Juha Haataja: Universal Mac

Add Safari-style progress bar to Firefox

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 18:45:02 GMT

I installed the Firefox Add-on Fission, which provides a Safari-style address bar/progress bar. This was one of the remaining items on making Firefox behave just the way I want a browser to do.

Firefox - great or ugly?

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:24:39 GMT

Ssp doesn't like Firefox. I think these are natural differences is taste. For example, I like the big back button in the toolbar, which may seem ugly to others.

Today I solved one of the remaining problems: Keychain integration. Some time ago I got a copy of 1Password in the MacHeist bundle of software, and now I started to use it. The functionality is better than the Keychain integration in Omniweb, and at least so far so good. And the Macs I have are synchronized via the .Mac service ("MobileMe"), which means I need to submit the access information only once.

There is one usability issue which I would like to see changed: in Firefox the progress bar is on the bottom of the window. Safari (and Omniweb) show this information in the toolbar area, which is much better.

The biggest good feature of Firefox is keyboard navigation, which is a significant improvement compared to Safari and Omniweb. And the so-called "Awesome bar" is really good, with a quite nice system for managing bookmarks. (Although some rough corners remain there.)

Is Firefox 3 good or bad?

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:22:50 GMT

I browsed Mac OS X software at Versiontracker.com, and noticed Firefox 3 feedback there. It was not pretty. If I would have seen the comments earlier I would probably never have installed Firefox on my systems. But I did, and it works great.

I think a lot of the criticism is nit-picking. Some of it is probably quite fair, but I think the picture is much too negative. At least I'm happy with Firefox, and haven't had much problems with it (in fact, almost none).

Firefox shortcuts

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:34:49 GMT

I discovered new good things about Firefox, especially keyboard shortcuts.

I'm now using the shortcuts extensively together with this: "Command + L = Selects the location or address bar, where you have to enter any URL or copy the URL." Also, Command + T (new tab) combined with shortcuts is fast way to visit favorite sites. Now I don't any more miss the Omniweb functionality of using Command-1, Command-2 to visit urls on the favorites bar.

Not everything is perfect in Firefox 3

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:45:30 GMT

I discovered one web application which was not compatible with Firefox 3, although it works fine with Safari and Omniweb. It was an accounting system used via a web interface, and for some reason the basic functionality was missing. Probably some differences in interpreting JavaScript.

I have understood that Firefox 3 is in some cases more strict about interpretation than other browsers. These other browsers are of course supporting bad coding style, but that is a compromise that you probably have to make to have a usable browser. How much compromise is done, that separates the browsers from each other.

Firefox 3 - how good can a web browser be?

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:07:09 GMT

I have been using Firefox 3 for a while, and I'm a happy camper. I managed to get both bookmark syncing and in-window pdf viewing to work in Firefox. Thus, I don't have much to wish for. Well, perhaps there are some rough corners here and there (minor blemishes in appearance etc.), but nothing which really bothers me. And Firefox has been stable on both my aluminium iMac and my iBook. No crashes, no slowing down - everything works smoothly.

There are some things which are better in Safari and some things which are better in Omniweb, but nothing major is missing or badly implemented. In fact, for such a feature-laden browser, Firefox is quite elegant and simple to use.

An additional bonus is that Firefox copes with some (Finnish) sites where Safari and Omniweb (based on webkit) have problems. This may be due to the fact that Finland is one of the leading countries in the world as regards Firefox use - almost half of the web surfers use Firefox.

I was quite sceptical of Firefox 3 before I started testing it, but it surpassed all my expectations. Congratulations to the project!

Firefox 3 is great

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:32:11 GMT

Started yesterday using Firefox 3 on all my Macs. Transferred bookmarks from Omniweb (via HTML file input, some cleanup needed), installed the Adblock addon, switched on color management and faster mousewheel scrolling.

One nuisance remains: I am used to the keyboard shortcuts Command-1, Command-2 etc. for selecting the first, second etc. bookmark in the favorites bar, and this does not work in Firefox. Is there a way to get this functionality in Firefox 3?

A bonus: my blogging software (Radio Userland) supports the better editing mode in Firefox, Omniweb is worse in this regard.

