Well, that was it… something and nothing…

Perhaps I should write a new list and review of my must have OS X (Leopard) apps?

Basically every file downloaded from the internet is tagged by the OS depending on its file type. If the download is an application or script, the OS will warn you with the above message when you first try and open it. Fine if you are opening one or two files, but not if you are trying to open up 20+ files at a time.

There is some reasoning behind this security feature, but I can’t help think that Apple should have included a way to turn it off or at least configure what file types the user deems ’safe’ or ‘unsafe’.

After Googleing for a solution I discovered two options. The first is by Henrik (Lift the Leopard download quarantine) is a simply Apple Script folder action that you apply to your Downloads folder. Every time a file is downloaded the Apple Script removes the ‘unsafe’ tag from it and thus banishes the warning message. The only problem I can see with the script is that is dose not work its magic on files within sub-folders.

The second is by Lazeez (Changing the system’s default settings for html files (safe)) and is my preferred solution. Basically you need to create a file called com.apple.DownloadAssessment.plist with a list of the file types you consider ’safe’, you then need to save it to the ~/Library/Preferences folder, log-out or reboot to activate the changes, and no more warning messages!

The file looks like this:-

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN"
"http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
	<key>LSRiskCategorySafe</key>
<dict>
	<key>LSRiskCategoryContentTypes</key>
<array>
	<string>public.html</string>
	<string>public.php-script</string>
</array>
</dict>
</dict>
</plist>

You can see I have added two strings, public.html and public.php-script this allows me to open both .html and .php files without the warning. A full list of file types can be found on the Apple Developer site: System-Declared Uniform Type Identifiers.

To add more, simply add in <string>file.type.here</string> (The file type Identifier)

I hope this helps other Leopard users as much as it has helped me – as any unnecessary clicks can really start to slow a work flow down.

Smultron: A free text editor for the Mac which is both easy to use and powerful. It is designed to not confuse newcomers nor disappoint advanced user. I have been using Smultron for well over a year, and it has become my default text editor of choice for .txt, .html to .php

Website: Smultron by Peter Borg. Requirements: Mac OS X 10.4.9 Tiger or later
Price: Free!

CSSEdit: This little application is quick, clean and offers superb CSS styling of absolutely any web page. It is the fastest, easiest CSS editing application I have used, and find using anything else a real pain in the …

Website: MacRabbit. Requirements: Mac OS X 10.4 or higher.
Price: $29.95.

Adobe Photoshop: Possible slightly over the top, in price terms, for most web-designers, and can be a bit daunting to use for the first time. But I’ve been using Photoshop for fifteen years now and know it like the back of my hand – so I never start a new design project or website without mocking it up in Photoshop first. It is always running on my Mac and allows me to edit any image instantly.

Website: Adobe. Requirements: PS CS3 Mac OS X v.10.4.8 or higher.
Price: from $649.

Transmit 3: If you design your site locally like I do, then you need a way to get it from your desktop to your server! For pure simplicity I have used Transmit for years now, as it does just that. It is the FTP app of choice for a lot of Mac user, allowing perfect Synchronisation between Your Stuff and Theirs (local and server).

Website: Panic. Requirements: Mac OS X 10.3.9 or higher.
Price: $29.95.

Parallels: If you build it you really (really) should make sure it works in every browser! I must confess I am slightly cynical on the whole browser testing thing because I use Safari for most of my browsing these days, and generally it seems to work with 99.9% of every website I visit. Firefox does come a close second, and I do use it for writing and editing posts on my Wordpress sites as this is one thing that Safari doesn’t like (sigh!).

But if I am building a website for a client, I really need to make sure it works in everything, yes, even the lovely Windows browser Internet Explorer! And that is where Parallels comes in as I really cant see the point in also owning a PC when the Mac can now do both! On my XP install I use the excellent Multiple IE app which lets me test in every version of IE, I can also test in Firefox and any number of other browser I like – all from the comfort of my Mac.

Website: Parallels. Requirements: Mac OS X 10.4+ running on an Intel Mac.
Price: $79.99.

Although this is a Top 5 list, I can’t really leave out two very important application that I use when designing and testing websites. So here are 2 extra apps I always use, and wouldn’t leave home with out!

MAMP: It stands for: Macintosh, Apache, Mysql and PHP, and installs a local server environment in a matter of seconds on your Mac, be it PowerBook or iMac. MAMP is much quicker and easier than fussing around with trying to install and configure a server manually, and to top it all, it’s Free!

iTunes: Yes I know, it is not a design app, it can’t make wonderful website or clean up your messy code. But what iTunes does do is to block out surrounding noise and distractions, thus helping me to concentrate and maximise my time and energy so that I can get away from the computer every once and a while so I can have a life!

