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Technology upgrades are a tedious but necessary task

Technology upgrades are a tedious but necessary task.

I'm going through this now, with an upgrade from Mac OS 10.5.8 to Mac OS 10.6.8 on my black MacBook. The world decided in its infinite wisdom that 10.5 was too old to keep supporting, and so quite a bit of software was starting to break. The promise is that 10.6.x will last a bit longer and keep my old 2008 vintage system running for a while longer.

Upgrades are always fraught with peril. In this case, it involved sticking a DVD in the drive, clicking a few times, and then waiting 45 minutes for the system to emerge in newly upgraded status. When you do something like that there's a lot of faith you have to have that the people who put together the shiny DVD got every last thing right, that they didn't forget to check some bit somewhere which in your case would turn your computer into a puddle of slag. I know that at some level it's an irrational fear, yet I've bricked my share of hardware in my time and I've known the process of operating system upgrades to involve long late-night patching sessions to get everything to work.

There was no puddle of slag at the end of my upgrade, just a computer that looked about the same as it did before with no huge obvious changes, just a few cosmetic bits and the promise of future compatibility.

I'm told that the typical Android phone that's sold never gets an operating system upgrade from the vendor, and that the usual upgrade path is either to install a completely unsupported hacked up new software load or to scrap the phone and start afresh with new hardware. I haven't lived in that world yet so I don't have the experience of others to go through, just the general sense that unless you're willing to delve into the details of Cyanogenmod that you should be prepared to get a new phone every time your contract runs out.

Compared to operating system upgrades, application upgrades are relatively easy and low worry. With most consumer software that's going through a rev cycle, these days you select "upgrade" from within the app and it magically replaces itself with a slightly newer version. This time I needed to update Chrome, and I had to descend to the operating system and delete one file to make the automated process work just fine.

The other task in my grand system upgrade effort has been to try to get BlueStacks running. This is an app that runs Android apps on Mac OS X. It's in beta, so I have some reason to understand when things don't go instantly right, but I tried it out anyway and the install failed to come up with a working system within the amount of time I was willing to throw at it.

Just because I have part of a 10.6 upgrade done doesn't mean that the whole thing is ready. The CD ships with 10.6.3, and you have to download a gigabyte-plus combo update to get to 10.6.8. The first time I did this the download was corrupted (?) so I tried again with success. I don't understand why, just enough to hit the "yes" button, and to type the error message exactly into Google when the error happens in the hopes that someone else has seen exactly the same problem.

What did we do before error messages could be looked up with such precision? Well, for one thing, there was usually some source code lying around so that you could read just what the context was for the error. If there was no source code to be had, then Usenet was sure to have someone who had seen the same failure mode. Google searching for failures just distributes out the task to a broader audience than ever, but there's still the basic issue that when something goes wrong you have to rely on the goodness of people who are willing to air their systems difficulties in public in the hopes of righting them again.

Keeping a system running with current software is an ongoing job. I ended up only being able to do it after digging through a rats-nest tangle of cables in my basement, emerging victorious with a Firewire cable that allowed me to back up the Mac to the point where I was confident enough that I could insert the DVD, click "Yes", and hope that someone in Cupertino tested every combination of equipment that one single updater was supposed to work on.

 

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I recently upgraded to lion 10.7 and now I can't open itunes or do any software upgrades. Not even 10.7.1! Help

my mac had it's original software re-installed by Apple. since they did this, my airbook pro will not recognize my iphone in Itunes, and I cannot update the latest version of itunes, because it says I'm not running the latest version mac software????

My bid for tech liberty: how have I done so far?

Sprint has now canceled its early upgrade program

spotty wifi

The problem with unreliable networks is that you have to engineer extra hard to be able to make use of them, and you still can't rely on them even when you do.

Consider the network connection that's randomly working and not working. If the network were actually down, you could work with that, knowing that eventually it would be a time and place that you could reconnect. Until then you stay offline in airplane mode and just chill and enjoy it.

The maddening part of the network that doesn't work is that instead of working with the network you end up working to repair the network, and its unreliablity neither gives you access nor downtime. In other words, spotty wifi is bad, worse than no wifi at all.

(Posted on the occasion of the repair of my MacBook's wifi card, which had been flaky for months.)

