Burning Pics to a Disc; Toast to the Rescue

Q: I returned from a trip with lots of photos I’d like to share in slideshow form. But I really don’t want to spend time fooling around creating a slideshow. What’s the quickest way to create a slideshow without a lot of editing or a learning curve?

A: If you have the time, iPhoto is the best choice. It does require a small learning curve, but its results are most impressive. If you would like to learn how, go here:

http://www.apple.com/support/ilife/tutorials/iphoto/ip4-1.html

However it sounds to me like you want a quick drag and drop, quickie method.

You’re best bet is the application Roxio’s Toast. Toast has been the preferred CD/DVD app for many years. It has a little known feature called “Photo Disc”.

First, make a new folder with all the pics you want in your slideshow. Make sure the pics are NOT nested in other folders. Review all the pics and confirm they are the correct orientation, that is, rotated right side up. (Use Apple’s Preview application to correct the orientation.)

Open Toast 9 or later. 

To make a Photo disc:

1. At the left side of the Toast window, click Data and choose Photo Disc.

2. Choose optional disc settings.

3. Add pictures to the disc by dragging and dropping them into the Content Area from your hard disk or the Photos section of the Media Browser.

4. Insert a blank, recordable CD, DVD or Blu-ray disc.

Note: The Media Browser provides immediate access to photos in your iPhoto and Aperture libraries.

5. Click the red Record button, choose a recorder from the list, and configure recording options, such as Number of Copies.

5. Click Record to continue.

Toast displays a progress bar and status information as it records your disc.

To play back your images as a slideshow (using Mac OS X v10.4 or higher):

1. Insert your Photo disc into a Macintosh computer.

The disc folder opens.

2. Double-click the Slideshow icon to begin the slideshow.

Always Back Up and have your Mac maintained,

Steve

A Hard Drive Divided; Partitioning

Q: Steve, I’m having a new hard drive installed in my MacBook Pro. Since it’s a larger drive, a friend said I should partition the drive into two volumes. One volume would be for my normal system, applications and documents and another volume for a spare system to boot from should I have problems with my main volume. Someone else I consulted thought that was a bad idea but couldn’t explain why, at least in a way that made sense to me...

Can you shed some light on this?

A: In my opinion, taking a new drive and partitioning it is a bad idea. 

For those who don’t know what a partition is, it’s when you take a new drive (or wipe out a hard drive and restore it “data free” to its original state), then cut it up into virtual pieces. For example, you buy a 500Mb hard drive. Most of the time it’s partitioned as one drive; 500Mb. But you could cut it up in to two or more drives, a 250Mb partition, a 125Mb partition and a 125Mb partition. All three parts equal 500Mb. You would see 3 Hard drives on your desktop although you only have one hard drive inside your machine. You could do this, but why?

Note: Many PC’s are sold this way with a hidden “D”, “E” or “F” drive. It’s called a “recovery partition”, but note that a lot of computers today are sold with a smaller partition that has the operating system recovery on it.  Often this is in place of providing the recovery on another media like CD or DVD.  Often you are given the opportunity to make at least one copy of that media on CD or DVD as well.  These recovery partitions sometime show as another drive, or are sometimes hidden, and are usually four to eight gigabytes in size.

In my view, making another partition is another potential problem that can go wrong. Backing up to the same drive also is not a good idea. If the drive dies, then all the partitions are gone. You lose everything. Having a divided drive now requires double the maintenance and double the risk something could go wrong. Also you won’t have the full size of the drive you’ve bought.

So unless you’ve got a unique reason to partition a drive, I say “no”.

PC or Mac: For Busy People. The LAST Calendar You’ll Ever Need.

Are you like me and get blamed for scheduled events you were told about weeks or even months ago? “I told you about Tyler’s triangle practice and Catlin’s underwater basket-weaving class 3 weeks ago. Don’t you LISTEN to me?”

I’m thinking , “Not till I have to..”

I could argue that she never told me, but in 20 years, I’ve never won that battle. So. I have a new weapon in my arsenal; Google Calendar. Sanity saved. Have you ever wanted to share a schedule with your wife, girlfriend, co-worker or ex? Well, now you can. This is not a Mac product but I thought it relevant enough to write about.

Google has been the heavy weight of web search engines and they seem to get everything right when they do it and Google Calendar is no exception.

Google writes, “Simplify. Organize. (And relax.) Organizing your schedule shouldn't be a burden. That's why we've created Google Calendar – our free online shareable calendar service. With Google Calendar, it's easy to keep track of all your life's important events – birthdays, reunions, little league games, doctor's appointments – all in one place.

Using Google Calendar, you can add events and invitations effortlessly, share with friends and family (or keep things to yourself), and search across the web for events you might enjoy. It's organizing made easy.

Features

Calendar Sharing: Set up a calendar for your company softball team, and share it with the whole roster. (Your shortstop will never forget about practice again.) Or share with friends and family so you can view each other's schedules side by side.

Invitations: Create event invitations, send them to friends, and keep track of people's responses and comments, all in one place. Your friends can receive your invitation and post responses even if they don't use Google Calendar themselves.

