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Stupid computer help again

_pin

18:58 / 02.10.06

To kick it off, whatever Mac OS X would have shipped on a new Mac Mini about a month ago is refusing to install most things. Double-clicking the .dmg just makes it open in the closed-off section of the Macintosh HD window (there's a line under it, followed by the desktop, then Home, then blah), even though I hear it's meant to ask you to go to the Applications folder. It also doesn't ask me for my password.

Please help, it's really annoying.

MattShepherd: I WEDDED KALI!

19:00 / 02.10.06

From a position of semi-ignorance: are you logged in as a user with administrative functions? The OS could be protecting you from yourself (or rather the computer from you, really).

grant

19:07 / 02.10.06

That's weird. Usually, you'd just double-click on the .dmg, it opens as if it was an extra disk, then you either open a stuffit/zip file (compressed file) or else you drag the uncompressed program into the Applications folder.

I *think* what's happening is a weird display thing -- it's showing, like, Macintosh HD and a couple other things in a list along with the .dmg, right? If you double click on the .dmg in that list, what happens?

The other thing that springs to mind is that double-clicking might be set to do something other than "open file" in your system, but that seems weird to me.

lekvar

19:08 / 02.10.06

Try right-clicking/holding down the "control" button when you click the .dmg file. It should bring up a contextual menu. Select "open with" and click "Installer." This should open the .dmg with the Installer application. Alternately you can drag the file onto the application (it's in your Utilities folder).

There's a good chance you need to repair your permissions.

_pin

19:17 / 02.10.06

No, I'm admin. Also, installer doesn't like the look of .dmgs and won't open them.

To note, it happens a lot (like with FireFox right now and forever) but is specifically happening with Audacity and is annoying because, while it runs, it won't let me alter the plug-ins folder to actually put plug-ins in.

How do I repair permissions and what does that mean?

(THank you all)

Ticker

20:00 / 02.10.06

the new mac OS line has got a unixy core, what that means is that files and folders have very specific permissions on them for who can access or change stuff.

Usually with one's mac comes a startup/repair CD/DVD. When you chuck that puppy in your 'puter and restart it will come up using the CD/DVD image instead of your hard drive. It will look different when it comes up but in the menu bar or the little application that self starts you should see an option for 'repair permissions'. The program will prompt you to select your hard drive (you might only have the 1) and then it will run out and make sure the perms are correct.

This is usually a problem if another program/app stepped on something.

Ticker

20:04 / 02.10.06

Double-clicking the .dmg just makes it open in the closed-off section of the Macintosh HD window (there's a line under it, followed by the desktop, then Home, then blah), even though I hear it's meant to ask you to go to the Applications folder. It also doesn't ask me for my password.

ah can you select the folder that shows up in the closed off section?
I'm sorry if I'm misunderstanding you but the .dmg when you click on it should mount there and be openable (little eject upwards pointing arrow next to its name int he finder window?)

It sounds like you need to go into the folder created by double clinking the .dmg and you should find an installer program in there.

I'll see if I can get some screen shots for you if need be.

_pin

20:16 / 02.10.06

I don't know where an installer programme is from there, or what that would look like. From the foler with the eject button beside it I can run programmes OK, and they never ask me to install.

Will try that CD tomorrow if no other help comes.

lekvar

20:56 / 02.10.06

You can repair your permissions by starting the Disk Utility application in your Utilities folder. Once it's open you should see a window that lists the drives you can access on the left hand side. Select your disk (your system disk if you have more than one drive listed) and click the "Verify Disk Permissions" or "Repair Disk Permissions" button at the bottom of the window. The app will do the rest. Oh, if the Permissions button aren't visible you should select the "First Aid" tab at the top of the window.*

*I'm still on 10.3.9 so your interface may look different than mine, but the rest should be the same.

Less searchable M0rd4nt

21:14 / 02.10.06

(OT: Hey, look everyone, it's _pin! Yay!)

ONLY NICE THINGS

21:40 / 02.10.06

I actually think that we may be aiming a bit high on this one.

_pin (welcome back! How the arse have you been?) - you're used to PCs, right? PCs have installer programs, whereas Macs have .dmgs, which act like virtual drives. So, when you double-click on the .dmg you get something in your finder window like this, right?

Forgive me if I'm way off-beam, but all you have to do if so is to drag and drop the thing that looks like a program - in this case, DOSBox - into your applications folder - or anywhere else, actually, but it's best to keep them in applications for ease of use. the doouble-click on it to open it.

Or have I misunderstood?

_pin

22:05 / 02.10.06

Yeh, I've been a bit not around, no? All change, all good.

Also, the probems seem to have gone away now that I've done what I thought I had before but hadn't (made a folder in appications and thrown everything from the ejectable .dmg, programme folders a readmes, in to it).

Am I allowed to delete .dmgs now? Is that OK? It doesn't cry?

ONLY NICE THINGS

22:42 / 02.10.06

That's fine. The only reason to keep them is if you want a clean reinstall of the program. It's just like throwing away a CD-ROM, except imaginary. "Eject" it first.

grant

01:54 / 03.10.06

On the "repair permissions" thing, you should consider dling a free program called "Onyx," which does all kinds of wonderful maintenance things.

Spaniel

19:00 / 03.10.06

Okay, on Bitlord, when I'm downloading files, I can select which ones I want and which ones I don't by clicking properties and checking or unchecking the relevant boxes. Is it possible to do the same thing with Azureus? I can't seem to find the option.

_pin

11:27 / 04.10.06

I just right clicked on something and it asked me if I wanted to remove and then delete torrent or whole thing. But I'm Mac-ing (why can't we look at the properties of things??), and know shit about torrents.

Also, why won't folders and applications tell me how big they are, and why can't I install the X11 thing Nicotine wants; it says it'sinstalled from the CD, but doesn't appear in the utilities folder, when I search the compter for it all I get is that open box icon that goes to install it again and when I got to run Nicotine, the Console still says X11 wasn't found.

Was the X11SDK.pkg not what I wanted to install? And what actually is it?

ONLY NICE THINGS

11:49 / 04.10.06

X11 is a kind of graphical user interface-based operating system that can run as a client on OSX - basically, think of it as a way to open programs like the GIMP and OpenOffice, which are not native to Mac OS, and run them in a tiny operating-system-within-an-operating-system. Any installation of Tiger (OSX 10.4) should have X11 on the disc, and it should be in your Utilities folder, and when you click on an X11 program, it should open automagically... have you tried repairing your installation from the OSX CD?

ONLY NICE THINGS

12:16 / 04.10.06

Or going to "optional installs", or a folder with a name like that on your Tiger DVD, and trying to add it, now that I think about it...

■

12:22 / 04.10.06

I had the same problem with trying to get OpenOffice to run recntly. X11 is hiding in the optional installs folder on the first OSX install disk (you have to scroll down to find it). You may find the X11 SDK first, but ignore that.

■

13:13 / 04.10.06

why won't folders and applications tell me how big they are,
Because then you might start thinking of your computer as a filesystem like PC users do rather than the shiny attractive experience that Mac have developed for so long.
Experiment with holding ctrl when clicking on an item to get context menus, one of the options is "get info" which lets you see file sizes.
OK, one for the long-term Mac people: how on earth do you import multiple files into iTunes? I've tried ctrl and shift-clicking to select multiple items, but it will only let me do one at a time.

_pin

16:02 / 04.10.06

I threw a whole 4 gig folder at it, and it took it. And yeh, I guess I was getting the SDK instead (piss knows where just X11 is... ).

You're quite kind, people. Thank you.

■

20:19 / 04.10.06

piss knows where just X11 is
It is there, promise [gets out disc] where is it?...
Aha! Disc 1: System/Installation/Packages/X11User.pkg

MattShepherd: I WEDDED KALI!

20:27 / 04.10.06

Cube, at work on my mac I just click "add files to library" or somesuch thing in the File menu (I'm at home now) and select the whole directory I keep my music in. It scans the directory and imports whatever it ain't already got.

Cloned Christ on a HoverDonkey

21:51 / 04.10.06

@ Bobossboy:

While Azureus is good, it's also banned from many torrent trackers due to the fact that it's easy with a bit of jiggery-pokery to falsify your ratio.

I highly recommend μTorrent, which is a tiny, tiny download that requires negligible resources and runs like an absolute dream, as well as being highly configurable.

Also does the clicky-boxy-file-selecty thing you want to do, too!

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