Filed under: Accessories, Gaming, Hardware, Ask TUAW, iPhone, Snow Leopard
Ask TUAW: iTunes libraries, Mac data recovery, Snow Leopard on older Macs and more
We're back with another edition of Ask TUAW. This time around we've answering questions about iTunes libraries, Mac data recovery, Snow Leopard on older Macs and more.As always, your suggestions and questions 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.
Daneel asks:
I'm running OS X 10.5.7 and Windows Vista (via Bootcamp) on my iMac 24". I was wondering if there was any way in which I could make the iTunes apps in both Windows and Mac use the same iTunes library. File access is not a problem as I've got the ntfs-3g driver on the mac side and mac drive on the PC side.
I have my iTunes library on an external hard drive. To make iTunes use this particular folder, I create an alias of the folder on the external drive and replace my iTunes folder located in Users> "User Name" > Music with the alias. iTunes has no problem with this setup.
You should be able to do the same thing in both the Mac and Windows versions of iTunes. Just set an alias of the iTunes folder you want to use in Windows pointing to your Mac iTunes library and you should be good to go.
Friko asks:
My iMac failed and didn't let me do an archive and install, so I had to make a clean install. Is there any way to transfer to the new install not only the music, but the contacts and calendar info that's in my computer?
Sadly, you are probably at a point where data recovery software needs to be used. Fortunately, you didn't do what's called a "low level" format of the drive which would have pretty much ruined your chances of recovering any data. In your case, the data may still be on the drive but the formatting just won't let OSX see it.
Data recovery is not an exact science and there are several programs you could try including Data Rescue from Prosoft, Stellar Phoenix from Stellar Info Systems, Boomerang, Kernel from Nucleus Software and Virtual Lab from Binary Biz. Plus, I'm sure you will get many more suggestions from our commenters about what software to try. Good luck.
Faye asks:
I have a fairly-new (purchased Fall '08) iMac 20" - 2.66GHz and a not-quite-as-new MacBook (purchased Jan '08). As a relatively recent convert, I'm trying to understand this: If Snow Leopard is more sparing of system resources than Leopard, why is it said that I won't get the full benefit of Snow Leopard with my pre-2009 Mac's?
Snow Leopard accomplishes its "spare resources" magic by dumping as much of the workload onto the Mac's graphics card as it can. Unfortunately, you need a very modern graphics card to do this and your Macs simply don't have one that's new enough. Therefore, you won't get the full benefit from Snow Leopard's most advanced features such as support for OpenCL.
Ricardo asks:
I like to play some FPS's and use Photoshop so I need a precision mouse. Any good gaming mouse for Mac (and with support for PC) besides the Razer DeathAdder?
Mice have come a long way over the years and several companies make some very good ones. Even though this is an Apple and Mac-centric site, I'm going to recommend a Microsoft product to you: The Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 3.0. I use it for gaming on the Mac and it works quite well. It also works for Windows.
Of course, it doesn't offer all the bells and whistles of the Razer, but its also a bit less expensive. Plus, it works very well with Photoshop. However, if you really want the ultimate gaming mouse for the Mac, you should just stick to the Razer. Plus, its got a much cooler name.
Bryan asks:
In the network settings of the iPhone, you can switch 3G on and off. i live in an area that lacks 3G but 30 minutes in all directions are towns that support it. Am I better off leaving 3G switched off when i am at home, and then switching on when i get into a 3G zone? i didn't know if leaving it switched on meant that it was constantly searching for a 3G signal, and thus draining the battery more than normal.
According to Apple iPhone customer support, having 3G on or off does have an impact on battery life but not a significant one. The iPhone is designed to be in 3G mode all the time and the battery figures are based on that fact. That said, there's no harm at all in turning it off when you are not in a 3G area and then turning it on when you are.
Personally, I've found having 3G on does tend to drain the battery a bit faster, but it was not significant enough for me to be too concerned about it. Plus, I keep an iPhone charger in my car just in case I run low on juice. You might want to do the same thing.
A.J. Wiese asks:
I got the new 2.53GHz 13" Macbook Pro. I'm looking at getting 2 external monitors is there an adapter to give the mini display port dual monitor capability? (preferably DVI). if so how much would said adapter cost?
Pretty much the only way I know of to make this work, at least at the moment, is the Matrox DualHead2Go. However, it only supports two external monitors at 1024x768 resolution, so I'm not sure if that would be good enough for your purposes. Plus, it will run you around $225.00.
Instead, you might want to consider getting one big monitor such as the Apple 30" Cinema HD Display. It works out of the box and this way you can still get all the screen real estate you want.
