Exploring Apple Mac E-Book

Kevin Wilson

• Herausgeber: Elluminet Press
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

We've all been there before, glaring at a computer screen with no idea what to do - don't worry Exploring Apple Mac is here to help. Written by best-selling technology author, lecturer, and computer trainer Kevin Wilson, Exploring Apple Mac is packed with easy-to-follow instructions, photos, illustrations, helpful tips, and video demos.

Updated to cover the Monterey release of MacOS, Exploring Apple Mac will help you understand the fundamentals of your Mac. You'll learn how to:

Upgrade your Mac to Monterey and explore new features

Find your way around the desktop, dock, finder, and launchpad in MacOS Monterey

Master touch gestures, trackpads and the magic mouse to get around your Mac

Use Notification Centre, Handoff, Spaces, Control Center, Universal Control, and Universal Clipboard

Organising files and folders in Finder

Browse the web with the Safari Web Browser safely and efficiently in MacOS Monterey

Keep in touch with friends and family using email, iMessage, and FaceTime video chat

Set important appointments with Calendar in MacOS Monterey

Keep the people you correspond with in the Contacts app

Set yourself reminders and 'to-do' lists

Check the weather

Record voice memos

Download countless apps from the App Store in MacOS Monterey

Catch up with your favourite podcasts and the latest news

Read ebooks on MacOS Monterey

Find your way around with the Maps App, get directions, create guides, explore places in 3D, and use the new interactive globe

Stream music with Apple Music, buy tracks & albums from iTunes Store

Stream TV programs & movies with the Apple TV App

Getting started with Pages, Keynote and Numbers on your Mac

Using iCloud storage on your Mac

Use time machine to back up your data

Get to know Siri in MacOS

Use the photos app to store and enhance your photos

Create slideshows, photo albums and use iMovie to edit your home movies and more...

Finally, system updates and maintenance tips to help you keep your Mac running smoothly complete this invaluable user guide. You'll want to keep this edition handy as you make your way around the new OS.

We want to create the best possible resource to help you, so if we've missed anything out then please get in touch using [e-mail] and let us know. Thanks.

Leseprobe

Exploring Apple Mac

Monterey Edition

Kevin Wilson

Exploring Apple Mac: Monterey Ed

Copyright © 2021 Elluminet Press

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher’s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from the Publisher. Permissions for use may be obtained through Rights Link at the Copyright Clearance Centre. Violations are liable to prosecution under the respective Copyright Law.

Trademarked names, logos, and images may appear in this book. Rather than use a trademark symbol with every occurrence of a trademarked name, logo, or image we use the names, logos, and images only in an editorial fashion and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark.

The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights.

While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein.

iStock.com/golibo, PeopleImages, ymgerman. Photo 130859010 © Kaspars Grinvalds - Dreamstime.com. Photo 103557713 © Konstantin Kolosov - Dreamstime.com. Yuri Arcurs via Getty Images

Publisher: Elluminet Press

Director: Kevin Wilson

Lead Editor: Steven Ashmore

Technical Reviewer: Mike Taylor, Robert Ashcroft

Copy Editors: Joanne Taylor, James Marsh

Proof Reader: Steven Ashmore

Indexer: James Marsh

Cover Designer: Kevin Wilson

eBook versions and licenses are also available for most titles. Any source code or other supplementary materials referenced by the author in this text is available to readers at

