(Part 2) Best products from r/applehelp

This does depend a little on how old your daughter is but I really liked to use is the DotPen. It is a powered stylus and requires AAA batteries but It has an extremely fine tip, but does not use the stylus disks as some other fine stylus may use. I have used the disk stylus before but they are very easy to break. Another option would be the Pencil by FiftyThree, however this stylus will limit you to using dedicated applications for the stylus. Paper by FiftyThree does have some very good innovations though like palm rejection and the back of the stylus will work as an eraser within the app. If you want something that works with any app on the iPad I would go with the DotPen. The batteries do wear out in a couple of weeks so I would recommend to get some rechargeable AAA for the stylus to keep it cost effective in the long run.

DotPen - World's Best Active Stylus Pen for iPad, iPhone, Android, & Windows tablets and smartphones. Machined aluminum housing with 1.9mm durable tip. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MGU8LIK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_ureDwb6T50530

Pencil by FiftyThree Digital Stylus for iPad, iPad Pro, and iPhone - Graphite https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JP12170/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_eBeDwb0RKSN1Y

You've got a great machine, actually. It's not all that old, and it should be fairly snappy. But it sounds like you could greatly benefit from a Nuke and Pave.

Before we go any further, I want to confirm that your Snow Leopard DVD looks like this disc. If it does, we can just continue. If not, post a picture of the disc and let's figure out what you've got.

First, let's deal with your backup question: Buy yourself a USB External HD. This Western Digital model is available in several different sizes, to fit your budget. Use it to back up your iPhoto Library, then after we've reinstalled Snow Leopard, you should use it as a Time Machine destination.

Time Machine is very important, as it's a fantastic backup solution that requires no maintenance after the initial setup. It's something every* Mac user should be using. But don't set it up yet. No use in setting it up only to have to start over later. For now, just copy the iPhoto Library (along with any other documents or apps you want to save for later) to the drive. If you don't have a copy of iPhoto somewhere, I'd suggest moving the app to your external HD as well.

Now that you've copied everything you want to save, you can just stick your Snow Leopard disc into the computer, and restart the Mac while holding the C key down. Wait until you see the Apple logo appear on the screen, then let go of C. It will boot up into the DVD. You're going to want to go into Disk Utility, erase your internal HD, and then reinstall Snow Leopard on your freshly wiped HD.

If you've got any questions, feel free to ask.

It is possible to replace just the keyboard. It's fairly cheap, but it is time consuming and I wouldn't recommend that repair to the inexperienced. Better to try to find a small tech shop that will do it for you. If they have the part on hand they will (or at least should) test to make sure that it is actually a problem with the keyboard and not the logic board before they start really digging into the computer.

If you do want to risk it on your own what you will need is an a1278 keyboard like this one and a screw set for it too. and the necessary screwdrivers (a #00 Phillips, and a T8 if I recall properly. A small flat head is also useful) Now, that keyboard is the replacement part for the non-retina MBP but it is the same keyboard that is in MBPr units. The only difference is how they are attached to the topcase.

On the MPBr the keyboard is riveted in place. So what you have to do is strip the computer down to just the top case assembly and tear off the keyboard. It requires a fair amount of force to remove the keyboard so you have to be careful how you apply force as not to bend the top case.

From there you can put in the new keyboard. The rivets that went flying will leave perfectly lined up holes in the topcase that you can use the screws to hold the keyboard in place. The holes are not threaded, but the aluminum of the topcase is soft enough that the screws don't need treads.

Here is a link to a video some someone doing that repair on a 15" MBPr. It's not the best video but it should give you a good idea of what you would be getting into.

1. The ISP will normally rent you a modem, but you can buy your own if you want... you might save some money in the long run. Yes, you'll need a router.
   
2. There is, DSL normally uses them. If you are getting cable you'll probably have both a modem and a router.
   
3. Airport Express is another option. You can plug a hard drive into the Extreme to give you the same functionality as the Time Capsule, so I'd either go with the Express or Extreme. My guess is the Express will be good enough as long as you don't need to hard wire more than 1 computer.
   
   For the modem you'll want a DOCSIS3 one. The Motorolla Surfboard is pretty popular. It is what I currently have.... it's ok... not amazing. Make sure whatever you buy will work with the ISP you are going with. Some ISPs will only accept certain modems. And like I said above, you can just rent a modem from the ISP. Rental does have it's advantages. If something goes wrong you can just go grab a new one from them. If your speed is slow it is their fault. If you have your own modem they will blame it for every problem you have which can sometimes make it hard to get good service. I have dealt with this first hand.
   
