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Articles by Mac basics
Turn Mac screen sharing on or off
Screen sharing allows users of other computers on your network to remotely connect to your Mac to view your desktop and control your Mac. When screen sharing is turned on, your Mac desktop can be viewed from another computer on your network. While your screen is being shared, the user of the other computer sees what’s on your screen and can open, move, and close files and windows; open apps; and even restart your Mac.
Control your iPhone from your Mac
You can use iPhone Mirroring to control your iPhone from your nearby Mac. When iPhone Mirroring is turned on, you can also receive iPhone notifications on your Mac and keep track of Live Activities, so you don’t miss a thing. Note: Some iPhone features such as the camera and microphone aren’t compatible with iPhone Mirroring. Also, some Continuity features, like Continuity Camera and AirPlay, aren’t available on your Mac when using iPhone Mirroring.
Sync contacts and calendars onto your Mac and iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
You can sync the contacts and calendars from your Mac onto your device. Your Mac also syncs this information from your device to your Mac—for example, if you add contacts on your iPad, syncing adds those contacts to Contacts on your Mac. See Intro to syncing your Mac and your devices. Sync your contacts and calendar to your device When you sync, your Mac determines whether your device or your Mac contains the most recent information and syncs new or changed information.
Protect data on your Mac with FileVault
If you have a Mac with Apple silicon or an Apple T2 Security Chip, your data is encrypted automatically. Turning on FileVault provides an extra layer of security by keeping someone from decrypting or getting access to your data without entering your login password. If you use a Mac that doesn’t have Apple silicon or the T2 chip, you need to turn on FileVault to encrypt your data. To set up FileVault, you must be an administrator.
Change Appearance settings on Mac
On your Mac, use Appearance settings to change the overall look of macOS and choose how you use scroll bars. Learn how to use a light or dark appearance. To change these settings, choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Appearance in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.) Open Appearance settings for me Option Description Appearance Choose the appearance for buttons, menus and windows on your Mac. Light provides a light appearance that doesn’t change.
Use your iPhone as a webcam on Mac
With Continuity Camera, you can use your iPhone as your Mac webcam or microphone and take advantage of the powerful iPhone camera and additional video effects. You can connect wirelessly or with a USB cable for a wired connection. Before you begin Before you can use the Continuity Camera feature, you need to do the following: Make sure your Mac has macOS 13 or later and your iPhone has iOS 16 or later.
Use your iPhone as a webcam on Mac
With Continuity Camera, you can use your iPhone as your Mac webcam or microphone, and take advantage of the powerful iPhone camera and additional video effects. You can connect wirelessly, or with a USB cable for a wired connection. Before you begin Before you can use the Continuity Camera feature, you need to do the following: Make sure your Mac has macOS 13 or later and your iPhone has iOS 16 or later.
Use a light or dark appearance on your Mac
You can use a light or dark appearance for the menu bar, Dock, windows, and built-in apps on your Mac, or automatically adjust the appearance from light to dark during the day. In Appearance settings, you can also choose an accent color for buttons, pop-up menus, and other UI controls, and a highlight color to use for highlighting selected text. Some dynamic desktop pictures may provide still images so the desktop picture doesn’t distract from the light or dark appearance.
Apple can’t check app for malicious software
Using an app that can’t be checked for malicious software might harm your Mac or compromise your privacy. If you’re certain that the app you want to use is from a trustworthy source, you can override your Mac security settings to open it. Note: You can also grant an exception for a blocked app by clicking the Open Anyway button in Privacy & Security settings. This button is available for about an hour after you try to open the app.
Take screenshots or screen recordings on Mac
You can take pictures (called screenshots) or recordings of the screen on your Mac using Screenshot or keyboard shortcuts. Screenshot provides a panel of tools that let you easily take screenshots and screen recordings, with options to control what you capture—for example, you can set a timer delay or include the pointer or clicks. Take pictures or screen recordings using Screenshot On your Mac, press Shift-Command-5 (or use Launchpad) to open Screenshot and display the tools.
Change the behaviour of the modifier keys on Mac
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Organize your Mac desktop with Stage Manager
On your Mac, use Stage Manager to keep the app you’re working with front and center, and your desktop clutter-free. Your recently used apps are neatly arranged along the left side of the screen for quick access, while the window you’re working with is positioned in the center of the screen. Arrange, resize, and overlap windows in your ideal layout. You can also arrange multiple apps on the screen to work together as a group in Stage Manager.
Start up your Mac in safe mode
Starting up your Mac in safe mode can help you identify whether issues you’re experiencing are caused by software that loads as your Mac starts up. Before you begin To start up your Mac in safe mode, you need to know what type of Mac you have. On your Mac, choose Apple menu > About This Mac. Look at the information in the window to determine what type of Mac you have: If you see an item labeled Chip, followed by the name of the chip, you have a Mac with Apple silicon.
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