To solve, follow these steps:
1. Open up a command prompt (run cmd.exe from the Start Menu).
2. Navigate to the folder that the object resides in.
3. Run “dir /a /x /p” to display the contents of the folder, including hidden files (/a) and 8.3 filenames (/x).
4. Find the 8.3 filename of the object to the left of the regular, long filename.
5. Run “ren <8.3 name>” to rename the object, “del <8.3 name>” to delete it if it’s a file and “rd /s <8.3 name>” to delete it if it’s a folder.

Note: If renaming to a long filename, make sure to enclose the long filename in quotations. If that fails, temporarily rename it to an 8.3 name and then rename it to what you want outside of the command prompt.

Symptoms

After updating to Mac OS X v10.5.7 or 10.5.8, you may be prompted to enter the name and password of a user in the lpadmin group when changing a printer setting or printer control.

After retyping your password very carefully at least twice to make sure you just didn’t mistype it, you’ll need to find your Mac OS X install DVD, insert it into your Mac and restart holding down the C button. After selecting your language of choice, in the menubar, select Utilities > Reset Password. Follow the directions to reset your password.

I can’t eject my CD or DVD or it won’t come out when I press Eject

Holding down the eject button for several seconds should work,  if not, then restart your Mac and hold down the primary button on your mouse–the trackpad button will work as well if you’re on a MacBook–and during startup the disk should eject.

My Mac is not recognizing devices plugged in to one of my USB ports

First, make sure your Mac’s firmware is up to date, run Software Update under the Apple menu and install any firmware updates you find for your machine. If nothing happens, turn off your Mac, unplug the power cable, disconnect all peripherals, and let it sit for five minutes. Plug it back in, reconnect the keyboard and mouse, turn it back on, and try the USB ports again.

If they’re still unresponsive, you will need to reset the PRAM (parameter RAM) and NVRAM (nonvolatile RAM), which stores some system and device settings that your Mac accesses on startup. Shut your Mac down. Then position your fingers above the Command, Option, P, and R keys on your keyboard. Turn the Mac on, then immediately press and hold those four keys before you see the gray screen. Keep them pressed until the Mac restarts again and you hear the startup chime for the second time. Then let ’em go. When your Mac is finished starting up, check your USB devices.

If they’re still not unresponsive, there’s one more thing you can try before making a Genius Bar appointment: resetting the SMC, or system management controller. Directions for resetting the SMC on your MacBook Pro are found at support.apple.com/kb/HT1411. Instructions for all other Macs are linked from support.apple.com/kb/HT1894.

Resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance

1. Start from your Mac OS X Install DVD that came with your system or a current version of Mac OS X DVD: Insert the installation disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
   Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.
3. Click the First Aid tab.
4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5. Select your Mac OS X volume. (In left column, typically called “Macintosh HD”)
6. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk.
7. Also run “Repair Permissions”
8. Quit and Restart

Spotlight search results have stopped working

Try re-indexing your whole hard drive by going into the Spotlight System Preference, clicking on the Privacy tab, then dragging your hard drive into the list. Wait a moment, and then remove your hard drive from the list again.

I use a webmail client to check email, but every time I click on an email link, it launches Apple Mail instead.

You can set up Apple Mail to access your webmail account using IMAP or POP (check with your webmail provider for instructions on how to do this; some charge a fee for this service), or you can install a free program called Webmailer, which lets you set any webmail site as your default email program.

If you use Gmail, you have a few additional choices: You can install Google Notifier (free, toolbar.google.com/gmail-helper) and set that to your default email client in Mail’s preferences. Or you can use the outstanding Mailplane ($25, www.mailplaneapp.com), which provides many more features than the Gmail website.

I can receive but not send email messages

Outgoing email messages are typically sent over the Internet using TCP port numbers 25, 465, or 587. However, in an effort to reduce spam, some ISPs and firewalls are set up to severely restrict the use of those ports. For example, AT&T is notorious for blocking port 25 for its DSL customers, unless you’re sending email with the AT&T email address assigned to your DSL modem. If you’re using AT&T (or another service provider that has similar restrictions), call the technical support number and request that they unblock port 25 for you. If you don’t control the Internet access where you are located, contact your email host to see if they have an alternate port that you can send email on. You can specify alternate port numbers in your email app’s account settings. If all else fails, you should be able to send email through your webmail system until you can physically get yourself to a different location that has no restrictions.