www.elluminetpress.com/resources

For detailed information about how to locate your book’s resources, go to

www.elluminetpress.com/resources

Table of Contents

MacOS Monterey 16

What’s New? 16

Available Macs 21

Macbook Air 21

Macbook Pro 21

iMac 24” 22

iMac 27” 22

Mac Pro 22

Mac Mini 23

M1 Chip (Apple Silicon) 23

Setting up Your Mac 26

Updating to MacOS Monterey 26

Check your Mac Version 27

Updating your Mac 27

Power Up 29

Power Down 31

Starting your Mac for the First Time 32

Create a New ID 39

iCloud 40

iCloud Drive Setup 41

iCloud Sync 42

Storage Management 43

Setup Internet 44

WiFi 44

Using an Ethernet Cable 45

Phone Tethering 48

Mobile USB Modems 49

Virtual Private Networks 50

Using a VPN Service 50

Manual Setup 51

Connecting Peripherals 52

System Preferences 54

Search System Preferences 56

Add a Printer 58

Connect Printer to WiFi 60

Other Email Accounts 61

Additional Users 64

Login Options 66

Change Passwords 68

Mac Password 68

Apple ID Password 69

Passwords 70

Setup Apple Pay 72

Setup Apple Pay on a Macbook 74

Touch ID 75

Dark Mode & Light Mode 77

Setup your Trackpad 78

Setup your Mouse 80

Screensavers 81

Dynamic Desktop 82

Desktop Wallpaper 83

Managing Displays 84

Setup Universal Control 87

System Audio 90

Pairing Bluetooth Devices 92

Fonts 93

Find My 95

Setup 95

Locating & Taking Action 96

Sharing Locations 97

Check Someone’s Location 98

Time Machine Backup 99

Setting Up Backups 99

Restoring Items 103

Transfer Files from a Windows PC 104

Transfer Files from an old Mac 107

Getting Around your Mac 108

The Desktop 108

The Menu Bar 109

Application Menu 110

Status Menu 110

The Dock 110

Stacks 113

Launchpad 114

Spaces & Mission Control 116

Finder 118

File View Style 119

Finder Preferences 122

Tags 124

Tagging Files 127

Quick Preview Files 128

Basic File Management 128

Creating Folders 129

Smart Folders 130

Copying Files 132

Moving Files 134

Compress Files 134

Zip 135

Unzip 135

External Drives 136

Accessing Data CDs, DVDs & BluRays 137

Networking 138

Sharing Files on a Network 138

Connect to a Shared Folder on Another Computer 142

iCloud Drive 143

Using iCloud Drive 143

iCloud Drive File Sharing 145

Markup in Finder 149

Markup using your iPad 151

Managing App Windows 153

Moving a Window 153

Resizing a Window 154

Minimise, Maximise & Close a Window 155

Spotlight Search 156

Notification Centre 157

Notifications 158

Banners 158

Alerts 159

Badges 159

Notification Settings 159

Widgets 161

Control Centre 162

Handoff 164

Universal Control 166

Moving Between Devices 166

Moving Files 168

Universal Clipboard 169

Shortcuts 170

Getting Started 171

Creating Shortcuts 171

Shortcut Gallery 174

Running Shortcuts 176

Focus Mode 177

Creating a Focus Mode 178

Manually Enable a Focus Mode 182

Using Siri 183

Voice Control 184

Voice Dictation 185

Using Apple Pay on your Mac 187

Auto Unlock 188

The Mac Keyboard 190

The Command Key 190

The Option Key 191

The Control Key 191

The Function Key 191

Executing Keyboard Shortcuts 191

Useful Keyboard Shortcuts 192

MacOS Startup Keys 193

Making Gestures 194

One Finger Point and Tap 194

Right Click 194

Two Finger Scroll 195

Two Finger Rotate 195

Two Finger Swipe 196

Four Finger Open Launchpad 196

Magic Mouse 197

Left Click 197

Right Click 197

Scrolling 198

Swipe 198

Find your Mouse Pointer 199

The Touch Bar 200

Touch Bar Layout 200

Control Strip 201

Application Strip 201

Customise Touch Bar 203

Taking Screenshots 204

Screen Recording 205

Split Screen Mode 206

Digitally Sign a Document 208

Keychain 210

Using MacOS Applications 212

Launching Your Applications 212

Killing Unresponsive Apps 215

App Store 216

App Tabs 218

Maps 219

Exploring Places 219

Share a Location 220

Share a Map 220

Favourites 221

Drop a Pin 221

Guides 222

Public Transport Routes 224

Driving Directions 225

Walking Directions 226

Look Around 226

Explore in 3D 227

Look Inside 227

Interactive Globe 228

Apple Books 230

Notes 235

Adding an Event 238

