Tech Support

Post by **Sabo** » Thu Mar 13, 2014 9:05 am

Shirley wrote:My wife's Mac doesn't have a Storage choice in the About This Mac dialog. I assume it's because she has an older OS? I found storage info under the SSD details, but it doesn't include any breakdown of where the storage is being used.

Like Chedda, I was a bit surprised when I removed some stuff (just emptied the Trash) and the storage numbers didn't change. It doesn't make sense to me that it would take time to update that (it's not like the storage device doesn't need to keep track of that in real time), but I believe it's true.

Yes, Apple changed the "About this Mac" window in a recent OS. I can't remember if it was Lion (10.7) or Mountain Lion (10.8). You can also find out info about a hard drive's storage by clicking on it on the Desktop, then press Command + I. this will bring up a Get Info window (kind of like Properties in Windows-speak) that will show the disk's capacity, the amount of space used and the amount of space remaining (among other things).

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Tue Apr 01, 2014 10:16 am

My mom called me last night to say she got an interpol message on her screen saying her IPs been suspended and she's been charged with watching child porn.

I laughed until she yelled at me.

Spend the night there yesterday trying to fix it but can't clear the registry yet. Tried the Anvi Rescue Disk method first, didn't work.
Busy tonight will try again tomorrow, these viruses are such a bitch to get rid of. The computer is old, I'm tempted to just toss it but teaching her to use another one will be just as much work. I dread the day I have to teach her Windows 8.

P.D.X. · Post by **P.D.X.** » Tue Apr 01, 2014 10:18 am

Hopefully your first step was to get rid of the pr0n.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Tue Apr 01, 2014 10:24 am

P.D.X. wrote:Hopefully your first step was to get rid of the pr0n.

I said that too, that's why I got yelled at.

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:16 pm

April Fool's!

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 4:03 pm

...aaaaaaand nightmare fuel:

Heartbleed Bug Causes Major Security Headache

A confounding computer bug called "Heartbleed" is causing major security headaches across the Internet as websites scramble to fix the problem and Web surfers wonder whether they should change their passwords to prevent theft of their email accounts, credit card numbers and other sensitive information.

Looks like it's about that time to change every password to everything ever. Sigh.

elflaco · Post by **elflaco** » Sun Aug 03, 2014 9:19 am

Blue screen of death, continuous start up loop that does not result in start up but back in the start up mode option (safe mode, normal, etc.) its my old XP laptop.. not much on the hd, as the vast majority is on external drives.. but i'd really like to salvage it ... any ideas besides taking it to the chop shop folks at best buy and places such?

asante sana rafikini

elflaco · Post by **elflaco** » Tue Aug 12, 2014 11:28 am

anyone? is geek squad the option here?

i know it needs a new hd - that aint' going to happen 4yr old lenovo running xp.. but i'd like to get a few files off mydoc folder. ..
then i'll have to invest in a pc .. for photos and music and the occasional excel, ppt, doc as i get some consulting work here and there for which i really shouldn't be using my work laptop as they're pretty tight with usage here.

Post by **Shirley** » Tue Aug 12, 2014 11:49 am

elflaco wrote:Blue screen of death, continuous start up loop that does not result in start up but back in the start up mode option (safe mode, normal, etc.) its my old XP laptop.. not much on the hd, as the vast majority is on external drives.. but i'd really like to salvage it ... any ideas besides taking it to the chop shop folks at best buy and places such?

asante sana rafikini

Try to get the content off the blue screen - maybe a cell phone pic - and then google it. You can post it here if you want help picking out the relevant parts. The screen itself is trying to tell you what's failing.

elflaco · Post by **elflaco** » Fri Aug 15, 2014 10:34 am

dead hard drive.
got a pic of the bsd

the fuckwhats at geeksquad got 123GB out of it, mostly crap i already had backed up.. but most importantly the 85MB xls file i need to finish a deliverable for the folks in tz (still collecting some $ consulting).. figure the $2500 incoming for the final doc makes up for the fucking $150 fee..

fucking geeksquad ... that deserves a post int he rant page.

in the market for a cheap pc (laptop?) for home.. mostly organizing, editing photos (cr2), the occassional xls/ppt/doc, and somehwer the boy can geek out on minecraft and i can play Catan online (got ms office discs, so not paying for office) ideally win7.. been seeing a few HP and Dell around $250

thanks btw shirley.

