Posts By: Gary Rosenzweig

Learn how to create custom icons using on the Finder and Preview. You can make a folder or file stand out in a few simple steps with a custom icon.

Both Google and Microsoft offer voice assistant apps that you can download for your iPhone or iPad for free. Google's app offers some advantages over Siri, but neither app can match Siri because of Siri's connection to your built-in iPhone apps.

The Print function in the El Capital Mac Calendar app offers a ton of options. Some options provide nice printed versions of your calendars or event lists. But you can also print to a PDF and use the text in those PDFs to do things like get a list of your upcoming events.

Is it time for a new Mac, iPhone or iPad? The answer depends on what you use your device for and your budget. But Apple does give us some clues as to which devices it thinks are too old on a few web pages. Ultimately, you've got to decide when to get a new Mac. How old do you think is too old?

Pages, Word and some other apps allow you to see what would otherwise be invisible characters like spaces, tabs and paragraph breaks. You can use these visual symbols to edit your documents with more precision.

In addition to sending email 'to' someone, you can also include additional email addresses in the CD and BCC fields. CC is a way to send copies of your messages to people that need to know the information, but don't need to respond. BCC is a good way to send messages to people without sharing their email address with others.

If a menu item in an app doesn't have a keyboard shortcut, you can always add one through System Preferences. You can also change keyboard shortcuts for menu items that already have one. This is a built-in system function so it works with almost any app.

You can create recurring calendar events on your Mac and the latest version of iOS. For instance, you can create an event that will automatically recur on the second Tuesday of every month.

The Photos app makes it easy to crop your pictures. Cropping is non-destructive, so you can always revert to the original. You can create a custom crop or select from specific ratios. You can then export the photo at a specific pixel size if needed.

You can use various websites and apps to test your home broadband speed. Compare that to the speed you are supposed to be receiving from your provider and call them if you see a problem. You may be able to get better speeds without spending anything extra.

Parents may want to set time limits for their kids to limit computer use, or force them to stop using their Mac when it gets too late. You can set time limits for managed user accounts in Parental Controls. You can set a limit on the total amount of time per day, or have access shut off at a specific time. There are separate settings for weekdays and weekends.

Video filters adjust the coloring and add special effects to your video clips. You can choose from a variety of filters to make your video look more cinematic or like old film. You can apply the filters to the entire video, or just a section of it. You can also create custom color filters.

You can save some money when you buy your next Mac by buying a refurbished model. Apple lists refurbished Macs on their website. These Macs are tested and come with the same warranty as new Macs. You can also buy other Apple products like iPads in this same section of the Apple store.

A new effect in Keynote lets you animate a line being drawn on a slide. You can use this to add flourish to your presentations, or to illustrate something like a route on a map.