Top 10 Hidden Mac Tricks That Most People Don’t Know About

 

Are you looking to get the most out of your Mac computer? There are many hidden tricks and tips that can help you unlock its full potential. From customizing your dock to taking advantage of force quit, here are the top 10 hidden Mac tricks that most people don’t know about. Discover how these little-known features can make your experience with a Mac even better!

1. Change your folder icons

If you’re a person who loves personalizing their devices, changing the folder icons is a great place to start. It’s an easy task that can make your workspace look more vibrant and interesting. To switch out your folder icons, you first have to determine what type of file you have: either a .ICN file or a PNG/JPG. If you have the former, then all it takes is for you to drag and drop the icon on into the folder info window. If it’s the latter two, however, then you’ll need to open the image in Preview, copy it, and paste it into the folder info window. Either way, this video from @sapragus on Twitter covers all of these steps in detail and saves some time if you don’t want to conduct research about how to do this yourself.

Changing your folder icons is also useful for productivity purposes; each file has its own unique visual that differentiates it from any other file in your computer — which results in less confusion when trying to locate something specific! So grab any relevant images that fit within whatever theme or aesthetic desired and have fun transforming dull folders into striking ones!

2. Quickly hide current active app

If you’re like me, then you probably appreciate the convenience of shortcuts—especially when they can help save time. That’s why CMD + H (⌘+H) is one of my favorite keyboard tricks to have handy. This amazing shortcut will quickly hide your current active app when all you need to do is make it quickly vanish without having to close it completely. It’s very useful in a pinch, especially if you’re try and clean up your desktop or juggle multiple windows without having to close things out.

On top of that, bringing the window back again is just as easy and only takes a click on the applications dock icon. It really is an invaluable shortcut and I can’t thank @JPStratford enough for having shared this great tip on Twitter! Having this quick way to hide any active apps has proved incredibly helpful for times when I need to keep track of my open windows or create some space. To anyone who spends a lot of time on their computer, downloading this keyboard shortcut for practical use is definitely worth considering.

3. Show hidden files in Finder

Revealing invisible or hidden files in Finder can be a simple and useful task. By using the keyboard shortcut CMD + SHIFT + Period (⌘+⇧+Period) all non-visible files will quickly appear, letting you access crucial system resources without much hassle. This can be incredibly beneficial for advanced users who need to navigate below the surface of a macOS file system using Terminal or other tools.

The great thing about this shortcut is that it’s incredibly quick and easy to use. Any hidden files are marked with a grayed-out state, and they’ll remain viewable until you hit the same command again to re-hide them. This technique was shared on Twitter by @zeanmoore, making it an invaluable tip for all Apple computer users. With this simple command, we can save ourselves time from manually searching around for otherwise undetectable files.

4. Touch Bar screenshots

Taking screenshots of the Touch Bar on your Macbook can be a useful way to capture settings and other information while you’re working. The built-in shortcut, CMD + SHIFT + 6 (⌘+⇧+6), will quickly snap a screenshot that you can save and share if needed. You could even save yourself some time by creating a button in the Touch Bar dedicated just to taking screenshots.

While it may not be completely clear why Apple chose to add this feature for such a narrow strip of display, it may prove to be beneficial in providing access quickly and easily to whatever settings or data was captured on the Touch Bar without having to take screenshots from your regular desktop window. With the possibility of the Touch Bar entirely disappearing from future Macbooks, however, it seems like users have prepaid limited time to take advantage of this unique feature. Thankfully, tips are available online such as those shared by @haneenmahdin on Twitter for helping people figure out these solutions quickly and effectively.

5. Emoji keyboard shortcut

Using the Emoji keyboard shortcut can make it easy to find the perfect Emoji for any message. With a wide selection of different Emojis available, it certainly gives users more options when expressing themselves through text. To access the keyboard, all you need to do is click in any text box and press the control + command + spacebar keys at the same time – this will bring up an overlay window with all kinds of different characters to choose from. As soon as you find what you’re looking for, simply select it and you’re good to go! Its really that simple and you no longer have to dig through your device’s dropdown menu settings or browser extensions. Special thanks go out to @PiotrZagorowski on Twitter for bringing this great tip into light.

