MacMost: System Preferences

If you have difficulty dragging and dropping with a trackpad on your Mac, here are some suggestions. Note that you can drag with one finger or two, so try the both methods. You can also use double-tapping to start a drag, and Drag Lock. Three-finger drag is another option. There are also ways to move things without using drag-and-drop at all.

The Accent and Highlight colors used in almost every app on your Mac. Each app has its own default colors. But you can override them in System Preferences to force each app to use the same colors.

Universal Control is a new feature of macOS 12.3 and iPadOS 15.4 that lets you control all of the Macs and iPads on your desk with one keyboard and mouse or trackpad. You can even drag-and-drop and copy and paste between devices.

There are many different types of desktop backgrounds, also called wallpapers, you can use on your Mac. Dynamic backgrounds change throughout the day, Light and Dark backgrounds switch between two versions, you can also choose a solid color, Apple's pictures, your own, or a whole set of pictures and rotate between them.

You can use ScreenTime on your Mac to limit the amount of time you spend looking at apps or websites. While it is easy to override restrictions you place on yourself, these techniques can still be useful for those looking to manager their time better.

If you are looking to view or change the name of your Mac, it is important to note that this could mean different things. You can't change your Mac's model name, but you can change a name used in file sharing and in lists on your iCloud account. There is also the name of your local Mac user account, which can be changed although it is not recommended.

If your hard disk is full and you need to clear out some space fast, here are 20 places to look. In macOS Monterey you can use the Storage Manager to clear out a lot of unneeded files, plus I'll show you some places to look in your Library folder, Applications, Photos, Documents, iCloud and more.

Here are some ways you can make yoru Mac look different than everyone else's. You can change the way icons look on the Desktop, customize the Dock and Menu Bar, set the accent colors and much more.

A frequently asked question is why many apps will launch and windows will open when you start up your Mac. While many answer this question by pointing to Login Items, most people are asking this because they simply overlook a checkbox when shutting down or restarting their Mac.

If you want to maximize the time your hands are on your keyboard and minimize the time you use your mouse or trackpad, here are 10 techniques you need to master.

Scrolling on a Mac is a basic skill, but works differently than on Windows so it can trip up new users. There are also many shortcuts and settings. Learn some new tricks even if you are an experienced Mac user.

Your Mac automatically launches apps when you startup and when you log into your user account. Here's where to look to see what your Mac launches automatically. You can add your own items in one of these place, and use all of them to see what things are running in the background.

You can type special characters on your Mac using one of four different techniques. For accent marks and character variations you can hold down keys on the keyboard or use Option and Shift to access some keys. You can also bring up the Emoji & Symbols chooser for thousands of special characters. Watch for more options and tips.

You can put your Mac to sleep many different ways including keyboard shortcuts, special gestures and interactions, an automatic timeout, and even Terminal or Automator scripts.

If you don't want to use one of the macOS default alert sounds, you can use your own sound file instead. You can also set this for your Mail app incoming mail sound.

You can change how the Command, Control, Shift, Option and FN keys work on your Mac. If you need, you can remap one to the other. You can also assign special functions to left or right versions of the keys if you only need one. The third-party app Karabiner allows you to remap any key on your keyboard to any other key and some special functions.

Here are some System Preference settings you may not know about or be using. Learn how to change the menu bar clock, customize your language by app, show a message on the lock screen, access hidden screen resolutions and more.

The Status Menus are the icons you see in the top right corner of your Mac's screen. They give you control over various settings and special functions. You can arrange, add or remove them as you like.

When you get a new Mac, you'll be walked through some steps in Setup Assisant. After that, there will be a few thing you want to check and set up before you start using your Mac.

Here are some settings you may want to check out if you are concerned about security on your Mac. Not all of these are necessary, but you may want to consider them.