diglloyd Mac Performance Guide
Speed To Create, Capacity To Dream
NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 / 7 Plus
Improves grip also, such as wet hands, cycling, etc!

Excellent Search Tool: HoudahSpot

HoudahSpot

HoudahSpot is a powerful file search tool for OS X. A trial version is available. Single-user, family license and site licenses are available.

I (Lloyd) use Spotlight a great deal via its cmd-space shortcut. But Spotlight has degenerated in various ways, including not being able to find file names at times, and finding wholly irrelevant things when all I want is source code. It is also a messy business to find specific things in Spotlight without jumping through hoops with qualifiers and such.

Enter HoudahSpot, which offers all sorts of features for searching, including default search settings (a big deal for me), templates for specific types of searches, and much more. Simple as it is, the dialog below works like a charm every time without the mess Spotlight generates for me with the same search. Here, I want to find source files with a certain name. Or, it might be a function name within those source files. By using HoudahSpot, all the other gunk is filtered out (binary files, jar files, log files, etc) simply by requiring files of type java (Spotlight does not do this correctly with name:.java as tedious experience shows).

So as simple as this example is, it already is a big deal for finding what I want. Summary as per the developer:

Find important documents, mail messages, photos, image files and more:

  • Start with a simple search
  • Refine it by adding and combining criteria
  • Search several folders at once. Exclude others
  • Add and sort by any of the hundreds of columns available
  • Preview files and text matches
  • Find files by name, text, content kind, file extension, author, recipient, pixel count, etc.
  • Combine criteria to quickly zero in on the files you need
  • Customize columns in the search results list
  • Filter the results to see only relevant files
  • Set up templates for recurring searches

HoudahSpot is a powerful file search tool. It uses the Spotlight index ‐ which comes preinstalled with OS X ‐ to get you to your files in no time.

HoudahSpot search window
HoudahSpot search window
SSD Upgrade for MacBook Pro Retina

An uncomfortable 2 Days with Amazon Dash Buttons

The Amazon Dash Button is a Wi-Fi connected device that reorders your favorite product with the press of a button. That it exists is proof that the iPhone with an app doesn’t solve everything.

And that convenience can become very, very specific, and also exceptionally wasteful of resources (how many millions of these things and their batteries will end up in landfills?). But I use hardly any of these consumer products, so what do I know.

934 | 1868
Amazon Dash Button is a Wi-Fi connected device that reorders your favorite product with the press of a button.
Amazon Dash Button is a Wi-Fi connected device that reorders your favorite product with the press of a button.

Personally I think it’s going to be a very uncomfortable two days.

A very uncomfortable 2 days

Apple iPhone 7: can an Unlocked Model Actually be Bought at Apple Store?

Get NewerTech NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus at MacSales.com.

See Apple iPhone 7 Caution: GSM-only model lacks CDMA network support, precluding future use with Verizon or Sprint for why one might want to buy a iPhone 7 for Verizon when intending to use it with AT&T (for now).

The Apple web store blocks purchase of an unlocked paid-in-full contract-free iPhone 7, because it demands existing account information, making it impossible to proceed unless one already has an account with that carrier.

So, for example, I have AT&T currently (and intend to use the iPhone 7 on AT&T, but I want an all-carrier model, as per the above link).

Since Apple demands existing Verizon customer info, I am not able to buy the unlocked paid-in-full contract-free iPhone 7 for Verizon. Ditto for any other carrier choice except T-Mobile (why?), but that doesn’t help if the goal is a phone with GSM and CDMA support.

Maybe an unlocked Verizon phone can be bought by purchasing via telephone?

Unable to buy paid-in-full contract-free iPhone 7: not an existing Verizon customer

Here’s the other reason I wanted the Verizon model: it can be had in about a week. AT&T models are all 2-3 weeks.

Verizon 256GB model readily much better availability

Don H writes:

You mention that you can't buy an unlocked phone via the Apple online store. This may be frustrating, but not unprecedented. In the past the fully-unlocked models of each new phone weren't available for purchase for the first few weeks immediately following the product announcement. While this (again) isn't spelled out on Apple's site, it's something that that the Apple rumor/news sites discuss each time a new iPhone comes out.

I'm guessing that Apple is supply-constrained and may even have sales obligations to the carriers that takes precedent over the unlocked models until things settle down.

MPG: MPG doesn’t know the timing or details.

 

Which Camera System / Lenses Should I Get?
✓ Get the best system for your needs the first time: diglloyd photographic consulting.

Apple iPhone 7 Caution: GSM-only model lacks CDMA network support, precluding future use with Verizon or Sprint

Get NewerTech NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus at MacSales.com.

If you think you might use your iPhone on Verizon or Sprint in the future, which carrier support is chosen initially matters, even if you do not intend to initially use that carrier.

Here’s the deal, which is a change from the iPhone 6 and 6s Plus. It involves the cell phone wireless technology, which is GSM (AT&T, TMobile, European countries and most of the rest of the world) or CDMA (Verizon and Sprint, and not much overseas).

  • Buying an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus for AT&T or TMobile means that it can never support Verizon or Sprint.
  • Buying an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus for Verizon or Sprint allows use on any of the carrier networks.

It appears that the model sold as for Verizon is actually a model supporting all networks, whereas the AT&T/Sprint model supports only AT&T and Sprint (GSM). The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus supported either type of network.

For those buying an unlocked phone, what this means is that it might make more sense to buy the Verizon/CDMA iPhone 7, even if planning to use it on an AT&T or TMobile network in the short term, since the iPhone could then be used on Verizon/Sprint in the future.

At least that’s what it seems; the Apple statement contradicts itself in saying that “it will use CDMA technology for voice and data” (conflating ostensible choice of carrier vs actual) and then says “it will work on AT&T and TMobile”: but it cannot work on AT&T if it uses CDMA for voice and data. Very poorly written.

