the-ultimate-mac-user-book

Ultimate

Mac User

Book

The Ultimate Mac User Book

Unveil useful tips, instructions, and apps for a better Mac life.

From basic shortcuts to hidden gems.

Setapp

Copyright 2020

Table of Contents

So you got a new Mac. Now what?

Switching from Windows

The Mac lifestyle

Creativity (all on your Mac’s screen)

Coding on Mac

Create your productivity flow

Writing and blogging on Mac

Using a Mac for study

Bonus chapter: The ultimate list of Mac hacks and timesavers

Author and Editor: Tetiana Hanchar

Illustrator: Andrii Hakman

Contributing writers: Misha Berveno and Jane Palash

How to use this book

Welcome to the crowd of Mac enthusiasts! Not The IT Crowd — this book is less fun, we must admit it. But we’ve made every effort to make it useful for you. Whether you have a history with Windows computers and want to make a quick transition to Mac, or you’re looking for tips to upgrade your current workflow, it’s all here.

Here’s how to use The Ultimate Mac User Book to make the most out of it:

The book covers all operating systems developed and released by the time of publishing, the latest being macOS 10.15 Catalina.

Introduction

Once you go Mac, you never go back. This is true for many people — from creative folks to organization managers, from students to seniors. And we hope this is going to be very true for you once you read this book.

Reliable and intuitive, Macs still require a certain level of tech fluency. The family of Apple’s Macintosh operating systems is very versatile, with tons of features and enhancements built on top of each other. Navigating through all of them can be complicated. Especially if you’re a new user. Especially if you have no time to figure out how things work — you just want them to work. We’ve made a bold attempt to figure it all out and give you the distilled knowledge of macOS.

Hope you learn new Mac secrets and have fun experimenting with the tools mentioned in this guide.

Сhapter 1

So you got a new Mac

In this chapter:

Contents

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Setting up your new Mac

Apple made it a breeze to set up your new Mac and fall in love with it in the process. Although on-screen instructions are pretty clear, there are lots of small details you might miss at the setup stage. We cover all of them in a comprehensive guide below.

First steps to a seamless experience

So your new, shiny Macintosh is ready to drive. Are you?

Follow the instructions and you’ll be able to use your new Mac in minutes:

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If you transfer from another machine, make sure the two are connected via the same Wi-Fi network or Ethernet cable. Alternatively, connect your new Mac to a Time Machine backup.

On the new Mac, access Migration Assistant in Applications > Utilities. Do the same on your old computer. Note that you’ll have to download Migration Assistant for Windows if you’re transferring from PC. On both machines, choose the way to migrate data. If you see a security code, it should match on both computers.

For transferring from backup, it’s almost the same: Once you connect, you’ll see the list of available backups. Pick the one you want to use and migrate your data.

Depending on how much content you’re transferring, the whole process might take up to a few hours.

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Set up iCloud

At the setup, you can activate Find My Mac – a useful feature that allows to track your Mac’s location or lock the device remotely.

While Find My Mac is a part of iCloud, make sure you have it set up. It’s easy to do with your Apple ID:

Once you sign in with Apple ID, your iCloud will be turned on, which means you can activate Find My Mac.

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Backing up your data

Next thing, create a backup plan for your new machine.

While macOS is more stable than ever and Macs hardly ever crash, it only needs one piece of software behaving badly to wipe out lots of precious data. And even if the worst never happens, many of us trash files only to discover later that we need them again. A backup of your Mac makes it easy to retrieve that file.

There are several different ways to backup a Mac, and for absolute safety, you should use all of them.

Incremental macOS backup

This type of backup makes a copy of all your data the first time you run it, then, at regular intervals, scans your Mac, identifies files that have been added or changed, and copies those to a backup file. This means that each run of the backup is quick and uses few resources, because it's only backing up new or changed files.

There are some things to remember when creating a backup strategy:

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Full Mac HD clone backup

The other prevalent type of backup is a complete clone of your startup drive, usually a bootable version. This gives you a complete copy of your main drive and allows you to get back up and running again quickly, should a disaster strike. It's useful when you install a beta version of a new macOS or when you're doing anything on your Mac that might cause a problem for the OS. You can use Disk Utility or a third-party tool to create a clone.

How to clone Mac drive using Restore option of Disk Utility

Disk Utility is a default tool that comes pre-installed on your Mac. To use it to clone your drive, follow these simple steps:

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How to create a backup with Time Machine

Time Machine is backup software built into every Mac and is the common way to create incremental backups.

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for the past 24 hours, daily for the past month, and weekly for all previous months.

Using Time Machine on two hard drives

You can use Time Machine to backup to two different hard drives, or more if you like. Time Machine will rotate the schedule among the drives so that it backs up to each disk in turn and will backup everything that's changed since the last backup was stored on that disk. You can switch disks before entering Time Machine - hold down the Option key, then choose Browse Other Backup Disks from the Time Machine menu. If you work in different locations, you can keep different disks at each location, giving you additional security.

How to backup a Mac to an external hard drive

There are good reasons for backing up a Mac to an external hard drive. It's more reliable than wirelessly connecting to a Time Capsule or NAS and more secure than using a cloud service.

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How to connect multiple external hard drives

There are three ways to connect multiple external hard drives to your Mac:

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User accounts

Users & Groups – System Preferences pane for access control on Mac.

To access programs and change settings on a Mac, you need a user account. By default, as the owner of the machine, you have administrative rights – the highest power. If you want to share your new Mac with family or colleagues, you’ll have to create additional accounts with specific user roles and capabilities.

Administrator account

This is the first user account you create on Mac. Without an administrator account, you won’t be able to create and delete any other accounts. Neither will you make changes to the current settings or install new apps. In other words, an administrator has the full control over the computer’s life.

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Create a new account on Mac

Here’s a quick way to create a new account for one of your family members or coworkers:

Accounts with limited access

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How to delete a user account

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The Menu Bar

Menu Bar – Apple’s graphical control element with menus for an easy access.

Bartender – a third-party app for customizing the menu bar.

A set of icons and menus you see at the top of the screen is called the menu bar (or the top bar) – a place from where you can access app menus, check statuses, and run programs.

Without a doubt, the menu bar is one of Mac’s great features. It’s condensed, easy to tap into on the fly, and displays much-needed information in real time.

But, with every new icon app added, things become a little more cluttered and usability takes another hit. Fortunately, it’s possible to edit the menu bar to rearrange and remove icons so that it’s able to suit your needs at any given moment. Even if your brand-new, clean menu bar is not disturbing you just yet, ensure you’ll keep it under control in future.

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Read on for the best ways to make the menu bar on Mac truly yours:

Rearranging menu items in macOS Sierra or later

To move an icon in the menu bar, hold Command (cmd), then click and hold the icon to drag it across the bar. Simple.

There are no restrictions here — feel free to move icons anywhere you see fit. Don’t like the clock all the way over there on the right-hand side? Drag it to somewhere more suitable.

The only icon that cannot be tampered with is the Notification Center. Apple has decided this must remain in the far right corner of the menu, which is fair enough — it looks good there.

Rearranging menu items in older versions of macOS

Movement of icons in older versions of macOS is reserved for selected apps only: Bluetooth, audio, Time Machine, WiFi, battery, clock, and user switching. Spotlight and Notification Center must stay put, as must all third-party apps.

To move icons around within the designated area, once again hold Command, then click and hold the icon to drag it.

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If there are items in the menu bar that you feel don’t belong there, hold Command, click on the icon, and drag it outside of the menu bar.

Note: this only works for first-party icons.

It is possible to remove third-party icons from the top bar on Mac by clicking on them and selecting “Quit” or “Close,” but this will stop the app from working until you reopen it.

Some apps give the option to remove icons from the top bar on Mac in their settings: [chosen app] > Preferences. However, a lot of apps won’t. To fully customize which icons appear in the menu bar, you should use third-party software.

If you’ve removed the first-party app and you’d like it back on the menu, it can be re-enabled in System Preferences.

Add menu bar extras

Because the menu options like Clock and Ink can’t be found in System Preferences, you might need to use the System folder as well:

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You can easily remove any of the icons by holding Command and dragging it outside of the menu bar as described above.

How to customize and tidy Mac menu bar

It’s possible to change the look of the default menu bar items in System Preferences and third-party apps’ ones in their respective preferences. Most of the time, you’ll be able to at least switch the color to black and white.

If you want more control over how the menu bar looks and what it does, you should consider using the Bartender app. It lets you hide icons without quitting and rearrange icons in a way that better suits how you use the menu bar — something particularly useful if you’re running an older version of macOS.

App icons can be displayed when updating, shown in the Bartender Bar only, or hidden completely and accessed easily using a built-in search function.

Change how the date and time are displayed in the menu bar

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Hide menu bar items

One low-key feature on Mac is the ability to auto-hide menu bar. To do this, open System Preferences > General. Check the option to “Automatically hide and show the menu bar” and the menu bar will immediately disappear.

To get the menu bar to show up again, simply move the cursor to the top of the screen and hold it there for a second.

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Mac keyboard shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts – combinations of keys that enable the activation of multiple processes on a Mac.

Using keyboard shortcuts instead of reaching for your mouse or trackpad and hunting through menus is a great way to save time and get work done efficiently.

Even though for complex task you could use a keyboard assistant (which will semantically understand any operation you need to perform), for complex tasks, knowing essential shortcuts will speed up every repetitive action related to the basic Mac functionality.

Learning shortcuts takes time and practice; it’s only by using them repeatedly that you develop a habit. But then you start really saving time and boosting productivity to the point where you won’t know how you’ve lived without them.

Top time-saving Mac keyboard shortcuts

To help you, we’ve collected the best keyboard shortcuts for the Mac — those that will save you the most time every day. Remember: learn them and practice them.

Before we start with a list, let’s take a look at all the modifier keys:

Cmd = Command key (the one either side of the spacebar and looks like this: ⌘)

Ctrl = Control key, usually labelled “ctrl”

Alt = old-time Mac users would call this “option” and looks like this: ⌥

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Shift = ⇧

Tab = ⇥

Now, let’s dive right in.

Basics

The obvious shortcuts you’ve probably heard about even if you’ve never used a computer before:

Navigate quickly to a folder in Finder

When you’re in Finder, there are a number of shortcuts you can use to go directly to a folder.

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Change the Finder view

In a Finder window, use the following shortcuts to change the view for all the items in a folder:

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Navigate folders in the Finder

Going through folders in the Finder is especially easy with:

Add a selected item to a Finder window sidebar.

View a Quick Look slideshow of selected files

Find anything

Invoke Spotlight from anywhere

Quickly open Accessibility options

Switch applications quickly

Open any application’s Preferences

Open the Get Info window

Show or hide the Dock

Add a Finder item to the Dock

Invoke AirDrop

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Undo

Navigate text

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Find misspelled words in a document

Select all

Paste in the correct style

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Take a screenshot

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Open a new tab in Safari (or any other web browser)

Zoom into a web page

Zoom in anywhere

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Open Display Preferences

Open Sound Preferences

Put your Mac to sleep

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Keep on learning

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The Trackpad

No matter what you think of the keyboards on Apple's laptops, their huge, luxurious, Multi-Touch, Force Touch trackpads can't be beat. And macOS includes tons of handy trackpad gestures that you might not be using already. You can left-click, tap to click, select text, sweep every window out of the way to reveal your Desktop files, and so much more.

Common trackpad gestures on macOS

If you've got a Mac laptop, go to System Preferences and open the Trackpad pane. It's simply packed with gestures you might not be using that can really speed up some tasks on your Mac.

There's no mystery to these options, either. As you mouse over or select each gesture, a video preview on the right shows exactly what will happen. It's definitely worth a few minutes to watch all the previews and decide which gestures could work for you.

