Forums

At some point in time you will likely run into problems, either browsing the site or while you are running through one of the heists, where something just wont work the way you are expecting it to.  The following steps will outline how to fix almost every problem you will encounter.  After each step, check to see if the problem has been resolved.
================

1) Use Safari - Use the latest "live" version of Safari.  This doesn't include betas.  When developing complex sites like Mac Heist, it is difficult to account for every browser and how every browser will handle the underlying code that allows the site to do everything it does.  Mac Heist is designed and tested to work on Safari because its the browser they know all Mac users have.  Even if you get certain pages to load in another browser, the next page may not.  Safari comes with your Mac, its free, and its not a bad browser.... 

2) Clear your cache - Your computer caches certain web files to make loading of pages go faster.  This started back in the days of modems where everything took forever to load, now with the advent of high speed connections, the browser cache is fairly insignificant.  Sometimes bad things happen and files get stuck in the cache and cause pages to load weird.  Clearing the cache force the computer to "re-get" everything from the page clearing most problems. 
After clearing the cache quit Safari, then launch it again.
http://guides.macrumors.com/Speed_up_Sa … _the_Cache

3) Update Flash - Some pages require Flash to run properly.  Updating it not only gives you the latest security patches but helps ensure that any Flash content will load and be displayed properly.
http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/?promoid=BUIGP

4) Make sure you haven't disabled Java or JavaScript - Check the Security pane in Safaris Preferences and make sure Java and JavaScript are turned on.

5) Clear your cookies - Cookies are little trackers websites leave on your computer to identify you.  Sometimes if they go bad, you will encounter problems like Missions not getting checked off, or pages not recognizing you completed a task when you actually have.  Clearing then makes your computer recreate them. WARNING Some cookies authenticate you to password protected websites making it so you do not have to log in manually each time.  after clearing your cookies, you will need to re-authenticate to recreate that sites cookie.  This will not break anything, you simply need to make sure you know your password.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … 11471.html

6) Check for OS updates - Check to see if there are any updates available for your computer that you haven't installed yet.  Keeping your computer up to date will help ensure it runs stable.  These updates often include patches for Safari, Quicktime/iTunes, and Java, components that can be key to Mac Heists.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1338?viewlocale=en_US

7) Disable add-ons - There are many add-ons that add great functionality to Safari but there are too many to test.  While unlikely, it is possible an add-on is conflicting with something in the heist causing it to misbehave.  Disabling the add-on ensures this isn't the case.  This can especially be true of a 3rd party pop-up blocker.
http://support.apple.com/kb/TA22927?viewlocale=en_US

8) Restart your computer - The computer repair people and IT department at work tell you to do this for a reason, it does work.  Often a simple restart will resolve many problems.  It wont hurt and takes only a minute or two.

9) Reset Safari - While extremely safe, resetting Safari is the last step because you loose all customizations that you have set for it.  This returns the browser to the factory settings and should resolve any problems that have continued to linger.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … /9300.html

10) Try it as a different computer user account or on a different computer - To see if it is a problem with the account you are using, try it on a different computer or as a different user.  This will help determine if it is a problem with the profile you are using, or a bigger issue.  If this fixes the issue, you will need to spend some time narrowing down what in the original profile was causing the problems.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … mh168.html

11) Turn off 3rd party applications - As with plug-ins, there are some 3rd party applications that may just not agree with something that is running on the site.  Typically these are going to be security software but may also include QuickTime add-ons and applications that skin your computer.  While unlikely to cause problems, disable them and restart your computer and check to see if you are still having issues, if it fixes it then let the MH Developers know.  You can always re-enable them.

12) Clear up your network connection - If pages are loading partially, this might be the result of a slow network connection.  Your computer will try to download a pages content a finite amount of times, and then just display whatever it got.  If you are downloading large files, playing online games, running SETI at home, etc either on the computer you are using, or another computer on the same network, there is a chance you have saturated your network connection and are experiencing high latency.  Try turning the other computers off and/or stopping the data transfers to see if it resolves the problem.  You may find that simply power-cycling your dsl/cable modem resolves the issue.

I followed all these steps and I still have issues, now what?
====================

Check to make sure you are doing it right - Perhaps the issue isn't your computer, perhaps you missed a step.  Check to see if you translated the cypher correctly, remembered to carry the 2, try typing password in all lowercase... If you double checked your work are convinced there is still a problem:

Post in support - Before starting a new thread, look to see if other people are having similar problems, if so check that thread to see what fixes are working.  Don't start your own thread if there is already one on the subject, it will only make things more confusing for the developers trying to track down and squash bugs.