Unix is not always a good thing

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 07:55:49 GMT

Ssp commented my thoughs on OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard:

I think much of the bloat or bloated appearance of OS X comes from its Unix background. Rather than wrapping everything in a single file, things like applications usually come in thousands of files once they are localised and contain help. You can see an (over-dramatised) effect of this if you time how long it takes to copy your iTunes application: much longer than copying that amount of data should take. It may sound like a heresy, but the good old resource fork was a way around that kind of problem ;)

I agree that there is quite a lot in the Unix environment that can be improved from the desktop/mobile device users' perspective. This applies of course to Linux as well. But things are getting better, for example Nokia using Linux on mobile devices, and Apple now promising to clean up OS X.

Further thoughts on OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 20:13:16 GMT

Many have commented on the next version of OS X, 10.6 "Snow Leopard". There is lots of discussion on "no new features" (apart from built-in Exchange 2007 support). But after thinking about this a bit, I think Apple may be able to deliver quite an impact with 10.6. The current version, 10.5 Leopard, has layers upon layers, hundreds (?) of thousands of files. Complexity upon complexity. What would "think different" be able to do? As an example, Apple developed the "launchd" software to replace numerous Unix startup programs (cron, init etc.), and making a much better job of it, for example making it possible to startup the Mac much faster than previously. What if similar work would be applied to all of the system, on all layers? It seems that some of the new technology is exactly this. How much speedup would be possible? I think that on systems without separate GPUs the speedup might not be so dramatic, perhaps in the 10-50 percent region. (However, the amount of disk space needed for the operating system may decrease dramatically, resulting in much faster program launch speeds, as an example.) But on systems with separate GPUs and more than two cores the effect may be dramatic, perhaps several times the current speed. And much less overhead than currently (think about Spotlight, Time Machine, Dashboard etc.) How would you feel about using an operating system much faster than any current ones, consuming dramatically less disk space, and being able to use all kinds of external accelerators (no need to limit to GPUs). This OS would scale upwards (to tens of cores and terabytes of RAM), and also downwards (to future mobile devices). Perhaps the best selling argument for the OS will be the devices which are built upon this foundation. Not to speak about new possible applications, and new ways of connecting to the net/cloud.

EU wants openness - sends message to Microsoft

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 12:06:03 GMT

New York Times reports on the EU comments related to Microsoft business practices vs. openness:

"I know a smart business decision when I see one - choosing open standards is a very smart business decision indeed," Ms. Kroes told a conference in Brussels. "No citizen or company should be forced or encouraged to choose a closed technology over an open one."

What will happen with OOXML?

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 15:27:51 GMT

ISO put OOXML document formats on hold. This was expected, and not only because of the complaints from the member countries. Now the ISO organization has a possibility to fix its reputation. This was a sordid mess. No wonder Micrsoft announced support for ODF, the competing format, in MS Office.

OS X will be even more stable (and faster)

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 15:24:46 GMT

I started using Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard in February 2008, although I bought a copy several months earlier. Based on the experiences, I should have made the move much earlier. I very much liked the earlier version of OS X, and version 10.4.11 has been extremely stable, but all in all 10.5 easily surpasses the old one. And for me there haven't been stability problems in 10.5. The newest version, 10.5.3, has now been in use for two weeks on my iMac and iBook without restarts or other interruptions. And I have now been able to make fast enough backups of the iBook over the wireless network at home to my external Time Machine backup disk.

The news about Apple focusing on stability and speed in the next version of OS X seem just right. I totally agree that parallelism is the next great step, and software vendors should really look into their software to scale it to 8, 16, 32 etc. processors. This is the only way to benefit from the next steps in processor technology. In terms of user experience, version 10.5 is great. There are some details to finetune, bugs to correct (and Apple has made hundreds of corrections already), but otherwise this operating system is great as it is. In any case, I think the value for the future arises from the applications and from the cloud. Perhaps Apple has quite a lot in store on this front.