All this may be for naught: the Apple Store page won’t let you buy an unlocked Verizon or Sprint iPhone without providing existing account information! Ditto for AT&T and TMobile. It’s non-functional, since one may want to *add* (not replace) a phone (“You'll keep your existing number and rate plan, Your current phone will work until you set up your new iPhone”).

The information on this is right on Apple’s sales page in fine print but only on the sales page FAQ (at least as this was written it was not on the iPhone 7 info page), and only if you expand the hidden information and only if you then expand the right question/answer:

948 | 1896
Initial choice of iPhone 7 network may preclude use in the future on other networks

This is bad of Apple to hide critical information so well, as it may be a real issue for users looking to switch carriers in the future, effectively forcing purchase of another phone. It’s one thing to have a pretty and simple sales page, it’s quite another to hide information of great import to some prospective customers*. Maybe Apple saves a little money by making this distinction with the AT&T/TMobile model, which is why the information is so carefully put in tiny text in hidden footnotes?

* This reminds MPG of the soldered-on memory fiasco in the Apple MacBook Pro (Apple later made that information visible)

Don H writes:

I have no intention of ever using Verizon or Sprint myself (in the past they have locked phones to their network and locked out US GSM carriers while still functioning overseas), but on general principles I would just as soon have a single phone that works under all circumstances if there are no other compromises to its design or performance. It also opens up more possibilities for future resale.

To Apple’s credit, they do seem to strive for a more simplified product matrix (at one point Samsung had 97 different SKUs in their phone lineup), but this schism with GSM/CDMA is puzzling. If the CDMA phone already has *all* the radio technology needed to handle every carrier in the US/world market (except for China who is their own special case), why make a non-CDMA model at all?

I can only think of the added licensing costs associated with CDMA technology, but that certainly isn’t reflected in the retail price of the different models. Perhaps enabling CDMA does cost a few bucks more, but Apple is willing to swallow that for those customers because many others don’t want that feature for their GSM-specified phones.

MPG: probably a savings of a few dollars per phone for the GMS model by leaving CDMA out (parts and licensing), which might add billions to the bottom line.

Don H writes again:

Apparently Apple is now using Intel as well as Qualcomm modems (to diversify vendors) for their GSM model. Unfortunately, the Intel modem doesn't include CDMA compatibility, so that complicates marketing, support, etc. Here's an explanation:

http://www.recode.net/2016/9/9/12863302/apple-iphone-7-intel-qualcomm

I'm sure more will be verified after the inevitable teardowns. So while we may not like the end results (or ambiguity when purchasing), this does make sense from a business viewpoint.

MPG: If the limitation were stated upfront, who in their right mind would choose a phone effectively locked to AT&T or TMobile? Particularly since it will be a phone with lower resale value, since it works only on GSM networks. The only reasonable conclusion here is that Apple buried the difference in a hidden Q/A question in a hidden FAQ by design, for, as noted, solid business reasons. It smells bad, at the least. But since the vast majority will be happy, who cares at Apple, since no one will be able to do anything about it very long after purchase, and those for whom it matters later will be a minority— let ’em just buy another phone—ka ching!

macOS Sierra: Some Small Issues, but Mostly Good So Far

The 'production' system (2013 Mac Pro) can and should wait at least a few weeks as a precaution, but I’ve installed macOS Sierra GM (Golden Master) on the late 2015 iMac 5K. There was only one glitch: the install hung and the iMac had to be forcibly powered off. Installation resumed and was successful, though taking quite a very long time as usual.

The usual issues crop up: Apple removes certain software such as the version of Java required for Adobe DreamWeaver to work, which requires reinstalling the legacy Java package.

diglloydTools works fine, with no obvious issues. My daily tools including Photoshop, TextWrangler, RawDigger, Safair and so on all seem to be OK.

Apple Mail has some issues, just as in El Capitan and Yosemite, speaking to the continuing incompetence by the programmers working on Apple Mail:

  • As usual, Apple requires non-reversible “updating” of stored mail. A not so nice move by Apple (every release!), since there is no going back.
  • Certain Apple Mail preferences get whacked, including ones useful for security, so re-check mail preferences. This Apple coding choice violates good mail hygiene in a security sense (e.g. enabling loading of remote content in messages, removal of the display of custom mail headers, etc).
  • The password for certain mail accounts get removed, and they must be re-done (this happened in El Capitan also).
  • VIP senders and other features not yet tested (it was broken in the past two OS X releases).
Saddlebag Lake, eastern Sierra Nevada near Yosemite
f7.1 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 100; 2016-08-23 10:21:34
Sony A7R II + Zeiss Loxia 35mm f/2 Biogon

Apple iPhone 7: New Features I Like

NewerTech NuGuard KX case for iPhone 7 and 7 Plus

Get NewerTech NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus at MacSales.com.

The whole blogosphere is alight with iPhone 7 stuff, so I’m going to focus on what is of interest to me personally.

  • Dual cameras: when shooting iPhone panoramas, a longer focal length is hugely helpful for image quality (when not so wide a field of view is needed). Ditto for closeups without the problems of perspective distortion or shadows that come from getting too close to the subject. Too bad Apple did not include an infrared camera option.
  • Wide Color support: vast improvement with the P3 color gamut. Better images taken, and better display of those image. See iPhone 7 Sports Retina HD Screen with DCI-P3 Color Gamut and “Wide” Color Capture
  • More powerful speakers: I listen to audiobooks for hours when driving to the mountains for trips, and the iPhone 6s Plus speaker has been barely adequate in my car while driving (older car has no USB connector and the FM transmitter dongle often gets interference).
  • Splash and water resistance: well, see the trout below for an idea of where (besides a toilet or a cup of coffee) that liquid could be an issue. Still, it’s one reason the much superior grip of the Nuguard KX case comes in so handy.
  • Barometer: I’m hoping this means that a barometric altimeter app is included (GPS is notoriously poor for altitude).

