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S P E C I A L 3 0 0 TH A N N I V E R S A R Y I S S U E

Issue 300 June 2016


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THE UK’s
BEST-SELLING
APPLE
MAG!

Greatest ever Mac tips


Become an Apple Genius with our very best tips for OS X,
iWork, iTunes, Spotlight, Finder, Safari, Mail and more…

Master iOS 9.3’s Discover how


all-new features to use HomeKit
Explore Night Shift and more From home to ‘smart home’!

“It’s Apple’s best Revamp an old


iPad model yet” MacBook Air
9.7-inch iPad Pro on test Make it useful for today’s tasks

Mac iPhone iPad Watch iCloud iTunes Photos


iOpener
Game-changing tech from the world of Apple and beyond

The Kardia’s EKG sensor is integrated into


the AliveCor Apple Watch band, meaning
you’ll have a potentially life-saving
device wherever you go.

AliveCor Kardia Band


Wear your heart on your sleeve with your Apple Watch
During Apple’s recent March event, company exec Jeff Williams underscored the firm’s
commitments to improving the health and wellbeing of its users. Now another company is making
a similar pledge with the launch of the AliveCor Kardia Band. Its an Apple Watch strap with an
embedded EKG sensor, so it can actively monitor your heart rate and detect the telltale signs of
atrial fibrillation and other heart abnormalities. It can then send this data directly to your doctor,
helping them with diagnoses and treatment plans. It may one day save your life.
Price TBC INCLUDES AliveCor Kardia Band for Apple Watch
WEBSITE alivecor.com WORKS WITH Apple Watch

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 3


Issue 300

Issue 1

In the month that Apple turned 40, we


also celebrated another milestone, making Meet the team
our 300th issue after almost 23 years of
bringing you the very best Apple advice.
Thanks to all of you for helping us get Alan Stonebridge
this far – some of you have even been with Production Editor
us since those early days in the 1990s! Alan has been streaming
As with any technology, things have Star Wars: Battlefront to his
moved on at great pace, and Apple itself has Mac in Sony’s Remote Play
gone from Silicon Valley giant to floundering app, and lamenting the big
enterprise – and back again! Altough we games that don’t get ported.
can’t bring you advice for kit that’s obsolete,
we’ve delved into OS X as it is today to Alex Blake
bring you our biggest ever tips feature – the 300 greatest ever Mac Commissioning Editor
tips! Covering everything from Finder and text tools to iWork and Alex reviewed the tiny
security, you’ll find plenty of tricks you’ve never heard of before, and iPhone SE and it’s made
many that will refresh your memory to just how great your Mac can be. him question his loyalty to
Continuing our 300th celebrations, you’ll find a fun piece of Apple his iPhone 6 Plus. If only he
nostalgia on page 112, where top artist Rod Hunt has created a unique had smaller thumbs…
snapshot of Apple Campus 2. Can you find Tim Cook? The hidden Steve
Jobs poster? Take some time to check off all the fun things to find in the Paul Blachford
image. Finally, we’ve got full reviews of Apple’s very latest products, the Managing Art Editor
9.7-inch Pad Pro and the iPhone SE. Read them on pages 92 and 94. Following hot on the heels
of Apple’s big anniversary,
CHRISTIAN HALL Paul’s been celebrating his
EDITOR own 40th – issue of working
editor@macformat.com on MacFormat, that is.

Seth Singh
Digital Art Editor
Having seen Wales qualify
for this summer’s Euros,
Seth’s been keen to get his
footy boots back on - now
twitter.com/macformat youtube.com/MacFormatUK macformatuk.tumblr.com facebook.com/macformat where were they again?
Issue 61 Issue 93 Issue 113
Issue 43 Issue 219
Issue 4 Issue 290
Issue 300
June 2016
macformat.com

8
28

APPLE CORE
8 RUMOUR & NEWS
The core Apple news you need to know about

11 APPS & GAMES


Our top picks of the month for Mac and iOS

12 APPLE FACTS
Amazing stats from the world of Apple
Become an Apple Genius with our very best tips for OS X,
14 NEWS FEATURE & OPINION
Going deeper into the hot topics of the month
iWork, iTunes, Spotlight, Finder, Safari, Mail and more…

15 SPLIT VIEW
The team’s views on the latest Apple tech
Discover
APPLE HOME
17 APPLE HOME
HomeKit Make your house smarter with
our top home automation advice
Build the smart home of the future today

18 SMART MOWING
Trim your lawn with this garden gear

22 APP AGRONOMY
Look after your plants with iOS
84
24 HOME GADGETS
Secure your home with a smart alarm

6 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


SUBSCRIBE Issue 300 CONTENTS
TODAY!

94 GENIUS TIPS
71 GENIUS TIPS
Howard Oakley solves your Mac and iOS issues

72 NETWORKS
Networking not working? Fix it with our tips

2
74 MAC SOFTWARE
Easy your app-fuelled anxieties with our fixes

APPLE CHOICE GET 76 iOS SOFTWARE

91 APPLE CHOICE
YEARS Swipe away your touchscreen troubles

FOR THE
Our verdicts on the latest hardware and apps,
including the new iPad Pro and iPhone SE

106 STORE GUIDE


PRICE OF 1 64

Get help with picking your next piece of Apple


Turn to page 26
*INCLUDES PRINT AND
hardware and the best add-ons to go with it DIGITAL EDITIONS

WIN!
A Logi Circle
90

APPLE SKILLS
53 APPLE SKILLS
IP cam Expand your knowledge with our tutorials

Keep your home under 54 GET SMART WITH PRIVACY


surveillance with this prize Keep your online activity under wraps

56 MAKE INTERACTIVE BOOKS

REGULARS 79
Use iBooks Author to make your own iBooks

58 CREATE A PERSONAL CLOUD

78 BACK ISSUES LOVE Set up remote access to your files

Head here if you’ve missed an issue


YOUR 62 MASTER AFFINITY PHOTO
Get perfect landscapes in Serif’s app
112 WHERE’S TIM?
Can you spot the CEO in Campus 2? MAC
Inspiring ideas for
64 NEW FEATURES OF iOS 9.3
Discover the improvements Apple just made
1 revamping old Apple kit
66 PROJECT: BUILD AN
AIRPRINT RECEIVER
Add AirPrint to a USB or network printer

114 NEXT MONTH


What’s coming in MF301, on sale 7 June

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 7


What’s inside

8–10
RUMOUR & NEWS
The core Apple news
you need to know about

11 EDITED BY CHRISTIAN HALL


APPS & GAMES
Our top picks of the
month for Mac and iOS
APPLE RUMOUR
12
APPLE FACTS
Amazing stats from
the world of Apple

14
Apple Watch 2
OPINION An updated Apple Watch? It’s about time!
Adam Banks mulls
over Apple’s indirect While Apple was busy launching a new iPhone, iPad Pro and, yes, new
influence on his career Apple Watch bands at its March event, there was no mention of any
1
changes to the Watch itself. Hope was offered, however, by Barry Lam,
15 chairman of Watch manufacturer Quanta. He told an investors meeting to
SPLIT VIEW expect limited stock of Apple Watch 2 in late Q2 and throughout Q3 2016,
The team’s views on giving a possible launch date of June 2016 – right around the time of
the latest Apple tech WWDC. If that falls through, September 2016 is the next most likely date.
So what are we likely to see in Apple Watch 2?
Many analysts expect it to be more of an ‘S’ update
of the type we normally see with iPhones, meaning
better internals and a few tweaks here and there, 1
rather than the rounded face or ‘platinum edition’ WATERPROOFING
that some people have been floating. Of course, that The current Watch has an IPX7
all depends on whether Apple still sees the Watch as water-resistance rating, so it can
an iPhone companion or as a separate device in its stand being submerged for a
own right, deserving more extensive development. short duration up to one metre –
It’s now over a year since the original Apple though Apple cautions against it.
Contact us Watch began shipping, so we’d expect to hear news Waterproofing is heavily
of an update sooner rather than later. What might requested, and would enhance
that new version entail? Here’s what’s on the minds the Watch’s sport credentials.
Email your queries of the MacFormat team…
and your questions to
letters@macformat.com 2
Alan says… ZIPPIER PROCESSOR
Keep up to date by I’m more excited CPU designer ARM has just
following us on Twitter released its new Cortex-A32
@macformat to see where Apple processor, which promises 25%
faster performance compared
Join the conversation goes with the Watch to its Cortex-A7 processor.
at facebook.com/ It achieves that while using
macformat than I am about iPhone 7 less power as well.

