Need Terminal command to delete Wacom system files over network

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Need Terminal command to delete Wacom system files over network

I've been having difficulty with a new Wacom Graphire4 4x5. It ran on Wacom 4.90 for a few days, and then my finder went bad: click a dock icon, get a finder window; try to run Remove Tablet, requires password, can't input password in dialog box, in this or any other application. Eventually I erased my hard disk, zeroed it, reinstalled 10.4.6, no software on the disk but what Apple Install disk and Software Update had installed. Wacom 4.90 and 4.94 and 4.95 all corrupted my finder rendering computer extremely dysfunctional.

Wacom says I am the only person reporting this difficulty. AppleCare tech and Wacom tech suggested I try Wacom on my iBook running 10.4.6. I did, and immediately upon installing 4.90, same problem; no input from keyboard allowed. When I corrupted my G5, I started up from a firewire drive and uninstalled Wacom a piece at a time, and then I finally erased the hard disk and reinstalled the OS. Can't do that with iBook because I'm using that firewire system to run my G5, and I'd like to avoid erasing and reinstalling the iBook.

When I connect to the iBook over my network and try to delete Wacom system files on the iBook from my G5, I get the message that the file is owned by System and I can't delete it. Can someone give me a Terminal command that I can run from my G5 that will allow me to delete the disruptive iBook Wacom files?

And can anyone explain why I'm the only person in the world having this problem, and I get it on two very different computers?

G5 dual 2 GHz; iBook dual USB, Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Posted on Apr 18, 2006 3:26 PM

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Answer 1

Apr 18, 2006 4:30 PM in response to Daru

I'm afraid a couple of things aren't clear to me about what you're doing. Have you started the iBook in firewire target disk mode and connected it to your G5? At any rate, to remove system owned files you need to issue the remove command as Super User. BE EXTRAORDINARILY CAREFUL!

You'll need to change directories so that you are in the directory containing the file you want to delete. So that command would be something like this:

cd /Volumes/iBookName/Library/PreferencePane

(at any rate, that is where some Wacom stuff seems to reside, there is more in /Library/StartupItems/Tablet, the driver's version number is 4.8.5-5).

Once you are in the right place, run a list command to make sure the file you want to remove is there. Then make yourself the super user to remove the file:

sudo rm filename

hit return, enter your admin password, which is not echoed to the screen, and hit return again. If you've never used a sudo command before you will get a little lecture.

I've got the Intuos tablet, and it is working fine. Wacom often has driver problems in OS X, and has forever. There have been driver/OS combos where you had to pick up the mouse and drop it after a boot before the cursor would respond.... Whenever I get one that works I do not update it until there is a system update that causes it to stop working. Thus far I've always managed to get a combo that will work, even if there are strange things here and there (like the drop mouse business).
Francine

Francine
Schwieder

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Answer 2

Daru Author

Level 1

110 points

Apr 18, 2006 5:25 PM in response to Francine Schwieder

No, I didn't boot iBook in target disk mode. I can copy files to the iBook and delete files over the network, so thought I could do this like that too, running Terminal on my G5. Although I could do a Target disk mode if that is what is required.

I didn't know what a SuperUser was, so I just checked Mac Help. Okay, I suspect if I could create a Root User account, I could delete files in the system and the dysfunctional files could be deleted. However, my first problem is, I cannot input anything from the keyboard. It is bleeped. So I can't enable a Root User account on my iBook.

The offending file is iBook/Library/StartupItems/Tablet. The driver is in that folder. The version number of the ones I have been installing are 4.9.x. The Preference Pane alone does not disrupt. Once I get rid of the driver, I've got the computer back.

So, I'll need to run Terminal from my G5 over an Airport network. But maybe I could do it in Target Disk Mode if I were a SuperUser on my G5?

It may be late tonight before I have time to try it... Thanks. We'll see what happens.

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Answer 3

Apr 18, 2006 5:54 PM in response to Daru

No, do NOT enable a root account anywhere! I never have, and never will. Pretty much anything requiring root access can be done with the sudo command. That's what it is for.

I think the easiest thing is start the iBook in target disk mode and plug it into your G5. It will mount as /Volumes/iBookName.

