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- How-To: Resurrect Your AppleTalk Printer in Snow Leopard
Did Snow Leopard leave your old AppleTalk printer out in the cold? Grab a hot cup of cocoa and warm your printer up with some of these handy tips to continue to use your classic AppleTalk printer with your state of the art operating system.
Print Via USB
Of course! Get a longer USB cable if possible, but what if your printer doesn’t have a USB port? It may have an old-style parallel port probably marked "LPT." For those people who have not seen them, here is a picture of one of these ports. Support for laser printers with these can be spotty, so use at your own risk. Not all the USB to Parallel Port adapters work well with the Macs, so do some research beforehand or buy from a place with a generous return policy.
Print Over IP
Some printers that support AppleTalk support other protocols such as IP. Many old LaserWriter workhorses such as the 16/600 fall into this category. If you are in a large office, ask your IT staff for help, but for those in a small office environment who are their own IT person, follow along! The hardest part is figuring out how to configure the IP address of the printer.
Step one is to find an open IP. Don’t try to use DHCP settings because if the IP address changes for some reason, it will be invisible on the network. Look at the IP address on your Mac by going to System Preferences and then Network. Your IP address will be in the format XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX. If you are using an Airport router, it’s probably 10.0.1.x, other routers will most likely be 192.168.1.x or 192.168.0.x. I always make printers .150 simply because I was taught that in school. Why? Just because. Avoid numbers in the low single digits, one hundreds, or two hundreds. Other devices may use these. To be extra safe, open up terminal and ping the address you decide on just to make sure nothing else is using it.
Actually configuring the printer may be tricky. Some will let you do it in the printer’s control panel in a "Network" or "TCP/IP" sub-menu. Let Google be your guide and simply search for your printer and TCP/IP settings or address. I wish I could be more specific. Some printers will have a “Printer Utility,” but those may not work in Snow Leopard. Try and print a test page so you confirm that you set the IP address correctly. Since HPs are such popular printers, here’s a link that covers most of its printers.
Next, go to the "Print & Fax" system preference pane and click the plus icon and then “IP” icon. Which do you choose from under the “Protocol” options? First try “HP Jetdirect-socket,” even if it’s not an HP printer. If it’s an older printer, start with LPD. Newer printers might accept IPP. Just type the IP address. Even if the IP address says valid and complete, that doesn’t mean you are talking to it. Most likely, Snow Leopard won’t be able to figure out which driver it to use. You’ll need to select it manually from the “Print Using” drop down. Since the printer worked in Leopard or Tiger, you’ll most likely have the driver already. Click "Add" and then run a test print. One of those three protocols should work. If not, you have other options.
Personally, I’ve had to do this with quite a few clients lately, printing to the larger business machine class multifunction copy stations, and it works like a charm.
Use a Parallel (or USB) to Ethernet Print Server
These boxes cost around $50. In my experience, I’ve rarely seen an Ethernet-only printer. As stated earlier, they usually have a parallel port as another port option.
You’ll need to confirm the print server supports printing over TCP/IP, but I've found that most do. It may have a Windows-only configuration utility, so be sure to check if it supports Mac out of the box, if you don’t have access to a Windows machine. Follow the procedures in the Print Over IP option above to pick an IP address and add the printer.
Alternatively, if you have a Airport Express or Airport Extreme, hook the printer up to that if the printer supports USB.
Use a Windows Machine as a Print Server (GASP!)
If you’ve tried everything else and it just doesn’t work, or you happen to have an old PC lying around, you can make it into a print server. Install the printer normally (if there is such a way) in Windows and make sure it works. Then go to “Add Printer” and click on “Windows” and your PC and the associated shared printer should appear. If it doesn’t, additional info can be found in this Apple Support document. Not all printers can be shared over Windows, but if it worked over ethernet, it should work over Windows via Print Sharing. Setting this up is not easy nor for the faint of heart! Often times a firewall needs to be configured on the PC to allow printer sharing.
Buy a New Printer
If your primary method of printing was via AppleTalk, your printer is probably pretty old, so maybe it’s time to buy a new one. A new printer has easier-to-find consumables and is most likely more energy efficient than your old one. Sure, you’ve already got money invested in the toner for the old one, but check its specs as compared to a new printer. Look at the material and labor cost of retrofitting your old printer versus buying a new one. You might be surprised at the ultimate value of buying a newer printer.
