Using Apple Mail’s Two Mail Display Layouts
Apple’s Mail application offers two layouts, that is, two different ways for you to view your email messages. This article will show you how to switch between and customize each of these layouts.
Read moreSoftware
The apps that run on your Mac or iPhone/iPad.
How To Restore A Time Machine Backup To A New Mac
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
How To Change Your AppleID Email Address
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
Fast Way To Type Emoji On Your Mac
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 moreUse Your iPad As A Second Screen For Your Mac
Did 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
How To Rebuild Your Spotlight Index
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
Display Your Mac On Your iPad
Do you need to display your Mac’s screen on your iPad? To do this, you can use a screen-sharing application. Most of these applications cost money so Splashtop is intriguing since it’s free for personal use on your local network. To access your Mac from anywhere costs $60 per year.
Read moreAdd, Remove or Rearrange Items On Your Mac’s Dock
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
Configure Your Mac To Empty Trash After 30 Days
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).
Read moreConfigure Your iPhone To Delete Text Messages After 1 Year
To prevent your iPhone from accumulating gigabytes of text messages, I recommend that you configure it to delete messages after 1 year. Text messages are typically quite small so they won’t consume much space, but the photos and videos that are attached can gobble up space. If you’d like to save some of these attachments … Read more
Securely Erase Your Mac’s Solid State Hard Drive
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. There are two stages of this process. In phase … Read more
Set Up An Out Of Office Message In Gmail
If you have a Gmail account or a G Suite (formerly called Google Apps) email account, then you ought to know how to set up an out-of-office message. This feature is sometimes also called an auto-reply. Google calls it a Vacation Responder. Regardless of what you call it, here is how you can configure it. Open … Read more
Using The iPhone’s Do Not Disturb Feature
Turn on the iPhone’s Do Not Disturb feature to completely silence your iPhone (or iPad). This feature can be very handy if you sleep with your iPhone or iPad close to your bed. I typically have my iPhone’s ringer set to Silent mode, but if I’m in a meeting and I don’t want my phone to buzz or … Read more
Fix Common iPhone Backup Issues
Is your iPhone or iPad configured to backup to Apple’s iCloud servers? If so, your iOS device should automatically get backed up daily. If your iOS device is displaying a message indicating that it has not backed up in a few weeks (or more), here are some basic items that you should review. Read another Tech Tip … Read more
Searching Your iPhone or iPad
If you don’t know how to use the search feature on your iPhone or iPad, I think you are doing yourself a disservice. The search feature is easy to use and powerful. Here are instructions for using it. Wake up or unlock your iPhone (or iPad). Place your finger in the middle of the screen … Read more
How To Reveal Missing Mail Folders
Are you missing your email folders in Apple Mail? Did these folders disappear after you upgraded your Mac’s operating system or after you migrated your data to a new Mac? If so, there’s likely an easy fix. Apple added a Show/Hide button to Apple Mail. I believe they added it to Mail starting with OS X … Read more
Common Ways To Eject A Disk From A Mac
Here’s a list of common ways to eject a disk from a Mac. This disk could be a CD, a DVD, a USB flash drive or an external hard drive. Some Apple keyboards have an eject key. It is commonly located in the upper right corner of the keyboard. Press the eject key to eject … Read more
How To Install Major OS X Upgrades
Here’s an overview of how to install a major upgrade to OS X. For example, if you would like to upgrade from OS X Yosemite (aka OS X 10.10) to OS X El Capitan (aka OS X 10.11) then you could follow the instructions below. (These instructions assume you have at least OS X 10.6.8 or … Read more
Two Hidden iPhone Features
Do you have an iPhone? Here are two undocumented features that I use everyday on my iPhone. Silence incoming calls – You can instantly silence an incoming phone call by pressing either of the volume buttons. By pressing one of the volume buttons one time you’ll immediately silence your phone if it’s ringing or buzzing. Jump … Read more
Use Email Archiver Pro To Export Emails As PDF Files
Would you like to be able to export some or all of your email messages as PDF files that you can store in a regular folder on your Mac? If so, check out Email Archiver Pro (time-limited demo version available). Previously, I wrote about how to archive email if you use Microsoft Outlook (or Entourage) and using EagleFiler to archive … Read more