macosxhints.com iPhone tips

View full track info in iOS Music App

Wed, 09 May 2012 07:30:00 -0700

This hint solves a long standing problem when playing classical music on an iPhone. When using the iPhone Music app (iOS 5.1), the full entry (e.g. name of artist, album or song title) for an item can be too long to be displayed. Tap and hold entry to see the full entry pop up. Tap and drag your finger down the list to make the pop up change as you drag. This works for album titles, song titles, and artists names.

[kirkmc adds: Nice. I hadn't heard of this before, but searching the web shows that it is not totally unknown. Since it hasn't shown up here before, it's worth posting.]

Using a map location in a Reminder

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 07:30:00 -0700

iOS Reminders can give you alerts when you arrive at a location, but those locations must be in your Contacts list.

I want to be reminded before I get to a location, for example, when I get to the exit off the Interstate. If I turn left, I head home, but my bank and the grocery store are the other way. It won't work to set a reminder "when arriving at the bank," because I'll never get there. I need to set a reminder "when arriving at Exit 15."

The trick is to use the Maps location. Tap and Hold the location you want to use for your reminder.This will create a "Dropped Pin." Tap on the > button to display details about that location Then tap on "Add to Contacts," "Create New Contact," and give it a name, like "Exit 15." This is kind of silly, as it isn't a person, and it isn't a business. It has no email, or phone, or even a real address.

Now go back to the Reminders Application. I can use "Exit 15" as the location for "Stop at the Grocery Store," and g ...

Easily access photos from iOS devices in Finder

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 07:30:00 -0700

Transferring photos from an iOS device to a Mac can be a hassle. This is especially the case for those of us who take screenshots on an iPhone or iPad and want to use them on our Macs. I generally e-mail them to myself, but I won't be doing that any more.

A tip published on The Iconmaster website last week shows a nifty way to get near-immediate access to these files on your Mac. Here's what you need to do.

Make sure you have Photo Stream turned in on each of your iOS devices, as well as on your Mac.
Go to ~/Library/Application Support/iLifeAssetManagement/assets/sub. You'll see a bunch of subfolders with names like "013184d3f181aa175db7e48b08817861eff8cac25a".
Perform a search for .png files in this folder. Enter "png" in the search field; you'll see only the .png files, which are all the photos currently in your Photo Stream.
Save thi ...

Create an HTML e-mail signature on an iOS device

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 07:30:00 -0700

It is possible to create an HTML signature for Mail on an iOS device without jailbreaking that device.

For this to work you need a backup of your iOS device made via iTunes.

First, create your HTML signature in your favorite text editor. It is essential that you replace the HTML tag delimiters < and > with the appropriate HTML entities: < and >.

Next, run Then run iBackupBot, choose your latest backup, then look for /Library/Preferences/com.apple.mobilemail.plist. Click on this file to display it in the editor, and find the <SignatureKey> section.

Below it you will find tags; paste your HTML code between these tags (overwriting what is already there) and save the file.

Exit iBackupBot, then restore your iOS device via iTunes. (Click on the device in the iTunes source list, then Option-click on the Restore button and sele ...

iOS: Quickly skip ahead or back by month in iOS Calendar app

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 07:30:00 -0700

I recently needed to add an appointment to iCal that was a couple of years from now on my iPhone. I began tapping on the forward arrow but as that was getting tiring I thought I'd try keeping my finger pressed down on the arrow. I found that it quickly skips ahead by months, and it only took me a second to get to my desired date.

[kirkmc adds: This seems more useful to view a future date. To set an appointment, just tap and hold a date when in Month view, and you can then set the date from the Add Event dialog. Just tap on the Starts or Ends dates and set the date you want there. Or, if you are using an iPhone 4S, just use Siri.]

Set custom speed of iPad Picture Frame slideshows

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 07:30:00 -0700

The iPad settings let you only choose a few values for the slideshow speed setting: 2, 3, 5, 10 or 20 seconds. I prefer a slower change of pictures.

To be able to set custom values, you just have to edit the preference file "com.apple.pictureframe.plist" (in /var/mobile/Library/Preferences) and set the SecondsPerPhoto value.

Either with iFile (app freely available in Cydia, only for jailbroken iPads): you go to the "Preferences" place, scroll down to "com.apple.pictureframe.plist," touch the file icon and choose "Property List Viewer."

Or for non jailbroken iPads, you can use the Mac app iBackupBot to edit the file inside an iPad backup and restore.

I like using a value of 180 seconds per photo (= 3 minutes), but you can just set whatever you would like.

Replace carrier name with logo in iPhone status bar

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

I have always been annoyed by the carrier name taking up a lot of space at the top of my iPhone screen. A few days ago I found a way to insert the much smaller carrier logo without jailbreaking the device.