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Aug 15, 2014 10:55 am

Woot has tons of computers periodically listed. I grabbed a refurbed HP laptop the other day for a song.

elflaco · Post by **elflaco** » Fri Aug 15, 2014 1:40 pm

yeah.. thanks Doc -- saw those the other day -- keeping an eye out

cerrano · Post by **cerrano** » Tue Aug 19, 2014 6:25 pm

so, starting today, when i land on a swamp thread page, the youtube videos thereon begin to play automatically. i didn't knowingly change my settings, so what do i need to do to stop this? *

*besides never returning to the swamp

Johnny Carwash · Post by **Johnny Carwash** » Tue Sep 02, 2014 4:49 pm

Does anyone know how to make recent versions of MS Office use the default icons for files rather than the little thumbnails of the first page/slide? This drives me nuts--I end up staring at my desktop hunting for files I could have found much more quickly with the regular icons.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Wed Sep 03, 2014 7:04 am

Johnny Carwash wrote:Does anyone know how to make recent versions of MS Office use the default icons for files rather than the little thumbnails of the first page/slide? This drives me nuts--I end up staring at my desktop hunting for files I could have found much more quickly with the regular icons.

You could put the associated file type clipart into the first page of every document you have.

Just kidding. I don't really have any idea.

wlu_lax6 · Post by **wlu_lax6** » Wed Sep 03, 2014 8:02 am

Johnny Carwash wrote:Does anyone know how to make recent versions of MS Office use the default icons for files rather than the little thumbnails of the first page/slide? This drives me nuts--I end up staring at my desktop hunting for files I could have found much more quickly with the regular icons.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/wind ... d-behavior" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.online-tech-tips.com/windows ... -explorer/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Johnny Carwash · Post by **Johnny Carwash** » Wed Sep 03, 2014 8:13 am

Thanks wlu, that's exactly what I was looking for.

For the record, here it is:

Change advanced file and folder settings
You can make additional changes to the appearance and behavior of your files and folders by using the advanced settings of Folder Options in Control Panel. Here is an overview of the advanced settings that you can change:

Always show static icons of files and never show thumbnail previews of files. Use this setting if the thumbnail previews are slowing down your computer. You'll get better performance by using static icons.

To Do this:
Click the View tab, and then select the Always show icons, never thumbnails check box.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Wed Sep 03, 2014 1:14 pm

My ancient ipod nano (3rd generation) seems to be dying. Tried all of the resetting suggestions and it still is dying and not holding a charge.

Figure that the battery has died and I'll have to bite the bullet and get a new one.

Any tips on ways to keep it alive?

Maybe best if I buy one of the 160gb models. It's time to cull my cd collection anyway...

Post by **Shirley** » Tue Sep 23, 2014 8:48 am

So recently I've ditched my Garmin GPS and have been using my iPhone. I use the Google app to voice navigate using Google Maps. It's pretty awesome. I can just hit the mic button, say "Navigate home" - or any other location - and Google figures out what I said and gives me some route options. Then with one or two clicks, I have turn-by-turn navigation running in the Google Maps app (it switches to the app), which is great, because I get accurate traffic data.

However...

Yesterday, I updated my phone to iOS 8 and now when I do this same process, Google Maps always asks me to "choose starting point..." What the fuck? Why in the hell would it think I want to start from anywhere other than WHERE I AM RIGHT NOW? Of course, that's not one of the options it gives me. I get a choice of recent locations, plus my Home and Work. If I pick a starting location, it works just fine and gives me accurate directions, so it's not like it doesn't know where I am.

