Is there an easy way I can diagnose my macbook hardware and software?

How can I trouble shoot my hardware and software on my macbook, myself?

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  • Is there an easy way to switch mini dvi between monitor and tv?

    I would like to be able to connect my mini's dvi output to a either a monitor or my tv. I am not trying to get a display on both simultaneously. With a DVI to DVI cable between mini and monitor and a dvi to hdmi cable between mini and tv I think that I can swap dvi connections at the mini, but that looks like a pain. Is there an easier way to do this?
    I am about to order the dvi to hdmi cable. Is the mac mini's dvi port hot plugable or do I need to put the mini to sleep or shut down? Thanks,
    Owen

    Welcome to Apple Discussions!
    Without some extra hardware, you can't. The mini, like all Macs, looks for data from the display to determine what settings it makes available to the user, so with two displays connected and feeding their available configurations, the mini will get very confused! Even if the two displays have one or more common settings that will actually work, each time the mini boots or wakes and detects the display, one or other (or both) are likely to go blank.
    There are adaptors you might consider, such as those from Gefen, but they are not inexpensive. Have a look at http://www.gefen.com/kvm/dproductlisting.jsp?listingCategory=Switchers&productTy pe=dvi for a list of available switching options, though beware that for the most part, the need being met is for TWO sources and ONE display, not your ONE source and TWO displays.

  • HT1660 is there an easy way to delete the whole itunes library and and start again. I notice there is only an add file/folder button but no remove facility

    I recently upgraded to the iphone 5 and managed to sort the transition out with little trouble but noticed when I tried to put my music on that Itunes has messed with album info and either it or me has generated several copies of the same albums over the years and it makes it quite dificult to sort it all out before reloading on the phone. To stop the chaos I had hoped to clear the library and start again but cant find a way to do it. I was hoping to sort all my music out in original files and consolidate them into a proper folder. HOw do I do this. I notice there is an add fole and folder button but no take away??? is there an easy way?

    Use Shift > View > Show Exact Duplicate Items as this is normally a more useful selection. You need to manually select all but one of each group to remove. If you have multiple references to the same files then don't send to the recycle bin. Use my DeDuper script if you don't want to do it by hand. See this thread for background and please take note of the warning to backup your library before deduping.
    (If you don't see the menu bar press ALT to show it temporarily or CTRL+B to keep it displayed)
    tt2

  • HT4759 is there any better way you can track stolen iphone 5 and iphone 5s rather than find my iphone?

    i have lost iphone 5 and iphone 5s within 4 month, its real sad coz there is no way i can track them, have been using icloud (find my iphone) for all these time but it doesn't show nothing helpful rather than my iphones are offline. i need help on this please.....

    Find my...is the only way to track a device.
    Barry

  • Is there an easy way to toggle between an Apple ID and a cell phone number in Messages?

    My son has an iPod but just a regular cell phone. We communicate a lot through texts/Messages but he doesn't always have a wifi connection on his iPod so sometimes, he is only reachable through his cell phone number and other times through his Apple ID. Is there an easy way to select which channel I want to contact him through on Messages?

    Hi,
    On your Mac in Messages with his conversation in "focus" (the one selected) Click and hold his Name in the "to" Spot and the top right of the right hand pane where the conversation is.
    This will become a Drop Down and show you the iMessages (and other accounts he might have) options.
    In some cases they may not have been used before and may not have the indicator.
    Example
    NOTE.
    Any phone number will be listed as a potential iMessages ID as well any emails.
    In the above example I happen to know that both the emails are Apple IDs  (What I don't know is if my wife as linked either to her iPhone Number)
    8:21 pm      Wednesday; November 5, 2014
    ​  iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
     G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
     MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
     Mac OS X (10.6.8),
     Couple of iPhones and an iPad

  • HT5622 i have lost the my iphone 5 and there is any way i can get all my picture and sms?

    I have lost my iphone 5 and i got the new one now and there is anyway i can get all the picture and sms from the old phone?

