While I am to a large extent a bit of a fan boy for the Mac and Apple products I am realistic enough to know that there will still be problems that need to be solved. It is the nature of the beast, things need to be sorted out and organised, workarounds have to be found.

• Where you have thousands of lines of code in an application there are going to be bugs.
• Where you have applications coming from different creators that have to work together there will be mismatches and conflicts.
• Then there are the occasional disparate hardware problems that arise although obviously there are going to be fewer such problems by using Apple products.
• Then you will have the coming together of hardware and software which again can lead to conflicts or difficulties due to the complexity of both the beasts.

Taking forever to sort out my Drobo

Where hardware/software is impacting upon me at the moment, is that I have a problem that has been ongoing for a couple of weeks with my Drobo. The Drobo is a network attached storage device (NAS) in which I have four hard drives. It is a proprietary solution which allows for some redundancy of the hard drives, one of the hard drives may fail and yet I will still not lose any of my data. Lose two at the same time and yes I would be stuffed. It is a good system, but a question that you have to ask when you're working with a drive of such a large capacity, is how do you backup all of what you have on a Drobo. The answer to that has to be either a very large hard drive or another Drobo. With the size of the drives that I have at present, I could buy a single drive which would take the place of the Drobo and in fact it would be cost-effective to do that. If I was to change some of the 1 TB drives that are still in some of the Drobo slots, to larger sized drives, then I might have to do do some other magic with it in order to keep my data safe. I did think that I was close to having all of the files backed up of the Drobo, except on checking again I found another folder of video clips that I needed to copy across to the back up disk.

Another problem I have had recently, as recent as this morning, is that my Amadeus Pro application somehow got corrupted during an upgrade and I have to re-download a new application file. I think this came about because of an automatic application upgrade occurred. I think I will start to download upgrades manually in future.

I want the new, fast and shiny

A perennial problem for us computer guys is that there is always new, shiny and sexy devices that we can buy, in order to add to, or upgrade our computing experience. I am using a 27 inch iMac and to the side of it I have a 19 inch non-widescreen monitor. I have got so used to having so many applications open, that at times I really feel the need for having a larger extra screen to add to my system. A 24 inch widescreen monitor would be just lovely. Better still would be to have two of them, one for either side of the main computer screen. I might need to get a larger desk to accommodate all of that.

On top of that, Apple keep upgrading their computers and although this iMac is fairly new, there is a new one which does look even nicer. If I had the money I would be tempted to sell the one that I have now, to upgrade to the updated model. The reason why this would be so nice would be the fact that I would be able to increase the size of the hard drive within the computer and I would also make sure that I had an SSD as part of the system. The SSD would be to have a blistering speed for the operating system and then for the data of certain most used applications such as Final Cut Pro X. The bulk of the data could then be spread across the larger mechanical hard drive. I can't actually do much with the iMac that I have at present, because I have the insurance of AppleCare. Otherwise I would be very likely to open it up and put in a new hard drive and the extra solid-state device. It is a good plan though, for when the AppleCare is finished at the end of three years, to make upgrades then and to a large extent, effectively have a new computer. Without a doubt with the upgraded hardware it would feel like a new computer. Shame to have to wait though. Getting a Thunderbolt drive adapter and an SSD might be an alternative plan that will speed things up significantly. The prices of the Thunderbolt devices are starting to become more reasonable.

The iPad and the iPad mini

I am a big fan of the iPad. It took me a while to really get into iPad usage, but now it follows me all around the house. I have even started to take the device with me when I leave the house, thank goodness for the man bag. I am very tempted though, for the sake of mobility to have an iPad mini. Being lighter and smaller it will be therefore easier to carry around. When buying a new one I will most definitely buy one with at least 32 GB of storage and possibly one that includes the mobile connectivity of a Sim card slot. I did suggest to my wife that she might like to have an iPad mini, but she declared that she would prefer to have something with an even larger screen. This does go against what she has said before about having something smaller and lighter for easier carrying.

Photography for geeks

I have a really good camera in the Canon 600D, but I find myself lusting after the Panasonic GH3. This is because the Panasonic has the ability to be controlled from an iPad application. The Panasonic is better than the Canon for shooting video, despite having a smaller image sensor. Although the latest version of the Panasonic has grown in size slightly, it should still be smaller and lighter than the Canon. It seems that portability is becoming more important to me generally. I also need to get my hands upon a good, fast wide-angle lens for shooting the type of video that I want to shoot. So I would buy the 20 mm pancake lens that they have available, to go alongside the super telephoto that is great for general-purpose photography.

