OS X Chess.app -- is it easier in Tiger than Panther -- or does it learn?

OS X includes a pretty darned impressive chess game game. The marble skin in Tiger gives the clearest pieces.

I'm no chess player, and my 8 yo is even worse, so we play it in 'fastest' (dumbest mode). Only it seems to behave differently in Tiger and Panther.

On my G3 iBook running Panther it tends to beat us fairly handily -- even in 'fastest' mode and even when we cheat and 'take back' dumb moves. On my far more powerful G5 iMac, however, I can beat it fairly easily in that mode.

So what's the story?

Does it learn? (God, I hope not.) Is there a bug in the 10.3.9 version so it behaves as though it were in mid-range smarts? Did Apple dumb it down for Tiger (thank you)? I'm curious.

Update 9/14/05: I'm convinced there are a few bugs. I think in 10.3.9 the prefs don't always work -- sometimes Chess.app works at its default setting despite what the gui shows. In 10.4.2 Chess.app at its lowest setting is very beatable (it looks one move ahead, so it will quickly trade a pawn for a queen). On the other hand in 10.4.2 we saved a game with a bishop that couldn't be moved. He was stuck!

The sad story of Palm Desktop -- OS X version

I use Missing Sync on my OS X machine and sync my wife's Palm to Apple's (feeble) calendaring and contact applications. Even ePocrates works, thanks to the bundled AvantGo conduit. So I'm far away from Palm Desktop for OS X. Still, I think it's worth mentioning just how bad this software is.

MacInTouch: timely news and tips about the Apple Macintosh

Art McGee raised a red flag about more file-permission abuse by bad installers:

I have just examined the contents of the Palm Desktop 4.2.1 Revision C package installer, and I have come to the conclusion that either PalmOne is intentionally trying to damage our computers, or the software is a trojan horse that someone uploaded in place of the real software.

After the program files are installed, the installer runs a shell script called "postflight" that attempts to "fix" any permissions issues which may prevent the program from running properly. Unfortunately, the script violates the most basic programming principle in the universe - thou shalt not alter the files of programs other than thyself - and it does it so blatantly that I can only assume malicious intent. At the end of the script, it runs a final set of commands to change permissions (The "$2" variable is replaced at runtime by "/"):..

While any bad changes to the "/", "/Applications", or "/Library" directories can be easily fixed by repairing permissions or issuing another single command, the most OUTRAGEOUS and potentially damaging change is the last one:

sudo chmod -R 775 "$2Library/Application Support"
sudo chown -R :admin "$2Library/Application Support"

The "/Library/Application Support" directory is where many programs place critical system-wide configuration and program files that are referenced on an as-needed basis. This is a directory whose permissions should NEVER be changed or altered, lest you end up breaking many of your installed apps. In particular, all sorts of system-level programs such as Anti-Virus and Disk Utilities place parts of themselves there, and any changes to their permissions will prevent them from loading at boot time. Even more dangerous, some programs place symbolic links from that directory to "/System/Library", and running a chmod command that recursively drills down that directory could end up completely trashing your entire system...

Art is apoplectic, but those who've followed Palm's swan dive into misery [1] know that that their "doers and visionaries" abandoned ship long ago. They're running on fumes now.

Things are no better on the XP platform. It's been about 5 years since Microsoft implemented a user-specific security model, and Palm still expects all conduits to be shared and all user accounts to be in a single directory.

Palm is a dead company. Shame.

[1] Matched only by Intuit, which lately claims it will fix US healthcare. Perhaps they follow the philosophy of bringing on the apocalypse to accelerate change.

OS X Open With list a bit crazed -- restart with shift key down (safe start)

I'd had a lockup (old Classic game) in OS X. Next time I accessed the 'open with' dialog I got a long list of options, with multiple versions of older applications appearing (ghost apps).

Safe start fixed it, one of the most basic troubleshooting tips: Gordon's Tech: Mac OS X Update troubleshooting. I held down shift and restarted. Takes a long time (it's the easiest way to run fsck in Tiger). Then restarted again. Problem fixed, drop down list repaired.

PublicVPN.com

How Does It Work

$60 a year for more secure WiFi use on unencrypted lans. Can two users form a network?

FlickrExport: iPhoto Plug-In to upload to Flickr

FlickrExport

Now if only I could order prints from Flickr ...

The old freezing a stuck hard drive trick still works

Macintouch: Reviving Macintosh Computers

This is an old tip. I'd forgotten about it. It still works:

Reviving Failing Drive

MacInTouch Reader

I recently managed to recover data from a failing hard disk using a rather unusual technique, which has come to be known as "the freezer trick".

