VISTA is truly innovative-- David Pogue "proves" it!!  :-)

In one of the funniest, most wonderful short videos out there, David Pogue, noted author, tech columnist for the NY Times, shows how, after 5 years and 50 milliion lines of cod, Microsoft has produced an "innovative" new OS. (Ha! Ha!)
He systematically proves how they did NOT rip off the Mac OS.
Check out today's NY Times... go to the tech section... he has both an article and a video. If you are at all a Mac fan, you'll get a kick out of it. Bill Gates & the folks at Microsoft are probably livid! Cupertino really is the R & D arm for Microsoft... too bad Apple didn't patent all their new interface ideas!
http://nytimes.feedroom.com/?fr_story=d14603c1e23e6ce37920a8134a2e27b1405a4991
You may have to register at the site to see this, but it's a freebie and worth it.
The follow up video on Palm Pilot Theater and his review of a Palm is pretty cute, too.

nice

Similar Messages

  • Book: Lion: The Missing Manual by David Pogue.

    This book will be released in UK on 22 September. I have books by David Pogue and really like them. Just thought it might be a good idea to wait till this book comes out, study it carefully before doing anything about Lion. I'm in no hurry. Is this a sensible option to avoid a lot of heartache?

    Wow, David never ceases to amaze me in his money-making skills. As the tech blogger for one of the sister orgs to the NYT, I have to say that I would recommend his books on anything, even if on kitten euthanasia. He is a very gifted writer, but he was completly wrong about FCPX. But for Lion, I bet he has a good handle on that. Cheers!

  • In search of a truly innovative Desktop

    Hi, I'd like to bring this topic up on this forum, because I know there are many (former ) distro-hoppers and that's why I'd like to raise my question here.
    After reading an article about Linux desktop environments mimicking other OS (let's face it, in some ways KDE resembles Vista and Gnome 2.30 resembles OSX a bit) and thus reducing the computing speed and uniqueness that Linux offers, I looked for alternatives. E17 looks promising, lightweight WMs are attractive too, but they all have one thing in common:
    They all use windows as the main entity of the GUI:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_%28computing%29 wrote: window is a visual area containing some kind of user interface. It usually has a rectangular shape that can overlap with the area of other windows. It displays the output of and may allow input to one or more processes.
    And they display them flat:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphical_user_interface wrote: The term GUI is historically restricted to the scope of two-dimensional display screens with display resolutions capable of describing generic information, in the tradition of the computer science research at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). The term GUI earlier might have been applicable to other high-resolution types of interfaces that are non-generic, such as videogames, or not restricted to flat screens, like volumetric displays.
    So I'm asking you people here, have you on your Linux/GNU journey discovered a completely different GUI concept for which you don't need a volumetric screen?
    Yes, CLI could be seen as the answer, but doesn't count this time (maybe except for ncurses or similar), because it has a rather restricted support for graphics output
    For example this is what I found: http://s3d.berlios.de/ Still uses windows, but as a WM, it is very different.
    Last edited by smartass (2011-03-06 13:02:48)

    smartass wrote: Well I'm afraid that this is still sci-fi, or at least not fully usable yet.
    I think you just hit on the crux of the argument against what you're looking for.  I think the closest thing to what you're asking for I've ever come across is Project Wonderland, and it isn't hard to figure out why that didn't catch on.  When it comes to information and communication technology, efficiency is tantamount to progress and innovation.  Having to click-and-drag a 3D virtual desktop around to find an open application, or walk an avatar over to a virtual water cooler to chat with someone online, or flip through a "shelf" of open containers clogging up screen space (see Project Looking Glass), might look cool. However, in the end it's just a waste of screen space, resources and time, and a massive amount of superfluous code to be written and maintained.  The appeal of say, a holographic 3D interface (a la the Jarvis interface in the Iron Man movie) is that it would be quicker to physically move application containers out of view than to use a mouse to minimize them.  Until that tech becomes available flat windows on the flat screens available to us are the most feasible option, and in the case of 3D holographic projection, flat containers for different projects/activities/apps would still be the most reasonable way to manage most tasks.
    I'd also add that the uptick in touchscreen software development has more to do with the "cool" factor than true innovation, as present touchscreen technology lacks the precision and speed of buttons and keys, and sacrifices the speed of hardware-based calculation for the software-only approach.  This same "coolness" accounts for the use of MS Kinect on home computers, as well as the hideous "coffee table pc" that recently debuted.  Look at videos of these latter two technologies in action.  What are these folks doing?  In one case I found, motion capture video in the living room (totally improving our lives somehow ); in most every other case, quick-and-dirty resizing of digital images, with no real precision.  Not exactly useful, if you ask me.  Of course if you're curious, Looking Glass and Wonderland are still available to play with, though neither is actively developed.

