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Category: Problem Solving

Joe Kissell 33 comments

Solving the Photoshop Elements Color Shift Problem

Do photos that look great in Photoshop Elements appear dull and lifeless on the Web? Joe Kissell investigates the problem (at the behest of a well-known Parisian food writer) and finds a solution or two.

Rich Mogull 31 comments

Banging My Head Against iCal Server’s Limitations

After putting up with basic calendaring limitations that Apple failed to improve in Snow Leopard, Snow Leopard Server, and iPhone OS 3.0, Rich Mogull worries that his devotion to Apple server technologies may be indication of mental disorder.

Doug McLean 5 comments

New iMac Screens Cracking and Flickering

Reports of Apple's latest iMacs arriving with cracked screens and faulty displays have been circulating around the Web. Here's a look at the symptoms, suspected causes, and what you can do about it if you're affected.

Doug McLean 3 comments

iPhoto 8.1.1 Fixes Face Recognition Bug

Apple has updated iPhoto '09 with a fix for a bug that prevented the Faces feature from properly recognizing matches for already-identified faces. The update also addresses an issue with book ordering and improves iPod touch support.

Doug McLean 4 comments

iFixit Releases Mac Repair Manuals

iFixit, the Mac repair and troubleshooting blog, has announced the release of over 200 repair manuals for the iMac and Mac mini. The manuals, all free for download, cover every iteration of the iMac and Mac mini produced since 2004. The manuals provide detailed disassembly guides, troubleshooting methods, and information regarding upgrades and model identification. iFixit has simultaneously launched an online iMac parts store that provides hard drives, RAM, power supplies, and tools for taking your machine apart.

Matt Neuburg 7 comments

How to Fix Snow Leopard’s Finder-Copying Bug

Certain files can't be copied from one computer to another via File Sharing in Snow Leopard. The cause of the bug has to do with permissions on symlinks. Here's how to detect troublesome symlinks and fix them.

Adam Engst 5 comments

Fix 10.6.2’s Broken Slide Show Screen Saver

Mac OS 10.6.2 made a small change to the Slide Show screen saver that displays images from folders and from iPhoto, causing it to hang when pointed at large folders or iPhoto collections.

Jeff Carlson 23 comments

Mac OS X 10.6.2 Addresses Myriad Bugs and Security Issues

Mac OS X 10.6.2 is now available, fixing many bugs and security issues in many areas of Snow Leopard. Notably, the update squashes a nasty bug that may delete a regular user account when logged in following a Guest login session.

Doug McLean 5 comments

Snow Leopard Bug Prevents Opening Groups of Files

Find yourself unable to open multiple files from Snow Leopard's Finder simultaneously? You're not alone, and while Apple hasn't yet officially acknowledged or fixed the bug, some suggested workarounds do exist.

Doug McLean No comments

iPhoto ’09 Faces Bug Awaits Apple Update

A bug in iPhoto '09 has plagued many users trying to use the Faces face-recognition feature. Although no workaround is available, reports indicate Apple is working on an update.

Matt Neuburg 20 comments

Tracking Down Snow Leopard’s Apple Events Bug

You may think you don't care about Apple events, but they're everywhere, and on Snow Leopard they're ever so slightly broken, in a way that causes intermittent random-looking scripting failures. Here's how the bug was discovered, proved, and reported to Apple.

Doug McLean 2 comments

Apple Acknowledges Guest Account Data Loss Bug

With user complaints piling up since September, Apple has now publicly acknowledged a nasty data-destroying bug related to using the guest account in Snow Leopard.

Adam Engst 41 comments

Make Old Apple Printers Work in Snow Leopard

Do you have an old Apple LaserWriter that you'd like to keep using from a Mac running Snow Leopard? The loss of AppleTalk makes it harder, but Christian Voelker figured out how to lead his LaserWriter Pro 630 into Snow Leopard's territory, and his experience should help people with similar printers.

Lewis Butler 37 comments

Revealing Mac OS X’s Hidden Single-Application Mode

Interface options lurk deep within the bowels of Mac OS X, but Lewis Butler shows you how to summon one and put it to work helping you focus on just a few applications at a time.

Doug McLean No comments

Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk for 05-Oct-09

Discussion trend toward support questions this week, with several users seeking advice and help on minor Snow Leopard compatibility issues, keyboard remapping, system cache problems, Address Book syncing, and Spotlight searching. Readers also discuss chess apps for the iPhone, RIM's new BlackBerry Desktop for Mac, and the fragmentation of online communities.