favorite is Temperature Monitor (free). Temperature Monitor allows you to see all temperature sensors in windows, the Dock, the menubar, or your Dashboard.

Normal Operating Temperatures

Most people will ask me what my Mac's normal operating temperature is, and I will answer them: "The normal operating temperature doesn't really matter much." Why? Because it will differ from situation to situation. Your laptop's temperature will change depending on usage, air flow, the surface the laptop is on, and many other environmental factors. I will go through ideal operating conditions for low temperatures:

1: Surface: What your laptop is resting on is probably most important factor for controlling its temperature. If you have your laptop on a carpeted or soft surface that could absorb a lot of heat, your laptop's temperature will be dramatically higher, for there is nowhere for the hot air on the underside of your laptop to go.

The best solution is to either always use your laptop on a solid surface (your legs are okay, too, because they leave room for air to flow underneath), or to purchase a laptop stand or fan pad so there is airflow underneath your laptop.

If you use your laptop on the ground or in your bed often, perhaps a solid board (even one with a pillow for comfort on the underside) should be used under your laptop. This will allow your laptop to let air flow underneath.

2: Air Temperature: Another controlling factor is the ambient air temperature where you are using your laptop. I would not expect your laptop to be any chillier than it's surroundings, so I would recommend using it in a place where it's 80° F or less. This will allow your laptop to cool down instead of heat up if you let it rest.

3: Air Flow: You should make sure there is at least some sort of breeze wherever you use your laptop. It need not be continuous, but the area you use your laptop in should have some airflow. Otherwise (if the air is stagnant), the hot air around your laptop will have nowhere to go.

4: Usage: If you are typing a paper, doing some light Internet browsing, or checking email, your laptop's processors won't be producing much heat, so you need not worry too much about operating temperatures. However, if you're rendering video files, recording and mixing video and audio, or working on large files with fancy programs such as Photoshop, you should try to keep your laptop as cool as possible!

5: Cleanliness: Believe it or not, the amount of dirt and dust in your environment is very important to maintaining a proper temperature. The fans in your laptop need to be clean to work with optimum efficiency, and extra dust and dirt in air vents can block airflow. Keep your environment clean of as much dirt and debris as possible. This means dusting your desk, vacuuming your carpets, and making sure your cooling system's filter(s) are clean.

What I Do

For my Mac, I set it on either a Targus Notebook Stand (no fans) or a Griffin Elevator (depending on where I am), which gives adequate air flow around the bottom of the laptop. I usually have a fan blowing in my room and office to keep constant circulation. I clean the fan, my laptop, my desk, and the rest of my room monthly (dusting, disinfecting, vacuuming, etc.). I also have a temperature monitor constantly running to let me know if something is making my computer particularly hot. I try to keep my room at a constant 68-72° F.

Conclusion

Basically, it's up to you how much you want to do to keep your computer running clean, mean, lean, and cool. I recommend you try to keep everything as cool as possible, as this will save your laptop from any possible overheating damage.

*This seems to more often be the case with MacBook Pro and iBook laptops, especially older generations. The newer Pro laptops are getting a little cooler, thankfully.