MakeUseOf - OS X Yosemite

Everything You Need to Know About Your Mac’s Dock

Rachel Melegrito — Fri, 04 Feb 2022 13:45:22 GMT

The Dock is one of the primary ways you interact with your Mac—it covers everything from opening and closing apps to quickly accessing your Documents or Downloads. However, many people still don’t know some of the most basic uses of Mac’s Dock and how you can customize it to match your preferences. That’s what we’ll get into here.

Mac Users Beware: A Bug in Sparkle Could Get You Hacked

Joel Lee — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 15:30:18 GMT

A lot of OS X applications use a framework called Sparkle to simplify automatic software updates for end users like you and me. Unfortunately, a recent vulnerability was spotted in Sparkle -- one that could leave your system open to hackers.

Need Mac Tech Support? Here Are Your Options

Dan Price — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 00:00:00 GMT

"Tech support" — two words that strike fear into the hearts of all but the most competent computer users out there.

The 20-Year-Old Features Hidden In Your Mac

Justin Pot — Wed, 25 Nov 2015 19:00:00 GMT

Apple has been making computers and software for a long time, but El Capitan is totally modern —right? There's no way it includes any elements from the 90s.

Screensavers Aren't Dead: 5 Beautiful Examples for Your Mac

Justin Pot — Fri, 13 Nov 2015 17:00:00 GMT

Screensavers aren't really necessary anymore, but operating systems keep offering them – and people keep making new ones. This is especially true on the Mac – in recent years a few stunning ones have showed up.

20 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do with the Mac Option Key

Akshata Shanbhag — Tue, 27 Oct 2015 20:00:00 GMT

The Command (cmd) key steals the limelight on your Mac's keyboard, but it’s the Option (or alt) key that is the real hero. It works behind the scenes, providing you with fast access to a variety of functions and actions — and you probably never realised.

8 Finder Tips for Mac Newbies

Akshata Shanbhag — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 23:00:00 GMT

Navigating files and folders using the native Mac file browser Finder is easy enough, but there are many more features hidden behind menus and keyboard shortcuts.

El Capitan Means The End Of Mac Themes & Deep System Tweaks

Justin Pot — Thu, 13 Aug 2015 18:00:00 GMT

About a year ago I discovered Flavours, a delightful tool to personalize the Mac desktop. With it you could theme the Mac operating system, and all applications, by changing things like color schemes and the iconic top-left Apple logo.

How to Use Photos for OS X With Photoshop, Pixelmator and Other Image Editors

Andy Betts — Tue, 28 Jul 2015 01:00:00 GMT

Apple’s new Photos app for OS X and iOS is being pitched as being the only photography app you might ever need.

15 Must-Have Apps for Those Who Spend All Day on a Mac

Akshata Shanbhag — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 19:00:00 GMT

Our list of the best Mac apps already caters to all kinds of users, but today we have a set of apps aimed squarely at those who are glued to their MacBooks and iMacs all day.

Monitor Your Mac’s Vital Signs With These Third Party System Monitors

Mark O'Neill — Thu, 23 Jul 2015 18:00:00 GMT

Activity Monitor is a window to the innermost workings of your Mac. It monitors all of the running programs and processes, let you know where all your processing power and RAM is going, and provides enough useful information to diagnose many problems your Mac may be having.

Don't Wait, Get OS X 11.10 El Capitan Features Right Now In Yosemite

Tim Brookes — Mon, 06 Jul 2015 19:00:00 GMT

Every year Apple updates OS X, but this year's update won't be quite as dramatic as the last.

Unlock Your Mac Using Your Apple Watch or Android Wear Device

Tim Brookes — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 20:00:00 GMT

Typing a password is just so much hassle, don't you wish you could use your iPhone, Apple Watch or simply have your Mac unlock when you walk near it? It turns out you can!

OS X Messages: Use Facebook, Stop Automatic Emoji & More Tips

Dann Albright — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 17:00:00 GMT

Messages — formerly known as iChat — is OS X's built-in instant messaging client. It is often overlooked in favor of more robust IM clients, but can be a fantastic way of keeping in touch with people if you know how to set it up properly.

