欧州自転車レース追っかけ日記 2019年01月

Mac mini Early 2006 Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz and G4

Mac mini Early 2006 Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz

I thought it would be slower and more sluggish but it was not that bad at all. It was more than I expected. It is booting off the 160 GB 2.5" SATA drive and it is reasonably quick to boot.

I was surprised to see that. As soon as I won it on ebay I ordered an Intel Core 2 Duo (T7600) 2.33 GHz on also ebay. It is coming to me (I hope) in February. It cost me around €20. I will swap the CPUs and burn the EFI firmware so that it will be macmini2,1 (Mac mini Mid 2007). That was my intention when I got it as I had thought this Mac mini would be so slow and unusable without this modification. I was kinda wrong.

The Core 2 Duo 2.33 GHz is coming so I will go ahead with the modding anyways. With the modification I can upgrade the OS to Lion (10.7.*). I can still have fun with it.

I am using Snow Leopard now. I installed VLC on it. The version I could use on it was rather old one as I needed 32-bit version. There were other versions on VLC's site but this last version for 32-bit CPUs was the one for this Mac mini and my future Mac mini G4.

I played some movie files and saw if how it would play movie files. I don't play games (3D games) so testing the CPU under heavy load situations was only possible with playing movies and fast forwarding or so.

I found that I could play most of the movie files without any problems. Fast forwarding was a bit choppy most of the time and I had some movie files that played really choppy. I don't know why but it might have something to do with the codec or compression rate.

I will see if these nasty movie files will play smoother with the modification when the modification is done.

[Mac mini Early 2006 Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz and G4]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Mac mini Original (2005) 1.25 GHz

Mac mini Original (2005) 1.25 GHz

Mac minis 2005 have two versions, the Original and Late 2005. If you count the CPU (PowerPC G4 7117a) clock versions, there are four models. You can see those models at various sites like everymac.com or elsewhere.

This Mac mini has 1.25 GHz G4, which means it is the first Mac mini and is the lowest end model.

It does not really matter because I will later overclock it at 1.5 GHz. These models (2005) have a modem port on its back. A 56K modem built-in! I think I stopped using one of those modems back in late 1990s.

Most of those Mac mini G4 don't have Airport Extreme and Bluetooth capabilities as they were offered as an optional CTO (configured to Order) features.

Now (year 2019) I can still get those needed parts (used or new) from somewhere but they are first of all very expensive or they are fading out (most of the online stores list them as out of stock).

There are easy alternatives for Wireless Network solutions. I can buy a USB Wifi dongle with proper drivers dating all the way back to Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or 10.5 (Leopard). As the maximum OS version available for Mac mini G4 is 10.5.*, this particular one (I found one from Edimax) will do the trick.

Do you really need Bluetooth on Mac mini G4? If you do, for what? A wireless mouse would be nice to have but you can still use a wired mouse. I don't trust a Bluetooth keyboard, too much as some critical operations like press-holing some keys or key combinations while the Mac is booting require or at least will be safely performed with a wired keyboard.

So If, IF I was (were, to be grammatically correct) going to get a Mac mini G4, I will get the cheapest one that I can lay my hand on. I don't expect it to be top of the line 1.5 GHz Late 2005 not would I expect it to be equipped with Airport Extreme/BT module inside.

Most of them left the factory with either 256 or 512 MB of RAM installed. This is also an irrelevant issue as 1 GB memory module for it is really dirt cheap nowadays.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Mac mini Original (2005) 1.25 GHz]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Apple Mighty Mouse (used) arrived (at the pick-up station)!

A Wired Mighty Mouse arrived!

The tracking of this ebay Global Shipping service is a bit tricky as the package is relayed (passed) from one carrier to another and then yet another carrier if needed until it reaches the destination area.

To track this particular package (coming from the UK), I have to go to the "Purchase History" of my ebay account and see how it is going first. At this point the tacking number is "PBI tracking" The tracking information is kinda vague.

This PBI tracking number points to a carrier called WNDirect and its tracking number. When I click on it it opens another site.

The WNDirect site kindly suggests that I should (or might) track it (as the information given on this site is also not so current or up-to-date) on the partner's site. At this point I get a tracking number of PostNL, seemingly a Dutch Post Office carrier.

When I opens this PostNL site, it also tells me to yet another (this time the final carrier) carrier, DPD. And fortunately the buck stops here.

Usually it is the DPD Luxembourg who delivers the package sent through ebay Global Shipping Program in Luxembourg.

This DPD's site always gets updated first when it comes to the real tracking information after the package passes through a Dutch distribution facility.

And almost always I am not there when the package is delivered, the package gets deposited to a pick-up station near my humble residence, where I usually pick up my purchase on ebay.

I have to pick it up later this week but won't open it until I am ready to shoot some pictures. There will be a surprise inside the box.

I picked it up at the pick-up station

A short while ago I paid 10 British Pounds for the item and I had to pay about 20 more for the shipping. Well, if I lived on the main land of UK, I could have paid much much less for shipping.

So I picked it up at a small supermarket (designated as one of the DPD's pick up station) at 08:00 in the morning and drove on to work.

The package was conspicuously big. What could be inside?

The white object next to the package is my Bluetooth Mighty Mouse. I opened the package hurriedly and found the wired Mighty Mouse. I also found a Mac mini, its power adapter (UK plug code) and a paper box containing iLife application DVD (there are also some leaflets and that Apple stickers).

So I actually bought a Mac mini with a wired Mighty Mouse. Let me show you what I got.

The title of the ebay auction item read (past) "Mac Mini 'core Solo' 1.5".

And this was the description that the seller gave and the photo was only one photo showing a Mac mini, its power adapter (UK plug code), a wired Mighty Mouse and a small box of iLife. That was it.

