logging

When a program unexpectedly quits in OS X, the system will activate the crash reporter that will generate a report that includes the memory backtrace for each thread and other information about the crashed process. This can be used to help troubleshoot the situations or be submitted to developers so erroneous code can be tested and corrected. The crash reporter will by default show the full crash log on screen, but this can be changed to either show just a warning, or never show the crash reporter.

The setting to do this is hidden in the system, but it can … Read more

There are a number of remote access apps that let you gain control of a PC or a Mac using your iPad. (Many of these apps also work with the iPhone, but I have found that accessing a computer on such a small device is best used only in the case of emergency. Navigating a high-resolution system from the iPad can still feel a bit cramped, but not so much that that you can't use it comfortably.) Remote access apps for the iPad range from the enterprise to the free, and I recently tried out three: LogMeIn Ignition, Splashtop Remote Desktop, … Read more

If you've found a new travel companion in your iPad, you are no doubt charmed by its various entertainment features, from its prowess at playing movies, music, and games to its roles as e-reader, photo viewer, and news gatherer. The iPad, however, can be more than an entertainment device. There are a number of remote desktop apps, for instance, that let you use the iPad to tunnel into your PC or laptop. So, in addition to Angry Birds Rio HD, use can use your iPad to gain control of your Mac at home or your PC at work. In this tutorial, I will walk you through using LogMeIn Ignition.

You may have used LogMeIn before to access a remote PC from another PC via a Web browser; Ignition is the company's iOS app that lets you use an iPhone or iPad. Priced at $29.99, LogMeIn Ignition is one of the more expensive apps you'll find in the app store. Considering its many features and the fact that it doesn't necessarily saddle you with a monthly subscription cost, the $30 charge begins to look reasonable. For this tutorial, I used an iPad 2 and the latest version of Ignition (2.1.299).… Read more

Internet providers would be forced to keep logs of their customers' activities for one year--in case police want to review them in the future--under legislation that a U.S. House of Representatives committee approved today.

The 19 to 10 vote represents a victory for conservative Republicans, who made data retention their first major technology initiative after last fall's elections, and the Justice Department officials who have quietly lobbied for the sweeping new requirements, a development first reported by CNET.

A last-minute rewrite of the bill expands the information that commercial Internet providers are required to store to include customers' … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed in by our readers. This week readers wrote in asking questions about options for installing larger hard drives in MacBook Pro systems, managing larger ASL log files, how to customize Time Machine's scheduling, and managing PowerPC helper applications in OS X 10.7 Lion. We continually answer e-mail questions, and though we present a few answers here, we welcome alternative approaches and views from readers and encourage you to post your suggestions in the comments.

Question: Installing larger hard drives in a MacBook Pro MacFixIt reader "Matt&… Read more

Microsoft has released some of the source code for the software it uses to collect details of people's Wi-Fi hot spots, so that it can be examined for privacy implications.

In a blog post on Friday, Reid Kuhn, partner group program manager for the Windows Phone engineering team, said the publication of the code should demonstrate Microsoft's commitment to privacy and ensuring the protection of people's information.

The code released by Microsoft is part of that used in an activity it dubs "managed driving," whereby Microsoft uses cars to collect cell tower, Wi-Fi, and GPS … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed in by our readers. This week there were questions on using keyboard shortcuts with OS X's application services, log-in items no longer launching automatically, migration recommendations for new Macs, and the longevity of Microsoft's DOCX format. We continually answer e-mail questions, and though we present a few answers here, we welcome alternative approaches and views from readers and encourage you to post your suggestions in the comments.

Question: Using keyboard shorcuts with application services MacFixIt reader "lew" asks:

Generally when you're logging out of your account in OS X the system will ask for confirmation, and will wait for you to close unsaved documents before it closes your log-in session; however, on rare occasions your system may suddenly log out without you telling it to. At one moment you will be working, and the next moment the system will suddenly show either the log-in screen or the open Finder only.

MacFixIt reader "53pickup" wrote in with this exact experience:

If you usually keep a known amount of hard-drive space clear, and suddenly find your system running low on space, a problem with the way the system handles log files may be to blame. You can use a tool like DaisyDisk or GrandPerspective to check the relative file sizes on disk, and if the problem is because of large log files then you may see these programs report one or two files using a large proportion of the hard drive. Many times a random increase in disk usage can be attributed to a problem with OS X's log management … Read more