Archive for October, 2007
This post will outline everything someone will need who wants to start designing new Stationery for Mail in OS X Leopard. Hopefully, this will turn into an ongoing series about Stationery in Mail.
First Attempt at Skinning the Air Mail Stationery
What you will need to create new Stationery for Mail:
- OS X 10.5 Leopard
- XCode Installed
- Photoshop (or other Image Editor capable of editing .jpg and transparent .png)
- HTML / XML Editor
- Package Maker (installed w/ XCode)
Do not overwrite existing files. If you wish to the modify existing files, backup the originals before changing anything!
The default Stationery you see in Mail is stored in a folder at the following location:
/System/Library/Application Support/Apple/Mail/Stationary/Apple/Contents/Resources/
If you navigate to this folder, you will notice a file called TableofContents.plist. This file contains the XML necessary for Mail.app to list the Categories of Mail Stationery.
Notice how each Category has it’s own Folder? By default there are Announcements, Birthday, Photos, Sentiments, and Stationery Folders. If you click on one of these folders, you will see it has it’s own directory structure: /Announcements/Contents/Resources. You will find the the actual stationery in the Resources folder for a specific Category.
There are two oddball files among the Stationery, another TableofContents.plist and an English.lproj Folder (I imagine for others running Leopard in other languages this folder may change, can someone confirm?). TableofContents.plist here is another XML document that lists the Category’s Stationery in a format Mail.app can understand. Does anyone know what the Stationery ID parameter in this file might be for? How can I create a new Stationary ID or a new piece of Stationery? The English.lproj folder contains a file called DisplayName.strings. In this file there is a comment that says: “Stationery category name as appears in the stationery selection pane in the New Message window after clicking Show Stationery toolbar item.”
If you go back to the Resources folder and Ctrl+Click on a .mailstationery file, you can select Show Package Contents from the menu. This will open the Stationery’s Directory Structure which is the same: /Stationary/Content/Resources/. Here you will find the files that make up a piece of Stationery in Mail.
There will most likely be the following basic files:
- bg_pattern.jpg : The Background Image
- top.jpg : Header Image
- bottom.jpg : Footer Image
- content.html : The HTML Template
- Description.plist : The XML File Necessary for Interactivity in Mail.app
- English.lproj folder : Contains DisplayName.strings (file that names the Stationery for Mail.app)
- thumbnail.png : The Thumbnail for the Selection Screen in Mail
Photo Stationery may have the following:
- Mask1.png : The Mask for Drop Zones
- placeholder1.jpg : The Placeholder Image for Drop Zones
- banner.jpg : Usually the Background for the Masked Drop Zones
- frames.png : The Template for the Drop Zones
The Workflow:
Do not overwrite existing files. If you wish the modify existing files, backup the originals before changing anything!
- Create New Folder for “Custom” Stationery in the Resources folder, give it the Directory Structure /Content/Resources/
- In this folder, make a file called TableofContents.plist. You will need to enter XML data here for the Individual Stationery inside the “Custom” Category. Project Folders and eventually Packages will go in this folder. An English.lproj folder with DisplayName.strings (for the Category name) must be in this folder as well.
- Make a New Folder for the new Stationery and give it the same directory structure: /Content/Resources/
- This is the folder you will place the HTML template (content.html), XML template (Description.plist), all images, and the English.lproj folder with DisplayName.strings (Name of the individual Stationery)
- Use Package Maker to create a Package for the Stationery (must have .mailstationary as a filename and the correct Directory Structure)
- Backup TableofContents.plist in /System/Library/Application Support/Apple/Mail/Stationary/Apple/Contents/Resources/
- Add new lines in TableofContents.plist for the new Category
Can anyone tell me what that the Stationery ID is for in TableofContents.plist and how to create unique Stationery IDs for new Stationery and is this necessary?
If anyone ends up creating new Stationery because they read this tutorial, I would gladly post custom templates on iUseApple.com.
Here I will show you briefly how to set up the external partition correctly for the OS X Leopard Install, make an image of the Install Disc, restore that image to the external partition, and finally how to boot from an external firewire drive.