A longer focal length lens will be very helpful when making closeup shots like this image of a Brook Trout. The trout appears to bow outwards with a too-small tail and head; this is partly due to the close-range of the camera to the subject aka “perspective distortion”.

Brook Trout - Salvelinus fontinalis
f2.2 @ 1/120 sec, ISO 40; 2016-08-29 08:08:19
iPhone 6s Plus + iPhone 6s Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 @ 29mm (4.2mm)

NewerTech NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 / iPhone 7 Plus (saved my iPhone 6s Plus several times)

NewerTech NuGuard KX case for iPhone 7 and 7 Plus

Get NewerTech NuGuard KX Case for iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus at MacSales.com.

I wouldn’t use my iPhone without a NewerTech KX case on it, particularly when cycling or when hiking in the mountains making iPhone panoramas. See My iPhone 6s Plus Saved From Cracking Again by NewerTech NuGuard KX Case.

My wife and one of my daughters have both cracked their iPhone screens, not having had the KX case on their phones, but my iPhone 6s Plus has been dropped rudely many times now, and it remains intact. The KX case 'rocks', so to speak.

NewerTech introduces the NuGuard KX case for iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

NEWERTECH ANNOUNCES NUGUARD KX CASE WITH MILITARY GRADE PROTECTION FOR UPCOMING APPLE IPHONE 7 & 7 PLUS

Incredibly Thin at ½”, State-of-the-Art Military X­Orbing Case Provides Extreme Protection Against Accidental Drops, Impacts & Scratches without the Bulk

Stylish in Black, Midnight, & Crimson for iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

Woodstock, IL, September 6, 2016 – NewerTech http://www.newertech.com, a leading performance upgrades and accessories company for Macs and other Apple products since 1984, announced today the NewerTech NuGuard KX case for the upcoming iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. Unlike other protective cases for iPhone, the KX case uses state­-of-­the-­art military-grade X­Orbing Gel Technology to absorb and evenly distribute kinetic energy. This revolutionary technology is engineered into a one-piece design that features a hard outer shell integrated with a soft interior core, providing protection and style at a price you’d pay for a regular case. Incredibly thin at ½”, it protects your iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus against accidental drops, impacts, and scratches, while still easily fitting in your pocket.

Innovative Design, Incredible Impact Protection, and Lifetime Replacement Guarantee

Like NuGuard KX cases for other iPhone models, the KX case for iPhone 7 and 7 Plus provides enhanced protection around the device’s screen without interfering with edge­to­edge touch accessibility. Easily type messages with full access to the keyboard and organize apps across multiple screens. Simply use your new iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus as you normally would, but with the peace of mind of military-grade protection. Precision cutouts give access to all of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus ports and buttons. The new KX case features a unique crosshatch-texture on the back and sides for a comfortable grip in your hand and a strong grip on smooth surfaces, while still being able to quickly slip out of your pocket or bag. The strongest case also deserves the best warranty -- KX cases ship with a lifetime-replacement guarantee.

NuGuard KX Case Features:
• Revolutionary X­Orbing Gel Technology absorbs and evenly distributes kinetic energy.
• One piece design: hard outer shell integrated with soft interior core.
• Exceptional protection without being bulky.
• Fast and simple to install -- takes seconds.
• Easy access to all ports and buttons.
• Crosshatch-texture design offers secure hand grip, yet easy pocket removal.
• Lifetime replacement guarantee.
• No risk, no hassle 30­-day money-back guarantee.

Availability & Pricing

The KX cases for iPhone 7 and 7 Plus are available starting September 7, 2016 from NewerTech.com at: http://www.newertech.com/ipad-iphone-ipod/iphone.php.
Pricing:

KX Case for iPhone 7 MSRP: $49.99 ($29.99 at most outlets).
KX Case for iPhone 7 Plus MSRP: $59.99 ($33.99 at most outlets).

NewerTech NuGuard KX case for iPhone 7 and 7 Plus
Cycling

Why Pay Top Dollar for a New Mac for Most All Purposes?

MacSales used Macs (all models)

See previous post regarding factor-sealed Apple MacBook at huge savings.

Macs have not changed significantly in capability for several years now, at least not for the purposes of many if not most users—a model that is not the latest and greatest will perform essentially the same as the very best and newest model for 90% of what most people do—hence the robust market in used iPhones for the same reason.

Used Macs, particularly ones delivered free with a money-back guarantee and certified and warranteed by MacSales.com offer excellent value: why pay a premium price for some email/web browing or casual work? Like buying a low-mileaged warranteed used car*, used is the new new. Buying new carries a big premium for minimal value (special purposes excepted of course).

Why consider used?

Lots of people have kids who need computers (I do), and businesses are often under budget pressure, etc. It makes a lot of sense to save on such areas. The truth is, Apple has done little to enhance total performance over the past few years (nada for Mac Pro for 3 years now and modest gains on iMac and MacBook Pro). Consider MPG usage:

MPG strictly avoids buying new except in the case where the long term value is there (e.g., the 2013 Mac Pro some years ago, or the late 2015 iMac 5K, both of which met specific thresholds not otherwise obtainable for professional photography purposes). The one probable exception coming along this year is laptops: a new high-end MacBook Pro (maybe). But Apple is constrained by Intel chipsets and it’s unclear how it will be appreciably better, or just different, e.g., a hassle for existing users, as in USB-C ports and Thunderbolt 3 requiring adapters—a chore for those with existing stuff already: existence proof being the adapters needed for the Apple MacBook. Time and money rectify such things, but those features may not matter for the vast majority of users, and will not come cheaply.

View all used Macs at MacSales.com

See all Labor Day specials (special prices end September 5)

* My current SUV is 9 years old, bought used when 2 years old.