Apples vs. Oranges: A Long Time Windows User Meets OS X

Tina Sieber — Fri, 15 May 2015 17:00:00 GMT

What could happen when a long-time Windows user drops their defense and uses a Mac for the first time in years? Will a superior deasign, high quality build, and intuitive interface sweep them off their feet? Or will they happily return to good old Windows?

How to Overlay Web Videos While You Work on Your Mac

Justin Pot — Thu, 14 May 2015 19:00:00 GMT

Sometimes a little bit of a distraction is what you need to get the job done. If that's you, check out Helium for Mac – a free floating browser that lets you watch web videos while you do something else.

How to Change Your Password on Any Desktop or Mobile Device

Tina Sieber — Tue, 21 Apr 2015 22:00:00 GMT

For most of your accounts, your password is the only thing standing between a stranger and your most private data. It had better be a strong password, otherwise your privacy and integrity may be at risk.

A Cleaner, Faster iPhoto: Upgrade to Photos for OS X Yosemite

Bakari Chavanu — Tue, 21 Apr 2015 19:30:00 GMT

Photos for OS X has finally arrived, replacing the dusty and worn-out iPhoto with an image management application that Mac users will actually want to use — but is there enough here to satisfy Aperture users?

How to Use Custom Icons in Mac OS X (And Where to Find Them)

Tim Brookes — Fri, 17 Apr 2015 21:00:00 GMT

Tired of the way your Mac looks like everyone else's? Brighten things up by installing your own custom icons for favorite software and system components.

Schedule & Browse Time Machine Backups With These Powerful Tools

Justin Pot — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 17:00:00 GMT

Take control of your Mac's Time Machine — from custom backup times to finding out where those 2 GB of new files are, the right apps can give you power and knowledge Apple's own tools just don't provide.

11 More Widgets For Yosemite's Notification Center

Justin Pot — Thu, 19 Mar 2015 17:00:00 GMT

Looking for more widgets for Yosemite's Notification Center? There are quick ways to monitor your system's status, find out what's on TV, control your thermostat, and much more.

Ditch The Dock To Speed Up Your Mac Workflow

Bakari Chavanu — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 21:00:00 GMT

For many Mac users, the legendary dock is sometimes obtrusive on a smaller screen laptop, or a little too distant on a 21" screen iMac. Though it's a staple feature on the Mac, it often lacks other extra functions users need to get tasks done.

7 Good Habits Every Mac User Should Get Used To

Tim Brookes — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 22:00:00 GMT

After using an operating system for a while, you begin to automate many of your most repetitive actions without realising it. Years of doing the same thing teaches you that saving a second or two here and there really can make a difference to your workflow.

Automate Mac Settings Depending On Your Location With ControlPlane

Justin Pot — Thu, 26 Feb 2015 17:00:00 GMT

You use your Mac differently at home than you do at work. What if it knew the difference between these contexts, and set itself up accordingly?

Turn Your NAS Or Windows Share Into A Time Machine Backup

Justin Pot — Thu, 26 Feb 2015 00:00:00 GMT

Use your NAS, or any network share, for backing up your Mac with Time Machine. Apple's backup software officially only works with supported devices, but with a little work you can trick it into backing up to any network drive!

7 Ways to Make Your Mac Start Up Faster

Dreamchild Obari — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 20:30:16 GMT

There's nothing more frustrating than trying to boot up a slow computer. And while Macs are excellent machines, they can also suffer from slow boot times—especially if they've been around for a while

Power Up Your Mac Workflow With Alfred's New Remote App

Bakari Chavanu — Wed, 18 Feb 2015 21:00:00 GMT

When it comes to getting more done on your Mac, Alfred Remote ($4.99) for iOS puts many common tasks quite literally at your fingertips via your iPhone or iPad.

