Mac OS

Mac OS, Mac OS X, or macOS, is the operating system that resides on Apple’s desktop and portable computer lineup. Built upon a Unix core, it is easy to use yet highly advanced, extremely stable, and an excellent OS for productivity and creation. Browse through our articles or use the search feature to look for something specific that is pertinent to the Mac operating system.

Search Mac OS

How to Create a OS X El Capitan Boot Installer USB Flash Drive

Sep 30, 2015 - 238 Comments
Make a bootable OS X El Capitan install drive

Many Mac users like to make a bootable installer drive for installing OS X El Capitan, whether for performing a clean install, or for making it easier to install OS X 10.11 onto multiple Macs. We will walk through creating a bootable install flash drive from OS X El Capitan with the final public version.

OS X El Capitan Available to Download Now for All Mac Users

Sep 30, 2015 - 87 Comments
OS X El Capitan now available to download

Apple has released OS X El Capitan as a free update to all Mac users. The new version of system software is officially versioned as OS X 10.11, and the final build number is 15A284. Users can start the download now from the App Store using the direct link below. OS X El Capitan brings … Read More

6 Steps to Prepare a Mac for the OS X El Capitan Update

Sep 29, 2015 - 88 Comments
Preparing for OS X El Capitan

Mac users have the chance to update to OS X El Capitan 10.11 as a free download, but before jumping into the installation process to update your Mac to the latest OS X release, it’s a good idea to run through a few basic preparations.

OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 Beta 2 Released for Testing

Sep 29, 2015 - 1 Comment
OS X El Capitan 10.11.2

Apple has released the second beta version of OS X 10.11.1 for those participating in the Mac beta testing programs. OS X 10.11.1 beta 2 arrives as build 15B22c, just a day before the final version of OS X 10.11 will be released to the general public, which is now available as a free download.

OS X 10.11.1 Public Beta 1 Released for Mac

Sep 21, 2015 - 10 Comments
OS X El Capitan 10.11.2

Apple has released the first Public Beta build of OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 for Mac users enrolled in the OS X Public Beta testing program. The first public beta arrives about a week after the first developer beta of 10.11.1 was released, but the builds appear to be the same 15B17c.

OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 Beta 1 Released for Testing

Sep 17, 2015 - 7 Comments
OS X EL Capitan

Apple has released the first beta version of OS X 10.11.1 to users participating in the Mac OS X Developer program. The initial pre-release build of OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 beta 1 arrives as 15B17c. It’s unclear what the specific focus of OS X 10.11.1 is at the moment (particularly given that OS X … Read More

How to Check the Time Remaining of a Time Machine Backup in Mac OS X

Sep 11, 2015 - 20 Comments
Check the time remaining of a Time Machine backup in Mac OS X

If you have ever wanted to know exactly how much time Time Machine is going to take to complete a current backup of a Mac, you’ll likely have noticed the Time Machine menu bar item shows the progress, but not the time before the backup is completed. Instead, if you want to see the time … Read More

OS X El Capitan GM Available Now, Public Release on September 30

Sep 9, 2015 - 60 Comments
OS X El Capitan

Apple has released the GM Candidate build of OS X El Capitan for Mac users participating in the Mac Developer Beta and OS X Public Beta programs. Additionally, Apple has announced that OS X 10.11 El Capitan will be available to the general public on September 30 as as free download.

Drag & Drop Not Working in Mac OS X? Simple Troubleshooting Tips

Sep 7, 2015 - 114 Comments
The Mac trackpad

Drag and drop is an essential feature on the Mac that is used frequently for interactions in the Mac OS Finder and throughout other applications, so obviously if drag and drop stops working seemingly out of the blue, you’ll want to resolve that fairly quickly. While this is a somewhat rare issue, a failure of … Read More

Get a Nifty Apple Watch Screen Saver on Mac OS X

Sep 6, 2015 - 31 Comments
Apple Watch screen saver on a Mac

Whether you’re a big fan of the actual Apple Watch itself or not, you have to admit the default watch face screen is rather beautiful and well designed. Not only does that watch face screen look great on a wrist, but it also happens to look fantastic on the Mac too, so if you’re a … Read More

Fix OS X El Capitan Beta Updates Not Showing in Software Update

Sep 5, 2015 - 29 Comments
Show missing beta updates in OS X

If you’re a Mac user who is beta testing OS X El Capitan, either as part of the OS X Public Beta program or as a registered Mac Developer, you may have come across a situation where the latest available update does not appear for you in the Mac App Store as it should. For … Read More

How to View Timestamps in Messages for Mac OS X

Sep 2, 2015 - 9 Comments
Mac Messages icon

Messages in Mac OS X has two methods of time-stamping messages; an automatically applied timestamp when a new conversation starts or message is received, and a lesser known ability to view the timestamp of any iMessage or text message sent with the Mac Messages app. We’re going to focus on the latter approach since it … Read More

Change How Safari Clears Downloaded Items List in Mac OS X

Sep 1, 2015 - 4 Comments
The Safari downloads list in Mac OS X, you can clear it manually

Each time you download a file from the web with Safari, it goes into a list of downloaded items contained within the browser. In modern versions of Mac OS X, this downloaded list item deletes itself automatically after a day passes, but if you want to change how often and when Safari clears the download … Read More

Browse Many Images Easier with Split View in Photos for Mac OS X

Sep 1, 2015 - 5 Comments
Photos app icon in Mac OS X

The standard viewing window of Photos app in Mac OS X shows a series of thumbnails for each image, and if you double-click on any particular image it gets larger and takes over the app. If you wish to view the next picture, most users will click on the back button, then double-click on another … Read More

OS X El Capitan Developer Beta 8 & Public Beta 6 Released

Aug 31, 2015 - 26 Comments
OS X El Capitan

Apple has released two new beta builds of OS X El Capitan, Developer Beta 8 for those registered in the official Mac Developer Program, and Public Beta 6 for Mac users in the Public Beta test program. The new builds arrive as 15A279b and 15A279d, respectively.

How to Make Apache Start httpd Automatically on Boot in Mac OS X

Aug 30, 2015 - 3 Comments
Start Apache in Mac OS X Automatically

Mac based web developers are probably familiar with manually starting and stopping the Apache web server in OS X through the command line by now, but if you want Apache to start itself automatically upon boot and reboot of a Mac, you’ll want to go a step further and use launchctl. By doing so, webdevs … Read More

Setting Wallpaper from the Command Line in Mac OS X

Aug 28, 2015 - 6 Comments
Terminal in macOS

Ever wished you could set a Macs wallpaper image from the command line in OS X? As a matter of fact, you can change the desktop background picture from the terminal, which can be useful for a variety of situations ranging from inclusion in a setup script, to remote management, automating, or whatever else you … Read More

How to Show All Possible Screen Resolutions for a Display in Mac OS X

Aug 27, 2015 - 33 Comments
All resolutions shown for a Mac Display

Though it’s generally recommended to use the ‘Default for display’ screen resolution option, Mac users who connect their computer to an external display or TV may find it helpful to be able to see, access, and use all possible display resolutions for a particular screen. This can be particularly useful if a display Mis either … Read More

Subscribe to OSXDaily

Subscribe to RSS Subscribe to Twitter Feed Follow on Facebook Subscribe to eMail Updates

Tips & Tricks

News

iPhone / iPad

Mac

Troubleshooting

Shop on Amazon to help support this site