1.5 GHz
Model A1176
64mb vram
Early 2006
Storage 60gb HDD

Includes i life
Garage band
iMovie
iPhoto

So it is Mac mini Early 2006 (macmini1,1). It was the first Intel Mac mini and was placed at the lowest end.

(not too clear but it can be read: 10.6.8 on a Mac mini 1.5 GHz Core Solo, which means that it is an Early 2006 version.

(The Memory module manufacturer's IDs don't match and I will swap them and install the ones I have)
I did not know how much memory it had. I thought it would be 512 Mb. I did not care because I had a matching RAM (2 x 1 GB) taken out of MSI Megabook M670. I did not know which OS version it had. I did not care that either as I have a lot of Apple OS installation DVDs (Leopard, Snow Leopard and Lion).

I turned it on at work in the afternoon. It booted OK and found out about the whole truth, nothing but the truth.

It turned out that the description was almost correct. It was wrong about the Storage capacity. It had a 160 GB HDD. It does not matter as long as I had "more" than the seller promised.

It had Snow Leopard (10.6.8) installed on the HDD and some application programs like Google Chrome, FireFox and other small programs. I could not grin a bit when I saw "Adobe Flash Player" inside its System Preferences as I recalled that while updating the system to 10.6.8 on my Mac mini Late 2009, a window popped out suggesting that I should install newer version of Flash Player or something.

To my surprise (or dismay), it had 2 GB of memory already inside. The only thing I had to say about the memory is that the two modules came fro different manufacturers according to the System Info. Maybe I should replace them with the ones I have because they match (same manufacturer and same specs).

It is in decent shape except that the top panel has gone yellow and the Kensington lock hole has been slightly worn on the edge. It means (presumably) it had been used at public places (schools, libraries etc.) or at offices.

The unmatching pair of RAM modules strongly suggests that someone upgraded the RAM with what this person had (not bought together) with a tight budget.

So it already had an admin account (made by the seller who got it from somewhere). John Smith is it. It is OK and does not matter a bit as I am going to wipe out everything on the HDD anyway.

I played around on it a bit too see if it is really slow. This machine is equipped with Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz. It is a 32-bit CPU. It is OK to click around in Finder like opening folders, opening some text documents or such. It gets sluggish when I play some movie files. The QuickTime player struggles with some movie files when I fast-forward them or make it play at full screen. I wonder if I can play movies from DVD disks.

I opened the Activity Monitor while playing movies and found that the CPU is pretty much occupied with the task and not much CPU power was left. I want to see if I can change that with a faster CPU, 64-bit capable Intel Core 2 Duo clocked at 2.33 GHz (T7600), which is said to be the fastest CPU compatible with this machine and also modifying the EFI firmware so that it recognizes itself as macmini2,1 (which is also known as Mac mini Mid 2007).

To be honest, just within a few minutes after getting this Mac mini on ebay (no one else bid) and having paid for it, I immediately ordered Core 2 Duo 2.33 GHz (T7600) on ebay. Fortunately, these things are not too expensive nowadays but unfortunately they come from China on a slow boat from where else China!

Who knows when my T7600 arrives? I have to wait patiently.

When it arrives, I will be ready.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Apple Mighty Mouse (used) arrived (at the pick-up station)!]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

A cold day in Luxembourg

Trump's America by Newt Gingrich on my iPod touch

The audiobook is on my iPod touch fourth generation and plugged into my Mazda MX-5 (ND). I am listening to it whenever I drive for the moment.

Going for a walk in the cold weather!

Walking in the cold weather! It is nice! I love it!

Modding Macs, old memories and current ambitions

I own (not here but back in Japan) a lot of so-called classic Macintosh machines with Motorola (I learned that they have changed into something else) mk60000 series chips.

When I could I modded some of them. The one I clearly remember is modding an LCIII or LCII so that they could be overclocked by removing or replacing the resistors on the mainboard. It was fun.

This was around the turn of the Century and a while after it.

After my interests had shifted to so-called PCs running Linux, I modded (a simple trick) an AMD Athlon so it could be overclocked. That was also fun.

Now in 2019, I will start modding some Macs so that they could be a bit tiny (marginally or by a fat placebo effect) faster than their original state. Until recently (a matter of a couple days) I did not know such tricks (that I used to perform on those old primitive Macintoshes existed on modern Macs. Now I am aroused (my old self has been awaken).

Never having owned a PowerPC Mac has been a splinter in my mind since long time. This splinter in one's mind is an expression used by Morpheus in the original Matrix when he asked Neo if he was sure to go down the rabbit hole.

I think it is time that I owned one. Since I have been accumulating some Mac minis, I think it is appropriate to get a Mac mini G4. It is an old model sold in 2005 and partly 2006. PowerPC G4 (G7447a) is placed in the heart of the machine.

I have learned that it is relatively easy to overclock the CPU to maximum clock 1.5 GHz. So getting the low end 1.25 GHz and overclocking it to 1.5 GHz is possible. One thing that one has to know is that most of those Mac mini G4 machines did not come with built-in Wifi and Bluetooth cards inside. They were only standard on the high end models and were optional for the rest.

Getting required parts and installing inside any Mac mini G4 is possible but those parts are getting rare and relatively expensive. On the other hand, getting a USB dongle Wifi adapter is easy and some still provide Mac OS X 10.4 or 10. 5 drivers. If I was going to get one (Mac mini G4), I would opt for the latter option. Just having a Wifi function will be OK.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [A cold day in Luxembourg]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Macintosh Classic sold, Apple Mighty Mouse cleaned and etc.

Somebody bought that Classic a few days later

I visited troc store (www.troc.com) in Esch-sur-Alzette and found that that Classic had been gone, presumably sold. It was €99. I also looked at the price tag on the iMac next to the now ghost Classic and found the price had been €149. This iMac was still there. For that matter, the MacBook 13-inch Late 2009 was also there inside the showcase.

