The MacTipper Blog

All Things...

2009-11-13T00:00:00.000-06:00

There is a time for all things to come to an end. With that in mind, it has come time for me to stop writing for The MacTipper Blog. I've appreciated all your comments, emails, and ratings.

Thanks for reading,
MacTipper, out.

Mail Rule for Urgent Messages

2009-11-12T00:00:00.001-06:00

Texting is a very convenient form of communication for those who have it. However, if you, a friend, or family member do not have texting, then others must call or email you to get in touch. Using the AppleScript below, you can set your Mac to alert you if you receive a text message.

Simply put, this script takes the mail messages you pass to it, opens them, and then makes Mail the frontmost application. To use it, save it as a script file and place it in a safe place. (You can download a pre-compiled script file here.) Then, in Mail, create a new mail that matches certain parameters. For example, have it run if the email is from one of the text message to email gateways.

using terms from application "Mail" on perform mail action with messages the_messages for rule theRule tell application "Mail" set curVolume to output volume of (get volume settings) repeat with i in the_messages open i end repeat set volume 10 say "New Text Message" set volume curVolume activate return the_messages end tell end perform mail action with messages end using terms from

Delete Mail Message Without Opening Next Email

2009-11-11T00:00:00.001-06:00

When you delete an email in Apple Mail, the next email will automatically be revealed. While this can be convenient, sometimes I know that I don't want to read an email and don't want to mark it as read. Here are three solutions:

If this is a one time thing, use Option-Delete. However, be forewarned that this will permanently delete the message.

If you want to always manually open each mail message, close the preview pane by double-clicking on the divider. Then, to open a message, hit Cmd-O or Return.

Finally, if you accidentally mark a message as read, you can simply hit Cmd-Shift-U to mark it as unread. It will stay marked as unread until you open it or re-preview it.

Easily Email Files in Finder

2009-11-10T00:00:00.001-06:00

If you email files by dropping them onto the Dock, there is a better way. Simply put the Mail.app icon into Finder's toolbar. Then all you need to do is drag a file to your toolbar rather than to your dock.

Get Free Software From MacHeist

2009-11-09T00:00:00.001-06:00

Everybody likes free software. That's why today's tip is simply that you can get free, legit, software from MacHeist.com. It's only available for a few more days, so act quickly.

Global Variables in AppleScript

2009-11-06T00:00:00.001-06:00

I've always thought that, when writing an AppleScript subroutine, one needed to pass all the terms to the subroutine. However, if you're working with a constant variable, a Global Variable is called for.

What is a global variable? Global variables allow you to define which terms should be shared throughout the entire script. So, if you set a global variable you can then access that variable anywhere in the script. Keep in mind though that, unlike properties, you do not define a global variable when you create it:

Open in AppleScript Editor

global multiply_factor on run --Define Multiply_Factor set multiply_factor to 64 --Use it in the math_problem subroutine set the_answer to math_problem(16, 32) return the_answer end run --This subroutine uses the multiply_factor variable even though we didn't pass it the multiply_factor variable during the run statement. on math_problem(x, y) set new_x to x * multiply_factor set new_y to y * multiply_factor set final_result to new_x + new_y return final_result end math_problem

Improve iPod Touches Location Awareness

2009-11-05T00:00:00.001-06:00

If your iPod Touches location awareness doesn't work as well as you would like, there's a reasonably simple way to make it better. Just go to Skyhook Wireless' webform to submit a wireless network and fill out the details. After doing this with my frequently used routers I noticed a great improvement in my iPod's location accuracy.

Easy Fast-Forward and Rewind in iTunes

2009-11-04T00:00:00.001-06:00

For me, iTunes has always had a problem of not providing enough control when fast-forwarding or rewinding. Fortunately, this is quite easy to do if you can scroll your mouse. Simply mouse over the time bar and scroll up to fast-forward and down to rewind.

[Via]

Disable Mail's "No Mail" Sound Effect

2009-11-03T00:00:00.000-06:00

I have a script which checks for new mail every five minutes. However, due to the nature of this script, it plays the "No New Mail" sound every time it runs. Naturally, it gets quite irritating to hear the sound effect every five minutes. Fortunately, it is quite easy to disable the "No Mail" sound effect.

If you would like to automate this, you can use this AppleScript Application, otherwise, read on for the full run down:

Step 1: Quit Mail.app.

Step 2: Go to /Applications/Mail.app in Finder.

Step 3: Right click on the Mail application and select "Show Package Contents."

Step 4: In the Finder window that opens, go to ./Contents/Resources/No Mail.aiff.

Step 5: Make a backup copy of this audio file and replace it with an audio file containing silence. Make sure the name of the audio file is "No Mail.aiff".

Step 6: Open up Mail and check for new mail. You should no longer hear the lonely "No Mail" sound.

