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Drag and drop network file transfer #
Similar to the previously mentioned Dukto, Mover Connect enables configureless drag and drop network file transfer between Macs (and optionally iOS devices). Tested under 10.5 through 10.8.

/mac | May 01, 2013

Where is the Microsoft Office 2011 update app? #
Normally, Microsoft AutoUpdate is launched from any Office app via Help > "Check for Updates". However, if Office won't launch, you'll need to run it from this (annoyingly non-indexed) location: /Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MAU2.0/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app.

/mac | Apr 25, 2013

Import a single EML file into Apple Mail #
We've looked at a few tools for batch importing EML files into Mail, but what about importing just a single EML file? Clicking and dragging an EML file into a mailbox within the Mail interface does not work, nor is there an option to import EML files under File > Import Mailboxes.

The solution is to double click the EML file to open it in Mail (assuming Mail is your default email handler) and then click Message > Move To > mailbox_name.

/mac | Apr 15, 2013

Classic preference pane missing in Tiger #
Following a clean install of Tiger on an iMac G4, the Classic preference pane was missing. Copying the System Folder from a retail OS 9 CD to the hard drive made the Classic preference pane appear, but it would not load ("No startup volume: There is no volume with a system folder that supports starting Classic. Please install Mac OS 9.1 or later.").

Thankfully, Ken Watanabe outlined an excellent method for installing Classic in this thread: Mac OS 9.2.2 for direct startup (or Classic). Here is a condensed version:

Download NetBoot for Mac OS 9
Double click NetBoot9.dmg to mount
Double click English folder
Right click NetBoot.pkg and select "Show Package Contents"
Double click Contents folder
Double click Resources folder
Drag NetBoot.pax.gz to Desktop
Double click NetBoot.pax.gz
Right click the newly-created NetBootInstallation folder and select "Get Info"
Set "Ownership & Permissions" to "You can Read & Write"
Double click NetBootInstallation folder
Double click "NetBoot HD.img" to mount
Double click "NetBoot HD" volume
Drag "System Folder" and "Applications (Mac OS 9)" to the root of your Mac's hard drive
Unmount NetBoot disk image volumes
Open System Preferences, click Classic (which will have now appeared), and set the System Folder

Be sure to see Ken's version, which includes notes on optimizing Classic performance and booting into Mac OS 9 natively. Further down the thread, Peter explains that OS9General.dmg can be substituted for the NetBoot image.

/mac | Mar 26, 2013

"'Firefox' is an application downloaded from the Internet. #
Are you sure you want to open it?" kept appearing every time Firefox was launched. The quarantine bit was apparently stuck:

   $ xattr -l /Applications/Firefox.app
   ...
   com.apple.quarantine: 0000;51...|com.apple.Safari

Clearing it did the trick:

   $ xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Firefox.app

/mac | Feb 11, 2013

Unpacking IPA files and converting CAF to M4R #
To explore an iOS app (IPA) file, simply change the extension to ZIP and double click to unzip. Right click the APP file inside of the Payload directory and select "Show Package Contents". CAF audio files can be converted to M4R (ringtones) via afconvert:

$ afconvert -v -f m4af input.caf output.m4r

If you attempt to import a ringtone longer than 30 seconds into your iPhone, this enigmatic error will appear:

The ringtone "foo" was not copied to the iPhone "bar" because its duration is too long.

/mac | Feb 11, 2013

Deleting Backups.backupdb #
In Lion and earlier: $ sudo /System/Library/Extensions/TMSafetyNet.kext/Contents/MacOS/bypass rm -rf /Volumes/volumename/Backups.backupdb
In Mountain Lion: $ sudo /System/Library/Extensions/TMSafetyNet.kext/Helpers/bypass rm -rf /Volumes/volumename/Backups.backupdb

Thanks to Eric and Brad. More on Time Machine's Safety Net.

/mac | Jan 26, 2013

Automate mouse clicks in OS X's Terminal #
with Carsten Blüm's cliclick 2.1, which emulates mouse and keyboard events like moving the cursor, clicking, command clicking, and more. Running it in an infinite loop like so:

while : ; do cliclick c:. ; done

came in handy for a game that required a rapid succession of clicks.

A more practical example can be found in the included "Read me.html":

cliclick c:28,11 w:500 m:28,35 w:1000 kd:alt w:1000 c:. ku:alt

c:28,11 Click at position 28/11 (open the Apple menu)
w:500 Wait 500 milliseconds
m:28,35 Move the mouse to 28/35 (the first menu item, i.e.: "About this Mac"
w:1000 Wait 1000 milliseconds (so you have time to notice that the item is hilited)
kd:alt Press the "alt" modifier key
w:1000 Wait 1000 milliseconds (to give you the time to notice that "About this Mac" changed to "Open System Profiler")
c:. Click at the current position ("." is the current mouse position, just as in Terminal, "." is the current directory)
ku:alt Finally: release the "alt" key

/mac | Dec 21, 2012

Import Outlook 2010 calendar to iCal #

This worked:

Export calendar as PST from Outlook 2010
Import PST into Outlook 2011
Sync Outlook 2011 calendar with iCal (Outlook 2011 > Preferences > Sync Services > check "Calendar". Took several minutes for the sync to complete, with no progress indicator other than the fan going crazy.)
Disable Sync Services if desired

These didn't work:

O2M exported an ICS file from Outlook 2010, but the resultant data was a total mess - 20 events a day instead of the expected 4 or 5. Have had good luck with O2M in the past.
MessageSave also exported an ICS file from Outlook 2010, but attempting to import it would crash iCal every time. Have had good luck with this product before as well.
Export calendar PST from Outlook 2010 > import into Outlook 2011 > Calendar > File > Save Calendar. Very promising (and unexpected) export option which generates an ICS file directly from Outlook 2011. Sadly, attempting to import it into iCal returned: "Import Failed - Multiple validation errors occurred."

/mac | Dec 14, 2012

Copying OS X install ISO to portable drive #
Disk Utility's Restore function fails with errors like:

Restore Failure - Could not find any scan information. The source image needs to be imagescanned before it can be restored.

Unable to scan "foobar." (Invalid argument)

Unable to scan "foobar." (Resource busy)

but asr works like a charm:

$ sudo asr -noverify -source SnowLeopard.iso -target /Volumes/target

The same command can used to create bootable copies of the startup disk à la SuperDuper! and Carbon Copy Cloner (may need to follow with bless -folder /Volumes/target/System/Library/CoreServices, though the man page states "By default, asr will restore in place, and will not bless any folders. If --erase is specified, any blessed folders on the source will also be blessed on the target. bless -info /Volumes/<vol> will display current blessed folders for the given volume.").

In Lion and later, the -erase option seems to be required, i.e.,

$ sudo asr -noverify -source SnowLeopard.iso -target /Volumes/target -erase

/mac | Dec 07, 2012

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