Mostly Mac News

No New Posts

2010-07-06T16:58:00.000+09:30

Please note the I am retiring the Mostly Mac News blog. All updates will be posted through the Facebook Fan Page and streamed from there to the Mostly Mac website.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused and I'll probably leave this blog up for old times sake.

Mostly Mac on Facebook

2010-05-08T08:58:00.000+09:30

Thanks to everyone that became a fan on Facebook! I've now been able to shorten the URL from http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mount-Barker-Australia/Mostly-Mac/153148826564?ref=ts to http://www.facebook.com/mostlymac.

Thanks to all of those that have supported Mostly Mac, now and in the future!

Premier Retail Marketing Video

2010-04-08T12:11:00.000+09:30

Just added 4 new videos to Premier Retail Marketing's website.

These will be meaningful to anyone that has an interest in retail marketing (shopping centre/street promotion etc.).

Click here to check them out.

Google to fix new Calendar bugs [UPDATED]

2010-03-22T20:45:00.001+10:30

Mostly Mac would like to notify clients (and the web in general) that use Google Calendars, that Google is apparently trying to fix the "being added as a guest to an event without you choosing to do so" bug (and a couple of others that have cropped up).

Click here for a post from a Google employee.

[UPDATE] If you visit the above link you'll discover that Google have now rectified this problem.

Tracks

2010-03-15T15:51:00.001+10:30

Have a copy of "Tracks" for the Mac to give away. Please don't say that you want it until you've checked out the link! http://ow.ly/1kJO1

Valve Software to bring Steam to the Mac

2010-03-09T20:52:00.000+10:30

I was glad to read recently that Valve are bringing their equivalent to the Apple iTunes Store (for games only) to the Mac. Valve made the engine for one of my favourite games of all time "CounterStrike"... Click here for the Valve news release.

TotalFinder

2010-03-01T17:01:00.002+10:30

This is a repost from my Twitter and Facebook feeds, but so this hits my homepage I'm including it here! TotalFinder gives you tabbed browsing in the Finder in Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard). It's only in Alpha stage but to me seems good enough to be a Beta (eg. so far no issues!). Check it out: http://totalfinder.binaryage.com/

ATO CSI and Fake AppleCare

2010-01-08T20:03:00.005+10:30

Thanks to one of my MVC's (Most Valued Clients!) Dr Vanda Rounsefell I have a little tidbit to share. After contacting the ATO she was given these directions to make the CSI software (used to sign certificates for use on the ATO Business Portal etc.) work in Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard). I have truncated this a little to reduce the size of this post so if there's an aspect you're having trouble with feel free to contact me.

Uninstall the old CSI software using the uninstaller that came with it, then download the latest version from http://csi.business.gov.au and install it
Once installation is complete, right mouse click (or Control-Click) on the installer package called "CsiInstaller" and choose "Show Package Contents"
Double click on the Contents folder, then the Resources folder, then the "jarFiles" folder (not "jarFiles13")
Drag the "csi.jar" file to the Desktop the close the current window. Then in a new Finder window navigate to "Macintosh HD > System > Library > Frameworks > JavaVM.framework > Home > lib > ext" and drag the "csi.jar" file from the Desktop to copy it into the "ext" folder.
For ATO support with this call 1300 139 373 between 7am and midnight or click here to send an email.

Thanks for passing this one on Vanda!

Also, recently I've had some queries RE extremely cheap AppleCare sold on eBay and other auction sites. Please click here to view a Mac Rumors forum thread on this very topic and ask me if you have any other questions.

Free choice of Australian electronic tax platform

2010-01-05T10:56:00.002+10:30

First of all, happy new year!

I signed the "Free choice of Australian electronic tax platform" petition!

Aim being to finally get the ATO to make a platform independent version of etax that will work on Windows, Mac and Linux.

Mostly Mac Sales

2009-12-24T17:06:00.001+10:30

Firstly, Merry Christmas to anyone that reads this blog (as opposed to my Twitter and Facebook feeds!).

Secondly, Mostly Mac now does incidental sales. Eg. this isn't the main focus for the business but in an effort to be as helpful as possible, I can source Apple Mac's cheaper than pretty much anyone else in Adelaide (as far as I can tell). In some cases I can save you even more when you upgrade the RAM or Hard Drive. Which brings me to my next point, I can now quote on upgrading the RAM or Hard Drive in your Mac.

To some degree I can also source many accessories like covers, hardshells, and more (including accessories for iPods and iPhones). Simply ask if you're interested.

Coming in the new year will be a web store for Mostly Mac clients only, with special discounts etc.