8 | MACFORMAT macformat.com @macformat


Rumour APPLE CORE

THE POLL
WE ASKED… Which size
iPad is right for you?

3 12.9-inch 7.9-inch
(iPad Pro) (iPad mini 4)

27.65% 17.15%

55.2%
4
9.7-inch
(iPad Air 2)

Log on and see next


issue’s big question!
twitter.com/macformat
facebook.com/macformat

Hot on the heels of the


tech giant’s latest moves…

2 1
OS X 10.12 FUJI
The new version of OS X,
supposedly codenamed Fuji,
is mooted to ship with Siri,
and could be released in
September or October 2016.

2
SLIMMING DOWN
Rumours have long
circulated that the iPhone 7
will be super-slim, and the
latest suggests it will do this
through redesigned antenna
3 4 modules and radio chips.
FACETIME CAMERA BEEFIER BATTERY
Apple added support for
FaceTime audio calls in
watchOS 2, and rumour has it
The Watch’s ‘all-day’ battery
life is perfectly capable for most
users, but a charge that lasts a
3
DUAL CAMERAS
Apple Watch 2 will pack a built-in few days would be a welcome The iPhone 7 may come
FaceTime camera. It may take a addition. Apple is reportedly with dual cameras – but only
while to get used to making video working with Samsung and LG to on the Plus – meaning higher
calls from your wrist, but Apple create thinner OLED screens to quality shots and a lens that’s
has never been afraid of change. accommodate this larger battery. flush with the iPhone’s body.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 9


CLASSIC
APPLE
FACTS
$22 MacBook updated
THE COST OF
ONE APPLE
SHARE IN 1980
When Apple shares
Now comes in Rose Gold
first went on sale Apple’s baby MacBook gets a spec boost and a new colour option
at its 1980 initial
public offering, they pple has updated its MacBook While available storage capacities
were priced at $22
each. If you’d bought
A range with new models featuring
Skylake processors, an extra hour
remain at 256GB and 512GB, the PCIe-
based flash storage has had a speed boost,
100 shares back then, of battery life, faster memory, better meaning apps load even more quickly.
they’d be worth a graphics and a new Rose Gold colour. The updated specs also mean Apple
staggering $600,000 The exterior chassis remains the same, has managed to squeeze an extra hour of
today – and that’s though, with the same butterfly keyboard battery life into the MacBook, so it can be
before dividends are mechanism, 12-inch Retina display and sole used for 10 hours without needing to be
paid out. Not a bad USB-C port as the 2015 model. The price charged up. Apple says it’s perfect for “all
return on investment! also remains unchanged, with the base day, on-the-go computing”.
model with a 1.1GHz m3 processor costing In addition, the MacBook Air range also
£1,049, while the 1.2GHz m5 version comes received a slight update – all models now

0.3MP in at £1,299. The sixth-generation processor


can also be upgraded to a 1.3GHz m7, which
come with 8GB of memory as standard – so
it seems Apple hasn’t forgotten this line of
RESOLUTION Intel’s Turbo Boost tech can take to 3.1GHz. the MacBook family, as some suspected.
OF THE APPLE
QUICKTAKE
Apple expanded its
line-up in the 1990s and Use the Force
helped pioneer digital
consumer photography Deep press for
with the QuickTake.
It could store eight
photos at a resolution
Magic Mouse
of 640x480 pixels. Magic Mouse 3 could enable
wider range of gestures

2011
ince bringing Force Touch and
S 3D Touch to the iPhone, iPad Pro,
Magic Trackpad and most of its
The only new feature in Magic Mouse 2 was an integrated
battery, and its capabilities in OS X were unchanged.
THE YEAR APPLE MacBook line-up, there’s one conspicuous
BECAME RICHER place where Apple’s deep press technology and Magic Trackpad 2, a haptic motor
THAN THE USA is missing: the Magic Mouse. would be used to send this feedback to you.
Apple is one of the That might be set to change. A patent It’s not clear when – if ever – Apple
most profitable firms in filed by Apple in early April 2016 depicts would implement such technology.
history, and in 2011 its a Force Touch-enabled Magic Mouse that However, the Magic Mouse 2 (released in
reserves exceeded even would be able to “[exert] pressure on the October 2015) was only slightly different to
those of the USA. That force sensor” within the mouse, and then its predecessor, switching to an integrated
year Apple’s balance feed that back to the user. Different battery that charges over a Lightning cable,
was $76.4bn, compared amounts of force could be used for different so it isn’t outside the realm of possibility
to $73.7bn for the US. functions, and would generate differing that Apple is working on something more
levels of feedback. As with the iPhone 6s significant for Magic Mouse 3.

10 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Apps & Games APPLE CORE

APP OF THE MONTH


APPLE
TV
Our top picks
of what’s worth
watching and
playing this month

[M AC GA M E]

Hyper Light Drifter £14.99 [ MOV I E]


THE GOOD
Gaming traditions new and old meet in this pixel-art RPG DINOSAUR
£13.99
A runaway Kickstarter success, to loot, ancient forests to explore and ghastly What if the dinosaurs
Hyper Light Drifter is a 16-bit– enemies around every corner, you must find never went extinct?
styled adventure for the 21st your way through this world to find a cure to Humans and sauropods
century. Taking its cues from the illness your character carries. Tactical make unlikely friends in
old-school Zelda games and Miyazaki films, combat is encouraged, making it more than this family adventure.
it’s an RPG that combines classic mechanics a simple hack ‘n’ slash action game and a
with new ideas of its own. challenging experience.
Your character, the Drifter, has access to Inspired by the developer’s own battle
technology long-forgotten by the world he with heart disease, Hyper Light Drifter has
explores. Filled with deep, crumbling ruins just been released on Mac.

[A PP]
iHEARTRADIO
FREE
Tune in to your
favourite stations,
podcasts and live
events, covering 20
million songs from
[iO S A PP] [iOS GAME] [A PPL E M USIC] 800,000 artists.
BILLY CHAMELEON RUN INTRODUCING KARL
FREE £1.49 BLAU (KARL BLAU)
Magazines, utility An endless runner Ignore this album’s
bills, TV packages, with a colourful title: Blau’s not new
internet bundles – twist, the aim of this on the music scene,
we’ve all got subscriptions furiously fast-paced game is and that shows in his expert
to manage, but doing that’s to switch your character’s delivery of Nashville hits from
easier said than done. Billy colour to match the platforms the ’60s and ’70s, wrapped [GA ME]
attempts to ease the pain with he runs, jumps and flies in Tucker Martine’s velvety TIC TAC TOE
a beautifully simple interface across. It’s a bit like Sonic production. Start with the 4 TWO
and notifications to let you the Hedgehog crossed with exquisite cover of Link Wray’s 79p
know every time a bill is due. a Dulux paint factory. undervalued Fallin’ Rain. Noughts and crosses
Why you need it: Makes the Why you need it: It’s pure, Why you need it: To soak up on a digital chalkboard
complicated super-simple. colour-coded adrenaline. Blau’s sensitive vocal style. is like reliving childhood,
What’s it best for: Getting on What’s it best for: Speedy, What’s it best for: Songs that minus the dusty hands
top of your regular outgoings. challenging gameplay. sound relevant but well worn. and screeching chalk.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 11


APPLE CORE Facts & Figures 2
The Apple
Campus 2 billion

IN NUMBERS
Apple’s new headquarters in Cupertino won’t open
The total cost of Apple Campus 2,
up from under $3 billion in 2011.

until 2017, but a multi-year project this big means there


are lots of figures floating around – and they’re big!
The water used at Apple 4
3 Campus 2 will be recycled, and

75%
require more than 13,000 feet of
pipeline to transport it from Cupertino.
The water project will cost Apple

5 6 kilometres
$4.8m – pocket money to Tim Cook.

8,0001 The main building’s


natural ventilation
trees means it won’t need
air conditioning for
Roughly the amount of glass used in the
construction of Apple Campus 2, according to
architect Peter Arbour. He added that “normally
The grounds of Apple three quarters of the we talk in terms of square feet”.
Campus 2 will be filled with
as many as 8,000 trees,
year. In fact, 100%
in a nod to Silicon Valley’s of the site’s energy
agricultural roots. Apricot will come from
orchards, jogging paths renewable sources.
and walking trails will be
incorporated into the site,
and 80% of the campus
will be green space.
6 300,000
square feet
The amount of space dedicated to research facilities and
parking. All parking spaces will be underground, leaving
the area unspoiled by cars and concrete.

7
2.8 million square feet The total size of Apple Campus 2 and its
surrounding parkland. That’s about 64.3 acres.

You’ve learned about Apple’s future home. Next time,


NEXT ISSUE get the low-down on the Cupertino tech giant itself.

