Like any computer, a Mac is prone to serious problems over the course of its life. A wide variety of things can go horribly, horribly wrong. From a complete failure to start, to that terrifying kernel panic screen, here's how to troubleshoot (and hopefully fix) what's plaguing your Mac.

Apple updated OS X to version 10.7.3 today, which fixed a number of minor issues -- but caused many big ones with some users. If you're finding that apps are crashing as soon as you launch them, here's how to fix it.

Today Apple released version 10.7.3 of Mac OS X, fixing a few minor compatibility and stability issues in the operating system. If you've been having issues when using smart cards, authenticating with directory services, or you are running into Windows file sharing problems, this update is for you.

If you've read our guide to building a Hackintosh you know that installing Mac OS X Lion requires a bit of work. You have install Snow Leopard, then go through a fairly tedious upgrade process rather than just installing from scratch. Fortunately, thanks to a new utility called UniBeast (from tonymacx86, of course), that's no longer a problem.

Mac: If you're not a big fan of the grey fabric background that lines Mission Control (and some other parts of OS X Lion), our favourite hackintosher tonymacx86 has figured out how to change it and it's pretty easy. Here's how to do it.

Dear Lifehacker, I read that passwords in Mac OS X Lion can be easily hacked. Is this a big issue or has it been blown out of proportion? Is there anything I should be doing to protect myself?

Mac: Virtualisation app VMware Fusion just got Lion-friendly. VMware Fusion 4 brings a "more Mac-like" experience when running Windows programs, adds performance boosts, and supports running Lion or Snow Leopard in a virtual machine, finally.

Apple has moved to a much more grey-and-white look with OS X Lion, but you don't have to take it lying down. Here's how to bring back Snow Leopard's colourful Finder icons in 10.7.

If you purchased one of Apple's MacBook Air laptops back when it came with a flash drive for restoration purposes, that drive is now a little obsolete with the release of Lion (should you decide to upgrade). Fortunately there's a method to turn it into a standard flash drive, or even a Lion install disk. Here's how.

Mac: If you're still having a difficult time getting used to Mac OS 10.7 Lion and all of the added features and changes Apple has made, Deeper is a utility from the folks who made Onyx that gives you control over the Finder, iTunes, Mail.app, the Dock and more.

Apple's first update to its Lion operating system fixes some specific bugs like unresponsive video playback in Safari and missing administrative user accounts after upgrading from Snow Leopard.

Mac: If you upgraded to Mac OS X Lion and immediately started finding system settings and changes you disliked, Lion Tweaks is a utility that gives you one-click access to enable or disable all of Lion's most loved -- or hated -- new features.

We've shown you how to make a DIY Lion disc and do it automatically with a handy app, but it looks like Apple has decided to join in the fun and release an official Mac OS X Lion recovery disc/disk creator. .

We've shown you how to manually create a bootable Mac OS X Lion DVD or thumb drive, but now an app called Lion DiskMaker can automate the process for you. You just download it, insert the media you want to use to create your install, and let it take care of the rest.

If you have especially slow internet, or for any other reason want a physical copy of OS X Lion, you can buy it on a flash drive for $75 from Apple. 9to5Mac is reporting that some users may be able to get them free of charge if they're "unable to use Lion's built-in recovery tools".

OS X Lion has been out for over a week now, and now that you've had a chance to try Lifehacker's 10 favourite secret features of the new operating system, here's five more to test out.

Among Mac OS X Lion's other fun/annoying iOS-like features is that when you hold down down a key, you're presented with alternatives. For example, holding down n will present you with ñ and ń — handy if you need to type in accents, annoying if you want it to send several keystrokes with a long press. You may really like this feature, but if you don't here's how you can turn it off.

Mac OS X Lion added the option of resizing your windows from any edge, but you can do even more and that. The option and shift keys open up two new possibilities as well.

Mac OS X Lion was designed to bring the best of iOS to the desktop, but perhaps you don't believe there is such a thing. If you want to get rid of all the iOS-inspired stuff found in Lion, here's how to do it.