terminal

As a tech blogger, I take a lot of screenshots on my Mac and iOS devices to illustrate my posts. I use the built-in screen-capture tool on my MacBook Pro to snap a portion of my screen (Command-Shift-4) or the full screen (Command-Shift-3). These screenshots by default get saved to the desktop. Thus, after a busy day or three of blogging, my desktop begins to get a bit cluttered.

Thanks to a helpful tip on AddictiveTips, I am now saving these screenshots to a designated folder. All it takes is entering a bit of code to Terminal. And, if you … Read more

Early-termination fees got you down? ETFs are fees that phone carriers charge customers in case they want to cancel their contracts early. Agreements usually last two years, but if you want to leave a carrier before then, the company uses ETFs as a way to recuperate money from selling you a subsidized phone. Some argue, however, that these fees are grossly expensive and exploitative. Our main advice is to read the terms of your agreement carefully and drum up a lot of attention with your carrier if things aren't going exactly the way you think they should be. For … Read more

We talk a lot about early-termination fees, or ETFs, here at CNET because we have a love/hate relationship with signing a two-year service agreement (or three years if you're in countries like Canada). On the one hand, who doesn't love being able to own a $500 or $600 smartphone for $200, $50, or even a penny? You just can't swing that in the unlocked phone market.

On the other hand, few people enjoy being tied to a carrier, and to their carrier's phone selection, over the course of two years or longer. What if you change your mind about the service quality, what if your dream phone just came out on another carrier -- what if? Once you sign your name on the dotted line, there's little you can do to avoid an up-to-$350 fee to jump ship.… Read more

When you delete files and folders in Windows, they're not really gone. To make sure something you want to delete has been wiped from your system, you need something stronger. Files Terminator Free Portable securely deletes files and folders and recovers free space in your disk drives. It's completely portable, so you can save it to a USB drive or similar device and run it on any compatible machine.

Files Terminator has a small but colorful interface that you might mistake for a pop-up ad if you only glance at it. A drop-down menu offers 9 different methods … Read more

Quarantining files has its benefits, but a current bug is causing some trouble.

When you first download a file in OS X the system considers it to be foreign and tags it with a quarantine flag. This flag prevents it from running if it contains executable code, at least until it is scanned and the user is notified that the file contains code and could potentially change files on the computer. If the file is an application, then when you open it the launch services will present a warning that the file was downloaded from the Internet. Once you confirm … Read more

When people hear that a graffiti artist who took Facebook stock instead of cash for paintings he did at Facebook's headquarters will soon be a millionaire after the company goes public later this year, it's hard not to wonder if there is any way you might still be able to cash in on Facebook's riches.

Unfortunately, for most common folk, participating in Facebook's IPO isn't an option. But once the stock starts trading on the public market, eventually regular people will be able to buy shares. It's hard to say at this point whether … Read more

If you are even slightly familiar with the OS X terminal, then SSH (remote log-in) is a great service to have enabled on a system, especially for troubleshooting purposes.

In instances where your display is frozen or blank, or if your system is not accepting input from keyboards, being able to remotely log in and at least run a shutdown command to avoid a hard reset is a beneficial option to have.

Apple makes setting up SSH easy and convenient by just enabling the service in the Sharing system preferences. But even with this ease, sometimes establishing a basic connection … Read more

If you are used to the Unix command line, then you will find yourself right at home with Apple's Terminal application in OS X. The tool launches bash as the default shell for user accounts, but you have the option of using others such as sh, zsh, and csh.

In addition to the shell environment, Apple offers a full set of BSD tools that enable you to script many tasks for automating just as you would on any Unix system.

The BSD library and other commands that Apple includes in its operating system are vast, and with hundreds of … Read more

Apple prides itself on the skills of the people who staff its retail outlets, undoubtedly one factor that's helped turn the stores into huge moneymakers.

But how much in sales does each store employee actually generate? Market researcher Asymco thinks it has the answer.

Looking at Apple retail store data published by ifoAppleStore.com, Asymco analyst Horace Dediu determined that the stores bring in around $100,000 in sales per employee each quarter. For 2010 as a whole, revenue reached $481,000 per employee. This year, revenue so far is averaging around $320,000, though that figure doesn't … Read more