Mac Book Oops

[Alix]

OK, I'm an idiot. I was goofing around on my MacBook and I moved a bunch of photos and other things to the trash. Is there any way to move them back to their original spot that isn't labor intensive or do I have to do it all the hard way? Is there an Undo function I'm not finding?

 

[getoutamykitchen]

Can't you open your trash folder and move to your desktop, close the trash folder, open the folder you want them in and just drop them back in again. That's what I have done. I have a iMac.

 

[Andy M.]

If the Mac has a restore function, you can restore your system back to a time before you started trashing photos but you will lose everything you did after that point

Otherwise you just reverse the click and drag routine back to the original locations.

 

[GB]

Do you have Time Machine set up on your Mac Alix?

 

[ChefJune]

Can't you open your trash folder and move to your desktop, close the trash folder, open the folder you want them in and just drop them back in again. That's what I have done. I have a iMac.

That's what I would do. I have a g5 laptop.

 

[Alix]

No GB, I hadn't set it up yet. I have a feeling you are going to tell me something to make me wish I had!

getoutamykitchen I think I could be at this a while trying to put everything back in its original places. Sheesh.

 

[GB]

Just make a folder on your desktop and drag them all into that folder, then when you have time you can move a few files at a time to where they should be.

Yes I am going to tell you something that would make you wish you had Time Machine set up. You would have had to make two clicks to get everything back to the way it was if you had it set up. Do you have an external hard drive? If not then get one (they have come way down in price) and set up Time Machine right away. Without it (or some other backup method) you could lose everything at any time.

 

[Alix]

I have a stick, but its not nearly big enough to hold everything. How does an external hard drive connect to the laptop? Just with a USB? And I haven't emptied my trash yet, I'm going to do this the hard way and then set up Time Machine like I should have done from the beginning. Phooey! Thanks GB.

 

[GB]

Yeah a stick won't work for time machine. Ideally you want your external to be 1.5 - 2x larger than your hard drive in the computer (mine is the exact same size though). Yes it plugs into your USB. They have some that you also have to plug into the wall or now they have small ones that draw power from the USB port itself. You basically just plug it in and then click time machine to turn it on and the rest happens automatically and in the background. It is quick and painless and will save you headaches and provide piece of mind knowing that your information is at least backed up.

 

[GB]

Alix I am at work so I did not listen to this youtube, but just looking at the screen quickly it looks like it will give you a basic understanding of time machine. Check it out.

YouTube - Apple Time Machine demo

 

[Andy M.]

Is Time Machine an app/utility that comes with the machine or do you buy it separately?

 

[GB]

It comes with it. You need to supply the external hard drive, but the software is already there. All you do is plug in the hard drive and time machine will automatically recognize it is there and start backing up every hour. You can change the settings to make it back up more frequently or less frequently. You can also exclude files or folders from being backed up if you want. If you power down or go into sleep mode or unplug the hard drive or something like that while it is backing up then it will pick up where it left off when you power up again or plug the hard drive back in.

 

[Andy M.]

Thanks, GB.

 

[Maidrite]

Also and external hard drive will hold the whole thing from programs, Jump drives won't. I lost some important stuff to jump drives, that I won't have with a stick. Also make sure you don't have to us an AC adaptor, but you can if you want. I have had several externals and like my Toshiba the best. Barbara has a Western Digital that is very good too, and is about the size of a deck of playing cards Both were way under a $100 dollars

Love and Hugs, James