Who bought it and for what avail? These were the questions that came to my mind. Had I missed it? No I did not. Certainly I don't own a Classic but the Classic is not so special. A color Classic will be a rarer species but not a Classic.

I am almost sure that whoever bought it (has a lot of money) wanted to display it on the mantel (or similar places) but would not use it as a daily computer. It could be a nice piece of interior decoration for €99. Maybe this person has a huge house and have pay someone to clean the house so this person would not mind an additional dust-collecting piece of furniture.

My (Bluetooth) Apple Mighty Mouse's wheel cleaned

The wheel (scrolling downward - "unnatural direction" according to Apple's engineering taste) suddenly stopped functioning. I could only scroll upward for some reason. I searched on the Net and found some pieces of advice. Just clean it! Scroll the wheel against some clean cloth!

I did and it began to work again. It kept happening so often and I had to use some alcohol dipped cloth to clean the wheel. After this thorough cleaning, the scrolling the wheel began to give the tip of my finger (left index) more notching feel. It works better than ever.

This was the trick. I have to use some cleaning alcohol and regularly clean the wheel to get rid of the oily substance that might accumulate inside the wheel unit.

ebay purchase Mighty Mouse (wired) coming from UK

Yesterday, the tracking information was suddenly updated. Up to then, the status had been "Paid but not shipped" all the way since I paid for the merchandise.

It suddenly appeared on the ebay Global Shipping transit location where they (merchandise) leave the UK and it also jumped to the location in the Netherlands where they are handed to the carrier going to Luxembourg. So as I had expected, my Mighty Mouse had been in motion for a while but the tracking had not been logged.

I expect it will enter Luxembourg as early as Monday and it could be delivered as early as Monday or Tuesday.

Video port adapters and cables nightmare

I have been buying some adapters and cables on Amazon. It is a nightmare!

I might have to buy this one along with HDMI (male) - HDMI (female) 90 / 270 degrees adapters for my bad-engineered Medion MD 20144 monitor.

These are sold as a set. One 90-degree angle adapter and one 270-degree angle adapter that has male HDMI on one end and female on the other. My MD 20144 will require the former if I want to use the HDMI video port.

I don't think I am going to buy this one but a lot of these angled adapters exist. Some of them are needed as some LCD monitors are installed close to the wall and the cables have to bend along the wall. For this particular purpose, I kinda allow them to be (to be on the market) but I am not happy at all that I have buy one of these for a normal LCD monitor just because it is terribly engineered or designed.

(Click on the image to magnify)
This is the side view of the monitor and it was sold at ALDI supermarkets in various countries in Europe (I think).

(Click on the image to magnify)
Look how close those video ports are located in the back!

This bump (connecting point of the monitor stand or foot) definitely pushes the connectors or cables outward so that they bend outward.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Macintosh Classic sold, Apple Mighty Mouse cleaned and etc.]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Macintosh Classic, iMac (PowerPC) and Intel MacBook

I miss my collections

So I have not posted the photos I should have in the previous entry (of my diary). This blog is all about my diary and nothing else.

Anyway, I bought this monitor (old Medion MD 20144) several days ago. On that particular day I found that there was an Intel MacBook (13-inch Late 2009 just like the one I own) in the show case at the store. The price tag it had was a bit ridiculous to me but that was none of my business.

The next day I also went to the store during my rest time on foot just to kill time. Then, only then I noticed some objects nonchalantly displayed on the show case. This case (let's say it is 1 meter wide, 50 cm deep and 2 meters high approximately) is tall and I did not look up the day I found this Intel MacBook.

There was a Macintosh Classic (Motorola MK68000 ticking at 8 MHz) and there was an iMac (seemed to be the original, first generation but not sure about its year) side by side. The price tags also carried some ridiculous numbers. Maybe the same person who sold (or actually commissioned the store to display) the MacBook is the owner (until they are sold) of these other Apple products? A die hard Apple fan?

The iMac was priced at €145 and the Classic was priced at €99. Wow! the Classic! The tag attached to it did not mention any specs but it does not matter at all, does it?

Back home (Japan) I collected some old Macintosh models very Late 1990s and Early 2000s. I never owned a PowerPC Macintosh. I did buy (as is and cost almost nothing) a Quadra 610 that came with a PowerPC 601 NuBus card (or was it PDS card?). This PowerPC card was obviously broken and when I boot the machine with this card inserted in the slot, it made that horrible "crash" noise. It sounded like a car crash sound.

I think it made that kind of sound but I could be mistaken. So I never actually had a working PowerPC Macintosh.

If, hypothetically speaking, I encountered (say on ebay or at one of those second-hand stuff store) a Mac mini with a PowerPC chip inside (the original 2005 model or its successor Late 2005 G4 model), I might reach out for it just to say that I have owned a PowerPC Macintosh at least once in my life.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Macintosh Classic, iMac (PowerPC) and Intel MacBook]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Monitor testing

iVANKY Mini DisplayPort - HDMI cable

I bought this Mini DisplayPort - HDMI cable a short while ago. All of my MacBooks (two MacBook 13-inch Late 2009 and one MacBook Pro 13-inch Mid 2010) are equipped with this Mini DisplayPort.

All of my two Mac minis (Early 2009 and Late 2009) are also equipped with this port. Additionally these Mac minis have one Mini DVI port, which makes it very easy to set up two monitors if I need to.

The cable seems very neat and sturdy. I like it.

Today, I used this cable to test Medion MD 20144 with MacBook Pro Mid 2010. There was a problem. The HDMI female port on the monitor is a bit too recessed and hard to access with this cable's HDMI end. I have to use some force to insert and the HDMI end is a bit askew as seen in this photos.

(photos)

I have another Mini DisplayPort - HDMI port cable. I compared the HDMI ends and found the shape of the connectors are identical.