Create a Calendar 239

Export Calendar 239

Import Calendar 239

Add an Event from Email 240

Subscribing to Public Calendar 241

Sharing Calendars & Creating Public Calendars 241

Image Capture 243

Photobooth 244

DVDs & BluRays 245

Voice Memos 248

Recording Memos 249

Renaming Memos 250

Trim a Memo 251

News 252

Terminal 254

Opening Terminal 254

Giving Commands 255

Pages App 256

Getting Started 256

Formatting Text 258

Adding a Picture 259

Instant Alpha 260

Saving 261

Sharing and Collaboration 262

Keynote App 263

Getting Started 263

Editing a Slide 264

Adding a New Slide 265

Adding Media 265

Animations 266

Slide Transitions 268

Formatting Text Boxes 268

Formatting Text Inside Textboxes 269

Adding Styles to Textboxes 270

Saving 272

Numbers App 273

Getting Started 273

Building a Spreadsheet 275

Entering Data 275

Changing Data Types 276

Adding Formulas 276

Adding Functions 277

Saving 277

Internet, Email & Comms 279

Using Safari to Browse the Web 279

Launching Safari 280

Customise your Homepage 280

Using Safari 281

Tab Bar 282

Browsing Tabs 282

Show all Browsing Tabs 283

Tab Groups 284

New Tab Group 284

Add a Site Tab to Tab Group 285

Reopen Tab Group 285

Bookmarking Pages 285

Revisiting Bookmarked & Favourite Sites 287

Organising Bookmarks 288

Reading List 289

Downloads 289

Extensions 290

Privacy Reports 291

Passwords 292

Managing Passwords 293

Generate Automatic Strong Passwords 295

Autofill Forms 296

Apple Mail 297

Email Threads 298

Show BCC Field 300

Replying to a Message 301

Forward a Message 302

Writing a New Email 303

Formatting your Message 303

Add an Emoji 304

Add Attachment 304

Add Photo from Photos App 305

Mail Drop 305

Mail Markup 307

Dealing with Spam & Junk Mail 309

Contacts 310

Creating Groups 312

Add Email Contact from Apple Mail 314

Facetime 315

Placing Video Calls 315

Calling Someone New 316

Create a FaceTime Link 317

Answering Calls 318

Group FaceTime 320

Screen Sharing 321

SharePlay 322

Share a Movie or Music 322

Message App 323

Sending New Messages 324

Sending Files 325

Memojis 325

Message Effects 326

Air Drop 328

From Finder 328

In Safari 329

Mac Phone 331

Using Multimedia Apps 332

Photos App 332

Importing your Photos 333

Manipulating & Adjusting Photos 335

Adding Filters 339

Creating Folders and Albums 340

Adding Photos to Albums 342

Places 343

Faces 345

Memories 348

Create your Own Memory 348

Smart Search 351

Sharing Photos 352

Shared Albums 353

Printing Photos 355

Creating Slideshows 357

Printing & Publishing Photos 359

Installing the Apps 359

Creating Photobooks 360

Ordering Prints 364

Greeting Cards 366

Live Text 368

Copy Text 368

Lookup Text 369

Visual Lookup 370

Continuity Camera 372

Insert Photo from iPhone/iPad 372

Add Sketch 374

Scan a Document 375

iMovie 376

Importing Footage from your Camera 376

Importing Footage from your iPhone 377

Adding Clips 379

Adding Titles 380

Adding Music 381

Transitions 382

Animations 383

Music App 384

Subscribing to Apple Music 384

The Main Screen 385

Searching for Music 386

Add to Library 387

Creating Playlists 388

Importing CDs 389

Adding Tracks to your iPhone, or iPad Manually 390

Burning CDs 392

Podcasts App 393

iTunes Store 395

Apple TV App 397

Watch Now 397

Searching for Media 398

Library 399

Apple TV+ Streaming 400

Airplay 401

Apple TV 401

AirPlay to Mac 403

Cancelling Subscriptions 405

Maintaining your Mac 406

Firewalls 406

Enabling the Firewall 407

Firewall Settings 407

Do Apple Macs get Viruses? 408

Downloading MacOS Monterey 411

Installing MacOS Monterey 412

Create a Boot Drive 413

Booting from a USB Drive 417

Internet Restore 420

App Updates 422

System Updates 423

Mac Storage Management 424

Disk Utility 426

Checking Drives 427

Formatting Drives 427

Partitioning Drives 429

FileVault 431

Encrypt External Drive 432

Decrypt External Drive 432

Reset SMC 433

Intel Macbooks (2018+) 433

Older Intel Macbooks 434

Intel iMac, Mac Pro and Mac Mini 434

Reset NVRAM 435

Video Resources 436

