Apple 提供蝴蝶鍵盤免費維修 (全球性)

翻到文章的最後面可以看到「Information as of 2019-05-21」,不過剛剛才在 Hacker News 上看到這則消息:「Apple's service program for butterfly keyboard MacBooks, even out of warranty (support.apple.com)」,官方網站的說明在「Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro」這邊:

Apple has determined that a small percentage of the keyboards in certain MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro models may exhibit one or more of the following behaviors:

  • Letters or characters repeat unexpectedly
  • Letters or characters do not appear
  • Key(s) feel "sticky" or do not respond in a consistent manner

Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider will service eligible MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro keyboards, free of charge. The type of service will be determined after the keyboard is examined and may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard.

機型從 MacBook (Retina, 12-­inch, Early 2015) 到最近的都有,可以從系統選單上面看到。時間上只要是售出四年內都包含在內,而且先前如果有因為鍵盤維修的也可以試著申請退費:

This worldwide Apple program does not extend the standard warranty coverage of your Mac notebook.

If you believe your Mac notebook was affected by this issue, and you paid to have your keyboard repaired, you can contact Apple about a refund.

The program covers eligible MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro models for 4 years after the first retail sale of the unit.

Raspberry Pi 4 的 Type C 無法使用 Macbook Charger 供電的問題

Raspberry Pi 4 出來後有些災情 (畢竟又加了不少東西近去),在 Hacker News 上看到的 Type C 介面的充電問題:「Raspberry Pi 4 not working with some chargers (scorpia.co.uk)」,引用的原文可以在「Pi4 not working with some chargers (or why you need two cc resistors)」這邊看到,裡面提到了新的 Type C 供電介面在接某些充電器時不會供電 (包括了 Macbook 的充電器):

The new pi has been released and it has a USB Type-C connector for power however people are finding some chargers are not working with it (notably macbook chargers). Some have speculated that this is due to a manufacturer limitation on the power supplies however it is actually due to the incorrect detection circuitry on the Pi end of the USB connection.

這樣說有點偏頗,但是 Macbook 的充電器一向是 Type C 裡的指標,如果這顆充電器跟其他裝置配合上有問題,通常都是代表其他裝置的實作有問題... (噗)

這次發現的電阻問題看起來有點苦 (看起來需要改版子),目前文章作者建議的 workaround 主要就是「不要用那麼好的設備」,比較簡單的包括了 Type C 的線不要那麼好 (像是找充手機用的線就好,不要找拿可以跑 5A 的線),或是透過 Type A 轉 Type C 的線也應該可以避開這個問題,最差的情況應該是找其他的充電器:

Now onto some solutions. Assuming the issue you are having is caused by the problem discussed above, using a non e-marked cable (most USB-C phone charger cables are likely this type) rather than an e-marked cable (many laptop charger/thunderbolt cables and any 5A capable cable will be in this category) will allow for the pi to be powered. In addition using older chargers with A-C cables or micro B to C adaptors will also work if they provide enough power as these don’t require CC detection to provide power. Ultimately though the best solution in the long run will be for there to be a board revision for the pi 4 which adds the 2nd CC resistor and fixes the problem.

對於已經入手的人,如果真的中獎,workaround cost 應該還在可以控制的範圍...

謠言說蘋果要將蝴蝶鍵盤退役...

9to5Mac 的報導說 Apple 要改用剪刀式的設計:「Kuo: Apple to include new scissor switch keyboard in 2019 MacBook Air and 2020 MacBook Pro」。

取自「File:Scissor switch mechanism.svg」這頁。

Apple is apparently set to ditch the butterfly mechanism used in MacBooks since 2015, which has been the root of reliability issues and its low-travel design has also not been popular with many Mac users.

In a report published today, Ming-Chi Kuo says that Apple will roll out a new keyboard design based on scissor switches, offering durability and longer key travel, starting with the 2019 MacBook Air. The MacBook Pro is also getting the new scissor switch keyboard, but not until 2020.

還沒真的放出來前都不能確認...

