QuickLook not working for photos in Messages

Hi,

The Pic also lacks the option to open in Preview

This picture is also in an AIM chat which did not actually send this Pic "in Line" so I had to zip (Compress) them.

com.apple.ichat.plist does not hold iMessage "history" other than it does now hold the Recent Chat List (which is pointless as there is no option in the File Menu to access them). It also holds all the Preferences and Menu option settings.

com.apple.imagent.com holds the Account names of all the accounts you have and is involved in logging them in behind the scenes. There is a process called IMAgent that starts when the computer does and depending on the setting in the General Section it will login enough to "listen" to the Servers. The setting in the General section read "when I quit Messages, set the Status to Off Line" - it does not effect the iMessages account which will still show Off line Messages.

com.apple.imservice.iMessage.plist This is not used any more. In Yosemite and El Capitan it uses com.apple.ids.service.com.apple.madrid.plist instead. This also is only about the info for the iMessages account and not about the "History" or how the pics in chats are dealt with.

com.apple.imessage.bag.plistThis only lists the last Apple iMessages server used.

However there are these few .plist in~/Library/Containers/com.apple.soagent/data/Library/Preferencesthat also play a part.

Note the Path Bar location across the bottom.

com.apple.messageshelper.FileTransferController.plist looks the most likely bit it does hold a record of all the files and pictures sent to you but in hexadecimal names.

Xcode view.

com.apple.quicklookconfig.plist does not appear to have any relevant info.

The next would be the Preview .plist but that is as blank as the Quick Look one.

The actual 'live .plist is in ~/Library/Containers/com.apple.Preview/Data/Library/Preferences rather than having an Alias point to the ~/Library/Preferences folder.

Having said that and having looked through it I can't see any references to which apps it is allowed to work with.

This appears to be an issue that involves 3 apps Messages, Quick Look and Preview.

All have Read and Write routes through ~/Library/Containers as well as the final file storage ~/Library/Preferences.

I would be tempted to check the number of files that have lost your Ownership and Read and Write Permissions see this Thread and the helpful item before the green Marked Solved one. Reset Home Folder permissions and ACLs Error (Linc offers a Text first - marked Helpful and then a "Fix" which is the Green Solved post.

8:40 pm Friday; May 6, 2016

Hi,

Ahh, My fault I should have explained that Solved posts get marked AND moved to the Original Post and Helpfuls just get tag lines in the Original Post an that you needed to scroll a bit to see the whole thing.

iMessages history is held in ~/Library/Messages in the form of three Database items.

These can be opened with TextEdit but are almost unreadable in any useful way for you to play around with in any sense.

In earlier version of iChat there was a Format Menu and a Messages Preferences Pane.

The Preferences Pane could be set to use any Colour as the background fro outgoing Text and the Font and the text colour could also be set.

See this iChat 4 version pic http://www.ralphjohns.co.uk/versions/ichatvers4/ichatvers4pics/Prefs/slides/iCha t4MessagesPrefs.html

The Format Menu used to let your do this fro just that Message you were sending or individual words.

This page contains some formatting examples http://www.ralphjohns.co.uk/versions/ichatvers4/ichatvers4pics/menus/slides/iCha t4FormatMenu.html

This sort of things as well as which chats were open (see first picture) and the other preferences Settings are held in com.apple.iChat.plist

It still holds the Buddy List Sort Order.

In Preferences > General Section is the choice to link/Unlink the Buddy Lists (Gather my Buddy list into one list).

Highlight one Buddy List and then use the Sort Options to show Alphabetical and then re-do it for Availability.

The List will then display via this double pass.

This and which Buddy pics are in use are held in the .iChat.plist (you can override the AIM server one and or the Address Card one for a Buddy).

The IMAgent holds these items.

Some relate it iMessages (Send receipts).

Two refer to the Video Menu and whether AIM and Jabber plus Bonjour accounts can use the Came and Mic

Remember Password is set or was set in the Account Preferences.