When you are posting about a problem, try to include as much information as possible,

-> if you need to reveal information about a current mission make sure you note there are SPOILERS in the thread title so you dont ruin a mission for someone who hasn't reached the same point you have

->  include URLS where you can,  what you think of as the main page may be different then what i think of, clear up the confusion and throw in the url

->  take screenshot, screenshots help people understand what you are seeing.. its hard to describe some problems but a picture can clearly illustrate a problem.  http://guides.macrumors.com/Taking_Scre … n_Mac_OS_X

->  include the full text of any error message, the more information developers see the faster they can know what's wrong and fix it.  The actual error messages tell a lot.  Turning on the Safari Debugging options will allow you to see the errors the browser is encountering: http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php? … 0063041629

  ->  include steps to reproduce when you can, if clicking the blue button doesnt work sometimes, explain how you got to the blue button and the patterns you have seen... does it only not work at noon-thirty?  steps for how to recreate the problem are always greatly appreciated by developers.  remember to be as detailed as possible ("click the 4th link entitled ABOUT at the bottom of the page", as opposed to "click the link")

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011

At some point in time you will likely run into problems, either browsing the site or while you are running through one of the heists, where something just wont work the way you are expecting it to.  The following steps will outline how to fix almost every problem you will encounter.  After each step, check to see if the problem has been resolved.
================

1) Use Safari - Use the latest "live" version of Safari.  This doesn't include betas.  When developing complex sites like Mac Heist, it is difficult to account for every browser and how every browser will handle the underlying code that allows the site to do everything it does.  Mac Heist is designed and tested to work on Safari because its the browser they know all Mac users have.  Even if you get certain pages to load in another browser, the next page may not.  Safari comes with your Mac, its free, and its not a bad browser.... 

2) Clear your cache - Your computer caches certain web files to make loading of pages go faster.  This started back in the days of modems where everything took forever to load, now with the advent of high speed connections, the browser cache is fairly insignificant.  Sometimes bad things happen and files get stuck in the cache and cause pages to load weird.  Clearing the cache force the computer to "re-get" everything from the page clearing most problems. 
After clearing the cache quit Safari, then launch it again.
http://guides.macrumors.com/Speed_up_Sa … _the_Cache

3) Update Flash - Some pages require Flash to run properly.  Updating it not only gives you the latest security patches but helps ensure that any Flash content will load and be displayed properly.
http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/?promoid=BUIGP

4) Make sure you haven't disabled Java or JavaScript - Check the Security pane in Safaris Preferences and make sure Java and JavaScript are turned on.

5) Clear your cookies - Cookies are little trackers websites leave on your computer to identify you.  Sometimes if they go bad, you will encounter problems like Missions not getting checked off, or pages not recognizing you completed a task when you actually have.  Clearing then makes your computer recreate them. WARNING Some cookies authenticate you to password protected websites making it so you do not have to log in manually each time.  after clearing your cookies, you will need to re-authenticate to recreate that sites cookie.  This will not break anything, you simply need to make sure you know your password.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … 11471.html

6) Check for OS updates - Check to see if there are any updates available for your computer that you haven't installed yet.  Keeping your computer up to date will help ensure it runs stable.  These updates often include patches for Safari, Quicktime/iTunes, and Java, components that can be key to Mac Heists.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1338?viewlocale=en_US

7) Disable add-ons - There are many add-ons that add great functionality to Safari but there are too many to test.  While unlikely, it is possible an add-on is conflicting with something in the heist causing it to misbehave.  Disabling the add-on ensures this isn't the case.  This can especially be true of a 3rd party pop-up blocker.
http://support.apple.com/kb/TA22927?viewlocale=en_US

8) Restart your computer - The computer repair people and IT department at work tell you to do this for a reason, it does work.  Often a simple restart will resolve many problems.  It wont hurt and takes only a minute or two.

9) Reset Safari - While extremely safe, resetting Safari is the last step because you loose all customizations that you have set for it.  This returns the browser to the factory settings and should resolve any problems that have continued to linger.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … /9300.html

10) Try it as a different computer user account or on a different computer - To see if it is a problem with the account you are using, try it on a different computer or as a different user.  This will help determine if it is a problem with the profile you are using, or a bigger issue.  If this fixes the issue, you will need to spend some time narrowing down what in the original profile was causing the problems.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html … mh168.html

11) Turn off 3rd party applications - As with plug-ins, there are some 3rd party applications that may just not agree with something that is running on the site.  Typically these are going to be security software but may also include QuickTime add-ons and applications that skin your computer.  While unlikely to cause problems, disable them and restart your computer and check to see if you are still having issues, if it fixes it then let the MH Developers know.  You can always re-enable them.

