boot

Gray progress bar showing at start-up

When you boot OS X 10.6 to Safe Mode by holding the Shift key after hearing the boot chimes, you will see a gray progress bar appear at the bottom of the initial gray Apple screen. While this bar is showing the system will run various maintenance tasks such as checking the filesystem and clearing some caches, after which it will load into Safe Mode. This process should only happen if you intentionally boot into Safe Mode, but there may be instances in which you see it happen at each boot, even if no keys are held during bootup.… Read more

The 404 822: Where there's too many chefs in the kitchen (podcast)

The Internet can be a breeding ground for bad ideas, and today's show highlights a few of them, like naming your kid after a Facebook button, making a fatal planking error, and replacing McDonald's cashiers with robots. There's good news today too, though--Seth MacFarlane just got the green light to reboot "The Flintstones."

The 404 Digest for Episode 822

Israeli couple names their kid "Like." Australian man planks to death...this is probably the Internet's fault. McDonald's in Europe to replace cashiers with touch-screen terminals. "The Flintstones" getting a reboot by Seth MacFarlane.

Episode 822 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

How to create an external boot disk in OS X

One of the convenient features in early versions of Windows (yes, Windows) was the ability to easily create an MS-DOS boot disk out of any floppy disk, which could then be used to troubleshoot certain problems with the system. Given how difficult it was to load and reload operating systems, this type of feature came in rather handy, but while current operating systems can be loaded and configured much easier, having an alterate boot source is just as important (if not more so) to have around.

In OS X creating an alternate boot device can easily be done, with no … Read more

Apple Boot Camp update fixes Japanese, Korean keyboard issues

This morning Apple released a new line of iMac models that contain quad-core "Sandy Bridge" processors, faster graphics, and support for the new Thunderbolt I/O technology. These new machines may be an enticing buy, though if you plan to install Windows 7 via Boot Camp, be sure to install the latest Boot Camp update, especially if you are using Japanese and Korean languages.

Apparently the included Boot Camp drivers on the new iMacs have problems with handling Japanese and Korean keyboard layouts. Apple does not specify what these problems are, but has released an update to the … Read more

Options for backing up a Mac that will not start up

Many times when systems have troubles that may take an extensive amount of troubleshooting to sort out, the easiest solution is to perform a system reinstallation. Before doing this, though, it is always advised to have a backup of your system (or your data at the very least); however, in instances where you cannot boot your system, this may seem impossible to do. Despite this, if you have a system that cannot boot but you need to back up, there are some options available to back up the drive before wiping it clean.

The first thing you will need is … Read more

Apple releases hard-drive firmware update for 2010 iMacs

Apple has released a firmware update for the mid-2010 iMac systems (both 21.5- and 27-inch models) that addresses a problem where the systems were not booting properly. The update is a small 767KB download that should be available through Software Update for relevant systems, but can also be downloaded directly from the update's Web page.

The update will require you to restart your computer, and especially since this one affects the storage medium on your system, be sure to fully back up your hard drive before installing. Download and run the installer file, and follow the onscreen instructions … Read more

More Windows 8 leaks reveal cloud syncing

More details about Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 have apparently leaked onto the Web, revealing new surprises and some makeovers to existing features.

A greater peek into the next version of Windows is coming from Windows 8 Milestone 1, also known as Build 7850, which started popping up at various FTP and file-sharing sites last week. This build was released to Microsoft partners late last year. Milestone 2 has since been released, while Milestone 3 has reportedly been compiled. But combined with details from more recent builds, Windows users can get a glimpse into what the future may hold.

One … Read more

Time Machine causes kernel panic

Users may find that kernel panics can occur when running system utilities like Time Machine when other programs are installed and causing issues. The problem can be narrowed to a third-party installation by booting in Safe Mode. If Time Machine runs properly in Safe Mode, an extension or program is causing your crashes.

Apple Support Discussions forum user BasementJack writes:

Time machine Crashes (Kernel panic) when Run normally. When I boot in Safe mode, it runs fine. Is there a list of programs known to cause issues with Time Machine? If not where should I look? I assume my ID'… Read more

How to boot to Safe Mode in OS X

Often when troubleshooting systems, you might wish to boot into Safe Mode to run in a minimized boot environment to test if a third-party extension or add-on is causing problems with your machine. In addition, booting to Safe Mode also runs some cleaning and maintenance routines on your system, which can help iron out problems.

Most people know about using the keyboard to boot to Safe Mode, by pressing the Shift key down after hearing the boot chimes, and holding it until you see the grey Apple icon with the spinning indicator below it. You may also see a progress … Read more