  • Interesting article by David Pogue on sync issues...

    See here:
    http://www.nytimes.com/indexes/2008/07/24/technology/circuitsemail/index.html?8c ir&emc=cir
    Hmmm..... No information on progress... Sound familiar?? I for one would like to know when I will be able to sync my calendar again...
    Cheers, Mr C.

    Premiere does not work well with variable frame rate footage, at the moment converting to fixed frame rate is the best answer.

  • XP, Vista, where, what, how, how much--your help appreciated......

    New Mac Book Pro owner here. I will be starting a course of study in a month that requires Windows, to run its program. I left the Windows platform three years ago and have been very happy without it. However, now that it's a requirement, I have some questions.
    1) After reading here on this forum a lot lately, I've decided to go with XP Pro with SP2 or SP3. Is there a difference that would matter between the sp2 and sp3?
    2) 32 or 64-bit? I don't know enough to really know what this means, much less make a wise choice. Does it matter? My machine has 4 Gb Ram.
    3) After installing Windows using Bootcamp, do I need to install its own browser (Firefox) on that partition? Or will it access the one I have? I know these questions must sound so stupid, but I don't know anything about this.
    4) With windows installed using bootcamp, and let's say I'm at that course working online with Windows, will i be able to do anything, just as if it's a PC? Will I be able to work on things, create a document? Will I need additional programs for this?
    5) Will I install a virus protection to the Windows part of the disk?
    Thanks everybody.

    Applications are not "cross platform" meaning you can't run Windows programs outside Windows, and likewise, you can't run OS X programs except inside OS X.
    Side by side or inside OS X means you don't need to reboot to work in the other OS. CAD and graphic or cpu intensive programs aren't good candidates for virtual OS.
    Personally, I would have bought a PC for Windows. There isn't much OS X and Vista don't both do well today, and a Core i7 based system is a powerful platform (but not in laptop yet).
    Mac OS X users find David Pogue's books a great reference manual and helpful. My brother switched over and appreciated it a lot. He also writes books on other topics.
    http://www.amazon.com/Windows-XP-Starters-Missing-Manual/dp/0596101554/
    http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nbssgw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=MissingManualXP&x=0&y=0

  • Call Me Dumb and Dumber . . . . truly network challenged!

    Hi:
    I'm so new to this network stuff. Thought I was happy doing the "techie" thing but this setting up a wireless network has got me floored. I've installed airport cards on my G4MDD, on my old G4 Sawtooth and on my iBook. With a (very) tight budget I've bought a NetGear router WGR614. Can't afford the Apple Base Station this year.
    I don't have broadband where I live and use dial-up but as I really only need to be able to link my 3 Macs from anywhere in this old house, the sharing of an internet connection isn't a priority.
    The instructions and CD that came with the router are totally PC!! Nothing to help me there. I've read and re-read my David Pogue Missing Manual and have poured over every magazine article and web site I can find but no luck in getting it (the router) recognized or seeing any of the Macs appear on any screen other than its own!
    I am now into my ninth hour of frustration . . . . not counting the reading . . . and don't know what to do.
    What I have done:
    I have connected the router via an ethernet cable to the MDD. I have turned on Airport and selected File Sharing in all 3 Macs. I've said a couple of prayers over the router . . . didn't make a #@&*!! bit of difference.
    OK, so what else would you expect you might say?
    I know I'm doing something wrong and clearly missing something basic but can someone point me in the right direction???
    Many, many thanks,
    Jenny

    1. Open the Network pane of System Preferences and note down your router's IP address; this will be to the right of Router when you are looking at the information of the Ethernet connection, and will be four numbers separated by periods, such as 192.168.0.1. Put the IP address into your web browser's address line to access the configuration page.
    2. After doing this, you may be asked to provide a password; if so and you're not sure what the password is, look on the router and in the documentation which came with it to find out what it is.
    (15131)

  • Boot camp windows vista

    does anyone know if windows vista will run off of boot camp?

