How To Display Keyboard Shortcuts During A Presentation

I regularly provide small group training and I want audience members to be able to know when I use keyboard shortcuts. This way they can see how I made something happen. For example, I might press the Command key and the P key to tell an application to print a document. Since the audience can see my screen but not my hands, it’s very useful to have an application display my keystrokes on screen. Read More from “How To Display Keyboard Shortcuts During A Presentation”

How To Enlarge Text Size In Safari, Firefox Or Chrome

Here are some simple instructions on how to enlarge the size of text on a web page when you’re using Safari, Firefox or Chrome on a Macintosh computer. I use this feature on a daily basis since web sites use a variety of font sizes. This is especially handy in low-light settings or if one typically needs glasses but they aren’t handy. Read More from “How To Enlarge Text Size In Safari, Firefox Or Chrome”

How to View RSS Feeds in Apple Mail

RSS is a convenient way to stay abreast of news stories or articles added to a particular web site. Rather then needing to visit your favorite web site over and over, you can use RSS to be notified when a new story or article has been added as well as read some or all of that article. I like to read my RSS feeds in my email application, Mail. Read More from “How to View RSS Feeds in Apple Mail”

Should I Buy AppleCare With My New Mac?

I strongly recommend the AppleCare Protection Plan (APP) for all MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac and MacPro purchases under most circumstances. I know that extended warranties have a poor reputation in general, but I think AppleCare is a good value for most Mac models. For the rest of this article I’ll simply refer to the AppleCare Protection Plan as AppleCare. Read More from “Should I Buy AppleCare With My New Mac?”

How Can I Learn to Use iMovie Better?

Would you like to learn to use iMovie better? Here’s a list of some online information that can help you. iMovie has grown and evolved since it was introduced in 1999. In 2007, Apple gave iMovie’s interface and workflow a complete overhaul with the introduction of iMovie ’08 (aka version 7). This same general interface is still present in the current version, iMovie ’11. The interface overhaul throws experienced iMovie users for a loop and confuses many novice users. Consequently, I frequently provide iMovie training to help users get oriented. There are some very good online resources to help you get started learning iMovie as well. Read More from “How Can I Learn to Use iMovie Better?”

Will Adding Memory to My Mac Make it Faster?

Adding memory (RAM) is one of the most common upgrades made to a computer. Many people think that this will speed up a computer. Adding memory to a computer can slightly improve its performance if the computer didn’t previously have sufficient memory installed to accommodate the applications running simultaneously. Let me elaborate to add some clarifying detail. [Update 2015: Many Macintosh model now have their memory soldered in place so additional memory can’t be added in the future. Thus, it’s important to equip new Macs with enough memory when you purchase them.] Read More from “Will Adding Memory to My Mac Make it Faster?”

If You Add Movies to Your PowerPoint 2011 Presentation Then Save It In .PPTX Format

I recently discovered a bug in PowerPoint 2011 for Mac. If you insert a movie file into a PowerPoint presentation and you’re using the older .ppt file format, the link to the movie breaks when you close the file. I’ve confirmed that this problem occurs with .wmv and .mov movie files, and I assume it occurs with any other type of movie file. I’ve had a couple of clients encounter this bug. I reported this problem to Microsoft, but it hasn’t been fixed as of the time of this writing. There is an easy solution to this problem. Use PowerPoint 2011’s native .pptx file format instead of the older .ppt file format. Read More from “If You Add Movies to Your PowerPoint 2011 Presentation Then Save It In .PPTX Format”

How To Restore a File from Your CrashPlan Backup

Here are instructions on how to restore one or more files from your CrashPlan online backup archive. The instructions work for both CrashPlan and CrashPlan Pro. In my opinion, an untested backup system is next to useless. Only by testing it do you know for sure that your backup system is working properly. By testing it, you also learn how to restore a file, which will enable you to be a bit more calm in the event of an actual disaster. Read More from “How To Restore a File from Your CrashPlan Backup”

Zamzar Let’s You Save a Copy of YouTube Videos and More

Zamzar, an online file conversion service, is an easy way to save a copy of a YouTube video on your Mac. To do this you enter the YouTube video’s address at Zamzar’s web site and it will convert the YouTube video into a file type which you choose, then send you an email containing a link to download the  converted file. Read More from “Zamzar Let’s You Save a Copy of YouTube Videos and More”

Clean Up Your Mac Hard Drive Using OmniDiskSweeper

Do you want to clean up your Mac hard drive? Is your hard drive nearly full and you don’t know why? OmniDiskSweeper (free) can help with both of these situations. OmniDiskSweeper will scan all files and folders on your Mac and list them by size, starting with the folders taking up the most space. This helps you to focus your clean-up efforts on the folders that are taking up the most room on your Mac’s hard drive. Read More from “Clean Up Your Mac Hard Drive Using OmniDiskSweeper”

How to Open Winmail.dat Attachments on a Mac or iOS Device

Did you receive an email attachment named winmail.dat or winmail? Here’s a brief explanation of what this file is and instructions for opening it.

Winmail.dat files are sent by people using Microsoft Outlook as their email application. Under certain circumstances Outlook will encode attached files, like Word or PDF files, in this winmail.dat format. Read More from “How to Open Winmail.dat Attachments on a Mac or iOS Device”