Whenever I address an outgoing email, I get unwanted email addresses for people who aren’t in my address book

Most email clients keep track of addresses that you’ve emailed to in the past and will suggest those addresses to you in the future when you start to type the same characters. You can turn off this feature in Entourage and Thunderbird by going into their preferences. In Entourage, this is found on the Compose tab. In Thunderbird, this is on the Composition > Addressing tab. You can’t turn off this feature in Mail, but you can clear the list from time-to-time by selecting Window > Previous Recipients, selecting the names and clicking Remove from List.

I have multiple folders entitled Drafts, Sent, Junk, or Trash for my IMAP email account

Setting up an IMAP account can be a little tricky. After typing your valid account settings into your email program, there are two additional steps:

First, you’ll need to set the proper IMAP path prefix (sometimes called the “root folder” or IMAP server directory) in your account settings. For example, Gmail’s IMAP Path Prefix is [Gmail].

Email Client Configuration

In Entourage, you set this on the Options tab of your IMAP’s account settings. In Thunderbird, click the Advanced button on the Server Settings tab. In Mail, this is on the Advanced tab of your IMAP’s account settings.

Then you’ll need to designate which folders on the server should be used for storing your drafts, sent messages, trash, and junk. In Entourage, you set this on the Advanced tab of your IMAP’s account settings. In Thunderbird, this is done in the Copies & Folders section of your account settings. In Mail, go out to your main viewer window and select a folder on the server (in the left-hand margin, underneath the IMAP account name), then choose Mailbox > Use This Mailbox For.

Convert Office 2007 & 2008 files to Office 2004

Open XML Converter for Mac allows you to convert Open XML files that were created in Office 2008 for Mac or Office 2007 for Windows so that you can open, edit, and save them in earlier versions of Office for Mac. Open XML Converter can convert Word documents, Excel workbooks, and PowerPoint presentations that are in the Open XML Format so that you can open and edit the files in Office 2004 for Mac and Office v. X for Mac. You can choose to convert and open one file, or convert a large number of files.

Make Entourage run more efficiently

Entourage stores all of its data—for instance, e-mail, contacts, and calendar entries—in a single database file (located in /Users/your_username/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2008 Identities/Main Identity). This file can grow quite large over time, and even if you delete messages or other data, the file doesn’t shrink proportionally. To save disk space and enable Entourage to work more efficiently, you should compact this database every few months (this reorganizes its contents internally).

First, quit all Microsoft Office programs. Hold down Option while launching Entourage to bring up the Database Utility. You have a couple of choices: Select Compact Database to compress and optimize the data, or Repair Database to also fix any errors, and then click on Continue. The process should take a few minutes, though it may be longer if you have a large database. When it’s complete, click on Done and then Quit. This process stores a backup copy of your database in /Users/your_username/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2008 Identities/Main Identity [Backed up date and time]. Once you’re satisfied that Entourage is working properly, you can delete the backup, if you wish.

This hidden utility lets you compact or repair the Office database—just hold down Option while launching Entourage.

My Internet connection is slow

A sluggish Internet connection could be caused by any number of things, so here are a few troubleshooting tips to start with: Resetting Safari (Safari > Reset Safari). Then, try a different Web browser to see if the problem happens there as well. You may also want to uninstall any Internet plug-ins that you have installed recently.

Next, check your upload and download speeds at www.speedtest.net and see if you’re getting the speeds you’re paying for. If not, try power cycling both your modem and router, such as your Airport Extreme. Turn off or unplug the device, let it sit powered off for several minutes, then plug it in or switch it on again.

If these methods don’t address the slowdown, try plugging your modem directly into your Mac using an Ethernet cable to see if the problem goes away. If so, your router may be the problem. If you’re using an Airport Extreme or Airport Express, launch Airport Utility to see if there is a firmware upgrade available. If so, install the firmware upgrade and see if that helps.