    I think thats not correct. HP is selling there notebook with intel core duo and the say are VISTA CAPABLE .
    This is what they say
    "What's a Windows Vista Capable PC?
    The next generation Microsoft operating system—Microsoft Windows Vista—is coming soon. What will Windows Vista mean for you? It will offer new levels of ease, security and reliability, a new interface, and simple ways to organize and search for information on your PC.
    We've worked with Microsoft to help ensure that the PC you buy today can run Windows Vista when it's available. All of our new notebook and desktop PCs will be able to run Windows Vista* when properly configured.
    Windows Vista will be available in versions ranging from Windows Vista Home Basic for entry-level home users to Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Business, for those needing more robust features and functionality*.
    *Not all Windows Vista features are available for use on all Windows Vista Capable PCs. All Windows Vista Capable PCs will run the core experiences of Windows Vista, such as innovations in organizing and finding information, security, and reliability. Some features available in premium editions of Windows Vista—like the new Windows Aero user interface—require advanced or additional hardware. Check www.windowsvista.com/getready for details. "

  • Pogue says still pics look awful in dvd--true?

    David Pogue (in iMovie & iDVD 5) says "Mac fans try to turn their digital photos into DVD slideshows using iMovie--and find out that the photos look terrible" once the iMovie is burned to dvd. He blames this on "iMovie's low-quality photo-rendering..." (p. 489) He suggests applying the Ken Burns effect to all photos, thereby turning them into video clips rather than stills. Ok, fine, but I want stills in my iMovie. I know that you can utilize the Burns effect without actually "moving" the picture. Will this, though, bypass the poor quality of the pictures on dvd?

    Will this, though, bypass the poor quality of the pictures on dvd?
    Yes.
    Karl

  • Changing the R&R to Vista

    HI, I am working on tryng to get Vista from Lenovo tech support, instead of the XP that was preinstalled with my T500.  Once I do get this, where can I find instructions on how to get the new Vista software as my R&R root instead of the XP that is currently set.  I would like to get to the point, that the factory installed will be the Vista installation.
    Thanks
    David
    Solved!
    Go to Solution.

    Hi..
    I Think the only way is to restore Your OS with a Recovery CD. This will replace even the RnR Partition.
    You can get the CD/DVD from anyone who has a T-Series with a Vista installed.

  • My second macbook can't see my external drive.

    I have the following setup:
    -a Macbook that is wirelessly connected to my home network
    -Macbook Pro that is wirelessly connected to my home network
    -a 500g HD connected directly to my Macbook Pro that I am using for Time Machine.
    Initially, I was having issues with my Macbook Pro successfully completing a backup. My Macbook (which is not physically connected to my external HD) had no problems backing up. After a great deal of frustration, I decided that there may be some problems with my HD so I reformated and repartitioned the drive to a single drive with journaling. Fortunately, now my Time Machine works with my Macbook Pro but I'm having major issues with my Macbook.
    For some reason, my Macbook can no longer see my Macbook Pro, nor my external hard drives I am using for Time Machine and a second external I was hoping to use to share my iPhoto library between the two computers.
    (I'm worried that I've done so much that I may have caused the problems but don't want to undo anything for fear that I'll once again mess things up with the Macbook Pro).
    For the Time Machine HD, I've selected SHARE. When I use Time Machine on the Macbook, the drive (which was at one time visible) is not there.
    For the new External that I was using for iPhoto, I've Shared, selected Ignore Ownership, and even added my wife's name with Read and Write privledges. But the macbook still can't see either drive.
    What is confusing me is that my Macbook can still SHARE the Macbook Pro's screen. Yet when I look at the drive it just says connection failed.
    I'm new to Macs so I'm not familiar with setting up. I've just tried to use what I would do with a PC.
    ANY help is greatly appreciated.

    Welcome to the discussions forum Mightymice.
    Networking with Vista is a "bag of hurt" as Steve Jobs might put it, but it can be done.
    Is there a "How to" somewhere?
    I'd recommend getting this book from David Pogue. He devotes pages and pages to this subject alone. Here is a Google excerpt. Enjoy!

  • IMovie export version 6.0.3?

