Mac OS X: The Missing Manual by David Pogue The unconfirmed error reports are from readers. They have not yet been approved or disproved by the author or editor and represent solely the opinion of the reader. Here's a key to the markup: [page-number]: serious technical mistake {page-number}: minor technical mistake : important language/formatting problem (page-number): language change or minor formatting problem ?page-number?: reader question or request for clarification This page was updated October 10, 2002. UNCONFIRMED errors and comments from readers [19] Figure 1.3 and associated text; The combination of the Apple Key and a mouse click on the tiitle bar does NOT bring up a menu that lists all of the open windows. It does nothing. {20} Last paragraph; It doesn't appear that the Option key means "apply to all". In fact, the second sentence of the paragraph reads: "For Example, Option-double- clicking any title bar minimizes all desktop windows..." This is false. The action only minimizes the windows belonging to the same application as the first window. Try it with TextEdit and Finder windows... (23) 2nd paragraph ("Better yet"); Minimizing a window by using Command-M is subject to the same caveat as is applied to using the Option key, in the second paragraph on page 22: not all programs respect this convention. Microsoft, in this case, *is* enlightened; AOL is not. (30) second paragaph; Actually, if two windows in icon view describe the same folder, the "This window only" option will make changes apply to both windows, not just the frontmost. [43] 1st complete paragraph; In OS 10.2.1, there is now no finder preference for "keep a window's view the same when opening other folders in the window" as shown in 5th printing (March 2002). [54] the only Note:; It is possible to use a virgule (forward slash) in file or folder names, even to begin them. The virgule is changed by OS X into a colon in the underlying BSD filesystem, without any notification to the user. (The Finder rejects periods as a beginning character with an error message.) Another naming anomaly: creating a profile for a monitor using the System Preferences "Display" pane ('s Color tab) ends with a dialog that should be a Finder Save File dialog, as it uses the name you submit to create and save a file. It does not perform the Finder's filename validation, however; using a virgule in a profile name results in the profile's disappearing altogether. (Apparently the Save call returns an error which is not trapped.) {55} Figure 2-2; It reads "Click an icon's name (top left) to produce the renaming rectangle (top right)..." This only works when the icon is already highlighted. (67) 3rd paragraph; Under Drag-and-drop: "A dotted outline of the original text block moves as you drag, ..." The dotted outline is not longer. A selected text "ghost" now moves as you drag. (102) last paragraph, first line; Replace "discovers" with "reveals" or replace "desktop file" with "Finder" [135] 3rd paragraph; From the Fifth Printing: It says on page 135 under "Specifying a Classic System Folder," that "each Mac OS 9 System Folder must sit on a different disk or disk partition...." But over on page 144 in the 7th paragraph, under "Maintaining two different Mac OS 9 System Folders," it says, "Both System Folders...can sit on the same hard drive." Isn't this a contradiction? (If the latter is true, it would also be nice to have the instructions for creating a second System Folder.) [144] 2nd Section: Maintaining two different...; You describe what can be achieved by using two seperate System Folders however you don't describe how best to actually set it up. Merely copying the installed OS 9 System Folder and renaming the copy (System Folder 2, or something) is an obvious step, but then how do you deliniate the two folders in terms of getting Classic to consistantly recognize one over the other? It seems that Classic merely locates the last one used - either by Classic itself or by the last time OS 9 was hard booted - which means you don't always get the "trimmed down" System Folder, say, after running the "full version" on a hard booted OS 9 session. I mean, I'd love to just keep a non-partitioned disk not worry about re-installing system software, and just run seperate System Folders with different Extensions activated, but am I missing something obvious here? (If not, it would seem the time spent having to shut down a hard boot "full version" OS 9 session by first restarting in the "trimmed down" System Folder in order to ensure that Classic will boot up in that particular folder would be counter productive to the original purpose of saving that time when you later activate Classic... wouldn't it?) {153} Omission under "By Email Attachment"; E-mail attachments are also