Tips & tricks

Universal Control: one mouse and keyboard for both Mac and iPad

Move the cursor past the edge of your Mac's screen — and it shows up on the iPad. One keyboard, one mouse, two devices, zero setup.

Three-finger drag: move windows without pressing down on the trackpad

A hidden option in Accessibility changes how you use the trackpad — drag windows and files with a light three-finger touch, no holding down and no thumb fatigue.

SMS verification codes fill themselves in on your Mac

A verification text arrives and Safari on your Mac offers it right in the field to fill in — the phone stays in your pocket. Just turn on message forwarding.

Sidecar: turn an iPad into a second monitor for your Mac, no cable

You might already own a second monitor — your iPad. Sidecar turns it into a wireless Mac display in two clicks, even on the road.

Quick Note: Fn+Q opens a sticky note anywhere in the system

Fn+Q

An idea or a phone call in the middle of work? Fn+Q brings up a floating note over whatever you're doing — and it saves itself to Notes.

The title bar icon: drag a file straight out of the app

Drag a document you have open straight into an email or chat using the small icon in the window's title bar — no hunting for the file in Finder.

Moving through text on a Mac: Option and Cmd with arrow keys

Option+→

Option plus an arrow key jumps by word, Cmd jumps to the start and end of a line. Switchers from Windows type on a Mac with the handbrake on until they learn these.

Hold a key and pick a character: accented letters without hunting for them

You don't need to hunt through special character tables for accented letters on a Mac — hold a letter down and a menu of all its accented variants pops up.

Organize your menu bar: Cmd+drag moves icons

Cmd

The icons in your Mac's menu bar aren't nailed down — hold Cmd and drag them elsewhere, or drag one downward to remove it entirely.

Copy a file's path: Cmd+Option+C in Finder

Cmd+Option+C

Need the exact path to a file for the terminal, a script, or an email to IT? Finder can copy it with one shortcut — it's just well hidden.

iPhone as a webcam: the best camera you already own

Your Mac's built-in camera is mediocre. Just set your iPhone near the monitor and the Mac offers it as a webcam — wirelessly, with nothing to install.

Turn on your iPhone's hotspot from your Mac — the phone stays in your bag

Your Mac sees your iPhone's hotspot right in the Wi-Fi menu, even when it's off on the phone. One click and you're online — no touching your phone.

Take calls on your Mac — even when the iPhone's in another room

Your Mac can receive and dial calls from your iPhone. The phone can stay on the charger in the hallway while you talk through your computer's headset.

Cmd+Shift+/ finds any menu command — and shows you where it lives

Cmd+Shift+/

Not sure where an app hides a certain feature? This shortcut opens menu search, finds the command by name, and points an arrow at where it lives.

Handoff: pick up unfinished work from iPhone on your Mac with one click

Finish an email you started on the tram, on your Mac, exactly where you left off. Handoff passes work in progress between your devices automatically.

Finder tags: one file in multiple “folders” at once

Does an invoice belong in the project folder and in accounting? Tags solve the age-old dilemma of where to save a file — it can show up in more than one place at once.

Finder Quick Actions: PDF from photos and background removal with a right-click

Select photos, right-click, Create PDF — done. Finder's Quick Actions can even convert formats or remove a background without opening an editor.

Drag a folder into a Save dialog — and you're there

You don't have to click your way through a Save dialog: drag a folder or file from Finder into it and the dialog jumps straight to that spot.

Cap charging at 80%: your battery lasts years longer

A laptop permanently docked at 100% is wrecking its battery. Almost every manufacturer has a hidden option that stops charging earlier — and multiplies the battery's lifespan.

Camera at eye level and light from the front: two minutes for a better impression

A laptop sitting on the desk shoots your chin and the ceiling from below, and a window behind you turns you into a silhouette. Camera height and light direction fix more than a new webcam ever will.

Speedy meetings: 25 minutes instead of 30, a break as a bonus

One checkbox in your calendar shortens default meetings to 25 and 50 minutes. Between calls you get a breather you don't have today.

A free booking page: Google Calendar can do what Calendly does

Send a link, the other person picks an open slot themselves, and the meeting lands on both calendars. A built-in Google Calendar feature almost nobody knows about.

Find a time: let the calendar show when everyone's free

Don't arrange a meeting time over email. Google Calendar and Outlook lay attendees' calendars side by side, and you spot the open slot at a glance.

Google Calendar from the keyboard: C creates an event, T jumps to today

C

One letter instead of clicking: C for a new event, T for today, D/W/M to switch views, J and K to page through. A question mark shows every shortcut.

A second time zone in your calendar: no more counting hours

Google Calendar and Outlook can both show a second time axis next to your own. Plan a meeting across time zones by looking, not by doing math in your head.

Cable order in a minute: a clip on the edge of the desk

A cable that falls behind the desk every time you unplug it is a daily micro-frustration. An office clip and a few reusable cable ties end it for good.

jq: readable JSON in the terminal and one-expression value extraction

API response as one unreadable line of mush? jq formats it, colors it, and pulls out exactly the field you're looking for.

Tap the clock to jump a long page back to the top

On iPhone, just tap the status bar with the clock and any long list, webpage, or chat snaps back to the top. No scrolling required.

Three fingers on iPhone: copy, paste, and undo

The iPhone has gestures for working with text: a three-finger pinch copies, a spread pastes, and a swipe left undoes the last action.

The Action Button: A Physical Shortcut on the Side of Your iPhone

Newer iPhones have a programmable button above the volume controls. Voice memo, flashlight, camera, or a custom shortcut with one press-and-hold.