   Personally, if I were going to be moving around a lot and going to different ISPs, I would run rent the modem and buy a router.

It is possible... but not for cheap.

While going from miniDisplay port to HDMI can be done with an extremely cheap adaptor, the reverse is not as easy. MiniDisplay inputs only accept MiniDisplay outputs, and thus you have to use an active adaptor. Something like this should do the trick.

You can try to find something cheaper, but I don't think you'll get much cheaper than that. Just be sure when you're searching that the description clearly states HDMI to miniDisplay (or Thunderbolt... it's the same thing). Anything that says the reverse, miniDP/Thunderbolt to HDMI will not work*.

Also when you search, check the resolution in the description. The one I linked supports 1920x1080 @ 60Hz... you don't want any less than that.

Thats looks to be the right part, i got something similar as well but different brand for my 2011 pro (http://amzn.com/B004PR6DAA). If it interest you for about the same price, get a Crucial M500 240GB Solid State Drive instead it dramatically improves the performance of the laptop. I have it and love it, anyone i know that has an older ish macbook pro has it. http://amzn.com/B00BQ8RM1A, this as well http://amzn.com/B00G57BN1M

I have the same Mac. Normally I always advise using original Apple SSDs that you can get second hand from eBay but for that model Apple only went up to 768GB and I needed a 1TB SSD. I didn't want to go down the OWC or Transcend SSD route due to my experience of fitting tehm to customers Macs, they had a higher failure rate than I was happy with. You can fit a Samsung 860 EVO but not the one you linked, you need an mSATA 860 EVO plus an adapter to work in the 2012 retina MacBook Pro.

Samsung EVO 860 mSATA SSD https://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-MZ-M6E1T0BW-mSATA-Solid-State/dp/B078WS4CB5/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1538395030&sr=8-2&keywords=msata+860

Adapter type I used in my own plus customers Macs https://www.amazon.co.uk/KALEA-INFORMATIQUE-Adapter-mounted-Macbook-Retina/dp/B018KF1CSA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1538395090&sr=8-3&keywords=macbook+pro+2012+ssd+adapter

It is a very tight fit but so far no issues at all, Mojave upgrade went fine too and Blackmagic Disk Speed Test shows the SSD to be faster than the original Apple SSD.

1. Get an external USB Hard Drive Dock
   
   or
   
   1.5) Get a USB to SATA Adaptor
   ____
   
2. Get Carbon Copy Cloner
   
   It's a 30 day trial, but trust me, it is amazing. This will allow you to clone your entire hard drive a new hard drive, even an SSD, and even if they are different sizes.
   ____
   
3. Clone your old HD to your new one
   ____
   
4. Swap the hard drives.
   ____
   
5. Enjoy your new SSD and an external for whatever you want. All of your data and settings will still be there.

Solved! Anker's SATA to USB Adapter kinda sucks. I've had quite a few problems out of it but felt the drive spinning and assumed it'd be working. Nope, tested my docking station and it detects all of the drives perfectly fine.

Lastly, is there a way to check the health of a drive? (with MacOS/Disk Utility) Something similar to SMART.

300GB probably isn't enough. Remember TM wants to keep files for a long time. I'd dedicate the whole 1TB to the Time Machine and get a second drive for general storage. You can include the second drive in the TM backups if you wish.

Most enclosures are about the same. They're pretty unlikely to fail - it's the HD that's probably going to go. As well as most hard drives. I don't think one is better than the other.

I've seen from a number of the tech subs that the Western Digital products (enclosures) don't seem to be holding up to well but it's just user reports.

That being said, I've been very happy with this enclosure with the caveat that I have an older MBP so I needed FW800. It would be nice to have a Thunderbolt enclosure but they're too expensive right now.

ok, awesome. I will definitely look into that one. thanks. and yeah, I planned on ordering this if I don't get steered in any other direction. any suggestions?

Honestly, I would invest in a small hard drive for each of the computers, 37 gigs isn't enough at all, my iphone has more than that. You can get a 500GB HDD for literally 50 dollars. After that I would invest in upgrading them to Lion, and getting some more ram, which is even cheaper.
Ram but actually I really only think you need about 2GB which will be MUCH cheaper than this.
and an HDD which you can actually get for much cheaper but this one is quite good. Once these are both upgraded I would buy some small security cameras, which are pretty cheap. Also you really only need one of these computers.