Leopard - 10 days, 9 hours, 39 minutes

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 21:30:33 GMT

Leopard has been running for well over 10 days on my iMac, since the first boot after installing 10.5.2 upgrade. (I switched from Tiger at the same time.) There have been minor nuisances, and some stupid things I did myself. For example, I shut down the external Time Machine backup disk without unmounting it first. Fortunately no data seems to have been lost or corrupted. Two days ago I started doing Time Machine backups of my iBook over the wireless connection to the same external disk on the iMac. The first backup (over 35 GB of data) took about 10 hours, the next one less than one hour. A bit too long for my liking. One reason may be the slow wlan connection on the iBook, the 802.11g-version instead of the newer 802.11n. But there may be also some software bottlenecks involved. In any case, doing the backups is quite simple, even if it takes a long time. I have the firewall enabled, and just a few allowed software packages, which should limit the risks of over the network backups. I have to once again say that Leopard is one smooth beast. Running simultaneously a lot of programs on many different accounts on the iMac has hardly ever slowed it down. Perhaps once or twice there have been slight pauses in watching EyeTV, when I have been recording programs, doing Time Machine backups (both from iMac and iBook), and downloading software and music from the net (SXSW 2008 Showcasing Artist torrent, for example). It now seems that 10.5.2 is one of the most stable Mac OS X releases ever. At least I hope so. One of the great new things of Leopard is the ability to make Dashboard widgets from web pages with Safari. I have made a couple of good ones, of weather services for example. The Leopard Dashboard seems to be a valueable tool, compared to Tiger where it was more like a toy.

Leopard - 6 days, 5 hours, 27 minutes

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 17:06:45 GMT

I have now been using Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5.2) for over six days on my iMac. There have been no problems, and I have even remembered to switch on the external disk for Time Machine backups every once in a while. I was anticipating some problems, but it seems that there are few if any. In fact this may be the smoothest Mac OS X upgrade ever, and I have been using all versions since 10.0. Most 10.X version changes have caused some problems, but this didn't, at least so far. Impressive. On the other hand, I usually jumped in quite early, sometimes even with 10.X.0 version, or 10.X.1 version, so perhaps waiting a bit explains the good feeling.

Leopard works well on iBook G4 and aluminium iMac

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 17:59:34 GMT

I upgraded from Tiger to Leopard a few days ago, and there have been suprisingly few problems. (Almost none in fact.) The biggest surprise was that the parental restrictions defined in Tiger were immeadetely functional in Leopard without any tweaking. Thus, the children are allowed to use certain software, and only those. Also, I was afraid that certain older games would not work in Leopard, but all seem to work so far. I had two games which didn't fit into parental restrictions under Tiger. For some reason you had to use a normal account for them. I haven't yet checked whether Leopard is better in this regard.

Upgraded my iBook G4 to Leopard

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:19:09 GMT

After a few days worth of positive experiences of Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5.2) on my iMac, I upgraded my iBook to Leopard as well. I have the last version of iBook G4 --- a 12 inch model at 1.33 GHz. There is 80 GB of disk, and I recently upgraded the memory to 1.5 GB.

I made an "Archive and install" type upgrade, which went flawlessly, although it took quite a while. At the same time I took the opportunity to remove some old software and documents from the iBook. There was even some Mac OS 9 software still there. After the cleanup I have 22 GB of free disk space instead of 12 GB.

I tested screen sharing between the iBook and iMac, and it worked suprisingly well. Browsing iTunes music and iPhoto pictures on the iMac works also nicely from the iBook.

So far I haven't really run into any inconveniences with Leopard. Sometimes Stacks behave a bit suprisingly, but that may be just a question of newness. I'm quite happy with the speed both on the iBook and especially in the iMac. For some reason Leopard seems snappier even on the iBook, which is unexpected.

The only incompatibility so far is Cisco VPN on the iBook. It starts up properly, and tries to connect, but doesn't manage to do it, and never reports an errror. On the iMac I haven't had any difficulties in using Cisco VPN.

Good Leopard - or bad?

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:43:54 GMT

I have been corresponding with SSP on Leopard user experiences. He has had negative experiences with EyeTV and iTunes: "multitasking in X.5 is rotten and things skip a lot". However, for me things are different.

EyeTV seems to work in Leopard even smoother than in Tiger. For example when pausing a recording and then continuing, there is no that small "hiccup" in the beginning of playback as there was with 10.4.11. And this is while multitasking - usually I have 4-5 users logged in to the iMac, and some of these accounts are doing things in background, such as reading dvds or cds or downloading things (such as software updates) from the net. Usually I have 5-10 different programs running on these accounts (no need to shut them down, is there?).

But I do have the new iMac (2.4 GHz, 4 GB of memory, 750 GB disk), which is a quite nice machine in terms of performance.