Quick Add: Click anywhere on your calendar where an event belongs (or use the Quick Add link), and start typing. Google Calendar understands whole phrases like "Brunch with mom at Java Cafe 11am on Saturday," and will pop new events right into your agenda.

Gmail Integration: Add your friend's Super Bowl party to your calendar without ever leaving your Gmail inbox. Gmail now recognizes events mentioned in emails.

Search: Find the date of the Baxter family BBQ (you knew it was sometime this summer). Or, search public calendars to discover new events you're interested in and add them to your own calendar.

Mobile Access: Receive event reminders and notifications on your mobile phone.

Event Publishing: Share your organization's events with the world. Learn more with our Event Publisher Guide.

Cost: Free.”

This suite is a great way to share your schedule with family, friends, girlfriends and especially your spouse. No more excuses about “not knowing”. You can make your calendar as public or as private as you want, allow others to only view and/or edit it.

Someone has brought to my attention Google documents which work on the same principal as the Calendar. Sharing documents isn’t usually a big concern for most people, however being able to access it anywhere and always seeing the correct version can be very handy. There’s also the issue of losing the document which can’t happen if it exists online. Hmm something to consider.

MacBook Pro Just Shutsdown

Steve, 
I am enjoying my new screen very much. But the computer has been having a problem since I had it done and it is increasing in frequency. It just shuts itself off randomly. When I turn it back on it sometimes does it again. I can't find any similarity of when it happens. not too hot or near end of battery. Any ideas on what is going on? kate

Hi Kate,
I had this issue with mine also, then the fan started making a loud (!!!) noise on startup. It was so loud, I could not hear the TV.! I called Apple and they replaced the entire logic board for free (out of warranty). If you haven’t had yours replaced, call Apple before they stop the “voluntary recall”. Tell them the fan is making a loud sound and wont stop and you’re having this shutdown problem. (it has nothing to do with the LCD replacement.)

Also see:
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2006/07/4689.ars

http://www.fixya.com/support/t710869-macbook_pro_just_shuts_down

iPhoto Crashing Issues and Problems

Q: I’m having problems with iPhoto crashing and freezing. What can be done?

A: iPhoto includes a feature that allows you to rebuild the currently selected iPhoto library. Sometimes rebuilding the library resolves issues such as the library appearing to be unreadable, missing photos, or other issues related to reading the iPhoto library structure.

Note: This article is for iPhoto versions 5 and earlier. For iPhoto 6 and later read on...

Important: You should back up your existing iPhoto Library folder before using the rebuild feature. A backup allows you to restore the iPhoto Library should anything unexpected happen during the rebuild (such as an unexpected shutdown) that prevents the library from rebuilding correctly.

Before performing a rebuild, you should install any iPhoto updates you find by using Software Update. If a software update resolves your issue, then you don't need to rebuild. It's also a good idea to search apple.com/support for your specific iPhoto symptom before performing a rebuild, just in case there is a more specific or relevant solution.

To rebuild iPhoto 5 and earlier you will need at least enough free disk space equal to your current iPhoto library.

Follow these steps to rebuild the iPhoto library:

Quit iPhoto if it is open.

For iPhoto 2, hold down the Shift and Option keys on the keyboard.

For iPhoto 4 and iPhoto 5, hold down the Command and Option keys on the keyboard.

Open iPhoto.

Keep the keys held down until you are prompted to rebuild the library.

Name and save the library.

iPhoto will begin to rebuild the iPhoto library. This can take several minutes, depending on its size.



Note: iPhoto 5.0.2 and later include an additional dialog that appears when you start to rebuild the library.

Use these guidelines for these dialog options:

Select the option(s) for thumbnails if only the thumbnails are appearing in unexpected ways (grey or blank).

Select the "Rebuild the iPhoto Library database" option if iPhoto unexpectedly quits when launched or does not get past loading photos.

Select the option to recover orphaned photos if photos appear to be missing from the iPhoto library.

If there was an issue with album data or with the iPhoto library file itself, then some of the albums may appear blank after rebuilding the library. Look in the main library in the source list of the iPhoto -- the photos are likely still there. If so, drag the photos to their corresponding albums to add them back to the library.

iPhoto 6 and later: Rebuilding the iPhoto library

Important: You should back up your existing iPhoto Library folder before using the rebuild feature. A backup allows you to restore the iPhoto Library if anything unexpected happens during the rebuild (such as a power failure) that prevents the library from rebuilding correctly.

To rebuild the iPhoto library:

Quit iPhoto if it is open.

Hold down the Command and Option keys on the keyboard.

Open iPhoto.

Keep the keys held down until you are prompted to rebuild the library.

A dialog will appear with rebuild options. Select the options you want to use.

Click Rebuild to begin the rebuild process. This may take a few minutes to

complete.

