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Repair of the Week: Troublesome G3-to-MacBook Migration

Posted 2010-03-11 09:30 in Other-Tech-News by Jon Spaulding

Small Dog offers data transfer services from any previous computer, including machines running older versions of Mac OS (even the classic Mac OS) and most any flavor of Windows. Last week I completed a tricky transfer from an iBook G3 that resulted in a MacBook Pro that booted to the Setup Assistant no matter how many times the assistant was completed. I was shocked by this, having never seen anything like it before.

The first step I took was to create a throw-away user account with the Setup Assistant. After completing the assistant, I went into the Accounts preference pane and selected Automatic login to this new account. A restart revealed this trick didn’t work—it seemed too easy to be a fix, anyway.

I restarted into single user mode by holding down Command-S immediately after the startup chime and removed the .AppleSetupDone file from /var/db. I knew that I’d have to create yet another throw-away account, but after a restart, the problem persisted.

At this point I chose to bomb the problem by reinstalling the operating system from the system disks that came with the new machine. I chose the Archive and Install option, which is nondestructive in that user files and applications are unaffected; only the core system files are replaced with this option. The bombs weren’t big enough.

At a loss, I resigned to wipe the machine clean and re-migrate the user’s data from the iBook. The faithful old hard drive did complain a bit when I put it into Target Disk mode and began the migration, but it held out through the entire transfer. I chose to migrate everything from the iBook user data, preferences and applications. I rebooted afterwards only to see the same behavior. Defeated and worried that the iBook hard drive wouldn’t survive another migration, I backed up the new MacBook Pro and did an Erase and Install.

This time I opted only to transfer the user account from the backup, not any system files, preferences or settings. Thankfully, the computer booted properly into the user account, but our customer had to reinstall some of his applications from the original disks.

After all that, I honestly can’t say what was causing the issue. Both the customer and I are happy with the results, though it bugs me that I couldn’t figure out why this was happening. Tech Tails readers will certainly be the first to hear the solution if I find one down the road!

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Time Capsule Hard Drive Upgrades

Posted 2010-01-26 16:27 in Tech-Support by David Boyd

Apple’s Time Capsule was released in 2007 in 500GB and 1TB capacities which were, at the time, sufficiently capacious to accommodate backups of most anyone’s Mac or Macs. Today, Apple sells Time Capsule in 1TB and 2TB configurations with substantially improved wireless speed due to compliance with the 802.11n standard, not just the draft standard.

With current generation iMacs standard storage starting at 500GB, and more and more laptops with 500GB and larger drives, 1TB is no longer enough for everyone. I bought a 500GB Small Dog Refurbished 500GB Time Capsule and quickly filled it with backups from my MacBook Pro. When my girlfriend bought a new iMac to replace her aging PowerBook running MacOS X 10.4 (Tiger), the added strain of an another Time Machining Mac made 500GB downright unusable.

I didn’t want to shell out for a whole new Time Capsule, so I asked Google how to replace the internal drive in a time capsule. I found an excellent guide that explained that the server-grade drive that Apple ships in their Time Capsule is not entirely necessary, and that an energy-efficient, lower-RPM drive would put less strain on the internal power supply and reduce the strain on the small internal fan. I picked up a 1.5TB 3.5-inch SATA hard drive (though 2TB would work just as well).

The first step is to remove the rubbery bottom of the time capsule, which is kept in place with some very sticky adhesive. Rebecca suggested I use the original drive for some time to warm the adhesive, but in the end a heat gun was necessary to cleanly remove it. This reveals ten phillips screws holding on the bottom plate, which comes right off. Once inside, it’s quite obvious how to proceed. Be careful of the temperature sensor, which must be removed without damaging its cable. The SATA power and data cable must be carefully unplugged from the main board inside.

Once you’ve installed the new drive, button the Time Capsule back up, and fire up AirPort Utility, you’ll be guided through the process of formatting the new drive. All told, the process took about twenty minutes, but as you probably know from experience, the initial backup took all day. Instead of 100GB free, I now have well over 1000GB free – plenty of space for my girlfriend’s and my backups!

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Update: 27-inch iMac Screen Flicker Resolved

Posted 2009-12-24 12:29 in Other-Tech-News by Matt Klein

I wrote a few weeks ago in Tech Tails #688 about a 27-inch iMac with a screen flicker issue shared by many on Apple’s discussion boards and around the Internet. Apple addressed these concerns yesterday with a firmware update as predicted here in Tech Tails.

If you have a 27-inch iMac with an ATI Radeon HD 4670 or 4850 and a screen flicker issue, select Software Update from your Apple menu and install this update!

