Mac OS 10.4.8 permissions are messed up, please help!

Open Disk Utility (found in Applications:Utilities) and run "repair permissions"

Also make sure you are logged in as an administrator.

In the Accounts Prefs, it shows "Admin" under my name. Is that all I need to attempt to try this?

Yes

I opened the Disc Utility and ran the Repair Permissions button. No errors. When I try installing again, I get this error:

http://www.powermixx.com/pmx/a_temp_dir/temp/Picture5.jpg

Are you trying to run the installer from your hard drive or from a CD? If you are running the installer from a CD, it might be trying to create the folder on the CD. Try copying the contents of the CD to your hard drive and run the installer from the hard drive.

When clicking thru the install, I navigate to the HD and select it. I also tried your suggestion, same result.

In that case, I am out of ideas. See if there is any tech support for the product you are trying to install.

Thanks. It's an ssue with this acct, not the software.

It may be an issue with the installer. Normally if an installer needs root access, instead of giving you the error message it did, it will pop up a request for you to enter your root password. Alternatively, the installer may be trying to install somewhere that is read only, like a CD or a disk image.

Again, I am navigating to the location for the install and selecting the Applications folder on the HD. I enter my password, the installer begins then I get the msg. Thanks.

This is a long shot, but if there is already a folder or file with the same name as the one that Vise is trying to create, that might cause the problem. Have you tried installing somewhere else?

By the way, this does not seem to be an uncommon problem:

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=VISE+%22error+creating+folder%22&btnG=Search&meta=

I have networked my other Mac and I noticed for some reason, my home directories are on the desktop with a lock icon in the drive icon. I think this may be part of the problem. Everything used to just work, I could copy files from either HD or home directory to either HD or home directory on the other mac. Now I can only copy to the HD itself. I don't have a clue how this changed. I cant even install it in my home directory.

I need someone VERY familar with the Unix CHMOD command. I opened a 'Terminal' window and navigated to the Applications folder on the hard drive (not the one in my home directory). I typed "ls -l" and I saw this (excerpt of the displayed permissions):

----------------------------
drwxrwxr-x    3 root      admin         102 Dec 19  2004 GarageBand.app
drwxr-xr-x    3 bobbyste  admin         102 Jan  9  2006 Google Earth.app
drwxrwxr-x    8 root      admin         272 Dec  3  2005 GraphicConverter
drwxrwxr-x    6 bobbyste  bobbyste      204 Feb 27  2005 Hewlett-Packard
----------------------------

It appears some are 'root' and some are me (bobbyste). Is this part of the problem? If so  how can I fix this?

If all you want to go is change the owner and group you can use the following commands:

chgrp admin * or {name of file to change}

That will change the group value.

To change the owner, use:

chown root * or {name of file to change}

Thanks for the reply. What is recommeneded? I have a login as 'root' and I also have my login as 'bobbysteele'. I'm not sure under which account and what to change... The entire hard-drive or certain folders? Should the owner of all files be one particualr login? Obviously I want to keep my home directory for just my access only, but should the Applications folder (and others - Utilities, Library, etc.) be root or my name?

Sorry the whole permissions thing jusy scares me a bit. I want to make sure I don't lock myself out of my own files.

Here's more information:

When I 'Get Info' on my home directory, I see this:
http://www.powermixx.com/pmx/a_temp_dir/temp/Picture1.jpg

My home directory has a lock icon right in the icon.

Questions:
1) I have tried to change these permissions and it appears to process. When finished, if I close and reopen the 'Get Info'. it's NOT changed. I need to remove this lock icon on my home directory. Ideas? I've already run "Repair Permissions' in the Disc Utility.

Locked out of my home directory,
Robert

Isn't Vise an OS9 installer application? If so, you will have to boot in OS9 to run the installer.

Disc Utility with Repair Permissions should be run when booted from the OSX install cd/dvd.
Before you reinstall a new osx, you have the opportunity to select the Disc Utility in the menu.
Then the harddisc is not in use and Disc Utility can effectively repair it all.

The previous comment is dead-on correct.  Take Lieven's advise.  You must run the repair permissions from the isntall CD.

I don't know if the Author ever fixed the issue.

Booting with the original install disk and repairing permissions would be the first thing to do.

But when a home directory shows a lock icon, that signals that the directory is owned by someone other than the user logged in. It sounds like something really got clobbered for the home directory.

If possible, do into the directory above the home directory and check the owner information via the Terminal application. It sounds like the 'owner' is wrong there and should be changed using the "sudo" command -- runs as super user/root for that single command.

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