My Software Update (in the Apple menu) is no longer finding software updates. When I start up an iLife or iWork application, it tells me updates are available. If I try to manually download the updates from Apple’s website, it won’t install them because it says I don’t have the current version on my system. Is there a way to reset or fix this problem?
Resetting Software Update will display any updates you’ve ignored in the past.
With the iLife and iWork applications, Apple often advertises new upgrades to the suite of applications when you launch an older version of those iLife and iWork apps. These messages can be confusing, because they understandably lead you to believe there’s a free update. However, Apple is only advertising their new paid upgrades.
These messages are advertising Apple’s new, paid versions of iLife.
If this is not the case, you may have accidentally ignored an iWork or iLife update from within the Software Update application. To reset ignored updates, launch Software Update from the Apple menu, and then select Software Update > Reset Ignored Updates. After doing this, check for new updates again. Any updates you may have ignored in the past will show up as available for installation.
GOT A TECH QUESTION OR A HELPFUL TIP TO SHARE?
Email ask@maclife.com or write to Mac|Life,
4000 Shoreline Ct, Suite 400, South San Francisco, CA 94080
Saturday, November 26, 2011
How to Reset Software Update | Mac|Life
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
How to Automatically Restart a Frozen Mac | Mac|Life
How to Automatically Restart a Frozen Mac
Posted 11/23/2011 at 6:43am | by Cory Bohon
I have a Mac mini that I use as a home file server, running Snow Leopard. Occasionally, the computer locks up, but since it’s headless (or running without a display attached), I don’t always realize it. Do you know of any software or web services that could run in the background, and if the machine freezes, alert me via email or text?
Some Macs have automatic restarting features built right in to System Preferences. One such preference, which many Macs have, is the ability to restart after a power outage. But another preference that fewer Macs have is the ability to restart after the computer freezes. (Curiously, Apple doesn’t say why some Macs can do this and some can’t in the Help documentation.)
Mac OS X Lion seems to implement this functionality across many different Mac models.
To see if your Mac has this feature, head to System Preferences > Energy Saver, and look at the checkboxes near the bottom of the screen. If your Mac supports the feature, you will see an option for “Restart automatically if the computer freezes.” We’ve noticed that this feature seems to be standard on most modern Macs running OS X Lion.
With this option checked, the OS will automatically restart the computer if it locks up or becomes unresponsive. It’s an especially nifty feature for servers without a display.
GOT A TECH QUESTION OR A HELPFUL TIP TO SHARE?
Email ask@maclife.com or write to Mac|Life,
4000 Shoreline Ct, Suite 400, South San Francisco, CA 94080
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
How To Block Web Sites at the Router Level for Network Wide Filtering - How-To Geek
A comprehensive network filtering system is overkill if all you want to do is block a handful of web sites. Read on as we show you how—with nothing more than your router—you can selectively block and temporarily restrict individual websites.
For many people a massive commercial internet filter is overkill. What if you just want to block Facebook when your kids are supposed to be doing their homework or Reddit when you’re supposed to be getting work done? You don’t need a huge system for that, all you need is the access restrictions module in your router. Today we’re looking at how you can quickly and easily block traffic on your network using router-based access restrictions.
What You’ll Need
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/whatyouneedtomato.jpg'/></p>
For this tutorial you’ll won’t need much and you won’t have to spend a dime. Before proceed make sure you have the following things:
- A Tomato compatible router
- A copy of Tomato on the router
- Administrative access to the router
We’re going to go through the tutorial as using a Linksys router running Tomato custom firmware. The steps we’re taking are largely equivalent to the DD-WRT system (you can read about selective domain blocking for DD-WRT here). If you don’t have Tomato installed on your router check out our guide to installing Tomato here. If you have it installed and you have administrative access (you know the login password for the control panel) then you’re ready to proceed.
