Change iPhoto '09's Faces corkboard background
Mar 09, '09 07:30:00AM
Contributed by: b.leopard
The new iPhoto '09 is a great app, and the face recognition is amazing -- but not everyone is happy with the corkboard background in the Faces view. This hint describes how to change the corkboard background to a solid color. If iPhoto is running, quit the program, then open Terminal and make a backup of the file that will be modified:
cp /Applications/iPhoto.app/Contents/Resources/people-cork.tiff ~/Desktop/people-cork.tiff
This will create a backup of the cork board background on your Desktop, just in case you want it back later. Then just use one of the following commands to set the background to a color of your choosing:
White:
sips -s format tiff "/Library/Desktop Pictures/Solid Colors/Solid White.png" --out /Applications/iPhoto.app/Contents/Resources/people-cork.tiff
Neutral grey, light:
sips -s format tiff "/Library/Desktop Pictures/Solid Colors/Solid Gray Light.png" --out /Applications/iPhoto.app/Contents/Resources/people-cork.tiff
Neutral grey, medium:
sips -s format tiff "/Library/Desktop Pictures/Solid Colors/Solid Gray Medium.png" --out /Applications/iPhoto.app/Contents/Resources/people-cork.tiff
Neutral grey, dark:
sips -s format tiff "/Library/Desktop Pictures/Solid Colors/Solid Gray Dark.png" --out /Applications/iPhoto.app/Contents/Resources/people-cork.tiff
Explanation:
These commands use one of the many desktop pictures located in your Mac's Library folder, converts that image to a TIFF, and saves the resulting picture inside the iPhoto application bundle, replacing the existing corkboard background. No worry -- the original desktop picture remains untouched, and you earlier created a backup of the corkboard (in case you ever want it back). I didn't find a way to change the font (style and size) of the name at the bottom of each polaroid -- if anybody finds a way, please let us know!
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Mac OS X Hints
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20090305070109106