My console popped up, and the following three messages were repeated several times. Is this something I should be concerned about? Rita

1. 8/22/12 8:31:48.336 PM WindowServer[72]: CGXDisableUpdate: UI updates were forcibly disabled by application "Dashboard" for over 1.00 seconds. Server has re-enabled them.

2. 8/22/12 9:51:27.147 PM WebProcess[166]: *** WARNING: -[NSImage dissolveToPoint:fraction:] is deprecated in MacOSX 10.8 and later. Please use -[NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] instead.

3. 8/24/12 9:40:55.186 PM com.apple.ShareKitHelper[4322]: --warning: [ShareKit] Trying to activate a service that is not running anymore (uid: 17F8BC4B-247C-4776-B88E-B605F40D8058-145-000011F6E3BAEE47)

Hi, Rita,

You can ignore #2; it's important to developers, not you. It means that [NSImage dissolveToPoint:fraction:] is no longer preferred by OS X in 10.8 and that they should update their apps to incorporate [NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:].

#s 1 & 3 are probably meaningless, but I won't say that authoritatively...wait for further input.

My personal suggestion is that you launch /Applications/Utilities/Console.app, hit command-, to get to prefs, make sure that the "Bounce..." and "Bring..." boxes are unchecked, and don't look at Console unless you've got an issue going that necessitates looking.

(I've got the "Automatically..." box checked...can't do other than help.)

Hi Artie:

Those two boxes on Console were already unchecked. I'm not sure why it decided to show itself. I never look at it normally, because I can't decipher it. Let's hope 1 and 3 are nothing.

Thank you.

Rita

> Those two boxes on Console were already unchecked.

Don't know why, but I had a weird feeling that you were going to say that.

I don't recall Console ever coming to the front on my deuced Mac(hina) other than at my beckoning, and I've no idea why it did it to you, so waiting for further input is very much in order.

On the other hand, though, I Googled error messages #1 & 3 with neither alarming nor conclusive results.

OK. Thanks for checking that. I did check the sharekit thing but not much popped up. Hopefully we will hear something tomorrow. Thanks, Artie.

Rita

I'll guess that it was just a hiccup, but we'll see.

Next time this happens, you might want to record the exact time Console pops up, and compare that with the log time(s) of the (last) message(s) listed. It might also help if you could provide a shortlist of the programs you had running at the time Console appeared, including both the ones you loaded yourself, as well as those you have set to load on login (System Prefs>Accounts>Login Items).

Hopefully!

Rita

Okay. I will try to remember to do that. Not used to dealing with console and error messages which scare the pants off of me. I may have had plenty in the past and was blissfully unaware of them.

Rita

Not to worry, it's not a big deal if you forget or just don't want to do it. It just might help in providing another clue, assuming it happens again. Besides, Console logs are just text files. If they scare you, just close them by quitting Console.

Thanks. I just thought it was warning me about something. Maybe it's just warning itself and developers. LOL!

Rita

Console is a diary of what has happened on your Mac, both expected and unexpected; it's not a warning utility, rather it's one that may tell you what went wrong if you've experienced a problem.

Your item #2, by way of example, told you that something made a system call that still works but will cease to work at some point in the future, so the next time you see it it may be the explanation of why something you tried to do didn't work.

Items #1 & 3, on the other hand, told you that something apparently unexpected happened, but since you can't identify anything you've tried to do as not having been doable, they're apparently of no consequence.

That's why it's best for most users to keep Console squirreled away in the background until they need it...so it can't aggravate them with endless mostly unimportant and generally incomprehensible messages. (If you think Console logs are difficult to read, take a look at a crash log if you're ever unlucky enough to find one on your Mac.)

I believe you. Next time it pops up, I will think about what I just did or couldn't do, then look at it. If there was nothing I had a problem with, I will try not to look. Curiosity gets the best of me. But, I won't worry next time like I did this time.

Thanks.

Rita

Console came up againas I was using iPhoto. But I don't think iPhoto triggered it. When I minimized iPhoto, I saw my ClamXav Log (which should be there since I requested it in preferences). I think maybe it pops up when Clam pops up. I vaguely remember that happening once before.

Also, when I looked at my Clam log, it says I had one infected file. I checked, and it did not put it in my quarantine folder like it was supposed to even though it did it the last time. Grrrr... So, it's floating around somewhere still.


----------- SCAN SUMMARY -----------
Known viruses: 1297986
Engine version: 0.97.5
Scanned directories: 2266
Scanned files: 12709
Infected files: 1
Data scanned: 791.80 MB
Data read: 1022.41 MB (ratio 0.77:1)
Time: 181.460 sec (3 m 1 s)


Rita

According to a quick Google search, lots and lots of people are reporting that Console unexpectedly pops up whenever ClamXAV does an update of its virus files, reports a completed scan, or reports finding something suspicious.

Interesting. Do you have any idea about whether this phenomenon is more prevalent in certain Mac OS X versions?

Yep, I discovered that's what's happening. Guess it's not just me. Thanks for that info.

Rita

No clue if it's related to certain versions of OS X; I don't use antivirus software.

Maybe trying disabling the logging option under Log Files in the ClamAV preferences. Those log files are connected to the Console.

Also, under Schedule there's an option "Open the scan log automatically after scanning" that if checked may be causing the issue.

That could very well be, but if Clam finds something, I want to know about it. Just knowing they are connected helps me not worry about console popping up.

Rita