MacBook Pro Just Shutsdown

Steve,

I am enjoying my new screen very much. But the MacBook pro has been having a problem since I had it done and it is increasing in frequency. It just shuts itself off randomly. When I turn it back on it sometimes does it again. I can't find any similarity of when it happens. not too hot or near end of battery. Any ideas on what is going on? kate

 

Hi Kate,

I had this issue with mine also, then the fan started making a loud (!!!) noise on startup. It was so loud, I could not hear the TV.! I called Apple and they replaced the entire logic board for free (out of warranty). If you haven't had yours replaced, call Apple before they stop the "voluntary recall". Tell them the fan is making a loud sound and wont stop and you're having this shutdown problem. (it has nothing to do with the LCD replacement.)

Also see: http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2006/07/4689.ars

http://www.fixya.com/support/t710869-macbook_pro_just_shuts_down

Do I have Apple Care? Did I Buy it? When is it Up?

I work on a lot of people's macs and the first thing I ask is if they still have Apple Care? AppleCare is an extesion of the 1 year warranty provided with the mac product, usually an additional 3 years. Here's how to check to see if the Mac you're using is covered. It's connected to the serial number of the mac.

To see the serial number of your mac without standing on your head just go to the blue apple menu, then select About this Mac. You'll see the Version number here. Double click it and our mac's serial number will appear. This is NOT the serial number of the software, but the Mac itself.

Now goto this website https://selfsolve.apple.com/GetWarranty.do

In the field put in your SN. You can't copy and paste it from the the other window. Then fill in the country and click Continue. Your status should show up giving a date the warranty expires.

How to Trash Photos

Q: I keep emptying my trash can in iPhoto yet the can keeps showing the number of pictures I trashed. They never go away. I can’t seem to trash the pics.

A: It’s rare but this application has it’s own trash can. Go under the File menu in iPhoto and empty the trash from there. You are emptying the system’s trash can. Your pics aren’t there.

The Insomniac Mac: I Can't Sleep

Q: My mac has trouble sleeping automatically or on command. It’s very frustrating. What’s going on?



A:Nothing is more frustrating than a mac  that won’t sleep, or even worse a mac that won’t wake from sleep and needs to be rebooted losing precious time and waiting for a reboot. 

The answer isn’t always simple as there could be a couple reasons. First open the System Preferences and click on the Energy Saver control panel. Now make sure the sliders are on anything but “Never”. If set to “never” the machine will never sleep no matter what.

If you don’t use your mac to receive faxes, click on the Print and Fax tab to check and make sure your mac isn’t awake to watch for incoming faxes. That will also prevent sleep.

While in System Preferences click on the Sharing control panel. Now click on the “Internet” tab. Make sure your mac isn’t sharing an internet connection. If so, click it off by shutting it of with the “Stop” command.

Another reason for insomnia is a damaged preference file most likely a Blue tooth or Power Management preference file. These files are best left to a mac tech like me to dispose of and replace.

One of the most likely culprits is an incompatible card recently added such as a USB card. These cards are usually problems in desktops, not so much portable. Be sure to go to the card’s manufacturer website and make sure you have the latest drivers or software upgrades. Many times people buy “no name” cards and have to info to act on such as technical support for the company. In that case you are stuck with a non functioning card as far as the sleep command goes.

On ibooks and Powerbooks the power manger could also be the reason for a non-sleeping laptop. Each mac portable requires a different way to reset the power manager so it’s best to take it to a mac tech. In the meantime, if your mac does go to sleep but won’t wake there’s a not-so-green temporary answer. That would be to visit the System Preferences as mentioned earlier and click on the Energy Saver control Panel. In this case set the sliders to “Never”. This will prevent the mac from going into a sleep it doesn’t wake from. This should only be a temporary solution until you can get the mac fixed. Sleep is good, saves energy and wear and tear on your computer.

Remember to always reboot your mac at least once a day or better yet just shut it down when down it for more than 8 hours. restarting a mac clears out a lot internal logic clutter and ensures a leaner running mac. Putting a mac to sleep and never rebooting it is a bad habit and can tax the systems RAM supply. Everybody likes a fresh start once a day, so shutdown.

My mac won’t start and only makes beeping noises.

Q: My mac won’t start and only makes beeping noises. What are they and what do they mean?

A: Here’s what Apple says:

Products introduced after October, 1999 use a revised set of power on self-test beeps during startup. This article describes each one.

 

Products Affected

Portable Computers, Desktop Computers

The power on self-test resides in the ROM of the computer. This test runs whenever the computer is turned on after being fully shut down (the power-on self-test does not run if the computer is only restarted).

 

If a fault is detected during the test, you will not hear a normal startup chime. Instead, the system will beep as explained below. If you experience one of these beeps, you may call your Apple Authorized Service Provider for additional troubleshooting assistance.

 

1 beep = no RAM installed

2 beeps = incompatible RAM types

3 beeps = no good banks

4 beeps = no good boot images in the boot ROM (and/or bad sys config block)

5 beeps = processor is not usable

 

In addition to the beeps, on some computers the power LED will flash a corresponding number of times plus one. The LED will repeat the sequence after approximately a 5-second pause. The tones are only played once.

 

To sum up; it’s usually a RAM (memory) problem or the actual sockets the RAM modules are in. Sometimes reseating the RAM can make the problem go away.