Using the Videos 436

Files 437

Scanning the Codes 439

iPhone 440

Android 441

About the Author

With over 20 years’ experience in the computer industry, Kevin Wilson has made a career out of technology and showing others how to use it. After earning a master’s degree in computer science, software engineering, and multimedia systems, Kevin has held various positions in the IT industry including graphic & web design, programming, building & managing corporate networks, and IT support.

He serves as senior writer and director at Elluminet Press Ltd, he periodically teaches computer science at college, and works as an IT trainer in England while researching for his PhD. His books have become a valuable resource among the students in England, South Africa, Canada, and in the United States.

Kevin’s motto is clear: “If you can’t explain something simply, then you haven’t understood it well enough.” To that end, he has created the Exploring Tech Computing series, in which he breaks down complex technological subjects into smaller, easy-to-follow steps that students and ordinary computer users can put into practice.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all the staff at Luminescent Media & Elluminet Press for their passion, dedication and hard work in the preparation and production of this book.

To all my friends and family for their continued support and encouragement in all my writing projects.

To all my colleagues, students and testers who took the time to test procedures and offer feedback on the book

Finally thanks to you the reader for choosing this book. I hope it helps you to use your Mac with greater understanding.

Have fun!

MacOS Monterey

MacOS Monterey, named after Monterey Bay in California, is the 18th major release of MacOS and moves to version 12.0 of Apple’s desktop operating system for Macintosh computers.

MacOS is an operating system developed by Apple. The operating system controls the general operation of the computer, and provides a way for you to interact and run applications called a Graphical User Interface.

At the core of the operating system is Darwin. This contains the MacOS kernel known as XNU, which controls important functions of the hardware such as memory management, disk drives and CPU time among other things.

In this chapter, we’ll take a look at

What’s New in MacOS MontereyAvailable MacsM1Chip M1 Pro & M1 Max ChipSome Basic Terminology

Let’s begin by taking a look at some of the new features...

What’s New?

Monterey looks similar to its predecessor and introduces a few new features. Lets take a look at some of the main ones.

Universal Control allows you to work across multiple Apple devices, such as your Mac and iPad, or between two Macs. This means you can move your mouse pointer, drag files and windows between devices, in a similar way to using multiple displays.

When you move your mouse pointer over to an iPad, it turns into a dot allowing you to select objects and work.

Universal Control only works on the later Macs and iPads, such as Macbook and Macbook Pro 2016 or later, Macbook Air 2018 or later, iMac 2017 or later, iMac Pro, Mac Mini 2018 or later, Mac Pro 2019 or later. Your iPad will also need to be iPad Pro 2019 or later, iPad Air 3rd Gen, iPad 6 Gen, or iPad mini 5 Gen.

In Safari, the tab bar at the top of the screen has been redesigned giving it a more streamlined look while taking up less screen space. Website tabs now appear along the top bar.

There is also a redesigned sidebar and a new Tab Groups feature which allows you to group website tabs together into a group to help organise your workflow.

The shortcuts app makes its way to MacOS.

With Monterey, it’s now possible to Air Play content from an iPhone or iPad to your Mac.

FaceTime now supports Windows and Android users. Monterey also introduces a new feature called SharePlay to FaceTime. SharePlay allows you to bring music and videos into your FaceTime calls so you can watch a movie or listen to music together. SharePlay also lets you share your screen with others on a FaceTime call.