    What’s happened to iMovie 6.0.3? Everything was fine until I upgraded to OS 10.4
    It seems like every time I upgrade my OS, I run into a whole new set of problems with iMovie. I now find out that I can no longer export by clicking on the time line and play through to camera. Supposedly I can only do it by going to the “share” window. Now I can’t even do that! I select video camera, set the black in and out seconds and then click on the share button. The progress window flashes on then off real fast and a dialogue box says I’ve lost connection with the camera. This happens every time.
    Now I’ve been down this path a few times before with the other versions. I’ve gone through the whole litany of solutions. On/off with the camera, Different cables, change cameras. I set them all up on my iMac with version 4.0.1. They check out OK.
    I’ve dumped the “plist”, preferences set for “play through to camera”. I’ve run permissions and diskwarrior. Import works fine but not export. David Pogue lists a work around for the timeline export, but that doesn’t work either.
    I’ve grown quite fond of iMovie over the years (I’ve been with it since the initial version) and was willing to put up with it’s quirks and marveled at it’s great innovations, but it seems that every time the innovators come up with something new another part suffers some degradation.
    If I can’t find a solution I’m going to have to go back to an earlier version, if that’s possible, to get that timeline export back to working. I use timeline export quite often to make back ups and support my iMovie 4.0.1 on my iMac. The camera is the TRV-520 using Hi-8 digital tape.
    OK, experts, and you know who are, I’ve followed your advise on many occasions and was not disappointed. Can you tell me what I’m missing or what I’m doing wrong? Where do I go from here?
    Any help most appreciated.

    Hi Thomas:
    I am sorry to hear about your problems.
    Do you have the latest QuickTime Version installed?
    There is another workaround where you "Share" the
    movie as a Full Quality QuickTime File and then
    re-import to a new imovie project.
    Then share the new to the camera. I know that seems a
    bit too much to have to do.
    (please don't yell at me...just trying to help :))
    Sue
    Thanks for answering Sue. I'm not going to bite the hand that tries to help me. I've read many of your help suggestions on this forum and you think of things that just don't occur to me.
    I have pro QT pro 7.1.3. Also QT player version 7.1.2. Is this a problem? I can't seem to get rid of QT player without affecting QT pro. Before upgrading to 10.4
    I had the same QT situation, no problem with export. Can you help with this situation? It will be one possible cause eliminated. If it doesn't help, I'll come back to try something else. Please stay with me on this.
    Tom
    15'' powerbook G4,1.67, 1 GB DDR SDRAM   Mac OS X (10.4.8)   iMac

  • Simple instructions for BC update...PLEASE!

    Hi all, I have a MBP running 10.4 and BC beta 1.2. Can anyone tell me, in easily understandable directions, how to update to BC 2.1? Do I have to buy Leopard first? I have downloaded the update on both sides but nothing happens. I have critical data on my windows side I don't want to risk.
    Thanks.

    Oh, I know quite well that we are doing some 'field beta testing' or something.
    I also treat OS X itself and patches, updates, etc with kid gloves.
    Apple uses EFI which makes things harder no doubt, and Microsoft, Intel EFI group of which Apple is partner, only Windows Vista 64-bit SP1 on 64-bit hardware (and BIOS) support EFI.
    I think this is all new territory for Apple, it is helping their sales and such, once it was found that the move to Intel cpu unleashed a huge interest in, at first, trying to find a means to even install or trick the system to run on Apple hardware.
    Only 3-4 Macs are officially supported for Vista 64-bit, XP Pro 64 is not, so we have MacBook and Pro, and Mac Pro, and maybe iMac, but only 2008 models that came with BootCamp 2.0 or later.
    SP3, if you read the trade news, breaks on AMD systems, is causing a lot of consternation, and MS is trying to work out a fix. Seems HP's image they shipped for XP was also to blame and some systems may need updated BIOS.
    With Apple, once you update the EFI firmware, there is no going back, either.
    BC 2.1 has been one of the most... difficult? patches or updates. Though I have to say, on the OS X (Tiger/Leopard) forums, whenever there is an update or even security update, some systems and users will have trouble, and can range from mild to severe, from 10% or higher. Worst cases are where there is no backup of course.
    Wisest course of action I see, multiple backups; test it on a clone or something even; and, wait a week at least before applying.
    I have seen little or just small reports that people found BC 2.1 necessary, helpful, or critical, and not even that it is a "must" for installing SP3 probably.
    Sometimes all there is will be "improves compatibility" and you are left to wonder what some update actually does, what it fixes, etc.
    All new Apple hardware will only work on current OS, you can't "go back" and some didn't want to move to OS X for years also and would be happy. Mac OS 6.05 was the most stable version for me - until Leopard, but Leo has its own and why I waited until now, May, to make it my primary OS (I was going to wait for summer or fall but forced my hand).
    Malware is getting 'smarter' and more cleaver and all these SQL-injections and having to be constantly scanning for rootkits (and most programs are not dealing with them that well). Heck, today even the NSA suffered a denial of service and went off line!
    If you want an excellent book/manual I strongly recommend David Pogue's "Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, Leopard Edition" to get you started, covers everything in about 900 pages and easy to use or find answers.
    http://books.slashdot.org/books/08/02/27/1551206.shtml

