Apple: Let there be Exchange (just not right this minute)

June 24, 2008 at 9:11 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Predictions, Software

Last Fall I in a post about the frustrations of using a Mac in a corporate setting where Microsoft’s Exchange provides calendaring, contacts, and email, I considered the possibility of support for Exchange in Apple’s native applications.

If that is true, I’d have to say that while that while that is a great move on behalf of the iPhone, there is likely another story here. That story: Full Microsoft Exchange support with an Apple authored application. Far fetched? iWork’s interoperability with Microsoft Office’s Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents is proudly displayed on the iWord ‘08 landing page already. And, if Apple was going to make the iPhone play nice with Exchange, I’d find it hard to believe that a desktop solution wasn’t also in the works.

Well, it’ll be a bit more of a wait, but eventually it is to be. A colleague recently pointed me to a page on Apple’s site for the next version of OS X, “Snow Leopard.” The page confirms Exchange support for Mail.app, iCal and Address Book.

Microsoft Exchange Support

Snow Leopard includes out-of-the-box support for Microsoft Exchange 2007 built into Mail, Address Book, and iCal. Mac OS X uses the Exchange Web Services protocol to provide access to Exchange Server 2007. Because Exchange is supported on your Mac and iPhone, you’ll be able to use them anywhere with full access to your email, contacts, and calendar.

Why this feature isn’t coming sooner is my only question!

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Get rid of Mail.app SPAM

March 29, 2008 at 1:11 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Tips, Support, Software

A few tips you can try to get a handle on SPAM for your .Mac email account for users of Mail.app (Apple’s default email application).

Be Sure SPAM Filtering is Enabled in Mail

Mail provides some basic SPAM protection.  If it’s off it’s of no use to you, so be sure that it’s enabled.

1. In Mail navigate to Mail > Preferences…
2. Click the Junk Mail option
3. Ensure “Enable junk mail filtering” is checked

With junk mail filtering enabled, there is one more thing you need to do: train Mail. Mail constantly learns from what you flag as SPAM to try to do a better job in the future. Be sure that you flag junk mail as such as opposed to just deleting it.

Get a More Advanced SPAM Protection

The junk mail filtering for Mail on OS X is a nice feature, but it does seem that it takes it awhile to learn a new strain of SPAM when it encounters it. I’ve considered getting more SPAM protection for Mail.app, but just haven’t bitten the bullet yet.

The program which holds the most appeal to me is called SpamSieve by C-Command Software. If there is an opportunity to evaluate SpamSieve prior to purchase I’ll give it a test drive and report back on how effective it is.

Report SPAM you Receive

I’m not sure if it will assist in your short-term battle with SPAM, but being a part of the solution is always a good thing (right?). When you do get SPAM, submit it to a SPAM reporting service such as SpamCop–be sure you go to spamcop.NET not .COM.

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iPhone Exchange ActiveSync: granted

March 6, 2008 at 12:03 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Software

At this morning’s iPhone SDK announcement, Apple put the end to the question of the iPhone’s viability in the enterprise by announcing Exchange support by way of Microsoft’s ActiveSync technology.

ActiveSync will synchronize contacts and meetings with the iPhone’s native address book and calendar, leading to the inevitable question: when is OS X’s Mail and iCal going to get Exchange support?

The improved iPhone Exchange support will be made available at the time of the next iPhone Software Update.

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Quickly lock your Mac without putting it to sleep

January 23, 2008 at 3:20 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Tips, Support

When I converted from Windows, I was used to quickly locking my computer buy hitting Ctrl-Alt-Delete and then selecting the ‘lock computer‘ option.  On a Mac, there isn’t a direct equivalent to Ctrl-Alt-Delete, but there’s another method that let’s you lock your desktop quickly without having to put the computer to sleep or log off.

The method involves setting your screen saver to require a password upon waking, and assigning a ‘hot corner’ so initiating the screen saver takes no time at all.  It also assumes that your user account requires a password to log in.