I looked for different models on Amazon (Germany) and found smaller ones, which seemed to belong to later HDMI standard versions like V1.4 or V2 that accommodates higher resolutions (than 1920 x 1080) like 3K, 4K or something.

I also searched and found angled adapters like 90-degree or 270-degree male-to-female adapters. I will have to buy those later if I need to. Sigh!

I also tested the DVI port on the monitor with a Mini DisplayPort - HDMI (female) adapter and HDMI - DVI cable. To my astonishment and disbelief, the DVI connector also has to be inserted askew. The design (it is not not designed with the functions in mind but only aesthetically designed!) of the back service port area has a serious flaw.

Otherwise the video function of the monitor is OK.

I fiddled with the monitor settings from the On Screen Menu and turned the volume to the max. It was set to 50 %. Let's see how they sound when I do find the cable.

I connected the monitor with my MacBook with a 3.5 mm audio jack cable and tried to test the invisible and v inconspicuous speakers. As written above, internally the volume of the speakers was set to their max. And I also made sure that the MacBook is also sending its max power to the monitor.

First I only connected the audio line and tried to listen to the speakers (with the monitor on, of course). Nothing happened. It seemed that to wake the speakers up I needed to hook up the video link, too. This could be a well thought-out (or intended) feature. The idea behind it can be that if there is not video link established, the monitor should be in a energy saving mode and turn the logic board to sleep. A video signal can wake up the monitor but not the audio signal. Anyway, I can accept that.

I connected the video line and this time the speakers began to speak but only in a inhibited way. 2 of 1.5 Watts speakers are not so loud as I had already suspected. OK, I can enjoy the audio as long as I sit in front of the monitor but I don't think I can sit 4 or 5 meters away to enjoy the music or sound from them.

And the sound coming from the monitor is a bit vague as the monitor has only what seems to be two sets of hot air vents (shooting upwards) in the back above the logic board. Most of the sound has to come from there.

Listening to Trump's America on my iPod touch

Now every time I turn the engine on, the audiobook starts to play picking up from where I left the last time. Neat!

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Monitor testing]の続きを読む

Things to do list

To Do list

1. Swap SSDs inside MacBook Pro Mid 2010 (128 GB to Crucial MX500 250 GB)
2. Upgrade the HDD to SSD inside Mac mini Late 2009 (128 GB SSD above)

I went to the local post office to pick up the rest of the ordered items that I came in the mailbox last Friday (January 11).

Upon opening the box, I noticed something strange. I thought I had three cables (2 monitor cables and 1 FireWire cable) and an SSD. Instead, I had 4 cables and an SSD There were two FireWire 6pin to 6pin cables. I checked the order status on Amazon Germany to find that I just ordered one and subsequently paid for one. So I got one extra cable for free. Good. Thank you very much for this free gift.

AX 510 will be off my shopping list after all

I thought I was going to buy a Soundbar made for DELL monitors (AX 510) and modify it to work with a generic AC/DC converter. I looked for it and found a not-so-bad deal on Amazon Germany.

I went on foot to the recycling second-hand store and found something. A cheap monitor with built in speakers. The manual I downloaded says it has two 1.5 Watts speakers and the 3.5 mm stereo jack.

1.5 W is not so much of sound power but I guess it will work OK. If the sound coming out of the monitor (because it does not have any obvious slits or holes where some sounds might come out. The only holes or slits that I can find on the monitor seem to be the hot air vents just above the place mainboard might be as they (vents) are open upward.

The maximum rated power of AX 510 was around 10 W (am I right?). I don't think I would turn up the volume (it has its own volume on the device) on this Soundbar to its maximum anyway.

I have not mentioned the monitor's details yet.

It is Medion MD 20144 monitor. It can be Google-searched and will be easily found. Basically it is a 23-inch full HD monitor with VGA (analog), DVI and HDMI ports and a 3.5 mm stereo jack (above mentioned).

It has a small power input port so the monitor itself is very light, flat and sleek. I asked if they had the power adapter and the man fetched it from somewhere in the store.

I will use it later from one of my Mac minis and see how it goes.

The official site (?) says that it was available from September 2010. I don't know when my monitor was produced but it is an old one by now.

I got it for €25 and I think it was not a bad deal.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Things to do list]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Apple Mighty Mouse and Trump's America

Apple Mighty Mouse (wired)

A new Apple Mighty Mouse (wired) is being offered on ebay from sellers in China at US $16.90, which is around €15.

So I could have purchased this item instead of buying a used one from the UK at half the price that I paid. Actually I had already found this deal even before bidding for the used one from the UK.

Why had I opted for the used one from the UK? That is the big mystery and that was why I wrote that the unboxing of this ebay auction item would be shown here in several photos when the time came.

A second round of "Trump's America" (audiobook)

I am currently on the second round. I have not transferred it on my iPod touch (4th generation) or other i-devices yet since I am lazy. I will do so and carry it round to make it easy to listen to it while driving or walking.

I was curious about the author, Newt Gringrich, and found that he had started his carrier as an academic and later switched to politics. Newt comes from his long name on the dotted line, Newton.

I wondered what the real name of the little girl who had survived alone on the alien-infested planet until a unit of force came to investigate the situation in the movie, Aliens (the second sequel to the original Alien) when she said her name was Newt or at least it sounded that she had said it was Newt. Newton can be a girl's name or Newt can be an abbreviation of something else.

The book is excellent.

The Tour de France 2019: more details

It is a new year and I should expect more details of the parcours (course) from its official site (www.letour.fr).

There are some updates but they are not so essential.

AX510 Soundbar Speaker

I learned that my "new" old used DELL E2011H can be fitted snugly with a speaker system. I was scamming through the manual and found this curious thing. Subsequently I searched for more information on YouTube and on DELL's own site. The information given on DELL's own site was a bit vague as I did not know exactly when my monitor was produced since it mentioned the year 2014 as part of its compatibility description.