12 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


APPLE CORE Opinion

ADAM BANKS…
GOING DEEPER THAN
A FORCE CLICK WITH
MUSINGS ON THE
WORLD OF APPLE
Forty years after its founding,
Apple is a byword for the best Almost anything the pros could do,
I could do on my ST… after I’d designed my
tech you can get. Celebrating own typefaces (Timeworks only came with
two), and bitmapped them by hand at all the
the quality of its products is sizes I needed, and provided that I didn’t
mind recreating each issue of my fortnightly
almost missing the point zine from scratch after the software crashed
with an ‘Out of memory’ error two-thirds of
Every job I’ve had since the age of 18 has revolved around the way through, every single time.
a machine that chimed when you started it up, and yet if I had It was soul-destroying, but it worked, and
to pick one moment that marked the transition from BC (before it got me a job in publishing, where they gave
computers) to AD (Apple-driven), it didn’t involve anything me a Macintosh IIcx running QuarkXPress,
with a half-eaten fruit on the front. and I never looked back. For this 300th issue
In the early days, you see, Macs were far too expensive of MacFormat, though, they asked me to look
for the likes of me. Later, I’d meet people whose careers had back. When I do, I realise it wasn’t Apple’s
turned on the day in 1984 when their Macintosh arrived; but products that changed my life.
they’d been 10 or 20 years older than me, with money in the The pizza-box LC 475, the first Mac I ever
bank. The nearest I could get, as a school leaver in the late ’80s, owned; the big plastic G4 tower that I bought
was an Atari 520ST. when I went freelance; the iMac G5, the
This beige box with a keyboard on top didn’t look much aluminium 20-inch and then the 27; the
different to the Commodore 64 I was upgrading from, but iPhone 3GS (still the best in your hand), and
when I plugged it into my portable TV and switched it on, the original iPad with its muscular curved
something new appeared. A little arrow, just sitting there in back and science-fiction slimness – these
the middle of nowhere. will always stay with me, of course, but they
When I nudged the mouse and the arrow moved – not one weren’t essential.
character space up, down, left or right, but in a smooth line just Just as I got by with my ST, some people
as far and as fast as my hand – I knew this was a new world. manage with Windows. Other smartphones
The same person, Jack are available. Microsoft makes tablets. None
When I look back, Tramiel, ran the companies
behind the Commodore 64
of these, however, would have existed without
Infinite Loop. Apple didn’t just design better
I realise it wasn’t and the Atari ST. More of an
Alan Sugar than a Steve Jobs,
computers: it invented better ways of thinking
about computers. And after 40 years, money
Apple’s products Tramiel was a competitor, not
an innovator: having jumped
can’t buy the most beautiful things it’s made.

that changed my life early into digital calculators


and then microcomputers, he
ABOUT ADAM BANKS
Adam is Apple to the core, having
followed Apple into WIMP (windows, icons, menus, pointer). reported on the world of Macs since the
The ST ran a version of the GEM (Graphical Environment 1990s. As a writer, designer, art director
Manager) interface, a knock-off of the Mac’s System software, and print production contractor, he
which meant amateurs like me could run programs such as divides his time between the Northern
Timeworks Publisher. Powerhouse and the Creative Cloud.

14 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Split View APPLE CORE

SUBSCRIBE
APPLE
TODAY!

IN QUOTES SPLIT VIEW 2


GET
YEARS
LISA JACKSON
apple.com
The MacFormat team debates the hot Apple
issues of the day, using their iPhones of course!
FOR THE
PRICE OF 1
Turn to page 26
“We’re constantly
striving to find or
invent solutions
to important “WHAT DO YOU THINK OF
environmental THE NEW MACBOOK?” Alex says…
challenges.”
Apple’s environmental Any specs upgrade is welcome, but the
head comments on the changes weren’t earth-shattering.
firm’s green efforts Christian says…
Last year’s was under-specced, so this feels like an
STEVE WOZNIAK appropriate upgrade, especially its graphics.
woz.org

“It’s an expense True, and the graphics upgrade was the part that
that brought me a really caught my eye. It’s definitely the most notable
few extra niceties.” change – apart from the new Rose Gold colour!
Woz reckons the Watch’s
reliance on an iPhone
limits its usefulness Rose isn’t for me, but I secretly loved the Gold
from last year – looks great with black keys…
better than the gold iOS devices, I think!
RON WYDEN
wyden.senate.gov
Speaking of keys, that might be my main issue with
“This anti- the MacBook, upgrade or not. I just can’t get used to
encryption bill how little they travel.
would effectively
outlaw tech
that Americans Fair point. Still, it’s ideal for actual travel though.
use to protect
themselves.”
Senator wants a bill that You’ll really stand out on holiday with a Rose Gold
would force the likes of MacBook! Will there be gold/rose MacBook Pros too?
Apple to decrypt devices

Possibly! I love the idea of this tiny Mac, but can it


PRINCE meet my needs? We’ll have to wait until next issue…
artofficialage.com

“Tell me a NEXT ISSUE What do the next MacBook Pros need to do?
musician who’s
got rich off digital
sales. Apple’s “Hey Siri turn off the lights”
doing pretty good
though, right?”
Siri...ously? Hmm, I don’t see anything connected.
tap to edit

Prince sadly passed away But if you set something up, I think I’d
as this issue went to press enjoy the company.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 15


What’s inside

18–21
SMART GARDENS
Go all green-fingered
without necessarily
getting your hands dirty
LIVE
EDITED BY CLIFF JOSEPH SMARTER
22–23
TUTORIAL The smart home is
How to keep track of here – live the Apple
and cultivate plants
using your iPhone
They say that the grass is dream today!

24–25
always greener on the other
HOME GADGETS
Essential kit to elevate
side of the fence, but high-tech
your abode from ‘home’
to ‘smart home’
garden gear will make your
neighbours go green with envy
ost of the products that we look at in Apple Home
M are designed to make you more comfortable when
you’re relaxing inside your home. However, Britain is a
nation of gardeners and allotment owners, and many of
us enjoy spending time outside getting our hands dirty in the garden.
Of course, at this time of year there are all those gardening chores
that we’ve put off over the cold winter months that you really need
to catch up with. Fortunately, there are plenty of high-tech options
Bosch quotes the battery life
available for your garden too, from labour-saving robotic lawnmowers of each of its three Indego
and sprinkler systems, to sensors that can monitor your plants and lawnmowers at 50 minutes.
send you a message when they need
Contact us a bit of TLC. So it’s time to
get your gardening gloves
on and see how some
Email your queries high-tech horticulture
and your questions to can make your
letters@macformat.com garden grow.

Keep up to date by
following us on Twitter
@macformat

Join the conversation


at facebook.com/
macformat

Get the latest


subscription offers at
macformat.com

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 17


APPLE HOME Smart gardens

Get started
with

Spring is here, so here’s our guide to


the smart garden kit that can help you
tackle the lawn and other gardening chores

What sort of It’s taken a while this year but companies that now sell robotic lawnmowers
mower do I need?
Just like iPhones
T it seems that spring is finally in
the air, and many of us will now
that promise to do all the hard work for you.
None of them is cheap, unfortunately, but
and iPads, robotic be looking out the window and they’ll earn their keep if they save you time
lawnmowers are thinking that it really is time to get to grips year after year – and perhaps prevent you
limited primarily by with the gardening again. from putting your back out as well. Bosch is
their battery life, The garden is an oasis of peace and quiet perhaps the most well-known name in this
which determines how for many people, a place where you can area, thanks to the popularity of its washing
much grass-chomping simply relax, or an absorbing hobby for machines and other household appliances,
they can manage on a people who enjoy cultivating their favourite and its Indego robotic mowers are a good
full charge. You can plants and vegetables. However, it can also choice for most smaller lawns and gardens.
generally get an idea be hard work, whether mowing and watering Prices start at around £900 for a basic
of battery life by the lawn, eliminating weeds, or keeping an Indego, which uses sensors to map your lawn
checking the mower’s eye on plants that need just the right and detect obstacles – such as a pond – that
model number. conditions to flourish. Fortunately, there’s a it needs to work around. If you want to go
Bosch’s Indego 1000 wide variety of smart products now available the whole hog and use an app to control your
Connect mower is that can help out with many of these tasks mower, you’ll need to pay about £1,300 for
designed to handle and ensure that your garden looks its best the Indego 1000 Connect, which provides
gardens up to 1000m2 all year round. remote control options, as well as the ability
in size, while the to set up a mowing schedule so that your
tank-like Robomow The lawn ranger mower can do its own thing completely
RS635 can cope with One of the most tedious and time-consuming automatically. Should you really want to be
larger gardens up to chores for any gardener is mowing the lawn. lord of the lawn, there’s the awe-inspiring
3500m2 in size. It’s not surprising that there are quite a few Robomow range. These can be pretty