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My Time Capsule Gets Hot!

Posted 2009-11-05 09:03 in Other-Tech-News by Rebecca Kraemer

I can honestly say that Time Capsule is one of my favorite Apple products. I have a 1TB Time Capsule at home that holds backups for three of my machines. It’s a beautiful thing when I come home from a long day at work, open up my MacBook Pro and see the Time Machine wheel start spinning as it automatically starts my backup. Despite my personal adoration for the Time Capsule, it’s been getting some flack on the internet because “it gets hot.”

One thing to remember about the Time Capsule is that it houses a 3.5” server-grade hard drive. A hard drive is comprised of spinning platters and they do get hot; not hot enough to melt their plastic housing, or injure someone, but fairly warm nonetheless. The Time Capsule also has an internal fan and temperature sensors that monitor the internal temperature to ensure the device is performing within the proper temperature range.

Despite those features, we do occasionally get returns from people who are afraid their Time Capsule is running too hot. Nine out of ten times we stress-test the Time Capsules and never find anything wrong with them. But this is what I found on that “10th” time:

I have to say my jaw dropped when I saw AirPort Utility open and display this error. I had never seen it before! I walked over to the Time Capsule and found that the fan was running on high and it truly was unusually hot. I also noticed there was a physical separation in the case around the rear left ports. Out of curiosity, I disassembled the Time Capsule and found that the case was dented around the power supply.

While the power supply did not actually look swollen, I had to believe that the damage was somehow related to it due to the proximity. It still remains a mystery, but I was happy to find that Apple had programed the Time Capsule to give the end user such a clear message in the event that the Time Capsule really was overheating.

If you ever get this message at home, the best thing to do is ensure that there’s nothing blocking the airflow around the device. If the Time Capsule has breathing room and is still reporting issues overheating, unplug the device and bring it to your nearest Apple Authorized Service Provider for support.

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Microsoft Office 2008 Update + $20 Instant Rebate

Posted 2009-07-21 11:58 in Other-Tech-News by Kali Hilke

See below for rebate details.

Microsoft has released a Service Pack update for Office 2008 for Mac, and it delivers substantial changes. Service Pack 2 not only includes stability fixes, but additional features for PowerPoint and speed increases for Word and Excel.

Among the featured general Office 2008 improvements (from Microsoft):

  • Stability is improved.
    This update fixes an issue that causes Office 2008 applications to exit unexpectedly when you open or use the applications.
  • New controls for changing the alignment of text on chart elements.
    This update includes new controls for setting the vertical position, orientation, and custom angle of text in chart elements. It also includes controls for data label positions.

Among the improvements in Word:

  • Notebook Layout View recovers audio notes after Word closes unexpectedly.
    This update fixes an issue that causes users to lose their audio notes when Word closes unexpectedly. When you restart Word, the AutoRecover file does not include the audio notes. This issue is fixed now.
  • Compatibility with Word 2007 is improved.
    This update fixes an issue that causes a Word 2007 document that has table borders not to be displayed correctly when the document is viewed in Word 2008 for Mac.

Among the improvements in Excel:

  • Reliability is improved when you open a protected workbook.
    This update fixes an issue that causes a protected workbook not to open.
  • Performance and Stability are improved.
    This update fixes an issue that causes slow performance and fixes an issue that causes Excel to close unexpectedly when you enter arguments in a specific order or when you right-click a Chart Sheet, and then you click Select Data.

Among the improvements in PowerPoint:

  • Double-clicking a slide to add a text box.
    This update lets you double-click a slide to add a text box.
  • Path animation enables an object to trace a custom path.
    This update now lets you add and edit path animations on a PowerPoint slide. Path animation (also known as motion path) for an object traces a custom path for the object to follow across a slide. Unlike the entrance or exit effect, you can use a path animation to move the object on the slide from one position to another in any direction you want. You can apply path animation to any object, such as shapes, text, tables, or pictures.

The update applies to all versions of the Office 2008 suite as well as the individual applications (Word, PowerPoint, Excel); it is just under 300MB(!).

Download here or use the Microsoft AutoUpdate within your application to install this update. (To use Microsoft AutoUpdate, click Check for Updates once you’ve launched any component of Office 2008 and follow the instructions.)

Be prepared: This update may take a little while to download. In my case, it seemed like foooorever…

For a complete list of the new features and improvements, visit Microsoft’s Support page for Office 2008.

BONUS: We’re offering an instant $20 rebate on Microsoft Office 2008 Home and Student Edition. Final cost: $129.99.
Buy it now!


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