limited in size by the mail transfer agent on each end of a "send." That means even though you may be able to send a particular attachment, there is no guarantee that your recipient can receive it, if it is very large. As my Linux guru used to say "e-mail is a best-effort method" (not guaranteed). {162} mid-page, AppleScript Studio; This does not make clear where the ASS is or how to get it. It is included with the developer tools. You have to establish a login at http://www.apple.com/developer, but the download is free. (at the moment the latest version is April 2002) (172) first paragraph; The paragraph states that "new commands [are] shown here in italics". But nothing in the following AppleScript example is italicized. [176] Fig 7-8; the apple script in fig 7-8 doesn't seem to work (177) 2nd paragraph, last line; In 11th printing Referring to special continuation symbols, which could be shown here, the final parenthetical statement refers to "Figures 7-6 and 7-7" as examples but the continuation symbols actually are not shown in Figure 7-6 and are in Figure 7-8, so it should read: "Figures 7-7 and 7-8" (182) Caption of Figure 8-1; System Preferences, not System Preference (184) Caption of Figure 8-2; Collection pop-up, not Collections pop-up (194) just above second Tip; either remove "the" before "F14 and F15" or add "keys" after it (202) last sentence under Network Time tab; Note that it is Daylight Saving (singular) Time, NOT Daylight SavingS Time. We are saving daylight, so it is singular and not plural. [204] Power Users' Clinic sidebar; Maybe it's just me, but... 1) I can't make an alias of any item in the System->Library->PreferencePanes folder. If I select one or multiple items, the "Make Alias" command is disabled on the File menu. I went into another folder with some of my documents in it just to be sure I could make *any* aliases, but there the command worked perfectly. 2) Even in a folder where I can make an alias, command-option dragging does not make aliases of the dragged items. In fact, I can't drag at all that way; when I mouse down the item directly beneath the pointer is deselected, and the pointer changes from an arrow to a "gloved hand" until the mouse button is released. Not sure what that's all about, but still, no aliases. I'm running 10.1.3 on a G3 iBook (dual-USB). No unusual software/extensions, etc. (204) Power Users' Clinic; in the first paragraph of the side bar you say that the control panels of OS 9 were "one click away (in the command menu)" and you use the command symbol (like in a menu bar). Don't you mean the Apple Menu? (214) "Other," mid-paragraph; something is missing...suggested fix is to add the words "and you can get them" before "by downloading" (228) last sentence; however, THE quickest way... (234) Console, first paragraph, last sentence; "messages being passed between the Mac OS X and other applications" ...isn't "the" extraneous? (or maybe "X") [251] 8th paragraph; "DVD-RAM is just like a CD-rewritable..." This appears to be incorrect. I can't erase the DVD-R using Disk Utility. I assume that this means it is not "rewritable". Please correct me if I am mistaken. From the Apple Site I found this note: "A DVD-R (or a Video DVD-R) can only be "burned" (written) using a Superdrive (CD- RW/DVD-R). " Here is the URL for the note above: http://discussions.info.apple.com/WebX?14@253.Nteeaqg6dCw.58@.3bb7d05d/2 If I am mistaken, and the DVD-R is "rewritable", then either I'm running into a limitation of the Superdrive or the Disk Utility? {257} Lower paragraph under 3rd bullet; "If you'd like to be able to..., to make a copy of the CD,..., you'll need a full- fledged CD-burning program like Toast Titanium (www.roxio.com). This is not true. You can hold down control while you click the mouse. This acts as a right-click. Drag the mouse down to "Copy CD" and click. Then open your Macintosh HD and control-click. Drag the mouse down to paste item. Click. The CD will start copying itself to the hard disk. When it finishes, eject the CD. Insert a blank one. Click on the blank CD and open the folder in your hard disk that was made from the CD. Drag the files one by one to the blank CD. Burn the blank CD. It sounds complicated but it is really easy once you do it. I hope this is corrected in future additions. [269] 2nd paragraph - Function/Keystroke table; Last Function entry should read: Function Keystroke show/hide movie Info Control-I (277) Short Name; The 'short name' is actually the user name to the Unix standard--eight or fewer (not "fewer than eight") characters. [284] Disable Restart and Shut Down buttons; A mention that putting os 9 on a separate partition enables anyboby to put into os 9 bypassing os X's security by holding option when booting. It's convient to not