Frequently Asked Questions
Compatibility
Which versions of Mac OS X does XRG run on?
All versions of XRG have been fully tested and work on Mac OS X 10.2.x (Jaguar). XRG 0.4.0 and later work under Mac OS X 10.3.x (Panther) as well as Jaguar. XRG 1.1 is fully compatible with Mac OS X 10.4.x (Tiger), Panther, and Jaguar.
Which machines are supported by the temperature graph?
The temperature graph supports newer PowerMac and Powerbook computers. This includes the Aluminum G4 Powerbooks (12"/15"/17"), G4 iBooks (12"/14"), iMac G5, and PowerMac G5 computers. Later machines may or may not be supported in current versions of XRG. As long as Apple continues to use the HWIOSensor interface, XRG should be able to pick up the sensors and display their status. Some older Macs (such as the Mirror Drive Door G4s) have sensors on their CPU(s), but these will not be displayed in the Temperature graph. Instead, these temperature values will only be displayed in the CPU graph. Furthermore, these sensors are only available in Panther or earlier, as Tiger has since removed support for those sensors.
Why does XRG display n/a where the CPU temperature should be?
XRG will display n/a where the CPU temperature should be if it fails to find any temperature sensors that it is able to monitor. See the above question for a list of compatible systems.
Why do the drop-down menus in the Temperature Preferences show "No Sensors Found"?
The Temperature graph will only monitor newer HWIOSensor compatible sensors found in the Aluminum Powerbooks, G4 iBooks, and PowerMac G5 computers. If your Mac is slightly older and has only a CPU temperature sensor, the temperature will still be displayed in the CPU graph, but will not be graphed in the Temperature graph. Many older Macs do not have any temperature sensors at all, in which case there are not any sensors for the Temperature graph to find.
Interface
Is there a way to hide the XRG dock icon?
XRG version 1.0 introduced the ability to hide the application dock icon. Unfortunately, this will also hide the main application menu, so the option to disable the dock icon is only in the contextual menus which can still be accessed when the dock icon and application menu are hidden. To toggle whether or not the dock icon is shown, either right-click or control-click on the XRG window title bar and select Hide/Show XRG Dock Icon (After Restart). Then just quit XRG and the next time the application is opened, the dock icon will be hidden (or shown).
Can the graph be resized?
The XRG graph can be resized by clicking on the border at any location and dragging it appropriately. If you click and drag on a corner, it will resize the window's width and height. If you only want to resize the window in one direction, drag on an edge instead of a corner. Also, the graph's orientation can be changed from the default vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation. Simply select which window orientation you would like to use in the General Preferences.
Data Values
What does the Load value in the CPU graph represent?
The load average is the average number of processes that are currently waiting for the CPU at any given time. Usually, a load average of 1 on a single processor machine means that the CPU is always busy, because 1 process is always waiting for the CPU. A dual CPU machine should theoretically be completely busy when the load average is 2 (one process for each processor).
Why does the Battery graph display a 95% charge but claims the battery is fully charged?
This originates in proper maintenance for Lithium batteries and Apple's Power Management implementation. It's not good for a Lithium battery to be charged just a very little bit at one time. Since batteries will lose a small amount of charge over a period of time, it would shorten the life of the battery if it was charged every time it dropped below 100%. For this reason, Apple's Power Management implementation will assume that the battery is "Charged" when the battery percentage is above 95% and will only recharge it to a full 100% charge when the percentage drops below 95%.
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