MacSales used Macs (all models)
Which Camera System / Lenses Should I Get?
✓ Get the best system for your needs the first time: diglloyd photographic consulting.

Big Discount on *Factory Sealed* 2015 Apple MacBook at MacSales.com

See previous post regarding a MacBook for travel. For the photographer on the go, MPG recommends models with the 512GB flash/SSD drive, since OS X and applications will eat up 50-70 GB (leaving only about 180GB on a model with a 256GB flash/SSD drive). But for just web browsing and email and no particular storage needs, the 256GB model will do just fine.

MPG has confirmed with MacSales.com that these are FACTORY SEALED units (description as “refurbished” is erroneous and will be corrected Tuesday).

These are brand new, original box sealed - MacSales gets special warranty extension we fulfill, but brand spanking new and sealed original.

Additional savings apply when purchased with the OWC USB-C Dock (recommended, given the single USB-C port on the MacBook).

SSD Upgrade for MacBook Pro Retina

Updated: Diglloyd Photoshop Benchmarks

diglloydMedium Photoshop benchmarks

Follow the download link on this page:

diglloyd Benchmarks for Photoshop CC

These tests work on Photoshop CC or Photoshop CS6 and are what MPG has been using for years for the Photoshop tests on this site. For example most recently the Photoshop tests with the Apple 2016 MacBook.

The various tests give a good look at performance based on CPU and GPU and memory configuration variations.

1200 | 2400 | 3600
diglloydMedium Photoshop benchmark on 2016 MacBook 1.3 GHz / 512GB
Must-have expansion: OWC Thunderbolt 2 Dock

Thunderbolt 2, USB 3, Gigabit Ethernet, 4K Support, Firewire 800, Sound Ports

Risky “Zero Day” Exploit Bugs Fixed in iOS 9.3.5 for iPhone, also in OS X

See also Apple Mail Security: Viewing Mail Headers in the Setting Up Your Mac For Better Security section as well as all security topics.

See my post two days ago on the frustrating experience of trying to update iOS—shame on Apple for making it so hard to install a critical security fix—there are simple ways to fix the software to not stand in the way of updating iOS, if only Apple would do it (e.g., just allow a backup to some other drive).

A “zero day” exploit is a security bug that remains unknown to the world at large, including the manufacturer of the device. When a zero day exploit can compromise a system, it can sometimes sell for big money—typically to spy agencies (including our own morally-impaired agencies here in the USA*). Thus some zero-day exploits can be extremely valuable. And potentially fatal, such as to activists whose phone and/or computers are compromised.

ComputerWorld reports in Apple patches iOS security flaws found in spyware targeting activist:

To spy on a human rights activist, hackers allegedly connected to a Middle Eastern government used three previously unknown vulnerabilities in Apple’s iOS.

The claims -- from research at Toronto-based Citizen Lab and mobile security firm Lookout -- focus on spyware that targeted Ahmed Mansoor, an activist in the United Arab Emirates.

Earlier this month, Mansoor received an SMS text message on his iPhone claiming to offer “new secrets” about tortured detainees in his country. However, inside the message was a link that, once clicked, can infect an iPhone with spyware, using three zero-day exploits of iOS, the research found.

The exploits work by remotely jailbreaking the device to secretly download the spyware – which can then access the iPhone’s camera, microphone, and messages.

Lookout called the attack the most sophisticated it’s ever seen on a device. The researchers have already informed Apple about the exploits, and iOS version 9.3.5 -- which was released on Thursday -- fixes the issues. The attack is rare because it used three previously unknown vulnerabilities, suggesting the hackers were well-funded. Just one of these exploits can be worth $1 million.

...

Apple apparently felt strongly enough about the bug to issue an emergency iOS and macOS update—kudos to Apple. Details on the Sept 1 security update page. Be sure to update macOS on your computer, and iOS on your iPhone or iPad.

MPG has long advised not clicking on links in emails or any similar behavior (OTOH, any at-risk activist willing to click on a hyperlink in an email is a sort of Darwinian fool).

This case makes a strong argument for Apple (and other companies) to offer an option so that hyperlinks are disabled in mail messages—why has Apple not done this yet? Such an option could allow a bypass of some kind, such as control-click. It would surely prevent 99.99% of casual users from opening hyperlinks by accident or cluelessness; most users simply cannot be trained to be smart about how to assess the risk. It ought to be standard fare for corporate and government email at the least.

* While tens or hundreds of millions of users may be at risk from a zero-day exploit, this country as yet does not have a policy of protecting people by getting zero day exploits fixed. Rather the NSA and CIA and FBI policies seems to be to exploit the bugs as long as feasible. This is a political and moral question which has arguments on both sides but since foreign governments also adore zero-day exploits, the obligation of our government to protect its own citizens seems to rise to the fore as something worthy of public debate (in Congress).

Apple Sept 1 2016 security update for zero-day exploits

Viewing and Backing up Files from a Digital Camera on a Trip

Sanjin D writes:

OWC Mercury Envoy Pro

I’m having soon a trip to Scandinavia and I’m thinking what to buy to back up my pictures during my journey.

Apple iPad is with me too and 2 Transcend 32GB SHDC cards for Leica camera.

Any suggestions from your side? Shall I take an external 2.5" USB hard disk?

MPG: Assuming that only modest computing power is needed, but an excellent viewing experience for RAW or JPEG, I’d skip the iPad and take an Apple MacBook, that is, a MacBook with 512GB flash drive (SSD) internally. At about 2 pounds, it’s an excellent travel companion, a real computer able to handle raw files and with a nice Retina display.

Also, a diminutive bus-powered 512GB or 1TB OWC Mercury Envoy Pro for backup (always kept separate from the laptop for reasons of potential theft), as a backup drive.