None of these solutions are a perfect guarantee you will be able to use your old printer forever, but they might help you get life out of the old bucket of bolts for a while longer, saving you money while letting you enjoy the features of Apple’s latest and greatest cat.
Переслать - Mangled Mail? That'll Be the New Cat
Ooops. Seems I spoke too soon. TidBITS reports that some users who upgraded to Snow Leopard, Apple's latest incarnation of its Mac OS X operating system, have been experiencing problems sending email using the native email client, Mail.app.
When trying to send mail, hapless users have been getting an error message that reads "Error 54: Connection Reset By Peer."
Of course, I know what you're thinking. "Error 54?" you're saying, as you stroke your Tech Guy Beard of Truth, "Sounds like an issue with port rotation. I probably need to update my SMTP settings."
A quick look at the newly added Article TS2998 over on Apple's Support Knowledge Base confirms your Oracle-like insight. According to Apple:
In Mac OS X v10.6, Mail sends messages through a different port rotation for the “Default ports” setting. Your authentication settings for your Mail account (for outgoing messages) may need to be updated.
Just follow step-by-step instructions for updating the offending account's SMTP server settings.
Several days ago, during Gmail's recent hiccup, I had just upgraded my machines to Snow Leopard and found I couldn't send mail from my Gmail account. At the time, I assumed it was caused by the server difficulties Google was having and, seeking a quick and easy fix, I removed the account from Mail and have been using Safari to check my Gmail ever since. It seems, perhaps, I was wrong to assume it was Google's problem. Perhaps I was experiencing exactly the problem described above.
I don't feel too foolish for failing to suspect my new big cat was the culprit; after all, everything else works perfectly. Following such a major upgrade, all my hardware and software work exactly as they did on the old feline. I'd like to extend the metaphor a little further — probably something about cats toying with their prey — but I'm gonna stop before it gets outta hand.
Have you experienced the same problem with Mail? Did the fix Apple recommend work for you? Is this a bug in Snow Leopard, or the result of Mail becoming a more secure email client? Share your thoughts with me in the comments, and I promise I won't use the cat metaphor again.
Переслать - Apple Testing Snow Leopard 10.6.1 Update
It has been one week since Snow Leopard's worldwide launch and, predictably, it appears Apple is already testing its first OS software update. According to a report by AppleInsider, the update has not yet made its way to Apple's large community of paying developers — the Apple Developer Connection member base — but instead is confined to a small and very select invitation-only group.
Exactly what the update includes is, at this point, entirely speculation. Since Snow Leopard hit the shelves, most of the incompatibility reports we've seen crop-up on the 'net are mired in the muddy waters of third-party software and not Apple's responsibility.
Apple’s official list of problematic apps remains concise. A far more exhaustive compatibility list is provided by the community-edited snowleopard.wikidot.com.
AppleInsider's Kasper Jade mentions reports of problems with Snow Leopard's built-in Cicso VPN technology and various complaints of system "bricking" and the spinning wheel of death.
Of course, every major operating system upgrade on every major platform introduces new problems while it resolves old ones. Despite exhaustive testing during development, it’s impossible to emulate every possible permutation of hardware and software configurations in the world. Therefore it's something of a testament to the quality and craftsmanship of Snow Leopard that we're not hearing of any (officially confirmed and reproducible) show-stoppers 'in the wild.' Sure, it's early days yet, so anything can happen. But if the only updates we can expect from 10.6.1 include an upgrade for the Flash player plugin and some tweaks to Cisco's VPN technology, Apple can pat itself on the back for a very big job very well done.
Feel free to add a comment below to tell me I'm completely wrong and explain in detail why Snow Leopard is a disaster because your ancient HP Laser Printer no longer works.
Переслать - Exclusive: First Retail iPhone Store to Open in Germany Next Week
In the past, to buy an iPhone you’ve had to either deal with Apple or one of its worldwide providers directly, or try your chances with online retailers, some of whom can be rather shady. Getting a carrier unlocked version was even trickier. But as of next week, Germans will be able to walk into a store designed just for the purpose and pick one up off the shelf.