It's not easy being a geek and a nerd when you have no money

So as you can see there are always new things that are desirable in the realm of technology. It is a damn shame that the cost of it is sometimes quite prohibitive and that most times it is necessary to make priorities. Maybe sometimes that is a good thing, as by the time you have saved up some more cash for the next electronic toy or goodie, there is something new out replacing what you were saving for.

What we have to remember is, is to have some good fun with the technology that we do have in our possession and work out the best ways to take good and proper advantage of that tech. I just love to find out ways that I can add more automation by using application such as Keyboard Maestro, Hazel with a sprinkling of AppleScript and maybe even a bit of Automator. It is great fun being able to set up something that creates an interaction between separate applications that works so fast that it would have the head spinning of somebody who is not a tech guy.

When I first started buying Apple products, which was around seven years ago now with the G4 Mac Mini, I had no interest in buying AppleCare. It seemed mad to me to purchase AppleCare as the products already come with one years guarantee. I didn’t think it was necessary for Applecare protection because of the reputation that Apple have for quality products. For the most part that has been a good decision. I still have that Apple Mac Mini in full working condition. The first iMac that I bought, I believe still works. Certainly it worked for all the years that I used it, before I passed it on to my son.

AppleCare for iPad?

On account of the fact that the amazing computer that is the iPad, is shoehorned into such a small space with the amazing technology that is used to create the product, perhaps I should be buying AppleCare for iPad. The first iPad that I bought, the original iPad, is still in daily use and didn’t have a need of Applecare for iPad. The iPad generation 3 which I’m using at present, also is working perfectly and I feel confident it will last for longer than the time I expect to have it. I didn’t even get any Apple care on the iPhone 3G and I got a super amount of use out of that device, without any problems. I was able to sell the iPhone at the end of its life for me and have a little bit of money to put towards the Apple iPhone 4.

Should have got an Apple care protection plan for iMac

Now the second iMac that I bought, a 24 inch model, I did have some problems with. After I’d had the iMac for a couple of years I had problems with the display and it cost me €400 to get it fixed. I used it for about eight or nine months after that and once again I had a different problem with the display. The first problem was with the display card inside the computer and I think the second problem with it was the actual display itself. After that, I really didn’t want to spend any more money to fix it again.

With that particular iMac computer, I would have been better off if I’d had AppleCare protection with it. Due to the problems I had with that iMac, with the Apple iMac 27 inch computer that I’m using now, I did buy AppleCare support. It does feel nice to know that I can ring up the AppleCare support number and get this computer fixed if necessary. Everything is going okay with the computer so far, although I do have a small problem with the DVD drive. The small socket for the SDHC card is right next to the opening for the DVDs and one time by mistake, I put the memory card into the wrong hole. I didn’t tend to use the DVD drive very often, but one of these days I will make an appointment to make use of the AppleCare protection and get that sorted out.

Which Apple care support number should I call

As you may know I live in Spain and if I ring the Spanish AppleCare number, I might not get somebody that speaks English. So should I ring AppleCare UK or just take my chances with the Spanish number? Probably, I will try the Spanish number first, as in any case I can speak a certain amount of Spanish. I would still prefer to deal with it in English if at all possible.

Was it a good idea to buy AppleCare?

The answer to that is, only time will tell. At the moment I am pleased with the decision, considering the problems I had with the previous iMac. To a certain extent the iMac is like having a laptop computer which are generally more difficult to get inside to fix and for that reason getting an AppleCare plan is a very good idea.

The ability to upgrade the iMac while on AppleCare

When you get yourself a new computer, it seems as fast as hell. Quite often though, over time as new models are introduced, what once seemed fast, might later on seem a little sluggish. What I am thinking of here, in particular, is that the price of the SSD drives have significantly reduced in price, to the point of being affordable. The trouble is, if I want to do my own upgrade on the computer, there is the possibility that I could invalidate the AppleCare warranty. After owning this computer for a year, what I would like to do is to install an SSD drive for bootup and to increase the size of the spinning hard drive. At the time of buying the iMac there was an option to get an SSD, but it was far too expensive

Finding a way to upgrade the iMac that has AppleCare protection

Finally we are just starting to see the introduction of Thunderbolt devices or connectors, so that we can really start to benefit from the technology. Last week when I was in the Apple Store to check out the Apple iPad mini, I also saw the Seagate Thunderbolt connector device. What I am thinking of doing, is to buy one of these Thunderbolt connectors and plug a SSD drive into it. I would set up the SSD to be the boot drive and keep the spinning drive inside just for the content. I might also use the SSD for some video scratch drive purposes, and Final Cut Pro X would benefit from a huge performance increase.