Yesterday I watched a recorded movie with EyeTV (version 3), while simulaneously recording two programs (I have the Diversity model). And at the background I was ripping a dvd with Handbrake using all available cpu capacity. In addition, on different accounts I had an e-mail program, Last.fm etc. software running. Everything was as smooth as can be.

Today I switched on Time Machine, and the first backup is currently in progress. So far I haven't had any trouble (listening to iTunes, watching tv, listening to Last.fm).

Perhaps I'm just fortunate? I do hope this feeling of satisfaction with Leopard continues.

Now I'm learning to use Spaces. Several years ago (in 2001 perhaps) or so I was using a similar system in Gnome and KDE (running under Mac os X), but those virtual desktops were worse implemented. And Quick Look is definetely helpful in checking what a file contains.

Made finally the leap from Tiger to Leopard

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 16:25:08 GMT

The second update to Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5.2) was released yesterday. I today upgraded my iMac from Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4). I bought a copy of Leopard last year, but postponed the upgrade due to worries about incompatibility.

I made a default upgrade, and there were no problems although the iMac had lots of additional software installed (including system utilities etc.). Everything is running as smoothly as can be wished.

I read a lot of complaints about the details of Leopard from the net discussions. A bunch of nitpicking ninnies! Although Leopard is markedly different, I think the new features (transparent dock and stacks) are real improvements, not just eye candy.

I haven't yet tested Time Machine, but will do this in a few days. I'm currently doing the backups with Carbon Copy Cloner, this is sufficient for now.

The value of the new features remains to be seen. Quick Look, Spaces etc. seem reasonable improvements, although not revolutionary. I already got used to Quick Look, and probably will miss it on those Macs running Tiger. Also, some of the current software requires Leopard to work properly, for example EyeTV and Cover Sutra. Thus it was time to make the leap to Leopard.

10,000 music tracks, over half unheard

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 17:00:46 GMT

Since moving my iTunes music from iBook to iMac I have been growing the collection. I used to have a lot more classical music on the iBook, but disk space constraints forced to remove some of the music. But now I have read a lot of the music back from the cds. And I have also bought quite a few albums from the iTunes Store, and eMusic as well.

Currently I have a bit over 10,000 music tracks in iTunes. There are several dozen tracks which have been listened to over 150 times. But there are also tracks which have not been listened at all. I made a smart playlist with these tracks, and it had initially over 5,400 tracks. Thus over half of the music had been unused in iTunes. Now I'm playing this playlist in random order and decreasing the count little by little. A lot of positive suprises there.

Using MacBook Air as the only computer

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 10:22:31 GMT

After Apple announced MacBook Air, many reviews have commented that this machine is only good as a second computer, complementing a desktop system or a MacBook Pro. However, I don't think so. As I wrote previously, MacBook Air (hereafter MBA) is in almost all aspect a more powerful system than a PowerBook G4 (from 2002), which I'm currently using as my only computer at work. At my desk I can plug the MBA into my 23-inch widescreen display (1920x1280 resolution is supported), and connect the keyboard and mouse through an usb hub. (Or through Bluetooth.) And who really nowadays uses cds or dvds for transferring files? Usb sticks are the way to go. The only dissappointing thing about the MBA is the reported battery performance. If it is only 2.5 hours, this is far too little. (Although it is the same as with the PowerBook G4, but here I can switch batteries on the go.) If the battery would last four hours, that would be enough, and about six hours would be excellent. Perhaps the next revision can do this?

Too much for me in MacBook Air

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:06:20 GMT

At work I'm currently using a Titanium PowerBook G4 from 2002. This has been my only computer for well over five years now - both at my office and while traveling. The CPU is 1 GHz PowerPC G4, and there is 1 GB of memory and 60 GB of disk. The machine is fast enough for daily work (I'm running Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger), for example MS Office, Acrobat etc. There are several gigabytes of disk available (and I could easily free some more if needed). The memory seems sufficient as well (although sometimes the machine slows down if I'm using a dozen applications simultaneously).

I didn't expect the PowerBook to last this long. I was actually a bit afraid of replacing my G4 tower desktop with a laptop. But now I have over five years of positive experiences. The PowerBook has been an excellent little machine for work. I have got a replacement battery, and several additional external devices (more of these later), but otherwise there have been no changes needed. A big reason for the longlevity is the relatively big cache memory of the 1 GHz G4 processor, and the speedy graphics card.