Just search Google for an IPCC file for your carrier and iOS 5. Download that, go to Terminal and type in the following line:

defaults write com.apple.iTunes carrier-testing -bool TRUE

Connect your iPhone to iTunes and click on "Check for updates" while pressing the Option key. Select the aforementioned IPCC file, and you're done. Unfortunately it seems that the same file cannot be used for an iPad; at least it didn't work for mine.

[kirkmc adds: I didn't test this, and I'd recommend prudence before making this change. There is a chance that this could cause problems with your iPhone. For more about these carrier files, see this Macworld article by Ted L ...

Connect an iPad 3 to an AppleTV via hotspot tethering

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

If you have a Verizon iPad 3 and an Apple TV 2 or 3, they can connect to each other, simply by using the built-in hotspot tethering. You don't need any pre-existing network, access point, or MyFi-type hotspot. They connect to each other directly and all AirPlay functionality (including full screen mirroring) is available.

I assume that if the content you share via AirPlay is stored locally on the iPad, it won't use up any of your data quota.

[kirkmc adds: I haven't tested this, as I only have a Wi-Fi iPad. I did try setting up a personal hotspot on my iPhone, and my Apple TV sees the network, and can connect to it. But I'm not sure if this wouldn't still use data, as I don't see how to disconnect from my cell carrier (turning on Airplane Mode cuts off the personal hotspot), and the phone is still connected via 3G. (Phones do work differently from iPads.) If anyone else can test this with an iPad, please post your results in the comments. ]

Continue using the iPhone while AirPlay streaming to Apple TV

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

Normally, when you stream video content from the BBC's iPlayer app, or similar apps, to the Apple TV via AirPlay, the iOS device displays a screen saying that the content is playing on the Apple TV, but as soon as you press the home button the stream ends. In other words the app has to be the frontmost running app for video AirPlay to work.

I found a way around this, by starting the stream in the iPlayer app, then switching to Apple's Remote app, and resuming playing. You can then control the AirPlay stream from the remote app instead, and return to the home screen, use other apps, and use the phone, while the stream keeps going.

I have tested this in UK with the BBC iPlayer app and the 4OD app.

[kirkmc adds: This didn't work for me, but I'm not in the UK. I don't think that should make a difference; I tried with a streaming TV app in France, where I live, but I would assume that this should work with any video app that can use AirPlay. Unfortunat ...

Change the user agent string on iOS Safari

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

When using Safari on an iOS device, web pages that have mobile versions will display those versions, because they parse the user agent string sent by the browser. In general, this is a Good Thing, but you may want to see full web pages, and not the reduced mobile versions.

A blog post on the Technipages website explains a way to do this. It involves downloading a program called iBackupBot, altering a file in your iOS device's backup, then restoring it. It's a bit of work, but if you really want to view full web pages with an iOS device, you might want to try it out.

[kirkmc adds: I haven't tested this, and I don't do enough web browsing on my iOS devices to need this. It's true that some sites minimize their content when you access them from a mobile device, but in most cases, this isn't a problem for me.]

Drag and drop to install items on iOS devices

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

You can drag items from your iTunes library to your iOS devices and they will automatically start syncing and installing. In addition to copying the item(s) you drag, a full sync is initiated. This occurs when your iOS device is set to automatically sync; you don't need to have it set for manual syncing for this to happen.

[kirkmc adds: Hmm... is this really new? I had never heard of this, but It's certainly useful. The hint submitted was about syncing apps, but when I tried other items, they installed as well. When I dragged an album, it synced, and when I checked the Music tab in iTunes, that album was checked in the list of albums. This is actually a very good way of syncing items to an iOS device. Instead of dealing with checking and unchecking boxes on the different tabs, you can just drag what you want to your device. This is different from a manual sync, where you only drag items; this retains automatic syncing, yet still allows you to add items to the device ...

Unexpected source of iPhone battery drain

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0700

Battery life with my iPhone 4S was very poor, and I finally discovered why: I'm using a battery extender case. The problem is that the phone considers that the case is a source of AC power, so if have iTunes Wi-Fi sync on - which only operates when your phone is plugged in - you'll be syncing more than you might expect, since your phone is technically plugged in.

The solution is to either turn off Wi-Fi sync, or use an external battery pack that has an on-off switch so that you can control when it is actually sending current to the phone.

[kirkmc adds: I guess this makes sense. Apple says that Wi-Fi sync occurs when "The iOS device is plugged in to power." But this should only occur if two other conditions are met: "iTunes is open on the computer," and "The iOS device and the computer are on the same Wi-Fi network." So I would think that if you're not on the same network as your Mac, then nothing should hap ...

Access camera without unlocking iOS devices

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0800

A new feature in iOS 5.1 is the ability to access the camera without unlocking your iPhone or iPod touch (if you have a passcode set). To do this, press the home button, and to the right of the Slide to Unlock slider, you'll see a camera icon. The first times I tried, I couldn't figure out how this worked; I tapped the icon, but the screen just slid up a bit, then bounced back down. You need to slide the screen up, while dragging the camera icon, to access the camera.