  • How Do I Run a Virus Scan?  Attempting to Resolve Gmail Access Issue.

    Hello. I'm not technically savey and am in need to assistance in resolving an issue. I suddenly am no longer able to access my GMail account. The system will not accept long-used password. I'm working back through GMail assistance forum and was told "to run a virus scan on the computer," i.e., "scan your machine for viruses and malware. Get rid of any programs found during the scan." The message refers me to a Google Pack, which comes with free anti-virus software. When I check the website I don't see anything that looks like it is appropriate for running a virus scan on the computer.
    How do I "run a virus scan"? Thank you in advance for your assistance.

    Hello Kappy, Thank you for your response. I reviewed a portion of the "Missing Manual" by David Pogue and figured out how to go into utilities and repair permissions. The following are the responses I got when I ran "repair permissions":
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/FRSources.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Movies.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Music.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Photos.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Podcasts.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/TV.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Permissions differ on "System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/BackRow.framework/Versions/A/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
    Warning: SUID file "System/Library/Filesystems/AppleShare/afpLoad" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/DiskManagement.framework/Versions/A/Resources /DiskManagementTool" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "sbin/umount" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "usr/bin/quota" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "usr/sbin/pppd" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "usr/sbin/vpnd" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    ACL found but not expected on "Applications/Utilities".
    So what do I do with this information? I'm not sure what it means and how it impacts the computer. However, after I ran this, I was able to complete the goggle form for a new password (my computer no longer recognized my years-old password) and obtain a new one and then access my email account again. (I opened a bogus email yesterday that I have since learned contained a virus so I am assuming this may have caused my angst.) So I'm now back to my gmail account but not sure how the above information related to the "repairs permission" should be addressed if at all.
    Thank you again for your assistance. I am truly not computer savey and what is intuitive for some folks just goes over my head so I truly appreciate your help.

  • Mavericks Screen Capture causes spinning beach ball

    Trained by experience never to install a brand new operating system on top of a perfectly functioning one (unless I want to risk many wasting times and losing productivity), to test out the new Mac OS, I installed Mavericks on an external FireWire drive by upgrading a fresh install of Snow  Leopard, updated to its maximum version. Nothing else was on the volume, for I had used Disk Utility to securely erase and content and overwrite the volume with zeros.
    Immediately after the Mavericks, I looked at the System Profile, taking some screen captures of selected windows. While Mavericks successfully captured the screens, it failed to display them when I selected one and hit the space bar. Instead, mavericks presented a perpetually spinning beach ball that prevented me from doing anything else on the Mac. I was forced to shut down.
    Upon restart back into Mavericks, I encountered the same problem. I had to force power off again.
    After rebooting into Mountain Lion on my internal hard drive, I ran a complete series of hard drive maintenance utilities involving all the tools I have, including Disk Utility, Drive Genius, Disk Warrior, and Tech Tool Pro. All ran successfully and reported no problems. I then capped things by running iDefrag to eliminate file fragmentation and to optimize the volume. With several hours of labor invested in preparing the external hard disk, downloading Mavericks' installer, running the Mavericks installer, performing all the pertinent maintenance routines I could think of, and finally optimizing the volume, which has no other software on it besides the new Apple operating system, I restarted the Mavericks volume. I then took a fresh screen capture, selected it, pressed the space bar, and I still got that infernal spinning beach ball.
    I let it run for at least half an hour as I returned to watching a football game, hoping things would finally get cleared up. They did not. The ball still spun. I could not even get to the Finder to peek into the Force Quit command under the Apple icon. So, as originally condemned, I was compelled to hold down the power button to regain control of my computer, which this new, appropriately named operating system had wrested from me.
    Anyone having a similar problem? Anyone aware of a sure-fire solution, other than to avoid relying on this new operating system, which must be my policy until such glitches get fixed?
    At least you know now why I consider it unwise to install a brand new OS atop of one that has served you well.