My iMac failed and didn't let me do an archive and install, so I had to make a clean install. Is there any way to transfer to the new install not only the music, but the contacts and calendar info that's in my computer?
Sadly, you are probably at a point where data recovery software needs to be used. Fortunately, you didn't do what's called a "low level" format of the drive which would have pretty much ruined your chances of recovering any data. In your case, the data may still be on the drive but the formatting just won't let OSX see it.
Data recovery is not an exact science and there are several programs you could try including Data Rescue from Prosoft, Stellar Phoenix from Stellar Info Systems, Boomerang, Kernel from Nucleus Software and Virtual Lab from Binary Biz. Plus, I'm sure you will get many more suggestions from our commenters about what software to try. Good luck.
Faye asks:
I have a fairly-new (purchased Fall '08) iMac 20" - 2.66GHz and a not-quite-as-new MacBook (purchased Jan '08). As a relatively recent convert, I'm trying to understand this: If Snow Leopard is more sparing of system resources than Leopard, why is it said that I won't get the full benefit of Snow Leopard with my pre-2009 Mac's?
Snow Leopard accomplishes its "spare resources" magic by dumping as much of the workload onto the Mac's graphics card as it can. Unfortunately, you need a very modern graphics card to do this and your Macs simply don't have one that's new enough. Therefore, you won't get the full benefit from Snow Leopard's most advanced features such as support for OpenCL.
Ricardo asks:
I like to play some FPS's and use Photoshop so I need a precision mouse. Any good gaming mouse for Mac (and with support for PC) besides the Razer DeathAdder?
Mice have come a long way over the years and several companies make some very good ones. Even though this is an Apple and Mac-centric site, I'm going to recommend a Microsoft product to you: The Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 3.0. I use it for gaming on the Mac and it works quite well. It also works for Windows.
Of course, it doesn't offer all the bells and whistles of the Razer, but its also a bit less expensive. Plus, it works very well with Photoshop. However, if you really want the ultimate gaming mouse for the Mac, you should just stick to the Razer. Plus, its got a much cooler name.
Bryan asks:
In the network settings of the iPhone, you can switch 3G on and off. i live in an area that lacks 3G but 30 minutes in all directions are towns that support it. Am I better off leaving 3G switched off when i am at home, and then switching on when i get into a 3G zone? i didn't know if leaving it switched on meant that it was constantly searching for a 3G signal, and thus draining the battery more than normal.
According to Apple iPhone customer support, having 3G on or off does have an impact on battery life but not a significant one. The iPhone is designed to be in 3G mode all the time and the battery figures are based on that fact. That said, there's no harm at all in turning it off when you are not in a 3G area and then turning it on when you are.
Personally, I've found having 3G on does tend to drain the battery a bit faster, but it was not significant enough for me to be too concerned about it. Plus, I keep an iPhone charger in my car just in case I run low on juice. You might want to do the same thing.
A.J. Wiese asks:
I got the new 2.53GHz 13" Macbook Pro. I'm looking at getting 2 external monitors is there an adapter to give the mini display port dual monitor capability? (preferably DVI). if so how much would said adapter cost?
Pretty much the only way I know of to make this work, at least at the moment, is the Matrox DualHead2Go. However, it only supports two external monitors at 1024x768 resolution, so I'm not sure if that would be good enough for your purposes. Plus, it will run you around $225.00.
Instead, you might want to consider getting one big monitor such as the Apple 30" Cinema HD Display. It works out of the box and this way you can still get all the screen real estate you want.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
ScottJ said 8:17PM on 7-01-2009
No need for an external disk. In fact, it can be a bit hazardous: if you neglect to connect it before starting iTunes, iTunes will reset itself to its default location. Once your podcasts start downloading, that can be a big mess.
SO:
One word: Dropbox.
Set up a Dropbox account, and keep your music files in it. On each machine, point iTunes to the Dropbox in its file system. So slick! http://www.getdropbox.com
Reply
ScottJ said 8:19PM on 7-01-2009
The above comment was for Daneel, of course.
k3rnel said 8:32PM on 7-01-2009
@ScottJ
I disagree.
I use it in this fashion every day and I am prompted if I accidentally start iTunes without said disk connected (to create a new library because the existing was not found) and a new default iTunes library IS NOT created.
It's certainly a matter of opinion of course, but I think an external disk is definitely the way to go for this situation.
FunFred said 8:33PM on 7-01-2009
Excellent idea. But there are service costs that go along with that.
It may be a good idea to check out Songbird. A free iTunes alternative, it has the ability to watch folders for updates (so when you add a file to your music library, it'll add it automatically).
