duplicate

iTunes 11 minor update brings back duplicate finder

Apple this afternoon pushed out its first update to iTunes 11, restoring a useful feature that was removed from the previous version.

iTunes 11.0.1, which went out as a free update to users today, brings back the built-in tool to find duplicate songs, one of the seven features CNET highlighted as missing in the jump from Apple's last major iTunes release.

The update also fixes an issue that kept purchased items from showing up in the library if Apple's paid iTunes Match subscription service was enabled, along with an issue that kept the AirPlay icon from … Read more

How to flag duplicate Foursquare venues on iPhone, Android

When checking into a venue on Foursquare, it can be frustrating to see there's more than one venue listed. With some venues leading to unlocking badges, earning a mayorship, or even a special, duplicates get in the way. Marking duplicated venues is nothing new to the iOS app. In the past you'd have to visit the venues page and then flag it as a duplicate, or you could use Hopscotch if you're a Foursquare "superuser" to mark venues as duplicates.

About Foursquare pointed out a new feature in the latest update to the iPhone app … Read more

Apple returns Save As to Mountain Lion

Apple's introduction of Auto Save and Versions in OS X Lion was one of the more controversial modifications made to the operating system, partially because as part of the changes Apple removed with the age-old Save As command and replaced it with an unfamiliar "Duplicate" option. While applications such as Office that include their own document-handling routines maintained the Save As option, those that rely on Apple's central document-handling libraries lost this function.

The inconsistency of the Save As and Duplicate features between programs confused and disappointed a number of OS X Lion users. Even though … Read more

Tips for deduping Android contacts

The contacts app on your phone is the most boring, neglected app ever created. I don't care how much you love your phone -- the only reason you're reading a blog post about contacts right now is because things have gotten out of hand.

Are there people listed in your phone three or four times? Do you have 500 contacts, but only 10 of them have phone numbers? Well, then, it's time to take out the garbage.

The video above has all of my best advice, but I'm going to use this blog post to distill … Read more

Find and target duplicate files with Duplicate Commander Portable

Ever-expanding drive capacities have reduced the frequency and intensity of search-and-destroy missions targeting duplicate files from "Jason Bourne" to "Austin Powers" levels, yet duplicate files still do your system no good. And, if you boot from a low-capacity SSD, your interest in targeting duplicates for retirement is just as strong as it was for the data warriors of old -- maybe stronger. Good thing WinSimple's Duplicate Commander Portable is ready to deploy. This free tool scours your system for duplicate files, which you can delete, copy, move, and manage.

The program opens with a basic, … Read more

Find and delete duplicate files with Duplicate File Hunter

There's no point in wasting valuable hard-drive space by keeping it cluttered with duplicate files. Duplicates happen to just about everybody at some point, whether they're the result of accidental multiple downloads, the byproduct of importing and renaming images, or some other mundane activity. Duplicate File Hunter is an easy-to-use tool that can help you locate, compare, and delete duplicate files. We've reviewed a lot of programs of this type, and Duplicate File Hunter is definitely one of the most straightforward, though not necessarily the most sophisticated.

Duplicate File Hunter's interface is all business. There are … Read more

De-clutter with Duplicate Commander

Duplicate files can take up a lot of valuable space on your hard drive, and they accumulate all too quickly when you frequently download, import, edit, and rename numerous files. Duplicate Commander is a simple utility that can help you identify and delete duplicate files. It has more features than some similar programs we've encountered, making it appropriate for both novices and more advanced users.

Duplicate Commander has a plain interface, and the first time the program is launched a pop-up instructs users to click the Search button to get started. We selected a folder that we wanted to … Read more

Clear out the clutter

Tidy Up is tool that can help you reduce hard-drive clutter by identifying duplicate files on any mounted disk. This utility's multipane interface has a bit of a learning curve, despite its new "Basic Mode," and the app's comprehensive search criteria and system of smart and manual "baskets" may not be immediately intuitive to casual users.

Anyone who spends time getting familiar with Tidy Up and its three- step approach, however, will find that it's a powerful tool for identifying and dealing with duplicate files, whether you want to delete them, move them, … Read more

Duplicate vs. Save As in OS X Lion

One of the features in OS X Lion that has gained some attention is the new Duplicate command that Apple has implemented to replace the age-old Save As feature in the Mac OS. The Save As function has become a regular option in programs that many have relied on, and to see it changed in Lion has raised some concern and disappointment; however, exploring the feature should show that it can perform similar functions as the Save As feature, albeit not without question to its necessity.

Since early in their development, computer systems have had basic Save commands to preserve … Read more

Multiple 'No Name' contacts showing up in Address Book

Recently some OS X users have experienced problems in which their contact lists end up getting a number of No Name vCard entries. When this problem happens, these entries seem to accumulate over time to the point where thousands will fill the Address Book. In addition, the entries also show up on iOS devices that are being synced to the Mac.

One user on the Apple Discussion Communities suggested the issue may be from a MobileMe server error, as he was informed of by MobileMe support, so if you are experiencing this issue you might try contacting Apple's support … Read more