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Some gestures even have options you can select in a drop-down menu. For example, in the Point & Click section, you can enable the Secondary Click gesture by checking its box, and then the drop-down lets you choose if that secondary click will be a two-finger tap or a click in a specific corner of the trackpad.

Here are some useful built-in gestures you might not be using. You can enable and customize them in System Preferences > Trackpad.

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More trackpad options in Accessibility

You can also access lots of useful trackpad options in Accessibility. One of such is the ability to select text by dragging three fingers over it, instead of trying to hold down trackpad with your thumb while dragging your index finger across the text, which tends to make your hand cramp up after a while.

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This is found in System Preferences > Accessibility > Mouse and Trackpad. First, you can adjust the double-click speed and specify a delay before folders spring-load when you hold a file over them. But the real magic is found when you click Trackpad Options.

Inside that menu is a checkbox to "Enable dragging" and a drop-down that lets you select "three-finger drag."

It takes a little practice before it's second nature. But that gesture lets you rearrange windows by dragging their title bar with three fingers, plus select text by dragging it with three fingers. Once you have the text selected, you can even drag it to a new place with another three-finger drag gesture.

Control your Mac apps with custom gestures

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BetterTouchTool lives in your Mac's menu bar, where it can let you set up new trackpad gestures, customize other input devices, and have your windows snap to specific areas of the screen.

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The Dock

Dock – one of the core features of Mac’s graphical user interface that’s used for launching and switching between apps.

At the bottom of your Mac’s screen, you’ll see a colorful line with app icons – the Dock. It’s basically a home to apps you use a lot as well as those that are running at the moment.

Adapting to your needs, the Dock changes as you want it to. You can fully customize the Dock’s position and size, hide it completely, pick the apps you want to keep and remove the rest. It’s your workflow dictating the rules here.

Customize the Dock’s position

Apple’s native app launcher is located at the bottom of a Mac’s screen. But you can change it by moving the Dock to the left or right. This way, you win additional vertical space for your windows. To change the location:

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Add and remove items from the Dock

Maybe you don’t see the point to keep Photos in the Dock. Or you want to substitute it for that superstar app you’ve just downloaded. Here’s how to remove items from the Dock:

To enrich your Dock with apps:

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In case you’re missing important functionality, do a little digging and get an alternative to the default program – like HyperDock with window previews or uBar for shrinking your Dock.

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Search through your data

Spotlight – Apple’s search utility, in-built.

Finder – Default file manager on Mac, in-built.

Lacona – Search tool based on keyboard-driven commands for Mac, third-party.

Once you’re done with data transferring, it’s time to learn about data search.

Mac's search functionality is one of the best around. With the help of some apps and advanced search tips, you can actually find what you're looking for in no time.

There are three ways you can go about searching your hard drive for a file or folder: Spotlight, a Finder window, or Lacona. Let's take a look at all three.

Search with Spotlight

Everything is faster with Spotlight. This built-in tool helps you find apps, photos, documents, and other files with ease.

To perform a search with Spotlight, simply click on the Spotlight icon in the upper right-hand corner (the one that looks like a magnifying glass) or open it by pressing Command + Space and start typing whatever it is you want to find in the search bar. Spotlight will automatically start filtering results as you type.

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Narrowing your searches in Spotlight

If you want to narrow the focus of your searches, Spotlight includes a few useful features.

First of all, you can add criteria to a basic search to locate a particular kind of file.

Here's how:

Only the items that match all of the search criteria will appear in the results. For instance, if you've selected Kind + Image + .PNG, only PNG images will be displayed.

To quickly access your search options again, click on Save below the search field.

This will save it to a Smart Folder.

The next option at your disposal is to search by the type of items using keywords. Do this by entering "kind:[search item]" after your search — e.g. "Joe Bloggs kind:email." This works for every kind of file or folder.

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Finally, you can use metadata attributes contained within files to track down items with a specific name or items that were edited on a particular date.

Here are some examples of metadata attribute searches from Apple support:

Spotlight keyboard shortcuts

To get even more out of the Spotlight feature, make a note of these keyboard shortcuts:

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Search with Finder

Finder, like Spotlight, is a simple way to find files. The tool also lets you organize folders and files according to your preferences. You can open Finder by clicking on the Finder icon in the Dock.

When it comes to finding what you're looking for, Finder works in exactly the same way as Spotlight. All of the search narrowing tips that we talked about above can also be applied here.

By default, files are displayed in Finder as icons. If you'd prefer to list them alphabetically, select View > List from the menu bar or click on the List icon. Use the same method to display items in columns, or in Cover Flow.

To edit the sidebar so that it displays shortcuts to your preferred items, simply drag them in or out of the sidebar.

Search with Lacona

Mac's built-in search functionality gets the job done for basic searches, but if you're looking for a more robust, feature-filled alternative to the Spotlight and Siri, you can try Lacona. The app is incredibly intuitive and blisteringly quick. Developers call it "what Siri for Mac could have been," and the first time you use it, you'll see why.

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Once installed, you can call up Lacona by pressing a key and type in whatever it is that you want to do. In the case of this article, we're suggesting you use it to easily find files, but you can also use it to open apps, play music, send texts, schedule events, translate phrases, and much more.

PDFs especially can be hard for your Mac’s standard search feature to handle. So you’ll need to install PDF Search for that.

This lightweight tool specializes in PDF formats, and is able to search the

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Index your folders to start search PDFs

To search PDF files, you’ll need to have the app index. You can index as many folders as you need. To start, click the PDF Scanner icon in the menu bar and go to the gear icon’s drop-down menu. Select Preferences and click over to the Search Folders tab.

Use the + and - buttons to choose which folders to index. When you’re ready, hit Apply.

Search for text inside multiple PDF files

Once you have your folders indexed, you can search them for individual words and phrases. How can you search for specific words in a PDF?

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Mark up any PDF text

Once you’ve hunted down the information you need, the app can help ensure you don’t lose track of it. Highlight any text in a PDF document by using the Pen icon. Use the drop-down menu to change the highlight color or to underline or strikethrough text. Once you’ve made a change, the app will automatically prompt you to save your edits, so the next time you open the PDF you’ll be able to see your annotations.

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How to use Finder on your Mac

The first thing you see when you launch a Mac is Finder—a smiling face in the Dock that gives you access to all files, tags, and locations on Mac. Click on the Finder icon and it will open a fully customizable window with the information about your files.

In this guide, we’ll tell you how Finder handles your files ecosystem in a smart way. So that you keep everything at hand.

Using Finder views on Mac

To simplify your Mac life, Finder has four custom views that allow you to look at files in different ways: icon, list, column, or cover flow. Some of them will seem

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more convenient to use in your workflow than the others. But we recommend to try all of them for different use cases to make the most out of it.

Icon view

Basically, it’s your desktop. In the Icon view, you get a layout where each file and folder is displayed as an icon. The biggest advantage of the Icon view is that you can flexibly rearrange items across your Finder window.

It’s also visually appealing, with options for customizing background image, text, icon size, etc.

If you need to see the most extensive information about your files in the Finder window, List view is the right fit. Apart from the icons and file names, it also shows the size, file type, and date added/date last opened. So it makes sense to choose the List view if you need to see the date for each file in Finder.

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Column view

The best way to focus on file hierarchy is to use the Column view. It allows you to see subfolders for each folder, tracking the path of every separate item on your Mac. What’s more, the Column view is an easy way to change the order or remove files and folders without opening them.

Cover flow view

Last but an interesting one, Cover flow view is the novelty introduced in macOS Mojave. The view brings icon thumbnails into focus—flip through icons and see

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Preview and use Quick Actions (macOS Mojave and later)

The Preview pane accessible from the Finder menu allows to view detailed specifications to files as well as apply changes such as rotating or merging PDFs —without opening the files. Note that such Quick Actions are available only in macOS 10.14 and later.

To access the Preview pane, go to the Finder menu > View > Show Preview. For Quick Actions, select a file in Finder and click on the more icon > Customize. This will open a list of options.

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How to create a new text file in any folder

Automator — an app for creating workflows and scripting your actions, native.

Terminal — a command line interface for Mac.

TextEdit — Apple’s text editing program, native.

TextSoap — a text cleaner for Mac, third-party.

Declutter — file organization utility for Mac, third-party.

The option you’ve probably used a lot on Windows but can’t use on Mac is creating a new file by right-clicking on any part of the desktop. There are easy alternatives, though.

Automate file creation with Automator

Automator, a workflow creator for Mac, is one of the options for creating text files. The app puts a dedicated program on your computer that you can create based on AppleScript in a few clicks.

Here’s how you make an app for text file creation:

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How to create new files in text editors for Mac

If you want to kill two birds with one stone—not only create, but also edit, share, and markup in a text doc—you need dedicated software.

Without installing any third-party apps, you can create docs in TextEdit, Apple’s default program. Access the app via Applications, open a doc, and save it to a custom folder. You can choose between file formats such as Rich Text doc, Web Page, Word, etc.

If you are looking for editing perks, TextEdit’s functionality is too basic. The market is huge, though, so you won’t have a problem finding a substitute. For robust cleanup features and markdown, you can use TextSoap — it’s easy, flexible, and deals with a messy text in a few secs.

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One you’re done with perfecting your content, choose Save from the top menu and select a destination folder—it’s nothing new.

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How to delete and recover data on Mac

iTunes — Apple’s audio playback program, available with macOS until 10.14, native.

iStat Menus — system monitoring tool for Mac, third-party.

CleanMyMac X — Mac utility for cleaning, optimizing, and protecting your computer, third-party.

Carbonite — backup software available by annual subscription, third-party.

Get Backup Pro — backup tool for Mac, available as a lifetime license or part of Setapp subscription, third-party.

AnyTrans — data syncing utility for macOS, iOS, and Android, third-party.

Disk Drill — data recovery solution for Mac, third-party.

If you know the rules, you won’t lose any precious data on Mac. Here’s a comprehensive guide on removing and recovering information—without endangering your privacy.

Uninstalling apps on Mac

To uninstall apps on Mac, you might need to do a bit more than just drag the icons to the Trash. While many apps leave leftovers behind, it’s important to find a way to remove every trace. Here’s an ultimate guide on how to uninstall apps on Mac – completely and irreversibly.

If you're anything like us, you install loads of apps on your Mac, always trying to find the best tool for the job and keen to try out new ones.

That, inevitably, means you have a hard drive or SSD full of applications you never use and which are sitting there taking up disk space.

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Your Mac’s performance directly depends on how well you can run cleanups, freeing up valuable storage. In case you’ve recently switched from Windows, we recommend you forget every app removal strategy you’ve used before. With Mac, it’s all different. And lucky for you – much easier.

To install and anchor a program in Windows, you have to use a native installation service. The same should be used to remove an app. If you simply remove the app folder, you’ll leave behind all the entries and files associated with the app in question. Because a user might not know where these files are stored, it’s impossible to remove apps without Windows Installer.

Uninstalling apps on Mac entails fewer security risks. Plus, you can choose your own way to completely delete apps.

When you install an app on Mac, the program itself will be stored separately from configurations – in /Applications. Therefore, you can easily access every app and associated system files, as well as delete the whole program folder from there. In case there are any leftovers, you can clean them away separately or use automated solutions.

How to delete an app on a Mac

The most popular misconception about removing apps on Mac is that it's enough to move the app icon into the Trash bin. For images, videos, and files that is enough but that is not the case with apps. Applications store lots of files in various places on your Mac, things like storing preferences and user data. To remove an app completely, you need to remove all of those files too.

There are three common ways to get rid of apps on Mac: manually, with Apple’s native uninstaller, or using third-party software.

