Tips

How to invoke alerts from the OS X Terminal

When you run a script or command in the OS X terminal, it can be useful to have some indication for when it is completed, especially if the script is a lengthy process you might not wish to monitor at all times. Unfortunately when a script or command finishes running, the Terminal will drop you to the command line again, without any notice to you. However, if needed, you can set up the system to run commands so it does offer some notification.

System alerts The first option is to have the terminal invoke the system alert after the command … Read more

Mount network shares privately in OS X

In order to mount a shared network folder in OS X, in general you first open a Finder window, where you will see a list of systems that are broadcasting network services, and upon clicking them you can provide authentication information to connect and mount their available shares.

When you mount a shared folder in this manner, the system uses a global mount point (within the hidden /Volumes directory at the root of the boot drive) to access the shared folder. This mount point can be seen by selecting Go to Folder from the Finder's Go menu and then … Read more

How to lock your screen in OS X

If you use your Mac in areas where it may be accessed by those other than yourself, then undoubtedly you might be concerned about its security. While using a cable lock for both desktop and laptop systems is a good recommendation, you also might set the system up to prevent unauthorized access if you need to quickly step away from it.

One way to ensure your data is safe is to simply log out of your computer every time you leave; however, this will quit your running applications and interrupt your workflow. In OS X Mountain Lion, Apple's autosave … Read more

Check defaults before altering hidden settings in OS X

OS X applications and services often contain a number of hidden settings that can be used to tweak your Mac's behavior to improve performance or provide an option that is not available by default. To manage these hidden options, you can use the "defaults" terminal command to edit the target preferences file associated with a service and manually adjust a variable's value.

Since the defaults command performs these edits in a single line in the Terminal, it is relatively easy to use and is often suggested as a way to edit property list (plist) files, which … Read more

A better-sounding $5 alternative to Bluetooth or AirPlay streaming

My preferred and better-sounding alternative to wireless audio streaming is a simple plug-and-play solution: it's a wire. There are no hassles with pairing, synching, dropouts, or glitches, and a skinny wire can get the job done with the best possible fidelity. The wire is also "backwards" compatible with any portable device with a headphone jack, and any iPod speaker, hi-fi system, sound bar, or computer speaker you already own! Sit on your couch with your phone or tablet and play your tunes, with a wire running to the speakers.

Sure, if you never sit in one spot, … Read more

Use Wi-Fi diagnostics to find active Bonjour services in OS X

Apple's Bonjour service in OS X is a convenient zero-configuration autodiscovery technology that allows the operating system to locate and present various network services available to you. For example, if a computer on the network has file sharing available, then the system will discover that and make it available in relevant areas of the system such as the Finder, and also allow your system to easily discover shared printers, remote log-in capability, screen sharing, and similar services the remote computer may have enabled.

While convenient, most of the services that Bonjour broadcasts are contextual, meaning that they only appear … Read more

Four ways to fix an unresponsive iPhone home button

No matter how anal you are about keeping your iPhone safe and intact, there is still a chance your home button will eventually suffer the effects of normal wear and tear.

The iPhone 5, which features a change to the anatomy of the home button, may solve this problem, but previous iPhone models are still susceptible to this common phenomenon.

If you're still within the provided one-year warranty and your phone doesn't show signs of accidental damage, head on over to Apple. As long as you're covered by warranty, the company will replace your phone or perform … Read more

How to connect to a Windows machine from OS X

While the default and most supported file-sharing protocol in OS X is AFP (Apple Filing Protocol), Apple does include support for sharing files with Windows machines using the SMB (server message block) protocol. With OS X being a Unix-based system, Apple initially included the popular open-source Samba suite as the means for doing this, but because of licensing violations had to replace it with its own SMB implementation.

Regardless of the specifics of the SMB implementation, the methods by which you can connect to Windows machines should be the same throughout the various versions of OS X:

Use Bonjour services … Read more

SSH tip: Send commands remotely

When connecting to a system remotely using SSH (Secure Shell), usually you provide the SSH command string to log in to the system and then execute commands on the remote system using the current SSH session. This is the standard behavior and is good for performing system management tasks that take more than just a few steps, but sometimes you might only need to log in and run a single specific command or script.

For example, if you would like to check a Mac's process activity by using the "top" command, you would perform the following steps … Read more

Q&A: MacFixIt Answers

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed in by our readers.

This week readers wrote in with questions on PDF files appearing black in Safari, whether one can copy the password tools from the OS X installer drives to a working OS X volume, iTunes not reading discs it just burned, and how to tackle a system always going into hibernation instead of sleep mode. We welcome views from readers, so if you have any suggestions or alternative approaches to these problems, please post them in the comments!

Question: Black PDF files in Safari MacFixIt reader … Read more