Stay tuned!

Premier Retail Marketing Launched

2009-12-14T23:30:00.000+10:30

Have finally finished updating the Premier Retail Marketing site, which now includes a Blog.

I'd plug PRM here but I think you'll find the site contains a nice description of what is on offer, recent projects and much, much more!

To visit the new site click here.

Movember [UPDATED]

2009-10-28T18:00:00.002+10:30

Although more of a personal post (therefore this is also on my personal blog!), I figure some Mostly Mac clients are interested in charities etc.

As you most likely know, Movember is about improving awareness of mens health issues (mainly Prostate cancer and depression) and raising money. It looks like I'm going to be taking part this year, so if you're wondering why I haven't shaved my upper lip for a while, this is the reason!

Check out more Movember info here.

UPDATED: To sponsor my Mo, you can either:

Click this link and donate online using your credit card or PayPal account
Write a cheque payable to ‘Movember Foundation’, referencing my Registration Number 167729 and mailing it to: Movember Foundation, PO Box 292, Prahran, VIC, 3181

Remember, all donations over $2 are tax deductible.

Mac mini Home Media Centre issues [UPDATED]

2009-10-12T20:36:00.001+10:30

The home media centre Mac mini (low end of the latest model with 4GB RAM) started kernel (the core of the operating system) panicking overnight recently. Backed it up, blew it away and re-installed Snow Leopard. It then kernel panicked after I installed updates and drivers but noticed the panic seemed to centre around the loading of the Logitech Control Centre drivers. Un-installed said drivers and the machine hasn't crashed since. Strangely, I'm using these drivers on my MacBook (latest model White with 6GB RAM as mentioned in an earlier post!) and haven't had a single problem. Must be 2 things butting heads on the Media Centre? Will continue to monitor!

Update: It's back to kernel panicking (blue screen type) during idle time. Have now tried all the usual suspects and still nothing. Looks like it's next trip will be to an Apple Service Centre!

MacBook (Mid 2009 Model) Running 6GB RAM

2009-09-28T11:23:00.000+09:30

Just a quick post in case anyone Google's this question. Yes, my MacBook 2.13Ghz with DDR2 6400 800Mhz RAM is quite happily running 6GB of installed RAM (1 x 2GB and 1 x 4GB modules). Not only this, I've tested and made sure that the full amount of RAM is being addressed and used (quite happily opened Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and Dreamweaver CS4 with several other Apps and at least initially had some memory left over but not much!). If you're interested in doing this upgrade please contact me!

Snow Leopard Update [UPDATED]

2009-09-24T17:02:00.000+09:30

Update: None of the below matters anymore as Logitech have finally updated the drivers. Choose your device from this page to download the latest version of Logitech Control Center.

Just a quick update to say I've found a better workaround for the issue with installing the Logitech Control Center. Control (Right mouse button for some)-click the LCC Installer and select “Show Package Contents”.

Then navigate to Contents/Resources/Logitech Control Center.mpkg and double click. This bypasses the operating system version check.

Please note though that the drivers only work in 32-bit mode and there are a few oddities with some devices.

Also note that you'll need to create shortcuts to Spaces and Expose by entering some commands in the "Terminal" program. Namely "ln -s /Applications/Utilities/Expose.app /Applications/Expose.app" and "ln -s /Applications/Utilities/Spaces.app /Applications/Spaces.app" minus the quotes of course!

This information was gleaned from the Logitech forums and most specifically, this thread.

Google Sync for iPhone

2009-09-23T11:48:00.001+09:30

This is just a quick post to say that Google have finally enabled push email through Google Sync (this means emails are sent to my iPhone immediately instead of the phone having to retrieve mail on a schedule). I also use Google Sync to get my Google Calendars on my iPhone.

More detail here!

Am now running Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

2009-08-31T15:11:00.000+09:30

It's definitely snappier. Only issues for me are that the Logitech driver for my mouse no longer works (no biggie and easily worked around) and Google Gears (for storing Google Gmail/Calendars/Docs etc. offline) no longer works. Am sure updates for both of these things are just around the corner and are certainly not "deal breakers". So far, so good but will keep you posted!

Mostly Mac site goes live!

2009-08-24T16:48:00.003+09:30

With maybe a small amount of fanfare the Mostly Mac site is now ready for general consumption. Feel free to get in contact with me if you have any questions!

Coming soon will be a client VIP section with some nice features that Mostly Mac clients will surely find useful.

Keep an eye on this news feed (or bookmark it by clicking the "RSS" button) to keep up with the latest updates.

I'll also be posting Mac/IT news that I feel is vital...