Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:08
What’s the Difference between Removing and Deleting an App?
Written by Adam Engst
There are many reasons you might want to get rid of apps from your iPhone or iPad. To begin, touch and hold on a blank spot on a Home Screen to enter “jiggle mode.” Then tap the ⊝ icon for any app to see the question about whether to delete the app entirely or merely […]
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Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:07
Quickly Put Lots of Files in a Folder with One Command
Written by Adam Engst
Imagine that you’re working with a bunch of files, and you want to put a set of them in a new folder. You could stop what you’re doing, make a new folder, select all the files, and drag them into the folder, like an animal. Or you could take advantage of a slick Finder command […]
This feature evokes one of those “living in the future” moments for us. The recently released HomePod Software 16.3 now supports Find My, which means you can ask Siri to locate one of your devices or a friend or family member who shares their location with you. If you have a HomePod, ask Siri, “Where […]
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Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:05
Need to Back Up or Export a Messages Conversation? Try PDF or iMazing
Written by Adam Engst
Occasionally, we hear from a client who needs to document a Messages conversation with timestamps, perhaps as part of a lawsuit. The only way to do that on an iPhone or iPad is to take a series of screenshots, but if you have a Mac, there are additional options. The easiest approach is to select […]
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With Wi-Fi security, it’s easy to fall into the “out of sight, out of mind” trap. Your Wi-Fi router probably lives in a corner or closet, and of course, Wi-Fi’s radio waves are invisible. But the ease of connecting your devices to your Wi-Fi network means it’s equally as easy for a hacker to connect […]
Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:03
FAQs about Apple’s Messages App and What Can Go Wrong When Using It
Written by Adam Engst
Most of us rely on Messages every day to text with family, friends, and colleagues. Not surprisingly, we’ve fielded numerous questions surrounding common confusions with this popular app. We hope our answers here will help you use Messages more effectively and work around problems. What’s the difference between blue and green bubble conversations? A common […]
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Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:02
A Practical Guide to Identifying Phishing Emails
Written by Adam Engst
Phishing is becoming an ever more common way for people to get in trouble when using the Internet. A phishing attack is some communication, usually an email, that tries to lure you into revealing login credentials, financial information, or other confidential details. A State of Phishing report from security firm SlashNext claims that there were […]
Wednesday, 01 March 2023 11:01
Protect Your iPhone Passcode by Using Face ID or Touch ID
Written by Adam Engst
This is troubling. Joanna Stern and Nicole Nguyen of the Wall Street Journal have published an article (paywalled) and accompanying video that describes attacks on hundreds of iPhone users in major cities throughout the United States. Some attacks involve drugging people in bars or even violence, but the most avoidable involve the thief or a […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:08
How to Share a Contact Card without Sharing Everything in iOS 16
Written by Adam Engst
Apple makes it easy to share contact cards on the iPhone or iPad—just scroll down in a contact and tap Share Contact. But what if you don’t want to share every piece of data on that card? To avoid oversharing in iOS 16 or iPadOS 16, tap Filter Fields at the top of the Share […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:07
You Can Use Face ID in iOS 16 on Newer iPhones When You’re Lying on Your Side
Written by Adam Engst
If you’ve ever tried to use Face ID to unlock an iPhone while lying on your side in bed, you may have noticed that it didn’t work. That’s because Face ID used to require that the iPhone be upright, in portrait mode. In iOS 16, however, Apple has improved Face ID so it will unlock […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:06
Use Quick Look to Preview Spotlight Results in Ventura
Written by Adam Engst
When you search using Spotlight on the Mac, it provides a decent amount of information about each result, including name and other metadata. But what if you want to see what’s behind the search result? In macOS 13 Ventura, Apple added Quick Look support to Spotlight so you can easily preview the search results. Do […]
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Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:05
It’s Time to Try Dictation in iOS 16 and iPadOS 16
Written by Adam Engst
Apple has long provided a microphone button in the keyboard to invoke dictation on the iPhone and iPad. But, it wasn’t always easy to hit, and you had to switch back to the keyboard to fix the inevitable mistakes. (Apple’s dictation is a huge timesaver but far from perfect, particularly with homonyms and proper nouns.) […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:04
You Can Now Upgrade to macOS 13 Ventura When You’re Ready
Written by Adam Engst
When upgrading to a new version of macOS, we err on the side of caution, at least in our recommendations. (We’ve been using macOS 13 Ventura for some time now and often install beta releases on secondary machines for testing purposes.) Upgrading is easy, but if you upgrade too soon, the new macOS version could […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:03
What Is Google Web & App Activity, and Should You Leave It Enabled?
