Stepping down from Admin in Mac OS X

If you’re planning to reinstall OS X or move all your data over to a new account after hearing about how an OS X installer package can gain root access without a password, then don’t. There’s an easy way to turn your admin account into a standard account that is detailed on Mac Geekery. The steps are as follows (taken from the Mac Geekery post):

• Make a new user. Call it admin (or flyingmonkey, whatever).
• Make it an admin.
• Logout or FUS to the new admin user and strip your user of administrative rights.
• Logout of the new admin.

This exploit/feature is also discussed by Adam Knight on this week’s Mac Break Weekly.

New MacBook

A follow up to my post on Apple Support in Taiwan - the New MacBook arrived on thursday in a swap-out for the first one. So far everything is fine, I can’t fault it (hopefully I didn’t just jinx myself). This thing has to be one of the best purchases i’ve made, after putting 2gigs of RAM in here it is so fast. I just have to get a 2.5″ 120GB SATA HD now, which is proving hard for some reason. If you have an Intel based Mac don’t forget to check out Parallels. Now I just hope Apple doesn’t release a Core 2 Duo based MacBook so soon

Apple Support in Taiwan

A bit of advice for anyone needing after-sales suport for a web-ordered Apple product in Taiwan - Don’t call the number listed on their site, call 02-273-83242 ext. 419. This is supposedly their head office in Taipei. After calling the contact phone number listed on www.apple.com.tw/store I was bounced around a few reps in China and received little help before being given this number.

It seems as if there is one person responsible for web orders for the whole of Taiwan, maybe something to do with the recent job cuts. I got decent service from the Taipei office and arranged a swap out for my new MacBook (which should arrive very soon - update to follow).

Update - The new Macbook has arrived and so far everything is all good.