Tutorials
Mac System Monitoring Apps
Matt Cone August 3, 2007
There are millions of car owners out there who will probably never look under the hood and see their vehicle’s engine. They don’t care whether or not their engine is overheating or their oil pressure’s jacked up or their car battery is about to conk out on them. As long they can drive, they’re good to go. And in the same vein, many Mac users don’t care about their computer’s inner workings.
How to Optimize Safari With SafariSpeed
Janet Fouts August 2, 2007
Does your online banking website or other service refuse to log you in when using Safari? Believe it or not, a lot of these sites are still optimized for Internet Explorer and not other browsers. You can complain to the IT departments, and some websites are compatible with Firefox, but if you are committed to Safari there is an option. SafariSpeed allows you to enable Safari’s debug menu, customize Safari’s look and feel, and speed it up a little.
How to Use .Mac
Matt Cone August 1, 2007
If you’re new to Macs, or if you’re not all that savvy with tech stuff (like creating websites and backing up important information with an online service), you should look into Apple’s .Mac service. It’s a $100 per year service that unlocks a number of cool features built into your Mac. In fact, some of the features are so cool that even seasoned Mac users spring for it. Here are just a few of the features that come with .
12 Step Program for Recovering Windows Users
Arbi Karamians July 31, 2007
There was once a time in my life when I’d wake up in the morning with bloodshot eyes, a headache and a sore back. This was not, unfortunately, due to my endless partying with co-eds, rather it was the result of my endless battle with my Windows PC. Whether it was trying to get my printer to work, or trying to track down a driver, or even contemplating whether I should throw my PC out the window because I’d received the “blue screen of death” - the problems just never seemed to stop!
Mailplane: Better Gmail for Your Mac
Matt Cone July 30, 2007
When we discussed Google applications a couple weeks ago, we mentioned several applications that allowed you to check your Gmail account from your Mac’s Desktop. But these are only good insofar as you can see that you have new email messages waiting to be read. To actually read the email messages, you still have to open up a web browser and long into Gmail. We’ve also discussed how to use Gmail with Apple’s Mail, which works great if you only use your Gmail account on your Mac.
A Greenhorn's Guide to the Mac Web
Matt Cone July 27, 2007
Google and RSS feeds have fundamentally rewired the Internet in recent years. Instead of visiting our favorite websites on a daily basis, we search for content and sift through it in our RSS readers. But if you’re looking for the most up-to-date content from sources you trust, there’s still no better way to get it than visiting the actual websites. Which websites should you visit? That’s a good question. Until now, we’ve resisted the temptation to provide a links section on Macinstruct.
Use Your iPod as a Portable Hard Drive
Matt Cone July 26, 2007
If you own a Mac (or any computer for that matter), chances are you’ll eventually have to transfer files to another computer. And you’ll probably want to back up your irreplaceable files and data, too. For these relatively trivial tasks, we recommend that you use your iPod. After all, your music, movies, and pictures probably take up less than half of your iPod’s hard drive space. You can use some of the free space as a storage device!
Turn Your Mac into a Wireless Captive Portal Server
David Miller July 25, 2007
What does a captive portal server, also called a NAC (Network Access Control) do? It can sandbox any wireless connection until some form of authentication is provided. These servers are used in many cafes and public places that offer wireless internet. For example, when you try to connect to the wireless network at Starbucks, it will force your web browser to the same page - no matter what URL you enter.
How to Find Files on Your Mac
Matt Cone July 24, 2007
If you’re like us, you’ve got a lot of stuff on your Mac. Files, folders, and applications are lying all over the place. Most of that stuff is easy to find - applications reside in the Applications folder, and most of your files are in your Documents folder. But what about the stuff you can’t find? It’s hidden away somewhere, and you have no idea where to look for it. Track down the files and folders that got away with our handy tips for searching your Mac.
Using Quicksilver's Clipboard
Matt Cone July 23, 2007
One of Quicksilver’s many handy features is the Clipboard module. When activated, it can keep track of the items that you have cut and copied, and let you see what is currently on the clipboard- what will appear when you paste. It can store rich formatted text and images just like the regular clipboard. First, check to see if the Clipboard module is installed. Open Quicksilver’s Plug-ins menu from the Preferences menu, the dock menu, or by typing the keyboard shortcut ⌘-Shift-’ when Quicksilver is open.