When you need to temporarily leave your Mac unattended, it’s a hassle to put it to sleep and wake it up again. What’s the quickest way? Set up a simple keyboard shortcut that shows your Mac’s login screen without logging you out.
Mac users have a bunch of different ways to prevent others from snooping on their Mac when they need to step away for a few minutes. Some like to set up a hot corner that starts their screensaver. Others like to click a menu bar icon that turns off their display. There are even some 3rd party apps that add this functionality. The problem with these approaches is that they cut off some background processes or require system preferences to be configured a certain way. These seem like workarounds rather than real solutions.
An even better way to lock your Mac’s screen is to press a quick keyboard shortcut that instantly shows a login screen without closing any of the things you were working on. It requires just a couple minutes to set up initially – here’s how:
Mac OS X is already extremely secure out of the box – especially the latest version, 10.8 Mountain Lion. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t at least a few things you can do to help make your Mac even more safe to use. When it comes to technology…
As users of 10.8 Mountain Lion settle into their new environment, some of the most common questions about the new operating system relate to Gatekeeper – OS X’s newest security feature. While Gatekeeper is…
Is your iPhone not connecting to the internet even though it shows a full signal to the cell network? By following a few easy troubleshooting tips, you can usually get your iPhone back online within a minute or two. Occasionally, when I leave a WiFi area like home or…
With the introduction of OS X Lion, Apple changed the way file sorting works in Finder. Unfortunately, it has left some users confused as to why selecting Arrange By > Name isn’t working in Finder’s Column view. An interesting issue has been plaguing some…
A bundle of three great Mac apps is up for grabs! What’s included? Dropzone, a utility that helps you perform common tasks even faster; Socialite, a convenient way to manage your social networks; and Compartments, the simplest way to inventory and protect your valuables…
When you’re using your Mac and listening to music in iTunes, wouldn’t it be great if a notification popped up to tell you what song is currently playing? Find out how to display the song title, artist name, and even album cover art while using any app! Have you ever watched…
If you have an external hard drive or USB flash drive that you’d like to use on both Macs and Windows PCs, choosing the right file system to format the drive can be confusing. Learn a few ways to make your drive Mac and PC friendly. Need to access or transfer files…
A new Mac application called Gemini is looking to get some of your hard drive space back. By identifying duplicate files and folders on your Mac, Gemini helps you delete unnecessary clutter you didn’t even know you had. It’s surprising how often we make copies of files and folders on…
When looking at the Dock, it can be difficult to tell when a running Mac app has been hidden from view. But with a quick Terminal command, hidden app icons can fade into the background with lowered opacity. If you’re a Mac user who frequently has a cluttered screen full of open…
Ever wanted to extract the audio from a movie or video file so you could import it into iTunes or burn it on a CD? There are actually a number of ways to accomplish this task on your Mac! Let’s say you’re a parent who took a home movie of your child during…
Learn how to create your own OS X service that lets you copy & paste the paths of files and folders in Finder. After just a few steps you will be able to select items in Finder, press a quick keyboard shortcut, and paste the path(s) anywhere you want. Mac users have…