It will, but it doesn't come with a USB-C to USB-C cable.

https://www.amazon.com/Certified-Charger-Nekteck-Delivery-Station/dp/B0712252ZQ/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=usb-c+charger&qid=1556070365&s=gateway&sr=8-6

This is a pretty good one, with 60W USB-C PD and a couple of USB-A ports, and it comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable as well.

About 3 years ago, I spilled a glass full of champagne on my 2011 13" MBP keyboard. I field stripped that computer so fast you wouldn't believe it.

Fortunately, most of the damage was just in the keyboard. It was very sticky for a while, enough that I just used it with a keyboard/mouse/monitor plugged in externally. I did end up replacing the keyboard myself, which cost me about $50 in parts and a chunk of my sanity. There are a lot of screws involved, but boy, having that new keyboard was pretty sweet. Something along these lines:

http://www.amazon.com/Macbook-Pro-keyboard-assembly-A1278/dp/B0065UZMJ8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1396840308&sr=8-2&keywords=keyboard+replacement+for+macbook+pro

Honestly, you're not going to fix the sticky part without replacing the keyboard. These are not desktop keyboards or even typical laptop keyboards.

In my late '08 MacBook I have an SSD in the optical drive bay via this bracket. I could build a fusion drive, but I elected not to. My SSD is ~120GB and holds my OS, Apps, and Home folder which includes (critically) all my caches. My music, videos, VMs, and other large files all live on my HDD, which is still in its original physical location.

I prefer this over the fusion set up because this way I have everything I need on a regular basis, without having my spinning HDD mounted, and I can mount my HDD as needed. I find that if I don't use my HDD, I achieve about 25%-30% more battery life (YMMV) which is a huge benefit for me.

This means that I have to do a little more remembering where I put stuff, and I have to remember to mount the HDD when I want to run Linux or watch a movie. A fusion drive would be more convenient in that it puts everything into the same logical container so you don't have to think about what bits are on which drive. OTOH, doing it this way I know that all my apps, caches, etc... are always running at the full SSD speed (unless they need data files from the HDD of course) and I get another hour and a half (or more) out of my battery.

Yes sir. Also, if you choose to go with your own wireless router ask for a cable modem only, one without wireless, they are cheaper per month. If you want to save even more money, you can buy your own cable modem, and save the monthly hardware rental fee. I have this one. Please check with your cable company if they support this modem on their network first. I have comcast and it works fine.

I use something like this to connect the SSD to the laptop while the HDD is still in it. I then use SuperDuper! to clone the HDD to the SSD. After that finishes you will have exactly the same bits on both devices. Then turn off the computer, take out the HDD, put the SSD in it's place, and turn it back on. Be amazed by how fast it boots.

You can also replace your Super Drive with this. You can then have both the SSD and HDD in your laptop at the same time.

> 2007 Intel iMac 7,1

ah, yeah, that is not an easy hard drive swap.

Looks like your computer should have a 3.5 inch drive, whereas SSDs are 2.5 inch.. thus you will need a carrier of some sort, such as one of these.

If they just swapped out the drive only, then when you try to boot your computer it will sit there and flash a "?" or whatever it is these days, since no OS will be installed anywhere. Pretty sure your computer is too old to get a wireless OS delivery, so you will want to have an install USB handy.

I think an 8 gb usb drive should be plenty. There are guides online to show you how to prep the drive (test to make sure it is bootable before swapping the drive!).

While USB to HDMI adapters do exist, your machine has USB 2.0 (not USB 3.0) so it is to be determined if it will work well with USB 2.0.

If USB 2.0 is too laggy or doesn't work, t think your best bet will be to use the Thunderbolt or Expresscard slot to add a USB 3.0 port, then connect the HDMI adapter to it.

Here is one HDMI/USB 3.0 adapter: http://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters®-SuperSpeed-2048x1152-1920x1200/dp/B00BPEV1XK

Penultimate is pretty good. I pair it with DotPen, it's a game changer for sure. http://www.amazon.com/DotPen-Android-smartphones-Machined-aluminum/dp/B00MGU8LIK/

Yes. You actually don’t even need an enclosure unless you want it to look nice. A USB to SATA cable is all you need. Something like this

I don't think that is the RAM you want for the 2010 MBP. That's 1600hz, and your computer uses 1066.