If not, your Mac could be the problem–you may need to perform an Archive and Install of your operating system, which is one of your options on the Mac OS X Leopard Installation DVD.

And it’s always possible that your modem or Internet line is the problem too, in which case you should call your ISP’s technical support number.

I want to sync some–but not all–of my iCal calendars across my Macs

Instead of MobileMe syncing options, use BusySync ($25) or BusyCal ($40), both can be found at www.busymac.com), which both give you an incredible amount of syncing options.

iTunes no longer launches automatically when I attach my iPod or iPhone to my computer

If your iPhone or iPod is very low on power or if the battery is fully depleted, it can take up to 10 minutes to appear under Devices in iTunes.

Otherwise, you may have unchecked the box in iTunes for your device that says “Automatically sync when this iPhone/iPod is connected” or “Open iTunes when this iPod is attached.”

You may have also removed the iTunesHelper application from your Login Items in your Account System Preferences, which is required to automatically launch iTunes. You can get this back by reinstalling iTunes (www.apple.com/itunes) or by manually dragging iTunesHelper into the Login Items. iTunesHelper can be found by right-clicking on iTunes in the Finder and choosing Show Package Contents, then going to Contents > Resources.

Rebuild your iPhoto Library and fix errors and missing pictures

Most of the common problems Mac users have with iPhoto are easily resolved by rebuilding the program’s photo library.

Symptoms to spot when it’s time to rebuild the iPhoto library is when iPhoto may not open correctly, photos could be missing, or some of your image thumbnails display exclamation or question marks, or when there’s very long periods of spinning beach ball before iPhoto opens.

Rebuilding the iPhoto library does not re-import and sort your pictures all over again instead the iPhoto library database is being updated with the current photos in the library, their file names and their current locations (re-indexing).

To start the process of rebuilding the iPhoto library, quit iPhoto, then hold down Command+Option keys, then click to restart iPhoto. A dialog box to rebuild you iPhoto library while appear (Figure 1). Select all the options and click rebuild. It will take a while depending on the size of your library, but once it’s done, iPhoto will show a noticeable improvement in speed and your photo library should be fully functional again.

How to revert to a previous Mac OS version from Time Machine

If you backed up any individual files as described under the Important message above, you can restore them now. If you backed them up using Time Machine, recover them using the Time Machine application. (You’ll find the Time Machine application in the Dock or in the Applications folder.)

Back to My Mac uses Bonjour networking technology to keep an updated record of your computer’s addresses on a MobileMe server. So when you’re on the road, you’ll see your other computers in the Shared section of the Finder sidebar, just as if you were at home. You can even access the files stored on your Time Capsule or a hard disk connected to an AirPort Extreme with 802.11n.

1. Your iMac at home sends its IP address to MobileMe.
2. On the road, your MacBook retrieves the address of your home iMac from MobileMe.
3. From your Macbook, you can securely connect to your home iMac over the Internet.

There are two main ways to connect to your remote computers with Back to My Mac:

• File Sharing. Browse the entire hard drive of your remote Mac, Time Capsule, or external hard disk connected to an AirPort Extreme Base Station, and drag files and folders to your local Mac. For example, you’re on the road but you need a Keynote presentation that’s on your Mac at home. Simply connect to your remote Mac, find the file you need, and drag it to the Mac that you’re using.

• Screen Sharing. Control your remote Mac just as if you were sitting in front of it. Launch applications, edit documents, and more. For example, you want to add photos to your MobileMe Gallery while you’re at work, but your iPhoto library is on your Mac at home. Screen Sharing opens a window displaying the desktop of your remote Mac. In the Screen Sharing window, just launch iPhoto on your home Mac, select the event, and publish to your MobileMe Gallery.