The store, called 3Gstore.de, is a brick-and-mortar extension of the online retailer of the same name. It sells legally unlocked iPhones to German customers, and has done so since the release of the iPhone 3G. 3Gstore.de even went so far as to sue T-Mobile Germany for false advertising, since the carrier claimed it was the exclusive purveyor of the devices, despite European free trade agreements which make device exclusivity illegal.
Next week, on September 9 at 9:09 local time (09.09.09 @ 9:09, get it?), 3Gstore.de will open a physical retail store (photos in the gallery below) in the German city of Bochum, located in the bustling metropolitan area of the Ruhrgebiet. On offer will be 3G and 3GS iPhones, contract free and officially sim-unlocked. Customers who buy these devices can then sign up for a service plan with the provider of their choice — either O2, Vodafone, or ePlus, in addition to T-Mobile.
For us here in North America, it sounds like some fantastic dream. Sure, the prices are downright jaw-dropping (€999 for a 32GB 3GS, for example), but imagine the freedom, the sheer public nature of it all. Right there in the open, no jailbreak, no shady independent electronics retailer offering unlocking services on Craigslist.
You could plan an iPhone-tourism trip to Bochum, if the picture I’ve just painted is that appealing. But it’s possible that won’t be necessary, since in the very near future, the U.S. might have iPhone stores of their very own. The FCC’s investigation into AT&T/Apple relationship could always bear fruit, if you’ll pardon the pun, and result in the kind of antitrust laws surrounding device exclusivity that 3Gstore.de is taking advantage of.
The people behind 3Gstore.de are all just really big iPhone fans who want other users to have the freedom to choose. T-Mobile has tried to stifle them at every turn, even going so far as to try to limit what kinds of product images the much smaller company can use to promote its iPhone sales. It’s a true David and Goliath story, and if I was anywhere near Germany I’d be there on September 9 celebrating the store’s opening. Not buying a phone, mind you. $1400 USD is a little too rich for my blood. But I’ll be buying one in spirit.
Переслать - Smule and T-Pain Bring Auto-Tune to Your iPhone
What happens when a bunch of really smart and musically inclined PhDs who make iPhone apps team up with a popular hip-hop recording artist? You get a recording studio-quality, karaoke-style machine in your pocket, otherwise called I Am T-Pain ($2.99). It’s the latest in a string of audio-based hits from Smule, and is available in the App Store today.
If you’ve been dreaming of sounding like T-Pain — or just want that glass-shattering voice to sound half-way respectable, like me — then the I Am T-Pain application for iPhone is your ticket. By incorporating Auto-Tune technology (secret sauce, compliments of Antares Audio Technologies), anyone’s voice is enhanced, sounding as if it came from a recording studio. Marry that to Smule’s real-time audio processing, and you’re on your way to earning a platinum record…or at least some free beverages when you become the hit of the party using I Am T-Pain.
The app comes loaded with tracks from T-Pain’s hit music, which you can sing along to using the scrolling lyrics onscreen. Sing alone (not recommended in the shower; iPhones are pricey) or with friends, and have I Am T-Pain record your song. Or you may choose to use the freestyle mode, and do your own thing. All the while, Auto-Tune is making you sound like a star! When you’ve settled on something that’s ready to be “played to eleven,” you can save the recording, and share via email, Facebook or MySpace. And if you get bored of the tracks it comes loaded with, use the in-app purchasing option to expand on your fun.
Similar to Smule’s Sonic Vox, your voice is captured from the iPhone microphone (which is why iPod touch users are not able to play in this sandbox), processed inside that little slice of miracle we all know as the iPhone, and played via the internal speaker or headphone output. An impressive feat, to be sure. However, it’s probably useful to note that the sound output is going to sound orders of magnitude better through headphones or speakers plugged into the headphone jack (notice in the YouTube videos — linked below — it’s always with external speakers).
As of this writing, I hadn’t yet had any hands-on time with I Am T-Pain. And that’s a shame, too, because I’m pretty much the world’s most awful singer, and it would have been a great test to see how my voice would have fared, using I Am T-Pain with Auto-Tune. And you better believe I would’ve posted links to the result here. Maybe keep an eye on the comments in case I post an example later on…
In the meantime, check out the YouTube videos of T-Pain showing off his new app to friends, artists and random folks on the street. (The second one is really pretty cool.) This thing looks like a lot of fun. So if you’re into T-Pain, or just want to have some karaoke-style fun with your iPhone, check out the I Am T-Pain application in the App Store.
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