The following link isn't intended to get you to purchase the RAM from this vendor - rather, just use it to help track down matching and appropriate RAM on Amazon.

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/Apple_MacBook_MacBook_Pro/Upgrade/DDR3

So using the above as a guide, you may try something like this if you want to get it from Amazon.

thanks! i just got this, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001H0REVK

a mini dvi to hdmi thing from amazon hopefully it works.

Right now I have a thunderbolt -> hdmi running a second monitor that is NOT a mirror but rather an extension of my MBP. I've done some more research and it seems like this product:

https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Adapter-2560x1440-1920x1200/dp/B00BPEV1XK?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00

could be the one I need. Any thoughts before I buy? At the end of the day I want 3 screens that do not duplicate each other, one included is the MBP screen.

Edit: Yeah, I've done the research that suggests without a product like this one ^ above, it won't work, period.

I was super pissed when I found out Apple's adapter didn't do DP.

There's a bunch of adapters when I search on Amazon. Here's one:

>USB Type C Adapter,ITANDA USB C Type to Mini DisplayPort/Mini DP Adapter Cable With Aluminium Case Support 4K resolution for Apple New Macbook 2016, ChromeBook Pixel - Grey https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N2ORP84/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_pImQybS9A09QZ

edit: use that with a regular thunderbolt cable (or a displayPort cable), and you should be good to go.

I have the same issue, just got a new iMac and was hoping to use my old display as a second monitor but the adapter I bought doesn't work (and in fact the Amazon listing was updated after I bought it to note that it won't work with 2017 Macs and they're working on a new one). Not that that's particularly helpful, but at least you know it's not just you.

RAM and SSD. Samsung 850 Evos are the best sata SSDs on the market that are not overpriced Intel shit. A 250 GB drives runs $90.

As for RAM, it uses DDR3 SODIMM @ 1066 Mhz, it is a little picky on this regard. RAM today runs around $5 a GB for cards compatible with your MacBook. Here is 8 GB for $40.

I think the mid-2010 was one of the last models that it was possible to replace the insides. Price is currently about $182

SSD- http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-256GB-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-7KE256BW/dp/B00LMXBOP4

RAM- http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-8500-204-Pin-CT2K4G3S1067M-CT2C4G3S1067M/dp/B008LTBJFM

SATA cable- http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-SATA-Drive-Adapter-Cable/dp/B00HJZJI84/ref=pd_bxgy_147_img_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0R44VTK7S236H4M8A2MC

Crucial has a good compatibility page that shows what works in that year computer but only for their products. Its nice to compare what you will be getting and what definitely works just to make sure. But, I've had no problems with any of the things above
http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/compatible-upgrade-for//macbook-pro-%2813-inch%2C-mid-2010%29

Neither of those would work. The first one is a thunderbolt connector, the second is a full size display port connector. Best bet is just mini dp to vga or mini dp to dvi. Mini Displayport to VGA Cable, CableDeconn Thunderbolt Port Compatible Mini DP to VGA Male to Female Adapter Converter https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00R7UKYMU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_HGhJzb1YT60RM
Mini DP to DVI, CableCreation 3 Feet Gold Mini Displayport (Thunderbolt Port Compatible) to DVI Cable for Mac Book, Imac and More, 0.9 Meter/ Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FM51ZTM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_dJhJzb49P7GTS
Either of these would work.

Do you use something like this?

USB Type C Adapter,ITANDA USB C Type to Mini DisplayPort/Mini DP Adapter Cable With Aluminium Case Support 4K resolution for Apple New Macbook 2016, ChromeBook Pixel - Grey

Did you know Amazon will donate a portion of every purchase if you shop by going to smile.amazon.com instead? Over $50,000,000 has been raised for charity - all you need to do is change the URL!

Here are your smile-ified links:

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00R7UKYMU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_HGhJzb1YT60RM

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01FM51ZTM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_dJhJzb49P7GTS

---

^^i'm ^^a ^^friendly bot

I have a MPB 2009 13 inch, and just upgraded the RAM…it definitely opens apps & folders/UI's faster.

THIS is what i bought; popped the back off, pulled the old RAM out, popped the new ones in, voila.

Check your specs first & make sure it's compatible, and watch a Youtube video or two on it before you do.

