Filed under: Features, Troubleshooting, Ask TUAW
Ask TUAW: Syncing iCal, Mouse Keys, encrypted flash drives and more
This time in Ask TUAW we're tackling questions about syncing iCal between two Macs, using an encrypted flash drive in a cross-platform environment, changing default applications, using the keyboard instead of the mouse, and more.As always, your suggestions are welcome. Questions for next week should be left in the comments. When asking a question please include which machine you're running and which version of Mac OS X (we'll assume you're running Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions!
bryan asks
Is there a way to activate a context menu from the keyboard, as if you were to right/control click with a mouse?
Yes, go to the Universal Access System Preference. In the Mouse & Trackpad section turn on Mouse Keys. Now the '5' key on the number pad with be a left click and ctrl+5 will be a right click.
ronl12 asks
I have Parallels but discovered that my amateur radio software needs to be 'closer to the metal' to work properly with the USB-to-radio adaptors. I know that I can boot Windows in Boot Camp so I created a Boot Camp partition in NTFS format. I have Paragon NTFS and can read and write NTFS partitions. QUESTION: How can I migrate my Parallels VM to BootCamp so that I can boot from it so that I don't need to reinstall all of my software to the Boot Camp partition?
This is, I fear, a non-trivial task. There is a user-produced guide for doing this on the Parallels forums, but it was posted a few years ago. Nonetheless, it should give you an idea of what it would take. You might want to check whether your software might work better with VMware Fusion as migrating from Parallels to Fusion is a much less tricky proposition.
iGO asks
How do I set, or more importantly, NOT SET Mail as my default email reader? I want to have NO DEFAULT email reader because at times, certain applications or links in browsers, open mail due to a url click or an application action. I NEVER want mail to start/open, unless I start it myself by clicking the Mail application icon, inside the applications folder.
I think that you must have a default mail reader (set in Mail.app's preference); simply not having a default reader is not an option. However, as another reader pointed out you can set any application on your Mac to be the default mail app. So if you just choose something that's always open on your Mac anyway (e.g. Address Book), it will just switch to that application when you click on a mail-to link.
Sam asks
I can't get applications to consistently open up certain file types. For example, I want avi files to always open in VLC, not Quicktime. I've went into the "open with" dialogue and chosen VLC and checked "always open with." But whenever I double-click an avi file, it always opens in Quicktime. What's the deal with this? Is there a program that will manage this type of thing?
It will work better if you set the default application in the Finder using the inspector window. In this case, choose and avi file in the Finder and then hit the 'i' button (or simply: ⌘+i). Then in the "Open with:" section choose VLC and click the "Change All" button.
niknak asks
After once again leaving a USB thumb drive in one of my university's computers (though i got it back) i thought i would finally try and secure the data on it. What would be the best way i could go about this? I know i can make an encrypted disk image somehow, but i need something that, as well as on my own MBP, will also work on both the Windows and Mac machines in my university (so it also needs to be FAT formated). Ideally i would like something that would ask me for a password to 'unlock' when i plug it in or try to access it, and would then stay unlocked until i eject it, and which works on both Windows and OSX machines without any special client software. While i'm working I usually have it in my MBP with Chronosync set to sync my Documents folder to it every 10 minutes, so i don't really want to be bothered with having to re-type the password all the time.
I haven't used it myself, but as another reader suggested I would have a look at TrueCrypt. It's free, open-source and will run on both Windows and OS X (and Linux). According to the FAQ you can run TrueCrypt from the flash drive. I don't it will be automatic (e.g. you plug it in and then it asks for your password), but it won't be that complicated (you plug it in, then run it off the drive, mount the TrueCrypt container and you're good to go).
Shaun asks
I have an '07 iMac and just got a Macbook. What's the best way to synchronize iCal on both machines without using MobileMe? I've tried the 'import"export' function via file sharing, but it makes multiple copies of all events instead of updating events that were just added.
The best way is probably with Spanning Sync ($25/yr or $65) or BusySync ($25). You can sync with Google Calendar without these application using their CalDAV support for free, though the other two still offer more features, I think.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
John said 1:04PM on 2-12-2009
Using TrueCrypt on your flash drive still doesn't solve the root problem of leaving it plugged in to the university computer. If you forget to unmount the encrypted volume, no amount of encryption will stop the next person sitting in front of the computer from simply browsing the contents of the mounted USB stick.
Reply
colin_young said 1:17PM on 2-12-2009
Except that on a university terminal the OP is probably logging out, which is going to terminate TrueCrypt and unmount the drive. If that's not the case, your point stands (that was my original thought, until the log-off occurred to me).
