The best way to keep your computer systems running smooth, and problem-free is to create a healthy environment for it. A healthy environment begins with clean, filtered AC power. Never use a surge protector with your computer. Only use an Uninterruptible Power Supply, sometimes called a UPS or battery backup. These are power rated in volt-amps. Generally, a laptop or mini will require at least a 350 va unit. An iMac 750 va, and a Mac Pro or server 1500 va. I recommend American Power Conversion (APC), Belkin, and Triplite units
The life-blood of any unix system is the directory structure and permissions. Think of the directory as the table of contents to a book, with the hard drive being the book. If the directory becomes corrupted, it is not possible to find the desired data. Permissions specify who can read and write to files and folders. Damage to both is just part of the nature of computing, but can render your data and computer useless. To prevent small problems from snowballing, use Disk Utility weekly to repair permissions and to check your directory. Even better, use Mac HelpMate from The MacXperts to automate this and other routine maintenance jobs.
It is not a question of if you will ever lose important data, only a matter of when and how often! Backing up your data is an essential part of computer support. It is vital to have at least one on-site and one off-site backup. In the event of catastrophic loss, such as fire or theft, your on-site backup will be lost. This is where your off-site backup becomes a life-saver. For Mac OS X 10.5 and 10.6 users, Time Machine is the ideal on-site backup option. Off-site solutions include Mozy, SpiderOak, Carbonite, JungleDisk with Amazon S3 Services, and CrashPlan.
Think your Mac is immune from malware? Think again. Sure, we don't get nearly as many infections as Windows users, but it does happen. Perhaps even worse is that your Mac can receive a Windows virus that can then be sent to a Windows user, destroying their system. Not such a good move if you are trying to build a business relationship with that person or organization. Every Mac should have a solid anti-malware utility installed. My personal choice is Intego VirusBarrier.
Need a full-featured office application suite, but don't want the expense and bugs of Microsoft Office? Sun Microsystems Open Office, available for the Mac as both Open Office and NeoOffice are terrific alternatives for many users - and they are free!
Got Boot Camp? Now how are you going to backup your windows partition? WinClone to the rescue. WinClone will create a duplicate of your Boot Camp partition, saving it to your Mac partition. Then when your Mac side is backed up with TimeMachine, your Windows data is doubly safe.
Think you need to go through the expense, hassle, and security concerns to install Windows on your Mac to run your Windows-only applications. Perhaps not. There are may alternatives to running Windows software without windows. Check our our blog "Running Windows on Macintosh".
Ever been out of town and just had to have that important document that was safely stored away on your home computer? There are now many free and easy options to have remote access to all of your Mac and Windows systems.
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Before there were spin doctors, professional politicians, used car salesmen, HMO’s, and attorneys that have forgotten why they entered the profession, sanity ran free through the countryside. The cowboy - honest, trustworthy, strong of heart and back, who learned to be self-sufficient without draining the resources of his neighbors and to survive in a land that was often cruel and barren - became the quintessential wise man of the range. The MacXperts celebrates our uniquely American Cowboy Wisdom.
COWBOY WISDOM
“Only 5% of an intelligence report is accurate. The trick of a good commander is to isolate the 5%.” - General Douglas MacArthur
“People who are tough never have to tell you that they are. It’s the same with people who are honest.”
“Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.”
“Nobody walking away from a gunfight ever complained about bringing too much ammunition.”
“Nothing is as expensive as free advice.”
“Democracy is two wolves and a lamb deciding what to have for dinner. Liberty is a well-armed lamb." - Benjamin Franklin
“The only terrain you actually control is the terrain covered by your two feet.” - From US Rangers Rules for Gunfighting
“50% of the population has an IQ under 100. And a hundred ain’t that great.”
“My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: Those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was much less competition.” - Indira Gandhi Unintentional contributor to Cowboy Logic
“In the final measure, nothing speaks like deeds.” - General John A. Wickham, Jr. United States Army Chief of Staff 1983-1987
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" - Ancient Proverb “Be very careful where you step.” - Pachelbel Ranch Proverb
“Do something. It may be wrong, but do something.” - Clint Smith Director of Thunder Ranch, Home of deadly serious cowboy logic
“If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck.”
“There’s a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore like an idiot.”
“Never trust a man who agrees with you. He’s probably wrong.”
“Good judgement comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgement.”
“When you give a personal lesson in meanness to a critter or to a person, don’t be surprised if they learn their lesson.”
“There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading, the few who learn by observation, and the rest just have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.”
“Courage is being scared to death – and saddling up anyway.” - John Wayne A Real American Cowboy
“One good sharp knife is worth two of almost anything else, except women and horses, of course.”
“One is not born a cowboy. He or she becomes one.”
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming... ‘WOW, what a ride!’” - Hunter S. Thompson Gonzo, Psychodelic Cowboy