A card reader for downloading camera cards to the MacBook, but be sure to get the Apple USB 3.0 Type-C Male to USB Type-A Female Adapter or Apple USB Type-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter for compatibility with the USB-C port of the MacBook.

For extended usage, get an Anker 20100+ USB-C battery for powering the MacBook in the field.

iPhone Software Update Failure: ‘“Not enough free space is available on this computer” (8.81TB not enough space for 0.128 TB iPhone)

All I want to do is install iOS 9.3.5 for a security bug fix. That is a critical zero-day exploit security fix. I was left with zero backups of my iPhone, I wsa unable to backup the iPhone and I was unable to update to the latest iOS. Finally I figured out a fix (see far end of post).

iTunes: not enough space on “this computer” — which volume?!

The iPhone in question is a 128GB iPhone 6s Plus with 42.6GB available, so about 85GB is in use on the iPhone (nearly all of of it for music and recorded books). Nearly all of that stuff already exists in the media folder, so there should be a need for only ~2GB of space for a backup (confirmed by seeing previous backup of 1.8GB).

Below, a lovely designed-by-nitwits error message stemming from the mindset of “all Macs have one drive, the internal one we geniuses at Apple build into the Mac”. It’s actually worse than that:

  • Which volume has inadequate free space?
  • How much free space is required to make a backup? Because it always worked before, so “what gives” now?
  • Why can’t I just proceed with the update? Nothing is on the phone except my own (already downloaded) photos and my own music in the iTunes library.

Deleting the one and only backup of this iPhone results in no backups and a refusal to backup the iPhone (not enough space). So now there are zero backups and iTunes won’t backup the iPhone, let alone update iOS. Joy.

 

Apparently 8.81 terabytes is inadequate to backup a 0.128 TB iPhone. Either that, or backups MUST go onto the boot drive (yet another Apple Core Rot bug).

What’s wrong with backing-up the iPhone to the Media folder?
What’s wrong with backing-up the iPhone to the Media folder?

So which volume doesn’t have enough free space? The startup volume Boot which has 25GB free? Or the ArchivePV volume containing the iTunes Media folder with 8.81 TB free (8810GB)? No backups, no iOS update, ship listing and dead in the water.

Cannot backup an iPhone with 32TB of free space

Figuring the brain-dead behavior of iTunes could be fooled, I symlinked ~/Library/iTunes to a folder on another volume with ample space—no go. But later I realized that it is ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup that contains iPhone backups, more on that below.

Next, I wondered: why is there not enough space? Apple Photos app says there are no photos on the iPhone. But iTunes begs to disagree. The bar graph in iTunes does not give a figure for space usage of photos on the iPhone, but it looks to be ~32GB at least. Except that there exist no photos on the iPhone as per Photos on the Mac and Photos app on the iPhone itself. WTF? This remains true even after rebooting the iPhone.

Cannot backup an iPhone with 32TB of free space

Resolution

Technology is supposed to make things easier, not harder. When simplification (ill-conceived ideas on backing up) confuse and harrass even well-informed users, something is fundamentally broken in the design.

I finally went into the iPhone itself, and manually deleted some photos that the Photos app claimed were not there (“0 photos”, see above) This cleared up enough space for the iPhone backup and then the update to work. But why can’t it just work right? The screen shot above shows a fundamental flaw (bug).

Moreover, why can’t I backup the iPhone to some other volume when the boot drive has too little space? Or to the iTunes Media folder? It’s fragile software enginnering: is this the best the richest company in the world can do? And it is a fundamental design flaw: what if a user has a 128GB or 256GB boot drive, and a 128GB or (future) 256GB iPhone or iPad? It will be impossible to backup the device or update the software, as seen above.

As can be seen, fresh backups of both my iPhone 5S and iPhone 6s Plus take only 84 MB = 0.084 GB, making the refusal to backup/update even more infuriating.

Cannot backup an iPhone with 32TB of free space
Cannot backup an iPhone with 32TB of free space
Cycling

Emojis in File Names on macOS

Emojis in macOS file name

Unicode, while essential, never excited me much since I had little use for it in everyday work. But what it does allow is for Emojis to be used in filenames.

Emojis are extremely popular, so I thought this might appeal to some readers. And some of them might be useful as distinct visuals for organizing file.

 

An interesting idea is how Emojis or something like it could bring a more useful and friendly view to computers. For example, in some cases I’d rather have the Emoji be the entire icon and the file name simultaneously—used sparingly for making visually distinctive items stand out.

The files below are all real file names, with Emojis. Pronouncing them is another matter, and I cannot seem to get rid of the file extensions (even with the Finder preference off).

Emojis in macOS file names
Choosing Emojis

ers.

Which Camera System / Lenses Should I Get?
✓ Get the best system for your needs the first time: diglloyd photographic consulting.

java.nio.file.Path and java.io.File Forward Slash and Backward Slash in File Names on HFS+ and FAT or ExFat File Systems

OS X uses the HFS+ file system (soon to also use the new APFS). But FAT and ExFAT can also be mounted on the desktop. Maybe NTFS also (though perhaps read only). NFS can be mounted remotely.

In developing IntegrityChecker Java version (icj) I wanted to be fully cross-platform, but I’ve been stymied by a Java API bug: there is no way to designate a file or folder name that contains the path-separator characters / and \ (forward and backward slashes).

Not in the traditional java.io.File, and not in the newer java.nio.Path. The API just does not deal with file names that use path separators. Attempting to create a File or Path with slashes yields a “file not found” error, since the slashes are interpreted as folders separators. Listing files as in File.listFiles() or walking the file tree as in java.nio.file.SimpleFileVisitor deliver files with the colon ':' character substituted for the forward slash '/'. Yikes.

For example the filename “_forward_ 03/05/1998.txt” becomes “_forward_ 03:05:1998.txt”. On OS X at least, using the mangled name actually works—the APIs interpret the color character as a slash. But that’s OS X, and I don’t know what Java does on Windows or Linux or etc.

