7 Things Every New Mac Owner Should Know

The jump from Windows to Mac can be daunting. A lot of Windows users feel fairly confident of the switch, but the confidence only lasts for about ten minutes into logging in to a Mac for the first time. But, fortunately, the jitters only last for a few days and once you get the hang of it, the rest of the ride is truly fun and enjoyable. 

So, let’s get started on the things that you should know as a new Mac user. This should help you to a comfortable start to your Mac-using journey. 

1. Closing unresponsive apps 

Used to the Ctrl + Alt + Delete hack of Windows whenever apps stop responding? While you cannot apply the same hack, the equivalent is Command + Option + Escape. This will bring up a system tasks profiler from where you can simply select the frozen applications and click Force Quit. 

And yes, Apple does have a slogan that goes something like ‘It just works’, but that’s not the case. So, it is good to learn how to Force Quit so that you don’t waste your precious time trying to Google how to close frozen apps on a Mac.

2. How to find the path of a file 

With time, your Mac is going to be filled with uncountable files. As you save documents, download, and create files, your system may start to appear messy and confusing. You may need help locating files. If you know the file that you are looking for, it will be easy to find the path. You just have to discover the file and click on the info. The other method is to copy file path onto Finder (Mac’s in-built app) and once it is onto the clipboard, you can paste it anywhere that you like. Alternatively, you can use standalone apps to find the path of a file, such as PathFinder. 

3. There’s no need to defrag

As a Windows user, you must have heard people asking you to defragment your PC whenever it started acting sluggish and slow. This is not the case with Macs. Based on the reliable and proven Unix architecture with a macOS Extended Journaled file system, you don’t have to defrag your hard drive because it will be done automatically. Whenever your system detects that you are attempting to use a heavily fragmented file, it starts to fix up the file system. 

4. Where did that window disappear?

When you minimize apps on a Mac, they go to the dock. In the dock menu, the items to the right of the bar are open finder apps or windows. This is quite similar to the area where minimized apps go in the windows taskbar. 

If a finder window is not minimized but is behind another open window, you can click on the Finder icon in the dock to bring it up. 

5. The fn key 

If you’re new to Mac, you should check out the fn key as it is the most important. It is the default key that is used to activate Dictation & Speech and it is also used as a modifier key. For instance, fn + delete will delete to the right instead of to the left. If you want to navigate the menu bar without using a mouse, you can click fn + Control + F2 and make use of the arrow keys to maneuver. To move all the open windows and apps to the far side of the screen, you can press fn + F11. These are some of the Mac keyboard shortcuts that you learn to ease your work. 

6. Updates 

Apple comes up with big and small updates to ensure that Mac users can work in peace. The updates are sometimes minor bug fixes or sometimes major updates like the latest Big Sur update. You should also stay tuned for the upcoming macOS 12 update that should be officially launched sometime in September 2021. For checking new updates, you need to go to Systems Preferences > Software Updates. If there is any update, make sure to install it right away and it should solve the problems that you might have been facing. Also, select the setting to automatically check for updates so that you don’t miss out on any. 

7. Manage login items 

When you’re installing a new app, you’ll see that they sometimes automatically start up whenever you restart your Mac. The more items startup automatically, the longer your system will take to start up. So, you need to manage the list and keep it to the bare minimum. This will ensure that your system is functioning at full speed and there are no lags. If there is an app that you wish to add to the startup menu, click “+” and navigate to the application and to remove, click “-“. 

With these things in mind, start your Mac-using journey on a high note.