Off Line on Quit is a setting in the General Section about whether the App "listens" for Off Line Messages on Jabber or AIM accounts (It cannot be used to iMessages)

You could delete these and you would only have to reset settings.

The Madrid one I spoke about contains the Apple ID and Alternatives. (I have expanded this Xcode view)

Basically it is what you see in Messages > Preferences > Accounts when it is set to the iMessages page

Deleting it is likely to cause you to re-enter the Apple ID when you restart Messages and accepting the pop telling you what the iPhone is using.

AS you say something like the first link's picture that refers to remembering Open chats must happen in Messages as well.

However I have not been able to find it.

It might be in some of the info in the chat.db items in ~/Library/Messages (you certainly lose them if you delete these) or they might be in the SOAgent plists in ~/Library/Containers/com.apple.soagent/data/Library/Preferences (all the ones about messagehelpers)

AS the pics are stored in ~/Library/Messages/Attachments but are Written to this file via ~/library/Containers/com.apple.iChat/Data/Library/Messages/Alias to Attachments I was hoping the sorting of Read and Write permissions would have helped.

A reinstall might correct things if it is a missing or corrupt process.

A Clean Install and recreation of the Mac User Account is a long winded way of doing but is likely to "correct" any issue with .plists.

Migrating back from Time Machine may also juts reinstall the issue.

I would try the deletion of the Preview .plist

The actual 'live' .plist is in ~/Library/Containers/com.apple.Preview/Data/Library/Preferences rather than having an Alias point to the ~/Library/Preferences folder.

10:25 pm Sunday; May 8, 2016

hi,

Before reinstalling create an New Mac User Account in System Preferences > User and Groups.

In this "test" account set up iMessages in Messages with your normal Apple ID.

Test with someone who can send you pictures.

IF it does not work here then it is likely to be something to do with either Preview or Quick Look and a Reinstall over what you have is likely to be the way to go.

If it does work then the issue is something about the settings of your normal Mac User account.

(trying to find the corrupt file will be... err... interesting).

7:26 pm Tuesday; May 10, 2016

Oh My,

The "recommended" bunny has been over active again.

I am not sure marking each bit is useful if you have not found a solution yet.

9:21 pm Wednesday; May 11, 2016

Hi,

I apologise if I caused any offence as that was not my intention.

More recently the Apple Hosts have started awarding the "Recommended" option which comes in at 7 points.

I believe the purpose is two fold:-

1) to get people to marked threads -

2) to have threads marked with a green tick on the front page so that other readers are more likely to look at them.

When Apple (Or rather the Hosts as the moderators are called) started doing this they would appear to wait until the thread had "finished" with some sort of resolution then mark posts if the Original Poster did not.

In this case the conversation has not finished and a resolution has not been made either.

Ergo the Recommended markings are therefore not helpful.

What is also unclear is that you as the Original Poster can still award two Helpfuls and one Correct - if you award them in that order to the range of replies.

The Helpfuls at 5 points will not show up if a Recommended is awarded to a Post but the person who replied still gets the 5 points.

The Correct seems to override the Recommended and the Poster gets 10 points.

You can mark your own posts if your find the answer yourself on on another discussion board but you don't get the points for that.

The criticism, as such, was not aimed at you and was more in the way of an apology that the hosts had been so over zealous in marking nearly everything that was posted which, as we have not made the progress we wanted to, would not seem to be that helpful.

I have indeed had a email about awarding the Helpful + another 3 yesterday about Apple's awarding the Recommendeds.

I have had issues with the Recommended awards before see Save iMessage history

You will see that there is a Recommended that does not have a Post.

It is in fact a Copy and Paste of an older post of mine.

I posted a reply to that missing poster asking them not to do it AND then they got awarded the Recommended.

I complained to the Hosts in the Lounge (Level 6 posters and Above area).

The Hosts removed the Post but had to leave the Recommended showing due to the way the software works.

If you wish to continue with this thread I am willing to help.

I apologise again that I was not clear enough about who the comments were for.

8:10 pm Thursday; May 12, 2016