Setting Up URL Filters in Tomato
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_131534.jpg'/></p>
For our example we’re going to setup both a total ban and a time-based ban on the social news site Reddit. Reddit fans among us will attest to the fact that the site, as fun as it can be, is an enormous time sink and a great productivity killer. First let’s take a look at the Access Restriction module in Tomato. Navigate to your router control panel, typically an address like http://192.168.1.1 and plug in your credentials. Once you’re in the main panel navigate to Access Restriction in the left hand menu—seen above. Click on it to enter the sub-menu. If you’ve never used the feature before all you’ll see in the Access Restriction Overview section is a disabled example entry like so:
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_132959.jpg'/></p>
Just beneath the example entry, to the right, is the Add button. Click that now to create your first entry.
For our first entry we’re going to make a filter, called Reddit Killer, which blocks Reddit all day, every day. Change the description name from New Rule to Reddit Killer, check All Day and Everyday, leave Applies to as All Computers/Devices, and then uncheck Block All Internet Access—if you don’t check this part, you won’t be able to specify what exactly you want to block. It should look like this:
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_133429.jpg'/></p>
When you unchecked Block All Internet Access, an entire new portion of the menu unfolded beneath the initial entry. Within this portion of the menu is where we’re going to specify the sites we want to block.
Leave the Port/Applications section alone (these settings allow you to get more granular control over your filters such as filtering only BitTorrent or a specific port). In the HTTP Request section enter reddit.com and then, at the bottom right corner, click Save.
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_140651.jpg'/></p>
Back at the main screen you should see the new filter, Reddit Killer, with it’s rather encompassing “Everyday” schedule. Let’s take a look at Reddit and see if our filter is active:
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_144143.jpg'/></p>
Reddit is down? Well then. We’d better get back to work. Our filter is great success.
If you’re not quite ready for a full Reddit fast but you’d like to at least keep it shut off while you’re trying to focus on work, you can easily modify the scheduling component to, say, restrict access between 8AM and 5PM on the weekdays. Let’s click on Reddit Killer now so we can edit it.
<p><img alt='' src='http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-11-22_142424.jpg'/></p>
Uncheck All Day and Everyday, then in the new options which have appeared, select 08:00-17:00 and Monday through Friday. While we’re at it, let’s update the Description to better reflect the purpose of the filter. Since we’re restricting access to the evenings, we’ll call our new filter Reddit Tonight.
To register the changes, click save down in the lower right corner. If you wish to further massage the settings (such as applying the restrictions to only certain computers) you can pull down the Applies To menu and create white/black lists of computers that are restricted or unrestricted. You can also easily expand your filter by adding new lines into the HTTP request box. Instead of just a Reddit Killer it could be expanded to include all the web sites you routine kill time on (Reddit, Facebook, Fark, and so on). In addition to filtering web sites you can also set up keyword filters. In short, if it’s travelling through your network you can find a way to filter it in the Access Restrictions menu.
Have a clever technique for getting more out of Tomato and/or filtering time wasting web sites and other undesirable content? Let’s hear about it in the comments.
Friday, November 18, 2011
How to Prepare Your Hand-Me-Down iPhone 4 via lifehacker.com
Congratulations on your upgrade to an iPhone 4S! What are you going to do with your old iPhone 4? If you're like me, you want to give it to a spouse, partner, child or friend, because they've got an older, lousier phone. But is it possible? Doesn't the iPhone 4 have a weird micro-SIM? Here's how.
First, let's wipe your old phone. We're going to assume that you've already backed up your phone and transferred the data to your new iPhone 4S. If not, do that first in iTunes by right clicking on your iPhone icon in the left column and hitting Back Up.
The easiest way to erase the phone of all your data and personal info is to go to the Settings app on the phone itself. Then go to General -> Reset (all the way at the bottom) -> Erase All Content and Settings. Then tap Erase iPhone to confirm. This takes a few minutes to a few hours, depending on the state of your phone.
If your recipient is upgrading from an old iPhone, make sure to back up that phone as well, so you can restore it later. You can do this while you're waiting for your iPhone 4 to wipe. Multitask!
