Under APPLE MENU system preferences only opens sporadically, mostly not

Under APPLE MENU system preferences only opens sporadically, mostly not. I booted up with installation disk and ran a check but everything was alright. However, when I tried to click on items using the disk as a startup disk it frequently wouldn't function.

George,
Thanks for asking that question.
I offered this solution based upon similar successful advice which was given to another poster who solved this problem:Long story short I ended up reinstalling Mac OS X using Archive and Install. When I first used the computer following reinstalling Mac OS X, I was able to access the System Preferences by selecting them under the Apple in the menu bar. However, I have now updated my software using Software Update, and now I can't access System Preferences when I click on them under the Apple in the menu. The computer just acts like I never selected System Preferences.
Where have System Preferences gone??? provides another example of Previous Systems folder interfering with System Preferences.
Applications don't work after reinstalling Mac OS X explains a different problem with a Previous Systems folder: Example 1: You downgrade by performing an Archive and Install installation, but do not update to a later version of Mac OS X. The Previous Systems folder contains later versions of applications that may contribute to this issue.If you have proper backups, I recommend trashing the Previous Systems folder as soon as you can determine that the new system is functioning properly. The Previous Systems folders will either take up too much space or contribute to unexplained system problems.
;~)

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Apple Menu System Preferences no longer works

When I click on the System Preferenes item under the Apple Menu, nothing happens, but when I click on the System Preferences icon in the Dock, the System Preferences pane opens normally. How can I reactivate the System Preferences item in the Apple Menu?
PowerMac 1.25DP MDD Mac OS X (10.3.9)

George,
Thanks for asking that question.
I offered this solution based upon similar successful advice which was given to another poster who solved this problem:Long story short I ended up reinstalling Mac OS X using Archive and Install. When I first used the computer following reinstalling Mac OS X, I was able to access the System Preferences by selecting them under the Apple in the menu bar. However, I have now updated my software using Software Update, and now I can't access System Preferences when I click on them under the Apple in the menu. The computer just acts like I never selected System Preferences.
Where have System Preferences gone??? provides another example of Previous Systems folder interfering with System Preferences.
Applications don't work after reinstalling Mac OS X explains a different problem with a Previous Systems folder: Example 1: You downgrade by performing an Archive and Install installation, but do not update to a later version of Mac OS X. The Previous Systems folder contains later versions of applications that may contribute to this issue.If you have proper backups, I recommend trashing the Previous Systems folder as soon as you can determine that the new system is functioning properly. The Previous Systems folders will either take up too much space or contribute to unexplained system problems.
;~)

System Preferences ONLY opens to Move to iCloud

I've moved my mobile Me account to iCloud and have repeatedly followed the steps. I can log on to my iCloud accout. The problem is that whenever I try to open iCloud in System Preferences (so I can turn on Photostream and select other features) the only screen that ever comes up is the same intro screen that asks me to move Mobile Me over, which I've already done. I got through the steps, but it still only opens to that screen.

Same issue. My iPad and iPhone are on iCloud and it works. I can actually see that my documents and contacts are there when I get sent to mobile. which then sends me to iCloud. Since I can't get the past being sent to move from mobile.me at the system preferences, I can't use photostream. Extremely annoying
reo

My Help Viewer doesn't work properly-The selected topic is currently unavailable Make sure you're connected to the Internet. For help connecting, choose Apple menu System Preferences, click Network, and click "Assist me." If you're connected to the Inte

Sometimes just closing and reopening the Help window will clear up the problem. If it doesn't, log out or restart the computer and try again. Otherwise, you may need to delete the Help cache.
Back up all data before proceeding.
Triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:
~/Library/Caches/com.apple.helpd
Right-click or control-click the highlighted line and select
Services ▹ Reveal in Finder (or just Reveal)
from the contextual menu.* A Finder window should open with a folder selected. Move the selected folder to the Trash. Log out, log back in, and test. Help pages will be slow to load at first.
If that doesn't work, the problem may be caused by network conditions. It may go away by itself, though I can't say how long you should wait.
A persistent failure to load help data has been reported as an issue with satellite networks. Test on a different network, if possible. I've also seen at least one report that Photo Stream in iCloud can mysteriously interfere with Help. I'm not sure whether that's true, but try disabling Photo Stream, if applicable.
*If you don't see the contextual menu item, copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combinationcommand-C. In the Finder, select
Go ▹ Go to Folder...
from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.

System preference wont open

i have a mac OSX version 10.5.8 under apple and system preference when i try to open it does not respond. i can not defreg my hard drive howe do i fix this proplem

First, Safe Boot , (holding Shift key down at bootup), use Disk Utility from there to Repair Permissions, test if things work OK in Safe Mode.
Then move these files to the Desktop...
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systempreferences.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.desktop.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.recentitems.plist
Reboot & test.
PS. Safe boot may stay on the gray radian for a long time, let it go, it's trying to repair the Hard Drive.

