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Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 353

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
30 March 2026 at 16:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 353. Here are my solutions to them.

1: The future was here 25 years ago when the fastest land animal arrived.

Click for a solution

Cheetah (Mac OS X 10.0)

The future was here (launched under the tagline of ‘the future is here’) 25 years ago (released on 24 March 2001) when the fastest land animal (a cheetah, despite Mac OS X 10.0 being far from the fastest) arrived.

2: This atelier came with more than a marathon four years ago.

Click for a solution

Mac Studio M1

This atelier (a studio) came with more than a marathon (the first Apple silicon Mac to feature an M1 Ultra chip) four years ago (announced 8 March and released 18 March 2022).

3: Wicked fast at 40 MHz, its special effects impressed 36 years ago.

Click for a solution

Macintosh IIfx

Wicked fast (it was dubbed ‘wicked fast’) at 40 MHz (the clock speed of its 68030 CPU and bus), its special effects (FX) impressed 36 years ago (released 19 March 1990).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They each celebrated their anniversaries this month.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 353

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
28 March 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: The future was here 25 years ago when the fastest land animal arrived.

2: This atelier came with more than a marathon four years ago.

3: Wicked fast at 40 MHz, its special effects impressed 36 years ago.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 352

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
23 March 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 352. Here are my solutions to them.

1: British sister of ANSI is Tahoe’s child of RSR.

Click for a solution

BSI

British sister of ANSI (The British Standards Institution, or BSI, is the UK equivalent of the American National Standards Institute) is Tahoe’s child of RSR (it’s the macOS 26 reimplementation of Rapid Security Responses from Ventura).

2: Puzzle vault in the Da Vinci code contains Safari.

Click for a solution

Cryptex

Puzzle vault in the Da Vinci code (in Dan Brown’s novel ‘The Da Vinci Code’, it’s a portable cylindrical vault resembling a combination lock, used to contain secret messages or precious objects) contains Safari (recent versions of macOS include two cryptexes, the App cryptex containing Safari, and the OS cryptex containing dyld caches).

3: The sound of a liquid hitting a surface could be 1 or its parent.

Click for a solution

Splat

The sound of a liquid hitting a surface (a splat) could be 1 or its parent (it’s Apple’s internal name for the cryptex updates in RSRs and BSIs).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They all refer to the sealed disk images used by recent versions of macOS.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 352

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
21 March 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: British sister of ANSI is Tahoe’s child of RSR.

2: Puzzle vault in the Da Vinci code contains Safari.

3: The sound of a liquid hitting a surface could be 1 or its parent.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 351

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
16 March 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 351. Here are my solutions to them.

1: Show for recording or art, it isn’t as recent as you might think.

Click for a solution

Studio Display

Show (a display) for recording (a recording studio) or art (an art studio), it isn’t as recent as you might think (most recently 27-inch 5120 x 2880 from 2022, but an earlier series of models between 1998-2004).

2: Theatre exhibition was originally the largest of its kind.

Click for a solution

Apple Cinema Display

Theatre (a cinema) exhibition (a display) was originally the largest of its kind (the original model was the largest flat panel display on the market when it was launched in 1999, 22-inch, up to 1600 x 1024).

3: Gallery for pictures of the famous in greyscale only.

Click for a solution

Macintosh Portrait Display

Gallery (a display) for pictures of the famous (portraits) in greyscale only (available between 1989-1992, 15-inch with 640 x 870 in 256 shades of grey).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re some of Apple’s displays for Macs.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 351

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
14 March 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: Show for recording or art, it isn’t as recent as you might think.

2: Theatre exhibition was originally the largest of its kind.

3: Gallery for pictures of the famous in greyscale only

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 350

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
9 March 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 350. Here are my solutions to them.

1: Novel in four colours delivers next week.

Click for a solution

MacBook Neo

Novel (a book, new, and neo-) in four colours (silver, blush, citrus and indigo) delivers next week (it’s available from 11 March).