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A native app launcher is the easiest shortcut to removing macOS applications.

Here’s how it works:

As an alternative, you can uninstall programs using Finder. Quick and stress-free:

Whichever of these two methods you use, neither helps you get rid of logs and associated system files.

We started this article by telling you it's not enough to drag the app to the Trash but it's how you begin. Here’s your guide to manually removing a program:

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Repeat for every app you want to delete.

Once you've deleted one app like that, you can go through the same process again for every app you no longer want on your Mac.

The easy way to completely delete apps from your Mac (the automated method)

Manual cleanup is not a safe (or easy) procedure to perform, so you might want to opt for a ready app uninstaller.

Using an app that will do all the hard work for you, you can save lots of time and effort. For instance, CleanMyMac X will scan your Mac for all the files associated

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with any app you choose and delete them all at the press of a button.

Here’s how you delete an app with CleanMyMac X:

You can remove multiple apps at once, including corresponding files and preferences.

Now you know how it works, you can click on the checkbox next to every app you want to remove and when you're done, click Uninstall. They'll all be removed at once.

There are quite a few apps that brutally abuse your drive space with cache files. Xcode, Sketch, Final Cut, Photoshop, modeling and architecture software, you name it. For instance, Xcode generates junk even when you don't use it. To see if one of your apps is being greedy space-wise, you can use CleanMyMac X System Junk module.

Open the app and run a System Junk scan. Then go to Review Results and you'll see apps with overgrown cache files ready for cleanup. Select them, click Clean and have one less problem on your Mac.

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Reset a faulty app instead of uninstalling

There are a couple of reasons to reset apps rather than delete: The app is buggy and crashes but you still need it, or the app is a system utility.

System utilities are impossible to delete but it doesn't mean they can't cause trouble and misbehave. In this case, you can reset them.

There is a reset option in CleanMyMac X. Go to the Uninstaller tab, choose the app in question, tap the right-click and choose Application reset.

This will remove all the additional files associated with the app and just leave the main file in your Applications folder. That will reset the app back to the state it was in when you first downloaded it.

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If you accidentally delete a file you didn't mean to trash, don't panic. It’s happened to us all. You spend all day working on a text document or a spreadsheet and you save it to the Desktop to make it easier to find later. Then, at the end of the day, in an attempt to tidy up, you drag it to the Trash and without thinking about it, click Empty Trash. With a crunch, your whole day’s work is gone.

If only you’d started running Time Machine yesterday rather than tomorrow. If only you’d made a back up earlier in the day. If only.

What should you do first if this happens?

Thankfully, all is not lost.

It is possible, even if you haven’t taken precautions such as using Time Machine to recover files, photos, audio, music, emails you’ve dragged to the Trash and emptied. The first thing to do is… nothing! That’s right, don’t do anything else on your Mac. You need the disk’s file structure to remain exactly as it was when you emptied the Trash.

You might not realize, but files you delete from your computer aren't actually *gone* until those bytes on the hard drive are written over with new data. So

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between your Mac's built-in tools and handy utilities like Disk Drill and CleanMyMac X, there's almost always a way to get a mistakenly deleted file back.

How to recover accidentally deleted files

How to recover deleted files after emptying the Trash? Here's what to do when you experience the stomach-sinking feeling of deleting a file you didn't want to delete.

It's possible you just moved your file to the Trash, which is just a holding pen. Files aren't deleted all the way until they're emptied from the Trash. So check there by clicking the Trash icon in your Mac's Dock. If your file is there, just drag it out to your Desktop, or to another folder in the Finder.

It's also smart to run a quick Spotlight search for your file—maybe you just moved it to iCloud by accident. Press Command-space and type the name of the file to see what your Mac can find. If you see it in the results, click it to open it, or press Command while you click the file to show where it's located in the Finder.

You can also ask Siri on the Mac to show you files you worked on today, or this week, or all your Pages documents, or some other search query that could turn up your file. I ask Siri, "Show me files I worked on today" quite often, and it's very handy.

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Now, if you’ve done the unthinkable and deleted something you really need in the trash, here is how you get it back from Time Machine (if the storage is another hard drive then that will need connecting to the Mac first):

It’s always better to avoid having to recover a file you’ve put into the Trash. The best way to do that is to back up your main disk regularly.

Time Machine is incredibly convenient, but maybe you back up your Mac another way. For instance, a bootable backup, which you can create with Get Backup Pro, has an extra advantage: If your Mac’s own hard drive dies, you can boot your system from the backup drive, and recover files individually, or copy the entire drive to a new drive or a new Mac. Depending on how you’ve deleted something, and whether it was backed-up first, some of the options above might be open to you. With Carbonite, another popular solution, you can set up automatic backups for your videos for a flat fee.

If you’re looking for a fast way to back up your iPhone, there’s a solution – an app called AnyTrans. Not only does it allow to run instant backups, according to your custom schedule, but also to back up specific files, and transfer data across devices.

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How to recover deleted photos? When you delete a photo from the Photos app on your Mac, that photo isn't moved to the regular Trash. Instead, it stays in a little trash can inside the Photos app, called Recently Deleted. Photos hang around in the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days before they're deleted automatically.

So if you deleted a photo less than 30 days ago, it's probably still in Recently Deleted, which you'll find in the Photos app's sidebar, under Albums. Find it and select it there, and then click the Restore button to move it back to its original location in your Photos library.

Recover music in iTunes

When you delete a track from your iTunes library, you're asked if you want to simply remove it from your library, or move the song to the Trash. If you tell iTunes not to trash the file, the song is removed from your iTunes library but the actual file stays where it has always been. That means you can open a Finder window and navigate to ~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media, where you'll find all your music and videos neatly organized.

Find the file you removed from iTunes, and just drag it onto the iTunes icon in your Dock to add it back to your library

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Restore older versions of a document

Many Mac apps - such as Text Edit, Preview, iWork, and others - keep older versions of files you've been working on, using a versioning feature built into macOS. This trick doesn't work on a file you deleted, but rather to restore an earlier version of a file—as in, you changed something and saved the file again,

then decided you wanted undo all those changes.

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How to recover a file from your Mac when you don’t have a backup

If you didn't back up your files, and you don't use Time Machine, you can still recover deleted files if they haven't been overwritten by new data just yet. You just need some recovery software.

There’s a utility called Disk Drill, which scans your Mac's hard drive for deleted files. If the file is on your boot drive—and let's face it, it probably is—Disk Drill will even walk you through three options to do this safely. You'll need to temporarily disable High Sierra's file system protection, create a recovery boot drive, or connect to another Mac, but everything's explained very clearly.

Once your drive has been scanned, it's easy to sort the results to find your file, preview it with Quick Look, and restore it back to its previous location. Disk Drill can even extract items from inside an iOS device backup.

When you realize you need a deleted file back, time is of the essence. After all, if you wait too long, new data could overwrite the deleted file on your hard drive.

You can recover files from any storage device on your Mac safely and effectively with just several clicks:

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Step 3: Review the results

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Step 4: Preview the file to confirm

When you’ve found the file you accidentally put in the Trash, click the eye icon next to the file path to preview it. If the file is a text document or spreadsheet, check over it carefully to make sure it’s ok. If it’s a movie or music file, watch or listen to it all the way through to make sure the whole file is intact. If you’re happy that it’s ok, press the Recover button.

Step 5: Recover file from the Mac Trash

When you click Recover, you’ll be asked to choose where you want to save the recovered file. This is where the spare disk comes in. Navigate to that disk and choose it as the location. Follow the instructions onscreen to complete the recovery process. When it’s finished, your file will be saved on the external disk. You can now copy it back to your main hard drive and put it wherever you like (but not in the Trash!).

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While Mac has capabilities for bringing your lost data back, it’s always better to have backups for the most valuable assets.

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Screen and video recording

Snipping tool — a screenshot utility that allows to capture and record screen. Capto — a Mac app for capturing and editing screenshots, third-party. Dropshare — a Mac app with a storage for screenshots and recordings, third-party.

CleanShot — a snipping tools that allows to hide desktop icons, third-party. QuickTime Player — Apple’s media player with a feature of screen recording, native.

Have you ever guided your grandma, who called asking for help, through zipping a file and attaching it to an email? Like, with words? It's literally painful.

There's good reason why "show, not tell" is the rule of thumb for everything from UX design to tech support. So if you need to explain to someone how to do things on Mac, there's no better way than a snapshot, screencast, or animated GIF. In this post we'll show you how to do all three.

How to grab a screenshot on Mac

Everyone knows there's a keyboard shortcut for that, but clearly not everyone remembers what it is, judging by some 100,000 people googling "how to take a screenshot" every month. To capture your Mac’s screen, you can either rely on the macOS native snipping tool or get third-party software that’s good for the job.

Apple’s keyboard shortcuts to capture a screenshot

Here's a quick reminder for you with the combinations that capture screen on macOS:

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With transition to Mojave, the macOS snipping tool became even handier. The new shortcut has been added, and it’s powerful – covering all the controls you need to capture a screen:

Once you take a screenshot, it instantly appears at the right bottom of your screen as a floating thumbnail. Without digging around, you can edit, annotate, and share screen captures from there.

These five shortcuts will suffice if you need to quick screen capture for your

Mac's visible part of the screen. There is a number of limitations, though:

Luckily, there are some apps that do that, so you should have no trouble finding a good one. Our personal favorites are Capto, a multipurpose screen capture utility for macOS, CleanShot for clutter-free screen recording, and Dropshare to store and share your screenshots.

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Is it possible to screenshot my Mac remotely?

If you’re away from your Mac but need to grab a screenshot of your home desktop, you can do this by enabling Screen Sharing.

Now that Screen Sharing is set up, you can access your Mac from another computer. To take screenshot of a remote users desktop:

Use snipping tool to capture screenshots

There’s a set of tools that make your screen capturing journey easier.

Use Capto to grab screen on Mac and edit the resulting screenshot the way you like: add captions and arrows, highlight or underline important parts, and whatnot. When you're done, you can save the screenshot in the format and resolution you need or just share it via Mail, Messages, Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.

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To keep your captures and recordings in one spot, you should try Dropshare. If you use it with Setapp subscription, you should know that Setapp users get a complimentary plan from Dropshare – 10 GB of free storage. Should you take tons of screenshots for any specific task, your disk space won’t drain. What’s more, Dropshare ensures your content travels safe. You can share your screen recordings as password-protected links.

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and set a custom wallpaper for your screen recordings. Less fuss – tidier screenshots.

Screenshots are automatically saved to your Mac desktop as .png files and named “Screenshot date at time .png,” where “date” is the current date and “time” is the current time.

If you want to save screenshots to the clipboard instead, press and hold the Control key in addition to the screenshot command keys. So, to save a screenshot of the whole screen to the clipboard, press Control + ⌘ + Shift + 3.

There are, of course, third party utilities that can help you change where screenshots are saved too, but you can also do it using the Terminal. Don’t worry, it’s very easy. Here’s how to change your Mac’s screenshot location:

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Change the default name of a screenshot on Mac

Mac screenshots are automatically given a default name of “Screen Shot” plus the date and time that the screenshot was taken. The format isn't very search friendly, especially if you take a lot of screenshots.

Fortunately, you can change the file name to something more suitable with a command line.

Now, whenever you take a screenshot, it will be saved under your chosen name. If you want to get rid of the date and time, swap out the command in step 2 for “defaults write com.apple.screencapture "include-date" 0.

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simple snapshot won't do. Fortunately, there are a hundred and one apps for that purpose, including Apple's own built-in screen recorder QuickTime.

To make a screen capture video with QuickTime, do the following:

After you record the video, you can use File and Edit menus in the menu bar to finalize some basic editing, rename the video, and choose where to save or share it.

