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macintosh troubleshooting

Frequently Asked Questions

I have problems connecting with a Global Village modem

Macintosh OS7 and up - If you have a Global Village modem, do not select the Global Village Modem listed in Modems in the Control Panel. Select the following:

When connecting I encounter an error in the PPP Window saying that the "CONNECTION SPEED is UNKNOWN"

Try putting one or two commas after the local iiNet dial-up phone number in your ppp software.

How to get a History List in Netscape

Netscape does have a history function. It can be accessed with the keyboard shortcut cmd+H while your Netscape is open. It is a limited list only - for current session. Once you shut down Netscape or it freezes you lose all your history. If you would like a list of all the URLs visited for the previous 7 days:

How to find your IP address in a Macintosh

Go to the Control Panel and select either MacTCP or TCP/IP. A dialogue box will open up that will have your IP address in it.

How to save disk space on my Macintosh

You may wish to eliminate the set of Macintosh code that you are not using. To do this, you can use a Strip utility, such as StripPPC (for 68K machines), or Strip68K (for PowerPCs). Both found on iiNet ftp server: ftp.iinet.net.au/pub/mac/Utilities

Some keyboard shortcuts for Macintosh:

cmd+N - Create a new folder
cmd+Down Arrow - Open a File or Folder
cmd+O (letter) or cmd+Down Arrow - Open a highlighted icon
cmd+W - Close the Active Window
cmd+A - Select All items or text in active window
cmd+C - Copy the current selection to the clipboard
cmd+O - Open a file
cmd+P - Print the active window
cmd+Q - Quit the active application
cmd+S - Save the current file or document
cmd+V - Paste clipboard contents at current cursor position
cmd+W - Close active window
cmd+X - Cut the current selection, delete it from current window and put it on the clipboard
cmd+Z - Undo the last action

How to control your Macintosh while booting up:

shft - allows you to start up your Mac without extensions.
C - allows you to force your Mac to boot from an internal CD-ROM drive.
cmd+opt - tells the Mac to rebuild the hidden Desktop file. This should be done periodically for good preventative maintenance
cmd+opt+shft+delete - tells the Mac to skip the first device in the SCSI chain. This comes in handy when you want to force your Mac to boot from an external drive.
cmd+opt+P+R - clears the parameter RAM. One of those things to do when things aren't right and you can't think of anything else to try. This clears things like date and time, location, etc.
Spacebar - opens the Extensions Manager when starting up.
Mouse Button - will force eject a floppy while booting up.

I want to be able to view my trashcan while in other applications

Use the Show Desktop option in General Controls found in Control Panels. When in background this option allows you to choose whether you want to be able to see the icons on the desktop when another application is active.

I want to be reminded on startup if my computer wasn't shut down properly

Use the Macintosh General Controls in Control Panels called Shut Down Warning. If the option is checked you will be presented with a dialog box at startup reminding you when your Mac was improperly shutdown (crashed or had to be hard restarted). This is probably good to use for beginners or if other inexperienced users have access to the machine. Eventually you will likely turn it off as it can become annoying to be reminded of something which you already know.

Other people use my computer, I don't want them to make any changes to my files

In the General Controls Control Panel the option Folder Protection allows you to lock either or both your System Folder and Applications folder, this will prevent any changes from being made while all the files and folders will be readable. A good idea if other inexperienced users have access to your Macintosh. These options will not be available if you have File Sharing turned on.

I get an error with a code: Files that end with ".exe" won't open

Files that end with a .exe are designed for use with computers running Windows or DOS. You can use these files through software such as Real PC, SoftWindows, or Virtual PC, all of which provide PC emulation for Mac OS.

I get an error with a code: "-39" when opening a self-mounting image (smi) or "This file is
not a complete .bin or .hqx file"

This error indicates that the file you have downloaded is not complete. The most common cause of this error is related to a bad or dropped connection to the server during the download process. Try downloading the file again.