What You Need for Back to My Mac
Basic requirements:

• A MobileMe subscription
• For computer to computer file sharing or screen sharing: Two or more Mac computers running Mac OS X v10.5.6 (or later), each configured for use with the same MobileMe account.
• To access a Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme hard disk: One or more Mac computers running Mac OS X v10.5.6 (or later) and a Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme with 802.11n and an external hard disk attached. Each computer and device must be configured for use with the same MobileMe account. Your Time Capsule and AirPort Extreme need to have firmware version 7.4.1 (or later), and your Mac needs to have AirPort Utility 5.4.1 (or later) installed.
• A broadband Internet connection (Screen Sharing requires a 300Kbps or faster bidirectional network connection between computers)

Home network requirements:

• If you have a home network with one or more Mac computers, a Time Capsule, AirPort Extreme Base Station, or AirPort Express is recommended.
• Back to My Mac is also compatible with many modern home routers that fully support either NAT Port Mapping Protocol (NAT-PMP) or Universal Plug and Play (UPnP).

Setting Up Back To My Mac
Follow the instructions below to set up each of your Mac computers and home network devices to work with Back to My Mac.

Enable Back to My Mac on each Mac:

• Make sure you have the latest Mac OS X software by choosing Apple Menu > About This Mac. If you’re not running version 10.5.6 (or later), click Software Update, and install the necessary updates.

• Choose Apple menu > System Preferences.

• Click Internet & Sharing, and then click MobileMe.

• If you’re not already signed in, sign in using your MobileMe name and password. Remember to use the same MobileMe account information on each Mac.

• Click the Back to My Mac tab.

• If Back to My Mac is not already on, click Start.

Enable Sharing on each Mac you want to access remotely:

• While still in the Back to My Mac pane, click Open Sharing Preferences.
• If Screen Sharing and File Sharing are not already enabled, click the checkbox for each one

• Important: For added security, you should select the “Only these users” button below “Allow access for,” and add your user name to the list. To do so, click the Add (+) button, select “Users and Groups” from the left column, and choose your user name from the column on the right.

Set up your home network
To use Back to My Mac on a home network, Apple recommends a Time Capsule or an AirPort Extreme Base Station or AirPort Express with NAT Port Mapping Protocol (NATPMP) enabled. Alternatively, you can use a third-party Internet router with Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) technology enabled (check the documentation that came with your router), and skip the instructions in this section.

• Open AirPort Utility in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder.
• Click the Internet button.
• In the NAT section, verify that Enable NAT Port Mapping Protocol is selected.

• Click Update, if needed.
• Quit AirPort Utility.

Set up Back to My Mac on your Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme Base Station

If you plan to connect to a remote Time Capsule or external hard disk connected to an AirPort Extreme Base Station, you need to set up Back to My Mac on your device:

1. Open AirPort Utility (in the Utilities folder in your Applications folder).
2. Select the Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme Base Station from the list on the left.
3. If the version is not 7.4.1 or later, click Update Firmware.
4. If necessary, enter your password for the device, and then install the updates.
5. Click Advanced in the toolbar, and then click MobileMe.
6. Enter your MobileMe account and password.
7 . Click Update to apply the changes.

Using Back to My Mac
Once your Mac and home network are set up, using Back to My Mac is simple.
The Finder displays your remote Mac computer(s), Time Capsule, or external hard disks connected to an AirPort Extreme Base Station in the sidebar where you can connect with a click.

File sharing
Using the File Sharing feature, you can drag files from your remote Mac, Time Capsule, or hard disk to your local Mac. You can also drag new files to your remote Mac, Time Capsule, or hard disk; create and delete folders; and arrange files however you like. Here’s how:

• Open a Finder window
• Below Shared in the sidebar, click the Mac, Time Capsule, or AirPort Extreme to which you want to connect.

• If necessary, enter the password for the device, and then click Connect As.
• After you’re connected, you can browse the hard drive of the remote device, and then drag any files you need to your local Mac.

Screen sharing
With the Screen Sharing feature, you control your remote Mac through a special window on your local Mac. You can launch applications, edit and save files, and even use many keyboard shortcuts. Here’s how:

• Open a Finder window.
• Below Shared in the sidebar, click the Mac you want to control.

• Click Share Screen and a new window opens, displaying the desktop for that Mac.

Important Tips

Creating a good password
Back to My Mac uses advanced authentication and data encryption technologies to protect your data. However, creating a good password is essential to keeping your data safe.

For more information on passwords, refer to “Choosing good passwords in Mac OS X” at http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1506.