修正 Mac 外接螢幕的 Underscan 問題

公司的 MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports) 透過 HDMI 接 Dell P2419H 一直都有 Underscan 的問題:


出自「About overscan and underscan on your Mac, Apple TV, or other display

本來想透過 Underscan slide 修改 (像是下面這張圖),但發現系統內沒有 Underscan slide。


出自「About overscan and underscan on your Mac, Apple TV, or other display

找了不少文章後後來是在「Fixing Issues with Overscan/Underscan(Black Borders) on macOS」這篇的 comment 看到解法:

Ran into this same underscan problem with black borders showing up on my new Dell 24-inch Ultrasharp U2415 connected to a 2013 Macbook Air running High Sierra, and after hours of looking into the problem the fix turned out to be super simple:

Just restart in Safe Mode.

That’s it. Restart your Mac in Safe Mode (restart, hold down the Shift key after the Apple BONG sounds, then restart normally once again for good measure. I don’t know what this clears or resets but it worked for me. No more letterboxing or black borders with the native 1920×1200 resolution selected.

So maybe something to try first for anyone coming across this post.

照著重開進 Safe mode 後再開回一般模式就正常了 (what???),先記錄起來,讓我之後遇到時可以搜尋到自己的文章...

配合 Touch ID 的 sudo

大概是新的 Macbook 出來後想出來的點子?透過 Touch ID 驗證 sudo 權限:「A fork of `sudo` with Touch ID support.」。

sudo-touchid is a fork of sudo with Touch ID support on macOS (powered by the LocalAuthentication framework). Once compiled, it will allow you to authenticate sudo commands with Touch ID in the Terminal on supported Macs (such as the late 2016 MacBook Pros).

這點子好像還不錯 XDDD

MBPR 觸控板壓力回饋失效的問題

Short Version:遇到這個問題,只要把作業系統從 10.10 更新到 10.12 就好了:「Mac Users Reporting Widespread System Freezes With OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 Update」。


之前 MBPR 在過保後掛過一次送修 (常常無法開機,開起來後鍵盤與觸控板都沒有反應),當時把鍵盤與觸控板都換掉... 結果前幾天發生觸控板的壓力回饋失效的問題 (還是可以移動滑鼠游標與輕觸),但這幾天要去日本,想帶著處理事情,就先上 24h 買個 Magic Mouse 2 應急 (用 lightning 充電的那個版本,被嘲笑很醜的那個 XD)。

買回來後發現 Magic Mouse 2 的多點觸控與電量資訊沒有顯示在系統裡,翻了資料才發現要 10.11 之後的版本:

Bluetooth-enabled Mac computer with OS X v10.11 or later

耐著性子升級想說出國前至少把問題解決一些,升完後發現觸控板的回饋就回來了... 然後查資料發現是系統的 bug 造成的:

The freeze seems to affect not only the screen and mouse cursor but also the Mac's Force Touch trackpad, which completely loses feedback.

好吧就這樣吧 orz

所以 Apple 也開始玩自動下載新版作業系統這招了...

在「Apple starts downloading MacOS Sierra automatically to your MacBook — Here's How to Stop It」這邊看到 Apple 會自動下載新版作業系統,大約吃 5GB 的流量愈空間:

If you have automatic downloads enabled on your Mac, a large file of around 5GB will mysteriously be downloaded to your computer in the background, using your Internet bandwidth for unrequested files.

關掉的方式在這邊:

To disable the feature, you can head on to System Preferences → App Store → Automatically check for updates and then uncheck "Download newly available updates in the background."

打破實體隔離限制傳遞資訊

GitHub 上的 fulldecent/system-bus-radio 這個專案可以打破實體隔離限制傳遞資訊:

Some computers are intentionally disconnected from the rest of the world. This includes having their internet, wireless, bluetooth, USB, external file storage and audio capabilities removed. This is called "air gapping". Even in such a situation, this program can transmit radio.

有些電腦因為種種因素而實體隔離 (像是因為安全因素,或是保密因素),於是就有人研究各種方法傳遞資訊。這隻程式利用 system bus 在 Macbook Air 上產生 AM radio 訊號:

And run it on an Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2015):

./main

Then use a Sony STR-K670P radio receiver with the included antenna and tune it to 1580 kHz on AM.

這方法好硬... 但也證明了可以藉由這種方法傳遞訊息。

Update:強者我同事 ccnTwitter 上找到一位日本人的 demo 影片: