MacMost: System Preferences

Focus modes, also called Do Not Disturb, are useful to quiet notifications while in meetings or trying to concentrate. But it is hard to remember to turn them on and off. To make them more useful, you can set Focus modes to turn on automatically when using specific apps.

In macOS Ventura you can change the look of your Mac's screen by using a new wallpaper, adjusting tinting and transparency settings, customizing the Dock and Stage Manager and much more.

The ability to schedule power events in System Preferences doesn't exist in macOS Ventura. Instead, if you really need to schedule a repeating shut down, start up, restart or other power event, you can do it using a simple Terminal command.

System Preferences has been replaced with System Settings in macOS Ventura. It looks very different and many settings have been moved and regrouped. Here's an overview of what has changed.

If you want to disable a keyboard shortcut to avoid accidentally triggering that action, there are a variety of ways to do it.

The context menu appears when you Control+click, right+click, or two-finger click something on a Mac. Most of the items in a context menu appear depending on what was clicked and which app you are using. But some parts of the context menu can be customized to fit your needs.

If you notice that the Menu Bar at the top of your screen is missing, it is probably because you are using an app in Full Screen mode. You can customize how this works in System Preferences. You can also use Mission Control and Spaces to have the Menu Bar present for some apps and not others.

If the date and time in the top right corner of your Mac's screen is gray or dimmed, it is because you are using Do Not Disturb or some other Focus mode. Learn how to turn it off if you have turned it on accidentally, and find out how you can keep the date and time as black text when a Focus mode is on.

System Preferences is now System Settings with categories listed on the left, settings in a list on the right, and new options and arrangements throughout.

In this special live video I look at many different ways to use your Mac keyboard to control everything. Learn how to launch apps, select text, manage your files, and so much more.

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.