Arty's Mac Week

[arty]

Shift-Command-Option-Q

For a list of more handy shortcuts visit:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75459

That logs you out, though, as I just discovered whilst in the middle of a conversation in IRC

arty

 

[Mr Jones]

That logs you out, though, as I just discovered whilst in the middle of a conversation in IRC

arty

I tried that and lucky for me, I'm on multi-tabs in Firefox, so I wasn't logged out Need to be careful with all thes shortcuts - like ctrl-alt-command-8 as awesome as that is, I was like, OMG! What just happened!

 

[Deleted member 651465]

That logs you out, though, as I just discovered whilst in the middle of a conversation in IRC

arty

Yes, but if you need to leave the machine I find it's handy.

Besides, if you want to keep work open just use sleep

 

[arty]

Yes, but if you need to leave the machine I find it's handy.

Besides, if you want to keep work open just use sleep

Sleep mode breaks any active connections you have, such as to FTP servers etc.. The Keychain Access padlock icon is good enough for the moment

arty

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Sleep mode breaks any active connections you have, such as to FTP servers etc.. The Keychain Access padlock icon is good enough for the moment

arty

Ah right, didn't realise you needed constant FTP connections.. my oversight!

If I remember, there is a shortcut that enables the use of the padlock. AFAIK it can be mapped through the preferences section of the control panel

 

[OllyM]

I've never actually seen one of the new iMacs in the flesh. 24" must be absolutely huge, considering my TV is 'only' 32" and still seems enormous to me even for a telly!

I found that when I first got it, the screen felt huge - but now I've had it for a few months, it feels totally natural and the huge amount of screen space is really handy. I'm typing this post on my Macbook which always feels a bit cramped!

 

[arty]

Ah right, didn't realise you needed constant FTP connections.. my oversight!

I'll let you off Actually, it's mainly my IRC connections that would be irritating to lose. I don't particularly want to have to keep reconnecting every time I 'lock' the computer, you see.

If I remember, there is a shortcut that enables the use of the padlock. AFAIK it can be mapped through the preferences section of the control panel

See above

I found that when I first got it, the screen felt huge - but now I've had it for a few months, it feels totally natural and the huge amount of screen space is really handy. I'm typing this post on my Macbook which always feels a bit cramped!

I only fairly recently moved up to a 20" widescreen TFT (which I use my Mini with) and I think that's about the right size for me. I don't have a big enough desk for anything larger

I'm now entertaining very bad thoughts of returning my Mini to its HTPC status and getting a Macbook to use as my main / portable computer. Better lock my wallet away

arty

 

[arty]

Resurrecting what feels like an old thread, here are some slightly more mature comments from a user who has now been using a Mac for quite a while:

I'm getting on really well with my Mini Aspects I have come to appreciate and which I'd find difficult to live without:

1. Integration. The neatness of the global address book, global calendar, global search etc. really ties applications together.
   
2. Intuitiveness of the UI. Quite often I find myself wondering how to do something, then having an idea and trying it to find that it works.
   
3. Terminal. Being able to drop into the Terminal to do a bit of command line maintenance is proving itself to be more of a boon every time I use it.
   
4. Silence. Probably a very minor thing for most people, but having virtually no background sound whilst using a computer is a significant contributor to being less tired after using it for long periods of time.
   
5. Spotlight & Expose. Two very specific, simple features which have noticeably improved my productivity.

Aspects I still find vexing:

1. Finder. Although I don't find it 'rubbish' (as many people seem to label it), and certain features are very nice, others seem to be awkward, non-standard or just plain missing.
   
2. Inflexible workflows. Quite a few times I've noticed that it's nearly impossible to operate a particular bit of software (particularly the bundled apps) in any way except that which Apple intends. For instance, I was expecting iPhoto to be a basic but functional photo editing program, but it seems more aimed at a library management tool. Yesterday I just wanted to do a small amount of colour re-balancing and basic 50% resizing of a batch of photos and I couldn't get it to operate like a basic image editing program at all. I ended up using Seashore and doing each one manually, with no colour re-balancing.
   
3. Missing functionality. Global shortcuts are great, but why can't I re-assign the mouse buttons or make use of my additional ones without using third-party software? Why do I have to pay to get a good text editor? I appreciate that the market is smaller, but once I've got to grips with Cocoa and Objective C++ the first thing I'm going to do is knock together a really good free text editor

And now a question. I suffer from fairly poor eyesight (it's considered as a 'minor disability' by the NHS) and I'd like to change the size of the text of the menu bar, title bars and menus. I've not yet found an option in OS X to do this, only to zoom in (which, though fun, is pretty blurry). Does anyone know how to achieve this? I've prodded about with TinkerTool but none of the font size options seem to make any difference. Suggestions very welcome.

Thanks to anyone who is still reading this thread; I hope my comments might be of use to people thinking of dipping a toe in the scary world of Apple

arty

 

[electric ant]

Thanks arty, I found this thread most useful.
Please carry on posting any other observations you have in the future

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Not sure if it effects all font sizes but you could try Apple+J on the desktop and again in the finder to change the font sizing, and icon sizing to your liking

As for browsers... set Safari to "don't display any fonts under a size XX" where the XX is your preferred size and then you get the jumbo lettering if you need it!

 

[artaxerxes]

And now a question. I suffer from fairly poor eyesight (it's considered as a 'minor disability' by the NHS) and I'd like to change the size of the text of the menu bar, title bars and menus. I've not yet found an option in OS X to do this, only to zoom in (which, though fun, is pretty blurry). Does anyone know how to achieve this? I've prodded about with TinkerTool but none of the font size options seem to make any difference. Suggestions very welcome.