To change your password, follow these steps:
1. Log in to MobileMe at www.me.com/account.
2. Click Password Settings and enter your new password twice.
3. Update your MobileMe password in System Preferences on all of your Mac computers. If your Mac is lost or stolen, you should immediately change your password to prevent unauthorized access to your other computers.

Adjust sleep settings
Back to My Mac can connect to your remote computer only if it is not in sleep mode. If your computer is in sleep mode, it does not automatically wake up when you try to connect using Back to My Mac. To adjust your sleep settings, go to the Energy Saver pane of System Preferences on the computers you wish to access remotely.

Set screen saver locking
For added security, it’s a good idea to turn on “Require password to wake this computer from sleep or screen saver” in your Security preferences.

In System Preferences, you can set the screen saver to come on after a short period of inactivity, or use hot corners to turn it on instantly if you’re stepping away.

Check firewall settings if you cannot connect
Mac OS X Leopard has a built-in firewall, which is accessible from the Firewall tab of your Security preferences. You should verify that the firewall is set to either “Allow all incoming connections” or “Set access for specific services and applications.”

If you use a third-party firewall, you may need to modify the configuration to permit Back to My Mac to function correctly. In some corporate (or managed) network environments, you may need to consult your system administrator. When signing in to MobileMe and enabling Back to My Mac, TCP ports 443 and 5354 are used. For connections between machines, Back to My Mac typically uses UDP port 4500.

Security
Back to My Mac uses advanced authentication and security technologies to help prevent unauthorized access to your data and protect it while it is in transit over the Internet. When you first sign in to MobileMe on a system running Leopard, you automatically receive a digital certificate and private key for your “Back to My Mac Encryption Certificate”. When you connect to another system using Back to My Mac, authentication is performed using the standard Public Key Cryptography for Initial Authentication in Kerberos (PKINIT) protocol with the Back to My Mac Encryption Certificate. Communication between Back to My Mac computers over the public Internet is encrypted using IPSec.

You can use AT&T Mail to send messages from a non-Yahoo! email address, even if you don’t receive—or  use “pop”—messages from that account. This means that you can set up AT&T Mail to send all your email from one place, and choose the address you use to send each message.

smtp.att.yahoo.com will not authenticate out going mail with a non-Yahoo! email address. If you received an error message (553) while sending an email via Outlook, Thunderbird, Apple Mail, Eudora or other external email client, your non-Yahoo! email address or Yahoo! Mail address is not verified. To properly use the att.yahoo.com SMTP service, please follow these instructions.

Perform the Yahoo! Email verification Process for sending email messages from a non-Yahoo! email address:

1). Goto Yahoo! Mail and log in with your user-name and password.

2). Once you’re logged in, click Options in the upper-right area of the page.

3). Select “Accounts” from the side menu. Then Select “Add or Edit an Account”

4). Click Add.

5). In the Account Name field, enter a name for your own reference (for example, Work, School, My Domain, etc.) and click Continue.

6). In the Name and Email fields, enter the name you want the person receiving email from this address to see, and the alternate email address you would like send mail from (we’ll send a confirmation code to this email address, which you’ll use to complete this setup). for example “you@yourdomain.com”

7). Click Continue in the lower-left corner.

8). Next, you’ll see “Step 3 Setup Mail Server.” Click Skip this Step in the lower-left corner.

9). On the next page, click the Send Verification button.

This transmits a verification email from Yahoo! Member Services to the email address you just specified. Here’s the easiest way to complete your setup and start sending mail from the new address:

1. Leave the “Verify Account” page open.
2. Retrieve the email sent by Yahoo! Member Services to your alternate email address.
3. Enter the “confirmation code” from this email into the Confirmation Code field in the “Verify Account” page in Yahoo! Mail.
4. Click Verify Account.
5. Sign in with your Yahoo! Password on the final page.
6. Your alternate email address is now verified and can be used for sending emails through Yahoo! Mail or your email software.

Note: Every primary and secondary Yahoo! Mail ID can verify up to 10 alternate email addresses each.

Special notice for Outlook 2003 users: You might need to download a program update to resolve this problem. Please click here for detailed instructions.