Verizon Users
Luckily for you, Verizon users have it extremely easy, because they don't have any SIM cards to deal with. All you need to do is activate the phone on thew recipient's account, and you can do it either on the phone or online. Here's what Verizon recommends.
When you are ready, please dial *228 and SEND from the iPhone and press option 1 to activate. Then follow the prompts to complete the activation.
You can also make this change online. Below I have provided you with the steps:
- Sign in to My Verizon Express at http://www.vzw.com.
- Under the Device column, select Activate a Device.
- Select which device to change, if a multi-line account.
- Enter the ESN/MEID of the new device in the appropriate field.
- Select Next. The Review Your Changes screen displays.
- Select Next. The Plan Feature Changes Required screen displays if any current features are incompatible with the new device.
- Select Continue.
- Select the features for the new device by selecting the drop down arrows to view the options.
- Select Next. The Review Your Changes screen displays.
- Select Submit.
Note: The customer must dial *228/option 1 to complete the activation.AT&T Users
Because the iPhone 4 is the only phone on AT&T to use a micro-SIM, your recipient is almost certainly using a phone with a regular SIM. What you need to do is to shrink down a regular SIM to a micro-SIM.
I used this micro SIM cutter, which worked fantastic on the first try. (Good, because you only get one try.)
To eject the micro-SIM tray, just use a very thin paper clip, or a sewing needle, and push down into the micro-SIM ejector hole. You'll need to use a little bit of force, but not so much that you're trying to punish your phone.
Now, take your regular-sized SIM and slot it into the cutter, then take the original micro-SIM from your iPhone 4 and visually line the two up. You want to adjust the SIM in the cutter so that there is enough margin on all four sides so the metal contact area doesn't push up against the edge. A good guideline is to make it look as similar to your old micro-SIM as possible.
Line the SIM up and clamp the cutter down hard enough so the SIM remains in place and doesn't slide around, but not too hard so you actually start punching out the SIM. Practice what carpenters and mohels preach: Measure twice, cut once. Ensure your SIM is lined up, then push down HARD and FAST to get a clean punch.
All that's left is putting the newly-cut SIM into the micro-SIM slot and inserting it back into the iPhone 4. If you're confused which end is which, the ejection hole faces toward the bottom of the phone (the speaker or Home button).
Then, connect your phone to iTunes to activate, and you're done. If the lucky new owner of your iPhone 4 had an iTunes backup of their own phone, you can restore it by right clicking on the iPhone in the left hand side of iTunes, and clicking Restore From Backup.
That's it! Now both of you have iPhones, and you can iMessage and FaceTime each other until one of you gets bored or annoyed.
Turning a micro-SIM back into a SIM
If you ever want to use that micro-SIM in a normal phone (like an Android phone, for example) that takes a regular SIM, you'll need to use an adapter. The micro-SIM cutter we recommended above comes with two micro-SIM adapters in order to use that micro-SIM in a normal, non-iPhone 4 phone. They're "good enough" but not great. You can get this adapter for $1, which has better reviews.
Best Chrome Extensions via www.makeuseof.com
Bookmarking
Diigo
A perfect tool for students/researchers. Diigo lets you highlight, sticky, share and save web pages for organization.Read Later Fast
Read selected content both online and offline. It includes an excellent interface for organization of content you want to save quickly and easily.Xmarks
Xmarks syncs your data across both computers and browsers. With Xmarks, you’ll also be just a few clicks away from your bookmarks, passwords and tabs.