You can use Live Text, a new feature that detects text in image files.

You can look up extra information in a photo or copy and paste the text. You’ll also find Visual Look Up, a new feature that recognizes objects and scenes in a photograph.

The maps app now has an interactive Globe of the Earth. You’ll see this if you zoom all the way out. You’ll also see a new detailed city view, although only a handful of cities have been rendered.

There is also a new passwords section on the system preferences which allows you to manage your saved passwords for apps and websites. You’ll also get security recommendations and warnings about reused passwords or passwords that have been compromised.

You can also create a quick note using the shortcut on the bottom right corner of the screen.

There are also visual improvements, focus mode, and various other minor changes. You’ll find a full list on Apple’s website.

www.apple.com/macos/monterey/features/

Available Macs

Let’s take a closer look at the latest Macs available from the Apple Store.

Macbook Air

The Macbook Air is great for an on-the-go lifestyle as they are small and light, but is only suited to basic computing such as internet browsing, email, photos, music, messages, facetime, and so on. The Macbook Pro now incorporates the M1 chip.

Macbook Pro

The Macbook Pro offers more processing power, is aimed at creative types and those who use more power-hungry apps such as games, video editing, music production, graphic design, and so on. The Macbook Pro now incorporates the M1 chip in the 13” model, and the M1 Pro and M1 Max chip in the 14” and 16” models.

iMac 24”

The iMac is Apple’s ‘all in one’ desktop computer and comes in various colours with 24” displays and the M1 chip.

All iMacs come with keyboard and mouse. These are great for the average user and can run a variety of power hungry apps as well as internet, email, facetime, etc.

iMac 27”

The iMac is Apple’s ‘all in one’ desktop computer and with a 27” 5K display and the M1 chip.

All iMacs come with keyboard and mouse. These are great for the average user and can run a variety of power hungry apps as well as internet, email, facetime, etc.

Mac Pro

The Mac Pro is a rather unique looking machine and is the most powerful of the Mac computers. This machine does not come with a screen, nor a keyboard and mouse - so you’ll need to buy these separately.

These machines are aimed at creative types and power users and are very fast. They are well suited to video editing, graphic design, and music production.

Mac Mini

The idea behind the Mac Mini was to allow users to use their existing screen, keyboard, and mouse. It’s worth noting that you will need a screen that connects to the computer using an HDMI cable.

If your screen uses VGA or DVI, you’ll need an adapter to convert to HDMI. The new Mac Mini uses the M1 Chip.

M1 Chip (Apple Silicon)

In recent years, Apple have developed their own processor chip for the Mac called the M1, which has started the transition away form Intel Chips.

The M1 chip combines the CPU, Graphics Processor (or GPU), memory (or RAM), SSD drive controller, and a neural engine which is a component designed to use machine learning and artificial intelligence for tasks such identifying objects in photos, or applying an automatic filter to a picture, analysing videos, voice recognition, and so on.

The M1 also includes a thunderbolt controller with USB 4 support, and a few other minor components. All these components are integrated onto a single chip, known as a system on a chip (SOC), and is why the M1 is much faster and more efficient than the Intel chips.

Higher end machines such as the new Macbook Pros feature the M1 Pro and M1 Max. These are similar to the M1 but offer much greater performance and are aimed creative professionals and power users. Here are the specs for the three chips currently available.

What about apps? Apps are written with a specific hardware in mind. Macs with Intel chips use the x64 instruction set, while Macs with the M1 chip use the ARM instruction set - they don’t speak the same language. To solve this problem and ease the transition, Apple designed Rosetta 2, which is a translator that converts apps built for Intel chips, so they will run on Macs with the M1 Chip. This process happens in the background.

You might also come across some other technical terms such as, native apps. These are apps written specifically for the chip they are running on - so M1 native apps are written specifically for the M1 Mac. Universal apps are apps designed to run on both Intel and M1 Macs. Emulation is a process where an app written for an Intel Mac runs on the M1 Macs.