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But as many default apps go, QuickTime Player is also somewhat limited in its functionality. The only choice for editing recordings once they’re complete is to trim the beginning and ending. There’s no option to add titles, additional images, or call-outs.

If you want to record your Mac’s system audio, you’ll need additional software to re-route it, so QuickTime thinks it’s coming from an external microphone. Finally, when you’re done recording, the only option is to save it as a movie file — you can’t share it directly to YouTube, for example.

To seriously edit the video you've recorded, you'll need to use another piece of software, so you might as well save yourself the trouble and use one app for both screen capture and post-production.

If you want to know how to record video on Mac easily, try the Capto app we mentioned earlier. Unlike QuickTime, it lets you record screen activity, webcam video, computer audio, and voiceover all at the same time, as well as choosing between recording a portion of your screen or the entire display.

Capto boasts much more editing power too: you can add captions, graphics, and other elements that come in handy in explanatory videos. On top, you can mute, fade in, or fade out both of the audio recording tracks to get professional sound without clicks and keyboard noise.

Here's how to record video from your screen with audio:

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How to capture screen in animated GIFs

While GIFs may be mostly familiar to you from your Twitter feed, they are a surprisingly good way to make animated screenshots for quick how-to's and issue reports. Oftentimes they work even better than video, because they are lightweight and will be automatically played in your email or Slack message. Plus, you can use them in tutorial articles like this one without adding too much weight to the page.

Apple hasn't embraced GIFs yet, although with emoji in the Touch Bar already being a thing, you might as well expect a GIF maker in the next macOS update.

For now, however, you're going to need a third-party tool for animated screen capture. There are free tools like GIF Brewery and GIPHY Capture—unfortunately, most of them have time limitations, though.

For more flexibility, you might try a paid alternative like Gifox. It lives in your menu bar, so when you need animated screenshots, just open it and record a GIF in a few clicks. Gifox gives you plenty of control over how fast your GIF plays, how many times it repeats, and how high the quality is. You can even add a fancy shadow to it.

All that makes creating a GIF screencast pretty easy. Here's how you do it:

The app will save your GIF to the folder you choose in Preferences, or to your Dropbox/Google Drive account if you connect it.

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Introduction to iTunes and its alternatives

iTunes — a media player developed by Apple, available as a part of macOS (before Catalina).

Apple ID — a personal account you use to access Apple services such as Mac App Store and FaceTime.

Catalina — macOS 10.15 released in September 2019.

Boom 3D — a volume booster and equalizer for Mac, third-party.

iTunes media player has been available for many years now, and it has expanded a lot. Since 2003, the creators at Apple have continued to develop new ways of improving the listening experience. Now iTunes offers more than just tunes — it plays the role of being a central hub for entertainment.

iTunes allows you to manage and control music in an instant so that you’ve got the soundtrack to suit your mood. Whether you’ve just bought an Apple device or ready to put your media in one place, or want to expand your music library, it’s important to know how to use iTunes for Mac.

The life of iTunes on your Mac has its limits, though. According to the Apple’s announcement at WWDC 2019, the company decided to break up iTunes into three dedicated apps – Apple Music, Podcasts, and Apple TV.

Whatever your situation, the guide below will help you answer how does iTunes work, how to open an iTunes account, explain all the iTunes tutorials and iTunes troubleshooting tips as well as tell you how to deal with iTunes-less macOS.

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How to use iTunes on macOS before Catalina

Once you login to iTunes, under the iTunes account menu you’ll find your media library where you can store all your favorite tracks and artists. Using iTunes allows you to organize your music library on Mac any way you want, then sync it with your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, or stream to Apple TV.

If you sign in to iTunes store, you can browse different media collections for movies, radio, charts, and playlists recommendations created by Apple’s own discovery algorithm. Downloading the content into your iTunes library from any device will make it available for you to enjoy at anytime.

But before you get straight to listening the music you love, you first need to open iTunes account by creating iTunes logins.

Get your iTunes logins in order

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In most cases, the email address you provide will be your new Apple ID. And chances are that you already have an Apple ID because whenever you set up a Mac (or other Apple device) you're prompted to enter your Apple ID or to create one if you don't have it.

Use Apple ID for the iTunes music login

After you have set up your Apple ID and password, you can use it as a login to open iTunes account.

How to create iTunes store account using an Apple ID:

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Discover Apple Music in the iTunes store

If you want to feel the full benefits of Apple’s offerings, you’ll want to access the iTunes store, which is now powered by Apple Music.

Signing up for the Apple Music subscription service gives you access to over 50 millions songs. With a pricing model of $9.99 a month for premium users, $14.99 for families, and $5.99 for students, many people ask, “What is iTunes without Apple Music?”

How to sign up to Apple Music on Mac:

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Build your Music library manually

If you decide not to go for an Apple Music subscription, you can still handcraft your iTunes library by purchasing songs and albums one by one.

To purchase a song from the iTunes Store:

If you have a collection of music in other places, it just takes a few simple steps to get it all synced up with iTunes.

To copy music from Mac to iTunes:

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How to use iTunes alternatives on macOS Catalina

Once you upgrade to macOS 10.15, your Dock will expand. Apple TV, Apple Music, and Podcasts will appear in it instead of iTunes. The process of using each of the apps is pretty similar to iTunes, so your flow is barely changing. Plus, if you own an iPhone, you’re already used to organizing media collection across separate apps.

Here are a couple of things you need to know if you switch:

Tips and tricks for refining your media on Mac

iTunes or no iTunes, there are things you can do to make the management of your media files easier on Mac. From improving the music quality to moving favorite playlists across devices.

Supercharge your sound system

Now that you have procured your music library, these songs deserve to be listened to in the best quality you can give them. And the easiest way to enhance your listening experience is with 3D audio technology provided by Boom 3D.

Boom 3D is an app with a unique sound-staging algorithm that extracts audio components and adds incredible spatial effects. Normal stereo can feel less realistic than real life, and Boom 3D’s tech completely transforms the way you listen.

To experience real 3D surround sound on your Mac:

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You can drag and drop any song onto Boom 3D’s interface which allows Boom 3D to create virtual sound sources to improve audio listening on headphones.

Turn your iTunes tracks into ringtones for iPhone

If you love custom ringtones, this hack is for you. Here’s an easy way to use iTunes to create a unique iPhone ringtone:

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Back up and transfer music files in one go

Speaking of drag and drop—as it's not always necessary to use iTunes when you want to sync information between your Mac and iOS device—you can use a smart syncing app like AnyTrans, which makes not only file transferring a piece of cake but also work as a media downloader and backup manager.

AnyTrans will surely impress you by instantly creating backups and copies of your iPhone content on your Mac, as well as transferring data across iOS, iTunes, and iCloud.

How to import media from your iOS to Mac and iTunes:

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Once you’ve waited for the transferring process to complete, you can repeat it for many other file categories that AnyTrans supports.

There’s a world of music out there. iTunes store login and Apple Music are just one method to access it. So explore the ropes, but make sure you experiment to refine your workflow as well.

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How to manage cloud drives on Mac

iCloud — a cloud service by Apple.

Google Drive — a file storage and synchronization tool by Google.

Dropbox — a file hosting service that offers cloud storage, synchronization, and personal cloud software.

CloudMounter — a tool that connects cloud storage accounts to Finder, third-party.

There’s a lot of data you’ll want to store on Mac if you use it right. To cleverly manage space, you should learn how to deal with cloud drives. Apple comes with iCloud which gives every Mac user 5GB of free storage. There are tons of possibilities to stretch it with external drives, space usage optimizers, and more.

Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Dropbox, Amazon S3 are the most common choices of a cloud drive. Many of us use a few of these cloud storage services to help us safely store important video files, documents, photos, and more in the cloud. Cloud storage allows us to do things like create backups of important information or share files between colleagues at work. The affordability and accessibility of cloud storage makes it a popular choice for sharing and collaborating with others.

In this section, we’ll cover how to set up, sync, and mount cloud drives. So that your Mac space knows no limits.

A quick guide to iCloud

Anyone can have a free 5GB of secure cloud-storage before they run out and either need to delete apps, images or other synced files, or upgrade - whereby you can get anything from 50GB to 2TB of extra storage, costing between $0.99 to $9.99 per month.

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Apple iOS devices and Macs are usually set to default sync with iCloud, which means everything from backups - which make it easier to recover and restore a stolen or lost device - to photos, songs, documents and videos end up filling up your iCloud account. If you sync a lot of files and images (always do this over Wi-Fi, so you don’t use all your phones data) then sooner or later, you are going to get an “iCloud Storage is Almost Full” or another similar message, which means you’re quickly running out of space.

Cleverly manage iCloud Storage

When it comes to managing iCloud storage you’ve got a few options. Here are all the ways you can avoid running out of space:

#1: Turn off automatic syncs

Every time your iOS device or Mac is connected to Wi-Fi it updates iCloud with anything new; so whenever you’ve taken a picture, updated a document or downloaded a new song, this change is stored in iCloud. What this means is you’ve got a copy in the cloud, which could be useful if you need a duplicate of something important, such as a treasured picture or important document.

But what if these updates aren't as important? You don’t always need a duplicate of everything. This is what causes iCloud to run out of space, forcing you to delete things or upgrade. Take a proactive approach to managing iCloud, when you turn off automatic syncs on every device, so you can only upload something when you chose. These settings can be easily changed in iPhones, iPads and Macs.

At the same time, make sure iCloud only syncs when connected to Wi-Fi, so you avoid using all your phones data.

Apple offers extra iCloud storage from 50GB to 2TB of extra storage, costing between $0.99 to $9.99 per month. However, before you click yes, it might be worth shopping around and seeing who else offers storage space and whether you can get a better deal.

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Dropbox, Box and iCloud all provide free (from 2GB to 20GB of free storage) and premium price plans, depending on how much space you need and whether this is for personal or business use.

Dropshare is another alternative, giving you more security and control of your file storage, which can either work in sync with another cloud provider, or you can store and share files directly from and to any device using Dropshare Cloud.

#3: Free up Mac storage space

Macs can get awfully full, especially if you’re using them all the time and have a lot of pictures, music, videos, documents and other files. Students, creative professionals, digital nomads and knowledge economy workers love Macs but don't always like the space restrictions, which is why iCloud storage is often useful until you run out of space.

One way to solve this persistent problem is with CleanMyMac, a popular and easy-to-use app that millions of people are using to find extra space without needing to manually dig through folders and files.

How to use Dropbox on a Mac

A number one cloud-based storage system today, Dropbox essentially made storing data online mainstream. This app simplifies syncing files across different devices and offers an easy way to share photos, folders, or send large files (i.e. too large for emails) to others. Although Dropbox isn’t the only cloud-based storage and syncing service for Mac, it remains extremely popular.

Even though, as a Mac user, you do already have iCloud storage and syncing service right at your fingertips, integrated with your Mac and other iOS devices, there are still reasons for you to download Dropbox for Mac.

Dropbox makes it easy to share whatever it contains, by offering advanced features such as shared folders or the ability to copy a Dropbox link to allow someone to download a file from your folder. Besides, Dropbox is one of the more common cloud services used by third-party productivity apps that could offer you great additional features.

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How To Sync Dropbox On Mac Easily

While you can always access your data from the Dropbox website, in the long run, it's easier to install the Dropbox desktop app. Using the Dropbox desktop app means you won't have to manually upload or download files in your Dropbox folder and any time you make a change to a file and are connected to the internet that change will sync everywhere you have Dropbox installed. Dropbox app for Mac works even when you're offline — just like an ordinary folder.