The only other chance to upgrade the iMac while it is under the protection of Apple care would be the possibility of asking AppleCare to do the upgrade for me. I suspect that I would have to use the Apple supplied SSD drive and I think that could be quite expensive.

Just be patient for an upgrade

The other option would be to wait until the AppleCare period is finished and then I would be able to crack open the case of the iMac myself. I would probably be able to get a good sized SSD from Crucial Memory that I could install myself, along with a large mechanical spinning drive to put in at the same time. I’m fairly sure that with such an upgrade I would be able to get two, maybe three more years use out of this iMac. Such is the amount of increase of speed and productivity I could get by adding an SSD.

What would you do in my shoes?

Some people might think that the best thing to do would be to sell the current 27 inch model that I’m working with and upgrade to the latest, thinnest iMac available from Apple. Even though I could probably get a good price for the iMac that I’m using, especially as the AppleCare iMac plan would be transferable, it could still work out expensive. My finances would not allow for that particular plan right now.

The idea of using the Thunderbolt option, certainly has its merits. I could get a SSD for about €100 and the Thunderbolt adapter costs either €130 or €180 depending on whether I get the one with one Thunderbolt port or the two Thunderbolt ports. Getting the product with two Thunderbolt ports would be useful as I would be able to Daisy chain them. At a later stage I could add another Thunderbolt device to the end of the chain.

It is working well enough anyway

The iMac that I am using with its AppleCare registration in place is pretty good as it is. I shouldn’t be so impatient with the need for speed, so should I wait until the three years are up? Does anybody else have any other suggestions?

More than just a sum of the parts

The Mac is just a collection of computer parts, high quality computer parts but still just a computer. It is the operating system combined with the software used by amazing creative people that makes it special and notable.

What do you do with your Mac that is creative?

Maybe what I need is an iPhone 4 refurb

This morning I had to wonder if my 3G iPhone had finally given up the ghost. It had turned off and no amount of me pressing buttons resulted in the phone turn it back on again, initially. I did eventually find the combination of button pressing that brought it back from the grave. I think what I need is a new iPhone and maybe even a little bit of iPhone 4 voice control. Earlier when I had the problem when even iTunes doesn’t recognise iPhone, I thought I had the perfect reason, excuse for getting a new iPhone.

Apple iPhone accessories for iPhone 4 refurb

The shape of the iPhone 4 is completely different from the iPhone 3G that I have now, so I would need new Apple iPhone accessories. I do have a handy little base for my iPhone, which without batteries amplifies the sound from the speakers. That wouldn’t work with a new refurb iPhone 4. I would have to find some other way of giving the volume a boost. You would be surprised how well that battery less base works, especially good when I’m in the shower. I can listen to some Mac podcasts and the Mac podcaster is spouting all that hot air coming from the rumour mongering.

Easier to transfer pictures from iPhone

With the iPhone 3G that I have now the latest version of the iOS that I can run is 4.2.1 and with that I can’t send pictures via Photo Stream. I would need at least iOS 5 to be able to transfer pictures from iPhone to my Mac and my iPad. I am often using my iPad to make pictures, always screenshots as the iPad I have doesn’t have a camera. The speed with which the pictures get transferred from the iPad to my iMac is phenomenal. ICloud and the photo stream is a super innovation and I would like to have more of it.

Looking at the Apple website for a refurbished iPhone 4

I checked out the Spanish Apple website to see if they were ready refurbished models of the iPhone 4, but no luck. I suppose I should keep looking. It would be possible for me to get the iPhone 3G S for the princely sum of €349. My mother has just bought one of these phones on the three network in England and is very happy with it. At least she was able to get it with a deal that is only costing her £20 a month. There are no such deals available here with the Spanish telephone networks. In any case I use the phone for making phone calls so rarely that I would probably be better off to buy a phone outright and unlocked.

