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Put Maintenance & Upkeep on a Regular Schedule
 When it comes to workstation and server uptime, system maintenance and upkeep is an essential element, but it sometimes gets neglected in favor of more pressing support tasks or upgrade implementations.
Or the opposite could be true - employees could be spending so much time in preventive care, they might be creating unnecessary downtime. To strike a healthy balance, managers should take the time to develop a regular schedule and break down chores, saving time and money in the long run.
Make An Upkeep List
Creating an effective maintenance plan is much like asset management, experts note. The primary step involves taking an inventory of all hardware and systems and jotting down what type of upkeep each requires.
Knowing how often to schedule maintenance and upkeep tasks is somewhat different depending on the company's needs and equipment. For example, a business that can't tolerate any downtime will likely have failover systems, increasing maintenance tasks.
In general, upkeep chores should be scheduled according to how directly they affect the system or users. Changes in authorizations or application settings should be handled quickly to prevent employee downtime, while less time-sensitive work such as checking activity logs can be put off until other tasks are done.
Upgrades, whether they're to applications or network resources, are usually scheduled for the weekend to lessen the impact to employees. Ditto for recovery drills, another vital part of keeping a system running well, says Jim Reinert, senior director of data recovery service Ontrack.
"Companies are great at doing backups, but when it comes to recovery, they're not so good," he says. "A regular part of maintenance should be testing the backup system to make sure that it works. You don't want to be putting everything on disk or tape and then finding out at the worst possible moment that it's not working."
Once a maintenance schedule is in place, Reinert suggests creating an employee email list that warns employees of upcoming upkeep events. With so many employees accessing the company's server from home, keeping them informed will prevent support headaches from users trying to access a system that's being upgraded.
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FREE Workshops at Creative Resources (Orange County and Hawaii)
 Every month, we offer the most sought after topics and information in a very straight-forward presentation. All of our curriculum has been updated for 2006 and the release of Tiger for the newest materials.
We have also added three exciting new titles to our line-up. All workshops at our facility are the extended curriculum to what we offer at the local Apple Retail Stores.
We have listened to your comments and requests, and proudly hold the following seminars on a monthly basis:
• Apple Server & Storage Solutions
• ColorSync Workflows
• Font Management
• Intel for Serious Business Power
• iWeb and .Mac for your Business
• Mac/Windows
Integration (Exchange)
• Running your Business on a Mac
• Security Awareness for Businesses
• Switching to InDesign
• Troubleshooting Mac OS X
• Wireless and Remote Networks
All seminars are free and take
place from 9:00 am to 11:00 am. All topics are based on the current
shipping version of OS X (Tiger).
You may sign up online, through Apple's Seminar Registration page at http://seminars.apple.com
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FREE Workshops at Apple Stores
Tap into the power of your Macintosh systems! These comprehensive workshops will provide practical knowledge and problem solving techniques for individuals with an intermediate to advanced level of technical expertise. During these workshops, we will use a combination of lectures and demonstrations to teach you how to maximize your Mac.
Business Workshops offered:<
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• Apple Server and Storage Solutions
• Dazzling Keynote Presentations
• Font Management
• Intel for Serious Business Power
• iWeb and .mac for your Business
• Mac/Windows
Integration (i.e. Exchange)
• Running your Business on a Mac
• Security Awareness for Businesses
• Switching to InDesign
• Troubleshooting Mac OS X
• UNIX: Working the Command Line
• Wireless and Remote Networks
Workshops are held regularly at all Orange County Apple Retail
Stores (Brea, Fashion Island, Irvine Spectrum, Mission Viejo and
South Coast Plaza) and the Apple Retail Store Ala Moana in Honolulu,
HI. For class schedule, please see
Apple's Calendar for your
closest location.
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Check out the iPod Hi-Fi
with your favorite music.
Grab your iPod and come on in and check out the iPod Hi-Fi with
the music on your iPod. You've got your playlists ready to go and
know just the sound your looking for. What better way to experience
the all-new iPod Hi-Fi ?
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Apple Introduces Boot Camp
Public Beta Software Enables Intel-based Macs to Run Windows XP
Apple has introduced Boot Camp, public beta software that enables Intel-based Macs to run Windows XP. Available as a download beginning today, Boot Camp allows users with a Microsoft Windows XP installation disc to install Windows XP on an Intel-based Mac, and once installation is complete, users can restart their computer to run either Mac OS X or Windows XP. Boot Camp will be a feature in "Leopard," Apple's next major release of Mac OS X, that will be previewed at Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference in August.