So, how does MacBook Air (MBA) compare with the Titanium PowerBook G4 (TiBook)? There is twice the memory - 2 GB vs. 1 GB. A slightly larger disk - 80 GB vs. 60 GB. (Certainly enough for me.)

A big bonus is the n-version of wlan (WiFi). The PowerBook G4 contains a b-version card, which is much slower, and limits the overall speed of the wlan network. A big MBA advantage is the internal Bluetooth. The TiBook requires an external Bluetooth usb adapter, which is often inconvenient.

Potential drawbacks of the MBA are the one usb port - but I have already an usb hub at work, which fixes this problem. No cd/dvd reading? Well, it has been a long time since I last used the cd/dvd drive on the TiBook. Usually I transfer files via net/e-mail or by using usb sticks. No built-in ethernet? Well, the usb ethernet adapter fixes this problem. (And in most places the wlan connection is nowadays quite enough.)

What about the speed? Well, my understanding is that the MBA is 2-3 as fast as the TiBook, and there is twice the memory. So, this would be quite an upgrade. Potential advantages are also the built-in iSight, a nice display (brighter than on the TiBook), and the new gesture-based trackpad (the TiBook doesn't even know two-finger scrolling). Not to speak about the smaller size and less weight.

In conclusion: MacBook Air is more than enough computer for me. Will I get one? Perhaps not. I'm happy with by PowerBook G4, but perhaps when the sixth year of using it is closing, I'll switch to the MBA.

Update: I forgot that I wrote a quick review of 1 GHz PowerBook G4 in December 2002, when I was thinking of switching from a desktop to a laptop computer. Some of the thinking is suprising in retrospect.

Using EyeTV 3

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 21:08:08 GMT

I upgraded the EyeTV software to version 3 on my iMac. There were some new useful features, such as smart lists for automation of recordings. A robust but not a revolutionary upgrade. I have recorded a lot of programs from digital tv using EyeTV and the dual usb stick, which makes it possible to watch or record two channels simultaneously. Extremely nice way of viewing digital television. However, it seems that now I'm getting more and more repeats - there is not so much novelty in the available programs as in the beginning. I really hope that net-based movies and television takes off soon.

NetNewsWire vs. Google Reader

Wed, 09 Jan 2008 20:31:39 GMT

The RSS feed reader NetNewsWire is now free. Some years ago I used it quite a lot, but nowadays I'm using Google Reader, which does a fine job. However, maybe it is time to re-evaluate NetNewsWire. However, the advantage of having RSS feeds automatically up-to-date on any system I happen to be using is hard to replace. Thus, Google Reader will prevail, I think.

Not (yet) using Leopard

Wed, 09 Jan 2008 20:27:48 GMT

I today upgraded the memory on my iMac to 4 GB. Having several active accounts running simultaneously slowed the system a bit every once in a while, but new everything is running smoothly. I'm running EyeTV, iTunes, several web browsers etc. simultaneously, and sometimes there are jobs running in the background consuming all free cpu cycles. (For example, video format conversion.) The children have been playing games, drawing, experimenting a lot on this system. The iMac has been stable without problems for a couple of months now. I'm not rushing into Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5) yet. I'm still waiting for version 10.5.2, and perhaps even version 10.5.3, until the upgrade. However, some new software requires (or recommends) using Leopard, so the time to switch is near.

Converting VHS videos with Pinnacle Video Capture for Mac

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 21:13:52 GMT

About a week ago I got a Pinnacle Video Capture for Mac system for converting VHS videos to be viewed on my iMac. Now I have converted 25 videos to mp4 format. No need for the VHS player any more. The video quality (and sound) is quite ok, as good as VHS can be, I think. Of course not dvd or digital tv quality, but good for my purposes at least. Only "Lumikki" (Disney's Show White) caused problems. A ten-second section (dwarfs singing in a mine) refused to sync with the system. But I think dwarfs singing in a mine may cause problems for anyone.

