Warning: moron newbie switcher questions below!!!
OK, so I really need to encrypt files and folders, and Mac simply does not have a good solution. I searched far and wide, both freeware and commercial software. On windows I use a great piece of free and open software called AxCrypt:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/axcrypt
There's nothing like it anywhere in the mac world. FileVault doesn't encrypt individual files and folders. All commercial and/or free mac software falls short in some way or another, either features or convenience. With AxCrypt, I just right click on anything (volume, file of any kind, program, folder, nested folders, any size and any number of files) and there in the context menu I got Axcrypt with a whole bunch of options... encrypt, decrypt, rename, create executable files etc., etc., etc. I don't want to rave on and on about AxCrypt, but trust me, there's nothing like it anywhere for Macs... oh, and I did search widely.
Anyway, I've resigned myself to that (there will always be software that's not good enough/available for mac or for windows or linux or whatever). So, I just looked for solutions. My needs are pretty simple. I have a whole bunch of documents that I want to have enrypted (financial records etc., plus of course, pr0n... I kid, I kid). I want those to be encrypted and decrypted at any time (File Vault does not encrypt while you work, plus, I hate the idea of encrypting my whole Home folder in case anything goes wrong). I would like to create a document and then with great simplicity encrypt it, and contiue working on something else, also, I'd like to be able to decrypt a document, work, and encrypt it again.
From my reading it seems like perhaps the way to accomplish this relatively smoothly is to create a blank disc image that is encrypted. Now, I'm not clear how that disc image works... say, I want to encrypt a file - do I just drag it to the encrypted image? When I drop the file onto the encrypted disc image, do I have to provide a password at that time? Now, when I need to retrieve a file from the encrypted image, do I open the whole image with a password to see my file? If so, then aren't all the files inside decrypted once I provide my password? Or do I get to open the image, and there I get to see all the encrypted files, click on the one I want and decrypt just that one with a password? Is it session sensitive? That is, can I decrypt the disc image for the duration of my work, then encrypt it before I log off/sleep it/shut down?
Anyhow, following the help instructions, I did create an encrypted disc image, only here's where I got hellaciously confused. When the image was created, I had suddenly a ton of icons!! Extremely confusing to say the least! In the dialogue box I selected to save it to my Documents folder in my Home folder. Imagine my shock when I suddenly saw:
1)Disc-looking icon with the name I gave, on my desktop
2)A different looking icon with the name I gave plus an extention of .spareseimage - and it was in the documents folder where I wanted it... only why does it have that hideous extention, and can I get rid of that extention?
3)In the disc utility window sidebar, there are BOTH the disc-looking icon with the name I gave (like the one on the desktop), AND the other icon with the name + hideous .sparseimage extention.
OK, so I had to go down into the basement for an extra case of WTF. Which is the actual encrypted disc image I can drag files to??? And why do I have TWO different icons one with a .sparseimage extention and one without? And are they all going to hang out permanently where they are right now?
I realize that I'm not understanding something, would someone kindly show me the light? TIA!
OK, so I really need to encrypt files and folders, and Mac simply does not have a good solution. I searched far and wide, both freeware and commercial software. On windows I use a great piece of free and open software called AxCrypt:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/axcrypt
There's nothing like it anywhere in the mac world. FileVault doesn't encrypt individual files and folders. All commercial and/or free mac software falls short in some way or another, either features or convenience. With AxCrypt, I just right click on anything (volume, file of any kind, program, folder, nested folders, any size and any number of files) and there in the context menu I got Axcrypt with a whole bunch of options... encrypt, decrypt, rename, create executable files etc., etc., etc. I don't want to rave on and on about AxCrypt, but trust me, there's nothing like it anywhere for Macs... oh, and I did search widely.
Anyway, I've resigned myself to that (there will always be software that's not good enough/available for mac or for windows or linux or whatever). So, I just looked for solutions. My needs are pretty simple. I have a whole bunch of documents that I want to have enrypted (financial records etc., plus of course, pr0n... I kid, I kid). I want those to be encrypted and decrypted at any time (File Vault does not encrypt while you work, plus, I hate the idea of encrypting my whole Home folder in case anything goes wrong). I would like to create a document and then with great simplicity encrypt it, and contiue working on something else, also, I'd like to be able to decrypt a document, work, and encrypt it again.
From my reading it seems like perhaps the way to accomplish this relatively smoothly is to create a blank disc image that is encrypted. Now, I'm not clear how that disc image works... say, I want to encrypt a file - do I just drag it to the encrypted image? When I drop the file onto the encrypted disc image, do I have to provide a password at that time? Now, when I need to retrieve a file from the encrypted image, do I open the whole image with a password to see my file? If so, then aren't all the files inside decrypted once I provide my password? Or do I get to open the image, and there I get to see all the encrypted files, click on the one I want and decrypt just that one with a password? Is it session sensitive? That is, can I decrypt the disc image for the duration of my work, then encrypt it before I log off/sleep it/shut down?
Anyhow, following the help instructions, I did create an encrypted disc image, only here's where I got hellaciously confused. When the image was created, I had suddenly a ton of icons!! Extremely confusing to say the least! In the dialogue box I selected to save it to my Documents folder in my Home folder. Imagine my shock when I suddenly saw:
1)Disc-looking icon with the name I gave, on my desktop
2)A different looking icon with the name I gave plus an extention of .spareseimage - and it was in the documents folder where I wanted it... only why does it have that hideous extention, and can I get rid of that extention?
3)In the disc utility window sidebar, there are BOTH the disc-looking icon with the name I gave (like the one on the desktop), AND the other icon with the name + hideous .sparseimage extention.
OK, so I had to go down into the basement for an extra case of WTF. Which is the actual encrypted disc image I can drag files to??? And why do I have TWO different icons one with a .sparseimage extention and one without? And are they all going to hang out permanently where they are right now?
I realize that I'm not understanding something, would someone kindly show me the light? TIA!