"Apple has no desire or plan to sell or support Windows, but many customers have expressed their interest to run Windows on Apple's superior hardware now that we use Intel processors," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "We think Boot Camp makes the Mac even more appealing to Windows users considering making the switch."
Boot Camp simplifies Windows installation on an Intel-based Mac by providing a simple graphical step-by-step assistant application to dynamically create a second partition on the hard drive for Windows, to burn a CD with all the necessary Windows drivers, and to install Windows from a Windows XP installation CD. After installation is complete, users can choose to run either Mac OS X or Windows when they restart their computer.
Pricing & Availability
The public beta of Boot Camp is available immediately as a download at www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp, and is preview software licensed for use on a trial basis for a limited time. The final version of Boot Camp will be available as a feature in the upcoming Mac OS X version 10.5 "Leopard." Apple does not provide support for installing or running Boot Camp and does not sell or support Microsoft Windows software. Apple welcomes user feedback on Boot Camp at bootcamp@apple.com.
System Requirements
Boot Camp requires an Intel-based Mac with a USB keyboard and mouse, or a built-in keyboard and TrackPad; Mac OS X version 10.4.6 or later; the latest firmware update; at least 10GB of free space on the startup disk; a blank recordable CD or DVD; and single-disc version of Windows XP Home Edition or Professional with Service Pack 2 or later.
Source: Apple press release.
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Desktop management made easy.
Apple Remote Desktop 3 is a Universal application optimized to take advantage of the power of Intel-based Mac systems. With more than 50 new features, it offers everything you need to manage Mac computers on your network. Apple Remote Desktop 3 allows you to distribute software, control and configure computers, offer live online help and training, run detailed reports, and implement security policies. New features include lightning-fast Spotlight searches across multiple Mac OS X Tiger systems; over 30 Automator actions for easily automating repetitive system administration tasks; a Dashboard widget that allows quick and convenient observation of remote systems; and AutoInstall for installing software automatically on mobile systems when they connect to the network.
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MacBook Pro Turns 17
MacBook Pro with 2.16 GHz Intel Core Duo Processor Up to Five Times Faster Than PowerBook G4
Apple has unveiled its new 17-inch MacBook Pro notebook computer featuring the Intel Core Duo processor and an all new system architecture that delivers up to five times the performance of the PowerBook G4. The new 17-inch MacBook Pro features a stunning aluminum enclosure just one inch thin, weighs only 6.8 pounds, includes a built-in iSight video camera for video conferencing on-the-go, and the breakthrough Front Row media experience with Apple Remote. The new 17-inch MacBook Pro also features a MagSafe Power Adapter, invented by Apple especially for mobile users.
The new 17-inch MacBook Pro includes a 2.16 GHz Intel Core Duo processor that delivers dual-core performance in a breakthrough power-efficient design, making it ideal for use in MacBook Pro's thin and lightweight design. The new 17-inch MacBook Pro is up to five times faster than the 17-inch PowerBook G4, running industry standard benchmarks* and offers an all new system architecture including a 667 MHz front-side bus that is four times as fast as the PowerBook G4 and 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory expandable to 2GB that is twice as fast as the PowerBook G4.
Designed for business and creative professionals, the new 17-inch MacBook Pro includes a 36 percent brighter display to make reading text and viewing images even easier and an ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 PCI Express graphics with 256MB of dedicated GDDR3 graphics memory for demanding professional applications, and a Scrolling TrackPad to easily scroll through long web pages or pan across large photographs. Providing industry-leading connectivity and high-performance I/O, every new 17-inch MacBook Pro also includes a FireWire 800 port, a FireWire 400 port, three USB 2.0 ports, optical and digital audio input and output, built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR (Enhanced Data Rate), and integrated AirPort Extreme 54 Mbps 802.11g WiFi wireless networking.**
The 2.16 GHz, 17-inch MacBook Pro, for a suggested retail price of $2,799 (US), includes:
- 17-inch widescreen 1680 x 1050 LCD display with 300 cd/m2 brightness;
- 2.16 GHz Intel Core Duo processor;
- 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, expandable to 2GB;
- 120GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm, with Sudden Motion Sensor;
- a slot-load 8x SuperDrive(TM) with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW) optical drive;
- PCI Express-based ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 with 256MB GDDR3 memory;
- DVI-out port for external display (VGA-out adapter included, Composite/S-Video out adapter sold separately);
- built-in Dual Link support for driving Apple 30-inch Cinema HD Display;
- built-in iSight video camera;
- Gigabit Ethernet port;
- built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
- ExpressCard/34 expansion card slot;
- three USB 2.0 ports, one FireWire 800 port, and one FireWire 400 port;
- one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
- Scrolling TrackPad and illuminated keyboard with ambient light sensor;
- the infrared Apple Remote;
- 68 watt hour lithium polymer battery; and
- 85 watt Apple MagSafe Power Adapter.