Not yet into Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5)

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 20:17:00 GMT

Apple today released the first update to Leopard, Mac OS X 10.5.1. I'm not yet installing Leopard on my computers. I probably will not install it on the iBook G4 ever, but on the iMac I'll wait for the 10.5.2 update. Typically the first update includes fixes already in pipe, and the second update contains fixes based on feedback from the users. Thus, better wait a month or so until moving to Leopard. Also, some of the applications on the iMac (especially games) may not work with Leopard, so caution is needed. On the other hand, Leopard contains so many good things that I'm itching to try it out. Patience, patience.

Still tempted by Civilization IV

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 20:37:22 GMT

Last night I played until 2 AM, getting quite tired. Today I didn't play at all, have to get some sleep. Not good to go several days without enough sleep. Bad, bad game. But good in reasonable doses.

Addicted to Civilization IV

Sat, 03 Nov 2007 11:51:52 GMT

I didn't think it was possible for me to get addicted to gaming, but after playing first with the Civ IV demo, and then with the game itself, I must admit being hooked. Last night I played until 3:30 AM, and didn't notice time passing. And I seem to be thinking about Civ strategies all the time.

At first Civ didn't seem to be such a good thing, especially when the graphics were sometimes misbehaving. (Hasn't crashed once yet, though.) After updating to version 1.74, the graphics problems went away. And the gaming speed is good, although I'm running at maximum resolution and eye candy. Of course, my new 24 inch iMac is quite fast, so no surprise there. A great game, with lots of room to grow.

OmniWeb updated to version 5.6

Thu, 25 Oct 2007 20:23:48 GMT

I downloaded the international version of OmniWeb 5.6, and was surprised to see that the software has a Finnish localization. I have been using OmniWeb as my number one web browser for years (paid for it), but always downloaded the smaller "English only" distribution. Well, this was a nice surprise. And the new version seems to be both faster and more reliable. For example, Google Reader works now better than with version 5.5.

Games on the Mac

Sat, 20 Oct 2007 09:29:20 GMT

There are too much to do on the iMac. I downloaded the Civilization IV demo, and I'm really trying to avoid investing time in the game. But I think I'll submit and buy the game. At least my iMac is fast enough to run it.

Also, there are quite a few other games which seem to be interesting, and I have in fact played with my daughters some of the games I have downloaded and bought from the net. Those who say that a Mac is not a gaming machine may be right - but all the same, there are enough games for our family at least.

Hard disks and backups for iMac

Thu, 18 Oct 2007 20:55:28 GMT

I just ordered a 750 GB external hard disk with Firewire 800, to be used for backups and other storage need with my new iMac. The Iomega disk costs 210 euro, not bad. Currently I have partial backups of data on the iMac, but most of the data is without backups. I'm studying both Cardon Copy Cloner and SuperDuper! - perhaps one of them is the perfect backup solution for me.

Not rushing to Leopard

Tue, 16 Oct 2007 20:37:28 GMT

Apple announced that Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard will be shipping on October 26th. I'm not rushing to buy Leopard, but will instead wait a while before installing it on my computers. Also, I'll buy an external disk for backups, to really benefit from Leopard. My feeling is that Spaces - the virtual desktop system - and Time Machine - the new backup software, will be the best features of Leopard. Of the other new features I can't say much. Although I have got the impression that the Spotlight search system has something new, which might make it a contender in the best features list.

Children and the iMac

Sat, 13 Oct 2007 21:45:00 GMT

Have been studying the parental controls on Mac OS X. I made an account for the daughters to use, making it possible to use various programs, such as painting, writing, games, astronomy etc. Although giving restricted rights to program and web works fine usually, there are some rough corners, for example with non-bundle applications. But I have managed to get almost everything working fine. And the daughters really enjoy using the iMac.

Apple says new iMacs have a problem

Fri, 05 Oct 2007 16:15:51 GMT

Apple recently acknowledged that the new iMacs have a freezing problem. I wrote about my experiences about a month ago, when I had had 3-4 freezes in two weeks. But since installing iMac update 1.1, I have had only one freeze. Currently the iMac has been in use for over a week without any problems.

Backing up to dvd's vs. hard disks

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 19:29:33 GMT

It seems that hard disk prices will drop dramatically this autumn. Perhaps by half. I'm planning to get a 500 GB or a 750 GB external hard disk for iMac backups, but not yet. A Firewire 800 version would be nice, and I think a 750 GB disk may cost less that 200 euros later this year. Meanwhile, I bought a couple DVD+RW disks for backing up my photos and music bought from iTMS.