18 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Smart gardens APPLE HOME

Explained
Garden jargon
Agro-hacking takes
existing tech gadgets Robot lawnmowers have
sensors to avoid obstacles,
and finds ways to and, for safety, the blades
use them in the will stop if anything raises
garden. Want to them off the ground.
know how to ‘see’
photosynthesis with
a digital camera?
Just check it out on
farmhack.org.

expensive, with the top-of-the-range RS635 Are robotic


model trimming more than £2,500 off your lawnmowers safe?
bank balance, but it’s built like a tank and All robotic mowers
includes features such as the ability to divide include sensors that
help them avoid
A £900 basic smart obstacles, and they’ll
cut out automatically
mower uses sensors to if anything lifts the
cutting blades up off
map your lawn and work the ground for some
reason. Even so, it’s
around obstacles still wise to keep an eye
on the mower when it’s
Setting up a smart watering system is as simple as adding
larger gardens into separate zones, and a to your existing tap and setting up a schedule. in action, and not let it
superpowered TurboMow option for that run unattended unless
tricky ‘first cut of the year’. Blossom Smart Watering Controller ($199 – you’re sure your family
about £141) that provides precise control over and pets are all well
Waterworks multiple watering zones within your garden. out of harm’s way.
Watering is another tedious gardening chore You can order the Blossom from the US via
and, of course, many people already have Amazon, albeit at a bit of a premium, but a
simple sprinkler systems to help with this. prominent home-grown choice here in the UK
Over in the US, where temperature and is the Hozelock Cloud Controller. Priced at
climate are more extreme, there are several around £115, this can be used to add some
smart watering systems, such as the popular smart tech to your existing sprinkler or

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 19


iFacts…
Koubachi’s plant sensor 99%
is less discreet than The percentage of
rivals, adding a clear
technological presence semi-detached homes
to your plant pots. with gardens in the UK.

How do I get Wi-Fi watering system.


163m2
The size of the
in my garden? The Cloud Controller
average UK garden.
Many garden gadgets connects directly to
require Wi-Fi to connect the tap in your garden
to an app on your and can control the
iPhone. If your router flow of water to most
77%
British citizens who
isn’t too far away, you conventional sprinkler systems. It can be
are active gardeners,
might be able to get controlled by an iPhone app that allows you
according to a survey
a decent signal in the to set up automatic watering schedules,
conducted by the Royal
garden without too and can even check the latest weather
Horticultural Society.
much trouble. If not, reports online to see if it needs to make
you can buy a range any adjustments.
extender – a kind of
mini-router that plugs Plant life 330,000
The number of
into a nearby power If you really want to take a close interest
allotments in the UK –
socket and gives your in the wellbeing of your plants, you could
and there are 100,000
Wi-Fi network a boost also invest in a plant sensor. One of the
people on the waiting
so it can reach out best-known models is the Flower Power
list for one.
into your garden sensor from Parrot, the company behind
those headline-grabbing minidrones.
Flower Power is a cheap and cheerful
option, costing about £40 and consisting
of a little plastic widget that’s designed to
look a bit like a twig. You stick the sensor
into the soil and it then uses Bluetooth to
report back to your iPhone app with info on
temperature, moisture and fertiliser levels.

A pond sensor can


How can I keep
my garden safe? warn via your iPhone
We’ve looked at
several security if it detects conditions
webcams recently that
are designed for indoor that are harmful to life
use. Several companies
make weather-resistant Also popular is the Koubachi range of So that it doesn’t spoil the look of your garden, Parrot’s
webcams that are Wi-Fi Plant Sensors (between £90 and Flower Power sensor is designed to blend in with plants.
suitable for use in the £170), which include features such as
garden, with additional infrared sensors and thermometers for Plants aren’t the only things that grow in
features such as night both soil and air temperature. However, gardens, of course. You can even get smart
vision and sound Koubachi was recently taken over by the sensors for your pond, such as Seneye’s range
detection. While German company Gardena, and has of water monitors, which come in tank and
these are useful for announced that it will end support for its pond versions for indoor and outdoor use,
home security, many existing products by the end of 2018. respectively. These monitor temperature,
people also use them to There are other sensors available, such as PH levels for acidity and alkalinity, and
watch wildlife that may PlantLink from Oso Technologies, although ammonia levels, and can send warnings
pass through their these aren’t widely available in the UK, so to their iPhone app if they detect anything
garden at night. you’d need to order them from abroad. that might harm your fish or other pond life.

20 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016


The robot revolution is upon us, so
you can save your energy for other
tasks while a mechanical slave does
your gardening graft.

FIVE OF THE BEST


We recommend some of the best smart gardening gear to get you started

Bosch Indego Parrot Flower Robowmow Hozelock Cloud Seneye Pond


1000 Connect Power £40 RS635 £2,700 Controller £115 Monitor £110
£1,300 parrot.com/uk robomow.com hozelock.com seneye.com
bosch-garden.com The Flower Power is one The Robomow is a real The Cloud Controller Seneye makes sensors
The Indego range is a of the less costly plant beast, with a price tag to adds some smart tech to for small fish tanks, large
good choice if you have a sensors, and it uses match, but it can cover your existing watering aquaria, and this floating
smaller lawns or garden. Bluetooth for wireless lawns up to 3500m2 system. It connects to pond monitor for outdoor
There are less expensive connectivity, so you on a single charge. your garden tap to use, which checks water
models in the range too, need to be on the spot Its TurboMow option control the flow of water, temperature, acidity and
all with built-in sensors with your iPhone to use can tackle the toughest and Wi-Fi connectivity ammonia levels. It can
to navigate your garden, it. However, it’s a quick lawns, and its app lets provides remote control send notifications to your
but only this one offers and easy way to check you divide your garden from an iPhone, as well as iPhone if conditions in
an app with remote water, temperature and into zones, with separate scheduling and checking your pond seem likely to
control and scheduling. fertiliser levels. schedules for each. weather forecasts. harm your fish.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 21


1 1
FLOWER POWER
Parrot’s Flower Power sensor
Explained can be used in gardens or
Garden jargon indoor pot plants to monitor
A weed is sometimes fertiliser and water levels.
described as a plant in However, it only uses
the wrong place, so a short-range Bluetooth to
weed could just be any communicate with your iPhone.
plant that you don’t want
in your garden. However,
many weed-like plants, 2
such as brambles and GREEN FINGERS
dandelions, have adapted The Flower Power app can
to damaged soil conditions use your iPhone’s internet
so that they can thrive in connection to look up
areas where other plants information about different
might struggle. types of plant, so you can check
what conditions are best for
your prize petunias.
If you really want to
take a close interest in 2

the wellbeing of your plants,


invest in a plant sensor

HOW TO Manage your plants

Genius Tip!
The Koubachi app is
free to download, so you
can use its database to
identify thousands of
plants, and find out
about the soil conditions
they need, even if you
don’t own one of the
Koubachi plant sensors.

1 Tap to plant
It’s easy to organise and cultivate plants
with a device like Koubachi’s plant sensor.
2 The name of the rose
If you know which plants you’ll be growing,
you can use the app’s search tool to quickly
Its app starts with a garden plan with a strictly look them up. There are photos of thousands
rectangular layout on the screen, but the main of plants, with info such as the Latin name and
thing is to identify your plants. Tap to add one. the moisture and fertiliser levels each needs.

22 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Smart gardens APPLE HOME

WHAT ELSE SHOULD I CONSIDER?

FINAL TOUCHES
FOR A RELAXING
GARDEN SPACE
When all the hard work’s done, it’s time to
kick back, relax and enjoy your smart garden
he whole point of doing portable options such as the Hue Go
T all that work in the
garden is so that you
lamp (£80), which has a rechargeable
battery, so you can use it outdoors
can kick back, grab occasionally. Philips supports Apple’s
a drink and relax in your personal HomeKit, so you can impress your
little paradise. There are some nice neighbours by using voice commands
gadgets that can help out here too. to control your lights, though this
A set of Bluetooth speakers will requires the latest Hue Bridge (£50).
always come in handy.
There are also smart lighting
systems designed specifically for
the garden. Osram’s app-controlled
Lightify range works well, and
includes special mini-spotlights (£70,
plus a £30 adaptor for your router)
that have a spiked base so you can
stick them in the ground around
the edge of a flower bed or a pond.
Philips’ Hue range isn’t quite so Philips’ Hue Go includes a mains adaptor, but it
garden-friendly, but it does include also has an integrated battery for portable use.

