Mac doesn't typically get configured with a root account. But if your's has been, you can open a terminal window, su, and you can view any files that exist (try man ls for options). In any case, there are typically administrator accounts or at least administrator privileges. Once you determine the administrator account, you can use terminal to su to that account (again, check man su for options).
Finally, since you're looking for files that you've created, you needn't even have administrator privileges. Simply open a terminal window, and use ls to find the files you're looking for.
Raymond Kolbe
-----Original Message-----
From: java-dev-bounces+rkolbe=email@hidden on behalf of Magnobaldo Hermenogildo
Sent: Sun 10/21/2007 7:11 PM
To: Greg Guerin
Cc: email@hidden
Subject: Re: Mac Backup (OFF-TOPIC)
Thanks, Greg!
I have tried some, as Backup (but has a limit of 100MB because I'm
not a .Mac user), iBackup and some others I don't remember. These two
I liked more, although I'm not secure about iBackup file selections
(I always think there's something outside the folders it selects).
Most of them have profiles for iLife, but how about the "not so
common" ones? For example, Adium.
In fact, I thought about making myself a backup software and that's
why I'm interested on more.
Thank you!
(Just one more question: how about the folders Finder doesn't show
us? If I log as root can I see them? Is there any way I can see them?)
On Oct 21, 2007, at 7:43 PM, Greg Guerin wrote:
> Magnobaldo Hermenogildo wrote:
>
>> Hello. I'm new to Mac and I wanted to know how can I know the
>> folders my
>> programs use so I can backup it. ...
>> I think if I knew all the folder a program may use I got it.
>
> Use google to search for Mac backup software, then use the program you
> like. If you don't know which one you like, use google to search for
> reviews of Mac backup software.
>
> The usual strategy for a backup program is to scan all folders for
> anything
> that has been modified since the previous backup. If there was no
> previous
> backup, the program backs up everything. At each backup, the
> program keeps
> modified-dates and other info about each file when it was backed
> up, or it
> has a single timestamp of the last backup and backs up everthing
> modified
> after that. Certain dirs are excluded from this scan, either
> because it
> would be wrong to back them up (e.g. /dev or /Volumes), or because
> you've
> told it you don't want to backup anything in that folder.
>
> You can't just backup folders you know about, because the Finder
> doesn't
> show all folders.
>
>
>> How can these "deleter" softwares know the folders they have to
>> delete
>> when uninstalling a software?
>
> An undeleter either uses an app's installer receipt (in /Library/
> Receipts),
> or it knows about a specific app it's undeleting, or it looks at
> the hard
> drive before and after an install and deletes anything different.
>
> Instead of trying to figure it out yourself, you should just use a
> backup
> program or a deleter program (depending on what you want to do).
> That way,
> someone who knows more about it has already figured it out and
> encapsulated
> it in software. Why become on an expert on something when you can use
> software that is already an expert at solving the problem?
>
> Also, Time Machine in 10.5 Leopard will do some things that are
> like backup
> programs, and other things that are like deleter programs. You may
> want to
> wait for its release (26 Oct), to at least find out what it can
> do. There
> may even be a Time Machine mailing list after release, so you could
> ask
> questions about it there.
>
> -- GG
>
>
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