Is it possible to add a signature e.g. from PDF files or from JPEG images instead of using a web cam? The problem is that I don't have a web cam and I would like to use this feature in spite of that.
MacOS – How to add signatures to Preview.app in Lion without using the web cam
macospreviewsignature
Related Solutions
This was covered by Aussie Bloke's blog when Lion arrived. Here are the steps to get both the file where the signature is stored as well as the associated keychain entry to a second Mac.
On the source Mac:
- Open the
~/Library/Containers/com.apple.Preview/Data/Library/Preferencesfolder.- In Finder, click the Go menu and hold option to show the Library folder.
- Alternatively, press ⇧⌘G whilst Finder is active and enter the path above to directly navigate.
- On OS X Mavericks 10.9 and earlier, copy the
com.apple.Preview.signatures.plistfile. - On OS X Yosemite 10.10 and later, copy the
com.apple.PreviewLegacySignaturesConversion.plistfile. - Launch Keychain Access
- Ensure the login keychain is selected and choose the Passwords category.
- On OS X Mavericks 10.9 and earlier, right-click the Preview Signature Privacy password and select Copy Password to Clipboard. This is the password used to encrypt the signature images.
- On OS X Yosemite 10.10 and later, right-click the Signature Annotation Privacy password and select Copy Password to Clipboard.
- Paste it into a text editor and save the file. You'll need to transfer this to your other computer(s).
On the destination Mac(s):
- Launch Preview, open Preferences, and select the Signatures tab to ensure the default configuration files and folders have been created.
- Exit Preview. Ensure that the process is terminated.
- Open the
~/Library/Containers/com.apple.Preview/Data/Library/Preferencesfolder. - On OS X Mavericks 10.9 and earlier, copy the
com.apple.Preview.signatures.plistfile to the folder, overwriting any existing file. - On OS X Yosemite 10.10 and later, copy the
com.apple.PreviewLegacySignaturesConversion.plistfile to the folder, overwriting any existing file. - Launch Keychain Access
- On OS X Mavericks 10.9 and earlier, locate the Preview Signature Privacy password in the login keychain and double-click to edit.
- On OS X Yosemite 10.10 and later, locate the Signature Annotation Privacy password in the login keychain and double-click to edit.
- Click the Show password checkbox and paste the password you copied from your original machine.
- Click Save Changes and you're done!
In situations where the target machine has no existing Preview Signature Privacy or Signature Annotation Privacy record in Keychain Access, you must create a new record. This is necessary when the target machine (like a Mac Pro with an older or third-party display attached) has no camera which means no Signature file can be created from within Preview. Open Keychain Access as above and do the following:
- Click on the + icon to create a new entry
- On OS X Mavericks 10.9 and earlier, enter Preview Signature Privacy in the Keychain Item Name field.
- On OS X Yosemite 10.10 and later, enter Signature Annotation Privacy in the Keychain Item Name field.
- Enter Preview in the Account Name field.
- Paste the password copied from your original machine, per above procedure.
- Click Add
- In the newly created entry, click Access Control
- Add Preview to applications allowed access
- Click Save Changes and you're done!
Go to ~/Library/Keychains on your new Mac and make a copy/backup of your actual
login.keychainwith cmd DCopy the old
login.keychainin /Users/old_user_name/Library/Keychains from the backup to your desktop and rename it tologinold.keychainOpen
Keychain Access.appand choose File -> 'Add Keychain...' in the menu, navigate to your desktop and selectloginold.keychainNow you have a new entry in Keychains named
loginold. Chooseloginoldin Keychains andPasswordsin Category
Select the object
Preview Signature Privacyand drag it to the keychainloginin Keychains. You will be asked for a password. Enter the password for the old keychain (probably your old user password) and chooseAlways AlloworAllow. Now the object will be moved to your login keychain.Choose
loginin Keychains andPasswordsin Category and check if the new objectPreview Signature Privacyis present there.If everything is ok right click
loginoldin Keychains and chooseDelete keychain "loginold". If you chooseDelete Files and Referencesin the following dialog box the keychainloginoldwill be deleted from your desktop and in Keychains
Quit
Keychain Access.appTest everything with Preview.app
If everything went well go to ~/Library/Keychains and delete the file
login copy.keychainbuilt for safety reasons in step 1.If something went wrong, you might revert to your previous keychain by deleting
login.keychainin ~/Library/Keychains and renaminglogin copy.keychaintologin.keychain. Then i usually log out and in again or restart my Mac to be save.
Slightly alternative way if the object Preview Signature Privacy is already present in your keychain login:
Perform the steps 1-4 from above
5. Locate the Preview Signature Privacy in loginold in Keychains and Passwords in Category and double click to edit.
6. Click the Show password checkbox and enter the old user password
7. Now the password used to encrypt the signature images is visible. Copy & paste it into a text editor and save the file or paste it directly into the password field of Preview Signature Privacy in your keychain login.
Any by Preview.app previously signed/protected object on your new Mac might be inaccessible then though.
Continue with the steps 7-11 from above
Best Answer
It appears that at present, that isn't an option. When I created a signature file using the FaceTime camera, I see that first of all, there is no unencrypted graphic file created by Preview. Preview did a new key in Keychain titled "Preview signature privacy", suggesting that the signature files go directly from Preview's camera interface to an encrypted file. There isn't a supported way to add a graphic as a signature, and the encryption makes it difficult to bypass the approved new signature process.