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Ask TUAW: Old displays with new Macs, syncing folders, traveling with an iPhone and more

mat lu
Updated ·5 min read

It's April Fools, but Ask TUAW is still dishing it up straight. This time we've got questions about traveling with an iPhone, syncing folders, using older displays with new Macs, saving bandwidth in Mail.app and more.

As always, your suggestions are welcome. Questions for next week should be left in the comments. When asking a question please include which machine you're running and which version of Mac OS X (we'll assume you're running Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions!

Teryn asks

My wife and I will be traveling to Paris in May and want to use our iPhones for data only(Maps/Travel Apps/GPS) & emergency calls. I read somewhere awhile back that you can purchase a prepaid SIM to pop in once we get to Paris, but I can't remember where I read it and cannot find where to buy one or the best way to go about this. I thought the article said you could just buy one at the Airport in Paris, but I'm not sure. Any ideas of the best way to do this?

AT&T iPhones are locked; so if you put in another service provider's SIM card it will not work. Instead you'll have to unlock your iPhone. You can find tutorials on how to do this around the net, but there is some risk to your phones, and unlocking is of dubious legality.

Furthermore, from some of my searching I suspect you will not find this to be an economical solution as far as data goes. You'd probably be better to provision the iPhone with AT&T for international travel and try to stick with WiFi for data.


Intense Action Krew asks

What's a good solution for syncing hard drives? If I create/modify files on the road, I'd like for that to be synced to the HD at home, and vice/versa. It would be great if the software was intelligent like Time Machine, and would only copy the files that have been modified, but I know this is a long shot and I'd settle for a software solution that would copy/overwrite files from destination drive -> source drive including hidden files, without any babysitting.

Time Machine won't do this for you, but there are several different folder synchronizers that will. I generally recommend ChronoSync ($40) or Martian SlingShot ($29.99). You can also check out cloud-based sync tools like ZumoDrive or Dropbox.


gberger asks

I have a G-4 iMac (OS 10.4.11) complete with tactile pro keyboard and Kensington Expert Mouse. I need to upgrade to an Intel-based Mac. My invalid spouse, who uses the computer for extensive e-mail and word processing, needs the flexibility to adjust the monitor in pitch (vertical angle) height, and sideways. That's the primary reason we bought the G-4 iMac PPC. The current iMacs do NOT provide that much-needed viewing flexibility, so I have been considering a Mac Mini. Is there a reasonable way to have the Mac Mini's output transferred to to our G-4 iMac so that my spouse can still keep the needed pitch, height and angle versatility?

There's no real way to connect an external video source to the G4 iMac. You can use something like Screen Recycler (€19.95) to have the iMac serve as a kind of second screen once the mini is set up, but you can't use the iMac simply as a display.

If your budget permits, though, you should consider a 24" iMac because Apple sells a VESA Mount Adapter Kit ($29) which would allow you to use a third-party VESA 100 arm to get as much adjustment as you need.

If you can't spring for a 24" iMac there is a third-party adapter ($79.95) that apparently works with the 20" iMac, though obviously I've never tested it. Finally, if you do go the mini route you may just have to consider buying a regular LCD display (20" displays are easily had for < $200) and using a VESA mounting arm.


LJKelley asks

Is there a way to make mail download only the headers in specific folders such as Junk? This would make less stress on the server, and less time waiting for emails to download that I will never open, but just glance thru to make sure no real emails are accidentally filtered by my server. I know I have it setup this way on Windows Live Mail when I'm in Windows.

Check out these suggestions from Stef Pause. Unfortunately, however, this will only work on an account-wide basis. As far as I can tell, you can't set folder specific behavior like this in Mail.app.


Timothy asks

I have a previous gen 2.2 MBP and I just ordered a new 24in iMac. I want to transfer all my music and pictures and apps, but not the user etc. Is it then best to use Migration Assistant after I've set up a new user on the iMac? Or should I do it right from the outset?

I'm not really that clear about what you're wanting to do. Why is it that you don't want to migrate the user? Anyway, yes, the Migration Assistant will allow you to choose what you want to migrate; so if all you want to move are music, pics, and apps then it's fine to run it after you have the new account set up.

Also I had the new iMac come with bluetooth mouse and keyboard will they not work for inital set up? Should I use any old USB keyboard and mouse?

Yes the wireless keyboard and mouse will work with the initial setup. If you don't have a keyboard plugged in to a USB port OS X will automatically prompt you for your Bluetooth devices.


Liam asks

I have an old Apple Studio display from my G4, is there anyway to use it as an external monitor for my original white plastic MacBook?

I assume that the Studio Display uses the Apple Display Connector? If so you're going to need the Apple DVI to ADC Adapter ($99)as well as a Mini-DVI to DVI adapter ($19). As you can see that's a rather pricey combination; so much so that you might even just decide that it's worth buying a new monitor.