Jargon Buster
NPK refers to the
nitrogen, phosphorous
and potassium found
in garden fertilisers.
Different fertilisers
contain different levels
of each substance,

3 Leaf it to me
The Koubachi app can also help if you
come across a plant you don’t recognise. It will
4 Early warning
Once you’ve identified all your plants, the
sensor will know what conditions it needs to
indicated by numbers
such as 10-20-10 on the
label. Plant sensors can
ask a series of questions about leaf shape, the look out for. You can then set up the app to monitor fertiliser levels
stalk, and other details, and then suggest the notify you over Wi-Fi of any major changes to and warn you if a plant
type of plant it thinks you have. water, light, temperature and fertiliser levels. needs a bit of a top-up.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 23


APPLE HOME Gadgets

WHAT YOU NEED NEXT…

HOME GADGETS
Indoors or outdoors, here’s the tech you
need to create your new smart home

For even
more smart
Smanos W100 home advice
Wi-Fi/Phone subscribe
Alarm £160 today!
See page 26
smanos.com

Amsterdam-based Smanos has of your family


1 specialised in security systems
for 16 years, but it has only
has the ability
to control the
recently brought some of its alarm as they
latest smart tech to the UK. It has several come and go during
new products lined up for this summer, and the day. The kit also
we like the look of its existing W100 system. includes two handheld remote
This home security system includes a sensor controls that you can use at home
that can be attached to a door or window in to quickly turn the alarm on or off without The W100 talks to its sensors over
either the 868MHz or 915MHz
order to warn you when they’ve been opened, having to use your phone. You can buy frequencies to avoid interference
along with a separate motion sensor that can additional sensors for other rooms as well, with more commonly used ones.
scan a room for movement when you’re away and the W100 can also link up with other
from home or sleeping. Smanos devices, such as the new security
Both sensors are controlled by this very cameras and video doorbells that the
1960s-style space-pod device, which also company will be launching soon.
houses a powerful 110dB siren that’ll probably
scare any intruders to death, as well as Make it even smarter
waking your neighbours. The W100 has a There are other security systems that offer
touch-sensitive control panel that lets you similar features, but the W100 has one other
create a PIN to control the alarm system, and trick up its sleeve as well. To provide an
you can connect it to your home Wi-Fi so that extra security backup, you can also
it can send alarms to the Smanos app on your connect the device to your telephone
iPhone. You can link six different iPhones (or landline, which enables it to make a
Android phones) to it, so that each member voice call to your phone if you’re ever
in a location where you don’t have
internet access, or if there’s a power cut
The W100’s powerful at home that puts your Wi-Fi network
out of action. It can play a recorded
110dB siren will probably message over the phone to tell you what’s
going on, and it even allows you to listen to
scare intruders to death, what’s going on at home so that you can
make a decision over whether to turn off You can control the alarm system
and wake the neighbours the alarm or call the police. from the LED screen or an iOS app.

24 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Gadgets APPLE HOME

Seek Compact
£229
thermal.com Smart
3
We’ve looked at a number of
smart thermostats that can help
ideas
keep your heating bills under

Pure Highway 400 control, but if you really want


to know how efficient – or inefficient – your
heating and insulation is, hunt down the Seek
£130 Thermal Compact. This thermal imaging
camera has a Lightning connector to connect
pure.com
it to your iPhone, and its infrared sensor can It looks like Siri could
Pure has been a real champion detect heat loss through doors and window have some competition
2 of DAB – digital radio – in the
UK, and has already released a
frames, as well as variations in temperature
caused by electrical problems, water leaks or
coming, in the form of
Amazon’s Alexa. Like
couple of its Highway adaptors damaged insulation in cavity walls. It can also Siri, Alexa is a personal
that let you receive DAB in your car, as well take fun thermal pics of your pets. assistant technology
as plugging in your iPhone to listen to your that can be controlled
music library. Its new Highway 400 adaptor with voice commands.
adds Bluetooth for wireless streaming, and At the moment, it’s only
also works with Siri. So, you can tell it to built into Amazon’s new
check the weather or news reports without Echo speakers, which
taking your hands off the steering wheel. aren’t on sale in the UK,
Prices start at £130 for the Highway 400 but there’s an iPhone
shown here, but there’s also a Highway 600 app (in the US) that lets
model priced at £150 that has a built-in you connect Alexa to
microphone for hands-free voice calls as well. the internet so it can
look up information and
answer questions, just

Philips AmbiLux 65PUS8901 £3,999 like Siri. In some ways,


Alexa goes even further
philips.co.uk than Siri, as third-party
developers can add
Philips has really gone ‘skills’ to it, enabling it
4 over the top with its latest
AmbiLux TV. This 65-inch
to link up with other
apps and perform tasks
monster not only sports a such as ordering a
high-resolution 4K display, it also includes pizza or booking a cab.
nine small projectors on the back of the TV Alexa can work with
that cast colours onto the wall behind it, other smart gadgets,
creating a kind of ambient light show that which is something
matches the image on screen. The TV itself Apple’s HomeKit is still
is driven by Android, though you can also struggling with. Alexa
connect an Apple TV to watch Netflix and isn’t perfect – one user
download apps. There’s also an AmbiLux in the US reported it
app for iOS devices that can link the TV to reset his thermostat
Philips’ Hue light bulbs so they match the after hearing its name
colours of the TV’s light show. on TV – but it’s another
sign Apple needs to get
HomeKit working with a
wider range of gadgets
NEXT ISSUE Secure your home the smart way with
cameras, sensors, locks and more! to maintain its lead in
home automation.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 25


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macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 27


Greatest ever Mac tips
Become an Apple Genius with our very best tips for OS X,
iWork, iTunes, Spotlight, Finder, Safari, Mail and more…

Words: Craig Grannell, Christian Hall, Howard Oakley,


Christopher Phin, Alan Stonebridge

hen did you last


consider whether 1 Mission Control 2 A hidden gesture
the way you take
In El Capitan, Apple has switched If your Mac has a trackpad, there’s an
on tasks is the
Mission Control’s presentation to extra gesture for it tucked away in the
most efficient use
of your Mac, and if spread out all of your windows Accessibility preferences pane, under
taking time to learn shortcuts instead of stacking them up. If you Mouse & Trackpad > Trackpad Options.
and discover hidden features have many windows open in the same Put a check mark next to ‘Enable
in tools you use daily could workspace, their previews in Mission dragging’ and select three-finger drag
save you time? Every issue of Control can get pretty small. To take from the adjacent pop-up menu. This
MacFormat helps you with these a closer look at one, put the pointer gesture may feel more comfortable for
things, naturally, but in honour over it and then press the Spacebar you than clicking and dragging things
of our 300th anniversary we’ve to pull it forward of the others. due to its relative lack of friction.
put together hundreds of tips for
you to truly master your Mac.
Whether you need help with
Finder, Safari, working with text,
or some other facet of your Mac,
3 Return to owner 4 Keyboard shortcuts
Even if you have no need for any other If a menu item you use often doesn’t list
you’ll find plenty of tips and iCloud services, it’s worth setting up an a keyboard shortcut, you can assign it
tricks here to turn you into a account just to use Find My Mac, which one in System Preferences > Keyboard >
power user. We’ve also included lets you track your Mac when it’s online Shortcuts > App Shortcuts. Click the +
a few indispensable third-party
using Wi-Fi, and play a sound, lock or button, select the app in which the item
tools that, for a few pounds,
erase the Mac when online over Wi-Fi appears, then enter the item’s name
further streamline your system.
All of the tips here have been or Ethernet. Also consider putting your exactly as it appears, right down to
written with the latest Mac OS, contact details on the login window in capitalisation and any ellipsis at its end.
El Capitan, in mind. However, System Preferences > Security & Click in the bottom box, then press the
you’ll find that many of them Privacy > General > Set Lock Message. key combo you want to trigger the item.
work with older versions too.

