Do you take digital photos and would you like to quickly create a file with thumbnail size versions of photos from a trip or family event? This file is called a contact sheet. Professional photographers commonly want to create contact sheets of all photos from a wedding or other photo shoot. Here are a couple of … Read more
When you buy a new Mac you likely want to transfer all of your data and applications from your current Mac to a new Mac. Here are instructions on how to accomplish this migration using a current Time Machine backup of your current Mac. I’m going to provide instructions for two different scenarios. If you’re … Read more
Is your AppleID tied to an email address that you no longer have access to or no longer use? If so, Apple offers step-by-step instructions on how to change your AppleID to use a new email address. Before we jump to the instructions, let’s start by reviewing some important background information and talk about some … Read more
Do you want to put emoji into your email messages, notes, Word document or any other document that you type on your Mac? If so, I recently learned of a fast way to bring up the emoji keyboard on your Mac. Press the following three keys simultaneously: Command, Control and space bar.
Read moreDid you know that you can use your iPad as a second screen for your Mac? That’s right. You can buy DuetDisplay, currently $11, and use it to connect your iPad to your Mac so you can use it as an second display. In a sense, this is a way to control your Mac using a touch-interface, if you would like to … Read more
Does your Mac fail to find files that you know exist when you search for them? Or, does Apple Mail or Outlook fail to find email messages when you search for them? If so, this problem could be caused by a corrupt Spotlight index. Spotlight is the name of Apple’s search capabilities built into the Mac … Read more
Would you like to add frequently used applications or documents to your Dock? Would you like to remove rarely used items from the Dock? If so, below are instructions on how to do this. The Dock is the row of icons that’s typically located across the bottom of the screen, though it can be moved. Apple … Read more
Would you like your Mac’s Trash to automatically delete files after they’ve been in the Trash for 30 days? If so, Apple recently added this feature to macOS Sierra (aka OS X 10.12). If you’re using an older version of OS X, the only alternative option is to create an AppleScript and schedule it to run … Read more
Do you want to either sell or retire a Mac that has a solid state hard drive (aka Flash Storage)? If so, it is prudent to securely erase the hard drive beforehand. Here are instructions on how to do this. This procedure will make all of your personal data inaccessible. During this process we will be enabling FileVault, which encrypts … Read more
Please make sure that your Mac is not configured to automatically install operating system (OS) updates. Since Apple recently released a major update to the Mac operating system, now is a good time to make sure your Mac doesn’t automatically install this update. The reason why I advocate this position is that major updates often introduce … Read more