6. Moving folders into Finder Favorites

Adding folders to Finder Favorites is a great way to quickly locate and access important files. It works the same way as bookmarking favorite websites in web browsers – you can grab any folder from anywhere in your hard drive, and drag it over to the Sidebar of Finder. This will create a shortcut that remains there, even if you move the folder or its contents elsewhere. Once you have your desired folders in Favorites for easy access, you can easily remove them by right-clicking on them in the Sidebar and selecting “Remove from Sidebar”. This saves time and energy of continuously navigating through all your folders and finding the ones you need most often. Additionally, this tip was shared by @GiantRobotPilot on Twitter which adds to its credibility and is worth considering when organizing important documents on your Mac computer.

7. Dragging without drag lock

Dragging objects on a computer has always been an essential part of navigating and customizing interfaces, from desktop backgrounds to file folders. It can help you move items around quickly and easily with the minimum of effort. However, the way you do it may depend on your computer’s settings. On Macs, you can enable a drag lock feature that lets you keep an item moving even if you take your finger off the trackpad. By double-tapping and leaving your finger on the trackpad, you can also drag without using the drag lock option. This gives users more control over how they organize their workspace, while allowing them to adjust or rearrange things easily.

Macs also offer another convenience in their trackpad options; you can opt in for with drag lock activated so that any item dragged with a single tap can be repeatedly moved by lifting the finger off the trackpad before tapping again elsewhere on the device and continuing to move it as such until desired location is reached. This is helpful for those who prefer more freedom when dragging objects, as opposed to being bound to specific movements and directions imposed by traditional dragging methods.

8. Reposition Spotlight bar

The introduction of OS X El Capitan 10.11 brought with it a host of new features, one being the ability to freely drag and move around the Spotlight search bar. With this feature, you can easily reposition the Spotlight search bar in Mac’s menu bar so that it is more accessible. But if you find yourself accidentally moving or losing your Spotlight search icon, then the good news is that a simple trick exists to return it to its original position.

Simply tap and hold the Spotlight search icon in the Menu bar (on the upper right) for a couple of seconds, and voila! Your Spotlight has returned. As suggested by @gummibando on Twitter, this is a quick way to help reposition your Spotlight search bar without any hassle or confusion. In addition to returning your lost Spotlight, this simple trick also makes it easier for users to change where they want their Search Bar located whenever they feel like it!

9. The Option key can be used to transfer files.

Managing files can be a tedious task and sometimes people want to move rather than copy a file. However, a simple way to do this is by using the option key in Finder alongside the regular shortcut keys. Just press CMD + V (⌘+V) like you would if you wanted to paste but add in the option button as you hold down CMD + OPT + V (⌘+⌥+V). This will enable you to move rather than copy the file to its desired destination.

This method is much faster and easier than manually dragging and dropping a file from one location to another. Not only does it save time, but it also allows for an exactly equal transfer of data across locations without any loss of quality or content. It’s no wonder that so many users find this as their go-to method for moving files quickly and seamlessly between different locations.

10. QuickTime video appending

Quicktime is a great tool to have in your arsenal of video and audio editing tools. It is simple yet powerful and can provide quick results when you need to edit video or audio files, such as trimming and appending videos or mp3 files.

Trimming and appending videos with Quicktime is an incredibly easy process. All you need to do is open the first video file in the Quicktime window, drag the second one onto it, and then adjust the size of each frame so that they fit together perfectly. By doing this, you’ll be able to seamlessly accomplish all of your editing needs in a fraction of the time that it would take to accomplish more complicated tasks within iMovie or Final Cut Pro. This tip from @thor_lindberg on Twitter makes this process even faster and allows even novice users to create quality edited videos or audio files quickly, without frustration.