2: First airport with a handle from 1999.

Click for a solution

iBook

First airport (it was the first model with built-in AirPort networking) with a handle (it’s the only Mac portable with a built-in handle) from 1999 (it was introduced in July 1999).

3: Friend and assistant with a real keyboard for Isaac.

Click for a solution

eMate

Friend (a mate) and assistant (it’s a personal digital assistant or PDA) with a real keyboard (the only Newton with a built-in keyboard) for Isaac (Newton).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re each innovative low-end portables aimed at education and consumer markets.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 350

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
7 March 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: Novel in four colours delivers next week.

2: First airport with a handle from 1999.

3: Friend and assistant with a real keyboard for Isaac.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 349

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
2 March 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 349. Here are my solutions to them.

1: A snack or bay for 8.

Click for a solution

byte

A snack (a bite to eat) or bay (a bight) for 8 (there are 8 bits in one byte).

2: Drill head in a horses’s mouth for 1.

Click for a solution

bit

Drill head (a bit) in a horses’s mouth (where a bit goes) for 1 (a single bit).

3: A quiet or pass for 4-64.

Click for a solution

word

A quiet (a quiet word) or pass (a password) for 4-64 (the Intel 4004 of 1971 had 4-bit words, and the ILLIAC IV of 1975 was the first with 64-bit words, now the standard in most modern processors).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re each fundamental data types in computing.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 349

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
28 February 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: A snack or bay for 8.

2: Drill head in a horses’s mouth for 1.

3: A quiet or pass for 4-64.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 348

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
23 February 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 348. Here are my solutions to them.

1: The next real-estate catalogue went binary in 2002.

Click for a solution

Property list

The next (it originated in NeXTSTEP) real-estate (property) catalogue (a list) went binary in 2002 (it was available in binary format in Mac OS X 10.2 in 2002, and that’s now standard).

2: Punctuating a short pause to break data for spreadsheets and more.

Click for a solution

CSV

Punctuating a short pause (a comma) to break (separate) data (value) for spreadsheets and more (commonly used to move data between spreadsheets and more).

3: In a quest for a golden fleece, Douglas Crockford brought it from ECMAScript.

Click for a solution

JSON

In a quest for a golden fleece (the mythical Jason), Douglas Crockford (its inventor in 2000-01) brought it from ECMAScript (the official name of the standardised version of JavaScript, the origin of JSON, JavaScript Object Notation).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re all data exchange formats, specifically those used for serialisation.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 348

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
21 February 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: The next real-estate catalogue went binary in 2002.

2: Punctuating a short pause to break data for spreadsheets and more.

3: In a quest for a golden fleece, Douglas Crockford brought it from ECMAScript.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 347

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
16 February 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 347. Here are my solutions to them.

1: Stop operating when the power goes off.

Click for a solution

Shut Down

Stop operating (shut down) when the power goes off (what happens).

2: A place out of the studio for network settings.

Click for a solution

Location

A place (a location) out of the studio (on location) for network settings (what this controls).

3: Tress for giving shelter can require password.

Click for a solution

Lock Screen

Tress (a lock of hair) for giving shelter (a screen) can require password (the lock screen can).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re all commands in the Apple  menu.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 347

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
14 February 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: Stop operating when the power goes off.

2: A place out of the studio for network settings.

3: Tress for giving shelter can require password.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 346

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
9 February 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 346. Here are my solutions to them.

1: Shift for this fashion without extensions.

Click for a solution

Safe Mode

Shift (the key held on Intel Macs, or held in Recovery on Apple silicon Macs) for this fashion (mode) without extensions (it starts up with third-party extensions disabled).

2: V is long-winded with fast-scrolling text.

Click for a solution

Verbose Mode

V (the key held on Intel Macs, with Command, but requires an NVRAM setting on Apple silicon) is long-winded (verbose) with fast-scrolling text (what it does).

