Kibbles & Bytes Blog

  • A Logic Issue with a Logical Resolution

    A while back I spoke with a customer regarding a strange issue he was having while using Logic Pro on his MacBook Pro. I was able to successfully help him based on the insight I had gained from having a similar issue myself.

    The issue was related to an error message popping up while in the middle of recording one or many tracks, that reads: “System Overload” or “Disk is too slow”, followed by an error code. In addition to the error message, the track or tracks you were in the middle of recording would abruptly stop recording, halting any progress you had made. An extremely frustrating issue indeed, I needed to get to the bottom of this.

    I had been using Logic Pro on my MacBook Pro for years without any issues. I use a multi-channel FireWire interface, and sometimes record up to 8 tracks at a time, flawlessly. I was baffled at how often this issue was happening now, considering I had never seen it before. My laptop had always been able to handle this load, no problem. Was there something wrong with my computer’s hardware? I hadn’t experienced any issues or abnormalities in anything outside of Logic, so my assumption was some configuration issue or glitch with Logic.

    I researched some reliable forums, with no luck. I decided to start leaving the System Performance window open while recording, closely monitoring it. This window is very similar to the utility Activity Monitor, as it monitors your CPU/Ram usage on one meter, and disk bandwidth used on the other. I started noticing that right before the overload error occurred, I would have a massive spike in disk bandwidth. The only different variable from before, when I could record with no issues, was the environment in which I was recording. A small practice space in which I was right next to the source. This particular day we had decided to record bass. Loud, rumbling bass. My MacBook Pro was stationed about five or six feet from the hulking bass amp, on a hardwood, not very structurally sound, table.

    At the time, I was not an Apple technician, however I was aware of the Sudden Motion Sensor built into my laptop, and how it worked. I grabbed the neoprene/foam sleeve I used, and placed it under my laptop (being careful not to obstruct the intake/outtake vents!), and attempted to record a dummy track, no errors. I tried a few more, just to confirm. The errors were gone! The vibrations coming from this bass amp had been just enough to kick the Sudden Motion Sensor on and park the hard drive heads, halting any hard drive activity, and causing an interruption in the recording.

    Apple has since updated the error message, with the implementation on Logic 9.1.4, and issued a Support article, which can be found here: “*http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3834?locale=en_US*”:http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3834?locale=en_US

    To learn more about the Sudden Motion Sensor in your laptop, Apple has a Support article here: “*http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1935?locale=en_US*”:http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1935?locale=en_US

  • Tip of the Week: Faster DNS Servers

    Here in the Mad River Valley of Vermont, we are fortunate to have high-speed Internet access via the local utility, Waitsfield Telecom. Much of the system was just upgraded from 1.5 Mb/sec to 6 Mb/sec, some of us can upgrade to 12MB/sec, and some new constructions can even have fiber to their home or business.

    Small Dog recently installed a new fiber connection, upgrading from a creaky old T1 that handled our web traffic and internal bandwidth needs. Despite my recent upgrade to 12 Mb/sec at home, it still takes a while for web pages to “resolve,” or begin to load, after entering the address and pressing return.

    The Domain Name System (DNS) has many functions, one of which is to translate alphanumeric web addresses (“www.smalldog.com”:http://www.smalldog.com) into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. All internet-connected devices must have an IP address, and the IP address must be unique: no two devices on the Internet have the same IP address.

    All Internet Service Providers (ISPs) maintain their own DNS servers, designed for use on their network, but in many cases these servers are not especially speedy. I decided to ask Google for fast free DNS servers, and I settled on two: 4.2.2.1 and 4.2.2.2. Web pages now seem to resolve much faster, making web browsing a more satisfying experience.

    There is a better way, though. “namebench”:http://code.google.com/p/namebench/ is an open-source utility from Google that seeks out the fastest DNS servers, and lets you graphically see just how much more speed you might get by switching to something faster. I gave it a try last night and did notice that pages seem to load a bit faster than before. Google also recently “announced”:http://code.google.com/speed/public-dns/ its own DNS server, and the terms and conditions say that browsing habits and history are not recorded. Give it a go!