James F. said 2:19PM on 2-12-2009
TrueCrypt also has a thing were it unmounts whenever a certain time limit goes by. Example, it unmounts if no activity after 25 minutes. It will Not ask you to enter a password as soon as you plug it in. You would have to plug it in, start TrueCrypt (on the flash drive?) and then mount the drive. Very simple really.
senatorcongressman said 3:17PM on 2-12-2009
I use TrueCrypt on USB sticks currently and the issue I have is you need either: 1) administrator privelages to run it from the USB drive or 2) an administrator to install it on the machine. This negates the ability to use it on a limited access machine like at a school. Other than that, it works great.
Another (mac) option is to use an "encrypted disk image", but you can't use that on a pc.
A multi-platform, kludgey work around is to use a password protected zip, rar or tar archive instead, since macs and pcs can both open those. It is a real pain though.
niknak said 9:34AM on 2-16-2009
Thanks for all the suggestions guys. I haven't fully got around to testing out Truecrypt on the university's computers yet. I always log out so it shouldn't stay mounted if i leave it behind, so that shouldn't be a problem (I also want it encrypted because i usually carry it around in my pocket, so it's easily lost anyway). But if you need admin privileges to mount the drive in the first place, then that's going to be problematic. I'll test it out anyway and see how it goes. I may just have to resign myself to being more careful!
autoy said 1:09PM on 2-12-2009
I'd like to know if there is a way to prevent the automount of certain drives, for example: My Sony Ericsson mounts vía USB the internal memory+memory card as two separate drives and I just need the memory card, so if there is a way to prevent automount for the internal drive it would be better.
Reply
bryan said 5:13PM on 2-12-2009
You could use an app called Do Something When and have it run an AppleScript when that specific volume is mounted. The script would be something like tell application "Finder" to eject "VOLUME NAME".
d3bruts1d said 1:13PM on 2-12-2009
I'm a big fan of BusySync. It's made my life much better after syncing GCal & iCal.
Reply
Chris said 1:19PM on 2-12-2009
In response to Sam:
A great alternative is RCDefaultApp. Great little Preference Pane that you can use to set defaults for nearly any file type.
http://www.rubicode.com/Software/RCDefaultApp/
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Scott said 1:38PM on 2-12-2009
Don't for get about Fruux for the iCal syncing. Works like a charm
http://fruux.com/
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Brandon Martinez said 1:36AM on 2-13-2009
That's what I'm using :) it's working great; contacts (with group support), calendars, and bookmarks. I'd say the big three for me :) Everything else I'm syncing with a Unison shell script I wrote.
Snookie said 1:51PM on 2-12-2009
The best free syncing app that works cross platform is plaxo. I've been using it for almost a year, never had a problem. It has mult. calendar support and works flawlessly with your address book. Even sends me emails when someone's birthday is coming up.
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Donald Noble said 2:15PM on 2-12-2009
A question:
Is there any easy way to import certain files as podcasts? I download mixes etc. that I want to sync to my iPhone, then delete after playing. I can add them to iTunes, move to a playlist and sync to the iPhone, then delete manually, but I was hoping for a simpler way...
Thanks, Donald
Reply
Lauren said 4:01PM on 2-14-2009
There is a script on Doug's Applescripts for iTunes (http://dougscripts.com/itunes/index.php) that lets you re-add selected tracks as podcasts.
This is what I do for all of my audiobooks, since it auto-deletes tracks after I finish listening to them.
Patrick Gibson said 2:32PM on 2-12-2009
If you only are using Macs, why not create an encrypted disk image that is written to the Flash drive sized to match the drive itself?
Reply
Michael said 2:36PM on 2-12-2009
Dearest TUAW:
I upgraded from a 2.4Mhz C2D Macbook Pro to a 2.8Mhz C2D unibody Macbook Pro a few months back. I have Time capsule and started a new backup after transferring my files. When I go back to my old backup all of my folders are locked, and so, to view anything I have to manual give myself read & write privileges. As you can imagine this can take quite a bit of time when hunting for a file. Is there are way to globally open the backup to read & write so I don't have this problem anymore?
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delight1 said 2:55PM on 2-12-2009
You do NOT need to have a default email client set.
One way you can disable having a default mail client is by installing RCDefaultApp ( http://www.rubicode.com/Software/RCDefaultApp/ ).
Once installed, go to the prefpane, let it load, under the "internet" tab, select email and choose "".
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Sarah McDonald said 3:12PM on 2-12-2009
I have a question:
My work uses exchange for our email system. Is there any way to get Mail to pick up my email through the exchange system? I asked our tech guy at the school and his answer was "you shouldn't have got a mac".
Reply
Rob C said 1:10PM on 2-13-2009
Sarah,
If you install Microsoft Office you will get Entourage, this is kinda like Outlook for the Mac and will allow you to connect to your Exchange Server.
Rob
Tony said 7:52PM on 2-12-2009
You can use Entourage (part of MS Office for the Mac.) You can get it at a steep academic discount, most likely from your University bookstore.