It is a good idea to place a partition called “Mac OS X Install DVD” on an external hard drive for several reasons. The foremost is for DVD challenged Macs. Perhaps your Superdrive or Combo Drive is broken? It provides a handy method of fixing disk permissions, updating Firmware passwords, and whatever else you can do off the Install, without the actual DVD. In OS X Leopard, Time Machine can be used to Restore Backed Up versions of OS X. The catch is, it needs the Leopard Install DVD to do this. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a copy of the Leopard Install partitioned right next to our backup data on an External Hard Drive? Installing from an external hard drive can also be faster than booting off the DVD.
You will need the following:
- OS X 10.5 Leopard Install Disk and/or .dmg Disk Image
- A Mac Running OS X 10.4 Tiger
- A working DVD Drive (for those copying from DVD to External)
- External Firewire Hard Drive + FW Cable
Backup OS X Tiger 10.4 Before You Install
Before you install any new Operating System on a Mac it is highly recommended you backup your entire hard drive first to another hard drive, usually an external hard drive. I used SuperDuper! to clone OS X Tiger onto a bootable Backup Partition. You should do the same. This means we will take all our files and duplicate them onto another drive. It is really handy to own an external hard drive, mainly for this purpose and also if we want to take advantages of the instant backup nature of Time Machine in Leopard. So, before you install Leopard go out and purchase a Lacie or similar External Firewire hard drive. If you have a Mac Pro, G5 or MacBook Pro 17″ or most 15″ and 17″ PowerBooks, you should be shopping for an external hard drive with Firewire 800 connectivity. All other Macs should be connected to a Firewire 400 Hard Drive. USB 2.0 Externals will not boot on a PowerMac, but will boot using an Intel Mac.
iUseApple.com or any of it’s writers are not responsible for the damage caused to files or to a hard drive that anyone formats or partitions.
The Steps:
- Make a Disk Image (.DMG) from Install DVD using Disk Utility
- Partition External Hard Drive for Install Partition
- Restore the Partition from .DMG of Install DVD
- Restart, Booting from Install Partition
For those who have the OS X Leopard Install DVD:
Skip here if you already have a .dmg file.
Make a .DMG from the Leopard Install DVD
First, you need to make a disk image of the DVD using Disk Utility. Disk Utility is found in /System/Applications/Utilities/Disk Utility.app. Put the Install DVD into your Mac’s Combo Drive, Superdrive, or External DVD Reader.
You will see the Install DVD appear on the left in Disk Utility. Single Click the listing from Mac OS X Install DVD. Then select New Image from the Tool Bar. Change the Image Format to “entire device”. Find a place to save the disk image, name it Mac OS X Install DVD. Click Save. Wait until the process is complete (This can take a while, so go outside and play).
When it is finished, you will have a .dmg of the Install DVD on your hard drive.
Make a 10.0GB Partition on the External Hard Drive
Do you have files on this External Hard Drive? If so, you will want to back these up before proceeding. When partitioning a drive in Tiger, it means you must erase the drive and segment it. If you have a fresh Hard Drive, this process is much easier in OS X Tiger, since you will not lose any data.
A Brief Note About the Difference Between Partition Maps for
PowerPC and Intel Macs
You may need to change the Partition Table for the drive. The Partition Table you are currently using is highlighted in Disk Utility, under the Partition Tab, in the Options… menu. If you are making a bootable partition for PowerPC, you will need to select Apple Partition Map if it is not already selected. Intel Mac users should select GUID Partition Table. If you have to reformat the Partition Table, this means you will need to completely format the drive and will lose all data. Other World Computing has a detailed explanation about Partitioning Drives on PowerPC vs. Intel Mac.
If you have the Leopard Install DVD and can boot from it: Restart the Mac and hold down the C key while starting up. Right after you select the language (the first install window), you can use the Leopard version of Disk Utility to resize existing Partitions on the External Hard Drive. Disk Utility is found in the menu bar. In the Leopard version of Disk Utility, you can divide existing Partitions and resize them accordingly. On screen instructions for this are found in Disk Utility itself, but I’ll tell you anyways. In Disk Utility, Select the Hard Drive you wish to Partition (not the name of the drive, but the device name). Click on the Partition Tab. Single Click on an existing Partition under the Volume Scheme. Click the Plus Sign just beneath that. Click on the new Partition and name it “Mac OS X Install DVD”, Format: Mac OS Extended (Journaled), Size: 10GB. Click Apply. After you are finished resizing the partitions, exit the installer and startup regularly in OS X Tiger. Skip the next paragraph.