    Your DNS server settings can be changed in the Network Preference Pane under all versions of Mac OS X, or with AirPort Utility if you wish to change the DNS settings at the router level.

  • Resolving "Frozen" Software Update Downloads

    When your Mac connects to Apple to update software, there are several steps it takes to complete the process. The software update system uses–at minimum–four different servers to check, verify and download the updates available to your machine.

    The first server in the process and server that your machine connects to is swscan.apple.com. __(These servers are not user-clickable links.)__ This runs a check to see what is on your machine currently. In the second step, it connects to swquery.apple.com to check to see what is available for the unit. The final two steps include two other servers, swdownload.apple.com and swcdn.apple.com, that verify the location of the downloads and the content that is downloaded. The actual downloads are served by Akami content distribution servers.

    During the process of the download, your system may stall and not complete the download process. There are a few local files–caches of the download–on your machine that may be causing the issue. If the download stalls in the download process the content is saved in a folder, /var/folders/zz. Removing the contents of these folders may resolve the issues related to the hang in downloading.

    To remove the downloads that have started, you need to open Terminal and navigate to the folder mentioned above, /var/folders/zz. After navigating to the folder in Terminal using the cd command, you can look at the content by typing the command ls. You will see several files in the folder all titled zzz something. To delete these files–which is safe to do–type sudo rm -rf * in Terminal. This directs the machine to, as a super user, remove the content of the directory /var/folders/zz. You’ll have to enter your password for the command to remove the files.

    After removing the files you may now try to run Software Update again. Now that these caches have been removed, the system will start a new download of the updates and this may resolve the hang you have been experiencing.

  • Hello all,

    Happy New Year to everyone! Irrational or not, I always feel refreshed and revived going into the new year. I find myself looking forward to the coming year’s challenges and opportunities and I can ride the feelings of goodwill and fellowship of the holidays for at least a month or so. (Somewhere around the end of February I get a bit over it…I haven’t done any winter sports for a few years and those activities used to keep me going.)

    I plan to resist the genetic imperative many Vermonters seem to have–I will not be moving to Florida anytime soon. But I do find myself wishing for warm weather much earlier than I used to. I have a feeling though that I will become a fan of winter again once my kids can ride a ski lift. Some of the best times I have had have been on mountains in the winter, and I can’t wait to share the experience with them. In the meantime I’ll take warm feet and good books.

    This week’s articles are a bit more on the technical side of things; practical info for experienced users and an intro to some more advanced ideas for beginners looking to try something new. Thanks for reading.

    Liam
    “*liam@smalldog.com*”:mailto:liam@smalldog.com

  • Outfit a new 11” MacBook Air with a Hammerhead Leather Sleeve and AppleCare and save over $100 in the process. Plus, you’ll save $300 on the closeout MacBook Air model, bringing your total savings to over $400!

    Normally $1159.99; now $110 off at $1049.99 with free shipping.

    Because we want to give you the best deals AND stay in business, Deal Retriever deals are valid for one week only. Quantities are limited; offers good while supplies last.

  • We have finally had some cold temperatures with the mercury dipping below zero for the first time this week; however, we are pretty much without snow on the ground (although we seem to get a dusting almost every day. Our solar electric installation is complete and as of last week, we are generating 100% of the electricity used at our S. Burlington store and a significant portion of our Waitsfield headquarters from the sun.

    I will be traveling next week but will try to get Kali a report from CES for next week’s Kibbles.

    Thank you so much for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

    Your Kibbles & Bytes Team
    _Don, Kali & Mike_

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  • Merging A Love Of Gadgets & Comics

    People who get to know me notice two things about me immediately: that I love gadgets of all kinds and that I love comic books. Working at Small Dog Electronics allows me to scratch the itch for all the latest gadgets and tech (even if I can’t always afford the ones I really want).

