Taking photos with the iPhone
~A New Mac Tip Every Day
Have you ever tried to take a self-photo (or a MySpace type of photo) with your iPhone, but couldn’t find the virtual button once the phone is backward? Well, there is a solution to that problem.
Did you know that the iPhone actually takes the picture when you release the button, not when you press on it. So what you do is simply press and hold the button while the screen is facing you. Then you turn the iPhone while still holding the button. Then, you let it go and voilà, you have a photo of yourself.
This can also be useful when you are waiting to get the perfect shot in an action scene. Just keep the button pressed and when you got exactly what you want, just release the button.
Show only exact duplicate tracks in iTunes
~MacOSXHints
In iTunes, a very useful feature is the File » Show Duplicates menu item. As expected by its name, you can use this feature to help weed out duplicates from your iTunes library. However, many people (myself included) have different versions of songs, remixes and such, which will show up as duplicates when using this feature.
The solution is to hold down the option key prior to selecting this menu item. When you do, Show Duplicates changes to Show Exact Duplicates. In this mode, iTunes shows only true duplicates, and not remixes or alternate versions.
Use some very old scanners under Snow Leopard
~MacOSXHints
My Agfa SnapScan 1212u is about 10 years old now, but had been working perfectly through every OS X release. With the Update to Snow Leopard, however, the old app ScanwiseX wouldn’t start anymore. The error I received was “ScanWise couldn’t find ColorSync-Systemprofile.”
To get my scanner working again, first I installed the OpenSource files from TWAIN SANE. First I installed libusb.pkg, then sane-backends.pkg, and finally sane-preference-pane.pkg.
With the freeware Scan Again for the SANE Extension (Scanner Access Now Easy), I could finally use my Agfa SnapScan 1212u again. After launching the app, it bounces a long time, but it will eventually work. There are not many preferences, but enough to do all important scans I need.
Cleaning Caches
~Mac Hints & Tips
Caches are widely used by the Mac Operating System. Essentially, a cache is a place in which the as temporarily and invisibly stores copies of data that it thinks you might need again soon, thus saving time in locating that data next time it’s needed. If the data isn’t needed again, it’s eventually discarded to make room in the cache for more active data.
Remember the key point that data in caches is only a “temporary spare copy” of data stored elsewhere on your hard disk, and so can be discarded with impunity.
Problems can arise if the data stored in a cache becomes corrupted. Every time the system (or an application) calls for that data, the corrupted data is supplied once again. The result is a repeatable problem of some kind that simply won’t go away, even if you restart the Mac. The solution is to “clean” the cache; that is, to discard the cached data, forcing the Mac to read it afresh from its original location on the hard disk.
A number of utility programs include cache-cleaning functions. Some of the best known are Leopard Cache Cleaner, OnyX, and Cocktail. Of these, only OnyX is free, but you can usually do what you need to do using the free “demo” or “trial” periods of the others.
Some such utilities offer various levels of cleaning, or can clean User and System caches independently. Theoretically you should clean as little as necessary to fix the problem you’re dealing with, but in fact I have never encountered the slightest problem after performing a Deep Clean All procedure. Your Mac may take a little longer to start up and some operations may be a little slower until the caches are refilled, but all this will usually clear in a single work session.
So when might you need to use a Cache Cleaning utility?
Perhaps the most common situation is when changes made in System Preferences don’t “stick,” but keep reverting to the original setting. Cache cleaning usually fixes such a problem very quickly.
Where Does That File Live?
~Mac Hints & Tips
If you found the file you were looking for, and want to know where it is on your hard disk, just move your cursor over the result in the Spotlight menu, and in just a second or two, a tiny dialog will pop up showing the path to that file.
How to Set a Default Printer
~Mac Hints & Tips
Over time you may wind up with several printers set up for your Mac. This results in a list of available printers every time you go to print. If the default (the first one selected) isn’t to your liking you can always change it. To do so, bring up System Preferences and go to Print & Fax. Now right-click (you can hold the Control key down if you don’t have a 2-button mouse) on a printer in the list and choose: Set default printer. There you go!