An iPhone 4 voice control model or just an iPod

On the other hand, what I could do is to get an iPad Touch which will run IOS 5 and carry around a cheap non-smart phone for the rare phone calls. I would still have the benefits of iMessage while I am in Wi-Fi areas. The only problem with this plan of action would be the cost of a 32 GB iPod Touch. The cost of it would be sufficient that I would probably be better off to get more money together and get an iPhone.

Or should I just update my iPad

I really do need a new generation three iPad and I would prefer to have one of those than the iPhone. It really does come down to the fact that I make very few phone calls and hardly ever send a text message. I could be very happy with a cheap feature phone and to carry an iPad 3 along with my MiFi. Better still would be to get the iPad with mobile connectivity built in, but then that is more money.

So will the solution be an iPhone 4 refurbished?

I think for the moment I will continue to keep breathing life into the present iPhone 3G that I have. I will put money aside for the purchase of new Apple hardware and make a decision about what that will be exactly at a later date. Maybe I will get lucky and see an iPhone 4 refurb on the Apple website store. I suppose there is always the possibility of second-hand, but I would really only preferred to buy somebody I knew had looked after their device really well.

Apple set to have Apple iPad 3 release date – March 7th

Well they don’t leave us much time to get our tickets to be able to get there for the announcement of the Apple iPad 3 release date. We have to have our suit cases and flight bags packed ready so we can fly off at a moments notice. Apple has told us that there is something that we should look at and also touch on March 7th. It is the Apple iPad 3 release date or more likely it will be the day that Apple say when the iPad 3 will be shipping. If there are no changes to the wireless devices within the Apple iPad 3 then it may be out sooner rather than later. I wonder if there will also be extra changes or other new products announced on the same day are Apple iPad 3 release date.

Apple iPad 3 release date as soon as the details are told to us. Will you be getting an Apple iPad 3 as soon as it is released? I suspect that many that are still with the Apple iPad 1 will be right there using the elbows to get to the front of the queue to get in the Apple Store and place the order.

Apple iPad 3 Release Date – March 7th

Will Tim Cook and his fellow operatives at the Apple event for the iPad 3 release, have any ‘One more thing’ items to tell us about on the day? I certainly hope that there will be some pleasant surprises with features that we didn’t expect to get being announced when we find out the actual Apple iPad 3 release date. Keep up with Mac20Q on YouTube.

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Time to do a Mac Mini Test

When you actually look at the Mac Mini and decide to do a Mac mini test, you can’t help but be astounded by having so much goodness all fitted into such a small package. You might even decide to verbalise this, with the saying that all the best things come in small packets. No small wonder that many Apple fans look upon the Mac Mini with a certain amount of affection. I have in my house still, one of the early Mac Mini computers with the G4 processor 1.25 GHz, which was the first Mac that I ever bought and I don’t think I could ever come around to selling it. As the moment it sits under my television and use it to connect up, so that I can watch videos on the TV. When I first got it, it only had half a gigabyte of memory, but I did a Mac Mini memory upgrade to the maximum which is, for that model only 1 GB.

Mac Mini wiki to know all there is to know about the Mac Mini

There are plenty of resources online that you can use to find out more about the Mac Mini and one place to look would be the Mac Mini wiki. Just in case you don’t know, a wiki is a user generated set of webpages that are informational about whatever sort of subject you are interested in. There are wiki’s about all sorts of topics and with some of them you would perhaps need to be careful with regards believing all that you read.

What happens on the Mac Mini Test

There is the possibility that somebody with an agenda added information to the wiki that was not strictly correct. This largely does depend upon the subject matter of the wiki, I think we will be fairly safe with the online Mac Mini wiki. The users of such a site, I feel fairly sure, know their stuff well enough that they would want to make sure it was all completely correct. It is a fan boy thing!

The many varied uses of the Mac Mini

One of the interesting uses I have seen of the Mac Mini would be to have it as an entertainment system within a car. There are car fanatics that have taken a Mac Mini and connected it to a small screen that has been fixed into the dashboard of the car. A GPS receiver can also be connected to the Mac Mini to give the computer unit, even more functionality suited to using in a car. I did see in a Mac Mini Wiki, that somebody had installed a Mac Mini into a Mini car. How cool is that then? How about that for a Mac Mini test.