macBlogger - Apple Mac Blog

I was a bit disappointed when Preview failed to open up a .chm file which accompanied some software which I recently downloaded.

.Chm is a filetype devised by Micrsoft which compresses HTML files into a single document, usually for the purpose of software manuals and the like.

A quick Google lead me to an open source application by the name of  Chomx which effortlessly opens CHM files. The interface for the application is as simple as you’d expect and resembles Preview in many ways. It even has a “drawer” for jumping between pages.

Apple announced a revised 32GB model of their increasingly popular iPod Touch last night. A few of the guys in work are lucky enough to have the 8GB and 16GB models and I have recently fallen in love with them (the iPods, not the guys).

I didn’t want to dive into purchasing a Touch when they were first released because of the small hard drive size but the 32GB model will more than suffice for my music collection. I currently have a 30GB video iPod and I’m yet to fill it up.

I’m giving serious consideration to purchasing the 32GB Touch.

Mmmm, do I need it? Mail, Safari, Wireless Connection, Maps, Youtube, extra 2GBs of space on top of my current iPod, Coverflow, iTunes, Touch Screen Interface, Notes….. all nice things.

My flatemate is going to New York in a forthsnight time. I checked the price difference between purchasing the 32GB Touch in Ireland and America and it boiled down to a €140 saving if I asked him to pick me one up on the sly.

32GB Touch from the States = €320 ($499)
32GB Touch from Ireland = €459

Is it just me or is the below message confusing to anyone else?

Okay, so Adium has been updated. - Grand.
Do I want to allow the updated version to use the same keychain settings as the previous version? - Yes.

So what should I click? Don’t Change or Change All?

I want to keep my settings so I should click Don’t Change as that probably means Don’t Change any settings …. or …… should I click Change All because that could mean to change all the keychain settings from the old version to settings I would like to use in the new version….Mmmm.

What did I do?

I clicked on Change All and it used my settings from the previous client.

Could they not just supply a Yes or No option instead of Don’t Change / Change All? System messages should be clear and concise and not confuse the user. I would have expected the rule of thumb of suppling a yes/no solution to a question to be followed in this instance.

Is the system message in this instance delivered by the Operating System or Adium?

Either way, it’s a crap user experience. The primary reason I clicked on Change All instead of Don’t Change is because Apple consistently place the positive button (yes, confirm) to the right of the negative button (no, cancel). Besides from that, I was in limbo and dreading having to remember my passwords for my messengers in case I bolloxed up.

These things in his mouth, they are teeth, and apparently they can cause harm.

Easy there Kitty Kat. Now onto a more interesting Leopard….and one which won’t harm your fawn.

I’m in the mood for pimping my Macbook.

A few months ago I spotted a really cool hard case for a Macbook on Ken’s blog. Ken purchased a Green case from Speck Products for a measly €55 (approx).

I have taken a fancy to the above orange shell myself and I went about doing my ordering thing last week but I stopped short of a heart-attack before I entered in my credit card details.

Yes folks, they are charging $47.03 for delivery of a piece of plastic from somewhere in America to Ireland. $96.98 may not seem like too much, it’s only €67.21, but there is no way in hell I’m paying that much for delivery.

Time to go on Ebay me thinks.

It’s nice to be able to spoil yourself now and then but I do have a legitimate reason for wanting some new fancy speakers.

The built in sound on my Macbook echos too much of a whimper and not enough of a roar. It’s time to blast out some proper noise.

I have settled on getting a JBL Creature II Speakers + Subwoofer system from Komplett but I can’t decide whether to go for the red set or the white.

Both of these speakers are also available to buy from the Apple Store but Komplett are charging €14.30 less for the same exact product. Apple are charging €108.30 after tax while Komplett are only €94.00. However, Komplett are currently out of stock with the Red Speaker set while Apple are fully in stock (not that it’s a big problem or anything)

I’m leaning to the red speakers myself, they are damn swanky, but I wonder how they will look next to a white Macbook?

I knew when I purchased my MacBook that the 512MB of RAM which it came with wouldn’t suffice for my needs. I held off until I could justify upgrading the RAM as I have the luxury of owning two Macs. I use my iMac for anything intensive and my MacBook as a second machine. As my iMac is home alone in Cork and I’m up in the “Big Smoke” of exotic Dublin, the time had finally come to upgrade.

And thus began a little bit of research into the matter of upgrading RAM on a MacBook..

The first thing you need to do is to find out what type of RAM comes installed on your MacBook. You can check this by clicking on the Apple Icon and by going to ‘About This Mac’. The second row will indicate the type of RAM you have. In my case I have 2GB 667 HMz DDR2 SDRAM (previously I had 512MB).

Once you know what you need to buy you need to find a reseller. Steer well clear of Apple when buying RAM. A quick search for RAM at Applestore.ie indicates that 2GB of RAM would cost me €290!

Crucial are by far the cheapest supplier of RAM. I purchased the same 2GB of RAM which Apple had priced at €290 for €70. That’s more than a 400% difference in price.

The Crucial website is extermely user friendly when selecting your product. They have a step by step ’shop assistant’ which guides you to the correct product before checking out. Be sure to avoid any confusion by double checking your processor type when selecting your model as there are Intel Core Duo and Intel Core 2 Duo types available.

RAM has never been cheaper so go for as much RAM as you can afford.

I ordered my 2GBs of RAM on a Tuesday evening from Crucial’s American based store and I had the package in my hands on a Friday morning in Dublin! I was extremely impressed with their speedy delivery!

The actual RAM installation was an absolute breeze. The only thing you should be made aware of are Apple’s use of tiny screws. You will need a screwdriver such as a Phillips size 00 screwdriver to complete the job. There is an excellent guide on how to install RAM on a MacBook on apples’ site.

When placing the RAM within the slot be sure to apply firm pressure in order to get it into the bracket provided. If you place your fingers at either end of the inserted RAM and if you notice that you can slightly nudge the RAM then you haven’t applied enough pressure.

I have a single GB of RAM on my iMac and no doubt I’ll be upgrading that in the not too distant future as well.

Apple.com had a cat nap for an hour or two this evening and when she woke she announced the release date for Leopard.

OS X Leopard can be pre-ordered now for the full sum of €129.

I’m going to wait until I upgrade the RAM on my Macbook before plunging for Leopard. Coincidentally, I ordered two new iMacs for work on Thursday. I was half tempted to wait until Leopard was released before ordering but it’s probably best to use the tried and tested Tiger for development work rather than entering the unknown.

A few weeks ago we took Leopard for a spin, check out the Leopard Preview.

It didn’t take long but it was fairly inevitable that the iPod Touch would get hacked to bits.

The hack, by iJailBreak, basically transforms the Touch into an iPhone but without the phone bit. You can now install apps such as Google Earth and Mail on your Touch.

This is excellent for those who might want to use the Touch as a PDA device.

If only I had a Touch