    Go here http://www.icopybot.com/itunes-backup-manager.htm and download the program and install it on you computer.  You can get a trial version and test it before you buy.  Once you have installed it on your computer open the program and it finds your itunes backup and lets you look at it to see messages and photos and other information

  • Is there an easier way to work with adobe after effects and final cut pro x

    I use adobe after effects and I am thinking about deleting motion and compressor ( I can always install again). If you have a good reason to keep those apps let me know because I don't want to be hasty. If I delete them and stick with after effects and final cut pro...  Is there a secret to easy working between FCPX and adobe after effects?
    Thanks

    You'll go from FCP X to and from Motion a lot easier than AE.  Motion does pretty much anything AE does, most of the time faster and easier.  Without Motion, you can't do custom templates.  You can't customize the encoding of files without Compressor.  Why would you want to remove them from your system?  Leave them, use AE if you want along side of them.  But I'd learn Motion first.  Cause AE doesn't read FCPXML, so going back and forth between them is a PITA.
    And until Apple releases the round trip between FCP X and Motion fully, we have this gem:
    http://www.alexnking.com/2012/02/20/fcpx-send-to-motion-app/

  • HT1399 When I import a CD to itunes, it splits the album in to multiple entries. I have changed the info on some but others just will not merge. Is there an easy way to do this and can I stop them from splitting in future? Thanks

    When I import a CD to itunes, it splits the album in to multiple entries. I have changed the info on some but others just will not merge. Is there an easy way to do this and can I stop them from splitting in future? Thanks

    Okay this is what fixed my problem. Some kind of error/glitch occured half-way through importing that third cd that prevented further imports from any other cd. Once I completely removed the half-imported cd album from my library I could further import cd's without any problems.

  • Is there an easy way to convert and import MTS files from a external hardrive so that I can edit them in FCP?

    I am trying to convert game footage that is in MTS format to something that I can edit into a quick highlights video. I have final cut express and the standard IMovie '09. looking for easiest solution, everything seems to involve using one application to convert to Quicktime and then dropping file into Iphoto etc. is there an easy way?

    I'm not completely sure that MPEG Streamclip can convert AVCHD footage (.mts files).  If MPEG Streamclip doesn't do the job, then get a copy of Clipwrap, which was designed for transcoding .mts files to QuickTime/Apple Intermediate Codec (that's the format/codec you need to convert the .mts files to for use in FCE).

  • HT204053 can I purchase from two different stores ie store in New Zealand and Store in Australia and  how do I sync updates on applications?  Do I have to switch ID's in my settings each time or is there an easier way.

    can I purchase from two different stores ie store in New Zealand and Store in Australia and  how do I sync updates on applications purchased from either store?  Do I have to switch ID's in my settings each time or is there an easier way.  The trouble is I set up my appleid in new Zealand and so all icloud and itunes and app stores are under New Zealand Apple ID I have since moved to Australia. Im a real beginner at this stuff so bare with me pse.

    I'm in the same boat as you -- except that I manage both a school lab (volunteer job) and macs in the enterprise (pay job).  What I think we need is the Education Volume Purchasing Program
    http://www.apple.com/education/volume-purchase-program/faq.html
    Unfortunately this all seems a little rough around the edges -- for example, I have found updates for AppStore apps on the support.apple.com updates download site, but then when I install them via ARD they don't actually update the software.  (The AppStore icons still show as needing the updates, and the version info reports the old version.)  The documentation is also vague about which AppleID to use in which circumstance.  I think they just haven't finished thinking through the implications of the various procedures and policies upon the various kinds of customers.  When we deployed Mountain Lion on the school lab, we made an install usb and went around and installed it on each computer -- and it appears that you are on the honor system as far as paying for all of the licenses that you install.  We did!  But they appear to have no way to enforce it.
    So far, I have only deployed 9 Lion macs in my day job, and our "solution" to the AppStore showing updates problem has been to drag the AppStore icon off of the users' docks so they don't see them!

  • I am receiving excel files, which I need to convert with my macbook pro...I did this with export, but the file I got didnt show graphs as it should...can you help...do I need to buy excel for Apple computer, or is there any easier way of dealing with it..

    I am receiving excel files, which I need to convert with my macbook pro...I did this with export, but the file I got didnt show graphs as it should...can you help...do I need to buy excel for Apple computer, or is there any easier way of dealing with it..does App  "Numbers" help here?

    Numbers should be able to read Excel files without any problems.    If Numbers does not read the graphics properly then you can try Excel Online. https://office.live.com/start/Excel.aspx

  • Is there an easy way to make JSpinner wrap around at max/min values?