Awesome homebrew USB Lego printer printed "Hello World" from a Mac

The critic says "I like Lego City better."

Freedom, to go offline

Through some random chance encounter on the net - that is to say,
I don't remember why I found it - I'm offline right now.

The tool of choice for going offline is a little Mac application
called Freedom, which disables your Internet access for a specified
period of time so that you can get things done. Written by Fred
Stutzman at UNC.

Freedom enforces freedom; a reboot is the only circumvention of the Freedom time limit you specify. The hassle of rebooting means you're less likely to cheat, and you'll be more productive. Not rebooting is why we bought Apple computers in the first place. When first getting used to Freedom, I suggest using the software for short periods of time.

It's a great idea, especially for the times when you find yourself
overwhelmed by the 1000000000s of possible things to do when you
are on line, and when reducing the number of options is key to actually
accomplishing any one task.

(Obviously I'm back online to post this!)

Macbook flickery pixels - diagnosing and fixing a screen hardware problem

I have a Macbook, it's partially broken right now.

There is a stripe of pixels top to bottom on the screen, about 1/8 of the screen, running top to bottom that is flickering. It's not what Apple calls a "pixel anomaly", since it's not a single isolated spot; rather, it's a big stripe. It starts at the middle of the screen, and goes to the right from there.

I have Applecare (whew).

I ran TechTools Deluxe, their self-help diagnostic CD; all of the hardware that it tests checks out OK, including the video ram.

I double-checked the video issue at multiple screen resolutions, and it appears that the same screen stripe is fubar independent of resolution, which suggests that it's a problem with the screen itself and not the circuitry driving it. The external monitor looks fine.

@bdimcheff on Twitter noted that he had a similar problem which was "the bottom set of input circuitry on my LCD was falling off".

On hold to Apple Support right now (1030am EST), estimated wait 15min plus. I can still work. "Please continue to hold for the next representative".

I'm not going to fix it myself (did I mention Applecare)? But here are some people who did replace a Mac laptop screen:

Replace MacBook Screen - A Tutorial - Tweak OSX

A client of mine sent me a MacBook with a broken screen. It was his daughter’s computer, and she had accidentally broken the screen. I told him I couldn’t help him repair the screen, and he should look to Apple to make the repair for him. I turns out that the repair is 90% of the cost of the computer itself.

"Clear to me right now that it's a hardware issue; don't have to worry about it because it's a hardware issue. Need to send this one to our Apple Depot and have it fixed; the turnaround time is 5-7 business days. Genius bar doesn't have the parts to be sure and have it in stock, but you can ask them. Box delivered by DHL, just the computer into it; they will deliver it back to us; call them if it's ready for pickup. Box valid for 30 business days; always back up the files."

(sigh)

The next problem is to figure out a transitional period where I get a laptop for 5-7 days to work while my system is in the shop, and enough data and code on that laptop to make it work. Without going into an exhaustive search for rentals, it appears that the value of a machine for one week as a rental is in the $250 range.

Technorati Tags: hardware, mac, macbook, sad-mac

How to use Sprint / Samsung UpStage as a Bluetooth data modem on Mac OS X 10.4

For most of this, I followed the instructions at

http://www.nodrm.com/2006/03/22/how-to-use-sprintsamsung-a920-as-an-evdo-bluetooth-modem-with-mac/

UPDATE: more instructions specific to the UpStage at

http://www.nodrm.com/2007/05/12/how-to-use-sprintsamsung-upstage-as-an-evdo-bluetooth-modem-on-mac-osx/

It wasn't hard once I found that page, but there might have been a few steps I missed. Let me write down what I know I did, and then go back and fix any missing spots.

THIS IS A DRAFT. It really wants to have screen shots or even heaven help us a screencast of the whole thing. When I set this up the first time it was on the train - I bootstrapped the configuration using my Blackberry's browser to find the nodrm site above. I *think* I was stuck a few times along the way, and I doubly think that the missing step that changed between OS releases was the need to get the serial port configured (below, under Bluetooth / Sharing). Comments welcome.

1. Pair your phone with your computer. Turn the phone on; turn Bluetooth on on the phone; turn the computer on, and turn Bluetooth on on the computer. When you get a passkey on the Mac's screen, punch it in on the phone.

