Ask Jacob

You may be facing a issue that has more to do with software version you have, verses the limit of the drive format. If you are trying to just reinstall the OS, you will need to do an Archive and Install of the OS.

If you are trying to reformat the drive and remove all data from it, you will need to repartition it with the Disk Utility that is on the OS X install media. You will have to boot up the disc and then open Disk Utility and use the Partition tab to create one new partition on your Apple computer hard drive..

- Jacob

Well some sites are focused only on PC systems and do not recognize the Mac browsers. Firefox would be your best option, it is based on what was left of Netscape. Microsoft stopped making a Mac version of Internet Explorer many years ago and so that would not be the best option. Here is a link to FireFox: http://getfirefox.com

For the most part your Mac is safe from the worms and viruses that plague the PC world. Mostly this is due to the incompatibility of the two operating systems. Most evil people do not bother writing two versions of the same virus for each platform. The main thing is, be careful of what you install on your Mac (only software from trusted places) and run the Mac Software Update often.

- Jacob

What you need is a iPod FM transmitter that plugs into your lighter and the Apple dock connector on the bottom of the nano. I have personally used the Monster Cable iPod FM transmitter.

But you should also look at others like the Belkin TuneCast Auto for iPod, Griffen iPod FM Transmitter or the Griffen RoadTrip FM Transmitter.

Most times I do not recommend these in urban areas because of station interference but you sound like the perfect candidate to use one of these. Also consider downloading free Podcast from iTunes, to break up the music on long drives. Believe me a bunch of podcasts can make a drive seem much shorter. Hope it gives that iPod new life.

- Jacob

When moving from PowerPC based Macs to an Intel Mac, I always recommend using Migration Assistant when you first start up the new Mac. During the initial setup you are given the option to move data over from your old Mac. The new Migration Assistant now allows you to do that over a network connection. Below is a link to Apple article on this process. Most applications should run fine on your system. Universal applications will run at full speed and PowerPC applications can run in an emulation mode of-sorts. It is a good idea to download fresh copies of Universal software, if available online to replace older version moved over during the migration.

Network based data migration using Migration Assistant.

In most cases you should be fine. If your ethernet enabled migration is interrupted, it will pickup where you left off so you do not need to guard it during the process.

- Jacob

Well there are many option to protect your child’s Apple laptop. I used to work for the Evergreen State College and have seen first hand the dangers a laptop faces in that environment. Well if a Mac computer can survive on the battlefield, I am sure you can find something fitting to protect your daughter’s computer. On the extreme side of mobile protection there is are hard side laptop cases. They can be water, dust, and crush resistant but often let you use the laptop without removing it from the case.

These may be more than you were looking for but I would consider it top-shelf protection with style. Beyond that many of the neoprene laptops sleeves will protect a MacBook from light spills. The seams will let water in so if it is sitting in a puddle than water will get in. Here are some water repelling options you may be interested in.

Thin and protective solution, the RadTech Sleevz for Macbook. Hope this helps with the process but there is also a “Style” issue with the selection of a case, so your daughter may want to look at some of the colorful neoprene cases.

- Jacob

You can have any size 3.5″ SATA hard drive installed in the Intel iMacs. Your only limit it in what size drives are being made. You are limited to just one drive installed inside the iMacs. Apple computers can support many more drives externally via USB 2.0, FireWire 800, and Gigabit ethernet.

- Jacob

When trouble shooting the Mac printing system it is often best to reset the Printer preferences and install the latest T634 drivers.

If after that your laser printer still waists a page with a single line. It probably has to do with your Page Margins in the word processor you are printing from. You may need to adjust the header/footer spacing options so less text is assigned to each page.
- Jacob

What you need is a KVM switch and there are two you should look at. The IOGear KVM switch is particularly nice for this kind of device switching. Many KVMs do not have audio switching or us DVI, but this IOGear Micro View KVM Switch will do.

Which ever unit you get should help with the monitor an speakers. The wireless keyboard mouse combo should work as long as it is the kind that uses the USB dongle attached to your current Mac computer. Otherwise you will have trouble pairing those devices with two computers. You may need to use the Keyboard and mouse that come with the Mac Pro until you retire the PC. After that a PC bluetooth keyboard/mouse will work well on the Mac.

- Jacob

Often this issue is caused by a preference change in your Apple computer. Click once on the Desktop and then select “Preferences” from the Finder menu. Under the General tab mark all the checkboxes in the “Show these items on Desktop” section.

- Jacob

Your Mac computer should connect just fine to your HD TV and kick-out a full HD signal. I have an old PowerBook G4 connected to my HDTV at home. I mostly play standard definition TV from my EyeTV archive upstairs but we have played HD shows on the TV though the Mac. The PowerBook G4 has trouble keeping up with decoding the HD signal, your Intel Mac should have no problem with HD shows. You will need three cables to connect to your TV through HDMI. Your TV will need to support HDMI with an RCA audio connection for this to work.

Here is the list.
• The Mini DVI to DVI cable to get DVI from your MacBook.
• A DVI to HDMI cable.
• Then an audio cable for the, uh, audio.

Later when you move to the Mac Mini, you can reuse these cables. Most web pages are very readable and recorded TV looks great. Consider also getting an EyeTV system to record HDTV and this Adesso Keyboard / Trackpad combo (note it is Windows keyed but works on a Mac).

- Jacob

There is no physical way to connect the screen of an eMac or iMac to another computer. They are hardware locked to the logic board of Apple computers. You can, however, use the built-in screen sharing feature of 10.5 Leopard to view and control the Mac Mini remotely. They both need to be connected to the same network and the Mini would need to be configured to allow remote connections. So it would need to be connected to a monitor and keyboard-mouse for the initial setup. You would also need to upgrade the eMac to Leopard to control the Mac Mini. After that it the eMac should be able to see the new Mac Mini as available for screen sharing in the sidebar of any Finder window. If this is just a matter of saving money, you can get an LCD display that will work on your Mac Mini cheaply. It will work two times better than Screen Sharing, perhaps ten times better.

- Jacob

There is no problem using your US bought Mac laptop’s power adapter overseas. All the Mac power adapters cover voltages ranging from 100 to 240 Volts at 50 or 60 Hz. You may want to buy the Apple World Traveler Adapter Kit though, to fit the wall plugs you have locally.
- Jacob

Because the Apple ADC based LCD displays received their power from the ADC port on the older Macs, you will need more than a simple cable adapter. You need the powered Apple DVI to ADC Display Adapter.

You could also consider getting a newer LCD display, like this Acer 19″ display, that is bigger for just a little more than the powered adapter.

- Jacob

With any Mac computer, the boot up time depends greatly on hard drive speed. Most Intel Macs will boot the Leopard OS in under 40 Seconds of an internal drive. Solid state drives can speed that up some, and faster RAM can help too. You can slow that time down as well by connecting to a Wireless network on startup and other boot up add-ons. For the most part the Mac Pro will boot quickly, but I still leave most of my Macs running all the time. I hate waiting for the screen’s backlight to kick on, a personal flaw I have to admit to.

The RAM and video card will be easy for you to upgrade in the near future but the processor will not upgrade with exactly the same ease. It is a socketed processor and you can replace it, although wait until the Apple warranty period is over before you attempt it. You will not be able to convert the Mac Pro single processor, four core system, into a dual processor, eight core system. So make sure you get a configuration that will meet you upgrade needs. I have know people who upgrade their Mac Pros regularly with the latest processors, but most of those people are Intel employees. It should be fine for an experienced PC tech.

- Jacob