3: Unmarried person who’s logged in using S in the past.

Click for a solution

Single User Mode

Unmarried (single) person who’s logged in (the user) using S (the startup key, with Command) in the past (not available on Apple silicon Macs, and probably no longer on Intel either now).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re startup modes.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 346

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
7 February 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: Shift for this fashion without extensions.

2: V is long-winded with fast-scrolling text.

3: Unmarried person who’s logged in using S in the past.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 345

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
2 February 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 345. Here are my solutions to them.

1: No amateur at inference is Apple’s DAW.

Click for a solution

Logic Pro

No amateur (a pro) at inference (logic) is Apple’s DAW (it’s Apple’s Digital Audio Workstation).

2: Air pump squeezes and encodes your media.

Click for a solution

Compressor

Air pump (compressor) squeezes and encodes your media (what it does).

3: Principal performance platform for 1 to go live.

Click for a solution

MainStage

Principal (main) performance platform (a stage) for 1 to go live (it’s the live performance companion to Logic Pro).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They’re among the apps bundled in Apple Creator Studio.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 345

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
31 January 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: No amateur at inference is Apple’s DAW.

2: Air pump squeezes and encodes your media.

3: Principal performance platform for 1 to go live.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 344

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
26 January 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 344. Here are my solutions to them.

1: Iron, copper, mercury, shaders.

Click for a solution

Metal

Iron, copper, mercury, (all three are metals) shaders (it’s a low-level 3D graphics, shader and compute API for Apple silicon GPUs).

2: Silica successor to 3 went from 2D to extreme.

Click for a solution

Quartz

Silica (the mineral quartz) successor to 3 (it progressively replaced QuickDraw in Mac OS X) went from 2D (Quartz 2D) to extreme (Quartz Extreme, with hardware acceleration).

3: Classic climbing extender replaced by 2 and all but vanished now.

Click for a solution

QuickDraw

Classic (it was the graphics library and API in Classic Mac OS, and initially written by Bill Atkinson and Andy Hertzfeld) climbing extender (a quickdraw) replaced by 2 and all but vanished now (in Mac OS X, Quartz 2D has replaced it, with barely a trace left in modern macOS).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They have each been key parts of the Mac’s graphics system.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 344

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
24 January 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: Iron, copper, mercury, shaders.

2: Silica successor to 3 went from 2D to extreme.

3: Classic climbing extender replaced by 2 and all but vanished now.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

Solutions to Saturday Mac riddles 343

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
19 January 2026 at 17:00

I hope you enjoyed Saturday’s Mac Riddles, episode 343. Here are my solutions to them.

1: In between lights and action, or obscura for a bit of privacy.

Click for a solution

Camera

In between lights and action (lights, camera, action), or obscura (a camera obscura) for a bit of privacy (what its control provides).

2: Make well-defined using 1 perhaps, with do not disturb.

Click for a solution

Focus

Make well-defined (to focus) using 1 perhaps (a camera), with do not disturb (one of the standard focus modes).

3: Nearby interconnections could be blocked if you don’t agree.

Click for a solution

Local Network

Nearby (local) interconnections (network) could be blocked if you don’t agree (if you don’t give consent when prompted to allow it).

The common factor

Click for a solution

They are each privacy categories controlled in Privacy & Security settings in macOS Sequoia and Tahoe.

I look forward to your putting alternative cases.

Saturday Mac riddles 343

✇The Eclectic Light Company
By: hoakley
17 January 2026 at 17:00

Here are this weekend’s Mac riddles to entertain you through family time, shopping and recreation.

1: In between lights and action, or obscura for a bit of privacy.

2: Make well-defined using 1 perhaps, with do not disturb.

3: Nearby interconnections could be blocked if you don’t agree.

To help you cross-check your solutions, or confuse you further, there’s a common factor between them.

I’ll post my solutions first thing on Monday morning.

Please don’t post your solutions as comments here: it spoils it for others.

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