I’ve tried escaping, as in “//” and “\/” and so on—no luck. I’m stymied.

When a slash is a colon

Apple has its own odd behaviors: some file system API calls substitute the colon ':' character for forward slashes in file names, either on FAT or ExFAT or HFS+. But not all!

So does Java, since it apparently gets the names from Apple APIs that do this substitution.

This is true in the traditional file system APIs (PBGetCatalogInfo) as well as in Terminal:

diglloydMP:yikes! lloyd$ ls -l
total 64
-rwxrwxrwx@ 1 lloyd staff 9 Jul 30 12:09 _back_ 08\17\1998.txt
-rwxrwxrwx@ 1 lloyd staff 9 Jul 30 12:09 _forward_ 03:05:1998.txt <=== / characters become :
USB-C Dock for MacBook

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diglloydTools IntegrityChecker Java Version: Finds Duplicates, Saved me 100GB!

diglloydTools

A cool new feature of diglloydTools IntegrityChecker 'icj' (Java version) is finding duplicate files; it saved me a whopping 100GB! Over the past few years, I had inadvertantly made copies when intending to move files due to a silent Finder bug: if files are marked as locked, the Finder makes copies—yikes!

By using the SHA-1 hashes, exact matches can be found unerringly and all but instantly (once the hashes are done via the 'update' command).

This example is after the 100GB duplications were found and deleted, so there is only 2.4 GiB left of duplicates.

Note: this listing is not displayed fully or properly due to bugs in web browsers.

# find all duplicates on volume Archive
diglloydMP:DIGLLOYD lloyd$ icj dupes Archive  
# icj version 1.0 beta 5 @ 2016-08-13 17:38
# Copyright 2016 DIGLLOYD INC. All Rights Reserved
# Use of this software requires a license. http://macperformanceguide.com/Software-License.html
# Sat Aug 13 20:33:49 PDT 2016
[1]={/Volumes/Archive}
Finding folders...4240.6920.9043.12381.14350.16676.16676 12003 ms to find 16676 folders
Loading hash data concurrently for 16676 folders... 0.100.200.300.400.500.600.700.800.900.1000.1100.1200....16500.16600....waiting for I/O to finish...15652.16676 Loaded hash data for 16676 folders in 23822 ms

995 ms to find duplicates

1 duplicate of "/Volumes/Archive/WebSiteOriginals/Infrared-S3-D70-5D/2006-0829-IR-camera-compare-all-orig/S3/091/DSCF0472.RAF" waste = 24 MiB
/Volumes/Archive/WebSiteOriginals/Infrared-S3-D70-5D/2006-0829-IR-camera-compare/S3/091/DSCF0472.RAF
1 duplicate of "/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/D2XColor/materials/2005-0423 ManyTests/1/color-balance-correction/LCDPhotos/IMG_0044.JPG" waste = 1644 KiB
/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/D2XColor/LCDPhotos/IMG_0044.JPG

... lines omitted for brevity ...

4 duplicates of "/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/D2X-vs-1DsMII/publish/logos/diglloyd36.gif" waste = 2644 bytes
/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/ShiftLensStitching/publish/logos/diglloyd36.gif
/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/D200-vs-D2X/publish/logos/diglloyd36.gif
/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/TheSharpestImage/original/publish/logos/diglloyd36.gif
/Volumes/Archive/ArticlesAndReviews/CoastalOptics60f4/CoastalOptics_60f4/publish/logos/diglloyd36.gif 1 duplicate of "/Volumes/Archive/WebSiteOriginals/Infrared-S3-D70-5D/2006-0829-IR-camera-compare/D70/no-filter/_DSC5742.xmp" waste = 4380 bytes
/Volumes/Archive/WebSiteOriginals/Infrared-S3-D70-5D/2006-0829-IR-camera-compare-all-orig/D70/no-filter/_DSC5742.xmp
....

WASTED SPACE from duplicate files: 2388 MiB
OWC Thunderbolt 2 Dock
Review of Thunderbolt 2 Dock

diglloydTools IntegrityChecker 'icj' beta 6 now posted

diglloydTools

Purchase diglloydTools.

See NEW! Cross Platform Java-Based diglloydTools IntegrityChecker for details.

No changes to native macOS version. Changes to IntegrityChecker java version (icj). See the diglloydTools release notes page and download page.

Java-based IntegrityChecker ('icj') is now beta 5, and it is rocking fast.

Update 14 August: beta 6 is out. See the diglloydTools release notes page and download page.

I’ve never seen anything so fully utilize the system resources: disk I/O up to 128 outstanding buffers, multithreaded up to 64 threads and basically using everything there better than 99.9% of the apps out there. And it’s cross-platform: macOS, Windows, NAS operating environments, Linux, etc.

I had fun coding it, but maybe there are some more tweaks. The trickiest thing is optimizing for 4/6/8/12 cores and different speed drives since the interaction is complex. The program defaults do extremely well on the late 2015 iMac 5K and the late 2013 8-core Mac Pro. The main issue is that I don’t have a fast enough SSD on the 8-core 3.3 GHz Mac Pro to drive the program hard, so I have to test with dual instances on both the internal SSD and a RAID-0 stripe of two OWC Mercury Accelsior PCIe SSDs.

A cool new feature is finding duplicates; it saved me a whopping 100GB! By using the hashes, exact matches can be found unerringly and all but instantly (once the hashes are done via the 'update' command).

1280 | 2560 | 3840
diglloydTools IntegrityChecker ('icj' Java version) pushing 3.3 GHz late 2013 Mac Pro to its limits

Off Topic: REVO Guide S Sunglasses

Totally off topic, but it’s summer and sunglasses are interesting to me.

I do a lot of cycling, and the right sunglass is very important for the conditions. Driving and hiking are also considerations.