Browsing Aids
Autopager
With Autopager, the next page on a website is loaded automatically as you scroll. Won’t work with every site but is compatible with many, including The New York Times, Google, and Amazon.Clickable Links
This extension automatically detects and turns any link text into a hyperlink.Download Assistant
Download Assistant lets you use third party download managers in place of the default manager in Chrome.FlashBlock
As the name suggests, this extensions will block Flash from running in Chrome. You can whitelist sites, however, so that Flash isn’t blocked when it is crucial.Goo.gl URL Shortener
This handy extension lets you shorten URLs with Google URL shortener from the browser itself.Hover Zoom
Hover Zoom solves this by making images larger when you hover your cursor over them.Scroll to Top Button
This button scrolls to the top of an open web page, instantly. That’s about all there is to it, but that’s enough to make it useful.Plain Clothes
Plain Clothes reduces webpages to a less attractive, but simpler, format.Stylish
Stylish lets a user add their own style elements to a website and the save them. The opposite of Plain Clothes.Readability
This extension cuts fancy features and sexy styles and enhances the text, but only when you want it to.Bubble Translate
Bubble Translate allows you to translate specific text on a web page immediately.Google Dictionary by Google
Want to know what that word means? Just double click! A definition will appear in a pop-up bubble. A number of major languages are supported.
Developer Tools
colorPicker 0.9
ColorPicker 0.9 lets you experiment with colour and hex codes.IETab
IETab helps developers who enjoy Chrome see what their sites look like in IE. Simple, but crucial.Image Properties Context Menu
Displays the properties of an image and makes that information easier to access.IP Address
With this extension, you can find out your IP in the blink of an eye.PageRank Status
What’s the PageRank of your site? This extension will help you keep track of your site’s performance from the Chrome toolbar.Pendule
Consider Pendule to be a toolbox. It can validate code, disable style elements on the fly, show hidden page elements, and much more. Must-have for serious developers.QR Code Generator
Want to let a visitor send something to their mobile device? This extension will create QR codes with no fuss.Speed Tracer (by Google)
Web page performance can impact its ranking in Google. This tool will help you see how your site’s load times fair, and provide what you need to find the culprits behind slow performance.WhatFont?
See a font that you like? Use WhatFont and discover what font it is in seconds.Zemanta
Zemanta is a blogging dashboard designed for bloggers who frequently make reference to other online content. It supports popular blog platforms including WordPress, TypePad and Blogger.
WiseStamp
WiseStamp makes it easier to send out a signature with your social networking information with all of your emails or just some, if that is what you prefer.Minimalist for Gmail
Allows you to disable entire features, change colors, and more in Gmail.Boomerang for Gmail
Do you know that you need to send an email, but you won’t be near your PC? Boomerang adds email scheduling functionality to Gmail.Mail Checker Plus
Allows Gmail to perform more like a stand-alone client, such as a preview pane and desktop notifications.Offline Google Mail
Another extension that fills the gap between Gmail and traditional email clients.Send From Gmail (by Google)
Allows you to compose email in Gmail whenever you click on an email address. Quite handy, and works smoothly.Rapportive
Rapportive searches and displays available information about your email contact, including their occupation, photo, and even location.
Maps and Weather
Full Screen Google Maps
This is an excellent extension lets you make Google Maps full screen. Great for browsing Maps.QR Maps
Need another way to send maps from Google Maps on your computer to your mobile device? QR Maps generates a code that can be read by a smartphone’s camera.Rain Alarm
Thinking of going for a walk, but don’t want to get rained on? Rain Alarm can help by alerting you when precipitation is incoming. It tracks snow, too.Weather Watcher Live
This simple weather extension adds a real-time temperature readout to Chrome, which can be clicked for additional local weather information.Quickrr
Click on the Quickrr icon, enter the search term, and you’ll be directed to Google Maps search results instantly.
Mobile
Android Push Contacts
Push, shove, and send contacts from your browser to your phone. You can even send SMS messages straight from your computer.MightyText
Another way to send SMS messages to and from your Android while using Chrome. Requires its smartphone counterpart.