My Top 5 web building tools was inspired by Mark over at 45n5, who originally wrote his own Top 5 Website Building Tools. Unfortunately, his website is no longer available!

What do you use? If you want to write your own top 5 and let me know the link, I will add it here.

But even if you have the best security in the world, it wont protect you from your office mates or so called friends who you invite around for a cup of coffee and a chat.

The perils of not password-protecting your computer is just as bad, we can laugh about it, but it can be a lot more dangerous than not running a firewall or not having anti-virus software installed. If you’re laughing at this right now, ask yourself, would you really let the person sitting next to you freely browse the contents of your computer?

Below are 5 simple steps to password protecting your Mac*

1. Open up System Preferences.
2. Click on Accounts and add a password to your profile (if you haven’t already). Write it down if you really must, but try to come up with something simple that you can remember, yet not easily guess-able for the office snoop! Oh, and don’t use your children or pets name as passwords – that’s just stupid!
3. Go back to the System Preference overview (Show all Apple L) and click on Security. Check the tick box for Require password to wake this computer form sleep or screensaver and Disable automatic login.
4. Back to preference overview (Apple L) and select Dashboard & Exposé. Set up one of the Active Screen Corners to Start Screen Saver.
5. Quit System Preference and test the hot corner by moving your mouse to it, you should see the Screen Saver start?. If you move the mouse again or hit any key on the keyboard, you will be prompted for the password you set up in step 2.
   You will also notice that when you next turn off/on you Mac that you will be presented with a User Login widow instead of just logging in. Select your profile and enter your password.

Now, unlike the coffee making couple in The Joy of Tech, you can quickly activate your screen saver before popping to the kitchen for a chat!

*Simple steps where worked out on a Mac running OS 10.4. System Preferences may vary on older version of OS 10.

But after a few weeks (conveniently just out of the 14 day return policy) I started noticing something weird happening after waking the iMac from sleep mode. At first there was a weird flickering across the screen, the kind of flicker you get when degaussing a conventional monitor. But this seemed to last longer and longer with each sleep and eventually took over an hour to clear itself, and even longer if it had been in sleep mode overnight.

Then with the longer flicker periods I started noticing strange discolouration along the top and bottom of the screen, which didn’t fade and stayed as long as the Mac was on. The only way I found to clear the discolouration was to turn it off for a few hours which then seemed to reset the problem.

I searched the Apple forums and found a few similar cases, but nobody seemed to really know what was causing the problems. Reluctantly I decided to call Apple, but the helpdesk hadn’t heard of the problem and after testing the usual off/on hold down this and that button tricks (which I’d already tried), they suggested I take the Mac to my nearest Apple aurthorised repair centre and get it checked out.

It turns out there are three such centres close to me, all within a 40 mile radius. I rang the first (I wont name them) and they said they hadn’t heard of the problem, but if I bring it in they will take a look. Cool I thought, but when I ask how long they thought it would take to test and hopefully fix the problem, they said “three to four weeks”. Flipping heck I though, I think I’ll call one of the others. So number two, still hadn’t heard of the problem, but bring it in etc., I then ask how long, they said “two to three weeks”, so a little better than the first, but not great.

So to the third, “you will have to leave your name and number, a technician will call you back” said reception. Ok I thought, when will they call me? “within 20min” yeah right I thought! But guess what – they did, and to my surprise they had also heard of the problem, and to my surprise again – “it should only take one to two weeks max”. Brilliant – jump in the car to drop it off.

Ten days later I get a call “it’s fixed”. Cool less that two weeks – jump in the car to pick it. I’ve had it back for five days now and haven’t noticed the problem once, so it seems to have been fixed (fingers crossed). Which incidentally was just a matter of replacing the logic board, seems that there was a defective video port on it.

So if you are having similar problems with your new iMac, ring up your nearest repair centre and book it in. Apple haven’t admitted that there is a fault with the logic boards, but off the record, the technician did say he had replaced about ten boards in the last couple of months – so it may be possible that there was a bad batch of logic boards produced? Then again I just could have been unlucky!

For ref: Use the Apple Where to Buy Apple Products and Services search page to find your nearest Authorised service centre (use Find Service in the You want to: drop down, then stick in your postcode and click search).