Guides

For macOS 15 Sequoia

Intro

Here are 10 tips for macOS that you probably didn't know.

One thing I like to do in my spare time is find out new tips for macOS. Digging through underrated tips and ones which might not be useful to me (better managing windows, mission control, etc.), I have found a few useful tips which I want to share.

Most of these will work with any recent version of macOS. Ones that require a certain version or later will be mentioned if I…

for macOS Sequoia

Intro

Although Apple has killed off Macs with the Touch Bar, there are of course some still in the wild. Rearranging the control strip on the Touch Bar is easier than you might think. Just by looking at the instructions found in System Settings, it doesn't seem like there is a way to accomplish this. "Drag your favorite items to the bottom of the screen to add them to the Touch Bar. Drag items up from the Touch Bar to remove them."

…

for macOS Sequoia

Intro

When performing searches within apps, you can use keywords to narrow your search without having to navigate through popup menus.

This can save you the trouble of navigating menus trying to find a similar option to what you could type.

For example, if I wanted to search for all audio in a folder, I would previously type audio. I would then navigate with up/down arrows to find the audio option under kind.

You can directly enter…

for macOS Sequoia

Intro

This guide will attempt to document all of the options in VoiceOver Utility and what they do.

After the release of my guide for iOS VoiceOver settings, I figured I would create a similar guide for macOS.

The VoiceOver Modifier will be abbreviated as the VO key. The VO key/keys can be configured in the commands category, or in the general category if…

for macOS Sequoia

Intro

Have you ever thought, "I wish there was a keyboard shortcut for that"? This guide will teach you how to create a keyboard shortcut for any option in the menu bar, under any menu, including the Apple menu.

What can be turned into a keyboard shortcut?

You can create a keyboard shortcut for all options in the menu bar, as long as you have the exact title of the option. You can interact with a menu option to see how it is spelled.…

This guide will teach you the extreme basics of using the Mac including
turning it on.
Locating keys on the built in keyboard including a description of what's Touch ID.
turning on the screen reader (VoiceOver)
Understanding the function of the fn, control, option and command keys
Using voiceover to show the dock, open context menu, focusing voiceover to the menubar and the status bar.
The guide will also teach you basic macOS keyboard shortcuts such…

For iOS 18, macOS Sequoia

Intro

As is widely known, a major selling point of Apple devices is the interconnected ecosystem they collectively foster, allowing users to work seamlessly between iPhones, iPads, Macs, and other devices. Some of these features, like iCloud, iMessage, and FaceTime, are facilitated by central servers, whereas others, like the Continuity features discussed in this guide, are largely facilitated by Apple’s proprietary peer-to-peer networking…

for iOS 18 and macOS 15

intro

This guide covers how you can create shortcuts on both macOS and iOS, from automation to creating shortcuts that can enhance your workflow, to turning your shortcuts into .app files on Mac.

What's a shortcut?

A shortcut is a set of steps (actions) that can be put together to create a workflow, which can do several things at once, such as sending a text to someone and playing a playlist, to sending the last image in your photos…

Intro

For those who may not like the current implementation of iPhone mirroring, there is a free solution to do the same thing, which might be even easier compared to the iPhone mirroring app. As a bonus, this method also works on iPads as well.

How it works:

This approach uses a free app called Keypad, which is free for one device. The in app purchase unlocks the ability to…

For macOS Sequoia 15.3

Intro

This guide discusses the many ways you can change verbosity options in macOS VoiceOver, and how they work.

The Purpose of This Guide

This guide is here to explain in great detail how the plethora of verbosity options can affect the way VoiceOver behaves.
If VoiceOver is or isn't speaking something you want it to, this guide will hopefully allow you to configure VoiceOver the way you want it to behave.

Speech and…

One of the marquee features of macOS Sonoma is widgets on the desktop. The widgets can come from Mac apps, just as they could before in previous versions of macOS, where they appeared in Notification Centre. New to Sonoma, they can now also come from select iPhone apps running on your nearby iPhone.

This is a pretty cool and useful feature, as it goes, for those…

For macOS Sequoia

Intro

If you own a computer or mobile device, you probably know that while it can do some amazing things, the fact that it is used to store and handle some of your most personal and sensitive data makes securing it essential. In this guide, I will give an overview of some of the security, privacy, and anti-malware features included in macOS, in order to give you a clearer understanding of what you should and shouldn’t use in your situation. Keep in mind…

For macOS Sequoia

Intro

If you’re like most people, you likely have many online accounts with usernames and passwords. In this guide, I will describe how Apple Passwords, the password manager built into macOS and other Apple platforms, can help you create, use, and manage strong credentials for your online accounts.

While Apple Passwords is also available on iOS and iPadOS, as well as Chromium-based browsers, this guide will focus primarily on how to use it with…

Greetings Applevis-ionaries. (visionaries) I wanted to share a method I devised this morning while working with a low vision client for turning your MacBook into a CCTV using your iPhone.

You will need to have a camera stand which can hold your iPhone at about 10 inches above the item you are wanting to magnify. I used a folding, portable old-style scan stand unit with an internal light strip I’ve had for over a decade by now, and it worked beautifully.

An external monitor is…

Did you know that you can read the entire iPhone user manual through your browser online? This is also true for Mac, iPad, Apple watch and even the older iPod.
This quick guide though focuses on iPhone.
When you pull up the manual, the default is the current iOS, iOS 16 as of this writing. But a drop-down box lets you select an older version of the user guide. It will change to a newer iOS as the default when that is released.
One big advantage of reading the user guide on…

Dear All,

I have attempted to cover all the mac voiceover keystrokes in combination with the alphabet keys, function keys and along with the modifier keys in the form of a table for ready reference.

Mac VoiceOver keystrokes with alphabet keys in macOS 13 Ventura