mess with startup disk, but does cause a security loophole. (290) 3rd paragraph; The root account and superuser are not one and the same. Superuser can act as any user (including root, which is its default, but not its only, option.) Superuser does not have "a superuser account." It is not an account but a META-account. [308] 2nd paragraph (just below figure 12-10) in 4th printing; This error is a serious misunderstanding of Unix privileges. I have verified that it is not in the lists of changes of printings 5, 6 and 7. The author misunderstands the 'Read only' privilege for a folder. He claims that visitors of such a folder "can't save changes to files they find there". This is wrong. Visitors can't add to or delete from the directory. But they may change files and folders that are already there (unless these files and folders also have read only privileges). For example, in a Home folder, the Public folder has read only privileges for visitors. But its content, the Drop Box, has privileges set to write only for visitors. Thus a folder with read only privileges contains a directory whose only use it to be modified... The error also appears on page 289, 1st paragraph after the Tip. (335) only paragraph; Interesting omission: point size can be entered to any decimal desired. I've seen an onscreen redraw of the text in TextEdit after I changed the selected text size by .01 point! (376) 2nd paragraph beginning "As you may remember"; Well, I suppose it's *possible* that the reader read page 378 before page 376, but is it likely? [407] first command line on page; command sudo chown -R chris /jim's \ Digipix appears to be fishy. 1) Jim's has been capitalized elsewhere (e.g. Fig. 16-5) 2) Why is there a backslash between Jim's and Digipix? (408) 4th pararaph - Tip section; In printing 11 The tip example for unlocking a file refers to the filename as *tahoe* but the filename is referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 above as Tahoe [447] In section on iDisk public folder access; does not appear to provide access to public folders. ...whereas... does. {467} 3rd paragraph of the Redirecting Messages topic; Twelfth Printing: July 2002 In the Mail application a keystroke combination is described for the Redirecting Messages feature as "Command + Option + J". This is contrary to the combination indicated in the MESSAGE menu that shows "Shift + Command + E", which does indeed work. {476} at the bottom of the page the statement is made "(You can also drag names out of the Address Book and into the CC field--but not, for some reason, into the To field.)" In my 10.1.4 version of OS X, the opposite is true, you can drag names into the To field, but not into the CC field. (485) 8th paragraph; In version 11 Bulletized paragraph "File/folder is locked/is unlocked ..." is repeated at top of page 486 with more explanaton, so should be deleted [505] 1st para; This is just an echo of another reader's remark. Since I first got the book I've been checking back here to see if it's been clarified. The instructions for ftp through Connect to Server returns an error: "No file services are available at the URL ftp://ftp.anywhere.com. Try again later or try a different URL (server returned error - 1)." Like the previous reader, I've tried servers I can access otherwise (ftp through terminal). He reported for OS X 10.1.4, I can confirm the problem for 10.1.2 and 10.1.5. [514] 4th paragraph, 3rd line; In 11th printing it reads: "icons with little blank triangles ..." and should be: "icons with little black triangles ..." [525] Bottom; You said that USB Printer Sharing was gone because you set up shared printers using the Print Center. However, that doesn't work for everyone. We have two iMacs here, my wife's runs 9.1 and I just moved mine over to 10.1.5. My wife's has a USB color inkjet attached to it that I used to be able to see from mine when it ran 9.2, but now that I'm in 10, my computer doesn't even know it exists. After spending some time checking out Apple's website, I was finally able to find out that the current implementation of OS X *won't* let you share printers that way, however there have been hints that USB Printer Sharing will be coming back. It would've been nice if somewhere in the chapters on networking or printing, you had mentioned how this one very popular method of printer sharing didn't work in the new OS, and had warned us that everything you mentioned about networking printers only applied to those connected by Ethernet. I hope this makes it into the next edition. {561} 1st paragraph; The localhost # prompt does not respond to the enter key. You have to use the return key instead. (574) iMovie index entry; iMovie partitioning considerations, 452 Should read: iMovie partitioning considerations, 542