Keeping your computer running at the speeds it ran at when you bought it may seem like a futile task, and often people just accept the fact that their computers will eventually become laggy and pause. However, your Mac’s hardware is functionally no different than it was when you purchased it. This means unless your Mac is over 5 years old and is missing capability required by the software you run, then it should perform reasonably similar to when you purchased it. Continue reading
Tag Archives: OS X
Certificate expiration breaks older OS X installers
Replacement developer certificates Apple issued to fix security issues have caused signed packages created using the older replaced certificates to no longer be verifiable. This results in OS X assuming corruption in these files, and will not process them by default. One unfortunate side-effect of this is that older installers you may have collected for past versions of OS X will likely have been signed using older certificates, and may no longer install. Continue reading
How to overcome your Mac not booting after upgrading OS X
When you upgrade your installation of OS X, the OS X installer will attempt to detect and remove any incompatible software that may destabilize your system. However, there are times when such software may slip past Apple’s detection routines and affect your system. While often you can use troubleshooting routines after installation to manage such problems, on rare occasion these issues may prevent your Mac from booting altogether, leaving you with no ability to use your machine. Continue reading
How to overcome OS X 10.11 El Capitan not installing
As with prior versions of OS X, the new version 10.11 “El Capitan” is available as a free purchase from the App Store, and should then download and run to allow you to upgrade your system. If all goes well, you should see the OS X installation window that instructs you to begin the upgrade process, but there may be instances where this does not appear, or does not work when you attempt the install. Continue reading
Reasons to both install and avoid OS X 10.11 El Capitan
Apple’s OS X 10.11 El Capitan upgrade is available for download, bringing a number of nuance improvements to the OS X experience, including split screen views for full-screen apps, a moveable Spotlight window, and tweaks to the Notes app, among others. However, the OS release is going to be quite similar to the release of Snow Leopard in comparison to Leopard, or Mountain Lion in comparison to Lion, where the OS brings more tweaks than any new features or re-designs. Continue reading
Buying decisions: iPad Pro or MacBook Air?
Apple’s iPad line is getting bigger and more powerful with every new release, and while tablets have some distinct differences from classic laptops, their capabilities are progressing to overlap with or in some cases extend beyond those of laptops. With the release of Apple’s new iPad Pro and upcoming iOS 9, the distinctions are becoming even less, so if you are in the market for a new system, you might find yourself wondering whether to go for an iPad or a comparably priced OS X system such as a MacBook Air, especially if it will be your only computer. Continue reading
How to prepare your Mac for OS X 10.11 ‘El Capitan’
Apple’s OS X El Capitan is slated for release in fall, and with this season right around the corner, the OS will soon be available for those who wish to install it. While it is largely similar to OS X Yosemite, El Capitan does include a number of improvements that should enhance both your workflow and the overall snappiness of the OS. These alone may be good reasons to upgrade, but as with any upgrade or update, there is always a chance that something may go wrong when you install it, so it is good to take a few steps to help prevent this. Continue reading
Eight useful hidden improvements in OS X 10.11 ‘El Capitan’
During Yesterday’s keynote presentation on the upcoming OS X El Capitan, Apple’s Craig Federighi outlined a number of the new features of the upcoming release of OS X. In particular he focused on new window management approaches, and Spotlight searches, as well as some performance improvements with the optimized “Metal” API. However, there are a few additional improvements in OS X 10.11 noted that Federighi did not discuss, but which might be quite beneficial. Continue reading
Fix OS X 10.10.3 failing to install
A few people who have attempted to install the latest OS X 10.10.3 update have found an issue where the update will take a while to install, and then restart only to stall at boot, followed by loading back to OS X 10.10.2. In some cases this may happen repeatedly, suggesting a fault with your Mac’s current setup that is preventing the installation. If you are stuck in this situation, you can overcome the issue through a couple of quick troubleshooting steps. Continue reading
How to use the path menu in OS X
There are a number of hidden features in OS X that can greatly enhance how you handle windows, document organization, and other aspects of your workflow. In most of these cases Apple has not outlined these fetaures, so you will have to find them either by exploration and experimentation, or by word of mouth from other Apple users. One of these is the Path menu that OS X appends to windows that represent documents that are saved to your hard drive. Continue reading