Wrong Language under Apple Menu

After a crash, the system came up in a very odd state. All entries under the "Apple" menu are in a non-English language. I went over the preferences->international and unchecked everything but English, no dice. If something other than English is checked, it shows up under the Apple menu. If only English is checked the Apple menu is in a language I don't recognize (probably Norwegian or Danish, from the letters). In the Finder the "Window" menu is likewise remapped to another language, along with the Apple menu, but none of the other menus.
To be crystal clear, I've already gone to the international preferences and selected "English" and unchecked everything except English, and logged in and out, and I'm still getting something that isn't English under the Apple menu, and the "Window" menu when in Finder.
The "Om denne Mac" menu item under Apple brings up the usual About this Mac window, in English.
Any thoughts on what to look for or fix?

Hi
If you are familiar with the interface and as long as its not a language that uses Kanji characters, you should be able to create another Admin Account. Log out and log in with that. Does the problem go away? If it does follow this procedure:
Log back in to the primary account and navigate to Users/Home/Library. Move the Preferences folder (not copy) to the Desktop. Restart your mac and hold down the shift key. This will take some time so be patient. Eventually you should see the log in Window with 'Safe Boot' or 'Safe Mode' listed in Red. Log in. Empty the Trash. Select the Utilities folder from the Go Menu. Launch Disk Utility and repair privileges and permissions as well as verifying the disk. If it all checks out OK restart the Mac. On successful log in navigate to the removed Preferences folder on your desktop. Find the com.apple.dock.plist file. Select it and copy it using Command+C. Now navigate to /Users/Home/Library. In there you should see the newly created Preferences folder, open it and paste using Command+V. You'll be prompted to overwrite an newer existing com.apple.dock.plist. Say yes to this. Restart the mac. On successful login you should see the dock return to its previous state. If you use Apple Mail, again open the moved Preferences folder on your Desktop. Find the com.apple.mail.plist. Select it and copy it using Command+V. Navigate to the newly created Preferences folder in /Users/Home/Libary. Open the folder, paste using Command+V. Now when you launch Apple Mail all your accounts settings will be re-instated. You may be prompted for the mail account password. Have that handy just in case.
If none of this alleviates the problem for for an archive and install and preserve Network Users and Settings. You will have to use the installer disk to do this.
Tony

System Preferences pane opens off-screen

What can I do to have the system preferences panel open in the center of the screen instead of off the screen?
Whether I open it by Apple->System Preferences or open any other module within System Preferences (such as Network Preferences) it opens in the lower left-hand corner with 80% of the window off the screen. Then I have to drag it back to the center to use it.
I used to have dual-monitors, but now only use the laptop screen.

The position you have the System Prefs on your screen when you close it should be stored in the plist file.
/Users/yourname/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systempreferences.plist
Thus, if you trash the plist it really ought to be created with the default position, but even that shouldn't actually be necessary: when you move System Prefs window to where you want and close it the new position should be recorded in the plist and used next time you open it.
The only thing I can think of is perhaps something is funky in the way your account is considering the dispaly. Launch the Displays preferences and try clicking the "Gather Windows" button and the "Detect Displays" button, check that Rotate is Standard, and also check the Arrangement tab to make sure it shows one display with the menu bar.
Francine
Francine
Schwieder

Under Security in System Preferences I get "Preferences Error"

Under Security in System Preferences, when I click on Security I get the message "Preferences Error - Could not load Security".
This may be related to another problem I see. If I go into Accounts > Login Options, when I try to uncheck "Automatically log in", the window hangs.
Any ideas?
Thanks,
Ray

Ray
Welcome to Apple Discussions!!
when I click on Security I get the message "Preferences Error - Could not load Security".Strange behaviour by System Preferences can often be fixed by trashing com.apple.preferencepanes.cache in Home > Library > Caches folder. But it may not help in your case, so it may help to look in your log files to find out why your preference pane is not opening.
The simplest way to look at log files is to use Console.
Open the Console application from /Applications/Utilities. It will default to showing the "console.log" and possibly the "system.log". Use the File menu if necessary to get both these logs open, and use the Broom to Clear both windows.
Now try to open the Security preference pane and see what appears in either of these windows. Copy and paste it here.
You may see a message saying "Crash report written to <pathname of crash.log>". If so, click on the "Logs" icon at the top left in the tool bar. Then, depending on the <pathname of crash.log> in your message, look under either ~/Library/Logs or /Library/Logs by clicking the disclosure triangle, then click the disclosure triangle for "CrashReporter".
Find the crash log corresponding to your message and select it. It will open at the end of the log. Look back for the last line of asterisks in the log, then post everything after that to the end of the log.

