Archive for the ‘Mac OS X’ Category
Unpack Compressed Files with WinRar
While working with your computer you surely have come across files in the .zip or .rar format. These are so called packed or compressed files, their function is to store multiple files and/or folders into one single file and compress them so they are easier to send and waste less space. Windows has a built-in function to pack and unpack files: to compress files, just right-click them and select Send to > Compressed (zipped) folder. To uncompress, right-click the zipped file, select Extract all… and choose a directory where to put the uncompressed folder. However there is a more powerful tool called WinRar which is easy to handle, has a bunch of useful functions and also supports another compressing format, .rar which is safer than zipped compression if provided with a password. WinRar is downloadable for free as a 30-day trial version and reminds you to buy the full version after 30 days but is still usable then. You can download the appropriate version for your system here:
http://www.win-rar.com/download.html
Double-click the downloaded file and click Install on the appearing window. The next window displays WinRar’s configuration. The checkbox-filled panel on the left determines which formats your computer is supposed to open with WinRar. Usually all predefined settings should be alright, so click on OK.
On the next screen, click on Done to finish installation. Nearly all compressed files are now being associated with WinRar and have adopted its icon:
Uncompress files associated with WinRar by double-clicking them and drag-and-dropping its content anywhere on the screen or clicking on Extract To and choosing the target directory.
To compress files, just select the ones you want, right-click them and choose to either compress them to a .rar archive immediately or to add them to another archive (.zip or whatever you want) with more detailed options.
Clean Up Your Windows System (CCleaner)
The common computer user often does not know that a simple uninstall of a software he or she is no longer in need of will not erase the program completely but will leave traces on your hard disk. These may stack up to a fairly high size and can slow your computer down. The same goes for all kind of temporary files your system stores, the most common being temporary internet files. Deleting these files manually can be a hard thing to do, especially if you do not know where to find those and how to recognize them. That is why there are plenty of tools on the internet that allow you to search for and erase them automatically.
One of these helpful tools is CCleaner.
CCleaner is a tool that allows you to clean up your Windows Registry (the key storage that is responsible for every kind of configuration on your system), uninstall software properly without leaving any traces, disable autostart processes, delete all kinds of temporary files and even format your hard drives and overwrite them up to 35 times so that your old files will no longer be accessible by any usual means.
CCleaner for Windows can be downloaded here: http://download.piriform.com/ccsetup311.exe
It is also available for Mac on: http://download.piriform.com/mac/CCMac1.00.077.dmg
CCleaner’s menu is divided into four main options, being Cleaner, Registry, Tools and Options. The Cleaner section is there for deleting temporary files, cookies, recent documents and other stored files of that kind. The Registry section searches the registry for disposable entries such as missing shared DDLs, unused file extensions or obsolete software and gives you the option to delete these entries. In the Tools section you can uninstall software, delete system restore points and wipe your hard drives empty. Options, speaking for itself, lets you configure your settings, mainly to include or exclude data from being deleted.
The fast magnifying glass for zoom the MAC screen
Want to zoom your MAC screen easy, fast and steplessly?
You only have to keep the CTRL key pressed and use the Mousewheel to zoom in and out.
On new MacBooks you can also use the touchpad with two! fingers up and down to zoom.
Hint: If you don’t scroll back to normal view, the screen remains sometimes in a “strange” mode.
Activating the Keyboard Viewer for Special Characters
Use the keyboard viewer if you are looking for special or foreign chars or if you just forgot where to find the backslash e.g.
1.: Choose Apple menu -> System Preferences and click International
2.: Click Input Menu, then toggle the checkbox next to Keyboard Viewer
3.: Toggle the language whose keyboard layout you want to use
4.: Choose Show Keyboard Viewer from the Input menu (international symbol) on the right side of the menu bar (to the left of the Time)
So you get this… very useful:
Keyboard Viewer
How to eject a CD on a MAC mini with PC keyboard and mouse
There are several options to eject a CD or DVD when the mac mini fails to boot, but most of them dont work if you do not have a mac keayboard at hand. The following options work with a PC keayboard and mouse:
Press the left mouse key while you restart the mac or as alternative press [F12] while the mac is restarted. You have to keep the key pressed until the CD is ejected.