*Based on estimated results of industry-standard SPECint and SPECfp rate tests. SPEC is a registered trademark of Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (SPEC). **Actual speed will vary based on range from the base station, environmental conditions and other factors.
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Parallels Workstation (Virtualization) software
Parallels Workstation 2.1b5 has been introduced, bringing
two major enhancements to the virtualization software that allows
running of Windows (3.1, 3.11, 95, 98, Me, 2000, NT, XP, 2003), any
Linux distribution, FreeBSD, Solaris, OS/2, eComStation, or MS-DOS in
secure virtual machines alongside Mac OS X.
The first major enhancement is USB support. With this release, users can connect USB devices directly to the virtual machine.
The other major enhancement is shared folders. This new functionality allows users to share files between Mac OS X and any Windows XP or Windows 2003 guest virtual machine.
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New Intel Macs - 5 Intel only ailments
You've taken the leap and bought a new Mac with an Intel processor. But does Intel inside mean brand-new troubleshooting issues, too? Yup. Here are five you should know about:
1. Rosetta Slowdowns
All applications have to be rewritten to run natively on Intel processors. A program will likely have been updated to a
Universal version, which means that it can
run natively both on a PowerPC Mac and on a new Intel Mac. If a
program hasn't been updated, OS X will attempt to launch it in a
PowerPC-emulation environment called Rosetta. Most programs will run
slower in Rosetta than on a comparable PowerPC Mac. (And there?s no
fix for this except an application update.)
If a program seems slow, you can check to see whether
it?s running in Rosetta by opening System Profiler
(/Applications/Utilities). In the list on the left, click on Software
and then on Applications. You'll see a list of all your
applications?currently running and not. If a program can run in both
modes, the Kind column will read Universal.
2. Application Failures
Some PowerPC programs won't launch on Intel Macs, even in Rosetta. A few launch successfully but some of their features won't work. At press time, this included important programs such as Microsoft?s Virtual PC, and disk-repair programs such as Alsoft's DiskWarrior and Micromat's TechTool Pro. You shouldn't even attempt to use a non-updated disk-repair program on an Intel Mac. Wait for the software company to release an Intel-compatible upgrade.<
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3. The Classic Vanishing Act
The Classic environment no longer exists on Intel-based Macs; there is no Apple-supported way to run Classic programs anymore, period.<
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4. Drives That Won't Boot
If you want to be able to boot from an external drive when you're using an Intel-based Mac, you should reformat the drive, using Disk Utility's Partition tab. Click on the Options button and select GUID Partition Scheme. This option is available only when you run Disk Utility on an Intel-based Mac and when you select an external volume. You need to do this only if you want to be able to boot from the volume.<
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You will also need to install an Intel-supported build of OS X on the drive. For example, at present, there are two versions of OS X 10.4.5 - one for PowerPC Macs and the other for Intel Macs. On my Power Mac G5, the 10.4.5 build number is 8H14; on my Intel iMac, it's 8G1454. If you're running OS X 10.4.4, there are separate PowerPC and Intel updaters for each platform.
5. Plug-in Glitches
When you're using the Safari Web browser, you may get an alert that says you need a plug-in file, even though you know you have the plug-in already. This is because Safari is running as a Universal program, but many plug-ins themselves are still PowerPC-only software. The best solution is to get an updated version of the plug-in you're having trouble with, which will hopefully be available by the time you read this. If one doesn't exist, here's a workaround:<
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Quit Safari and open its Get Info window in the Finder
(click on the application icon and press Command-I). Choose the Open
Using Rosetta option. The next time you launch Safari, it will open
using Rosetta. You'll lose the Intel speed advantage, but at least
your plug-in will work.
If you have similar problems with another Universal application that uses plug-ins, the same solution should work.
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