Music / Video
Anesidora
Like Pandora? Don’t want to keep it open in a tab while listening? Anesidora can help by building Internet radio straight in to Chrome.Clea.nr Videos
Another un-styling extension focused on YouTube and Amazon video. It eliminates almost everything on a page except for the video itself.Auto HD for Youtube
The name says it all. With Auto HD, you’ll never have to mess with YouTube resolution settings again.Illimutix
Great extension for those who download videos online. It bypasses the free usage restrictions of sites like MegaVideo.Radio Player Live
Bored with Pandora? Radio Player Live is a multi-channel online radio player. You’ll need to download additional plug-ins, but the effort is worthwhile.Turn Off The Lights
This extension solves the problem of videos embedded on light backgrounds with a single mouse click.Xbox Live Dashboard
This Chrome dashboard will let you go on Xbox Live. It includes a friends list and allows for reading and replying to messages.YouTube Options
No surprises here. With YouTube Options you’re able to make change how the site looks or disable certain video features, such as annotations.Easy YouTube Downloader
Download any video from YouTube s MP3, high definition MP4, or FLV. Adds a download button to YouTube video pages.
News and Feeds
Feedly
This extension organizes feeds into an attractive thumbnail-and-headline centered format.Google Alerter
Need to be notified of the latest events from multiple sources? Google Alerter draws information from Google Reader, Gmail, Voice and Wave at once.iReader
Despite the name, this as nothing to do with Apple. It’s a reader that strips out extraneous page elements and allows users to view multiple feeds at once.NewsSquares
This feed reader organizes feeds visually in your web browser. It’s the most attractive reader around, very functional.RSS Subscription Extension (by Google)
A must-have for anyone who uses RSS. Automatically places a RSS subscription button in the browser when you visit a page that supports RSS.Unburner
Unburner removes junk data from RSS subscriptions. You’ll no longer have to slog through Feedburner code you don’t need to see.Minimalist for Google Reader
Minimalist for Google Reader can significantly clean up the interface and completely customizable.
Productivity
Send to Google Docs
This extension lets you save websites using your Google Account and sends it to Google Docs and is thus accessible from any PC.StayFocused
StayFocused can help by providing an on-screen timer and alerting you when you’ve wasted more time than you’d wanted.Sumo Paint
Sumo Paint is a web-only image editor. It is free, quick, and acts as a real web app.Time Tracker
Logs how much time you spend on various websites. Keeps track of your productivity if you don’t have a boss leering over your back.Write Space
This text editor is easy to use, and the app is entirely self-contained and offline, so it can be used at any time on any computer with Chrome.Webpage Screenshot
Takes a PNG/JPG image of a website which can then be shared. Because it captures an image, the content you share can’t be changed, altered or taken down.Minimalist for Google Calendar
Much like the Gmail extension, Minimalist offers a wide range of customizations for Google Calendar.Awesome Screenshot
Awesome Screenshot makes it possible to capture all or part of a webpage as an image, then annotate or apply basic edits if you desire.Cloud Save
Save online content using the cloud service or services of your choice. Save links, images and more by right clicking and using the new menu option.Quick Note
Quick Note allows you to type and organize notes online, then access them on other computers with your Diigo account.Mega Button
Mega Button acts a simple interface improvement that makes many features of Chrome accessible from a single “mega” button.Smooth Gestures
Smooth Gestures makes it even easier to navigate your browser through mouse gestures. Many functions are available, and gestures can be customized.
Security
Click&Clean
This extension clean your hard disk, scan for malware, erase temporary files, and much more.Ghostery
Ghostery takes the veil off the web, exposing tracking cookies, hidden page elements, and much more.Hide My Ass! Web Proxy
Sometimes you may want to bypass site restrictions or browser the web anonymously. Hide My Ass! can help by sending your connection through a proxy server.LastPass
Saves and encrypts your passwords on the LastPass web server. Log in to websites with a single click.Personal Blocklist (by Google)
Frankly, this should be included by default. It adds the ability to block websites that you find suspicious (or just annoying) at any time. They’ll no longer appear in search results.ScriptNo
Tired of websites running scripts without permission? ScriptNo can fix that by blocking some or all of them.ViewThru
With ViewThru, you’ll be able to see the full site URL before clicking on any shorted link, which can be a huge benefit in terms of security.Web of Trust
Web of Trust rates websites based on the experiences of others, so you can avoid sites that are known to be harmful and stick to those known to be legit.
