iUseApple

Deeper is an application that taps into hidden options in Finder, Dock, Dashboard, Exposé, Safari, and Login window. Notice above, how I can put the Dock on the Top and Align Left with Deeper? Deeper is one of three similar applications for OS X by Titanium Software.

Deeper also solved a problem I was having with Finder, where the Finder Preferences were not available in the menu.

Look Deeper.

Sometimes I got over to a friends house and have to keep hounding them every time for the password for their wireless. This gets annoying, so I found a way to set my location via Network Preferences. I can now tell my MacBook Pro where I am and it will automatically connect me to the correct Wireless router!

My MacBook Pro is set to automatic in it’s location settings out of the box. This means the computer is always looking for an airport, firewire, bluetooth, and ethernet connection simultaneously. When I am at home, I like to sync my bluetooth phone, connect to the wireless, and hookup my firewire drive. If the location is automatic, the MacBook will do this fine. Sometimes I am sitting in a coffee house and I only need the airport connection. I figure maybe I can save a little battery power if these connections are not always on when they are not necessary. Think of it like turning off the lights to conserve energy in the home.

OS X allows me to assign a location for my network communications. A location is a set of network preferences.

Location can be found in the Apple Menu. When I first use the Location selection, it will be set to Automatic. Click Network Preferences to make a new location in the Apple Menu.

The Network Preferences Pane opens. The first drop down menu says Location. Here I can make a new location, or even edit existing locations. Select New Location like in the example image above.

A new pane appears, one that may look daunting with a bunch of network settings. Contact the network administrator to figure out how to connect to a network using these settings. But first we must choose the connections we want to use in our new location. In the example, I am sitting in a coffee house called the Daily Grind that has a Wifi Hotspot. All I need is the airport to be working. In the Show menu, Select Network Port Configurations to choose which connections I want to be active. Click Apply Now when I am finished.

Now I can select the new location in the Apple Menu.

I can even edit my locations in the Location drop down menu. Select Edit Locations…

Regarding airport communications, I can actually set the preferred network for the specific location I am in. This is nice when there are many wireless networks. I can just choose my location and it will single out my preferred network. Otherwise, when location is set to Automatic, my computer will ask me which network I want to join. In Network Preferences, Select the Location and Show Airport settings. In the By default, join: menu select Preferred networks and Select the wireless router from the list. Click Apply Now.

This article shows how to set up network locations using OS X 10.4 Tiger. Documentation on Apple’s website covers information for earlier versions of OS X.

Sometimes I close an Application and a Document and want to to get back to it quickly. Maybe I frequently use an Application that is not in my Dock. I can access recently used Applications and Documents via the Recent Items Selection in the Apple Menu.

Find the Apple Menu and Select Recent Items from the drop down menu. I can open any recently used Application. If I select a document, the Finder will open it in the application it is assigned to. Select the item I want to open. I can change the amount of listed items in the Finder Preferences.

Sometimes an Application will stop responding. Take a deep breath. “Don’t overreact,” I tell myself. “Save often” is what my professors always told me to do. Be patient, just wait a moment or two for my Mac to compute. If an Application stops responding completely, I can find out in the Force Quit menu.

There are a few ways to get to the Fore Quit menu. Select Force Quit in the Apple Menu. Sometimes the Finder stops responding. When that happens, the Apple Menu may be inaccessible. The best option is to learn the keyboard shortcut: Cmd+Opt+Esc. Kinda like Ctrl+Alt+Dlt on a Windows computer.

I can Force Quit an application I accidentally click on in the Dock. Ctrl+Click the Unresponsive Application’s icon in the Dock and Select Force Quit. I can usually do this too when an Application stops responding.

Select the Application that is not responding from the list and Click Force Quitin the Force Quit Menu.

Software Update is an Application that allows me to update any Apple made Applications easily and without any hassle.

Before running Software Update, it is advisable to quit all Applications. Do not try to install anything else or move large files while Software Update is running, especially if I am updating OS X itself.

To update my software, Click the Apple and Select Software Update. I must be connected to the Internet. Software Update will automatically check for new updates to all my Apple software, including OS X. A list of updates appears. Now I can Click Install, and Software Update will automatically download and install all the updates available for my Mac.

Preferences

Software Update Preferences allows me to set the frequency of automatic checks. Select Preferences from the Software Update menu. I would uncheck Download important updates in background. This could potentially be hazardous. Sometimes there is a loophole in an update, that may crash my computer. This happened to me once, when an OS X update corrupted my G5. I went on some forums and saw this could have easily been avoided, had I checked for any possible conflicts beforehand. Always check to see if anyone using my same Mac is having problems with an update, just Google the update name and the model of my Mac (ex. OS X 10.4.8 + Powerbook).

Busy now? Install later…

I happen to be in a place that has Internet, but I am busy working on a presentation. It would not be a good idea to update right now, because I will have to reboot. I can still download the updates by Selecting the items in Software Update and then in the menu bar, Select Update : Download Only. Now I can go back into Software Update and Select Install Updates in the same manner, when I actually want to install them.

Do you get annoyed by that pesky window that appears every time you want to shut down or restart?

Do not actually do this next step unless you want to shut down your computer.

Just Click Apple and Option+Click Shut Down in the drop down menu.

This also works for Restart and Log Out in the Apple menu.