Written by Adam Engst
Earlier this year, some of our clients received an email from Google reminding them that they have Web & App Activity turned on. Those with a healthy dose of caution were concerned that it might be a phishing attack, but no, it’s legitimate. Their next questions were often, “Wait, what is Web & App Activity, […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:02
The Amazingly Convenient Way to Scan Documents Using Your iPhone or iPad
Written by Adam Engst
On occasion, we all need to scan a document—an invoice, a recipe, instructions from a book—but far more people have an iPhone or iPad than a hardware scanner. Luckily, Apple has built a scanning capability into iOS, iPadOS, and macOS for some years now. The next time you’re faced with a piece of paper that […]
Wednesday, 01 February 2023 09:01
Six Ways of Making It Easier to Browse Your Favorite Websites
Written by Adam Engst
Everyone—or at least everyone reading this article—knows how to use a Web browser. But just because you can click links, search for websites, and type URLs doesn’t mean that you’re surfing the Web as smoothly and effectively as you could. We all have sites that we visit regularly—a local newspaper, perhaps, or a social media […]
Wednesday, 18 January 2023 11:01
Apple Powers Mac mini and MacBook Pro with New M2 Chips, Releases New HomePod
Written by Adam Engst
With a handful of press releases buttressed by a 19-minute video, Apple pulled back the curtains on its new M2 Pro and M2 Max chips and announced updated Mac mini and MacBook Pro models that rely on the new chips. There are no significant design or feature changes with these updated models, just faster performance, […]
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Monday, 02 January 2023 11:08
Upgrade Past macOS 10.15 Catalina to Keep Getting Microsoft Office Updates
Written by Adam Engst
We aren’t quite ready to recommend that everyone upgrade to macOS 13 Ventura, but if you use Microsoft Office with macOS 10.15 Catalina, you should start planning for an upgrade. Microsoft has announced that current versions of its productivity suite—Office for Mac 2019, Office for Mac 2021, and Microsoft 365—will receive updates only if your […]
Monday, 02 January 2023 11:07
AutoFill in Safari Not Working? Set “My Card” in Contacts
Written by Adam Engst
We heard from a client that AutoFill in Safari suddenly stopped entering her name and address in Web forms when she chose Edit > AutoFill Form or pressed Command-Shift-A, forcing her to enter her contact information manually, like an animal. (And yes, the “Using information from my contacts” checkbox was selected in Safari’s AutoFill preferences.) […]
Monday, 02 January 2023 11:06
Protect Your Hidden and Recently Deleted Albums in Photos
Written by Adam Engst
Photos has long provided a hidden album you could use to hold images you wanted to keep a little more private. Until this year, however, it was security through obscurity: anyone who knew to reveal the album in Settings > Photos on an iPhone or iPad or by choosing View > Show Hidden Album on […]
Monday, 02 January 2023 11:05
If Your Holiday Gift Was a Tech Device, It’s Time to Change the Password!
Written by Adam Engst
Whatever consumer electronics product you can name, there’s probably a “smart” version that you configure via an app or Internet-connected interface once you’ve connected it to your Wi-Fi network. For ease of setup and to keep costs down, many such devices come pre-configured with not just a default username and password, but the same default […]
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Monday, 02 January 2023 11:04
Copy Gigabytes of Data Between Macs with Target Disk Mode
Written by Adam Engst
Apple makes it easy to move data between Macs. You can send files via AirDrop, attach them to an email message, put them in a Messages conversation, turn on and connect via File Sharing, or use a file-sharing service like iCloud Drive, Dropbox, or Google Drive as an intermediary, to name just a few of […]
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