Download the script here.

Add WebSite to Dashboard

2009-11-02T00:00:00.000-06:00

Today's tip is very basic, but can be very helpful if you want to keep track of a daily deal site. We're going to add a widget for that site onto Dashboard.

Step 1: Open the website in Safari.

Step 2: Go to the File menu and select "Open in Dashboard…"

Step 3: Select the area of the webpage that you wish to use as a widget then hit the return key.

Step 4: Your widget will open in dashboard. The content will refresh every time you open Dashbaord.

Upload Files Using the FTP CLI

2009-11-01T00:00:00.001-05:00

I recently wrote a script that required me to upload a file to an FTP server. Fortunately, using the command line (Terminal) this is quite easy.

The basic command would be:

ftp -u ftp://username:password@server.address/folder/filename.mp3 /Path/To/File.mp3

Replace...

"Username" with your username for the FTP server.
"Password" with your password for the FTP server.
"Server.address" with the address of the FTP server.
"folder" with the folder path to the specific folder you wish to add the file to.
"filename.mp3" with the filename of the file you are uploading including its extension.
"/Path/To/File.mp3" with the path to the file on your computer.

If you wish to learn more about the FTP CLI (command line interface) type "man ftp" into Terminal and hit return.

Share iPhone Apps Between iPhones

2009-10-30T00:00:00.000-05:00

Here's how you can install the same (paid) application on two different Mac's with different Apple ID's.

Step 1: On the first Mac, find the iPhone App in iTunes, select it, and hit Cmd-R to reveal it in Finder.

Step 2: Transfer the .ipa file in Finder to the second Mac.

Step 3: On the second Mac, open iTunes, go to the Store menu and select "Authorize Computer…".

Step 4: Enter in the email address and password for the first Mac's Apple ID.

Step 5: Open the .ipa files from earlier and install them on your iPhone.

It's that simple!

Delete Mail on iPhone/iTouch

2009-10-29T00:21:00.000-05:00

There are three ways to delete emails in the Mail app on the iPhone or iPod Touch:

1) While viewing a list of emails, swipe horizontally across the email to reveal a delete button. Swipe horizontally again to remove the delete button.

2) While viewing a list of emails, click on the "Edit" button in the upper-right corner. Your emails with shift to the right with dots appearing along the left edge. Select the emails you wish to delete then click on the big red delete button in the lower left corner.

3) While viewing an email, click on the delete button at the bottom of the screen in the center.

Keep Mail Notes Out of Your Inbox

2009-10-28T00:00:00.000-05:00

For the first time, I used notes in Apple Mail today. Unexpectedly, the note I created showed up in my Inbox. As it turns out, by default, Mail will automatically store any notes you create inside the inbox of that email account. Fortunately, it's rather simple to disable this functionality.

First, go to Apple Mail and open its preferences (Cmd-,). In the preferences window, click on the "Accounts" section. Select the account you create notes on and go to the "Mailbox Behaviors" section. Finally, uncheck the box for, "Show notes in Inbox."

10.6: Sync Address Book with Google/Yahoo!

2009-10-26T00:00:00.000-05:00

You can now sync contacts from your Address Book with Google or Yahoo! in Snow Leopard. To do this, open up Address Book and hit Cmd-, to open Address Book's preferences. Once there, click on the "Accounts" section. Click on the "On My Mac" option then check the option for "Synchronize with Google/Yahoo!." Finally, check the "Configure…" box and enter in your Google email address and password.

Automatically Zoom Applications Using Terminal

2009-10-25T01:01:00.003-05:00

While screen zoom in Leopard is really nice, Snow Leopard's screen zoom is very buggy, making it almost impossible to use. Fortunately, I have found a new form of zooming that is much more efficient, usable, and customizable. Unfortunately, this method does have some flaws, which I will get into later, and isn't nearly as on-demand as normal zoom. But, for some applications, I know that I'll need them zoomed, so this method is perfect.

With all that out of the way, let's begin.

This method of zooming essentially tells the application that you have a different screensize than you do. Don't worry, you won't have to know exactly what screen size you'll need. Instead, you'll scale the application up or down. This can be convenient for two things:

1) If your real screen size is too small for an application (e.g. Lingon.app on 800x600), you can scale the application down so that it will fit onto your screen.
2) If you can't see an application, you can scale it up so that you can.

Here are screenshots of AppleScript Editor (the worst looking application so far):

To enable this for any application you open, run the following command:

defaults write -g AppleDisplayScaleFactor 2.0

The "2.0" is the scale coefficient. So, in this case, that code will scale up new applications to two times their size. Just change the 2.0 coefficient to the scale size you desire. To make applications appear smaller, use the form of "0.x".

Once you run that Terminal command, any application you open will be zoomed to the factor you specified. To disable, simply set the zoom coefficient to "1.0" and relaunch the affected applications.