See my experience report with the Revo Guide S sunglasses at WindInMyFace.com.

Revo Guide S polarized sunglasses, Open Road lens
Which Camera System / Lenses Should I Get?
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Monitoring Memory Usage

OWC blog has an article on memory usage.

The main thing to watch for with memory is the use of Compressed memory. The use of compressed memory indicates that at some point the system was under memory pressure. If Compressed memory is seen regularly (especially if over a gigabyte), it’s a strong hint to get more memory.

One confusing thing about memory usage is Cached Files as shown below; this is just the amount of memory the OS X file system is using to keep files in memory; it does not compete with application memory usage as it is yielded up for any other use when needed.

Still, it is confusing when looking at what is actually in use to have Cached Files taking up ~21GB as here. There is a simple way to fix this: open up a Terminal window and type “sudo purge”:

diglloydMP:MPG lloyd$ sudo purge

Toggle to see the before and after memory usage below. Note that Memory Used discounts memory used for caching already, but using the purge command is useful for other reasons, like getting consistent results when testing performance.

* man page: The purge command can be used to approximate initial boot conditions with a cold disk buffer cache for performance analysis. It does not affect anonymous memory that has been allocated through malloc, vm_allocate, etc.

Memory usage in activity monitor

Deals at MacSales — 6 Core Mac Pro and More...

The 2013 Apple Mac Pro 6-core has long been my recommended “sweet spot” Mac. With no new model in sight, the existing model is showing up Apple Refurbished with deep discounts. Lloyd’s main workhorse is still the 2013 Apple Mac Pro (albeit with 8-core 3.3 Ghz CPU upgrade).

MPG recommendation for power users is 64GB memory which is down to only $474 as this was written. Add the OWC Thunderbay 4 for storage, a USB hub for more USB ports and USB camera card reader.

See all used and refurbished Macs at MacSales.com.

Used Mac deals at OWC (some like new will full Apple warranty)
Performance Package for Mac Pro or iMac 5K
For iMac 5K or For 2013 Mac Pro
Recommended by diglloyd as ideal for photographers and videographers

diglloydTools IntegrityChecker 'icj' beta 5 now posted

diglloydTools

Purchase diglloydTools.

See NEW! Cross Platform Java-Based diglloydTools IntegrityChecker for details.

See the diglloydTools release notes page and download page.

Update 13 August: beta 5 now posted.

...

IntegrityChecker Java (icj) beta 2 is now posted (August 10). Performance is greatly improved.

  • Optimized I/O subsystem now in place. Optimizations added for small files, threaded handling of small files, asynchronous concurrent reads of large files.
  • Optimized thread handling for small and large files.
  • Utilizes all CPU cores if the I/O is fast enough.
  • Memory usage substantially reduced.
  • Tested with loads as large as 10 million files.
  • Can now read file modification dates from .ic files.
  • Performance up to 90% of the native MacOS version.
  • Flags and ignores files with problematic chars (colon, forward slash, backslash).
  • Ignored non-normal files (e.g., symlinks).

Brazen Example of Phishing

See the security topics page for more security topics and the previous phishing example purporting to be from UPS.

Below, a dangerous phishing email with all the brazen trimmings, refreshing in a way as a reminder of the early days of the internet.

Does anyone actually fall for these ridiculous brazen emails? Someone must or the crooks would not bother. Maybe teenagers or mentally infirm elders? Or maybe, just bad habits of double clicking things. It’s all about odd—if a million such email are sent, and 1 in 10,000 gets clicked on, it’s a solid business for a crook.

Phishing email offering millions and false reassurances
Cycling

NEW! Cross Platform Java-Based diglloydTools IntegrityChecker

diglloydTools

Purchase diglloydTools.

Released today, diglloydTools 2.1.14 has very minor changes. See the diglloydTools release notes page and download page.

Update August 9: icj version 1.0 beta 2 is now posted.

...

Until now, the IntegrityChecker has only been available for macOS. But now a (beta) cross-platform Java-based command line version of IntegrityChecker that can run on macOS, Windows, Linux, etc—anywhere that Java can run. Key goals:

  • Enable cross-platform operation: macOS, Windows, Linux, etc.
  • Enhance long-term viability across OS updates (Apple regularly breaks/deprecates APIs and introduces new file system bugs).
  • Eliminate file system dependencies; enhance viability across widely differing file systems having different metadata support.
  • Maintain outstanding performance: achieves as high 1200 MB/sec on a 4-core iMac 5K with all CPU cores maxed-out.
  • Command line (Terminal) only. GUI support is not planned at this time.

The command line name is 'icj'. In the initial release, icj has been tested only on macOS 10.11.6 using Java SE runtime 1.8. No testing has yet been done on Windows or Linux. However, some care has been taken to avoid common issues:

  • icj makes no assumptions about file system capabilities.
  • icj makes no assumptions about forward/backward slashes in path names.
  • icj makes no assumptions about case sensitivity; file names are used as-is.
  • icj uses GMT-0 in plain text form to store the file modification date.

