Ramblings of a Programmer

I had a situation tonight where Mail was crashing on my Power Mac when I tried to launch it and check my mail. I have several email accounts setup and I could see that it was coming up and trying to show the last message that I was viewing in my Gmail account before I closed it previously. Just afterwards, it would crash.
After several times of trying to launch Mail and clicking on a different mailbox to no avail, I started poking around in my ~/Library to see if I could find anything. I came across ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.mail.plist.
At the top of the preferences file is a string named AccountInfoLastSelectedAccountId. I soon discovered that the mailbox ID that this was pointing to matched the uniqueid for my Gmail account under MailAccounts. So, I copied the uniqueid string from my primary mailbox to the AccountInfoLastSelectedAccountId field. I saved the preferences file and relaunched Mail.
Unfortunately, my happiness turned to disappointment not too long afterward, because it died again just as it had been doing. So, I went back to the pref file for Mail and poked around some more. This time, I came across an array field named SelectedMailboxes which is in the first dictionary under the ActiveViewers array field.
I noticed that the string value for the first selected mailbox pointed to my Gmail account. This time, I copied the mailbox account string for my primary mailbox and replaced this string in the SelectedMailboxes section.
I saved the preferences file, relaunched Mail, and to my joy, it is working without crashing again.
Just a note, please make a backup of a .plist file before editing it. This way, if you make a mistake, you will have the original copy to revert back to.
Hopefully this tip will help someone in the future who might have this same problem.

Technorati Tags: Apple, OS X, Mail, Tiger

Well, it is almost time for the start of MacWorld Expo and Steve Jobs' keynote speech. I am eagerly waiting to see what Steve pulls out of his pocket today. Will it be a new iBook or Powerbook? Will we get a new media management device for our living room? Only time will tell and I guess we will find out in a few hours.

Technorati Tags: Apple, MacWorld Expo, Steve Jobs

Could we be one step away to new Apple hardware containing Intel processors? MacWorld starts next Monday, January 9th. It is quite possible that on that date, Steve Jobs will talk about new Apple computers based on the new processors that Intel debuted at CES today.
Intel announced their new Centrino Duo mobile technology. It should increase battery life and improve performance on wireless laptops. Along with this, Intel introduced its Core Duo processor. It is a dual core CPU that supports the Centrino Duo technology.
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Technorati Tags: Apple, Intel, Centrino, CES

It looks like Steve Jobs has finally come up against something that he cannot conquer, preservationists and the court system. Back in 1984, Mr. Jobs purchased a Spanished Colonial Revival home that had been designed by the architect George Washingon Smith for Daniel Jackling, who formed the Utah Copper Co.

Jobs' attempts to demolish the home have hit a snag when a court judge ruled that the town improperly granted him a demolition permit last year. Preservationists say that the home should be protected, because it is historcal.

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Technorati Tags: Steve Jobs, preservation

Here is wishing you and yours a very happy and safe 2006!