Once you've done this, you can take pictures as you wish. In the bottom-left corner of the window is a small gallery icon, which lets you see your photos from your current session (you can't access other photos.)

You can go back to the lock screen by swiping down from the top of the screen, or proceed to the passcode entry screen by pressing the home button.

Note: this works with the iPhone and iPod touch, but not the iPad 2.

New poll: will you buy an iPad 3?

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:31:00 -0800

As you probably know, Apple announced the "new iPad," or iPad (third generation), yesterday. What do you think about it? Are you going to rush out and pre-order one? Are you definitely not buying one? Or are you on the fence?

Make your voice heard. Vote in the iPad 3 poll, and feel free to post any comments you have about the new iPad on that page.

Remove completed items from Reminders list

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 07:30:00 -0800

When I tap the checkboxes next to items in your Reminders list to mark them complete, I usually want them to go away, so I don't have to scroll up and down, especially when I have a long list of things to do or buy.

To quickly force the marked items to move into the Completed section I noticed that if I slightly swipe to left or right so that part of the next or previous Reminders list appears, then release so that I stay in my current list, the completed items get moved over, and only the uncompleted ones remain.

Use your iPhone/iPad as portable lightbox

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 07:29:00 -0800

In a recent hint it was mentioned that you could use your laptop as a lightbox for tracing artwork. Even better, you can trace on an iOS device, such as an iPad, with apps like Photoshop or Illustrator, if you want to trace something.

Using a screen forwarding utility like Air Display, you can use your iOS device as a secondary monitor for your desktop Mac. Simply drag your Illustrator/Photoshop/whatever window to that display, and you can walk around and trace whatever artwork you have displayed on the iOS screen. It servers as both the lightbox and the source artwork in one.

[kirkmc adds: I would be much more likely to do this with an iPad than a laptop, because of the iPad's glass screen. I guess you could even do this on an iPhone, if your art is very small.]

iOS 5: Landscape orientation lock

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 07:30:00 -0800

I just upgraded my iPhone 3GS to iOS 5, and played around looking for improvements.

Exploring the assistive touch panel, I found the 'rotate screen' options work also when portrait orientation is locked. Effectively, we can select any of the 4 possible orientations, and it will stay locked while moving and rotating the device. Switching apps will cause a reset to default portrait orientation.

While a bit complicated to reach, this will still be useful. I'm hoping for a shortcut or dedicated way to activate, like quad-clicking the Home button to rotate right, for example. I like the triple-click to activate white-on-black, for a basic night mode.

All of these and more options are available under Settings » General » Accessibility and enabling 'AssistiveTouch.'

[crarko adds: There are indeed a lot of useful settings in there. Explore them. It looked slightly different on the iPad, and the 3GS may have different settings ...

iOS 5: Deleting music on the device

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:30:00 -0800

I've always wondered how to delete music off of an iOS device running 5.0.x, which can be a pain what with iCloud downloading music to your iOS device, and then adding the same song a second time when syncing with iTunes.

When in the Music app on the iOS device just swipe like you would for deleting basically anything on an iOS device and you'll get the option to delete the song. If you have a bunch of songs you want to delete this will take some time to to but at least now you wouldn't have duplicates thanks to the new features of iCloud downloading the song and then iTunes syncing another copy of the song on the same device.

[crarko adds: The standard method for deleting line items in iOS comes to music.]

iOS: Temporarily hide a mail/calendar account at will

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 07:30:00 -0800

I have (somewhat reluctantly) configured my iPhone to receive my work email. This account uses Exchange (Active Sync). But when I'm home on the weekends or away on vacation I really, REALLY do not want to have my work email in my face.

The solution? Go into the iPhone's Settings » Mail, Contacts, Calendars » [Email Account] And turn 'Mail' Off. All of that account's email mailboxes disappear from my iPhone, never to alert me of what I have coming to me on Monday morning. But when I turn it back on, it's all right there - right where I left off. Very handy.

The same can be done for Calendars. I have not tested it with Contacts, but that may work, too.

[crarko adds: This works with any system where the primary data repository resides on the server; Exchange, IMAP, CalDAV. Just be patient while the app resynchronizes the data. I've use this as a troubleshooting technique, but this hint is also a clever idea.]

Using S/MIME on iOS Devices

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 07:30:00 -0800

I've recently written a blog post on using S/MIME with iOS devices. I've found that settings things up isn't entirely straight-forward so I've documented what I needed to do to make it work.

The article explains how to set up your iPhone or iPad to send and receive encrypted emails via S/MIME. The prerequisite is an S/MIME certificate from a certificate authority. Some CAs provide them free for personal use. The procedure is not very complicated even though the description may look lengthy due to the many screenshots. The biggest hurdle is to pick the correct file format when exporting your S/MIME key on your Mac.

The key is to export the certificate in Personal Information Exchange (.p12) format. These can then be imported to iOS.

Outline of the set-up for receiving encrypted e ...