12) Clear up your network connection - If pages are loading partially, this might be the result of a slow network connection.  Your computer will try to download a pages content a finite amount of times, and then just display whatever it got.  If you are downloading large files, playing online games, running SETI at home, etc either on the computer you are using, or another computer on the same network, there is a chance you have saturated your network connection and are experiencing high latency.  Try turning the other computers off and/or stopping the data transfers to see if it resolves the problem.  You may find that simply power-cycling your dsl/cable modem resolves the issue.

I followed all these steps and I still have issues, now what?
====================

Check to make sure you are doing it right - Perhaps the issue isn't your computer, perhaps you missed a step.  Check to see if you translated the cypher correctly, remembered to carry the 2, try typing password in all lowercase... If you double checked your work are convinced there is still a problem:

Post in support - Before starting a new thread, look to see if other people are having similar problems, if so check that thread to see what fixes are working.  Don't start your own thread if there is already one on the subject, it will only make things more confusing for the developers trying to track down and squash bugs.

When you are posting about a problem, try to include as much information as possible,

-> if you need to reveal information about a current mission make sure you note there are SPOILERS in the thread title so you dont ruin a mission for someone who hasn't reached the same point you have

->  include URLS where you can,  what you think of as the main page may be different then what i think of, clear up the confusion and throw in the url

->  take screenshot, screenshots help people understand what you are seeing.. its hard to describe some problems but a picture can clearly illustrate a problem.  http://guides.macrumors.com/Taking_Scre … n_Mac_OS_X

->  include the full text of any error message, the more information developers see the faster they can know what's wrong and fix it.  The actual error messages tell a lot.  Turning on the Safari Debugging options will allow you to see the errors the browser is encountering: http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php? … 0063041629

  ->  include steps to reproduce when you can, if clicking the blue button doesnt work sometimes, explain how you got to the blue button and the patterns you have seen... does it only not work at noon-thirty?  steps for how to recreate the problem are always greatly appreciated by developers.  remember to be as detailed as possible ("click the 4th link entitled ABOUT at the bottom of the page", as opposed to "click the link")

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011

Great guide, It will be very useful for users with problems.

▛▞▞▟ Proud Member of the BLUE Team™ ▙▚▚▜

I can only see a black screen when loading the page of nanomission 2. Any help?
Cleaned the caches and updated flash to version 10. Still nothing, just a black flash frame in a black page.
Clicked on everywhere a thousand clicks, on the middle also, but nothing happens. I am using safari on an iMac G5 OSX 10.5.6 latest updates. Tried login as a different user reseted safari still nothing.
Any clue?

 Green Monkey Team 

oh the points do not  come very quickly you just have to wait out the waiting period.(I was very inpatient might have been dock for it)

At that point i would turn on the safari debug:
http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php? … 0063041629

and open the Show Error Console from the Develop menu.  From there you will see any errors that the browser is reporting and get an understanding of what is breaking...

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011

i know its says use safari but alot of times it only wants to work in firefox...strange

I think the devil doesn't exist, but man has created him, he has created him in his own image and likeness.
-Fyodor Dostoevsky
▛▞▞▟ Proud Member of the BLUE Team™ ▙▚▚▜

I had problems loading it last night...I just left the page open for a while and it loaded. Not sure why it does it, but try just leaving the page open for a couple of minutes and see if it opens.

▛▞▞▟ Proud Member of the BLUE Team™ ▙▚▚▜
Be Aware Of The Dancing Bear!

@ markbett...a very nice job with the guide. One thing you may want to add...I've helped a couple of people who accidentally enabled "Private Browsing" when they emptied the cache and/or reset Safari.

▛▞▞▟ Proud Member of the BLUE Team™ ▙▚▚▜
Be Aware Of The Dancing Bear!

Still got a black square reset safari tried firefox got a black square with silver surround ?????

I am running 10.4.11 and using Safari 3.2.1 and I can't get the briefing movies to work, none of them. I clicked on the links and they take forever to load up and when they finally do  I don't know what clues to look for since the movies don't work. By the way I did what you suggested cleared the cache and all those other things, but it doesn't work either.

Illusive is being at all places at no times

Same here I am running firefox 3 and all I get is a black square.

Minty Fresh Penguins
MacHeist team:   Green Monkeys™ 

If you have problems with the movies, they are directed through port 3000: (example)
http://www.macheist.com:3000/static/dl/ … ing21a.mp4
if you are behind a firewall you have to open port 3000, then it works or you copy the movie address and delete the :3000 entry:
http://www.macheist.com/static/dl/brief … ing21a.mp4

This should work....

There is NO signature, do you see a signature?

Also, if you doing your missions through Firefox on WinXp, which I do sometimes when I am at work, the flash does not load-up (All you see is the black screen). So, just right click on it and the flash (Like the sudoku) loads. Little strange behaviour, however it works (atleast it has worked for me).