Later I saw a video on YouTube and although it did not help me or give me any critical information but it did show an up close view of the label on the back side. I could read that it required DC 12 V and 1 A as its power source. That was all I needed.

The AX510 Soundbars have two versions, one with the AC-DC converter (AX510 PA = Power Adapter) and one without. After year 2014, DELL started equipping their monitors with this DC 12 V plug as the source of power for some accessories including the Soundbars (at least I understood so).

Mine had no extra DC power source on the monitor so I will need an adapter. Since DC 12 V AC/DC converters are so common, I have not a couple but several of them at my disposal. I can simply cut the cables and tie them together to make it work.

I looked for them on the Net and found a better deal on used devices on Amazon Germany.

Whoops! Have I just mentioned Amazon?

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Apple Mighty Mouse and Trump's America]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Apple Mighty Mouse (used) won (on ebay)!

An ebay aucition won (wired Apple Mighty Mouse)

It has been on my watch list for some time. The seller is from the Great Britain (The United Kingdom of Northern Ireland and Great Britain) or at least the item comes from there.

The problem is that the shipping fees are more expensive than the actual mouse itself. The safety of tracking is preferable than paying nothing for security. I think it will arrive in a week or so.

There are some sellers in China who claim that they have brand-new Apple Bluetooth Mighty Mouse for sale. The price with shipping fees are not so steep and also comparable to the price that I paid for this item and the shipping.

I have paid for it within minutes I won the auction nobody else participated. The item was at least three times on ebay and I had observed it three times (including this time). The starting price fell every time the item was not sold and consequently the seller relisted the item. I think the starting price (without shipping fees) the seller had set originally was around three times higher than what I paid (for the item excluding the shipping fees).

I felt a bit sorry for the seller that I paid so much less than he had originally thought he / she would eventually incur.

Don't hate me; hate the rule! It's an auction and the rules are the more popular, higher prices.

DELL E2011H and its mount interface

I checked the manual and found this.

(Click on it to magnify!)

So I can buy some mounts to put the monitor where I want to like on the wall. Cool!

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Apple Mighty Mouse (used) won (on ebay)!]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

How to test HDDs on macOS?

Is it really broken or a zombie?

The "beefy" 750 GB HDD taken out of Mac mini Late 2009 (2.66 GHz) is now inside a USB external drive case. I formatted (from Disk Utility "erased") a couple of times and also verified and repaired a couple of times. I am not sure if the drive is healthy or ailing.

I wanted to download something (software program) to check it for bad sectors or so but could not find anything appropriate. Maybe I should do it with Linux or even Windows 7 later. I think that I can find some HDD testing and diagnostic program with Lubuntu once I install it on my Mac mini (Early or Late) 2009.

Until anybody (any program) assures me that this disk is fine and healthy, I don't want to use it for any critical operations (like using it as the Time Machine disk).

It is now being used as the drive for Time Machine for this MacBook Pro Mid-2010. It is just for testing purposes.

When I changed the HDDs and ran this Mac mini Late 2009 from the old HDD (originally shipped inside MSI MegaBook M670), it booted normally and seemed to work normally with Mac OS X Sow Leopard 10.6.8. I did not encounter any obvious problems.

I think the extreme slow booting problem that I had encountered the previous day stemmed from this disk or some corrupted data on it.

El Capitan on Mac mini Late 2009

Just a note. Now Mac mini Late 2009 is running El Capitan. Its main drive is an really old 80 GB HDD and it is slow. I will swap it with the 128 GB SSD which now resides inside the MacBook Pro Mid 2010 which will get a new 240 GB SSD.

Dell E2011H LCD Monitor

I found this used smallish wide LCD monitor at one of the second-hand store last time I was there (after Christmas) and was interested in it but since I could not locate the model number I did not know what it was (besides it was a Dell) nor what it could do (screen resolution and other specs).

Today I returned to the store after almost two weeks later and found it still on the shelf. It was only €15 so I could not go wrong with it so my gut feeling told me. I purchased it. Later inside the car I popped off the monitor stand to see if it could be rotated by 90 degrees (a square part could be detached).

I found the model number there! The model number (or identifier) was clearly printed on the sticker but it was hidden by this square part. It read E2011H.

** start of interruption **
I read somewhere on the Net before (before I encountered this particular monitor) that some industrial standards existed for this kind of display monitor mounts. I vaguely remembered that they (standards) included a 10 cm x 10 cm (or similar measurement) squarish mount. I thought of it (when I first saw this monitor and subsequently this squarish mount on the back in search for a model identifier of sorts) but I did not remove the stand.

If I had, I would have found the model identifier and subsequently searched for its specifications on the Net. And If I had done so and found out about it maximum resolution (1600 x 900 so-called HD+), would I have purchased it? I think yes.

By the way, the first thing I did after purchasing the monitor and had a privacy (inside my car) was to remove the stand from the monitor because I was curious about this monitor mount standard.

I think this mount belongs to this standard so I think I can find some alternate mounts (like fixing it on a wall or some other surfaces) if I want to.

** end of interruption **

I thought roughly it was wide screen 19 to 21-inch model and I was right.

I was also right about guessing it had 16 : 9 screen ratio but I was not so right about guessing its maximum resolution. It (its maximum resolution) turned out to be 1600 by 900. I thought it could be the HD resolution of 1920 by 1080.

I connected it to my Mac mini Late 2009 - Apple Mini DVI port - Apple Mini DVI to VGA adapter - VGA cable (included with the purchase) - Dell E2011H's VGA port. It worked fine! I was happy. I want to try the other port, DVI port but for that I have to wait for a few days.

In the PDF manual (downloaded from Dell's site) I found a passage suggesting that for the best result (to exploit the best from the monitor) it is recommended to use the DVI port, which I will do soon.