28 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016


8 Eject a stuck disc 12 Power shortcuts
If your Mac has an optical drive and you There are no keyboard shortcuts listed
can’t get Finder to eject a disc from it, for Sleep, Restart and Shut Down in
there are a couple of workarounds. the  menu, though they exist. To put
With a USB-connected optical drive, displays to sleep, perhaps because
disconnect and then reconnect it, which you’ll be away for a few minutes, press
should reset the connection and allow ß+≈+≠ . Press ç+≈+≠ to restart,
Finder to eject the disc. Otherwise, or press ç+å+≈+≠ to shut down;
restart your Mac and hold ≠, ™ or the in both cases, you’ll be asked whether
mouse or trackpad button when you to save changes to documents. In the
5 Keyboard navigation hear the startup sound to eject the disc. first and last shortcuts above, if your
If you’ve come to the Mac after years keyboard has no Media Eject key but
with another operating system, you has a power one, press that in its place.
may find it frustrating that pressing Tab
doesn’t cycle through every control or 9 Your contact details
field in forms, and it can be aggravating Contacts lets you choose to include just

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


if you like to jump between toolbar some of your card’s details to share
items. In System Preferences’ Keyboard with people. In its vCard preferences,
pane, click Shortcuts, then switch Full place a check mark next to ‘Enable
Keyboard Access from ‘Text boxes and private me card’. In the main window,
lists only’ to ‘All controls’. Depending on press ß+ç+M to go to your card,
how many forms you fill out, there may then click Edit. On the right is a column
be times when the default is preferable. headed ‘Share’ and a checkbox next to
You can toggle between these settings each item that determines whether it’s
without coming here by pressing ≈+&; included when you share your card.
if the top row of keys is set to control 13 Bypass Gatekeeper
special functions, press ƒ+≈+&. When Gatekeeper is enabled, it’ll refuse
to allow apps from unknown developers
10 Live encrypt a drive to run in case they contain malware.
You can make a Mac-formatted portable However, if you’re certain you want an
drive’s contents more secure to carry app to run, because you trust its source,
around. There’s a catch, though: if the ≈-click it in Finder and choose Open.
drive’s partition map scheme is set to When you’re presented with a security
MBR, which is common with drives in warning, confirm you want to open the
their factory state, you’ll need to erase app anyway. This exempts the app from
the whole thing to an encrypted format Gatekeeper’s usual restrictions, and in
in Disk Utility. Either way, it’s wise to future it can be opened in a normal way.
make a copy of the drive’s contents
in case something goes wrong. After
doing so, ≈-click the drive in Finder,
choose the Encrypt option, then set a
password and a reminder. Progress is
shown when you ≈-click the drive.
6 Check the Clipboard During this process, you can eject the
Although Finder is primarily a way to drive; it continues when reconnected.
manage files, its Edit menu has a Show
Clipboard command that’s capable of
displaying other kinds of content you’ve
copied there, such as images. However,
OS X’s Clipboard is fairly basic in its
functionality, and its contents are easily 14 Search the menus
overwritten and lost before you’ve used If you can’t find a menu item, because
them. If you find this a problem, try out you don’t recall its exact name or just
Paste (£4.99, Mac App Store), which its location, press ç+ß+[?] to open
offers a searchable Clipboard history the Help menu, then type part of its
and many more great enhancements. name – it needn’t be from the start of
the item’s name. Matching items will be
listed in the Help menu; put the pointer
over one and the corresponding menu
7 Switch audio devices opens with the item highlighted.
Your Mac remembers volume levels for
speakers and headphones individually, 11 Reset user password
and makes adjustments as you connect If you can’t get past the login window
or disconnect them. However, you may because you’ve forgotten your account
not want to unplug your headphones password, you can reset it by starting
just to demo something to another up in OS X Recovery by holding ç+r
person. Rather than opening the Sound when you hear the startup sound.
preferences pane, hold å and click the Choose Utilities > Terminal, then enter
volume icon in the menu bar to switch resetpassword, select the account to
to a different input or output device. reset and provide a new password.
If that icon isn’t present, turn on ‘Show (Note that this won’t change FileVault’s
volume in menu bar’ at the bottom of password If you’ve encrypted your disk.)
the Sound preferences pane.

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 29


App and window management
Take control of your workspace with desktop, Dock and Mission Control tips
15 Enlarge a window’s dimensions the shorter its height becomes. This is document links in that menu change
The green button at the top-left of apparent if you minimise windows to to open their location in Finder.
windows can confuse if you’ve come manage your workspace, which puts 22 Recent items in a stack Perhaps
from Windows, because it switches to them in the Dock’s right end. A setting you’d rather access recent documents
full-screen mode. Hold å and click it in the Dock’s preferences helps to through a stack. Enter this in Terminal:
to enlarge its window; in some apps, avoid this by minimising windows into defaults write com.apple.dock
this resizes a window to a ‘best fit’ for their app icon instead. persistent-others -array-add
its content, in which case hold å and 19 Stacks Make any folder you need '{ "tile-data" = { "list-type" = 1; };
drag from a corner to fill the desktop. to access regularly available as a stack "tile-type" = "recents-tile"; }';
killall Dock. Hold ≈ and click the
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

16 Use all available screen space in the right part of the Dock: drag it
Consider hiding the Dock and the there from Finder. Hold ≈ and click stack to pick between showing apps,
menu bar so that windows can use a stack to set how it’s presented (as a docs and servers; enter the command
more space. Do this in the General and fan, grid or list of icons) and how its again if you want more than one.
Dock preference panes, respectively. contents are sorted. 23 Get your bearings The spaces
17 Adjust the Dock’s size 20 Icon size in grid-based stacks and full-screen apps in the top bar of
You can tweak the Dock’s height by When you open a stack that you’ve set Mission Control rearrange based on
dragging the dividing line near its to Grid view, use ç++ and ç+- to which you’ve used most recently.
right end, and magnify what’s under adjust the size of icons in it. If you find this disorienting, turn off
the pointer by ≈-clicking the divider 21 Open a recent item’s container the corresponding option at the top of
and choosing Turn Magnification On. OS X keeps track of recently used System Preferences > Mission Control.
18 Minimise into app icons apps, documents and servers for you Items in the top bar then stay in the
As you add many icons to the Dock, in Ö > Recent Items. Hold ç and the positions you drag them to.
24 Quicker access to the menu bar
On large displays in particular, moving
the pointer to the menu bar can be
wearing. In addition, if you’ve set the
menu bar to hide itself when you don’t
need it, the delay before it slides into
view can be annoying as well. Check
out PopClip (£4.99, Mac App Store),
which enables you to hold a key and
then click to access a replica of the
menu bar’s contents as a contextual
menu at the pointer’s position.
25 Keyboard menu access You can
keep your hands on the keyboard to
use the menu bar. Press ≈+& (and
ƒ on some keyboards), then use the
26 Stacks can show folder or file icons, which Image2Icon (img2icnsapp.com) can customise. arrows and ® to browse and choose.

27 Resizing windows 28 Mimic Microsoft 29 Pin the Dock


Besides the ability to resize a window Former Windows users may lament the if you have multiple displays and have
from any edge or corner, you can lack of something like its Snap feature the Dock set to be hidden, you can call
constrain the way they change by in OS X, and even if you’ve used a Mac it up on any display. The app switcher
holding modifier keys. Hold å to grow for years, you might like the extra appears on whichever display the Dock
the window in both the direction you shortcuts for window management that last appeared. If you have the Dock set
drag and its opposite. Hold ß to resize Magnet (79p, Mac App Store) gives you. to be permanently visible, it always
while keeping the window’s proportion It lets you drag a window to a desktop appears on your primary display, which
of width to height the same as before edge or corner to fill a corresponding you can set in the Displays pane: in the
you started dragging. You can hold both region. You can also assign a keyboard Arrangement tab, drag the menu bar
keys together to apply both effects. shortcut to each region. on the previews to the desired display.

30 Group Dock icons 31 The app switcher 32 Focus on an app


You can group apps in the Dock by The quick way to switch between your If you find managing multiple spaces is
inserting blank tiles. In Terminal, type: two most recently used apps is to press overkill, there’s an older method for
defaults write com.apple.dock ç+†. If you hold ç and press † hiding apps you don’t need right now.
persistent-apps -array-add ‘{tile- once, the app switcher opens, showing Switch to one you want to use, then
data={}; tile-type=”spacer-tile”;} and additional apps; press † until the one press å+ç+H to hide all others, or
press ®, type killall Dock and press you want is highlighted, then let go of hold å and click that app’s Dock icon;
® again. When the Dock reappears, ç to switch to it, or move the pointer the other windows still exist, but they’re
drag the space from the right of its app over an app’s icon and let go of ç. With invisible until their app is brought to the
icons to where you want it. To remove it, an app highlighted or under the pointer, foreground. To hide an individual app,
drag it out of the Dock, like with an app. ç+q will quit it, and ç+H will hide it. switch to it and press ç+H.

30 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


39 Quickly open
Opening Mission Control 41 Split View
manually makes sense to If you find you can’t merge
give your workspace a two full-screen–capable
thorough spring-clean, but if apps in a Split View space,
you only need to move one their minimum widths can’t
window, you can do it more be squeezed into the
quickly by trying to drag it current display resolution.

