Here’s an interesting Finder functionality built right into Leopard. If you have any windows which you’ve dragged outside the display are of your monitor, then when you move an item from one of those half-hidden windows to any another, Finder will un-hide the windows and bring them back into full view on your screen.
-Ethan.
I have known this for a while now, but I didn’t think of submitting it here before.
So, if you want to change the look of your Dock (eg. I think, in the default dock it isn’t very clear to see when an application is open or not) you have to change some files you can find at /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app (ctrl-click show package contents) /Contents/Resources there you can find the images that represent the indicators (indicator_… files), dock background (scurve-… files), etc. when you replaced this files you have to restart the dock by opening terminal and type ‘killall Dock’you can find a lot of premade Docks on the internet (just google for it) my favorite site is http://leoparddocks.net/ I found the tip at http://macthemes2.net/forum/viewtopic.php?id=16782319
* note from James. I think we’ve covered this before, however I’ll publish this anyway as a re-cap! also be warned that you could ruin your dock by playing with these files
On most laptops with leopard, you can have the right click option with just 2 fingers instead of having to press ctrl - clickfirst you go to : system preferences, in keyboard and mouse, under trackpad there is a checkbox that says:
and PRESTO!!, you have faster right-clicks on most laptops. There is also a lot of other options on that page that you can mess around with
*note from James, this has been possible in previous versions of OS X but is still a nice trick
Remember the good old days–basically 4 months ago–when you could search for a specific preference file in spotlight? Since Leopard’s release, some users have been noticing that this rather simple functionality has strangely disappeared in Leopard. But has it really?
Try a little experiment: Open the “preferences” folder in your “user/library/” directory. Pick out a preference file–let’s try “com.apple.iChatAgent.plist.” Now, close the preferences window, and go up to the spotlight icon in the upper right hand corner of your desktop. Try searching for “ichatagent.” Oddly, the preference file in question will not show up.
So how can you find a specific preference file if this is true? Well, the good news is that it can be accomplished in a couple of different ways (one of which involves tailoring search criteria using the optional pull-downs), but here’s a quick and dirty solution:
Let’s stay with the “ichatagent” example: First, you’ll need to drill down to the “library” folder in your user directory. Now enter “ichatagent” in the search field in the upper right hand area of the window. You’ll notice that the window goes blank with no results. Fear not: simply select “Search: Library” instead of “this Mac” in the thin gray bar above the search results field.
Voila! There’s “com.apple.iChatAgent.plist,” right where it should be.
So, the next time you need to find a specific preference file, remember you’ll have to actually be in your “library” folder (or the “Preferences” folder itself) to find it. A little odd, but at least you know you can still find those files!
Note: As mentioned above, there is another viable method that can be used to find your pref files which involves using the search criteria pull-downs and then (optionally) saving the search for later use. Although I prefer the method here, it’s always matter of personal taste!
When you need to save a file with a name that is close to a name you already have in that folder, just click on one of the grayed-out file names in the folder and that name will appear in the Save as… box. So now you need only a minor adjustment to complete the new name. Works in any program AFAIK.
As you know, when looking at files in Quick Look you can look at a single one or use the arrow keys to scroll through your list, or even look at thumbnails (an index sheet) of all files. Switching between single file view and index sheet view doesn’t require a click. Simply press command-return to toggle between the two views. Nice.
There’s a lot of hidden features in Leopard, today I’ll show you a hidden details trick for your airport menu.
If you click the airport menu you will see a menu with a list of nearby wireless networks and of course the one you are connected to (if your connected to one). If you “option+click” the menu instead, you’ll see the menu displays more information than usual, including the MAC address of the access point, the channel, signal strength and transmit rate (Eg 54Mbps).
If there are multiple networks within your range, you can mouse-over them and press “option” it will display more information for those non-connected networks, including what security the network has in place. Very handy if your on the go!
In Tiger when I wanted to make icons of a folder I used a little script called ‘Icon Creator’. It didnt work anymore in Leopard. While experimenting I discovered a very fun and easy way to make icons in Leopard.
All you have to do is to open a jpeg (I believe any format that will open works) in PREVIEW.
Then (with the selection tool) you select the part of the picture you want as your icon. Now COPY it (press Comand + C)
Select a folder (or anything you want to change the icon of) and Right-click on this folder, bringing up the info pane. Go up to the top of the pane, click once on the icon to highlight it, and PASTE.
You now have your new icon.