Amazon app (and by email) notified me that the Post (Luxembourg Post Office) tried to deliver my ordered items but I was not home. I can get them on Monday when the local post office opens (it is Friday evening as I write this). Inside this box from Amazon (Germany), I will find (among others) a cable which enables me to utilize this DVI port on the monitor.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [How to test HDDs on macOS?]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Two pieces of "Avis de Passage" and a package

Three objects instead of just one object

I was expecting one but there were three objects inside the mailbox.

Actually this description was not completely accurate. The last object (two tiny thin paper strips were at the bottom but one soft and light object was not inside but almost stuck at the top flip door was showing itself off.

Both of the slips looked similar to me by now.

One from the Post (Luxembourg's post office is called "Post Luxembroug" or simply "Post" but it used to be "Poste" (French word) but changed its official name to the public and its logo several years ago. It became English.

One from "dpd" with its tag line "Your delivery experts". I knew immediately that my Mac mini Late 2009 had been delivered to the pick-up station nearby.

The other object was very light and soft and when I felt the cylindrical shape inside the vinyl envelop, I knew what it was. There was only one thing (among what I had ordered) that could be so light and "late".

It was the "almost MIA" bumper sticker from China. It had arrived at last! I ordered it on Amazon Germany around the end of October or early November but obviously it took a very slow boat from China.

Garmin Map 2019.30 is not as up-to-date as TomTom's latest one

It used to take almost a day to update the map on my nüvi 2340 as writing the map data on the micro SD card was a exasperatingly slow process.

On the other hand, updating the map on Garmin Camper 660 is a breeze as its internal storage absorbs the map data much much swiftly.

So last night I drove home with my Garmin Camper 660 on and saw if the map was as good as the one on TomTom's app on my iPad mini 2.

Alas! the roundabout near my workplace was not there and neither was the short new road connection in Gasperich (one of Luxembourg's latest commercial development areas) present.

This was not a big surprise. The base map data providers for them (teleAtlas and navteq) make the difference.

Pick-up completed

I picked up the ebay auction winning (Mac mini Late 2009) and the Amazon purchases. I will test them later.

Now later on I had a chance to boot it and to see how it goes.

NOT good! The disk ("beefy" 750 GB, a samsung disk) is a bit faulty? The start up process takes too long and after waiting more than 10 minutes (the progress bar is less than half way), I turned it off by press-holding the switch.

I used the Install DVD and ran Disk Utility on it. I erased it and formatted it but this process also took a bit longer than it should be.

I think this "beefy" disk could be broken. I will swap the disks and see what happens.
In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Two pieces of "Avis de Passage" and a package]の続きを読む

テーマ:日記 - ジャンル:日記

I am a Shopaholic and I need help

Shopaholic
noun
= compulsive shopper
1980s blend of Shop + Alcoholic

(from Dictionary - Apple's dictionary app)

I am a shopaholic. I keep clicking the "buy" button on Amazon and sometimes clicking on "bid" on ebay.

I look for cheap stuff comparing the prices but nevertheless I have to admit that I am a shopaholic.

Today, the local postman attempted, alas in vain, to deliver some items sent from Amazon. I was not home then and he (usually a man) left a note in the physical mailbox (I have not seen it but I got the virtual electronic notification). This is where reality and virtual reality blend. I know that there is a slip in the physical mailbox when I open it later in the evening but I knew it by a virtual electronic notification.

Three items in a box have been kept at the local post office for me to pick up later.
1. Apple Mini DisplayPort to female HDMI (big one) adapter
2. USB wired keyboard
3. Apple Mini DisplayPort to HDMI (male) cable

1. is needed to connect any of my Macs to the portable LCD DVB-T2 television set. It has a tiny (mini HDMI) input port.

2. is needed to control my Mac mini's boot process, namely to interrupt the normal boot sequence by pressing "option", "c", "r" or others.

I have a cable just like 3. already but I wanted one with better quality.

I thought that I could do away with other cables but just a few days after purchasing these items above, I realized that I need more cables.

1. HDMI (big) to DVI-D (dual link) in combination with the "HDMI female to Mini DisplayPort" cable, I can use the DVI port on a monitor from my Macs.

2. DVI-D to DVI-D (dual link) in combination with "Mini DVI to (full) DVI" adapter which came with the Mac mini Early 2009, I can use the DVI port on a monitor when needed.

I also have a Mini DVI to VGA adapter (also included in the Mac mini Early 2009 purchase) and an old VGA to VGA cable.

With all these cables and adapters, I think I can handle almost any situations imaginable. I was almost tempted to get a VGA (male) to RGB ports adapter but decided it was a waste of money.

And then I suddenly got intrigued by FireWire ports and wanted to use one of those storages or to make any of my Macs as storage devices (Target Disk Mode). So I ordered;

3. FireWire 400 6pin to 6pin
4. Firewire 800 9pin to 6pin

Finally I was going to swap disks frequently and gonna use some of them as external storage devices so I ordered;

5. USB to SATA 2.5 disk adapter

To protect the most important data on my main machine (MacBook Pro Mid 2010), I ordered an SSD (240 GB). I chose a Crucial SSD.

6. A Crucial 240 GB SSD

I need a help.

I have been keeping my eyes on an Apple Mighty Mouse (wired) on ebay. I think I will get it.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [I am a Shopaholic and I need help]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Mac mini Early 2009 can boot a Lubuntu 18.10 USB stick

Mac mini Early 2009 can boot a Lubuntu 18.10 USB stick

I burnt a USB stick using a flash drive software program recommended on the Haiku's site. I could control the boot process by press-holding the option key on the Bluetooth keyboard and selected one of the two UEFI devices (I chose the first one).