Anyone else seeing this weirdness? Googling this on the Interwebs is turning up nothing for me.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Tue Sep 23, 2014 9:46 am

Is it set up to use your current location after the update? Might be that some permissions changed that you have to turn back on.

Post by **Shirley** » Tue Sep 23, 2014 10:44 am

AB_skin_test wrote:Is it set up to use your current location after the update? Might be that some permissions changed that you have to turn back on.

Yeah, I looked for something wrong there, but it's all correct. I did notice now that if I click on "choose starting point" it then gives me the option of Current Location. If I choose that, it works. That's stupid. It's especially stupid, because while it's still in the Google app, it shows me a route, including the current time for that route. So there, it's got the right stuff. When I choose a route and it then loads the Google Maps app, that's when it seems to lose the starting point.

It just seems like a bug to me, but I'm surprised to not find anyone else complaining about it.

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Tue Sep 23, 2014 10:57 am

Mine did that for a couple of minutes (while I was trying to reroute in the car, which was great) but then worked itself out.

Post by **Sabo** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 9:34 am

This is bad. Like, really bad.

http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/09 ... nix-in-it/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 10:51 am

Speak American.

Rush2112 · Post by **Rush2112** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 10:56 am

Sabo wrote:This is bad. Like, really bad.

http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/09 ... nix-in-it/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

First time it ever behooves someone to be running Windows, eh?

Post by **Sabo** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 11:18 am

Rush2112 wrote:
Sabo wrote:This is bad. Like, really bad.

http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/09 ... nix-in-it/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
First time it ever behooves someone to be running Windows, eh?

To a degree, yes. But since even Windows users get online every once in a while, their information is exposed, too.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 7:57 pm

Shirley wrote:
AB_skin_test wrote:Is it set up to use your current location after the update? Might be that some permissions changed that you have to turn back on.
Yeah, I looked for something wrong there, but it's all correct. I did notice now that if I click on "choose starting point" it then gives me the option of Current Location. If I choose that, it works. That's stupid. It's especially stupid, because while it's still in the Google app, it shows me a route, including the current time for that route. So there, it's got the right stuff. When I choose a route and it then loads the Google Maps app, that's when it seems to lose the starting point.

It just seems like a bug to me, but I'm surprised to not find anyone else complaining about it.

FYI...I used my google maps app today a lot. And it worked every time from the get go. YMMV.

Post by **Shirley** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 10:29 am

AB_skin_test wrote:FYI...I used my google maps app today a lot. And it worked every time from the get go. YMMV.

If I just use the Google Maps app from the start, it works fine. It only fucks up if I start with the Google app. The trick is, the Google app seems to have much better voice support and of course, you can give it all kinds of commands, not just navigation. Still, starting with Maps is a decent enough work around for now for my navigatin' needs..

Jerloma · Post by **Jerloma** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 4:05 pm

So I get this text from my kid today. I had my phone in hand and we were texting live so I watched this happen and the one below "Yeah it came out about a week ago" popped up almost simultaneously. I had Jen check her shortcuts...nothing in there. I had Jen check her clipboard...it's something about Supernatural. She had absolutely no time to type anything else and does anyone else think there's any relation to the fact that the two texts rhyme perfectly? I don't know. Am I missing anything?

cerrano · Post by **cerrano** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 5:12 pm

Jerloma wrote:So I get this text from my kid today. I had my phone in hand and we were texting live so I watched this happen and the one below "Yeah it came out about a week ago" popped up almost simultaneously. I had Jen check her shortcuts...nothing in there. I had Jen check her clipboard...it's something about Supernatural. She had absolutely no time to type anything else and does anyone else think there's any relation to the fact that the two texts rhyme perfectly? I don't know. Am I missing anything?

when does her rap single drop?