The symptoms exhibited by my failing 80GB IBM DeskStar seemed quite odd when you think of hard disk failures. Usually failures are sudden and complete. However, in my case, a week ago I noticed strange pauses in operation (most obvious in iTunes playback, as my music was stored on that drive) that lasted up to 30 seconds at a time. I suspected maybe some background operation such as Spotlight had taken excessive CPU and/or disk time, but Activity Monitor didn't provide any clues. I then checked Console, and eventually I started seeing I/O errors referring to my IBM drive. At this point, I suspected a directory error and repaired the disk using Disk Utility. The intermittent access problems persisted but running Disk Utility actually turned up nothing wrong with the drive. Furthermore, SMART status always showed "Verified". I started backing up data from the drive.

Still, I had intermittent problems accessing the drive. Eventually, the disk would disappear and become unmounted. Disk Utility would actually not list the drive anymore. This also resulted in the Slave drive on the same bus disappearing at the same time. The only remedy was to restart, and it would operate normally for a while again. I then thought perhaps something was wrong with the Ultra ATA bus. So, I tested the IBM drive on the IDE/ATA bus by swapping it with the DVD-ROM drive on that bus. The slave disk worked fine, but the IBM drive still showed problems. I therefore suspected the IBM drive as having the problem.

At this point, following another failure, it would no longer spin up on restart. I left the drive overnight and figured it would be OK the next day. It wasn't. At this point the drive was inoperable, but I still needed to back up some of its data. Time for last resorts.

I remembered the recent posting of a tip on MacInTouch about whacking the drive with a wooden mallet or screwdriver handle. I tried this, and it didn't work. I suspected "sticktion" as the drive appeared to make noises, but wouldn't spin up. I then searched the Internet for ways to revive an IBM DeskStar (aka "DeathStar" on many forums). I soon came across mentions of "the freezer trick", which was actually also mentioned on MacInTouch as well. Several people reported limited success in reviving "stuck" disks (from IBM and others) by using this method.

Essentially, in "sticktion" cases, the mechanical parts seize up, and a couple of methods may work to free them again (if only temporarily). "The freezer trick" is to put the drive in a sealed ziploc bag or wrap it in plastic food wrap, and put that in your freezer for a couple of hours. (I also put that inside a plastic case so that it wouldn't stick to the freezer.) This causes the mechanical parts to contract, hopefully freeing whatever is stuck. To my astonishment, it actually worked! I was able to backup all of the remaining data from the drive. The key is to keep the drive spinning. Once it spun down or went to sleep, it would not spin up again. I re-froze the drive for an hour and it worked again on reconnection. Obviously, people should only try this method as a last resort, and only in "sticktion" cases.

Additionally, I remember from a very long time ago (maybe 15 years) I had ongoing sticktion problems with an external SCSI hard drive that could be remedied by placing it in front of a dehumidifier for a couple of hours.

Cheap wireless USB adapter: CompUSA

Macintouch Wireless Networking (Part 31): "I purchased the Hawking Wireless-g USB 2 adapter last week from CompUSA, $9.99 after rebates. I was intended to use it in a desktop PC. In PC, it was identified as a Zydas ZD1211 device. I went to the Zydas website and found that they have drivers for Mac OSX 10.2, 10.3, and 10.4. So I downloaded it and installed in my eMac, it works on my eMac with Mac OSX 10.4.."

A diverse set of Airport antennas and range extenders

QuickerTek :: Products

Amazon.com: Electronics: WatchGuard Firebox X Edge X5 - firewall

Amazon.com: Electronics: WatchGuard Firebox X Edge X5 - firewall ( WG40005 )

Macintouch readers like this product:

Watchguard Firebox Edge X5 VPN/Firewall - 10 x - VPN/FirewallThis easy-to-deploy, model-upgradeable, VPN endpoint and firewall security appliance was especially designed for telecommuters with limited networking experience, and offers best-in-class performance, work/home network separation, and intuitive remote management for network administrators in the central office. Firebox X5 is the all-in-one firewall/VPN appliance that will handle all of your telecommuters security needs now and in the future. Small- to mid-sized businesses already protecting their central office networks with Firebox X5, can now extend that commercial-grade security to their remote and telecommuting employees with Firebox X5...

A sheet feed SOHO document scanner for OS X?

Amazon.com: Electronics: Fujitsu ScanSnap fi-5110EOX Sheet-Fed Scanner with Automatic Document Feeder

Document scanning w/ OS X has been difficult. This Macintouch poster suggests a solution:

It would appear that MindWrap's ScanTango would be an excellent solution. It claims to work with Fujitsu Scanners. On the basis of their claims and an earlier posting here by Randy Singer, I am purchasing a Fujitsu fi-5110EOX [$432.99 @ Amazon] from MacConnection and giving it a try.