Mac mini Early 2009 successfully booted into Lubuntu 18.10. I did not start the installation as my Mac mini Early 2009 was not equipped with the HDD that I intend to use for this installation. I just wanted to try it to see if everything worked.

Not everything worked on this Live USB.

For one thing, the mouse cursor moved like a slug. I opened the system preferences and set the tracking speed to its maximum but the situation was not improved at all. I don't know why. Oh, I have to note that I used an HP dongle mouse. I did not try the Apple Mighty Mouse (Bluetooth wireless) to see if it could work.

I will swap the HDD in the second bay to the one I want to install Lubuntu on and then install Lubuntu on it. After a successful installation, I will try to use the Mighty Mouse to see if it works better.

The wireless network did not work. Even though the network manager is set to utilize the wireless network, it did not see the device or the chip (inside the Mac mini) so I could not use it at all.

Sometimes (I know from my own experience) that the install disk version of Linux kernel is not set up with all the modules (to use various devices, chips and others).

Let's see what happens!

In Japanese: 続き [Mac mini Early 2009 can boot a Lubuntu 18.10 USB stick]の続きを読む

テーマ:Apple - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Garmin Map Update 2019.30, Saris Axis and Amazon (money pit?)

Garmin Map Update 2019.30 is available!

Garmin Express tells me now that the latest map update for my two devices (nüvi 2340 and Camper 660) is available. The latest one is 2109.30 and I will install it on my Camper 660 and then later 2340.

I am going to see how up-to-date it is. Like (grammatically it should be 'as') I have written before I know by my own experience that TomTom's map data are more up-to-date than those of Garmin's.

For example, I know at least two objects (one roundabout and one road extension) are not presented correctly on Garmin's 2019.20 but are reflected correctly on TomTom's map.

I will have to see if Garmin's map data have caught up with TomTom's.

Saris Axis (Europe version) made in Italy: confirmed!

Today I picked it up at the local post office. I have been to this place so many times to pick stuff up and by now a friendly guy working there let me pick the package up without checking my ID. Yeah, he knows my name, address and have seen my ID (passport) so many times by now.

Anyway, I walked to the post office (only 800 meters half a mile or so) because if I went there by car I have to open up the top to get the big box inside my small tiny Mazda MX-5.

I was right. It came in a big generic cardboard box and it nested yet another cardboard box from Saris. It was not too heavy (maybe 7 to 8 kg) but the box was slippery and I had hard time carrying back home.

I have not opened the box (I shredded and discarded the outer box before entering my residence) as a paper recycling bins were there.

Now I really have to make an appointment with the trailer hitch ball installation company in Germany.

Amazon (Germany) shopping

So the list goes on and on.

Now I have to include an SSD (240 GB), FireWire cables and yet another adapter to hook SATA 2.5 HDD/SSD directly to the USB port.

This last item is very handy because it does not require installing at all. A conventional external USB disk case requires screwing. This does not.

I realized that I have not used Time Machine on my main Mac (this MacBook Pro Mid 2010) more than 1,400 days. This is alarming. I would definitely panic if the SSD inside it crashes.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Garmin Map Update 2019.30, Saris Axis and Amazon (money pit?)]の続きを読む

テーマ:今日の出来事 - ジャンル:日記

FireWire and the Mighty Mouse

FireWire (IEEE1394 a/b) before it is really gone
RIP IEEE 1394 (1994 - 2013) - according to Wikipedia this is its production years.

I have never owned any FireWire cables in my life and I don't think I have ever touched ones. All of my Macs (MacBooks and Mac minis) have one FireWire port on them. I have never used it but I will use them soon.

Target Disk Mode
I used to use Macintosh computers back in 1990's and early 2000's and back then I remember using this SCSI mode which made my PowerBooks function like an external HDD. Until just recently I did not realize that recent Macs also worked in the same way with a Firewire cable.

SCSI vs IDE
Back then I had Macintosh 630 (I think it was so called) with a Motorola 68040 CPU. It was one of the first (if not the first) models with an IDE drive inside. Later Apple dropped SCSI hard disk drives in favor of cheaper IDE drives.

USB 2.0 / FireWire 400
FireWire technology was supposed to replace SCSI technology and become the future standard of connection external drives to PCs. It did not go that way. Instead, USB ports standard just got faster and people went with it.

USB 3.0 / FireWire 800
Enough said.

USB C / Thunderbolt 3
What happened to Thunderbolt 3? What happened to Thunderbolt 1 and 2?

I am not interested in USB C or Thunderbolt stuff as I don't own any of those fast Mac or PCs with this technology.

Now I am interested (now!) in FireWire 400. I am going to buy some FireWire cables so that I can use that SCSI mode like Target Disk Mode among my Macs.

iPod and iPhone synchronization and charging[edit]
iPods released prior to the iPod with Dock Connector used IEEE 1394a ports for syncing music and charging, but in 2003, the FireWire port in iPods was succeeded by Apple's dock connector and IEEE 1394 to 30-pin connector cables were made. Apple Inc. dropped support for FireWire cables starting with iPod nano (4th Generation),[75] iPod touch (2nd Generation), and iPhone 3G in favor of USB cables.

From Wikipedia

I found a FireWire to 30pin cable sold somewhere on the Net but it is not for my iPhone 4 or iPod touch (4 Gen) at all.

Apple Mighty Mouse (Wireless and Wired)

I now use an Apple Mighty Mouse daily. I used to (and sometimes still now) use an HP's wireless mouse with an dongle. It was OK and served me for a long time.

Now I like this Mighty Mouse because the wheel (or trackball) on the mouse is easy to use and very practical as I can not only scroll vertically but also sideways.

This Bluetooth Mighty Mouse has one downside, namely, its weight. It is impregnated with two AA batteries. I might want to buy a second hand "wired" Mighty Mouse as it will be significantly lighter (in weight) than its wireless sibling.

