Problems after installing the Apple Catalina OS update. What did it do for me ?

I installed Catalina yesterday on my MacBook Pro. Written 9 October 2019 by Phil Whitten

I have not found any new features that work for, or are of any use to me. In fact the reverse.

Firstly it did take a couple of hours to install.

It is a wholly 64 bit OS and that may mean that it is more secure. However as such it will not run any 32 bit programs.

I knew that I had and used some of these old programs and so I had a choice of remaining with the existing OS or biting the bullet and keeping the device up to date.

After the update my FTP program, Picasa, Photoshop elements, my special text editor for xml files, etc. did not work. I did know that this would happen one day but it was a bit of a shock when that day arrived. I have had to pay for some new software.

None of the new built in stuff is of any use to me and in the main you need paid for subscriptions to use it anyway.

One feature that I had a feeling may be of vague use was Sidecar. This allows you to use an iPad as a second screen under some circumstances. However it only works on recent laptops and not mine (mid 2015).

The new OS took up more of my drive and as it is SSD it was already getting a bit low.

I ran the “About this mac” feature and then looked at storage. It told me that I had a staggering 157.65GB of storage being used by mail.

I then spent a few hours trying to delete old emails and remove old attachments but after hours of effort, the memory use was showing as exactly the same.

There were loads of red herrings on the Apple website and these listed things to do to save space. I did them but still the memory use did not budge.

I started using other methods to determine the size of my Gmail. When looking on Google I could see that I was using about 11GB of space.

Then I started using Finder to see if I could see where all the memory was being gobbled up on the laptop. Eventually I found it.

If you use gmail but under the apple mail umbrella it save multiple drafts of every email in a folder called Drafts.mbox. This had loads of sub folders in it and those folders consumed over 130 GB of memory. I deleted the sub folders and then emptied the waste bin. It deleted about 1.5 million files and suddenly my mail folder usage is reported as 320 MB rather than 157 GB.

So the only things achieved for me is to have a fully 64bit OS and the need to learn how to use some new software that I have purchased.

2018 Sydney photos of note

I have taken some photos around Sydney this year.
You can see them at http://sydneyview.com/staticphotos.html

I am currently renting a place in Gallimore Avenue at Balmain East.

It seem to be quite a windy spot.

Been quiet for a while

I have been back in Sydney for a month and have another six months to go. Although a lot has been happening I must admit to doing very little in the way of posts.
In fact I was here earlier in the year for just over four months on that occasion. I took the opportunity to visit New Zealand for a couple of weeks and the highlight of the trip for me was when I was a passenger in a two seater glider (Duo Discus) and we went on a four hour flight from Omarama to above Mount Cook and back.

I did video the whole trip and there are various length versions of the video on my YouTube channel peeewit. Glider flight video
I also had a quadcopter with me and uploaded a few videos of that too.

On this trip I will be watching some cricket matches with both the Ashes (men and women's) plus some Big Bash matches.

I also have a number of visits to local places in mind.

Luckily I live just across the harbour from the Opera House and so often see this view from the ferry.

As much as I would like to be a citizen and come and go to Australia when I like, in fact I return to the UK each year as my mum is now 95 years old and I need to visit her. So for the moment I need to keep within the requirements of my residents visa and clock up 24 months of residency within a five year period. This is my second five year term as an Australian resident.

Until the next time. 

Still sunny in Melbourne

The weather in Melbourne has been mostly sunshine but we have had some cloudy mornings. At least we have not had too many days where it has plus 40C temperatures one day and sub 20C the next.

The prep for the F1 Grand Prix is well under way. They started work about eight weeks prior to raceday.

You can still walk around the Albert Park lake.

I hope that this year the cars have a louder engine note and sound less like somebody pushing around a sewing machine that is on a tea trolley. Maybe the tyres will allow faster racing and last a bit longer too. I get fed up with drivers not being able to race as they do not have enough fuel or tyre tread to let them push.

A nearby office block

My street.

 

This Colonial building is rather swamped by the modern block over it.

The drivers here seem to have a problem with road signs. They either ignore them or drive over them.

I went for a walk along the coastline from St Kilda to Brighton Beach and so these apartments for boats.

The view ahead.

Plenty of room on the beach

A handy train station for getting back to the CBD.

Beach huts at Brighton

I went on a wine tasting tour in the Yarra valley. While most places had their wine in oak barrels, at Chandon it was all stainless steel. They make the Aussy equivalent of Champagne.

On the Chandon estate.

In amongst the vines

Driving around the Yarra Valley

This is Kangaroo territory

Emergency Medical Service Helicopter taking off from the Alfred Hospital.

My apartment block

 

Black and White terriors by the Yarra River

At the Australian Henley Regatta

I went to watch Prahran CC women 1st's v Box Hill

Chance for a catch

Jess Cameron opened for Prahran and made most of the runs to claim the win and was not out.

There was White Night in Melbourne CBD

Fed Square

It was quite crowded. Apparently the best time to visit was 3am. I went in the evening instead.

By the Princes Bridge.

The catch fencing is now installed along Lakeside Drive

I went on a flight in a Cessna 172 around the bay with a couple of orbits over the CBD.

Just after takeoff from Essendon with the CBD ahead.

I did some flying over the training area and then the instructor took over while I took some photos. My PPL has just about lapsed.

Over Albert Park Lake

The C172 control panel

I can see where I live in this shot

The sky was slightly hazy.

The Yarra and the MCG

Docklands

The Yarra

Time to leave the city

On approach to the runway

The Cessna C172R back on the ramp

Another coastline walk, this time to Black Rock Point.

Lunchtime view

More colourful beach huts

Heading back towards Sandringham Beach.

 

I will be going back to the UK in April so I need to make the most of my remaining weeks here.

It is a shame that Google have scrapped the Picasa Web Albums because it makes doing this photo blog much harder.

Peewit