Setting up Your Mac

In this chapter we’ll take a look at updating to MacOS Monterey, as well as:

Powering up and starting your Mac for the First TimeInternet, WiFi & VPNs Connecting PeripheralsOther Email AccountsAdditional Users & Login OptionsPasswordsSetup Apple PayTouch IDDark Mode & Light ModeSetup your Mouse & TrackpadDynamic Desktop, Wallpapers & ScreensaversManaging DisplaysSetup Universal ControlSystem AudioPairing Bluetooth DevicesFontsTime Machine BackupTransfer Files from PC or Mac

To help you better understand this section, take a look at the video resources. Open your web browser and navigate to the following website:

elluminetpress.com/using-mac

Updating to MacOS Monterey

MacOS Monterey is a free update to all compatible Macs. If you are updating your Mac, you’ll need to check whether your Mac is compatible, as older Macs won’t receive the update.

According to Apple, the following Macs will be able to run MacOS Monterey:

iMac late 2015 and lateriMac Pro 2017 and laterMacbook Air early 2015 and laterMacbook Pro early 2015 and laterMac Pro late 2013 and laterMac mini late 2014 and laterMacbook early 2016 and later

Check your Mac Version

To check, click the Apple menu on the top left of the screen. Then select ‘about this mac’.

This particular Mac is a Macbook Air 2020 and is currently running MacOS Big Sir. This mac meets the requirements and will receive the update.

Updating your Mac

To update your mac, open the system preferences. Select ‘software update’.

If there are any updates available, they will be listed here. Click ‘update now’ to apply the updates.

Select ‘automatically keep my mac up to date’ and MacOS will automatically apply the updates in the background. Click ‘advanced’ to select which updates to apply automatically.

Select them all, then click ‘ok’. This will ensure your mac is always up to date and it will do this in the background without prompting you.

If you don’t see any updates, try downloading from the app store. Click the Apple menu on the top left, select ‘app store’.

In the search field on the top left hand side, type:

macOS Monterey

In the search results, click on ‘view’ next to ‘macOS monterey’

Click ‘get’ on the top right to start the upgrade.

Click ‘download’ on the confirmation prompt.

The update will start to download. This can take a while.

Your mac will restart to apply the update. Again this will take a while. Once the update is complete, you’ll be running macOS Monterey.

Power Up

The power button on the mac is on the top right of the keyboard on a Macbook Air and Macbook Pro.

or

On the Mac Pro, you’ll find the power button on the top panel.

On the iMac and Mac Mini, the power button is situated on the back panel.

Press the button once to start up your mac.

You can also use the power button to force your mac to shutdown in the event of a crash or lock up. Hold the button until the screen goes blank. Only use this option if you’re having problems.

Power Down

To power down your mac or send it into sleep/standby mode, go to the Apple menu on the top left of the screen...’

From the menu...

Click ‘shut down’ to shut down and power off your mac.

Click ‘restart’ to reboot your mac.

You can also click ‘sleep’, this will put your mac into standby mode and is convenient if you use your mac on the go a lot and don’t have time to wait for your machine to start up.

If you are using a Macbook laptop, you can just close the lid and your Macbook will go into sleep mode.

Starting your Mac for the First Time

When you turn on a new mac for the first time, you’ll need to go through some initial steps to set up WiFi, select language, regional preferences and sign in with your Apple ID.

To begin, select your country of residence. Click ‘continue’.

Tap ‘continue’ on the ‘written and spoken languages’ page.

If the language settings aren’t correct, tap ‘customise settings’.

Click ‘not now’ on the accessibility screen. You can configure these later in the settings app if you need to make any changes according to your needs.

Select your WiFi network and enter your password when prompted. Your Wi-Fi password is usually printed on the back of your WiFi router.

Click ‘continue’ on the ‘data & privacy’ screen.

Click ‘not now’ on the ‘migration assistant’ screen. You can transfer data from an old machine later.

Sign in with your Apple ID email address and password. Click ‘continue’.