It is one of my ebay saved searches.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [FireWire and the Mighty Mouse]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Time Machine (Apple's utility) and used monitors

Time Machine backup utility and the life of media (HDD, SSD or others)

I used to run Time Machine (by Apple, a backup utility software program) from time to time when I first bought this machine (MacBook Pro Mid-2010) but soon quit doing so.

Now from time to time I get this message from the system telling that my MacBook Pro has not used Time Machine for how long (I am afraid that it is well over 1,200 days).

Should I do it? Maybe yes. Then how do I do it?

I have an idea.

A Mac mini Late 2009 is coming to me soon and it has a "beefy" (the wording this ebay seller put in the description) 750 GB HDD inside instead of the measly original (120 GB? or so?) HDD.

Let's me buy a new 240 GB SSD and clone it from this MaBook Pro (my main machine with a lot of important data like Garmin BaseCamp and other stuff). I will swap the drives. So I will have a 128 GB SSD (currently inside this MacBook Pro) free of duty.

I will put this 128 GB SSD inside the Mac mini Late 2009 and make it the main storage.

Now I will have a 750 GB beefy HDD free of duty. I will put this inside an external USB drive case and make it the back up storage for my Macs.

Now I will have a 500 GB HDD (I think it was 500 GB but not sure, anyway currently inside this external USB drive case) free of duty.

Then I will probably put this 500 GB HDD inside one of my MacBook Late 2009 as its second drive (small HDD) is behaving erratically. Or alternatively I will extract the HDD with the adapter and then put all inside Mac mini Late 2009.

Now I will have an untrustworthy small (340 GB?, I forgot) HDD free of duty and it will stay that way.

Used monitors sold at a local store

I drove Yesterday and Today to a local recycling used stuff store and looked for a cheap PC monitor. There are some on the shelves available.

There was this dirt cheap 17 inch monitor, which looked like as it had 4:3 ratio like a good old 640 x 480 resolution screen. It is a Benq monitor. No details were given (sold as "as is" basis). It cost only €7. You can not go wrong with this price, right?

There were other monitors more expensive than this one. Today I found one from Acer (actually there were two of them). I memorized the model number and later looked it up on the Net.

Acer S243HL was it. It was sold around 2009 to 2010. It has decent specs back then. The price they (the local store) were asking was around €60 and a bit. Is it worth that price tag?

It seemed that it did not come with any accessories like cables but that was expected at a used ware. And there was a problem. It (the monitor) does not accept direct input from the mains. It needs an adapter and it only accepts DC 19 V. I think I can manage to use one of those plugs and a generic notebook power adapter.

Acer still has its support page and I downloaded the manual. There was one particular line in the PDF manual that drew my attention. The manager who signed manual.

Is this a real person? Is it she or he? How am I supposed to read it? Does Lai read "lie" or "lay"? In either way, I found it very amusing. No offense, Sir/Madam Lai! I just found it.

Maybe I should ask for a further discount on it citing that its power adapter is missing.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Time Machine (Apple's utility) and used monitors]の続きを読む

テーマ:Mac - ジャンル:コンピュータ

A Bluetooth keyboard can control the boot process after all

Or can it?

I realized that it can. I press-held the option key during the booting and lo and behold the media selection menu appeared. I was surprised.

So if a Bluetooth keyboard is paired already with the system, this keyboard can be recognized during the boot process after all.

I found a kind of trick to achieve this.

First of all the Bluetooth keyboard has to be paired properly. (This is the most frustrating part of a wireless Bluetooth keyboard and that's why I ordered a USB wired keyboard)

Second the Bluetooth keyboard has to be actively signaling to be shake hands with the host computer during the host's boot process. I switch off the keyboard once and just before switching on the host computer (Mac), I switch on the keyboard and press-hold the option key.

This way, I can interrupt the bootloader and invoke the media selection screen. I have not tried but technically I can use this technique to do other tricks like press-holding C to force it to boot from the attached CD/DVD drive or option+command+P+R to reset the PRAM or so.

Another freakish behavior of my Mac mini Early 2009

So it has an Intel 40 GB SSD (El Capitan) resting in the main drive bay and the optical drive bay is now replaced by an adapter so that 2.5-inch SSD/HDD can be attached there.

When I put an 80 GB (Snow Leopard 10.6) HDD in the second bay and from El Capitan environment I select Snow Leopard as the startup device (System Preferences -> Startup Disk), the Mac mini boots from there and Snow Leopard boots up normally.

When I try the reversed process (Snow Leopard -> System Preferences -> Startup Disk), the icon (Mac OS X 10.11.6) of El Capitan hard disk drive won't appear there. I can not select it as it is not there!

Is this a but in Snow Leopard or what? So now I don't want to use "Startup Disk" at all.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [A Bluetooth keyboard can control the boot process after all]の続きを読む

テーマ:Mac - ジャンル:コンピュータ

欧州自転車レース追っかけ日記

欧州在住者が自転車レースを追い掛けてる日記とか

Mac mini Early 2006 Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz and G4

Mac mini Original (2005) 1.25 GHz

Apple Mighty Mouse (used) arrived (at the pick-up station)!

A cold day in Luxembourg

Macintosh Classic sold, Apple Mighty Mouse cleaned and etc.

Macintosh Classic, iMac (PowerPC) and Intel MacBook

Monitor testing

Things to do list

Apple Mighty Mouse and Trump's America

Apple Mighty Mouse (used) won (on ebay)!

How to test HDDs on macOS?

Two pieces of "Avis de Passage" and a package

I am a Shopaholic and I need help

Mac mini Early 2009 can boot a Lubuntu 18.10 USB stick

Garmin Map Update 2019.30, Saris Axis and Amazon (money pit?)

FireWire and the Mighty Mouse

Time Machine (Apple's utility) and used monitors

A Bluetooth keyboard can control the boot process after all

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