Hope this helps out someone.

I can only please one person each day, Today is not your day, Tomorrow doesn't look good either...

                    ▛▞▞▟ Proud Member of the BLUE Team™ ▙▚▚▜

That's what you get for using 'Windows':)

I need a referral! Link: http://www.macheist.com/bundle/u/52730/

There seems to be a bug with the evidence room for nanoMission 3. On my 13.3 MacBook, 1/3 of the back wall (top part) is missing. This is crucial because you cannot complete the puzzle because it has the clock on the wall which you need. I've tried it under Firefox and Safari and it happens under both browsers.

Even when I go full screen on the 13.3 I cannot see the clock and there are no scroll bars or other way for me to move the screen around. Fortunately I have a dual monitor set up and when I stretch the browser window on the larger monitor, the clock comes into view.

Solved the puzzle and the torn piece of paper to get BabelBloX. Nice little mission.

Anyone else with a 13.3 and found this problem with the evidence room.

"All human behaviour is motivated by one or more of these seven elements: Chance, Nature, Compulsion, Habit, Reason, Passion and Desire" – Anonymous

The last one is 3 legs on a tripod. It's behind the gasoline can.
http://img.skitch.com/20090315-kxxgtkwg … gm6gsh.jpg

The 2nd half of the puzzle.
http://img.skitch.com/20090315-je72kui2 … hynais.jpg

"All human behaviour is motivated by one or more of these seven elements: Chance, Nature, Compulsion, Habit, Reason, Passion and Desire" – Anonymous

I'm also on a Macbook and couldn't see the clock.

Also, on the macheist homepage Cant see your ads. For example, I can barely see iLaugh. I can see the title but nothing else since the add runs below the bar that says "Twitter RSS Feed". I can see it just fine on a friend's 24 in iMac.

*** Insert something witty here ***

Finished but had two issues during Mission 3:

+ The keypad worked but didn't show the full bezel
+ The "works of art" didn't load completely, even after multiple page reloads and logging out/in.
     I saw a partially loaded graphic image for all masterpieces to  the right of the "hint" (face)

Other than these, everything else was relatively smooth.

Done on:
- PowerBook 12" G4 1.33, 1.25 RAM, Leopard+all updates, Safari 4 public beta
- PowerBook 15" G4 1.67, 1.5 RAM, Tiger+all updates, Safari 4 public beta
- 15 GB+ free HD space on both; no other apps open except Mail at the time

Go TEAM  Green Monkeys™  !!     

these are problems caused by the graphics not fully downloading, refreshing the page and holding down shift or clearing you cache should clear it

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011

Even when you are using Safari4b1 the whole mission should be displayed properly.
The black screen and the not loading of the movies might be caused by a corrupted .safari.plist.

I only discoverd it later as I visited an other site with Flash content. (as it seems The MacHiest pages do not contain a Flash detect script that normaly leads you to the Flash download page)

The solution is simple. Delete the plist from your ~/Library/Prefernces folder and all should be fine..

/locked

Purple Team Rocks

The Koingo Utility Package "Download" link in my loot seems to point right back to the loot page (link: http://www.macheist.com/loot).

I've dumped cookies (though I do think it's the link pointer) and have tried in both Firefox and Safari (which are up to date).  Hope this is the right place to post this...

Thanks for any help.

Thank you MacHeist for the big-bundle-happiness

There are no app keys in the confirmation page/email I got/or not even in my loot. They don't show up either after sending in a new request to the email.

I'm not even able to open the contact form to the support. It's all blank - any way I can email the support directly? Thanks.

Same trouble as mentioned here and in this closed topic:
http://www.macheist.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=14165

I cannot download the Koingo Utility Package. Cannot find a trial version on the Koingo website either.

The kiwi Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now.

bump

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011

Sorry to be such a stooge but how do I know which color team I am on?

Look at the color of the border/title by where your avatar should be. You're a greenie.

PS: get an avatar

PM me | Twitter

How do you guys get different color's and stuff? I want to advance in rank

I found this when looking up info on the app. "DaisyDisk"

  "To obtain a completely valid license for the latest version of DaisyDisk visit macheist.
Zoom as much as you can and enter coordinates (151.7, 174.4)."

My question is, zoom in on what and enter coordinates where?

I'm new to Macheist,I can't find an answer to this anywhere I've looked.
Any advice would be appreciated.

Lobo55.

It was part of a promo that ended over a year ago if the date stamp on the last post before yours is any indication.

So, you're a bit late.

䷟䷽䷏䷁ — Dying of the Light.

updated

01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 01101110
01101101 01101111 01101110 01101011 01100101 01111001
01110011