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How to Pair an Apple Wireless Mouse Without a Mouse

December 15, 2013 //

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(This just happened to me, so in case it happens to you, I leave this here.)

Let’s assume you unpaired your Apple magic mouse/wireless mouse and you have no USB mouse, but you do have a keyboard that talks to your computer.

Go to your preferred Terminal application. If you’re not there already, press SHIFT-CMD-A to open the Applications folder. Press Tab on your keyboard to go into the Applications window. Start typing the name of your terminal application. Once it’s highlighted, press CMD-O to open the application. And then…

The command line becomes your friend:
open /System/Library/CoreServices/Bluetooth\ Setup\ Assistant.app

That should pop open the Bluetooth Setup Assistant.

Make sure your mouse has power and that it’s turned on. The Setup Assistant should find the mouse. Click “Continue” and the OS will pair with your mouse. Voilà.

If you’ve never used your keyboard to navigate through your system, first, congratulations for somehow making it to this post. Then:

From the mouseless computer, CMD+Space to get to Spotlight, then type Terminal.

From Terminal, type:
open /System/Library/CoreServices/Bluetooth\ Setup\ Assistant.app

Then connect as above. This will work for any Bluetooth device recognized by the Apple OS.

Categories Tips + Techniques

Privacy Is Not Dead, But…

May 2, 2010 //
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Today marks the start of Privacy Week. It’s timely, given the reaction to Facebook’s Open Graph announcement a couple weeks ago.

As we become more dependent on digital interconnectedness to stay in the know, it’s important to consider the data trail we leave behind — and not just on social networks. Earlier this year, President Obama signed signed a one-year extension of the Patriot Act, a law that was written in response to the Sept. 11 attacks, but which critics say gives the federal government unprecedented surveillance authority over private citizens.

“Having information about other individuals is a very important way of having leverage over them,” says University of Chicago law professor Geoffrey R. Stone.

Watch the short film above. If you’re concerned about your privacy and want to take action, sign the Privacy Week petition to congress, and read the latest information from the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). If you’re specifically concerned about Facebook, follow these instructions to opt-out of instant personalization or these instructions to permanently delete your account.

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Categories Social Media, Tips + Techniques
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