If you cannot boot from the Leopard Install DVD: In Disk Utility, Select the Hard Drive you wish to Partition (not the name of the drive, but the device name). Click on the Partition Tab. Directly under Volume Scheme, select the number of Partitions you want. Make sure one of the Partitions is named “Mac OS X Install DVD”, Format: Mac OS Extended (Journaled), Size: 10GB. Why these settings? I’m ultra paranoid that it won’t work without the name and 10 GB is ample room for the DVD. Partition the rest of the drive as you wish. Click the Partition button in the lower right only when you are sure of the settings and have backed up any data that was on the drive.
Restore the External Partition from the .DMG
Select the “Mac OS X Install DVD” Partition from the left in Disk Utility.
Now Select the Restore Tab. Drag the .DMG into the Source field. Drag the External Partition into the Destination Field. Click Restore in the lower right corner.
Once this is finished, the Auto Start Screen from the Leopard Install DVD should appear. You now have a copy of the Leopard Install DVD on the External Hard Drive.
Boot Leopard Install from External Hard Drive
I suggest if you have the Install DVD inside the Mac still to eject it. Make sure the Firewire External Hard Drive is connected. Restart the Mac, while holding down the Option key until a blue screen appears. Wait for the waiting cursor to change into a mouse cursor. Select the “Mac OS X Install DVD” partition from the list. The Mac will now boot the Leopard Install from the External Hard Drive.
Read Step by Step How to Install OS X Leopard for screenshots from the entire install process.
One of the coolest new features in Mail is the ability to make cool looking emails with a few simple clicks. Want to send a birthday party invitation or a wedding announcement via e-mail? Maybe I just want to thank my dinner guests for attending or show off some pictures from my last vacation. Well Apple thought of everything it seems in the new version of Mail for OS X 10.5 Leopard. Now I can create cool looking emails with Stationary. I can even throw in photos from my iPhoto library with simple drag and drop fashion.
Open Mail and Click New Message.
Stationary Is Fun
I could just write out a simple e-mail here, but why not include some flair? If I click Show Stationary in the top right of the Compose New Message window, all the Stationary templates will appear organized by Category.
Select the appropriate Category for the Stationary E-mail. For instance, if I wish to send a couple photos from the latest family vacation, I should select Stationary from the Photos tab.
Below is a sample of the Air Mail Stationary. Highlight any text and start typing to personalize the e-mail.
Why send stock photos when I can personalize this e-mail with my own digital photos? Click Photo Browser in the top right of the New Message window and the iPhoto Library will appear.
Select a photo and add it to the template by dragging and dropping the photo from the browser into any photo box already in the template. Switch photos around by dragging them in between photo fields in the template.
Personalizing e-mails was never so much fun!
Fed up with the new 3D appearance of the Dock? Well turns out you’re not alone. TUAW reported a method of switching between 2D and 3D versions of the Dock in Terminal. But for anyone who doesn’t like to fool around with a command line interface, a one button solution was created just for you!
2DOrNot2D is an Application for OS X Leopard that will let you switch between 2D and 3D versions of the Dock.
Possibly better yet, Dock Doctor is a Dashboard Widget that coverts the Dock from 2D to 3D. The Dashboard is more accessible and the widget does the same things as 2DOrNot2D.
At first I didn’t like the new Dock either, but I am slowly getting used to it’s new appearance. But I wonder when I am running video intensive Applications, if the added transparency effects in the Dock and Menu Bar are worth processing time.
Have two Macs on the same network? It is rather easy to connect to another Mac via Screen Sharing in the Finder, but I have found another quick way of controlling another Mac rather quickly from the Dock. This tip may be better suited for the techno-savvy crowd.
Screen Sharing.app is found here: /System/Library/CoreServices/Screen Sharing.app. Just drag the Application icon to the Dock! If you open Screen Sharing this way, the Application will ask you for the Host Name of the Mac you wish to connect to. I.P. Addresses can be typed here, but thanks to a tip Brian sent in, you can just type the name of the computer you are trying to connect to i.e. if you have a G5 sitting across the network, just type G5. If you have named the computer in Network Preferences, then type that name.
