macOS

To do so, just hold down the Option key when you click on one of the tabs at the top of the window, and that collection of settings will open in its own Inspector. Use the tabs across the top to access more settings, each in its own window (if you’d like). This also works in Numbers…

The place to start is a button called “Chart Colors” in the Numbers Format Bar. It’s on the far right at the top, and, unfortunately, if you downsize your window, its the first thing to disappear.Chart Colors is in the Format BarBy the way, to make sure the format bar is visible, from the Numbers…

In Apple Mail, hovering over an e-mail address that’s in the “To” or “From” field shows a drop-down arrow that you can click to reveal a hidden menu. If you then choose “Copy Address,” well, the address isn’t all that’s copied. Apple, in their infinite wisdom, decided that in Snow Leopard, the information that’s copied…

“The release of SURVEYOR 5.5 has been highly anticipated by our customers, many of whom maintain mixed Windows and Mac environments,” John Scumniotales, president and CEO of Verdiem, said in a statement. “We are pleased to offer them the ability to control power states, as well as to better manage and report energy usage and…

 I rebuke thee, dialog box. Fortunately, there’s a way around this. You can click and drag the file from the Trash and drop it onto an appropriate application in your Dock, and that application will then open it just fine, without removing it from the Trash first. You can even e-mail a file that’s in your…

1. Go to the Google Accounts page. Here’s where you can also create a Google account for the first time. Otherwise, login with your Google credentials.2. After you log in, you’ll see a page like this:Google AccountsNear the bottom right, click on “Reader,” in bold. Later, you can come back and adjust your Reader “Settings.”…

The usual disclaimer here is that you need to be careful with Terminal, especially if you’re unfamiliar with its workings. Type everything exactly as it’s written, and note that most commands are case-sensitive (though, in this case, both “PDF” and “pdf” are acceptable). See? Terminal’s not scary.So to get started, open Terminal (located in Applications >…

Accordingly, the patch notes are somewhat…dry. To wit: Java for Mac OS X 10.6 Update 4 Java Available for: Mac OS X v10.6.6, Mac OS X Server v10.6.6 Impact: Multiple vulnerabilities in Java 1.6.0_22 Description: Multiple vulnerabilities exist in Java 1.6.0_22, the most serious of which may allow an untrusted Java applet to execute arbitrary…

Every Mac needs to interact with a drive, be it a traditional mechanical hard drive, once of these fancy new SSD (Solid State Drive) devices, or even a network drive, often referred to as NAS (Network Attached Storage). Sure, you can use Activity Monitor and its Disk Activity tab, or a utility like iStat Menus to…

As such, the Mac App Store app can recognize if an app was acquired from the Store. The Store app will offer to update MAS-acquired apps but not the same app acquired outside of the Store. Mac OS X can similarly tell if an app came from the Store or not. For example, using the…

Using trick shots. In Part 1, I recommended experimenting with unusual shots. The path to three-star success will often involve using a particular bird in a counter-intuitive way. Here are three examples: Yellow bird trick. If you send the yellow bird in a near vertical arc and tap the screen while it is still ascending, it…

The only downside to these diversions is the gargantuan amount of time you will waste playing them. I might have cured cancer by now, if I had devoted the same amount of effort to that worthy goal as I have to Angry Birds. Instead, my reward for the many hours I have spent at my…

When entering information into a series of fields or text boxes most everyone knows that you can use the Tab key to move forward from field to field (or box to box) to enter information. But you can also move backward when necessary by holding down the Shift key along with the Tab key.  Think…

iMovie ‘11 is the latest incarnation of Apple’s consumer-focused video editing application for Mac OS X. It’s included with the recently released iLife ‘11 and makes for a nice upgrade, especially for users that felt previous iMovie updates were lacking. iLife ‘11 includes a new version of iMovieLike the versions that come before it, iMovie…

The Boot Camp Software Update 3.2 also added support for the MacBook Air SuperDrive, and includes what Apple called “critical bug fixes.”Boot Camp Software Update 3.2 is available in 32-bit and 64-bit Windows versions, and is available via the Software Update application, or as downloads at the Apple Support Web site.

However, before you sit down with your bucket of popcorn, you’ll likely have to choose which hardware to use to watch your Netflix movie. The question arises because, these days, it seems that every device that comes with a power cord includes Netflix streaming. I half expect that my next microwave oven will sport a…

The tutorial covers some broad aspects of recording with Logic, such as an explanation of the differences between a single coil and humbucker pickups, and a discussion how to manage a proper noise to signal ratio when recording your guitar. Most of it, however, focuses on how to get the most out of Amp Designer…

Mac OS X 10.6.5 and Security Update 2010-007 address a well publicized security threat where documents such as PDFs containing maliciously crafted embedded fonts could let an attacker remotely gain control over a user’s computer. Examples of how the flaw works were published by Core Security shortly before Apple’s updates were released.The update also fixes…

Pragmatism Licensing Mac OS X Server in a data center, behind closed doors, on industry standard servers is not a bad idea. It’s not accessible to regular employees who might pirate the OS. Moreover, a sufficiently rigorous licensing should be achievable on an enterprise basis. This would be almost identical to what Steve Jobs did…

Apple’s first version of iPhoto was released in January, 2002. Since then, it has grown from a modest photo manager to a major, substantive app that’s essential for every Mac user. iPhoto ‘11 (technically, version 9.0) adds important refinements, but more importantly, gets really serious about your treasured photos. I started shooting and managing digital…

HTC’s Windows Phone 7 offeringMicrosoft introduced the Windows Phone 7 platform earlier this week with the catch phrases “always delightful,” and “wonderfully mine.” Nine Windows Phone 7 devices from various manufacturers were shown off during a special media launch event.Windows Phone 7 smartphones will be available in Europe starting on October 21, and in the…

AirRadar 2.0The Smart Collections feature lets users search for networks that fall within specific parameters, such as networks with generic SSID names, or only 802.11g or n networks. Version 2.0 also includes a redesigned user interface, and adds Apple Keychain compatibility.AirRadar can gather Wi-Fi network information such as broadcast rate, cipher type, and beacon interval,…

MailTags 2.5 is priced at US$29.95 and is available for download at the indev software Web site. The update is free for version 2.x users.

I’m sure you have noticed an increase in this “little problem” as you have gotten older. I had cataract surgery this year, see better than I ever have, and it still happens to me. Sometimes I think my brain takes a nap on the way to my eyes. At least I have learned to keep…