Computers and hardware

How to edit OS X system files with TextEdit

Underneath its slick interface, OS X has a number of hidden configuration files that contain the settings for default and standard behaviors. While in most cases these files being hidden is good for system stability and security, sometimes you may need to access one for troubleshooting purposes or to apply small customizations to the system.

Often these files can be accessed with simple one-line Terminal commands, as is commonly seen with the "defaults" command for editing program or service property lists; however, at other times you might need to make more extensive edits to a settings file. When … Read more

How to control which apps can access your contacts on OS X

When Apple released OS X Mountain Lion, it included some extra controls to help you keep personal information private. One area of personal information you now have control over is your Contact list. Prior to OS X 10.8, apps could access your Address Book (the name changed to Contacts with Mountain Lion) without alerting you, or requesting your permission.

When you run an app on OS X Mountain Lion for the first time, and it tries to access your Contacts, you'll see an alert similar to that above. Clicking OK will allow the app to access your Contacts, … Read more

Home networking explained, Part 3: Taking control of your wires

Editors' note: This post is part of an ongoing series. For the other parts, check out the related stories.

Now that you have learned about the basics of home networking in Part 1, and how to optimize your Wi-Fi in Part 2, in Part 3, it's time to get your hands dirty and learn how to take control of your network completely.

All home networks start with a network cable. Even if you plan on using all wireless clients, in most cases you will still need at least one cable to connect the wireless router and the broadband modem. … Read more

How to replace a broken laptop screen

Whether it's cracked or has one too many blown pixels, a broken laptop display can stop you dead in your tracks. But with the right tools, a little technical know-how, and a bit of patience you can replace a damaged LCD.

Note: In this article, I show you how to replace the screen on an Asus UL50V notebook, which has an LED-backlit LCD. Depending on the make and model of your laptop, the internal hardware and specific steps may vary. The general process, however, should be the same.

Should you try this fix? If accidental damage is covered under … Read more

How to prevent a volume from mounting at boot in OS X

OS X will automatically attempt to mount an attached volume when the system is started, and if successful the volume will appear in the Finder either in the sidebar or on your desktop if you have these options enabled. However, there may be instances such as in multi-boot environments when you might want a specific volume to remain unmounted.

With multiple boot volumes in a system, when loaded in one operating system it is relatively easy to access and edit important files on the boot disk of other operating systems. Therefore, keeping the unused boot drive unmounted may be a … Read more

How to ensure tracks play in sequence in iTunes

A previous post, Six tips for managing your iTunes library, described how to use iTunes' "Part of a gapless album" option to ensure related tracks that iTunes treats as separate files always play in their intended sequence.

As several commenters pointed out, the tip doesn't work as I described. The gapless option functions only when the two sequential album tracks are played in the order they were imported to iTunes.

The fact is, once album tracks are added to your iTunes library as separate files, it's easy for them to lose their association as contiguous album … Read more

Track expenses (or anything else) in Google Docs using Gmail

Quick question: do you use Gmail or Google Docs more frequently?

If you answered the former, this handy trick may be of interest. It allows you to add data to a spreadsheet in Google Docs from a form you can quickly access from your Gmail inbox. This form can even be accessed on your phone (at least in my case, using an iPhone 4S and both the native Mail app and the Gmail app).

Here are the steps needed to set it up:

1. Create a spreadsheet in Google Docs.

2. From the Tools menu, select Create a form.

3. … Read more

Get more out of Spotify with Swarm.fm

I occasionally catch a glimpse of what my Spotify-using Facebook friends are listening to when their activity flashes by on Facebook's sidebar, and I can see published playlists on Spotify of the few friends that endeavored to publish such playlists. Other than these two outlets, my Spotify experience thus far has been rather a solitary one. Until I installed Swarm.fm.

Swarm.fm is a Spotify app. It can be found in the App Finder, which you can access in the Apps section in Spotify's left panel. After installing, you'll see a Swarm.fm entry gets added … Read more

How to use TextWrangler as a remote file editor

If you regularly access remote servers using the secure shell (SSH) command in your Mac's Terminal, often you will do so to simply edit a configuration file or two. This is normally done using a Terminal-based text editor such as vi, nano, or emacs; however, even though these programs can be fairly powerful options, often they simply lack in both ease and capability when compared to GUI-based editors like the TextWrangler, a popular and free editor from BareBones software.

Unfortunately being a full GUI application, TextWrangler will not run in the Terminal so you cannot use a remote copy … Read more