Post by **brian** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 5:13 pm

I had nothing to do with messing with your daughter's phone. For the record.

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Tue Oct 07, 2014 3:14 pm

Do you MFers get insurance on your cell phones? Why, why not, with who, etc ...

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Tue Oct 07, 2014 7:44 pm

No.

ETA: It seems like a waste of money. I don't even have a case for my phone. Just seems like something I should be careful with, so I am. It's an iPhone 4S that I got the first day, which was almost three years to the day. One minor scratch and two very minor nicks on the front, the back has a few more scratches, none of them major (but I would say that's because that's the side that is against the surfaces it rests on).

If you can handle it responsibly, insurance is simply throwing your money away.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 7:17 am

I don't carry it on my phone or my wife's phone, but we do have it on our kids' phones. Well, just one of them now back to the other phone being on a differently structured plan where paying the deductible after paying the monthly fee wasn't cost-effective.

And yes, this is a direct result of my oldest daughter cracking 3 screens. And of course we've scared my youngest to death about it and she's been tremendous with hers and had zero problems. One drop, but she has a decent case and no problems.

But it is also stupid because of that ridiculous deductible. I think it's $200. So basically if you can make it a year or so, you can drop that insurance. At least that's my plan.

And while I try to be careful with my phone, I'm not as surehanded as Dsafe. I've dropped it 5-6 times. But I have a lifeproof case on it that has definitely paid for itself.

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 8:36 am

DSafetyGuy wrote:No.

ETA: It seems like a waste of money. I don't even have a case for my phone. Just seems like something I should be careful with, so I am. It's an iPhone 4S that I got the first day, which was almost three years to the day. One minor scratch and two very minor nicks on the front, the back has a few more scratches, none of them major (but I would say that's because that's the side that is against the surfaces it rests on).

If you can handle it responsibly, insurance is simply throwing your money away.

Isn't your battery shit now? That's the only reason we just upgraded, we couldn't leave the house for a day without bringing the chargers along.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 8:50 am

My battery still works pretty well on my 4s unless I use it a great deal. usually can easily make it home from work with 40% minimum.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 9:36 am

AB, I've dropped my phone well more than 5-6 times in three years. Well more.

mister d wrote:
DSafetyGuy wrote:No.

ETA: It seems like a waste of money. I don't even have a case for my phone. Just seems like something I should be careful with, so I am. It's an iPhone 4S that I got the first day, which was almost three years to the day. One minor scratch and two very minor nicks on the front, the back has a few more scratches, none of them major (but I would say that's because that's the side that is against the surfaces it rests on).

If you can handle it responsibly, insurance is simply throwing your money away.
Isn't your battery shit now? That's the only reason we just upgraded, we couldn't leave the house for a day without bringing the chargers along.

Nope, my battery is fine. But, I turn location services off except for maps and weather (and had it off before the recent software upgrade, now it has to be on for those apps to run correctly). If you have it on, it is constantly updating your location, even when your phone sits idly. I also only get notifications for missed phone calls/voicemails and texts.

And I can go at least two days without recharging unless work demands are high.

Jerloma · Post by **Jerloma** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 10:51 am

I can't figure out how to set a default zoom on a pdf on Adobe Reader X. If I go to preferences and page display, I can set a default zoom but that just sets the default for my Adobe Reader and every document I open. I want to be able to set it so a specific document has this default setting on it when anyone opens it.

Post by **Sabo** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 10:55 am

Jerloma wrote:I can't figure out how to set a default zoom on a pdf on Adobe Reader X. If I go to preferences and page display, I can set a default zoom but that just sets the default for my Adobe Reader and every document I open. I want to be able to set it so a specific document has this default setting on it when anyone opens it.

I think doing that requires a full version of Adobe Acrobat, not just Adobe Reader.

Jerloma · Post by **Jerloma** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 10:56 am

Ah. Okay, let me look into that. Thanks.