On the other hand, I believe the built-in backup software (Time Machine) in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard will increase the demand for disks, so perhaps the drop in prices will not be so great after all.

EyeTV updated to version 2.5

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 18:37:49 GMT

I installed a new version of EyeTV on my iMac, version 2.5. This version uses a dual-tuner setup more intelligently, starting a scheduled recording on the unused tuner. Also, EyeTV can now record from the live buffer to file, a nice improvement. EyeTV was already a great program, and now even greater. (I also noticed that I had not been using the "best" settings for picture quality, even though I have a fast iMac - however, I didn't notice much improvement to the previous settings.)

Toysight - game control through video camera

Wed, 19 Sep 2007 19:46:11 GMT

Tried playing Toysight with the children. Not easy to get it to work at first, but after a while things started to work. An interesting concept, controlling computer games by using the iSight video camera. This is not a new game (launched in 2003), but I didn't have a Mac able to run the software before getting an iMac.

Media, home, and iMac - is there a perfect solution?

Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:39:36 GMT

Trying out new software for iMac. I downloaded yFlicks and some new games. Have to see how these work. There are several software packages trying to solve the same problem: media center for home. Needed features are downloading, converting, organizing and using videos and other formats at home. But no solution so far is quite ok. I like EyeTV, Miro, and Front Row, which are all partial solutions. Remote Buddy is a nice application for operating the iMac remotely, but perhaps not quite what I need. Have to study the available solutions in more detail.

Joost vs. Miro - closed vs. open

Sun, 16 Sep 2007 12:18:08 GMT

I have been testing the Miro program on my iMac - to watch videos and tv programs. A nice interface, although the Finnish localization sucks, and the system seems to work quite reliably despite being version 0.9.9.1. Miro is an early example of next generation internet - peer-to-peer technologies for various media formats, especially video.

I hope openness wins. I have also tried Joost, which is in early beta, but I don't like the concept of DRM-infested world.

Playing computer games in good company

Sun, 16 Sep 2007 12:12:03 GMT

It seems that computer games may be interesting after all - as a social phenomenon. Years ago I got bored with computer games (what is the point?), but now when I have been watching my daughters playing games on the iMac, I'm getting interested again. Not to play myself, but to take part in the social situation of gaming. And this is not a bad thing. It is completely different to play alone vs. in company.

A problem-free day on iMac

Sat, 15 Sep 2007 16:11:31 GMT

Haven't had any freezes in the iMac since Software Update 1.1. Perhaps this fixed things. In any case, the freezes were occasional, about twice a week, so this doesn't yet prove anything.

Fix for iMac freezes?

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 15:34:32 GMT

I'm installing the iMac Software Update 1.1 to see whether this fixes the freezing problem in iTunes I have been suffering from. Some kind of Radeon HD 2600 update is included in the package.

Freezes on the new iMac, due to iTunes?

Wed, 12 Sep 2007 19:26:03 GMT

Apparently there is an issue with the new iMacs and iTunes - total system freezes when browsing music either in iTunes or Front Row. The discussion forums at Apple have numerous instances of this.

I have had this happen 3-4 times in two weeks, which hasn't been nice. Only a reboot fixes the problem. The system continues to work, but the display is frozen. Perhaps this is a problem with the display drivers and iTunes, or something more exotic. I hope a software update is ready soon. (Typical early adopter experience this one.)

Getting to know Nokia E90 Communicator

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 07:38:37 GMT

Yesterday I got a Nokia E90, to replace an aging (a year old!?) Nokia 9300i which has been in repairs repeatedly this year.

Starting to use the E90 went mostly fine. I downloaded the iSync plugin for E90 from Nokia, installed it on my Powerbook (no restart needed), and synced the phone over Bluetooth. Contacts and calendar were up-to-date in half an hour from getting the phone. And getting my IMAP (over SSL) e-mail working too just a few minutes.

At home I tested my wlan connection (WPA encryption), and browsing the web went fine. The Safari-based browser is fast and accurate, much better than on 9300i.

However, as I noted here previously, there are usability problems with the E90. The four-way direction keys don't work too well, for example. Also, I had to read to manual to find out how to make a photo with the camera. The function of some of the keys is not apparent - once again, had to read the manual.