The maximum output resolution of any plastic MacBook is 1920x1200 via the mini DVI port with the appropriate adapter. Your display is 1920x1080, so it should be compatible if you buy an HDMI adapter. I found this $7 converter with an extension cable on Amazon that should do the job:

http://www.amazon.com/PTC-Mini-DVI-Adapter-6ft-Macintosh/dp/B001H0REVK

Pretty much any display you can find under the max resolution will be compatible, given the appropriate cables are used to connect it.

In addition to /u/frankielicious' suggestion, I believe that model has the IR sensor as well, so you could hook it up to your TV with a mini-DVI to HDMI adapter, plug the audio in the TV or a receiver, and run something like Plex or XBMC/Kodi.

I wouldn't recommend that one. Probably not bad, but its not sold by amazon or a real company. Just some front. Not even 10 reviews. There are 500GB HDD's for the same price with a bigger seller. Like this one

Its last years version of mine. 500GB and still a hybrid.

Something like this?

Any cheaper or higher rated options?

It looks like a USB to DVI Adapter may be what you need.

I recommend a hybrid drive like

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Momentus-Solid-Hybrid-ST95005620AS/dp/B003NSBF32/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1322924770&sr=8-1

They do have a newer model out now which is faster, but more expensive

Thank you for your response. Here's what I got from searching for "shutdown" without the quotes in Console.app

1/3/15 3:10:31.844 PM locationd[145]: locationd was started after an unclean shutdown
1/3/15 3:10:33.877 PM discoveryd[51]: Basic DNSProxy DNSProxyServer has shutdown: DNSProxy listener sockets are now closed
1/3/15 4:00:18.435 PM shutdown[2679]: halt by _cvmsroot:
1/3/15 4:00:18.435 PM shutdown[2679]: SHUTDOWN_TIME: 1420329618 435189
1/3/15 4:00:18.436 PM com.apple.xpc.launchd[1]: (com.apple.xpc.launchd.domain.system) System reboot initiated by: shutdown.2679<-sessionlogoutd.2675<-launchd.1
1/3/15 5:45:13.000 PM kernel[0]: Previous shutdown cause: 5
1/3/15 5:45:36.078 PM discoveryd[50]: Basic DNSProxy DNSProxyServer has shutdown: DNSProxy listener sockets are now closed
1/3/15 5:45:43.947 PM discoveryd[50]: Basic DNSProxy DNSProxyServer has shutdown: DNSProxy listener sockets are now closed

I couldn't find any ".Panic" results under System Diagnostic Reports however.

The ram I used was a Corsair 2 x 204-pin SODIMM DDR3 1066 MHz CL7. They are two 4GB sticks that are linked below. I guess these are the wrong ones?

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Channel-204-Pin-SO-DIMM-CMSA8GX3M2A1066C7/dp/B00505EZYW/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1420367056&sr=1-1&keywords=Corsair+2+204-pin+SODIMM+DDR3+1066Mhz+cl7

I went to Crucial.com and ran their scanner, should I return the ram I installed and get the ones they recommend instead?

Sabrent 2.5 Inch to 3.5 Inch Internal Hard Disk Drive Mounting Kit (BK-HDDH) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_AaJ-ybNQGESAR
Would something like this work for the bracket?

I'm not sure if I misunderstood your question, but the Mini-DVI-to-HDMI-adapter should work. Here's an example link, with an adapter that seems to work, according to the comments.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008LTBJFM/ref=psdc_172500_t1_B005LDLVAO
i don't think the RAM from your link is compatible. try this one

It's this model, with a power source, although I only paid $110

Yup. Crucial 8GB Kit (4GBx2) for $45 with same day delivery.

My bad. 'Slow' computers are usually related to a few things.

1. Hardware failures, mainly referring to failing hard drives or hard drive cables.
   
2. Software issues, usually involving putting too new an operating system on an older machine can cause it to run slowly.
   
3. Not enough RAM, as apps update with new technologies and such they require more RAM in order function. More RAM means you can run more programs at once (to a certain extent)
   
   Since you dont know how to upgrade it already, I'm assuming your machine came standard with either 2gb or 4gb of RAM. Let's assume 4gb for a 2009 model. The link below should be correct based off the information you gave me. And below that is a video on how to install it. Best of luck!
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-8500-204-Pin-CT2K4G3S1067M-CT2C4G3S1067M/dp/B008LTBJFM
   
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Lmp_rwtJg8

They link to a disconnected product (or $550 on amazon). This other one is >$200.

I don't mind not being able to control the monitor. Just insane that there doesn't seem to be a reasonable option out there for this decent monitor!