Guide - Part 5: Applications and Processes

Question 1

What are the requirements for purchasing applications via the Mac App Store?

Answer 1

The requirements to purchase items from the Mac App Store are Mac OS X v10.6.6 or later, an Apple ID, and an Internet connection.

Question 2

In the Mac App Store, how can you verify which Apple ID is being used for purchases?

Answer 2

In the Mac App Store, you can view the current Apple ID by selecting Store from the menu bar. You can get more details about this Apple ID by choosing View My Account in the same menu.

Question 3

What are the four primary application environments supported by OS X? Which ones require an additional download and installation?

Answer 3

The four primary application environments supported by OS X are:

• Native OS X applications, which are created using Cocoa
• UNIX applications, which are primarily accessed via
Terminal
• Java applications, which work as cross-platform applications
• X Window System applications, which run inside the popular UNIX windowing environment
OS X doesn’t include the Java application or X Window System runtime, so they must be downloaded and installed after the initial OS X installation.

Question 4

What are the advantages of application sandboxing?

Answer 4

Sandboxed applications are allowed access only to specific items. They’re otherwise completely cut off from the rest of the system so they can’t cause harm. All Mac App Store applications are required to be sandboxed.

Question 5

What are the advantages of code signing?

Answer 5

Code-signed items include a digital signature that the system can use to verify the authenticity and integrity of the application or process and its resources.

Question 6

Which items fall under the file quarantine system?

Answer 6

Any item downloaded using one of the built-in OS X applications will be marked for quarantine. Third-party applications may not mark downloaded items for quarantine.

Question 7

Which three security options does the Gatekeeper system allow? Which Gatekeeper option is the OS X default?

Answer 7

Gatekeeper can restrict software to Mac App Store applications only, or Mac App Store and identified developer applications only (this is the default option), or any application regardless of origin.

Question 8

What are the two primary traditional installation methods in OS X?

Answer 8

Traditional installation methods are generally categorized as either a drag-and-drop installation, where the user simply copies the application to the local system, or as an installation package, where an installer process places the items on the local system.

Question 9

Which three methods can be used to uninstall applications?

Answer 9

Three methods for uninstalling applications include:

• Open Launchpad, hold down the Option key, and click the
X button

• In the Finder, drag the primary application to the Trash and then empty the Trash
• Use a custom-built uninstaller package

Question 10

In OS X, what’s used to identify the type of application that should open when you double-click a document?

Answer 10

OS X uses a document’s filename extension to determine the document’s type. The Launch Services process maintains a database of installed applications and which document types they’re capable of opening.

Question 11

How do you engage Quick Look? Which applications support it?

Answer 11

Quick Look is engaged by simply pressing the Space bar when a document is selected. Applications that support Quick Look include the Finder, Time Machine, Mail, and most open and save browser dialogs.

Question 12

What technology enables Quick Look to preview so many file types?

Answer 12

Quick Look uses a number of plug-ins that give it the capability to preview documents. These plug-ins live in Quick Look folders in any Library folder on OS X.

Question 13

What’s Auto Save? How can you identify an application that supports Auto Save?

Answer 13

Auto Save allows compatible OS X applications to automatically save changes to users’ documents. A user just saves a document once, then never has to think about saving changes again. Applications that support Auto Save feature a Duplicate function in the File menu as opposed to a default Save As function.

Question 14

How deep is the version history of a file when shared via email?

Answer 14

Documents sent via email or otherwise copied to a shared location don’t retain any version history.

Question 15

Which applications can manage document locking?

Answer 15

Any application that supports Auto Save and the Finder can manage document locking.

Question 16

Which ability is lost when you upgrade an older iCloud

account to use iCloud Drive?

Answer 16

When an older iCloud account is upgraded to use iCloud Drive, you lose the ability to directly access documents from versions of OS X earlier than Yosemite and versions of iOS before iOS 8. Older systems can still access items in iCloud Drive from the iCloud website: www.icloud.com.

Question 17

Where can you access items saved in iCloud Drive?

Answer 17

iCloud Drive items are available in the Finder or in any application that uses the standard OS X Open or Save dialogs.

Question 18

Where do you save documents in iCloud Drive if you want to access them from an iOS device?

Answer 18

iOS 8 devices can access documents in iCloud Drive only if they’re saved in specific application folders. For example, Pages for iOS can access Pages documents only if they’re stored in the Pages folder in iCloud Drive.

Question 19

Where can you adjust application Auto Save and Resume options?

Answer 19

You can deselect the option to “Reopen windows when logging back in” from the logout verification dialog. You can deselect the option to “Close windows when quitting an application” from General preferences. Also from General preferences, you can select the option to “Ask to keep changes when closing documents,” which turns off the Auto Save feature.

Question 20

What’s protected memory? What’s 64-bit memory addressing?

Answer 20

The system keeps applications from interfering with one another by segregating their memory usage using protected memory. Mac computers with 64-bit-capable processors allow processes to run in 64-bit mode, which allows them to individually access more than 4GB of memory.

Question 21

Why would you want to open an application in 32-bit mode?

Answer 21

Using the Finder Info window, you can force an application to open in 32-bit mode. This step is necessary for a 64-bit application to support older 32-bit plug-ins or application resources.

Question 22

App Extensions in OS X Yosemite can add which four types of capabilities?

Answer 22

In OS X Yosemite, app extensions allow features from an application to extend into the Finder, the Sharing menu, the Action menu, and the Today view in Notification Center.

Question 23

How do you install new app extensions? Once they’re installed, how do you manage app extension visibility?

Answer 23

App extensions are installed automatically because they’re bundled inside the application that’s providing the extension. You can enable or disable installed app extensions from the Extensions preferences.

Question 24

How can you identify which applications are installed on your Mac?

Answer 24

You can use the System Information application to easily scan all the appropriate application locations and return a list of installed applications.

Question 25

Which application is used to examine open applications on OS X?

Answer 25

The Activity Monitor application is used to monitor open processes and applications.

Question 26

Which steps should you take when troubleshooting application issues?

Answer 26

General application troubleshooting steps include restarting the application, trying another known working document, trying another user account, checking log files, deleting cache files, replacing preference files, and replacing application resources.

Question 27

Which three ways can you forcibly quit an application from the graphical interface?

Answer 27

The three ways to forcibly quit an application from the graphical interface are from the Force Quit Application dialog accessed from the Apple menu, from the Dock application shortcut menu accessed by Control-clicking or right-clicking the application’s icon, or from the /Applications/Utilities/ Activity Monitor application.

Question 28

What does the diagnostic reporting feature do?

Answer 28

The diagnostic reporting feature automatically creates a diagnostic report log any time an application crashes or hangs. The diagnostic report log can be viewed immediately, reported to Apple via the Internet, or viewed later in the / Applications/Utilities/Console application.

Question 29

Where are application preferences stored?

Answer 29

Application preferences are almost always stored in the user’s Library folder in the ~/Library/Preferences folder. Newer sandboxed applications must always store their preferences in a ~/Library/Containers//Data/Library/ Preferences folder, where “” is the unique bundle identifier for the application.

Question 30

Which file format is often used for preference files? How can you view the content of this type of file?

Answer 30

Most application preferences are property lists, which are XML-formatted files that use the “.plist” filename extension. The content of these files can be viewed using Quick Look,
and edited using the Xcode development application found on the Mac App Store.