Everything Apple (the Mac heads thread)

any thoughts on this?

http://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/national-deal/ASK-Direct/22138797?nlp=&CID=UK_CRM_1_0_0_149&a=1664

Macbook pro 13" non-retina for £880

I need something decent for work (indesign) - not sure i need retina as i'd be running a screen most of the time anyway.
OK for this price or wait on developments next week (when apple probably announce they're dropping support for it or something similar)

Cheaper as refurb here: http://store.apple.com/uk/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/macbook_pro/13

I've got one at home that i'm happy with, hooked to screen also so no need for retina. Retina could be ace for print design though?

If it gets sluggish, give it an ssd and you'll be flying.

Updates ahead quite possible, but prob just a performance increase. But if you can wait, why not?

Dont get a retina 13... they dont have the power to handle the display...

Hold on for a few weeks, updates are coming, faster wifi too...

Two internal drives crashed in G5 at the same fucking time.
Got OS back through recovering time machine backup, via DVD-boot.
Other drive(s) / partitions are all "locked", can't even be unlocked via chmod 777 in terminal (I'm root, there are no other users).
If I clone these 'locked' partitions to an other hd, will I have a chance permissions are set newly, and I can haz access again?
Any other tips (please)?

Ps: Said partitions test alright in drive utility, though 'repair permissions' apruptly quits after 1/2 sec. with an error..

https://www.leapmotion.com/product

Want.

I still think gestural control is bullshit, it'll never take off as anything more than an add on that lets you do a few things that slightly improve your workflow in some places, but are absolutely useless for 90% of the time.

I have a feeling you're wrong

http://worrydream.com/#!/ABriefRantOnTheFutureOfInteractionDesign

^ a very interesting ready by someone who knows a hell of a lot about interaction design.

I will however very happily something more along the lines of this though:

http://berglondon.com/blog/2012/12/19/lamps/#intro

tldr: minority report accidentally ruined interaction design for everyone, but soon enough we'll remember that tactile things are really fucking awesome

If I clone these 'locked' partitions to an other hd, will I have a chance permissions are set newly, and I can haz access again?

Worth a try if you can be bothered, but could be whatever problem's stopping the permissions will stop a clone. Would be interested to know the answer, though.

@fade, that worrydream rant was well worth the read, thanks..

(...) but could be whatever problem's stopping the permissions will stop a clone.

..yea, that's my apprehension also.

Will try as soon as new, big, external drive arrives, and post result..

I'm really trempted to install and run MacKeeper. I've never used it (or any other cleanup programme) on my 3.5 year old MacBook...

Does anyone have experience of it they could share?

Ta.

General advice seems to be avoid at all costs:

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1533729&highlight=mackeeper

Pretty sure you don't really need cleanup programmes for os x, but if you're looking to speed your macbook up a bit these tips might help:

http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=13817005&postcount=2

Try cleanmymac.

It removed 15gb from an old mac I had. MacKeeper will probably do similar.

Onyx is also really good.
Clean my mac and Onyx, use em both and they work a treat...

So helpful. Thanks guys. Will report back.

That worrydream rant was interesting to read, but far too whingy. Yes we have hands. But humans evolve and adapt to their situations. And why has a keyboard and mouse when all you need is a sensor (and maybe a light projector for a keyboard)? I understand the mentality of just because you can, doesn't mean you should, but if we don't move and change, things stagnate.

Look at music. No-one "touches" that anyone, and isn't it amazing to have access to the entire history of the worlds music in your pocket? Bret's thinking says we should all be like this guy:

The exception to the rule is books. Fuck kindle, books rule.

I think you're misssing the point a bit there though. You say if we don't change things stagnate, when in fact assuming that the future is going to be more bigger and better touch screen displays along with gestures where you don't have to touch anything at all then we are in fact stagnating. Just look at touch screen phones. Yes the operating systems have evolved massively since the first iPhone, but the actual interaction of using a touch screen hasn't. Yes theres been research into ultra responsive resistive touch screens that allow pressure sensitivity and much more detailed control, and people have added styluses and played around with shape changing surfaces, but at the end of the day its a bit of a dead end seeing as all you can actually do to interact with one is tap and swipe. Sure that makes for a great product right now, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be pushing for more than that now.

The same applies to gestural interfaces, I'm sure with time they'll allow for great control of computers and they are a step forward from a touch screen by allowing further ranges of gestures, and leap seems to be a very good implementation of this, but at the same time theres no feedback there, where there is opportunity for there to be much more which could be much much greater. And thats without even thinking about the arm ache that complex operations with your arms in mid air causes (I though it was mentioned in that rant, the scenes of gestural interfaces in minority report had to be broken down into incredibly short sequences as they were wearing the actors arms out)

Look at music. No-one "touches" that anyone, and isn't it amazing to have access to the entire history of the worlds music in your pocket? Bret's thinking says we should all be like this guy:

This bit is definitely missing the point. Just because he says things should be physical and use the capabilities of the hand, doesn't mean he's advocating a return to analogue. Things like the mp3 player are a massive step forward in terms of usability and convenience. Its more about challenging what the next form of interface should be, and asking people to consider something that lends itself more towards tactility than just another screen.

In actual fact, whatever the next big thing in terms of interface will be has probably been in development for a long time, it won't be something that the consumer is familiar with, but technologies like these take a long time to develop to the point where they are actually usable. Lets face it, nobody saw the iPhone coming and it seemed like a revolutionary invention, but in fact the capacitive touch screen had been in development for years, and it was a combination of the right product at the right time that made it big.

Bret's thinking says we should all be like this guy:

Bret wants us all to be hipsters?! Hipsters with hands AND hammers? No!

But he does advocate a return to analogue (of sorts). He says it in the article. That touching things is better than not touching them.

Plus the whole article is a big whinge that this technology is early in dev and not very good and has it's downsides. Yet he offers no solutions (though he does call it a rant, but that doesn't). I dunno. Haters gonna hate. I'm all for embracing new tech at it's infancy and encoraging it's use.

Also - you mentioned about arm ache. Well going back to my point about human's ability to evolve and adapt, e.g. our generation has more flexible thumb joints than ever, due to us growing up playing computer games. This would be no different.

But he does advocate a return to analogue (of sorts). He says it in the article. That touching things is better than not touching them.

Yes, but theres a whole world of difference between designing to stimulate the nerves in a finger tip and telling people to go back to using vinyl.

Plus the whole article is a big whinge that this technology is early in dev and not very good and has it's downsides. Yet he offers no solutions (though he does call it a rant, but that doesn't). I dunno. Haters gonna hate. I'm all for embracing new tech at it's infancy and encoraging it's use.

I'll admit he offers no solutions, but its advocating people push further rather than rest on an existing vision, one which we know people will be impressed by. He's not so much hating for the sake of it, but more trying to encourage a debate about what more we can do above what we already know we can. Its also worth noting that he's not the only one making this argument, a lot of people in the design industry aren't particularly impressed by the visions that he criticises, and like the BERG project I posted, people are currently experimenting with alternative visions for the future of product interaction.

Also - you mentioned about arm ache. Well going back to my point about human's ability to evolve and adapt, e.g. our generation has more flexible thumb joints than ever, due to us growing up playing computer games. This would be no different.

Good design should be tailored to a users ability, people shouldn't have to be forced to adapt to comfortably use a technology, and in the case of mid air gestures it would case definite discomfort to users (something that isn't necessarily part of the process in the case of thumb joints), and thats without considering what it would be like for less able users to use one of these interfaces.

Question about fusion drives: Should I make one in my 2008 MBP?
I currently have a 128gb SSD in the HD bay and moved the 256GB HD to the optical bay. System, apps and some working files on the SSD and everything else on the HD.
Mostly works fine but I do get weird pauses while the HD spins up. So should I create my fusion drive? Has anyone done this?

I did it in a new Mac Mini. Was pretty simple as long as you follow the guides correctly. Does involve backing up and reinstalling the OS. Only downside I've noticed is that the combined HD no longer has a S.M.A.R.T. status to tell me when it's about to die. But fingers crossed that won't be a problem.

It made a big difference compared to the 5400rpm stock HD that the mini came with.