Existing workflows with the native version of ic are unaffected. Thus icj can be used as an adjunct or a replacement to ic. See Cross-platform Integrity Checker (Java version) — icj and the IntegrityChecker user manual.

diglloydMP:diglloydUtil lloyd$ icj verify /Volumes/Archive/2016-*
# icj version 1.0 beta 2 @ 2016-08-04 17:00
# Copyright 2016 DIGLLOYD INC. All Rights Reserved
# Use of this software requires a license. http://macperformanceguide.com/Software-License.html
# Thu Aug 04 16:26:01 PDT 2016
[14]={/Volumes/Archive/2016-0109-ZeissOtus28f1_4-PescaderoCreek, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0122-ZeissMilvus85f1_4-SonyA7R_II-StanfordNightShots,
/Volumes/Archive/2016-0222-VideosForZeissFocusingArticle, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0304-TripPhotos, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0320-TripPhotos-CarrizoPlain,
/Volumes/Archive/2016-0506-ZeissMilvus35f2-JamesKnight-windowScreen, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0606-TripPhotos,
/Volumes/Archive/2016-0608-Lily-CorteMaderaGraduation, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0626-Markleeville-Yosemite,
/Volumes/Archive/2016-0628-NikonD810-Yosemite, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0628-PanasonicGX8-Yosemite,
/Volumes/Archive/2016-0628-PentaxK1-Yosemite, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0628-iPhonePanos-postProcessed, /Volumes/Archive/2016-0802-SigmaQuattro-backyard}
Scanning folders...
561 ms to scan/read 453 folders
57 ms to count files and sizes
Hashing 7689 files totaling 398 GiB in 453 folders. 
0%: 60 files @ 1193 KiB/sec, 2349 MiB
1%: 167 files @ 1525 KiB/sec, 5992 MiB
2%: 236 files @ 1646 KiB/sec, 9741 MiB
...
97%: 7644 files @ 704 KiB/sec, 388 GiB
97%: 7654 files @ 703 KiB/sec, 389 GiB
98%: 7664 files @ 703 KiB/sec, 390 GiB
98%: 7670 files @ 703 KiB/sec, 392 GiB
99%: 7675 files @ 704 KiB/sec, 394 GiB
99%: 7681 files @ 704 KiB/sec, 396 GiB
99%: 7686 files @ 704 KiB/sec, 397 GiB
100%: 7687 files @ 704 KiB/sec, 398 GiB
========================================================================================================================
FILE STATUS SUMMARY for 453 folders 2016-08-04 16:35:53
========================================================================================================================
# With hash: 7689
# Without hash: 0
# Missing : 0
# Hashed: 7687
# Changed size: 0
# Changed date: 0
# Changed content + date, size unchanged: 0
# Total changed content: 0
# SUSPICIOUS: 0
icj done at Thu Aug 04 16:35:53 PDT 2016

A few examples of the capabilities in diglloydTools

Aside from testing hard drive or SSD or RAID performance and reliability with DiskTester, data integrity with IntegrityChecker is a must-have workflow tool for anyone with important data:

David C writes:

A few curiosity questions:

Were you expert in Java before or was this your initiation?

How difficult did you find writing the Java version given your background writing the c++ version? yes, I know this is subjective, but you had to have solved a lot of thorny issues in the original code, hence what I’m really asking is something vague like “how difficult did you find coding in java compared to c++?”.

If you used libraries in the c++ version, e.g. the STL or IPP, did you find it difficult to find/write equivalent java functionality?

Leaving the possible portability advantages aside did you enjoy writing the Java version (i.e. it is not the end result I’m asking about but the process of creating it)?

If you wouldn’t mind divulging it, approximately how many kloc in the icj source (your code, not the java libraries etc etc)? yes I know that kloc is a crude measure, but there certainly is a vast difference between 10kloc and 100kloc when it comes to maintaining it unless one is in the habit of leaving thousands of empty lines strewn about; the size gives me some idea what the difficulty comparison means.

What editor do you use when writing code (idle curiosity)?

DIGLLOYD: I wrote in C++ professionally for many years, then Java multithreaded server code for about 12 years, professionally. I’m a bit rusty with C++ now and STL arrived well into my professional career, but I do use it. I use Text Wrangler for editing my code. Simple and fast.

I vastly prefer working with Java. It’s just a lower hassle and complexity than C++. Also, C++ is a nightmare for portability compared to Java when all the dev environmenbts and libraries and inconsistencies in file systems are dealt with. The same API for all platforms is a huge win for Java.

Java multithreading support and garbage collection makes a lot of stuff easier. With C++, I use a lot of stack-based wrapper classes to guarantee things like deleting points or closing files; once done it’s done but it is extra code and complexity. The Java code still requires some smarts to avoid excessive memory allocation (which causes downstream hits from garbage collection), but C++ IntegrityChecker requires sophisticated memory tracking and buffer management that Java makes a lot easier in some places. The C++ version could probably utilize a 32 core machine with excellent scalability, but I have no such beast to test it on. The Java version is algorithmically mostly the same, but has some room for improvement. But it looks like bottlnecks are there that may be harder to work around (the I/O system in particular).

What I like about Java: rich set of stuff with many flavors of Set, Map, List, arrays, hash tables, etc (and with thread safe variants too). While C++ and STL have many equivalents, Java is less error prone. Also, multithreading ease of use in Java is high. Things like Executor thread pool and a variety of synchronization classes and facilities, plus garbage collection. Garbage collection often simplifies things a great deal, though it’s bad habit to substitute that for intelligent re-use of things like buffers.

The Java version is tiny compared to the C++ version, as can be seen from the binary size. I'm not sure about lines of code, but it is probably 1/8 the lines in Java because I had to build a lot more utility routines in C++ and because threading is more difficult. Also, the C++ version is more sophisticated in its asynchronous and threaded implementation when reading files (uses dedicated open/close thread plus dedicated read thread with dual I/Os in progress at all times).

ThunderBay 4 - The Speed To Create. The Capacity To Dream.

“Not Connected to Internet” after Waking from Sleep in OS X 10.11.6

More Apple Core Rot.

Two weeks ago I wrote that Apple Breaks Thunderbolt Networking in OS X 10.11.6?.

Well, the trolls on the networking team did more than break Thunderbolt networking: it now takes my iMac 5K around 30 seconds to restore networking after coming out of sleep (gigabit ethernet). It’s super annoying.

The MacBook Pro Retina and 2013 Mac Pro wake up normally, so it seems to be an iMac thing.

960
macOS 10.11.6: not connected to internet for ~30 seconds after waking from sleep
Which Mac? Storage, Backup, RAID? Color Management?
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