Shopping
Add to Amazon Wish List
Wse this extension to add anything you want to your Amazon wish list. Wish List is also available on most smartphones via Amazon’s mobile app.Currency Converter
Looking to buy something from a store that doesn’t use your currency? Currency Converter supports most world currencies and can convert to multiple currencies at once.eBay Extension for Chrome
This official eBay extension is essential for anyone who uses the site frequently. It notifies you have new bids, allows for easy auction monitoring, and much more.Ookong
Of the several Amazon price trackers on the market, this is the best. It provides a clear and accurate price history for items on Amazon.PriceBlink
PriceBlink’s big advantage is that it is cross-platform and cross-store. It will help you find pricing on products from multiple stores.
Social Stuff
Amplify
Amplify lifts character limits in social networks and makes it easier to share blog posts. And as a bonus, clips you share can be viewed later in the Amplog.Buffer for Chrome
Buffer helps by putting your tweets in a queue and sending them out over time. You can write many tweets at once, and then have them sent throughout the day.Facebook for Chrome
This unofficial extension brings Facebook features to the Chrome interface. Must-have for anyone who frequently checks the news feed or uses the chat features.No Theater Facebook Image Gallery
Removes the newer Facebook Image Gallery in favor of the older solution, where each image was displayed on its own page.Pigeon Carrier
Pigeon Carrier makes it possible to share files over Twitter using your Dropbox account. Share files in your tweets by clicking the Add Attachment button.Reddit Companion
A must-have for any Reddit fan, this extension places site functions such as vote, save and more in the Chrome interface.Replies and More for Google+
Want to reply to someone who has posted an update on Google+? This extension adds Reply and Reply to Author links, as well as a few other seemingly random enhancements.Silverbird
Once installed, Silverbird makes it possible to access Twitter functions from a button in the Chrome interface.Shareaholic
This simple link sharing extension can connect with a number of social networking services including Facebook, Twitter, Evernote and more.Surplus
Surplus provides access to Google Plus in Chrome through an interface button. Desktop notifications are also available.TweetDeck
Another alternative Twitter interface, TweetDeck works in full screen and re-arranges the interface so you can see more at once.G+me for Google+
Like Google+, but feeling a bit overwhelmed by the updates to your stream? G+me simplifies this by making comments collapsible. Also adds notification features that will help you stay informe.eBuddy Web Messenger
Just a nice, unified web messenger built in to Chrome. It supports Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo!, FaceBook Chat, AIM and more.
Tab Management
MuteTab
It lets you mute audio from as many tabs as you’d want, so you can listen to what you want to without interference from other sites.Reload All Tabs
Reloads all open tabs. Obviously, that’s much quicker than reloading each tab individually, so this is a must-have for serious tabaholics.TabCloud
Tab Cloud lets you transfer your browsing session from one computer to another. You can also see saved sessions with a built-in interface.Tabs Expose
This extension provides an alternative tab interface that includes thumbnail previews. It’s a good choice for users who keep 5-20 tabs open at once.TabsPlus
TabsPlus lets you modify the default behaviors of tabs. You can change what happens when a new tab is opened, or the tab Chrome will switch to when you close an open tab.Tab Scissors
Snip! Now your single browser window is cut in two. This is an awesome extension for people who need to compare websites or online documents side-by-side.TooManyTabs
Designed for people who keep 20+ tabs open at a time, this extension offers a unique tiled tab interface, tab search, tab restore, and much more.Speed Dial
Speed Dial replicates the functionality of the New Tab page, but allows for customization. Specific sites can be added or removed.
Disclaimer: All extensions listed were thoroughly reviewed. MakeUseOf is not responsible for any damage and/or data loss
that might result from use of any of the above mentioned extensions.
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