How to install the Dropbox app for Mac

To download Dropbox for Mac, look for the Dropbox installer on dropbox.com. Once the download of the Dropbox installer is complete, you should be able to find it (DropboxInstaller.dmg) in your Mac’s Downloads folder. Open the file to start your Dropbox download app:

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If all is done right, after you sign in to your Dropbox on Mac, you’ll see a congratulations message for successfully completing the installation.

Now on to your Dropbox folder. To set it up:

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(e.g. when you don’t have enough space) — you might have to pick and choose which ones you want to save.

Transferring files to the Dropbox folder is a matter of seconds. First Dropbox will show a blue icon with circling arrows in the lower left — this means copying the file and uploading it to the cloud. Once it’s done, the icon will turn green and display a check mark. If you wish to transfer multiple files at once:

What you don’t have to worry about is how to sync Dropbox. Dropbox for Mac automatically saves all data placed inside the folder across all devices. As long as you can access your account, you can download any file stored in your Dropbox folder on your local machine. For example, you can move pictures you took on your phone to Dropbox and look at them on your Mac in seconds.

One of Dropbox’s strongest features you should definitely benefit from is sharing files with colleagues and family members. To designate files for sharing:

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basic free version of Dropbox will give you 500 MB per referral, expanding the initial 2 GB to a possible maximum of 18 GB of free storage. A Plus plan for $9.99 per month will give you 1 TB of storage space.

Google Drive is an online storage solution by Google. It allows you to store and sync data across your devices with its 15 GB of free storage space, while its integration with Google Docs for Mac gives your friends or coworkers access to the files or folders you designate for sharing.

There’s an official Google Drive app for Mac too — an upgraded 2017 version of which is called Backup & Sync and is sometimes referred to as the new Google Drive. Google Drive Backup and Sync download is free and you can expect to install it and have it running in no time and little effort.

How To Set Up And Use Google Drive For Mac

How to create a Google Drive account

If you have an account on any of Google services, like Gmail, YouTube, or Google Play, then you actually already have a Google Drive account.

Simply log in to a Google Drive website or app with your existing credentials. Or create a Google account for free by following these steps:

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How to sync Google Drive on Mac for the first time

The first time you open Google Drive on Mac, you have to go through a few steps to get it set up properly. After that accessing Google Drive will be effortless. But to get things up and running:

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How to use Google Drive on Mac

Now that your Google Drive setup is complete, you have access to this additional storage for you to do as you wish. However, one of the best uses would be to link your Google Drive to multiple devices — for easy access from all of them.

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Also remember that Google Drive lets you create and work with others on documents in Google’s own versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint in real-time (called Docs, Sheets, and Slides respectively). To enable collaboration on a Google Docs file, simply tap on Share in the top right corner and enter the names or email addresses of the people you wish to engage.

Cloud storage services get even better when you can mount them as local drives and thus extend the storage on your computer. Having cloud storage is like having a remote disk for Mac. Since firing your web browser or specific storage service app every time you want to upload or download a stored file can be time-consuming, you can save yourself many hours and stay organized when accessing your cloud-stored files with a locally accessible cloud network drive.

To connect your cloud storage apps to your computer as a local drive, you’ll need an app that can mount cloud drives as disks on your Mac. The CloudMounter app is a good choice, which will allow you to work with files stored online in the same manner as the local files on your computer.

Although your remote drives can be mounted manually, CloudMounter makes it easier to do things like move files between the cloud storage apps without needing to manually copy the files to your computer first.

CloudMounter also keeps your files safe. Even if someone gains access to your account, your cloud files will stay secure with CloudMounter’s AES-256 encryption. Finally, CloudMounter also allows you to set up SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to mount remote SFTP drives.

How to add Google Drive to Finder

You can add Google Drive to Finder by default by going into your Applications folder and launching Google Drive. You will need to enter your login details for

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Drive account to your local drive with CloudMounter to have better access to your documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Once you link your account on your computer, you’ll be able to open or move files directly from Mac’s Finder as if they were a part of your local drive.

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your Dropbox files within reach from your local computer drive in case you want to open, move, share, delete, or make any other file manipulations. Once you set up your Dropbox account with CloudMounter, you’ll be able to link multiple Dropbox accounts and you won’t need to have dropbox.app installed on your computer.

How to add iCloud Drive to Finder

To find files that you’ve downloaded or uploaded using Apple’s cloud storage system, you can access your iCloud Drive from a browser window or directly on the Finder. You don’t need an external app to find your iCloud Drive on your Mac — it should already be built-in to your finder.

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There are tools that allow you to access cloud-stored files directly in your local computer file finder without having to individually access each separate cloud storage service through a web browser. Mac storage managers such as the CloudMounter make it easy to bring all your external cloud storage services together from the cloud into your computer’s Finder.

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AirPlay

AirPlay — a proprietary protocol stack used to transmit audio, video, and screens across Apple devices.

Apple TV — a microconsole and digital media player developed by Apple.

Airplay is the best way to quickly share any digital content to your Apple devices. Popular with Apple TV, it’s a common option for sharing video to your TV screen in real time.

Here are the ways you can benefit from AirPlay:

How to AirPlay on Mac

The AirPlay icon should appear in your menu bar automatically once a connected device is nearby. If it doesn’t happen, enable the option in System Preferences:

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Make sure the device you want to use for AirPlay streaming and your Mac are connected to the same network.

Using AirPlay is not only a pleasure-for-the-sake-of-pleasure thing. Apart from an awesome cinematic experience, mirroring screen is a useful option if you want to share data without copying it. So you get to save lots of precious space on Mac.

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Intro to macOS and its accessibility features

macOS — a series of graphical operating systems for Mac released by Apple starting 2001.

From interface to app features, macOS is a soul of a Mac, supporting every piece of its vital functionality. Every September, Apple releases a new version of macOS, upgrading the existing assets and adding the new ones.

The core elements of macOS are Finder, Dock, Spotlight, and Notifications — programs helping a user navigate between apps and features, conveniently.

Accessibility on macOS

macOS integrates Accessibility APIs for the built-in apps, which makes a Mac an easy-to-use machine for everyone. Here are the key accessibility assets of macOS:

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Apple encourages app developers to support accessibility APIs and makes it easy to integrate such apps with macOS. So that every need is taken care of.

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Organize files and folders on Mac

Spotless — an auto-cleanup utility for Mac, third-party.

Renamer — file renamer for Mac, third-party.

Workspaces — an app that helps organize items into dedicated workspaces, third-party.

Emulsion — an image organizer for Mac, third-party.

We so often throw everything into separate locations and pray they can find it when needed, taking a hit-and-hope approach. If only there were a way to arrange folders and find files faster. An efficient, proven system to avoid all the wasted time, stress and extra effort. We have an array of tips and tools for helping your bring things to order.

Let’s start with some simple rules for managing your files and folders:

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How to use tags to organize files on macOS

Let’s start in the end. Mac has its own tagging feature that lets you color code files and folders. You can use this to group your items so that you’re not scrolling through endless lists.

Tags work for files and folders stored on your Mac or iCloud account and are easy to add.

How to tag files and folders on macOS

To tag an open file, hold the pointer to the right of the title and click on the arrow, followed by the Tags field. Choose a tag from the list, or enter a new tag.

To tag a file in the Finder or on your Mac desktop, select the item that you want to tag, open the File menu and choose a color. If you want to choose a different tag or enter a new tag, click on Tags for additional options.

To tag a newly created file as you save it, click on File > Save and select the Tags field in the Save dialog. Enter a new tag or select one from the list.

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Items can also be tagged from a Finder window by selecting a file or folder and clicking on the Tags button.

How to find tagged items on macOS

Once you’ve tagged your items you can easily find them by opening up a Finder window.

From the finder window, enter the tag name or color in the search field and locate your file from the list. Alternatively, you can ask Siri to find the file for you by asking it to, “Find files with a blue tag” or something similar.

To see every file with a particular tag, you can click on the tag color in the Finder sidebar. You can also choose which tags you want to see located in the sidebar by going to Finder > Preferences and choosing the appropriate tags.

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To sort items by their tag, go to View > Show View Options and click the checkbox next to Tags. Click the Tags column in List view and the files will be arranged for simple viewing. Click on the column name again to revert the order back to how it was.

How to edit tags on macOS

To edit a tag that you’ve already created, go to Finder > Preferences > Tags.

From here you’ll be able to change the color by clicking on the color button and selecting a new option and change the name by clicking on the tag’s name.

To add a new tag, click on the + button.

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How to remove a tag on macOS

If you want to remove a tag from an item, all you need to do is Control-click the item, click Tags, select the tags that you want to remove, and hit Delete.

Removing a tag from your Mac is equally straightforward. Go to Finder > Preferences > Tags, select the tags that you want to remove and click on the - button.

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Clutter control: Clean up desktop

Gather all the files and folders you want to keep on the desktop and put them in a folder or two for temporary storage if you’re referring to it regularly. If you want to make sure to keep your desktop clear—easy to maintain with Spotless app.

With smart algorithms such as the Autotidy feature, users can input ‘tasks’ which specify where particular files belong with an easy-to-use drag and drop system. The app will store your instructions and automate the process by scheduling folders to be organized at regular intervals.

There’s no limit to the number of automated tasks you can create, making for a spotless Mac. Users can teach the app to organize their images, desktop or individual documents, using a range of different parameters, e.g. filename, extension, file size, modified date etc. This gives users full scope to organize and locate files efficiently, without having to do the dirty work.

Putting your important documents and folders in the hands of an AI robot may be daunting, but Spotless is heavily regulated to minimize possible risks. Before submitting a new task, users receive a full preview of changes to consolidate understanding and ensure no errors are made, as well as having comprehensive and configurable conflict resolution rules to safeguard your files. With a fully editable dashboard, users can search engagement history to track what actions Spotless has undertaken and have the power to restore files or undo any unwanted changes.

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Project shortcuts

The next step is to use workspaces to manage multitasking.

The nature of the macOS system doesn’t particularly lend itself to multitasking. Having to jump between the countless browser tabs open alongside your documents and any impending emails isn’t ideal, especially when you have a long to-do list.

If you want to create tailored workspaces where you could add any resources, along with handy widgets like a bookmark bar, there’s an app for it. Workspaces is a simple Mac organizer, facilitating and simplifying the art of multitasking. Through a designated ‘workspace’, you can access all relevant resources needed for the task in hand – web pages, emails, documents and more. By saving all the relevant documents to your workspace, you’ll eradicate all that wasted time

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What about pics organizing?

We can all appreciate the perils involved in keeping your images organized. From those videos of unforgettable nights-out to the endless array of selfies, the camera roll can be a mighty mess. For so many of us, photo hoarders who love collecting and storing photos, keeping them arranged is a near enough impossible task. Or was.

Picture this, an app that helps you manage your entire gallery, accessible at your fingertips, without the need to delete any images. Using a powerful photo manager, Emulsion effortlessly arranges your images in a well-structured, consistent and beautiful way. The Live Folder feature allows images to remain in their primary location, while simultaneously storing them with automatic syncing.

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Furthermore, the app utilizes macOS features seamlessly. By placing all images together in one easy-to-access panel, users can sort pictures by metadata, tags and notes, complete with full-screen options, quick look and gestures. Through tagging, Emulsion can sort images by people, locations, time and even colors, demonstrating the impressive AI behind the app.

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Delete duplicates

Gemini — a handy tool for Mac that scans your files, detecting and removing duplicates or similar files.

When your Mac starts to run out of space, one of the most effective ways to clean it up is to find any duplicate files you can delete. Photos, videos, songs, email attachments, old documents—anything that’s easy to download and forget about.

Unsurprisingly, there are a few ways you can quickly find duplicate files and delete them, freeing up space you can use to create something new.