I took a couple of photos and videos to test the camera. Picture quality is nice, if there is enough light available. Otherwise, not so good. The VGA-level videos were quite ok, it is nice to have this possibility on a phone.

So, the E90 has been a bit of a mixed experience so far. Syncing with the Mac went fine, email works fine, but there are certain nagging problems with keys and other usability factors. Have to see how well I cope with this thing.

At least the mechanical design seems to be much better than with the 9300i - I hope this Nokia phone lasts longer than a year.

Why I loathe editing videos

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:50:15 GMT

I loathe editing videos. Partly this is due to the slow iBook I have, but mainly due to all too complex software. I like iPhoto, because I can quickly put together a nice slide show with music, but the iMovie software leaves me cold. Actually, I tolerate it, but I'm not interested in video editing at all.

I tried using iMovie on a G5 iMac in 2004, and although I managed to put together some kind of movie, it was quite painful. That version of iMovie took much more effort to learn than it should. And it wasn't at all fun to use. (For that reason I didn't invest in video recording equipment at that point.)

The new version of iMovie in iLife '08 promises to change video editing for beginners like me. I wait eagerly to try it out myself. (Also, I wait for my new iMac 24" to arrive any day now.)

Video editing shouldn't be hard, but it is. I have quite a few short video captures on my iBook, but it would be nice to be able to make a movie out of them. Currently I much prefer taking photos instead of recording videos. But iMovie could change this - perhaps I'll get interested and buy and HD-video capable camera as well. That would be something.

Waiting for iMac

Thu, 16 Aug 2007 05:41:35 GMT

I have read a lot of reviews and comments about the new iMac. The custom-build machine shipped yesterday from Apple Store, but I have still over one week of waiting to do. My plan is to use the iMac as a digital shoebox, containing photos, videos, music, tv programs, e-mails and all kinds of other documents. And this is for everyone in the family - for each their own user-ids and then one joint account for collective use.

The iPod that transformed into a phone

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 12:23:51 GMT

This weekend seems to be iPhone-crazy in the USA, and newspapers are writing yet more articles about the phenomenon, from the New York Times (Gave Up Sleep and Maybe a First-Born, but at Least I Have an iPhone) to Macworld (The iPod that's really a phone). The phone seems to meet most expectations, but there are shortcomings as well.

For me the most interesting comment was the lack of copy/paste functionality. The easiest way to transfer information seems to be through the mail program. But given Apple's track record, it is to be expected that the software will improve soon.

The iPhone certainly is a 1.0 device, just as the first iPod was. I own a second-generation iPod, which is quite nice, but the current iPods have developed quite a bit, they are almost completely different devices.

Majority rules minority

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 12:27:41 GMT

When using IT (as well as in ethnic matters) those who represent the majority determine the rules and often harbor suspicions about minority groups. As a Mac user, you may have all kinds of problems due to this. I wrote a column in Finnish about this, Enemmistön ehdoilla.

Solving Einstein's Riddle in Python

Tue, 29 May 2007 05:33:14 GMT

I noticed Google searches trying to find code for solving the so-called Einstein's Riddle. Here is object-oriented Python code (I updated the link) for solving the problem. Here are the final results of a run:

Choices: 1
1         2         3         4         5         
yellow    blue      red       green     white     
norway    denmark   finland   german    sweden    
water     tea       milk      coffee    beer      
blues     opera     rock      pop       metal     
cat       horse     bird      fish      dog

Here you find Python code for solving logic puzzles like this one. This code is rather nice, and more general than mine. On the other hand, the code is also slower due to the generality of the approach.

Being honest vs. respecting the customers

Tue, 08 May 2007 08:10:34 GMT

I have listened but not really understood the Windows activation stories by PC users. It seems that the system is really draconian and makes the user feel that he/she is a suspected criminal. Contrast this with Apple's attitude, where there is no such a system in place. In fact, quite the opposite, as pointed out by Simson Garfinkel in Technology Review: "... few Apple customers hate the company the way so many Windows customers hate Microsoft. Apple even sells a "Family Pack" version of its operating system, which lets diehard Mac fans spend an extra $70 for the legal right to install the OS on "up to five" computers in their homes. I bought one last year: it contained exactly the same DVDs that the single-user edition did. The difference is in the buyer's heart. " [via Social Media]