System Preferences / Bluetooth / Settings:
Bluetooth Power: On
[x] Discoverable
[x] Show Bluetooth Status in the menu bar

System Preferences / Bluetooth / Devices

Device Name: UpStage

Device Type: Phone
Device Services: Object Exchange, BTA_FTS, HSP Gateway, HFP Gateway, Advanced Audio source, Dialup Networking

Paired: Yes
Configured: Yes
Favorite: Yes
Connected: No
Serial Port: Yes

System Preferences / Bluetooth / Sharing

on key service name
[x] [ ] SerialPort-1

if you don't see a serial port, select "Add Serial Port Service" to add one.

2. Set up the phone as a modem. In the Bluetooth setup assistant, pick "access the internet with your data connection". Keep the user name and password fields blank, and use #777 as the phone number. Use "Sprint PCS Vision" as the modem script. Add the modem to you toolbar so it's easy to get to. I got error messages about not having a serial device when I did this the first time, and I had to go back and add the serial port in under Bluetooth / Sharing see above.

3. To connect, click on the modem toolbar and then select "connect". It will dial, and if you have service it will connect for you. Speeds will vary depending on cell coverage and the phase of the moon.

Technorati Tags: ambassador, bluetooth, mac, osx, samsung, sprint, upstage

My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide.

Sad Mac from thomazito. all rights reserved.

Bored cocktail-party companions will know that I went through a two week period of enforced disconnection from my Mac (yet another logic board failure). Happily, the machine is back, and they even cleaned it up and gave me a new keyboard.

My Mac Won't Start! A Tiny Guide is a little eight page, single sheet of paper booklet folded in pocketmod style that gives you all of the basic troubleshooting tools you need to boot into safe mode, fsck the disk, or boot to Firewire mode so that you can mount the drive remotely.

This troubleshooting guide was co-created by two designer-friendly computer support firms: CreativeTechs in Seattle and Forget Computers in Chicago. Both companies have spent years helping creative teams stay productive with today's changing technology.

If tech origami is not your style, they also have a non-pocketmod format page.

Technorati Tags: howto, mac, osx, pocketmod

Interarchy 8.2 for OS X has Amazon S3 support

Interarchy (the program formerly known as anarchie) now has S3 support:

With Interarchy you can efficiently and reliably fetch, edit or SFTP/FTP transmit files to any kind of Internet server using FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3 or HTTP. Common uses include setting up web sites, long-distance transfer of data or remote server administration. Interarchy also supports other common Internet protocols including ping, traceroute, DNS lookup and packet sniffing. Because Interarchy is standards-compliant it will work with servers running on any operating system including Windows and Unix.

It's a $59.95 purchase via Kagi.

I wrote about Jungle Disk earlier, an Amazon S3 client for the Mac - Interarchy is miles ahead in the way of overall system maturity, since started out as an FTP client back in the olden days and expanded out from there.

Peter Lewis, the developer, wrote a tutorial on How Do I Make An Amazon S3 Hosted Website Using Interarchy - it's a start to finish description of using S3 as your backing store for a web server.

Technorati Tags: amazon, s3, amazonwebservices, aws

S3 browser for Mac OS X

Brian Kerr notes:

S3 Browser
S3 browser is a Mac OS X administration tool for the Amazon S3 storage service. My goal is to build a small application useful in itself for developers or users subscribed to the S3 service, but also to provide example code showing how to access S3 through the REST API in a OS X Objective-C client application, on top of OS X technologies (Keychain, URL loading system, ...).

While you're there on Brian's blog, check out his collection of information metaphors, from architecture and artifact to wave, weight, wealth and world.

Technorati Tags: amazon, s3, osx, mac, metaphor, information

Apple iBook, Powerbook battery recall

Apple and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) on Thursday announced a recall of 1.1 million battery packs made for Apple’s PowerBook and iBook battery packs. Information on the recall has been posted to the CPSC’s Web site. Users who have batteries affected by this recall are entitled to a replacement battery, free of charge.

More details on the Apple battery recall web page. Because that page is so slammed, I snipped out the appropriate graphics here.

Technorati Tags: apple, battery, exchange, ibook, mac, powerbook, recall