Black levels - the achilles heel of digital video

DV and DVD Black Levels Part 2

Computer displays are cursed by fights over "gamma". Digital photography suffers from battles and confusion about embedded color profiles. Not surprisingly, digital video has its own achilles heel:

/// The analog inputs of North America NTSC TV's, VCR's and other equipment are designed for a black level of '7.5 IRE' (the 7.5 number is a reference point on a measurement scale for analog video). You may also hear this 7.5 IRE standard referred to as 'pedestal' or 'setup.' If you're in the rest of the world, using PAL equipment or the Japan NTSC standard, your equipment is designed for 0 IRE analog. We do it differently in North America because back in the Jurassic Age of television this 7.5 IRE black level was needed to make TV's work correctly. The rest of the world came up with a less-complicated way to do it.

The problem for DV users in North America is that DV 25 video equipment (named for the 25 megabit per second data rate of this popular video format), whether it is PAL or NTSC has an analog output of 0 IRE. In other words, your DV equipment uses the Japan NTSC standard and if you plug your DV gear into a video monitor or TV designed and calibrated for the North America NTSC system, the black level or levels you see will be wrong.

Image Capture + Rotate per EXIF + iPhoto 5 = Nasty problems

Apple - Discussions - Image Capture + Rotate per EXIF + iPhoto = Bad

From a post of mine on Apple's support forum:

My image intake workflow starts by importing with Graphic Converter, then renaming withi 'A Better Finder Rename' (rename images to a "date_description_image#"), then review and major edits in GC then import into iPhoto.

A recent release bug in GC, however, forced me to use OS X Image Capture. That's bad news with EXIF auto-rotate and iPhoto.

Image Capture has had a bug for several years -- with my Canon camera it duplicates the EXIF orientation tag when it auto-rotates on import. This confuses iPhoto 5.04 -- iPhoto re-rotates portrait images a second time (interestingly the thumb nail is upright) and so the image ends up rotated 180 degrees. I was sure this bug must have been fixed in Tiger. Wrong.

The malrotation is bad enough, but if one includes these double-tagged images in a batch that's mailed, Mail.App hangs until it finally times out with an AppleEvent error ("mail got an error: apple event timed out". It takes about 15 minutes to time out, during which time one watches the spinning pizza of death.

I fixed my Image Capture mangled images using a Graphic Converter feature that was added a while back on my request. This feature fixes corrupt orientating tags and resets them to the current orientation (so first get the image oriented correctly, then run this).

First I told iPhoto to restore all image to original. Then I did something quite risky (I have backups), I quite iPhoto, deleted the Library root .jpg cache files, then used GC to navigate the images I'd imported in their iPhoto directories. I located all the mangled images, reoriented them, and ran the EXIF repair utility. I then fired up iPhoto. (I tried removing the thumbnails, but iPhoto doesn't regenerate these as one would expect, instead it hangs and eventually shows blank images -- I think this is a cause of the broken thumbnails bug -- iPhoto should just regenerate them.) In cases where the thumbnails were mal-oriented I forced a thumbnail rebuild by editing the image then restoring to Original.

After this fix I was able to mail the images without any trouble.

iPhoto is in such bad shape I wonder if Apple shouldn't do rewrite from the ground up -- maybe an app that would only run in Tiger.

iPhoto 5 -- can we encourage the engineering team to travel widely?

For all my cursing of iPhoto 2 through 4, I don't think I ever lost data in a crash. Not so with iPhoto 5. I lost 20 minutes of edits when it locked up with the spinning pizza of death. I think they've changed when the metadata is saved to disk. I can't see a way to force a save other than exiting the app.

I'd like to contribute to a one way ticket to Tierra del Fuego for the entire iPhoto engineering and product management team.

Apparently I'm not the only victim: iPhoto Needs A Save Album Function

Replacing Spotlight -- EasyFind

DEVONtechnologies : Freeware : Applications

Thus far, 10.4 has been mostly annoying. I'm glad I left 10.3.9 on my iBook!

EasyFind is an alternative to or supplement of Sherlock and finds files, folders or contents in any file without the need for indexing -- and therefore immediately. This is especially useful if you are tired of slow or impossible indexing, outdated or corrupted indices or if you are just looking for missing features like case sensitive or insensitive search, Boolean operators, wildcards or searching for phrases.

macosxhints - 10.4: Recover a dead hard drive using GNU ddrescue

macosxhints - 10.4: Recover a dead hard drive using GNU ddrescue

If all else fails, an esoteric approach to disk drive recovery.