It only takes a minute to set it up.  Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open System Preferences (if it’s not in your Dock, you can go to > System Preferences at the top of the screen)
2. From the System Preferences screen, click the “Desktop & Screen Saver” icon under “Personal” settings.
3. There are two panels, “Desktop” and “Screen Saver“.  If the Screen Saver isn’t the active panel, select it.
4. Click the “Hot Corners…” button at the bottom left-hand corner of the panel.
5. The four select controls represent the four corners of your screen.  Set the top left-hand select control to “Start Screen Saver“.
6. Click the “OK” button.

You can now start the screen saver any time you like by putting the mouse at the top left of the screen and not moving it for two or three seconds.  Now lets make sure your computer will require a password when it wakes from the screen saver:

1. If you closed System Preferences, open it.
2. Click the “Security” icon under “Personal” settings.
3. There are three panels: “General”, “File Vault” and “Firewall.”  With the “General” panel selected ensure the “Require password to wake this computer from sleep or screen saver” checkbox is checked.
4. Close System Preferences.

That’s it! Now, to lock your Mac at any time all you need to do is drag your mouse to the top left-hand corner of the screen.  Your screen saver will automatically start in two or three seconds.  Then, when you later wake the computer it will prompt you (or anyone else!) for a password to unlock it.

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Mac OS X screen capture tips

December 31, 2007 at 1:18 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Tips

Creating a screen capture of part or all of the screen with OS X is pretty straightforward once you know what keys to press. Here’s a quick rundown:

OS X screen capture keystrokes

• Command-Shift-3: takes a screen capture of the entire screen
• Command-Shift-4: allows you to select the area of the screen to capture
• Command-Shift-4 [release] Space : allows you to take a screen capture of an application window

Each of the above commands creates a screen capture of the desired area and places it on your desktop. If you prefer to take a screen capture which you can paste into a document, email, chat (etc.), just hold down the Control key in addition to the keystrokes above. The screen capture will be put onto the clipboard instead of saved in a file to your desktop.

Changing OS X screen capture file type

The default file type for screen captures is PNG. If you prefer a different format, it can easily be changed:

1. Open a Terminal window
2. Type the following line:

   defaults write com.apple.screencapture type jpg

The above Terminal command will change the screen capture file format to JPEG format the next time you log in. Available screen capture file format options include:

• gif
• jpg
• tiff
• pdf
• psd

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OS X startup programs

September 27, 2007 at 4:43 pm · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Tips

There will come a time (and it may be now!) when you find yourself wanting to add or remove programs that automatically start when your Mac boots up. The first time I did this I struggled to find where the startup programs are managed on OS X. So, for the newly converted or simply frustrated here’s a quick walk-through:

1. Open System Preferences (if it’s not in your Dock, you can go to > System Preferences at the top of the screen)
2. From the System Preferences screen, click the “Accounts” icon under the “System” settings.
3. For each account, there is a “Login Items” tab where you can add and remove programs to automatically launch at startup. If you cannot edit your Login Items there it is one of two things:
   • You do not have proper access to edit the person’s account you are looking at.
   • You have proper access, but you need to “Click the lock to make changes.” Just look at the padlock icon at the bottom-left corner of the page. If it’s locked, that’s what you need to do.

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Free Parallels Desktop 3.0 update

September 12, 2007 at 12:12 am · Filed under Mac for PC Users, Software

Current users of Parallels Desktop for Mac 3 can now download a feature update from the Parallels web site. The update is free, and works with any Parallels Desktop for Mac key (including 15-day trial keys).

As previously noted in my other blog context, I have been working with the beta builds of this release for several weeks. The experience has been positive, with only a few minor glitches along the way.

For those considering Parallels, trial keys are available to take it for a spin. All you need to do is download Parallels, then request a 15 day evaluation key (from the download page).

I’m not going to regurgitate the list of features in Parallels Desktop for Mac—visit the updated 3.0 page; it’s all there. I will say that speed is improved, and interoperability has been enhanced significantly between the Mac and virtualized PC.

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of this product and of the company. It’s refreshing to see a company release a quality product at a reasonable price which they then make a commitment to enhancing over time.

This information was retrieved from the Parallels Virtualization Blog.

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