    Lately, I’ve been searching for a new way to merge my love of gadgetry and tech with my love for comics. My long quest has come to an end thanks to the iPad. All the major comic publishers (“*Marvel*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/marvel-comics/id350027738?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30, “*DC*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dc-comics/id378080432?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30, “*Dark Horse*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dark-horse-comics/id415378623?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30, etc.) have apps on the iTunes App Store that give readers access to digital versions of their print comics. Needless to say, these versions look “*AMAZING!*”:http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NKcOl7JV-5o/TmD6Oli1WZI/AAAAAAAAAPU/nX76x1FTQ4A/s1600/superman-comic-ipad.jpg

    “*Comics*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/comics/id303491945?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30, however, is an app that gives you access to the catalogs of the all the major publishers as well as independent, artist-owned publishers with titles that have digital editions. There are categories for every type of genre from superheroes to horror to science fiction to manga. Flipping the pages is as easy as in any ebook.

    But for users like me who have vast archives of digital comics already stored on their hard drives, there is another app called “*ARCreader*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/arcreader/id369606498?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30 that allows you to import multiple file types using the library manager. Using this app, I can walk around with 1000 different comics titles on my iPad. I can read an entire storyline from “*The Walking Dead*”:http://fandomania.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/walking-dead-vol1-2.jpg before the “*AMC show*”:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1520211/ comes on each week and measure the differences.

    Being a comic book geek has never been this easy. All of these apps are free downloads in the iTunes App Store, and prices for titles range from free to $4.99.

  • Apps for Apes

    One of the selling points of the iPad is its intuitive interface. On the sales floor, I am able to demonstrate a feature of the iPad and most customers are able to replicate my actions immediately. As the poet says: “Monkey see, monkey do.”

    Now, some non-human primates are being given access to the iPad and they are also proving to be quick studies.

    The “*Milwaukee Zoo*”:http://www.milwaukeezoo.org/ received a donated iPad after the gorilla keeper posted on Facebook that she would like to obtain some iPads for the gorillas to use. She claims she was not completely serious, but a friend took the request seriously and provided the iPad. The gorillas were not interested because of their stoic nature, according to Jan Rafert, curator of primates and small mammals at the zoo, but the orangutans went crazy for it (which goes to show you that even if the first primate doesn’t work out, there’s an ape for that).

    Under the careful supervision of their keeper (the apes are strong enough to snap the iPad in half) the orangutans have been using the iPads to use apps such as “*Doodle Buddy*”:http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=19XpSnZWhPI&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/doodle-buddy-everything-paint/id486711528?mt=8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30 and watch videos. Reportedly, one of the orangutans is particularly fond of David Attenborough’s “*BBC nature programs*.”:http://www.davidattenborough.co.uk/ The rest of the orangutans seem to enjoy a wide variety of videos, but movies of other orangutans have been the biggest hit.

    This fascination with videos of other orangutans has inspired the zookeepers and they plan to obtain iPad 2s, and when Zoo Atlanta, the Toronto Zoo and the Phoenix Zoo also get them, they plan on setting up FaceTime chats between the apes at the different zoos. The non-profit “*Orangutan Outreach*”:http://redapes.org/apps4apes/about is also involved in this project and they hope to “eventually incorporate the devices into rescue and rehabilitation centers in Indonesia in order to allow orangutans in zoos to communicate with their semi-wild cousins.”

    If you want to communicate with your semi-wild cousins, FaceTime is available over Wi-Fi on all current “*Macs*”:http://www.smalldog.com/macs and iDevices (iPad, iPhone and “*iPod touch*”:http://www.smalldog.com/category/Apple/iPod_touch/).

    “__Image Source__”:http://www.film.com/movies/surviving-the-day-of-the-apes

  • MAC TREAT #174: Notification Center Tip + Survey Feedback

    In iOS 5, did you know that if you touch the icon of the app shown in Notification Center you can then swipe to go directly to that alert? It’s an easy way to view the notifications you want from the lock screen without multiple steps.

    Thanks to everyone who participated in our survey last week regarding “*what you’d like to see more of in Kibbles in 2012*”:http://blog.smalldog.com/article/what-would-you-like-to-see-in-kibbles-bytes-in-2012/

    Overwhelmingly, with almost half of the vote, you want to see more Mac Treats. So, we’ll listen and we resolve to have one in each issue this year! You’re welcome to continue to vote and leave comments because we’ll refer back to it as we shape future issues of Kibbles & Bytes.

    Thanks for reading in 2011 and welcome 2012! As Don would say, “it’s a fresh new year!”