    OK, it’s Wednesday now, late afternoon, following a long yesterday, spent exclusively on getting Mavericks installed, a day which continued well into night, approaching the sun rise, until I collapsed. No one can tell me that the Mavericks installation is without errors! Your mileage may differ, if you’re lucky. But if you had to go through what I just did, you’ll long for the days of System 7, when all you had to do was shove a half-dozen floppy disks into a floppy drive to get your Mac up and running without such angst.
    SHORT ANSWER:
    After many twists and turns that Apple should have foreseen and not inflicted upon customers, I finally managed to get Mavericks installed on my external Firewire hard drive.
    I did follow your lead, Baltwo, that the nature of the problem might lay in corrupt preferences files on the primary Account, but, as I attempted a couple of days, I modified your suggestion that I cherry-pick which plist files might be good vs. which might be corrupt, by deleting the whole **** account. A couple of days ago, my intuition told me that doing that was the wiser way to proceed;  today I felt compelled to do exactly that, because I had no other choice.
    The reasons I had to do that is elaborated upon below.
    LONGER EXPLANATION and DETAILS:
    As I explained in the message I composed on Tuesday morning, I felt so insecure that I did not obtain a well-functioning operating system that I had decided to start the installation all over from scratch.
    It took all day Monday to again use Disk Utility to securely erase the volume and prepare it for the new installation. When I tried to short-cut the process by doing a Quick Erase, the volume refused to accept the installation of Snow Leopard 10.6.3 from the DVD. On top of that, I again encountered difficulties in installing Snow Leopard from the DVD, because the installer just could not close the deal. The gauge runs up to the 99% mark, and it hangs there saying that it is “Moving items into place.” Sure, it is!
    I’m a patient guy, so I let the installer do its thing for about four hours while I watched the World Series game. (Yeah, Red Sox!) But by the time the game was over, so was my patience. I had to Force Power Off the Mac and restart it.
    Since I have no confidence in an operating system whose installer failed to do its job properly, I felt that I had to do more. Before I did that, though, I did a Google search to find out if my experience was unique. It is not! The forums are full of people who have complained about this very same hanging problem ever since the Snow Leopard DVD was released. Great, I thought. Now what do I do?
    I decided to the Apple support site and download the 1.x GB combo updater to Snow Leopard 10.6.8 in the hopes that the upgrade process would cure whatever issues cropped up during the incomplete installation by the DVD. After downloading that combo disk image, installing 10.6.8, restarting the Mac under 10.6.8, and getting all the software updates applicable to that version, a few tests, supplemented by a running a whole barrage of maintenance utilizes to fix permissions, repair the disk, rebuilt the directory, seemed to indicate that I did finally achieve a solid installation of Snow Leopard 10.6.8 and all its trimming.
    To save myself any future agony of having to go through this kind of winding road installation again, I used SuperDuper to create a disk image of the entire volume.  That disk image is stored on another Firewire volume, ready to burned at some future date onto a BluRay disc for safe-keeping and backup.
    With Snow Leopard safely installed on the volume and sporting one user Account, I was ready to use the Mavericks installer package that I had downloaded last Saturday, when I first began this process, to upgrade to Apple’s latest and greatest OS. Unfortunately, the installation process failed in the same way that the Snow Leopard installer failed. The installer just could not get over the hump of closing the deal. Once I got the installer started, I went to bed.
    Four hours later, the installer still had not completed its job, again getting to the 99% mark, and just hanging there. Again, I had to Power Off the Mac. Upon restarting with the Option held down, I elected to start up using the built-in Recovery feature.
    That seemed to work, but only sort of. I was able to get a Mavericks desktop, but the User account had absolutely no privileges to do a **** thing. It could not open its own Home folder to see what was in it. It could not complete the screen capture process, because I had no permission to save the picture anywhere, like on the Desktop.
    In System Preferences, I tried to increase the size of the cursor, but that failed. In Finder preferences, I tried to make the hard drives show up on the desktop, but that failed, too. I ran permissions in Disk Utility; that did no good. Nothing worked! I could not even change anything related to my User account, because I had no permission to do so. Imagine that: my only account was an Administer account to which I had no access. I would not have thought such a thing could be possible.