I haven't used it much, but it gets good reviews.
billcantfart said 8:46PM on 7-01-2009
You can also either get MacDrive or download the boot camp drivers for Snow Leopard(from some possibly shady parts on the internet) to access the Mac partition.
Much, much better than an external drive.
doug said 7:47AM on 7-02-2009
What about just making a new partition on your hard drive, formatted in a natively supported common type (fat?) this keeps everything local, gives a nice sandbox, and relies on nothing "out of the box"?
Chris Ullrich said 8:25PM on 7-01-2009
@ScottJ - I like that idea. May try it myself. Good call and thanks!
Reply
FunFred said 8:36PM on 7-01-2009
Be careful...iTunes doesn't have the ability to watch a folder for updates. So when you add a new song, it won't automatically be picked up by iTunes.
Songbird can watch folders, may be something to look into.
Mike said 8:30PM on 7-01-2009
@Faye
... you *will* get back about 6GB of hard drive space though - that's something that everyone who upgrades to Snow Leopard will benefit from.
Reply
FunFred said 8:35PM on 7-01-2009
Depends on what you've done to the system. Based on the question, I would guess not much, but if you've already removed the 3GB+ of printer drivers that come pre-installed, you won't get quite that much back.
However, it will still save quite a bit of space, and since everything is written in 64 bits, it should be faster overall as well.
WS said 9:49PM on 7-01-2009
I installed the latest seed (copy I got from WWDC) and I saved just over 20 GBs!
Tom Waterhouse said 3:57AM on 7-02-2009
I'm a bit saddened to hear all of the OpenCL features won't work on my pretty new iMac... I didn't realise there was a list of supported graphics cards.. curses!
Oh well, looking on the bright side, 6gb more.
Hawkman said 8:53PM on 7-01-2009
Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't some DisplayLink stuff (whether first party or rebadged, as there are many clones) do what A.J. Wiese wants for $notmuch? They have Mac drivers now, as I recall. http://www.displaylink.com/
Reply
Johnny said 12:50PM on 7-02-2009
I was going to suggest the same thing. They are inexpensive and work great. We have one on a Mac Mini.
ScottJ said 9:06PM on 7-01-2009
k3rnel: The behavior I described is what I endure with iTunes under Windows. I just switched my iTunes to my Mac; could very well be that that platform behaves more intelligently.
FunFred: Dropbox is free for 2GB storage, but after that, yeah, there's a modest fee. You do get more free storage for referrals though. And it's useful for much more than just music storage. Your point about not watching folders to automatically update one's iTunes library is a good one, and you are unfortunately correct correct: only a non-iTunes solution would fix that, at this time. But many of us want to stick with iTunes for various reasons. It's not a big deal to have iTunes add the new stuff from a folder, but you do have to remember to tell it to do so. This is one of many iTunes rough edges that I wish Apple would get the hell to work fixing. It really is amazing how much they got wrong with that piece of software.
Whether you use Dropbox for your music or for other stuff, it's a wonderful tool. I use my (free) account to keep current work in. That way, it's automatically backed-up, and I like being able to move between Mac and Windows and Linux and always have my current files waiting for me. They're versioned on the Dropbox server, too, so if I ever really screw up a file, I can go back in time easily.
Reply
osxdude999 said 9:15PM on 7-01-2009
Actually, there is a much easier way. If you move your iTunes library, you can press the Option key on a Mac and the Shift key on a Windows computer and it will give you an option to choose your library. Actually, this also works in most other Mac apps, like iPhoto.
Reply
osxdude999 said 9:18PM on 7-01-2009
Said actually twice, for epic emphasis, and of course that was for Daneel.
TexasJimmy said 10:10PM on 7-01-2009
Hoping this qualifies for the ..."and more" section of the iTunes library questions...
On an Leopard/Intel, iMac with iTunes 8.2, all songs in my library play as expected - when I add songs from iTunes to my iPhone or small iPod, I am told that "certain songs could not be added" as my device doesn't support that format and cannot be played.
But I can play the songs on my iMac - and they were purchased from iTunes!
Huh?
Reply
David Platt said 10:40PM on 7-01-2009
After capturing video with the iPhone 3GS in portrait mode, is there any way to export it like this? I tried using iPhoto>iMovie, but it just stretched the video. Is there any way to possibly have the black bars on the sides as opposed to just stretching the video?
Reply
Brian Allen said 12:10PM on 7-02-2009
Portrait mode works fine for me.
Here is an example:
http://gallery.me.com/brianallen/100329