Mac OS

Some Mac users may occasionally run into issues with Finder, discovering that Finder will misbehave wildly, sometimes becoming very slow and unresponsive, crashing, or using inordinately high CPU. Given that Finder is a critical component of the Mac and nearly all Mac OS users rely on it for file system navigation, Finder trouble can be … Read More

Mac users who are running OS X Mavericks and OS X Mountain Lion will find an important security update available to them. Labeled as Security Update 2015-004 1.0, the software update includes many fixes to a wide variety of potential security issues for OS X, and is therefore recommended for all Mac users running OS … Read More

Apple has released an update for iTunes, versioned as iTunes 12.1.2. The small update is available now for Mac OS X and Windows, includes various improvements to the media management application that is basically essential for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users. This update is particularly important for Mac, as it enables syncing photos between … Read More

Apple has released the final version of OS X 10.10.3 to all Mac users running Yosemite. The public version of OS X 10.10.3 includes the Photos app to replace iPhoto, and contains a handful of bug and performance fixes as well, including improvements to Wi-Fi stability and performance, over 300 newly designed Emoji icons, Spotlight … Read More

Can’t remember where a file you recently opened was stored on the Mac, or where an MacOS X app you recently used was kept or originated from? Maybe you don’t know where something you recently used went to? No big deal, a simple keystroke modifier trick allows you to jump directly to the containing location … Read More

The Mac received a great many changes with OS X Yosemite along with a notable visual redesign, but some of those changes and various transparent effects may be taking a toll on some users Mac performance with errant WindowServer behavior. This is typically demonstrated with the WindowServer process spiking into heavy CPU use for seemingly … Read More

Stacks offer a method of displaying folders or collections of multiple items in the Dock of the Mac. When clicked, the “Stack” will pop open and show the contents sprawling out of the Dock. Dock Stacks always display on the right-side of the Mac OS X Dock and they default to contain things like the … Read More

Whether testing performance of an application, Mac OS X animations, or just out of general curiosity, you can measure the refresh rate in Frames Per Second of onscreen actions and animations on the Mac by using a free developer tool from Apple called Quartz Debug. Part of the Graphics Tools package of Xcode, Quartz Debug … Read More

Apple has released a seventh beta version of OS X Yosemite 10.10.3, just a few days after releasing the sixth beta. The rapid beta testing release schedule either suggests the final public version of OS X 10.10.3 is approaching quickly, or perhaps that an important fix is included in the seventh beta version, though the … Read More

With Messages app on the Mac now able to send and receive SMS texts messages alongside iMessages from the iPhone, amongst other configured chat protocols, it’s easy to stay in touch, but it’s also easy get overwhelmed or annoyed by the sound of incoming messages while you’re trying to do other work on the computer. … Read More

Apple has released the sixth beta version of OS X Yosemite 10.10.3. The new build arrives as 14D127a and is available for those participating in the Public Beta test program and users who are registered as a Mac Developer.

A fair amount of wireless routers choose not to broadcast their identity (called an SSID) as a simple security precaution, thus knowing how to join an invisible network from a Mac is important.

Now that the Mac windows green maximize button defaults to sending apps and windows into Full Screen Mode, a notably sized cohort of MacOS and Mac OS X users who perhaps didn’t know this behavior changed until accidentally finding out, are left confused with the following question; “how do I get out of full screen … Read More

If you find yourself adding up many numbers or just performing a continuous string of math that is critical to keep track of, you should know that the Mac Calculator app includes a paper tape feature. For those who aren’t familiar, a paper tape keeps a running trail of each item entered into a calculator, … Read More

You may know that you can quickly jump to websites by typing a domain name into a Spotlight search and choosing the ‘Suggested Website’ option, but did you know you can get a live preview of a webpage from Spotlight on the Mac? This is a fairly simple trick that’s pretty useful, and yes it … Read More

With the Mac Messages app able to send and receive text messages along with iMessages, you’ll be in greater contact with friends, family, and anyone else who sends you a message. This is usually a good thing, but sometimes you’ll find yourself as a recipient to a conversation that just isn’t necessary to follow. For … Read More

Need to run Windows 10 on a Mac? You can install and run Windows 10 in Mac OS X for free using VirtualBox and the Windows 10 Preview from Microsoft. Because this installs Windows into a virtual machine atop existing Mac system software, running Windows is basically like running any other application, which makes it … Read More

Rather than remembering a separate password and set of login information for unlocking a Mac, OS X offers the option to use an iCloud password to login to the computer at boot, reboot, authentication, locked screens, and all login windows instead. This is a helpful feature for users who like to keep things simple and … Read More