Best ways to find duplicates on your Mac

In just about a year, an average Mac collects 5 to 70 gigabytes of duplicate files. To find and sort through all of it manually could take up to 15 hours of your time, or just up to 2 hours if you automate the process with a few apps. Here, we’ll show you all the ways to get rid of duplicate junk.

Find duplicates manually

You can, of course, just go through every folder, hidden or not, and delete the files that you remember seeing somewhere else. But how long that would take you? Your files love to spread throughout multiple destinations, and some apps like iTunes or Photos keep their own libraries of your files, which are hard to get to. If you’re still going for the manual way, here’s our primer:

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Just as with most maintenance tasks, finding duplicates has been automated for quite some time now. Apps like Gemini and Disk Drill are able to scan your computer and clear out the excess completely in minutes.

Gemini is beyond easy to use. It’s able to swiftly inspect your Mac, sort all the results by type or date, and even find similar files beyond just duplicates.

When you launch the Gemini app, it will prompt you to add a folder to scan. This can be any folder on your Mac, including common folders like your Home folder, Pictures folder, and Music folder, where your iTunes library lives.

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If you’re scanning your Pictures folder (or the Home folder, which contains it), Gemini has to launch the Photos app and keep it open to properly find duplicates inside your photo library.

After Gemini finishes the scan, it’ll show you how many duplicates it found and recommend which ones to automatically delete. The round graph on the left side of the window even breaks up your duplicate files into songs, videos, photos, documents, and other files.

You can click the Smart Cleanup button to delete the files that Gemini suggests or click Review Results to see all the duplicate files and make your own decisions.

The Review Results window contains everything you need to decide, too. For each duplicate file, you can see where each version lives on your hard drive, when it was last modified, how large the file is, and preview it. The sidebar also distinguishes exact duplicates from files that are just very similar. You can sort any list by size or file type, and then check the boxes for any files you are comfortable deleting.

To see everything you have selected for deletion so far (including the choices Gemini made on your behalf), just click the Selected section in the left-hand sidebar. And when you’re finished making selections, just click the Smart Cleanup button in the bottom-right and that’s it! Gemini deletes your duplicate files and you’re all done.

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Get rid of useless mail clutter

While Gemini will scan files across iTunes, Photos, Dropbox, network drives, CleanMyMac X will help you tidy up mail.

If you work with your Mac’s native email client, it’s very likely that your computer still carries all the mail attachments since the beginning of time. The thing is, all of them are likely to be stored in your email inbox online, so you can really treat them like duplicates too. That’s where CleanMyMac X will come handy. All you need to do is select Mail Attachments and then Scan. CleanMyMac X will then detect files that remained unchanged and could be easily downloaded from your mail server. When you’re ready, click Clean and rid your Mac of gigabytes of clutter.

How to recover deleted files

Accidentally deleting files is a nightmare. It’s not that bad if you just put them in Trash, as you can go in and retrieve them with ease. But sometimes you automatically empty the trash, only to realize later what a big mistake that was. Worry not! There are a few ways you can save your files still.

If you’ve been cleaning up your duplicates with Gemini and got rid of a file you actually needed, you can quickly bring it back from the cleanup complete screen or go into Trash and restore it the traditional way.

In case you emptied your trash or permanently deleted a file, you would need to use the power of Disk Drill to bring it back. Here’s how:

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How to work with archives on Mac

Archive Utility — Apple’s compression utility for Mac, native.

Archiver — a file opener for Mac, third-party.

BetterZip — one-stop unzipper for all tasks, third-party.

We all encounter and have to deal with zip files in our day-to-day work. There are, of course, several methods for creating archives, such as built-in utilities, Terminal, and third-party apps. Below, we are going to explore all the best zipping and unzipping options available to you.

A common way to compress or uncompress files

Before we talk about some special apps and tools, we need to mention your Mac’s simple Archive Utility, stored in the Applications > Utilities folder. Yes, basic file compression is built right into macOS. Its functionality range is limited, but it’s good enough for quick zipping and unzipping of files and folders when you need to look into files someone has sent you or upload an image folder to Dropbox.

Zipping single files and folders with the Archive Utility is easy:

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Compressing multiple items works just about the same. The only difference is the names of the items that appear in the pop-up menu and the name of the zip file that is created.

To zip multiple files:

When the compression is finished, the compressed items will be stored in a file called Archive.zip, which will be located in the same folder as the original items.

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Sadly, compressing and decompressing files and folders is the only thing the default Archive Utility is capable of doing. If you want to preview the contents of an archive, merge or split archives, protect archives with passwords, or use an extended range of file types (e.g. RAR), you’d need some special tools. Fortunately, there are apps that can do all the above.

Сompression tips for macOS

It’s true that some lack of the Archive Utility’s functionality can be fixed by using Terminal, but it’s not exactly user-friendly or straightforward. A better way to go is using apps like BetterZip and Archiver, which are easy to use and give you all the features you could imagine.

BetterZip covers all the functionality of the Archive Utility but also packs lots of high-end features you’ll find very useful if you work with zip archives regularly. It allows you to add comments to archives, delete files from archives without unzipping them, and is fully AppleScriptable, so you can integrate it into your workflow. BetterZip will also suggest passwords for you to use to encrypt archives, and you can tell it to automatically trash archives once you’ve unzipped them.

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It’s sort of midway between Archive Utility and BetterZip in terms of features, but has a more approachable design than the latter.

Apple's Archive Utility doesn't provide ZIP archives' encryption with a password.

However, there is a way to do this if needed.

To place a file or folder into an encrypted ZIP file, you'll need to use the Terminal and perform the following actions:

This method might seem a bit complicated and not very convenient. If you plan on encrypting files regularly, your best bet is to use one of the more approachable tools. For example, one of the best features of BetterZip is the ability to encrypt archives when you create them:

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Unlike BetterZip, in Archiver you don’t need to set up encryption before you start:

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Look inside the archive without extraction

You can preview and read the contents of a zipped file without extraction by clicking on it and then pressing the spacebar to invoke Quick Look via BetterZip app:

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How to fix the spinning color wheel

Spinning wheel — a multi-color spinning wheel that a user sees when a computer has to “think,” pausing for a few seconds to consider the command.

Few things give Mac users that sinking feeling more than the sight of a spinning color wheel, rainbow wheel, spinning beach ball of death or SBBOD as it's also commonly known. It’s official name is the Spinning Wait Cursor, and it’s a system indicator signifying that macOS cannot handle all the tasks given to it at this moment.

Why does it happen? It's a sign that an application is trying to deal with more processes than it can handle at any given time. Sometimes it will last only a few seconds and disappear, when processing cycles are freed up and the application is able to process all the tasks it needs to. Other times, the application will become persistently unresponsive and 'hang'. When that happens, the only solution is to force quit the app.

To fix an application stuck with a spinning cursor:

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How to stop the rainbow wheel issue

Getting rid of a spinning beachball is only part of the solution. As we said above, it's a symptom, not a cause of problems. Fortunately, there are a number of things you can do to prevent it. The first is to identify which applications are putting the greatest strain on your Mac.

iStat Menus, available in Setapp, is a powerful performance monitoring tool for your Mac. It sits in your Mac's Finder menu bar and allows you to easily check which apps are hogging processor cycles or RAM. And helps you see how well or badly your Mac is running. If you need more detailed information, or need to quit specific processes (rather than applications), you can launch Activity Monitor

from within iStat Menus.

Getting rid of a spinning beachball is only part of the solution. As we said above, it's a symptom, not a cause of problems. Fortunately, there are a number of things

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you can do to prevent it. The first is to identify which applications are putting the greatest strain on your Mac.

iStat Menus, available in Setapp, is a powerful performance monitoring tool for your Mac. It sits in your Mac's Finder menu bar and allows you to easily check which apps are hogging processor cycles or RAM. And helps you see how well or badly your Mac is running. If you need more detailed information, or need to quit specific processes (rather than applications), you can launch Activity Monitor

from within iStat Menus.

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How to set alarms and timers

Lungo — an app that keeps your Mac awake, third-party.

2Do — a comprehensive task manager, third-party.

WaitingList — a countdown timer for Mac, third-party.

On Mac, you can set alarms for tasks, events, meetings, and just about anything else that would require an alert. In this, we’ll show you how to set an alarm clock on Mac with the help of the Apple Calendar and some useful apps.

How to set an alarm on Mac with the Apple Calendar

The Apple Calendar is the place for all things schedule-related, including alarms.

To set a one-time alarm, you have to first create an event.

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Any alarm that you set in your Mac Calendar app will automatically sync with your iPhone or iPad, so if you’re away from your computer you will still receive the alert.

This is not an option if you are looking how to set an alarm on Mac to wake up: the alert will not go off if your Mac sleeps at the time. To keep your Mac awake, use an app like Lungo. It keeps the Mac awake and prevents it from going into sleep mode.

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To sum it up, if you need an alarm clock that works in sleep mode, install Lungo, set an even for morning, turn on Message with sound.

Easy ways to set alarms and timers on Mac

Using the Calendar app is perfect for one-off events such as a dentist appointment or a meeting with friends but if you’re relying on alarms to complete tasks, hit deadlines, and attend events, you’re going to need help from a third-party app.

While there are dozens of alarm-based apps available for Mac, three stand out above the rest: 2Do, BeFocused, and Waiting List.

They’re all different in what they have to offer which is why we recommend giving all three a home on your desktop.

Set one-time alerts

If there’s a special occasion for which you need an alarm, set one-time alerts.

Here’s how you can do it with Apple’s Calendar:

Alternatively, you can remind yourself about important one-time deals with 2Do, a task management app that adapts to your needs and lets you set alarms for anything and everything.

Setting an alarm in 2Do starts with creating a New Task. This can be done in seconds by clicking on the + button from the top menu bar. Once you’ve named

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the event and edited the dates, click on the alarm icon and set the alarm to suit. It’s as easy as that! When the alarm is set it will alert you whether you have 2Do running or not.

There is no wrong way to use 2Do. It’s simple, intuitive, and a must-have for busy lifestyles.

Okay, so it’s unlikely you’re going to forget about the things that you’re really looking forward – like your best friend’s birthday – but you don’t want to take any chances. Plus, it’s nice to have an alarm to signal something fun every once in a while.

There’s a stand-alone Birthday Calendar in Apple’s native app. If it doesn’t appear in your Calendar by default, you can easily add it in Preferences > General > Show birthday calendar.

In the same menu, you can customize alert preferences for your big events. For instance, you can set a default alert for all newly created events.

To grow the excitement, you can also create countdowns for parties or birthday events in WaitingList. This is a beautiful countdown timer that sits on your

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desktop and displays all of your upcoming events. The app's smart widgets start by counting down the days. Then, as the event approaches, the hours, minutes, and seconds.

WaitingList has a simple and clear interface that makes adding countdowns an easy task. Click on the + button to create your event and the pencil icon to edit it. In the settings you’ll be able to set up alarms to alert you as the event approaches so that a) don’t miss anything, and b) can send your excitement into overdrive.

Plus, you get to choose the appearance of the event and the app offers some pretty amazing themes. The event design is basically its main benefit. It’s pretty cool to wait for a concert that looks like fireworks every time you open the app.

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In the same menu, customize additional sleeping settings by toggling on Power Adopter: Set your hard disks to sleep when possible, prevent Mac from sleeping when the display is off, etc.

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A new Mac is like a new universe. Whether you’re switching from Windows, or it’s your first computer, you have to get used to things. Start with mastering keyboard shortcuts and take our advice on file management, and you’re out of trouble. Well, at least, you won’t waste hours on finding the right folder.