    I have several pages with a couple dozen JSpinners to set various values - mostly numeric, but some are not.
    I would like to make them wrap around when either the max or min values are reached.
    Is there an easy way to do this?
    I was hoping for something like an "enableWraparound" property, but I haven't found such an animal.
    I suspect I could add value change listeners to all the components and do it by brute force,
    but there are too many spinners scattered around to make that an option I would like to take.
    Any suggestions?
    Thanks.

    Ok, it looks like custom spinner models are the way to go.
    Hopefully, I can create a couple that are generic enough to meet my requirements without too much pain.
    It looks like the ones I have already created will be easy enough to modify.
    Thanks for the feedback.

  • Is there an easy way to clear the contents of Download Folder?

    Is there an easier way to clear out files (send to trash) from the downloads folder, other than dragging one by one? The downloads folder closes immediately upon dragging one file out.

    You do not need to invoke Finder to do this. Create a new empty Automator workflow and use the "Run Shell Script" option. Paste in the following....
    mv ~/Downloads/* ~/.Trash
    You can then save the workflow as an application, attach it as a Finder action or add it to the scripts menu, whichever you like better.
    If you would like to bypass the Trash and just completely delete the Downloads folder contents immediately, then paste in this command:
    rm -rf ~/Downloads/*

  • Is there an easy way to reimport all songs in my itunes folder?

    This may sound like a weird question but here goes... When I bring up my iTunes I have 8731 files (mostly music) that come to about 41.33G's but when I right click on my iTunes Music folder and select properties there are 8809 files and a total of 48.5G's. I am trying to free up some disk space and can't figure out why there is such a difference. I had issues with Norton 360 and removed it but I had to restore my music files from an external drive and when I did so I lost the links for music that I added after my last back-up. I noticed that TV shows I bought from Apple were not in my iTunes but I was able to locate them in the folder, and import them back into iTunes. I have a feeling there are music files in my folders that are not linked to iTunes but can't figure out how to import them without going through all 8800+ files. Is there an easy way to import all the files without losing the current playcounts or a way to figure out which files may be duplicated in my iTunes Music folder. Seems like I am wasting 7G somewhere that I would like to recover. I already went through the duplicate songs and that didn't help. Any suggestions would be great...
    hp pc m260n   Windows XP   media center

    I have a feeling there are music files in my folders that are not linked to iTunes but can't figure out how to import them without going through all 8800+ files. Is there an easy way to import all the files without losing the current playcounts
    AFIK there isn't an easy way of linking up to a lot of dead tracks and retaining play counts etc, except by finding the dead tracks and repairing each link individually. The only exception to this is if there is a simple error in the path that can be fixed by a search and replace on the xml library file, then rebuilding the library. However it doesn't sound as though that would be a solution for you.
    This MacMuse tip has a way of finding dead tracks if that helps.
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=121967
    It is much simpler to sacrifice the playcount information and just reimport your iTunes Music folder. Then you can eliminate the dead tracks with a script. One of the forum members has written one that you can find here:
    http://home.comcast.net/~teridon73/itunesscripts/

  • I am looking to "move out" of my computer and into my wife's, is there an easy way to accomplish this task, keeping all my files and setting up a second user?

    I just bought a new external 3TB hard drive for this task and want to keep my items seperate from hers for both our sanity.
    I figured that I would do a time machine back up and use that to do the move part of things.
    But as to setting up the new user on her computer I am just not sure if I can "tell" the computer to only use the new drive for my stuff and only acces the new drive for all things related to that new profile.
    More then anything else I want to be able to say that all things that are hers have not been touched/acccesed/deleted by any of my actions. And that I am "confined" to the new drive.
    I hope this makes sence.
    Mr Geef

    I have a feeling there are music files in my folders that are not linked to iTunes but can't figure out how to import them without going through all 8800+ files. Is there an easy way to import all the files without losing the current playcounts
    AFIK there isn't an easy way of linking up to a lot of dead tracks and retaining play counts etc, except by finding the dead tracks and repairing each link individually. The only exception to this is if there is a simple error in the path that can be fixed by a search and replace on the xml library file, then rebuilding the library. However it doesn't sound as though that would be a solution for you.
    This MacMuse tip has a way of finding dead tracks if that helps.
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=121967
    It is much simpler to sacrifice the playcount information and just reimport your iTunes Music folder. Then you can eliminate the dead tracks with a script. One of the forum members has written one that you can find here:
    http://home.comcast.net/~teridon73/itunesscripts/

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