Modify your email client software SMTP settings for att.yahoo.com

Once your non-Yahoo! email address or Yahoo! Mail address has been verified. Open your email client software and modify the smtp settings as below:

1). Outgoing mail (SMTP) server: smtp.att.yahoo.com
Use SSL, port: 465, and use authentication

2). Enter your Account name/user name: Your Email address (such as you@yourdomain.com)

3). Enter your Password: Your Email password

4). Save

Now you should be able to send email using your Non-Yahoo! email address without any problems.

Method one: Scan from the Preview application

1. Click the Apple Preview icon in the dock to open the Preview application.
2. From the Preview File pull-down menu, choose Import from Scanner .
3. Choose the HP Photosmart, Officejet, or Deskjet All-in-One.

Method two: Scan from the Image Capture application

Method three: Scan from Print & Fax > Printer browser

The goal is to keep Entourage database trim as well as getting around mailbox quotas set by corporate IT departments for email storage. This article will help you with how-to reduce your mail storage, archival and backup requirements.

Solution

To ready your mail for archiving, you’ll first want to organize mail for export. One way to do this is by creating and assigning a category to your mail.

Use Categories to Organize Email for Export

Highlight the folder that you want to archive, in my example below it’s “Closed Projects”. Then under the “Edit” menu, select “Categories” then select “Edit Categories”.

Create an “Archive” Category

Create a new Category called “Closed Projects” or “Projects Archive” as in the example below. When you’re finished adding the Category, close window.

Go back and highlight the folder that you want to archive, in my example below it’s “Closed Projects”. Then “Select All” email in that folder, “CMD + A” or under the “Edit” menu “Select All”. Then right click on highlighted mail and select “Categories” then select the category you created earlier in our example is “Closed Projects”. Now you have categorized all email in the “Closed Projects” folder under the category “Closed Projects”.

Optional – “Archive” email by “Date”

Skip this step and go on to “Export Mail to .rge Archive” if you want to archive ALL email in the “Closed Projects” folder.

If you only want to archive a certain amount of email in the “Closed Projects” folder and want to keep let’s say the last 6 months of mail, follow these steps below.

• To create a mail view for Received Mail, select the folder you want to search in (Closed Projects), then go to to Edit > Advanced Search (⌥⌘ F)

• Set the option to “Match if any criteria are met”
• From the drop down, set “Date Received” as in the example below or select “Date Sent” (whatever best suits your search)
  
• From the next drop down, set “Greater Than” and then enter the preferred email age. This will find all email older than the specified number of days in the date received field.
• Entourage will find all the matching mail. Scroll through and make sure all the mail you want is in the view and from all the folders you wish to archive. Save the search.

Export Mail to .rge Archive

• Go to File > Export

• Select “Items to an Entourage Archive”.
• Select the option to export “Items that are in a category”.
• Choose your custom “Closed Projects” category. Then select the item types, mail, tasks, etc., that you want to archive

• Select “Yes, Deleted Item in Entourage after they are archived”.
• Also check “Do not delete items belonging to another project or category”.

• Name the file “Closed Projects” or “Archive Projects” and save the file to your “Documents” folder in a new folder called “Entourage Archives”. We used the desktop for this example.

• Once archived has been completed you will notice that email in the “Closed Projects” folder has been removed (Archived).
• Goto step “How to Restore Archived Mail” if required.

How to Restore Archived Mail

• Go to File > Import

• Choose “Entourage information from an archive or earlier version”

• Choose “Entourage archive (.rge)”

• Select the .rge archive file that you have exported from Entourage and allow Entourage to import the archive.

• Notice archived mail has been restored.

First, quit all Microsoft Office programs. Hold down Option while launching Entourage to bring up the Database Utility. You have a couple of choices: Select Compact Database to compress and optimize the data, or Repair Database to also fix any errors, and then click on Continue. The process should take a few minutes, though it may be longer if you have a large database. When it’s complete, click on Done and then Quit. This process stores a backup copy of your database in /Users/your_username/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2008 Identities/Main Identity [Backed up date and time]. Once you’re satisfied that Entourage is working properly, you can delete the backup, if you wish.

This hidden utility lets you compact or repair the Office database—just hold down Option while launching Entourage.

.