Once you’ve mastered the basics, the next step is to make your Mac feel like home, or rather your office space—a cozy environment where you’re at the top of productivity.

In the next chapter, we’ll cover the vital tips for Windows switchers. So if you’re just starting your first journey with macOS, frantically searching for the Backspace key on the Mac’s keyboard, the following guide will save you. Spoiler: There’s no Backspace key on a Mac.

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Сhapter 2

Switching from Windows

In this chapter:

Contents

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Introduction: First steps with macOS

Switching from Windows to macOS can be a blessing and a curse. Making the leap will require a lot of faith and getting used to, but once you get a hold of it, you’re going to reap many benefits.

You’ve long heard about the stability of Mac operating systems, their elegance and undeniable security. Everybody tells you that you’ll intuitively learn how to use macOS and you’ll shortly be won over by its simple yet excellent design. With no worries about viruses and a lot of power under the hood, you start to wonder why it took so long for you to take the plunge.

Now you remember: You were afraid of the learning curve and the complicated procedure of starting over. However, the process of switching from PC to Mac doesn’t have to be complicated and you don’t have to struggle with getting accustomed to the new interface. If you’re worried about deciding on the best Mac, restoring your old data, or finding new apps to suit your needs, don’t be!

To get the most out of your PC to Mac migration, make sure you carefully go through this chapter to find exactly what to expect and discover the tools and tips that will make you feel like a true Mac user.

What can a Mac do that a PC can't?

Macs are universally praised for being intuitive, versatile, and adaptable to your specific needs. But there are also quite a few advantages they have over PCs when we look at them in detail.

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Apple doesn’t release a new operating system every year just for the fun of it. Each year they bring improvements that can boost hardware capabilities and offer you more power and usage benefits. That being said, you should always go for the latest version of an operating system for Mac.

But before you proceed, a word of caution: If you’re not a developer or have no intention in participating at the bug/issue hunt, stay away from Beta versions. Installing a macOS Beta version would spoil your first experience and you might end up believing the worst of macOS, when it would all be simply a big misunderstanding. Beta version for macOS is a trial version — tested by developers and the willing public in order to bring bug and issue fixes to the final release. So choose a full version and you’ll be fine.

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Just like Windows, every macOS has some system requirements. And although we recommend you always go for the latest Mac operating system, that’s only to be decided after you purchase your Mac and know its hardware capabilities.

Here’s a nice infographic on the evolution of macOS over the years:

March 24, 2001

September 25, 2001

August 23, 2002

October 24, 2003

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April 29, 2005

October 26, 2007

August 28, 2009

July 20, 2011

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July 25, 2012

October 22, 2013

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September 20, 2016

September 24, 2018

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There’s no easy answer — productivity depends entirely on how you work and how you define “productive,” as well as which applications you use. For example, if you use Outlook or Excel, there’s no getting around the fact that those work better and run faster on Windows than they do on a Mac. That’s no surprise, given they're made by Microsoft.

However, the fact that Apple makes both the hardware and the system software for the Mac means there’s a tight integration between the two. It also means you’re less likely to run into problems with hardware drivers, for example. And there should be less chance of background processes hogging CPU cycles or RAM on a Mac than on a PC. And so using a Mac should be smoother, require fewer software updates, and allow you to get more work done. In that sense, macOS is more productive than Windows.

Then there’s Apple’s use of gestures and implementation of Mission Control and full-screen functionality. The ability to swipe between full-screen apps, for example, makes it very easy to work with several apps at once.

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Apple products are synonymous with minimalist design: anything that’s superfluous has been deleted, anything that cramps its style gets left behind. So much so that many people who have made the jump from Windows to Mac will notice straight away that there’s no right click on Mac.

Instinct may tell you that to right click on a Mac means to click on the right side of the trackpad or the Apple Mouse. But no matter where you click, it’s still the left click.

So what’s the need to have a right click on Mac? Well, left click, your common everyday kind of click, takes the user forward, accepting the next logical step in the flow. However, right click allows the user to open more paths to take, it yields a host of alternative actions.

The need for these secondary actions and the physical loss of the Mac right click button has left many people hunting for the elusive Mac right click and turning to the internet to ask, “How do you right click on a Mac?”

Just so you know, there’s no need to be floored by the absenteeism of mouse buttons altogether, being able to left click requires little to no effort.

Simply apply pressure on the mouse or trackpad until it makes an audible click.

There you have it, how to left click on a Mac.

If you ask Apple, “How do you right click on a Mac,” the recommended right-click solution is to press down the Control key while you click.

Holding the Control key switches your Apple mouse to the right-click mode. While

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To right click using a trackpad, Apple Mouse, or a mouse from another manufacturer, the first place to familiarize yourself with is the System Preferences on your Apple device. System Preferences is an application on your Mac that allows you to configure and control the way you like your Mac to be set up.

Open System Preferences from the Dock:

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How to right click on a Mac

A trackpad is the built-in mouse on Apple MacBooks. It’s the sunken rectangle where your finger can zoom like an ice skater over the surface, making the cursor loop-the-loop or zip from side to side drawing Zoro-like slashes across the screen.

There are a number of ways to choose from to right click on Mac: tap with two fingers, click in the bottom right corner, click in the bottom left corner.

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How to right click with Apple Mouse

If you have a Magic Mouse, Apple’s own mouse, you’re in luck. Magic Mice are already equipped with a right button to click. You might just have to set it up in the System Preferences.

How to right click on a Mac with mouse:

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Ctrl+Alt+Delete on Mac

Ctrl+Alt+Delete function — a command that can be applied on a Windows-operated system to quit a program or reboot a computer. CPU — Central Processing Unit of a computer.

We know you have this question. Shoot it. Is there a Ctrl-Alt-Del equivalent for Mac? The answer is yes. And no. There’s no exact keyboard shortcut that performs the same task as Ctrl+Alt+Delete does on Windows, but you can achieve the same results on Mac, using different commands.

How to Perform "Ctrl-Alt-Delete" on Mac

The simplest solution would be to use Force Quit:

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Other ways to force quit apps on Mac

There are a couple of other ways to unfreeze app on Mac:

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Sometimes it’s not just one app that’s unresponsive. What to do when your Mac freezes? How do you start Task Manager on a Mac?

Unlike Windows macOS doesn't use the typical Ctrl-Alt-Delete shortcut to choose frozen programs to Force Quit. If you have a frozen Mac that won’t do anything and you can’t use any of the methods above to force quit (tip: you can force quit the Finder if it’s misbehaving — it’s just an app), you need to force it to restart.

Simple steps to fix a Mac that is not responding:

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If your Mac is running slowly, but all your apps are still working, or if the fans seem to run more often than normal or are louder than usual, there may be a process hogging CPU cycles. Seems it is a good time to start Task Manager on a Mac. You can use Activity Monitor to discover the culprit.

Launch Activity Monitor from the Utilities folder in your Applications folder and click the CPU tab. Make sure the arrow next to CPU% is pointing down. If not, click it. If there are any apps or processes using up significant CPU cycles (more than half), they may have a problem. You can quit them by selecting the app or process (it could be a Safari tab) and pressing the X in the toolbar.

All in all, there is no direct equivalent of pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete on a Mac but by using a combination of the Force Quit function and Activity Monitor tool you can actually achieve a more informed result.

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How to cut, copy and paste the right way

Kill command — Ctrl+K, resembles the cutting feature on Mac Yank command — Ctrl+Y, resembles the pasting feature on Mac Paste — Cloud clipboard manager for Mac, third-party Unclutter — a sticky notes app for Mac, third-party

Rocket Typist — macOS application for saving text snippets

Copying and pasting text is one of the most basic functions on any computer, including a Mac. It’s so fundamental to the way we use computers today that it seems astonishing to think that it wasn’t until iOS 3 (or iPhone OS 3 as it was known then), or a full two years after the original iPhone, that copy and paste came to Apple’s mobile devices.

However, it’s not just text that can be copied and pasted. In image editing applications, for example, you can copy and paste images, layers, and selections from one document to another. And in audio editing tools, you can copy and paste passages of music. In the Mac’s Finder, you can even copy and paste files and folders to move them from one folder to another, instead of clicking and dragging them — useful if you prefer to use the keyboard over a mouse or trackpad.

When you copy anything, whether it’s text, an image, or a file, it’s stored on Mac’s clipboard until you paste it somewhere else.

To copy anything, select it and press Command-C (or Command-X if you want to remove it and copy it to the clipboard). Then go to your destination and press Command-V. That will paste it into your destination. If you want to move a file

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from one location to another, instead of copying it, press Command-Option-V, instead of Command-V.

When you paste the item to its new location, it remains on the clipboard so you can paste it again and again. But it’s removed when you copy something else. Unfortunately, the Mac’s clipboard can only store one item at a time.

You can view the contents of the Mac's clipboard at any time by clicking on the Finder icon in the Dock, choosing the Edit menu, and then selecting Show Clipboard.

Seems, it's no big deal: use Command-C to copy, Command-X to cut, Command-V to paste. But is that really it or is there more to explore? There are actually a lot of features and possible improvements for macOS.

Paste and match style

How do you strip out the formatting of the copied text and make it match the destination? You've probably seen a quick shortcut in the "Edit" menu: Option-Shift-Command-V. This executes a "Paste and Match Style" command.

This shortcut is available in most default Apple applications, but some third-party apps neglect to include it.

Copy and Paste style only

To copy and paste the style only, not the text, open a TextEdit document, select the text containing the style that you'd like to copy and hit Command-Option-C, then select the text containing the formatting that you'd like to replace and hit Command-Option-V.

Killing text

Select the text that should be killed and hit Control-K. The text should disappear.

Keep in mind: if you kill text with no selection, it jumps to the end of the paragraph.

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There's one more cool hidden feature: hitting Control-K while inserting your cursor half way through a paragraph should kill all of the text from that point to the end of the paragraph.

Note that Control-K cuts, rather than copies, the text. As this feature uses a different functionality, it won’t remove what is currently on the “main” clipboard.

Reinserting text previously killed

Yanking inserts the most recent kill, leaving the cursor at the end of the inserted text. To do this, just hit Control-Y. This will work exactly like a paste command, it's just pulling from a different source.

Note that Kill and Yank works in most native Mac apps, including Notes, iWork, and most text editors — but they may not work in some web apps like Google Docs.

Copy and Paste two items on Mac

Say you want to copy two items from one app and paste them into another. To pull this off in one sweep, you would need some sort of secondary clipboard. It's a handy way to have two clipboards on your Mac:

Copy and Paste between Apple devices

Universal Clipboard is a feature that was introduced in macOS Sierra and iOS 10, and allows you to copy and paste between Apple devices, as long as they’re

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signed into the same iCloud account and connected to the same WiFi network, with Bluetooth switched on. They also need to be physically close to each other.

To use Universal Clipboard, all you have to do is copy on one device and paste on the other.

One of the big flaws with copy and paste on the Mac is the fact that the clipboard can only hold one item at a time. Wouldn’t it be great if you could store multiple items, categorize them, and then paste the right one whenever you need to? Well, the good news is that you can, by using a third-party clipboard manager, of which there are several available for macOS.

Paste is one such app. Paste automatically keeps everything you’ve cut or copied, whether it’s text, an image, a link, or anything else. You can then use the smart search feature to search for what you need and drag it off the board onto your document. Copied snippets can also be shared using AirDrop or synced with iCloud.

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If it still doesn’t work, try using Terminal to fix it:

Try and copy and paste again in the same app as before. If neither Activity Monitor nor Terminal solves the problem, the next step is to restart your Mac.

Sometimes that issue means that Mouse Keys is enabled, or that some other app is conflicting with the standard keyboard shortcuts. As a workaround you may have to remove those shortcuts and get used to the default ones to switch layouts.