    I was caught in a loop, stranded on a Mobius Strip, walking on the wild side, surfing the waves of a brand new operating system corrupted by its own installation process.
    Not a good thing at all.
    Since the first installment had also resulted in a bizarre set of user accounts ending up with QuickLooks being declared the winner of a new account the system decided to create for me, I think it is reasonably safe to conclude that there is some kind of a bug, or flaw, in the Apple upgrade / installation procedure that needs some attention by Apple system engineers. None of this kind of stuff I have delineated at some length should be happening to anyone who owns a Mac.
    And, Baltwo, even though I had kept uppermost in my mind your suggestion about creating a new account merely to ferret out which preference files might be corrupt and which might be OK, I decided that I did not want to take any chances at all with this extremely messed User account, which had worked fine in Snow Leopard, but had somehow got corrupted during the upgrade. So, as before, I decided to (1) create a brand new Administrator account; (2) log out from the useless User account in which I had no privileges whatsoever; (3) log in with the brand new Adminstrator; and (4) delete that useless User account entirely, completely, and forever.
    At first, I was a little hesitant about deleting the first Administrator account that existed in my Users and Groups pane. I did not even know if such a thing could be done. So, I referred to my David Pogue reference books, and I did a Google search for “Delete Home User Mac” to see what others knew about this. Everyone described the standard way to delete an account; no one even mentioned any prohibition about deleting the original User account. So, I went ahead and deleted it, without encountering the slightest problem in doing so. I even followed up with before and after Terminal commands to see if that useless User account was truly gone, and it definitely went poof. Since I lacked permissions to create any documents at all within that former Home folder, getting rid of it was easy. I think that the System was just as glad to trash it as I was.
    Hopefully, whatever corruption occurred during the Mavericks installation and upgrade process was restricted to the preference files associated with that messed-up, original Administrator account so that I can begin exploring Mavericks with a perfectly pristine operating system. Before I start tweaking it or adding stuff to it, my next step will be to use SuperDuper to create a disk image of the entire volume, so that, in the future, I will have a clean set of system of file to install on this external Firewire volume, or on any other internal hard drive I choose to install Mavericks later on. A Bluray disc will contain that disc image for safekeeping when it’s time to remove it from the destination volume where it gets created.
    As to the tardiness of my reply, it is caused by the exorbitant amount of time—four days!—it took me to trek along this twisting, winding path of installing Mavericks, as well as a glitch in the mismatch of similarly looking User Names associated with similarly looking Apple ID accounts and similarly looking User Names associated with nearly identical Email Addresses that do not convert from one to the other, as, for example, mac.com does to me.com.
    As I learned from Apple Staff who responded to my report that I was being locked out of the Apple Discussions community, there are four pieces of information that must match up for each Apple ID account, and my data had slipped out of sync. Now I know why, during Apple’s changeover in the formatting of the Apple Discussions section, I lost all those “points” I had accumulated in helping others, not that I track such things, and I could not find where my previous discussions were.
    That’s also why I may be able to award anyone points for helping me in this thread, but I’m dialing in under the “other” Apple ID, not the one I used to create this topic. Close readers will observe the slight difference.
    Thanks a lot, Baltwo. You get the credit for pointing me in the right direction.

  • Remote another MAc via Internet

    Not sure if this is possible or not. I would really like the ability to remote my parents new iMac to help support their transition from a PC to a Mac. I have a MP running Leopard and they have a new iMac running Leopard as well. Can I connect to their iMac and help troubleshoot/support?
    Thanks

    Get them a copy of David Pogue's "Missing Manual" which does an excellent job of walking through program and setup. My brother really liked it - and he's used computers all his life. The book "Switching" wasn't very useful though.
    Apple Mac 101 Help is there online as well as the Help menu to guide them and find help on doing tasks, like configuring Image Capture, installing drivers for printers. Any place there is the icon "?" in blue, that brings up a help screen.
    I find Vista's built in help to be the best I have ever seen, though.

Maybe you are looking for