When you are giving a presentation, enjoying a movie, or perhaps relaxing with some music, one of the last things you might want is for your computer to issue some error coupled with a startling alert sound. Granted alerts are intended to get your attention, but when too loud they can be exceptionally frustrating. To help prevent this, you have three options for managing alert sounds: relative volume levels, different alert sounds, and alternative output devices. Continue reading
How to adjust and manage alert volumes in OS X
2 Replies
If you are a fan of Apple’s iWork productivity suite, then you will now be able to create an Apple ID and use the suite via Apple’s iCloud Web apps when logged in from any Web browser, on any operating system, instead of being limited to a Mac.
Apple recently debuted a two-factor authentication approach for securing Apple IDs from hacking; however, this has been limited to authenticating on Apple’s Web site or making purchases using iTunes. Now Apple has expanded this security measure to work with its text, voice, and video messaging services. 
Every now and then when you wake your Mac from sleep, change resolution or other display settings, or otherwise adjust your system’s display output, you may be left with a window or two that are pushed off the edge of your screen. If this happens, you can usually grab its toolbar and drag it back into view; however, if it happens along the top edge of your display, then this toolbar may be hidden. OS X should detect these occurrences and snap your window down to be in view; however, this may not always happen, leaving you with no apparent way to recover your window. 
The Web is likely where you get most of your information, and in doing so you might find yourself inundated with noise as you try to read your favorite articles and other content. In part, these come from ads and site-specific offers, but at other times it can simply be small formatting issues that cause you grief.
Apple’s Activity Monitor utility is a good tool for viewing the status of every program and background service that is running on your Mac, and as such you may regularly use it to check on how resources are used, especially when you are experiencing slowdowns with your Mac. However, when you do so, you may find several processes that are listed in red text, and which have “(Not Responding)” displayed next to them. 
According to a report by 9to5 Mac, Apple is focusing on optimizing its iOS software in an effort to clear out bugs, increase efficiency, and generally improve the overall experience of using the software. This will come with the release of iOS 9, and is likely a breath of relief for users who have experienced ongoing issues with their iOS installations.