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Hack your Mac'98
As seen in MacAddict Magazine... and more

By:David K. Every
©Copyright 1999


Using a Mac is child's play. Even PC users know that any sissy with a brain and a keyboard can use his Mac right out of the box to scribble letters, doctor photos, tinker with HTML, and piddle away time cruising the web. But it takes a devilish mind and some might big trackballs to delve into the very depths of the Macs code and wreak havoc on its resources.

The Mac is the coolest computer in the known Galaxy -- but sometimes even that just isn't enough. Just because the Mac is already more customizable than those "other" computers, that doesn't mean that we can't want to change it to fit our tastes even more . This series will show you how, and teach you a about resources along the way.

Apple spends millions of dollars testing every nuance of the MacOS and making sure it runs right on every variant of Mac Computer. They check for every spelling mistake, for how everything looks, and for how everything works. In the spirit of contempt for that which is good and "normal", we are going to ignore all that hard work, and "hack" the Mac.

If the devil on your shoulder has been prodding you to hack your Mac but the angel of reason keeps holding you back, it's time to give the devil his due. We'll show you how to use Mathesmaethetics' powerful Resourcerer to wrestle control from resources and force your Mac to take on personalized startup screens, customized menus, hilarious sounds, and more.

But all you code crackers out there would be wise to back up before you hack up your system, and only make changes to copies of files. Careless hackers can crash their Macs and invite the kind of ill will that would give Lucifer the chills. Take the proper precautions, however, and nothing can stop you from transforming your mild-mannered Mac into a monster all your own.


I would like to thank all the great people over at MacAddict for publishing this article. Especially Nikki Echler for all the patience she showed, and help she offered in bringing this article to print.


Created: JULY/98
Updated: 11/09/02


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