You may be prompted to enter a verification code. This code will be sent to another Apple device such as your iPhone or iPad. On your iPad or iPhone tap ‘allow’, then copy the code into the boxes on your Mac.

Accept the ‘terms and conditions’, click ‘continue’.

Create your computer account. This is the account you’ll use to log into your Mac and it is different from your Apple ID account. Enter a password, then click ‘continue’.

Click ‘customise settings’ on the ‘express setup’ screen.

Enable location services. It is safe to enable this and it will allow you to make use of location based services such as maps, local news, and weather. Click ‘enable location services on this mac’, then click ‘continue’.

Click ‘continue’ on the ‘analytics’ screen

Click ‘continue’ on the ‘screen time’ page.

Enable Siri, click ‘continue’.

Then on the next screen, click ‘not now’, click ‘continue’.

If you’re using a Macbook with a finger print scanner, you will be asked to set up your finger prints so you can log into your Mac. Click ‘continue’ and follow the instructions to register your finger print.

Select your look. You can choose from light mode or dark mode. Dark mode is good for low light conditions and night time viewing. It removes most of the bright white colour from the screen. Click ‘light’ or ‘dark’, or select ‘auto’ to use light mode during the day, and dark mode during the evening.

Give your Mac a few minutes to complete the setup.

You’ll land on the desktop when the setup finishes.

Now you can start to use your Mac.

Apple ID

Your Apple ID contains all your personal information, messages, calendar, contacts, email, and various settings.

Create a New ID

To create an Apple ID open safari and go to the following website:

appleid.apple.com

From the website click ‘Create your Apple ID’ on the top right.

Fill in the form with your details, scroll down to the bottom and click ‘continue’.

Keep a note of the email address and password you entered. You will need this Apple ID if you want to purchase Apps from the App Store, use iCloud, Apple Email, or purchase songs from iTunes Store.

iCloud

iCloud is a cloud storage service developed by Apple. iCloud enables you to store your email, messages, documents, photos, and music on Apple’s remote servers. This enables you to share data between your devices and with other users.

If you haven’t signed in, go to system preferences, click ‘Apple id’ and enter your Apple ID username and password.

From here you can change your iCloud settings. Use the panel on the left hand side to navigate between the sections.

Select ‘name, phone, email’ to change iCloud password, or your name. To change your password, click ‘password & security’. To add payment methods, select ‘payment & shipping.

iCloud Drive Setup

Go to system preferences, click ‘Apple id’ and enter your Apple ID username and password if prompted.

Select ‘icloud’ from the panel on the left.

To change which apps store documents on data on iCloud, click ‘options’ next to ‘iCloud Drive’.

Select your apps you want to use iCloud Drive. Click ‘done’.

iCloud Sync

Go to system preferences, select ‘Apple id’, then click ‘icloud’ on the left had side of the window. Here, you can select which apps you want to synchronise across all your devices.

Click the tick next to the app name to turn on and off.

Storage Management

iCloud Storage Management allows you to manage what data is saved on your iCloud Storage. To manage your iCloud storage, go to system preferences, select ‘Apple id’, then click ‘icloud’.

At the bottom of the window, you’ll see a chart showing a breakdown of the space used on your iCloud Storage. Click ‘manage’.

Here, you’ll see a more detailed breakdown of the apps using storage on iCloud and the amount of space they’ve taken up. Now the data stored on iCloud isn’t the app itself, it’s the data such as your messages, photos you’ve taken, device backups etc.

Click on the app to view details and delete any data. This is useful if your iCloud storage is running low.

Click ‘buy more storage’ if you need more than 5GB of iCloud storage. There is a charge for larger storage plans.

Setup Internet

There are various ways to connect to the internet, the most common being WiFi. You can also connect using an ethernet cable.

WiFi

To set up your WiFi, select the WiFi symbol on the status menu on the right hand side of the screen. From the drop down, click ‘other networks’. Select the network you want to connect to (SSID).

In the dialog box that appears on your screen, enter the WiFi password (sometimes called a network key).

On a home network, your WiFi password is usually printed on the back of your modem, access point, or router.