Make sure you are logged into your G5 in an admin account. Launch Terminal, then navigate to the StartupItems folder on the iBook, using the cd (change directory) command, as shown above. Then do a list command and hit return:

Tiger:/Library/StartupItems/Tablet francine$ ls -al
total 64
drwxr-xr-x 6 root wheel 204 Nov 12 14:14 .
drwxr-xr-x 5 root wheel 170 Jan 4 13:02 ..
-rw-r--r-- 1 root wheel 489 Mar 2 2005 StartupParameters.plist
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root wheel 92 Mar 2 2005 Tablet
drwxr-xr-x 3 root wheel 102 Nov 12 14:14 TabletDriver.app
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root wheel 22652 Mar 2 2005 TabletDriverRelauncher

Before my name and the prompt you see that it says where I am, namely the Tablet folder of StartupItems in the root Library of my startup drive. The thing you want to remove is not a file, it is actually a folder, so you would need to issue a remove recursively command:

sudo rm -r TabletDriver.app

Using sudo you do not need to enable root. It gives you, temporarily, the powers of root for a few minutes. Generally that is all one would ever need.
Francine

Francine
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PS--Actually you ought to remove the entire Tablet folder, otherwise you are likely to start getting an awful lot of error messages. So you would change directory into

cd /Volumes/ibookname/Library/StartupItems

then issue remove recursively for the Tablet folder.

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Answer 4

Daru Author

Level 1

110 points

Apr 18, 2006 9:07 PM in response to Francine Schwieder

Francine, thank you so much. I'd never considered starting up the iBook in Target Mode. I booted in Target, daisy chained the iBook from a firewire drive, and then I just went right to the startup items folder and deleted the offending file. Didn't even ask me for a password. I needed Terminal with the iBook in regular mode, but in target mode the OS didn't have its guard up.

Furthermore, I got rid of an annoying Norton Utilities message that has been bugging me for years. Could never find what was causing it. Haven't had Norton on any computer for a long time, but for some reason the startup warning never got deleted. So I've got my iBook back without having to erase and install.

Thanks again. Guess I ought to learn how to use Terminal. Been running Macs since 1987, the SE...

Daru Stevens
Sierra foot hills

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Answer 5

Apr 18, 2006 11:41 PM in response to Daru

I kinda thought once it was in target mode the surgery would be easy to do. I still think you should remove all traces of the Tablet stuff though to make sure you don't get any nagging little pieces doing strange things, a la the Norton left-overs! 😉

I'm also mystified as to why you are having the troubles with the Wacom tablet though. I've used 4 different Wacom tablets over the years, including an older Graphire tablet, and have only had minor problems, not the whoppers you've had.

At any rate, glad you got the iBook working normally again. And learning how to use the Terminal can come in very handy on occasion. But then, I'm an old ResEdit fan, so obviously my judgement is kinda suspect.... I've always loved tinkering with the system.
Francine

Francine
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Answer 6

Daru Author

Level 1

110 points

Apr 19, 2006 8:29 AM in response to Francine Schwieder

I shied away from ResEdit. Guess I've always thought tinkering with the system just took time away from doing whatever I wanted to do. Although I was a big user of HyperCard.

The Wacom thing really puzzles me, especially since it worked for a few days and then my system became unusable, no keyboard input possible. Now it is instant failure, even with a totally clean brand new system. And on two very different computers. Yet Wacom tech says I'm the only one reporting this problem. I've isolated the cause; it's the driver, not any other file. I've sent them system profiles and they are looking at it.

Daru

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Answer 7

Daru Author

Level 1

110 points

Apr 20, 2006 11:10 AM in response to Francine Schwieder

Francine, in case you are still monitoring this thread, thought I'd let you know the solution: bad tablet. Wacom's replacing it. Not a software problem, not an Apple problem... Installing the tablet driver without the tablet plugged in, everything works fine.

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Answer 8

Apr 20, 2006 12:14 PM in response to Daru

Ah, thanks for letting us know. They oughtta upgrade ya to a better tablet in compensation for the strain and pain! Personally, I can't compute without my Wacom tablet....
Francine

Francine
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