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Open GUI programs as a fast-switched-out user
Authored by: SPOOF on Apr 19, '04 09:37:45AM

Even with just ssh into a box, you can do this.
Rather than ./Applications/iTunes.app
you just have to do:
./Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunes
This will run iTunes on that system until you control-c...I use this when I forget to start up iTunes on my server, and I want to access my library from the other room.

You can, alternately, also abuse this same ability to have applications running on YOUR screen as a different user.
Open up the terminal and simply type "su user -" where user is the short name of the user you want running the application. The - means to use their directory structures and prefs, rather than yours, so make sure that's there if you want, for example, to run iTunes with a library of somebody else on your machine. It will ask for the password of that user. Then simply follow the above instructions and it'll launch iTunes as that user.

As a side note, different applications behave differently. Some will detach immediately and only allow one instance, your own. Others will run multiple versions from multiple users on your screen, but any time you try to drag and drop to the doc, you will always get your OWN user variant of it, you'll have to use the open command inside the application in order to use that one (for example, to run VLC multiple times as different users). Some Applications can be run with multiple instances like this as well. Your mileage will vary based on the application.

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