My system preferences wont open anymore, whats up

my system preferences wont open anymore, whats up

Hi xronjonesx,
To make sure that we are on the same page, you cannot open System Preferences. Have you tried opening it from the Apple Drop down menu? If you are still unsuccessful, then the next step would be to reinstall OS X Snow Leopard as that app is part of the operating system and the reinstallation with all the software updates afterwards will resolve the issue.
Mac OS X 10.6: Reinstalling Mac OS X
https://support.apple.com/kb/PH6606
Take it easy,
-Norm G.

You can't open the application "System Preferences.app" because it is not supported on this type of Mac

All of the sudden my System Preferences in Mavericks has stopped working and I get the error message:
You can't open the application "System Preferences.app" because it is not supported on this type of Mac.
It was working fine before this, and I have run Permissions Repair, restarted to another partition and run Diskwarrior and TechTool Pro, but none of those has helped. Anyone have any ideas why this happened, and what I can do to fix it?

See this entire thread
https://discussions.apple.com/message/4241006#4241006

Deleting a "Location" under Network in System Preferences

Not certain if this topic should be here or under MBP, but here goes. How do you delete a "Location" under Network in System Preferences? What's happened, is that throughout the 15 months of MBP ownership and switching mobile phones pretty frequently, I've managed to acquire 4 different locations without intention, but only need one and would now like to delete the other three.
thanks in adavance for the help
Paul

Choose Edit Location from the Location pop-up, then just select the ones you want to delete and click the "-" button.

How to add audio devices under sound in system preferences

How do I add output audio devices under system preferences --only option listed is internal speakers?
Macbook help says to change device under sound in system preferences. However, only option listed it the internal
speaker.
I need to sound to come from my tv which is hooked via vga cable and audio cable.
Every thing works but I cannot get sound from tv.

You are my hero. I'm not very savy when it comes to connections. I had the audio cable hooked up to the audio port which is next to the headphone port on my macbook. After switching the tv was listed just as you said it would. Thanks so much. I'm now a very happy camper.

In System Prefereneces, when I am in Desktop and Screen Saver, I am unable to remove folders. I can click the "-" and the folder appears to be gone, but when I close and then reopen System Preferences, and open Desktop and Screen Saver, the folder reappea

In System Prefereneces, when I am in Desktop and Screen Saver, I am unable to remove folders. I can click the "-" and the folder appears to be gone, but when I close and then reopen System Preferences, and open Desktop and Screen Saver, the folder reappears in the list. I have tried deleting preferences "plist" but I am totally unable to remove the folders.

I've seen one other report like yours, and I think the issue is caused by a bug, but I don't know what triggers it.
Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
The purpose of the test is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party software that loads automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, or by corruption of certain system caches.
Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Boot in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain iMacs. The next normal boot may also be somewhat slow.
The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin. Test while in safe mode. Same problem? After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

HT5953 How can I speed up the "start speaking" feature in iBooks? (System Preferences Dictation and speech does not do anything to the speech speed.) The rate is a bit to slow.

How can I speed up the "start speaking" feature in iBooks? (System Preferences Dictation and speech does not do anything to the speech speed.) The rate is a bit to slow.

Hi, I had the same problem you described, and I noticed that there are two ways of activating text to speech on iBook for Mac, with different speed results (at least on my MacBook Pro Retina display)
On your iBook you can select the text and and then click on > More> Start speaking, and you will get a certain speed, which tends to be too slow.
But you will get the speed you had selected with "Go to System Preferences>Dictation and Speech>Text to speech. In there is a slider to adjust the speaking rate." if you use the TOP MENU (next to the black apple) under Edit>Speech>Start Speaking. I also learned that under System Preferences>Dictation and Speech>Text to speech, there is an option for a shortcut which is very helpful. And you can change Key. Hope this was helpful.

OSX 10.6 .8 -- Firefox automatically starts when I boot up (MacBook Pro Intel). It is not in the Startup Items in System Preferences, and automatic startup is not checked in Firefox Options. Don't know where else to look.

How do I keep Firefox automatically starts when I boot up (OSX 10.6 .8 -- MacBook Pro Intel). It is not in the Startup Items in System Preferences, and automatic startup is not checked in Firefox Options.

Hi fullrun-
Once Firefox is open, you should be able to open the Right click context menu on the icon. From there you select 'Options' and then de-select 'Open at Login'. Hope that helps.

Under APPLE MENU system preferences only opens sporadically, mostly not

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