Use Google By Default and 5 Other OS X Yosemite “Fixes"

Justin Pot — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 18:00:00 GMT

If you've installed OS X Yosemite, you might be enjoying all the new features. Then again, you might not be.

Pop Ups on Your Mac? How to Stop Them Once and For All

Justin Pot — Fri, 06 Feb 2015 18:00:00 GMT

You just want to get things done on your Mac, when bam: a pop up. It breaks your focus, gets in your way, and sometimes just plain confuses you. Why won't these pop ups go away?

The Best Built-In Mac Tips You've Never Heard of, According to Reddit

Justin Pot — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 18:00:00 GMT

Invert your colours, quickly switch audio devices and see where your currently open file is located. There's a surprising number of things your Mac can do out of the box, if you only know how.

Goodbye, Apple Fanboys: Is The Internet Falling Out Of Love With Cupertino?

Mihir Patkar — Mon, 02 Feb 2015 18:00:00 GMT

Apple is the world's richest company and among its most loved brands (though it can't keep growing forever). But recent headlines make us wonder: is Apple finally losing its sheen? Are the fanboys disappearing?

Get Some Work Done: The Best Writing Environments for Mac OS X

Bakari Chavanu — Tue, 06 Jan 2015 19:00:00 GMT

When tackling writing projects, you need the best writing environment possible to get the job done.

Mac OS X Yosemite, From The Perspective Of A Linux User

Danny Stieben — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:00:00 GMT

It's been a while since Mac OS X 10.10 "Yosemite" has been released into the wild, so we have a pretty good idea of how it performs. Mac OS X is also sometimes used as the poster child for a clean and elegant interface (most of the time, anyways). As a Linux writer, it's my duty to make comparisons not only amongst Linux distros, but also against the competition.

Customize Almost Anything On Your Mac With EasySIMBL

Justin Pot — Fri, 12 Dec 2014 21:00:00 GMT

EasySIMBL just might be the best free Mac app you’ve never heard of. It lets you run user-submitted extensions to your favourite applications, not to mention OS X itself.

Turn Any Mac Dashboard Widget Into Its Own App

Justin Pot — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 19:00:00 GMT

You probably haven't used Dashboard in years, but there is that one widget you wish you could just turn into an app. Guess what? You can!

How To Add Absolutely Anything To Yosemite's Notification Center

Justin Pot — Wed, 19 Nov 2014 18:00:00 GMT

Add anything to Yosemite's Notification Center – all it takes is the right command.

10 Useful OS X Yosemite Features You Might Have Missed

Mark O'Neill — Wed, 29 Oct 2014 19:30:00 GMT

Ever since OS X Yosemite came out, everyone has been looking to see if they can find all of the hidden features not so widely reported by Timmy up on his stage. So I decided to go a-hunting and see what I could find.

What Does Continuity Mean for Yosemite & iOS 8?

Matt Smith — Wed, 22 Oct 2014 21:30:00 GMT

OS X 10.10, better know as Yosemite, is a major Mac update that offers numerous features never seen before in an operating system. One of the most important is Continuity.

OS X Yosemite Public Beta Now Available, Here's How To Install It

Bakari Chavanu — Tue, 29 Jul 2014 19:30:00 GMT

If you're eager to get your hands on OS X Yosemite, Apple has released its upcoming operating system as a free beta for the first million downloaders.

Why You Shouldn't Install The iOS 8 and OS X 10.10 Betas

Tim Brookes — Thu, 26 Jun 2014 22:00:00 GMT

From the second the news broke, Apple developers had access to beta versions of the upcoming iOS 8 and OS X 10.10 Yosemite. As ever, many scrambled to download and install the new software as soon as possible, but that might have been a mistake.

What's New In OS X 10.10 "Yosemite"?

Tim Brookes — Thu, 05 Jun 2014 02:00:00 GMT

Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference brings big changes to the world of iOS, but the company hasn't forgotten about the desktop either. OS X is evolving both in terms of looks and features, and just like last year's Mavericks update, Yosemite will be another free download.