Thanks to anyone who is still reading this thread; I hope my comments might be of use to people thinking of dipping a toe in the scary world of Apple

arty

This is because the underlying assumptions in the OS about screen size where long ago violated by mahoosive screens! Perversely a smaller low resolution screen would give you measurably bigger icons and menu bar. (i.e. big icons 128x128 on a massive screen, as opposed to 128x128 on a small screen.)

In October - Leopard (OS X.5) will have resolution independence for the whole OS which means you will be able to smoothly and arbitrarily change the size of any element of the OS.

So there is hope!

http://www.appleinsider.com/article...dependence_in_leopard_confirmed_by_apple.html

For a better explanation.

 

[punky_munky]

Have you tried Smultron?

 

[arty]

Not sure if it effects all font sizes but you could try Apple+J on the desktop and again in the finder to change the font sizing, and icon sizing to your liking

As for browsers... set Safari to "don't display any fonts under a size XX" where the XX is your preferred size and then you get the jumbo lettering if you need it!

Thanks, I've already tweaked both of these. It's mainly the menus and title bars I could do with changing now really. I'll carry on nosying about.

This is because the underlying assumptions in the OS about screen size where long ago violated by mahoosive screens! Perversely a smaller low resolution screen would give you measurably bigger icons and menu bar. (i.e. big icons 128x128 on a massive screen, as opposed to 128x128 on a small screen.)

In October - Leopard (OS X.5) will have resolution independence for the whole OS which means you will be able to smoothly and arbitrarily change the size of any element of the OS. <snip>

Funnily enough I'd just read an article on this the other day. I've been wondering about it for ages and it definitely sounds like a good idea, though I'm not entirely sure whether it directly implies the ability to vary system font sizes.

Have you tried Smultron?

Thanks, just downloaded it. Will have a play

EDIT - Ooh, this is a nice one. It seems like almost exactly what I was looking for. With code-folding and macros it'd be all but perfect

arty

 

[ironman]

Arty,

Go to spotlight and type in Keychain Access, click on the top hit.

In the Keychain Access window, go to Keychain Access prefernces and check Show Status in Menu Bar. From the padlock you can just click Lock Screen and it will launch the screensaver and ask for a password when you move your mouse.

It keeps you connected to all your networks etc. which is the bonus.

 

[Fillado]

Terminal. Being able to drop into the Terminal to do a bit of command line maintenance is proving itself to be more of a boon every time I use it.

Give iTerm a try - it's the OS X terminal...but better!

 

[arty]

Arty,

Go to spotlight and type in Keychain Access, click on the top hit.

In the Keychain Access window, go to Keychain Access prefernces and check Show Status in Menu Bar. From the padlock you can just click Lock Screen and it will launch the screensaver and ask for a password when you move your mouse.

It keeps you connected to all your networks etc. which is the bonus.

Thanks, but I've actually already found this myself as I said many posts above

Give iTerm a try - it's the OS X terminal...but better!

Downloading now, ta. I've also found a fairly decent SubVersion client in ZigVersion, if anyone's interested. I think the only thing I really lack now is Photoshop - I haven't yet worked up the will to buy CS3 after shelling out for the CS2 version for the PC not that long ago

arty

 

[Logan09]

If you don't like the Finder app (it is pretty basic) you could always try Pathfinder which offers much more features (but it costs). Give the trial a go.

I don't know if you've found your perfect music player yet, but if not then Songbird might fit the bill (I know it supports FLAC). There's also Audion. Not really sure about Audion, but remember it getting good reviews a while back. It used to cost, but now they've stopped development it's free.

As far as your mouse is concerned you should be able to download the drivers off the logitech site and configure it with them. I have the MX1000 as well and the logitech drivers work fine with it.

For any apps you need check out Pure Mac. It has most mac software listed in categories (such as text editors, music players) so can really help when you need a certain type of app and google isn't playing ball.

 

[arty]

I don't know if you've found your perfect music player yet, but if not then Songbird might fit the bill (I know it supports FLAC). There's also Audion. Not really sure about Audion, but remember it getting good reviews a while back. It used to cost, but now they've stopped development it's free.

Thanks for the suggestions, but I don't believe either of these support Musepack so they aren't really viable

As far as your mouse is concerned you should be able to download the drivers off the logitech site and configure it with them. I have the MX1000 as well and the logitech drivers work fine with it.

I've tried this a couple of times now and just not had any success. Odd.

For any apps you need check out Pure Mac. It has most mac software listed in categories (such as text editors, music players) so can really help when you need a certain type of app and google isn't playing ball.

Bookmarked, thanks

arty

 

[Logan09]

If you really want foobar2000 you can run it under a wine emulator. You can either get darwine for free, or Crossover Mac (which costs but it is easy to use).

I've had foobar2000 running using crossover with no problems. But I prefer iTunes myself as I don't need the support for FLAC etc.

 

[arty]

If you really want foobar2000 you can run it under a wine emulator. You can either get darwine for free, or Crossover Mac (which costs but it is easy to use).

I've had foobar2000 running using crossover with no problems. But I prefer iTunes myself as I don't need the support for FLAC etc.

Yeah, at the moment I'm enjoying the simplicity of avoiding virtualisation / emulation.

Today I compiled Apache 2.2, PHP 5.2.1 and Subversion 1.4.3. Apache and Subversion were very easy, but PHP was fiddly. All three are now working, though, even if it did take me about 5-6 hours to sort out

I can't get over how useful it is to be able to run *nix apps on OS X. I should have done this years ago, in some ways

arty