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


past the menu bar, which If your Mac has a Retina
opens Mission Control, then display, try increasing the
drop it where you want it. ‘looks like’ resolution in its
Displays preferences pane.

40 See a space
Swiping horizontally with two
fingers on a Magic Mouse, or
three on a trackpad, moves
through your spaces one at a
time. To save time, hold å and
then click a space’s thumbnail in
the top bar to jump to it without
also exiting Mission Control.

33 App Exposé 34 More App Exposé 35 HyperDock


Apple’s multi-touch trackpads and mice You won’t find an App Exposé gesture If you find it hard to remember gestures
provide gestures to open Mission in the Mouse preferences pane, but and keyboard shortcuts, HyperDock
Control, so you can see all windows in there is a way to trigger it without (about £4, bahoom.com) puts window
the current space, but often you’ll want reaching for its keyboard shortcut previews above the Dock when the
to focus on windows from one app. In (which is ≈+æ). Put the pointer over pointer is over an app icon, including
the Trackpad preferences pane, turn on an app icon in the Dock, then use the any that are minimised or in another
the App Exposé gesture. You can then same gesture you’d use to open Mission space. It also has shortcuts for moving
swipe down with three fingers to see a Control – double-tapping two fingers on and resizing windows when you hold
Mission Control-like arrangement of the highest point of the Magic Mouse’s keys and move the pointer, or when you
only the current app’s windows. surface avoids an accidental click. drag a window to a screen edge.

36 Group by app 37 Assign to a space 38 Web Clips


In El Capitan, Mission Control presents With multiple spaces created, exit Many Dashboard widgets are better
windows the way very old versions of Mission Control, then hold ≈ and click served by Notifcation Centre these
OS X did, without any overlaps. When an app’s Dock icon. Under Options, the days, but one remains invaluable as a
dragging windows around to organise a three items under Assign To determine way to keep watch on website updates.
busy workspace, you may find it quicker the space where that app appears: on With Dashboard enabled, go to a site in
to (temporarily) turn on ‘Group windows all desktops; in whichever space you Safari, choose File > Open in Dashboard,
by application’ in Mission Control’s pane place it manually (None); or always in mark the region of the page you want to
in System Preferences, then drag from the space you’re currently viewing (This monitor, then click Add. In Dashboard,
the app icon at the bottom of a group to Desktop – there’ll be an instance of this click the ‘i’ at the bottom-right corner of
move all of that app’s windows at once. for each display that’s connected). the Web Clip to customise how it looks.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 31


Work smarter in Finder
Discover the many powerful productivity shortcuts in the Mac’s file manager
42 Select multiple items or a range
You can select a sequence of files in two
ways: either drag through them, or click
the first, hold ß, then click the last one
to select them and all between – this is
handy if the latter is initially out of sight
and you need to scroll down. To select a
scattering of files, hold ç and click each
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

one you want to add to your selection.


43 Check a folder’s location Turning on
the path bar (View > Show Path Bar)
shows the current folder’s location across
the bottom of its window. Double-click a
folder in the bar to jump to it, ç-click to
open it in a new window, or drag and drop
items onto one to move them there.
44 Check location from a title bar Save 54 Sidebar categories can be dragged to reorder them, or hidden by clearing checkboxes in Finder’s prefs.
space on a small display by ≈-clicking the
folder name in a Finder window’s title bar window’s title bar onto the Save dialog to Clipboard, switch to a messaging app, say,
as another way to jump to a higher folder. switch the dialog to that location. then press ç+v to paste the path.
45 Copy and paste or move files The 48 Set the default scope for searches 51 Type folder paths quickly Finder’s
title bar shortcut doesn’t allow for drag When you type in the search bar, or press Go to Folder command (ß+ç+G) has a
and drop, so it can help to memorise an å+ç+[spacebar] to create a Smart great productivity shortcut: type part of
extra keyboard shortcut. Naturally, ç+C Folder, the window’s options bar lists This a folder name, then press † to complete
and ç+v copy and paste items, but you Mac, the current folder (or Desktop), and it. If there are multiple matches, this fills
can instead press å+ç+v to move files Shared as search locations. In Finder’s in the first alphabetical one.
you’ve ‘copied’ to the Clipboard. Advanced preferences, you can tell it to 52 Check iCloud Drive’s progress
46 Spring open a folder When you drag default to either of the first two or your If files saved to iCloud Drive aren’t soon
items over a folder (or another tab or most recent choice in future. available on another device, look for an
window in Finder), it springs open. If the 49 Open in a new tab or window indicator next to Drive in Finder’s sidebar,
delay in doing so is too long, press the When you hold ç and double-click a or press å+ç+I and choose View >
Spacebar to instantly open the folder. The folder, it opens in a new tab or window – Show Status Bar for precise details.
delay is adjustable in System Preferences which you get depends on a setting at the 53 Navigate search suggestions
> Accessibility > Mouse & Trackpad. bottom of Finder’s General preferences. The suggestions shown when you type in
47 Quickly focus a Save dialog Saving 50 Copy the path to an item When you the search bar are categorised. Rather
a file for the first time means digging need to point someone to an item on a than reach for your mouse or trackpad to
down to the folder where you want to put network drive, you don’t need to type its choose an item lower down the list, use
it. If that folder is already open in a Finder path. Select a file or folder, then press ç+æ to jump down a category at a time.
window, just drag the icon from that å+ç+C to copy the full path to it to the This also works with Spotlight results.

55 Set a default view 56 Switching views 57 Arrange and sort


Finder can present the contents of your You may want to view one folder in The View > Arrange By menu contains
Mac’s storage in four ways – Icon, List, a particular view and deeper ones in options that group files and folders by
Column and Cover Flow views. Switch another – your Home folder in Icon view attribute. So, you may want to organise
between them using ç+1 through to and Documents in List view, say. Go to files by the apps used to create them,
ç+4. Each view offers a degree of the enclosing folder, set its view as you for example. Open the View menu and
customisation: press ç+J to change want it, press ç+J and put a check hold down å and you’ll see that
how the current view displays the folder mark next to ‘Always open in’, but not Arrange By changes to Sort By, which
you’re in, now and in future. To apply ‘Browse in’. Next, open a subfolder of contains similar options. These allow for
your choices to all folders, press Use as that one, set its view as you want, press sorting on a secondary attribute within
Defaults at the bottom of that window. ç+J and clear both of those options. Arrange By’s visual groupings.

58 Batch rename 59 Keyboard shortcuts 60 More shortcuts


Select more than one item in Finder and Finder’s sidebar contains shortcuts to Add a keyboard shortcut to any folder
choose File > Rename <some number of> various commonly used folders, but you by creating a Service in Automator that
Items. The dialog that opens lets you may have removed some of them. Even takes ‘no input’ in ‘Finder’. Add the Run
add or replace text in the items’ names, then, each of the default selection still Shell Script action and set its contents
or rename them to a format you specify. has a keyboard shortcut, listed in the to open, a space, then the folder’s path.
If this doesn’t offer enough flexibility, Go menu, that you can use to jump to Add a backslash (\) in front of every
consider Better Rename 9 (£14.99, Mac the corresponding place. These work in space in the path. Save the Service,
App Store), which offers a preview of Open and Save dialogs, too. Should you then add an App Shortcut for Finder
how file names will be affected before accidentally close a folder you need, in Keyboard preferences > Shortcuts,
you apply changes. use the Go > Recent Folders command. using the service’s exact name.

32 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


61 Adjust columns 62 Add attributes Organise using tags
In Column view, if a column is too In the List and Cover Flow views, hold
narrow to show filenames in full, ç and click a column heading to see
double-click the divider to its right to a few extra columns you can add, or to
extend it to the required width. Hold turn off any unwanted ones. The Date
å and double-click a divider to snap Added and Modified attributes are
all columns to their required widths. helpful in folders such as Downloads,
Alternatively, hold å and drag one and for the All My Files view that’s
divider to set all columns to the same automatically provided. Remember,
width. If these are hard to remember, you can click any column heading in
hold ≈ and click a divider, then pick these views to sort items based on it,
an option from the contextual menu. in descending or ascending order.