If you don’t see the WiFi icon on the top right, go to system preferences and select ‘network’. Click ‘WiFi’ on the left hand side of the window, then click ‘network name’. From the drop down box, select the network you want to connect to.

Using an Ethernet Cable

If WiFi isn’t available, and you use a cable modem to get online in your home, you can use a cable.

Here is a typical setup.

Your coax cable coming into your home is usually split using a splitter. One cable will go to your TV and the other will go to your modem.

Your computer will connect to your modem using an Ethernet cable.

Plug one end of the Ethernet cable into your modem, then power up your modem and allow it to connect to your ISP.

Plug the other end into the Ethernet port on your computer, as shown below.

Your mac should connect automatically. To check, go to system preferences.

Select ‘network’ from the preferences.

Click on Ethernet on the left hand side, and make sure IPv4 is set to DHCP and your computer has picked up an IP address.

Phone Tethering

Tethering allows you to share your iPhone’s data connection with your Mac. To set this up, on your iPhone go to the settings app and tap ‘personal hotspot’. Toggle ‘personal hotspot’ to on, then enable your bluetooth.

On your Mac, your iPhone appears in the WiFi menu as another network.

In this example the iPhone is called ‘iPhoneAPC3’, so I’d select that one from the WiFi networks.

When prompted on your Mac, enter the WiFi password shown in the personal hotspot settings on your iPhone, as show above.

Mobile USB Modems

If you use your Mac on the go a lot or travel frequently, you should also consider using 3G/4G/5G LTE mobile data modem. You can get these from a phone provider such as AT&T, Verizon, o2, T-Mobile, etc.

When you buy these from your phone provider, you can take out a contract or pay as you go in the same way you’d buy a cell/mobile phone.

You’ll need to follow the instructions from your phone supplier for specifics. However the procedure is very similar.

You’ll usually need to install a piece of software to manage your device.

Plug your dongle into a USB port on your Mac.

Double click the icon that appears on your desktop.

Open the folder called ‘Mac’ if there is one, then double-click the setup package. Follow the instructions on screen.

Once installed you can use the connection manager to connect to your service.

Virtual Private Networks

A Virtual Private Network (or VPN) is a secure connection where data is send and received over the internet through an encrypted tunnel. This means you can browse the internet anonymously and your data is safe on unsecured networks such as public WiFi.

Using a VPN Service

There are various different VPN services available. Eg Windscribe. Windscribe is a good starter service as you get 10GB of free data a month. To use the service, you’ll need to download the app. Go to:

windscribe.com/download

Scroll down, click the ‘mac’ icon under ‘windscribe for your computer’.

Click the downloads icon on the top right of Safari, from the drop down double click the download to begin.

Follow the on screen instructions to sign up and activate the service. You’ll find the VPN app on launch pad - click to start the app if it isn’t already running. Click the icon on the top right of the screen. In the drop down window, click the switch on the top left to turn on the VPN.

Manual Setup

Open the preferences app then select ‘network’. Click the ‘+’ icon on the bottom left

In the ‘interface’ drop down, select ‘VPN’. Then in ‘VPN type’ select the kind of VPN connection you want to set up. Get this info from your VPN service or Administrator. Give the connection a name, click ‘create’.

Enter the server address and the remote ID for the VPN connection. Get this info from your VPN service or administrator.

Click ‘authentication settings’. In the drop down box, select method of authentication: username or certificate. Get this info from your VPN service or administrator.

Click ‘ok’. Click ‘advanced’, under the DNS tab, click the ‘+’ on the bottom left and enter a DNS server address.

Connecting Peripherals

You can connect peripherals such as external drives, scanners, and printers. You connect peripherals using a USB cable. On the side panel of the Macbook, you’ll find your USB ports. These will be USB-C ports. On the side panel of your Macbook, you’ll see these ports.

If you need standard USB ports, or HDMI, then you can get a hub that plugs into the side of your Macbook.

These USB-C hubs are available at most computer stores and online.

The USB-C hub will allow you to use the USB-A type used on the most common peripherals.