My 1st Generation MacBook Pro Intel Duo Core runs insanely hot while editing video in one Space, using Safari in another Space, chatting in iChat in a third Space. Luckily, there is a third party fan controller I use so my MacBook Pro doesn’t blow up (I already had to send back one MagSafe that fried due to overheating). Even smcFanControl seems to have a hard time handling the 175 degree F temps coming out of my MacBook Pro. This thing is not getting anywhere near my lap, that’s for sure. Anyone with a 1st Gen MacBook Pro running Photoshop, Final Cut, Max/Msp, or any other heavy duty Application while using Spaces should download smcFanControl.
Apple has included a new Movie Times Widget in the Dashboard. Activate Dashboard by pressing F12 and Add the Movies Widget if it not already visible.
A Widget with Currently Showing Movie Posters will appear, just like at the theater!
If I Click the Widget, it will explode into two columns: Movies and Theaters.
I can adjust the zipcode the Widget is searching in by clicking the i icon in the lower left hand corner of the Widget.
Click a Movie Title to see which theaters it is currently showing at. To view Showtimes in the future, select the date in the upper right hand corner.
Click a Theater Name to view Showtimes.
To watch a trailer of the movie directly inside the widget, click Trailer.>
Click Buy Tickets to purchase tickets via Fandango. I must select a specific Showtime to activate the Buy Tickets option. This feature is only available for certain theaters.
Safari’s new Find feature is slicker than ever! Use the keyboard shortcut Apple + F or Select Edit -> Find -> Find from the Menu Bar. The keyboard shortcut is so much easier…
A Find toolbar will appear under the Address Bar. Type in the word or phrase I wish to find in the website here. Press return.
The number of matches will appear in the tool bar. The first match will appear on the website, highlighted in yellow. Find next by using the keyboard shortcut Apple + G. Find previous by pressing Shift + Apple + G. Or just click the arrow buttons in the Find tool bar.
Click Done in the Tool Bar when I am finished searched for the term.
Software Update caught be by surprise in Leopard today. When you click “Install” in Software Update now, the application will download the updates and ask to Restart. This confused me, because in Tiger Software Update would install the updates as well before Restarting. So, I clicked Restart and my MacBook Pro restarted and instead of a login screen, Software Update appeared with a blue background and installed the updates. OS X Leopard booted as usual afterward.
One new feature of Mail is the ability to make Notes and Schedule To Dos. This is to help me organize my life based on appointments and dates I receive in e-mails.
Take Notes
To make a new Note, just click the Notes icon in Mail. This will give me a notepad to jot down anything I want. I could take notes in a class, copy and paste a recipe from e-mail, anything really. Just type the note and close the note window and it will be automatically saved to your Notes. Select Notes from the SideBar in Mail to view all the Notes.
Schedule To Dos
To Dos are Notes that can be scheduled. I can highlight any text or date in an e-mail and Click the To Do icon. The new To Do will drop down. I can schedule the To Do by Clicking the Arrow next to the Name of the To Do.
The Options Panel for the To Do will appear, allowing me to specify a Due Date and Priority for the To Do in iCal.
To Dos are listed in Mail. If I select To Do from the Side Bar in Mail, I can view all my scheduled To Dos. I can make quick changes to the options of To Dos by Ctrl + Clicking or Right Clicking the To Do from the list and selecting the appropriate option like Due Date or Calendar color from the pop up menu.
Find To Dos in iCal
If I open iCal, I will now see the To Do listed in the right Side Bar of iCal. Open this Side Bar by clicking the push pin icon in the bottom right hand corner of iCal.
To schedule the To Do in iCal, simply drag and drop it to the correct date on the calendar.
To Do Scheduling Shortcut in Mail
I can hover my mouse over any Date in Mail and a dotted box will highlight the date.
Click any date in an e-mail and select Create new iCal Event.
An Options window will pop up, allowing me to customize the event name, color, and other options typically found in an iCal event dialog. Click the Add to iCal Button and the new event will appear on the specified date in iCal.
Complete a To Do?
Click the checkbox in the To Do, this signifies a Completed To Do.