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Copy and paste is such a fundamental part of macOS that we often forget about it — using it is so natural. However, there are, as you can see, a few tips and tricks that can help you get even more out of it. As good as the macOS clipboard is, it can only store one item at a time. If you want to store more, you’ll need a third-party app.

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How to transfer data from Windows to Mac

IMAP server — Internet Message Access Protocol, a mail protocol used to access email on a remote server.

In the previous chapter, we’ve covered the ways to get your data on a new machine. Let’s quickly recap how you migrate across Windows and macOS specifically.

There are various ways you can transfer data from PC to Mac, effortlessly. If you’re lucky enough (or, better said, if you’ve been responsible enough) most to almost all of your important data will be stored in the cloud. That means that if you’ve been using Dropbox, Google Docs, or an IMAP server, you’ve already got a bunch of your files safely stored and ready to be used on your new Mac by just installing the specific app. This way, you’ll have little docs left to manually transfer from PC to Mac without a struggle.

Another possible method to transfer data from PC to Mac is by using Migration Assistant.

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Here’s a quick guide to using Migration Assistant:

That’s it! With the Migration Assistant you’ll get more than a replica of docs on a Mac, you’ll get as close as possible experience to the one you had on your PC. That means bookmarks will be recreated in Safari, your Contacts, Calendar, and so much more.

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How to use a USB flash drive on Mac

IUSB flash drive — a small external flash drive that can be used with both Windows-operated computers and Macs that have USB ports.

SMC (System Management Controller) reset — a common troubleshooting command on Mac.

USB flash drives are a great way to store data — they’re cheap, portable, spacious and versatile, allowing you to quickly save your folders and files, and access them on another computer.

If you have a compatible format, it takes a few clicks to open a flash drive on Mac. But there might be a need to format it first.

Format a USB drive before using it on Mac

Out of the box these devices may function unreliably or even fail to work on Macs at all. The reason? Mac and Windows each use different file systems. After unboxing a new storage-based item, it’s a wise move to look into how to format a flash drive to reduce the likelihood of unexpected corruption, data loss, or other performance issues.

Thanks to Disk Utility, the issue of how to format a USB flash drive on Mac is fairly straightforward. Likewise, you can use this tool to format Micro SD cards, hard drives, and so on, getting your new device into the right condition:

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When you format a USB drive on Mac, or any similar device for that matter, you need to erase everything that’s on it in order to do so. That’s not a problem if the device is new, but means you’ll need to take some precautionary measures if it’s not.

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How to recover files from a damaged USB flash drive

The more you use a flash drive, the more likely it is that one day something bad will happen — particularly so if you use your USB device across different computers.

Failure due to physical damage is easy to spot but more often than not it’s something going inside the device that’s the problem.

Here are some of the common issues that affect USB flash drives:

If you’ve experienced any of these problems, you’ve every right to feel panicked. Can a broken USB be fixed? Don’t give up hope, there’s a high probability that you can get your files back.

If your USB flash drive appears to be broken, there are a few quick recovery methods you can try.

First of all, try connecting the USB device to another port on your Mac. If it works on another port, then the issue is with the port and not your device.

If the flash drive isn’t recognized in any port, try connecting it to a different Mac.

If it works, then the issue could be related to your USB drivers.

To check for updates, open the Mac App Store and click on Updates.

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You can also try a System Management Controller (SMC) reset — a well-known troubleshooting fix for USB issues.

Follow these instructions to reset the SMC on an iMac, Mac Mini, or Mac Pro:

If you’re using a MacBook, the method is slightly different:

If the flash drive is being recognized but your files aren’t available, you can try performing first aid using Disk Utility:

First Aid checks the volume for errors and attempts to fix them. If this doesn’t work, you’ll need the help of a third-party recovery tool like Disk Drill.

Disk Drill does all of the heavy lifting for you. All you need to do is install it and follow these instructions:

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If the Recover option can’t be used after a scan, Disk Drill can also perform a Quick Scan or a Deep Scan to scan drives at binary level and recover your data that way. Whichever option is required you can be sure Disk Drill will bring your files back to life.

macOS alternatives to Windows programs

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Notepad++ for Mac

Notepad++ — a text and source code editor for Windows

Wine — a free, open-source compatibility layer that allows Windows programs run on Unix-like operating systems

VMware Fusion — a software hypervisor (virtual machine monitor) for Mac CodeRunner — a code editor app for Mac, third-party Espresso — an easy web editor for Mac, third-party

TeaCode — a tool for Mac that accelerates coding, third-party.

It might seem surprising that Notepad++ is by far the most popular and trusted source-code editor on the Windows operating system. The program’s features are quite limited at best and the overall look too simplistic compared to some runner-ups. What it does have going for it though is a free distribution on an open-source license, which lets anyone build plugins and extensions as they see fit.

Turns out that’s exactly what more than 30 million developers who use Notepad++ on a regular basis are looking for. This simple text editor developed by Don Ho in 2003 has become the rockstar of the open-source movement in just a few short years. So naturally, if you’ve recently switched from Windows to macOS, you might be wondering how to download Notepad++ for Mac as well.

Unfortunately, the exact native Notepad++ Mac alternative doesn’t exist. And there are a few good reasons for it. Notepad++ is a non-commercial open-source project that was originally built by just one developer for the Windows operating system. That’s why it extensively leverages the Win32 API, and trying to port the software to macOS would require substantial investments in rewriting the whole codebase.

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But worry not. There are ways you can still use Notepad++ Mac version with a few workarounds, by either running an emulator or a virtual machine. Additionally, you can always choose one of numerous outstanding Mac HTML editors that run natively and truly utilize all the possibilities of macOS.

Run NotePad for Mac with an emulator

One of the possible ways to run an actual Notepad app in macOS is using an emulator program, which essentially creates a compatibility layer between Windows and Mac, and thus able to load virtually any Windows-based software within its interface right on your Mac.

Sounds complicated because, in fact, it is. But by using one of the emulator apps such as Wine, you can quickly install and enjoy Notepad++ or any other Windows program you miss. Here’s how to do that:

Done! Now you can run the Notepad++ you’re so used to, with all of its features, right on your Mac. As good as it is, the solution is not ideal — mostly because you’re essentially running an app within an app, which introduces twice as many bugs to the whole stack. There is, however, another option of using Notepad++ for Mac, and that’s setting up a virtual machine to basically run Windows on your Mac altogether.

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Use Notepad for Mac with a virtual machine

If using Notepad++ for Mac with minimum bugs and maximum stability is a priority, then installing a virtual machine might seem like an attractive option. A virtual machine would basically run a full-scale Windows environment within your Mac, letting you install and use any Windows-only software without limits.

Out of all available virtual machine offerings, VMware Fusion has a long-standing reputation of being both robust and (relatively) easy to use. Here’s how to get it to install Windows on your Mac:

After you set up your virtual machine, use it to download and run Notepad++ like you’ve used to. Overall, using VM software is a more stable solution than working through an emulator and it does accomplish what you’re after. But it would be fair to say that it does come with a few downsides as well:

A better and simpler approach to the Notepad++ problem, that also lets you avoid emulators and virtual machines, would be finding a great Notepad++ Mac

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substitute, of which there are lots. A true Mac-first code editor would leverage everything you love about Notepad with native compatibility and even allow for some great new features.

What’s the best Notepad++ Mac alternative?

It goes without saying that using Mac with software that was specifically made for macOS is an unbeatable experience. And when it comes to source code editors for Mac, CodeRunner instantly stands out.

CodeRunner is a multi-language programming editor ready to take on any software engineering task you can throw at it, from writing code in one of the supported 25 languages to swift debugging. Some good reasons to switch Notepad++ for CodeRunner include:

CodeRunner is an intuitive, fast, and versatile general-purpose programming editor that could become the Notepad++ Mac alternative you were looking for. It’s suitable for beginners and professional developers alike.

However, if your development work is mostly focused on the web, then choosing a more specialized Mac HTML editor could serve you better.

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What’s the best HTML editor for Mac?

Without a doubt, you could use CodeRunner for basically every kind of a development project. But if you mostly find yourself developing for the web, it’s worth looking into trying out a designated web editor, which is designed to address problems specific to web development.

Espresso does just that — helps you design, code, build, and publish websites with ease. Unlike CodeRunner, its feature set is more specific to and heavily influenced by the needs of the web:

Using a Mac HTML editor for web projects not only makes development faster and less buggy, it organizes the whole workflow in a way that significantly increases your productivity.

Whether you choose a general-purpose or web-specific Notepad++ Mac alternative, you can accelerate your development process even more by using an efficient code-expanding app.

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How to write code faster with expanders

In any development project there are hundreds and even thousands of instances when you’re essentially writing the same thing over and over again.

The good news is there is no need to repeat yourself anymore if you employ dynamic snippets.

TeaCode is a native Mac app that lets you write code much faster by specifying abbreviations which turn into full snippets. There are over 80 expanders for Swift, PHP, Objective-C, and HTML already built in, and you can create your own easily as well.

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The real benefit here is that you can use TeaCode right inside apps like Espresso and CodeRunner, supercharging them with extra productivity. This is one of the things that would be impossible to do in Notepad for Mac.

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Internet Explorer for Mac

Internet Explorer — a default web browser for Windows, developed by Microsoft Safari — Apple’s default web browser.

Instead of Internet Explorer or Edge that you’re used to, Mac has its own proprietary browser called Safari. In fact if you try searching for “download Internet Explorer for Mac” you’ll quickly realize that the exact IE equivalent on Mac doesn’t exist.

Interestingly, at the dawn of the world wide web in the late 90s, Internet Explorer was the default browser on all Macs. But when Apple introduced Safari as the new default browser in 2003, Microsoft has decided to discontinue the development of IE for Mac shortly after. So unless you run Mac OS X 10.6 or earlier (why would you?), there is no way to directly install Internet Explorer on Mac. And you definitely shouldn’t use the Internet Explorer versions from pre-2003 right now.

How to use Internet Explorer on Mac

Although natively launching Internet Explorer on Mac isn’t possible, there are other ways to simulate IE for Mac experience. You could mask Safari as different versions of Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge, you could also install a virtual machine and launch IE for Mac that way, or you could simply choose to use any other third-party browser available on macOS.

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testing purposes, to see how certain websites or web apps perform, or to access websites that require you to use IE (yes, those still exist).

Both of those use cases could be easily performed by Safari. To use Internet Explorer with Safari, you just need on developer tools:

Now you can access developer tools directly from Safari, which let you inspect websites, empty caches, and most importantly simulate a variety of other browsers right through the Safari app. To use Microsoft Edge or Internet Explorer on Mac:

The User Agent option in Safari should cover nearly all reasons for using Internet Explorer on Mac. However, if you do absolutely need to launch Internet Explorer for one reason or another, you could also try doing it with the help of a virtual machine.

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Launch Internet Explorer on a virtual machine

While using a virtual machine for Internet Explorer is not by any means an easy solution, it’s still there for anyone who needs it. What virtual machine essentially does is installing a full-scale copy of Windows on your Mac and letting you launch it as an app on macOS. From there you can launch Internet Explorer or, in fact, any program you miss from your Windows days.

To set up virtual machine, first you need to buy a copy of some virtual machine software (VMware Fusion is a good one) and a license for Windows. Once you have those in place:

Now every time you need to use Internet Explorer on Mac, you can just launch the virtual machine and use IE directly with Windows that way. There are certainly a few downsides to this solution. First, you have to purchase both VMware Fusion and a licensed copy of Windows for the sole purpose of using Internet Explorer. Second, virtual machines tend to be quite heavy on your processor, as they are running the whole operating system inside them.