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To set this for specific apps is a bit more complicated. The simplest method is probably this:

Enter "defaults domains" into a new Terminal window. This will return a comma-separated list of every domain on your Mac. Hit Cmd-F and search for the name of the application you want the domain for. The domain will look something like, "com.developer.appname". Copy this to your clipboard and run the following command replacing "app_domain" with the domain you copied. If the domain contains spaces, make sure that you single quote the domain:

defaults write 'app_domain' AppleDisplayScaleFactor 1.75

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Aaaaaaaaaaaand that's it! You should now be able to apply zoom applications on a selective basis so that you can use them on your tiny screen, or scale them up so you can use them. Either way, you win!

[via]

10.6: Exposé and the Cmd-Tab Switcher

2009-10-23T00:00:00.000-05:00

After you activate the command-tab switcher by hitting Cmd-Tab, you can quickly activate Exposé for the currently selected application by holding the Command key and pressing the 1 key. After you activate Exposé, you can - while still holding the command key - use the grave-accent (`) key (left of the 1 key) to switch between applications in Exposé.

Jump to Line Number in TextEdit

2009-10-22T00:00:00.000-05:00

I do a lot of code editing in TextEdit rather than a more proper code editing application. (If you have a suggestion for a code editing application, leave a comment and I'll check it out.) Recently, I've been working with a lot of Python and Perl which report problems based on line numbers. (e.g. "Error on line 52.") This causes problems as I then need to open the script in TextEdit and hit the down key 52 times. Then, it occurred to me that TextEdit might have a line-number function built right in. As it turns out, it does! Just hit Cmd-L and type in the line-number you wish to jump to and hit return. Couldn't be easier!

Random Fun: Mac Quiz on MacMost

2009-10-21T12:27:00.000-05:00

Bored? Think you know everything about the Mac? Well MacMost posted a Mac related Quiz today and I got a shameful 11/20 questions correct. Think you can beat me? Take the quiz now!

10.6 Preview: Constrain to Proportions When Resizing Pasted Images

2009-10-21T00:00:00.000-05:00

In the past, you could copy part of an image in Preview, paste it into another image, then use the corners of the pasted image to adjust the size of the image. However, there was no way to make sure that the image was not contorted when you resized it. Fortunately, this has been fixed in Snow Leopard. Simply hold the shift key when resizing the pasted image to keep the image constrained to its original proportions.

Tab-Completion in Terminal and Finder

2009-10-20T00:00:00.000-05:00

If you use the command line reasonably often, then you probably tire of typing out long folder names. Fortunately, there's a simple shortcut to autocomplete file paths: Tab. Just type in enough letters to differentiate it from other files in the file path then hit the tab key. As an example, to change to your Downloads folder, you could type:

cd ~/Dow [Tab]

Whereas, to switch to your Documents folder, you would type:

cd ~/Doc [Tab]

This also works in Finder's "Go to Folder…" (Cmd-Shift-G) shortcut.

SIMBL and Snow Leopard

2009-10-19T00:00:00.000-05:00

SIMBL is a system add-on that allows developers to inject code directly into applications. This allows add-ons to be built for applications that the developers did not build themselves. If you've upgraded to Snow Leopard, then SIMBL was supposed to not work. Fortunately, the SIMBL devs have created a Snow Leopard compatible version. You can download the latest version here.

For those interested, here are instructions on how to get MultiClutch to work in your 64bit applications. [via]

Take Screenshot on iPhone/iPod Touch

2009-10-18T00:00:00.001-05:00

If you want to save something funny that you see while browsing the internet on your iPhone or iPod Touch, it is possible to take a screenshot of the iPod's screen. Simply hold the home button then press the power button. The screenshot will be saved into your Photo library under "Saved Photos".

Shorten URL's Using j.mp's API

2009-10-16T00:00:00.000-05:00

If you're scripting something that sends URL's, it's a nice touch to shorten the URL's. Fortunately, this is really quite simple using the j.mp API. In AppleScript, use the following code:

set the_url to "http://www.mactipper.com/" do shell script "curl http://j.mp/api?url=" & the_url

Just set "the_url" to the URL you wish to shorten.

10.6: Disable Dictionary.app's Multiple Windows

2009-10-15T00:00:00.001-05:00

In Snow Leopard, opening a definition from the dictionary result in Spotlight (or right-clicking on a word and selecting "Look Up in Dictionary") would result in the dictionary app creating a new window. I find this quite bothersome as the windows can quickly flood my screen. Fortunately, MacOSXHints has the solution. This simple terminal command:

defaults write com.apple.Dictionary ProhibitNewWindowForRequest -bool TRUE

To disable this modification, use:

defaults delete com.apple.Dictionary ProhibitNewWindowForRequest