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


67 Add tags to a new file
When you first save a file, many apps offer
a field where you can add tags. Should you
neglect to add any, you don’t need to find
the file in Finder to do so retrospectively.
Just click the open document’s name in its
title bar. You can quickly move the file here
too, if you saved it to the wrong location.
63 Preview column 64 Quick Look
Each view can have a column added to Select one or more files, then press 68 Tag existing items
its right-hand side to preview whatever the Spacebar to open a Quick Look There are several ways to tag files and
single file is selected. Choose View > window, which you can resize. To go folders in Finder. First, you can ≈-click an
Show Preview Column to switch it on straight into a full-screen slideshow of item and choose from seven favourite tags
for the current view. This can give you the items, press å+[spacebar] . With near the bottom of the contextual menu.
a clue to a file’s contents without even a multiple selection, the button that Those seven can be changed in Finder’s
having to use Quick Look – you can shows four squares displays an index preferences: in the Tags tab, drag one from
even scroll through PDFs and some sheet, so you can jump straight to the top pane onto a position in the Favorite
other file types. The column can be another item. If an image doesn’t fill Tags box. In the top pane, click the circle to
resized by dragging the line to its left, the view, hold å to zoom in on it. the left of a tag to assign it a colour. Put a
and by adjusting the window’s height. Double-click a preview to open its file. check mark to the right of one to pin it to
Finder’s sidebar. Click a tag to rename it
(which propagates to files tagged with it),
or select it and click the – (minus) button to
delete it, which also removes it from files.

69 Favourite tags
You can drag items onto tags in the sidebar
to assign them. Alternatively, choose Tags
in the contextual menu or click the Edit
Tags button in the toolbar, then type one’s
name; matches appear as you type, so you
may not have to type the whole thing.
Select a match using the arrow keys and ®.
65 Cumulative total 66 Smart Folders
Pressing ç+I opens one summary Smart Folders (File > New Smart 70 Search on a tag
for each item that’s selected. Press Folder) find all files and folders that Type a tag name in a Finder window’s search
≈+ç+I for a cumulative total. match your criteria. When specifying bar and the suggested results will include
Press å+ç+I to open a similar rules, hold å and click an ellipsis (…) matches. Select one and the window will show
window that summarises everything button to the right to add a nested items that carry that tag. More complex
that’s selected, but the total here group of rules to match against more criteria based on tags can be constructed by
updates as your selection changes. flexibly (‘Any’) or to exclude results choosing Other as the attribute for a Smart
To see size totals in List view, press (‘None’). To amend a saved Smart Folder criterion, then selecting Tags in the list
ç+J and turn on ‘Calculate all sizes’; Folder, open it, click the cog in the of all available ones.
this info can take a while to appear, toolbar and pick Show Search Criteria.
especially on a traditional hard drive. Click Save to preserve your changes. 71 Turn a tag into a stack
Tags are a helpful way to keep track of all
the files associated with a project. Often
you’ll just click a tag in Finder’s sidebar to
see all the files that have it attached, but
there’s another way that doesn’t depend on
you having a Finder window to hand. Drag a
tag from Finder’s sidebar to the right-hand
side of the dividing line in the Dock to turn
it into a stack, then ≈-click the stack to set
its presentation and sort options.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 33


Turn the beat around with iTunes
Get more from your Mac’s music management app
72 The classic look 73 Go to current track 74 Only local music
If you prefer iTunes’ look of a few years Whether you’re listening to your own If you have an iTunes Match or an Apple
ago, with columns for selecting a genre, music library on shuffle or one of Apple Music subscription, you can hide the
artist or album across the top of the Music’s online radio stations, press items in your iCloud Music Library that
window, you can get something close to ç+l to jump to the album from which aren’t stored locally. Go to the My Music
it in iTunes 12. In the My Music view, set the current track originates. If you’ve view, then pick View > Only Downloaded
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

the option at the top-right corner to changed the view options (top right) Music. This is especially helpful for
Songs, then choose View > Column since starting playback of your own determining what’s stored on a portable
Browser > Show Column Browser. music, you’ll remain in that view. With Mac before going offline for some time.
Among the view options at the top right online radio, the New view becomes A reminder that you’re not viewing your
are artwork-related settings that make selected, but shows the album’s tracklist whole library appears across the top of
this layout look at least a little prettier. instead of its usual content. the view, with a shortcut to switch back.

75 Notifications 76 Clean your library 77 Stars and Loves


The app uses notifications to tell you A new setting in iTunes 12.3.3 avoids Since the introduction of Apple Music,
when a new track starts playing, and Apple Music tracks added to a playlist iTunes favours a system of rating tracks
what it is. However, you won’t find a way ending up in your library. So what about as ‘loved’, yet star ratings (out of five)
to turn this off when you select iTunes tracks added in the past? Though you are still available – and still useful for
in System Preferences’ Notifications can use a Smart Playlist to find them, making fine-grained Smart Playlists.
pane. Instead, go to iTunes’ own prefs, then add them to a regular playlist, if In iTunes’ preferences, click General,
click General, and then amend the two you select them in the former and press then set the Ratings item to Stars,
settings next to Notifications there, å+∫, references to them are deleted Loves or Stars & Loves. You may want
which control whether you’re informed from your library and playlists. To tidy to use both systems because loved
about track changes and whether up, you’ll need to add tracks to a playlist tracks influence suggestions that
they’re retained in Notification Centre. by searching Apple Music’s library again. appear in the For You page.

78 Auto-import media 79 Hide Apple Music 80 Enhance iTunes


There’s an often overlooked feature of Until iTunes 12.3.3, hiding Apple Music – Whether you want a quick way to tidy
iTunes that makes it easier to manage a the music suggestion pages and the up the metadata attached to tracks,
complete copy of your music library on Connect social side of things – would a fast way to resume whatever was
one Mac if you don’t use iCloud Music also disable iCloud Music Library, but playing before you last quit iTunes,
Library. From the folder that stores your not now. In iTunes’ General preferences, or you want to back up an extensive
iTunes library on that main Mac, add the ensure iCloud Music Library is switched collection of playlists and are battling
Automatically Add to iTunes folder on, then switch to the Restrictions tab against iTunes’ inability to export them
under File Sharing in the Sharing and put a check mark next to Connect more than one at a time, or some other
preferences pane. Now you can drop and Apple Music to hide them. This failing of iTunes is getting in your way,
iTunes-compatible files there over your leaves you with the My Music, Playlists you’ll probably find an AppleScript
network to add to your master library. and iTunes Store views. that’ll help at dougscripts.com.

34 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Master Safari
Top tips for getting more out of Apple’s web browser
81 Manage tabs 82 Favourites 83 Suggestions
Although you can have If there are sites you visit In Safari’s preferences,
loads of browser windows constantly and always need in the Search tab, turn on
on the screen, it’s tidier to quick access to, pin them to Include Safari Suggestions.
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

use Safari’s tabs. Pressing the tab bar. To get started, Now Safari’s Smart Search
ç+t gives you a new one. open a site in any window, Field (address bar) works
You can drag tabs around then choose Window > Pin rather like Spotlight in
to rearrange them or move Tab. The site’s icon will slide responding to certain search
them between windows. to the left end of the tab bar terms with more than just
To merge a web page from and subsequently appear in website suggestions. Type
a window that has only one every Safari window. There’s ‘weather’ and you’ll get a
tab with another window, no escape! OK, there is: drag local forecast. Enter a major
103 Subscribe
Choose View > Show
you’ll need to make the tab pinned tabs away from that sports team to get its latest
Shared Links Sidebar and
bar visible (choose View > end of the tab bar to unpin result. Suggestions also
then click Subscriptions.
Show Tab Bar). Window > them. You can rearrange include things you can buy
Here, you can add and
Merge All Windows gathers pinned tabs simply by on Apple’s online stores, and
track feeds from your
all tabs in a single window. dragging them left or right. Wikipedia article synopses.
Favorites, so you don’t miss
important posts. If you get
the bug, consider a full-on
84 Search sites 85 Full address 86 Notifications RSS client such as Reeder
If Quick Website Search is Presumably in an attempt to It’s not just apps that can (reederapp.com) and a
enabled in Safari’s Search be minimal and tidy, Safari bug you throughout the day. service like feedly.com.
preferences, you can bypass no longer by default displays Now websites can also ask
a website’s homepage to a web page’s full address in permission to fling alerts
search its contents. All you the Smart Search Field. Click your way. It’s all too easy to
have to do is search on the around apple.com, say, and accidentally allow this when
site once. After that point, the field’s contents will stay a site first asks permission,
start typing the site’s unchanged throughout your so it’s worth periodically
address in the Smart Search visit. If that’s unnerving or checking out Safari’s
Field, tap Tab when it’s the annoying, tick ‘Show full Notifications preferences.
first suggestion, then type website address’ in Safari’s There, you can allow or deny
your search term. Press ® Advanced preferences. The an individual site’s ability to
and you’ll automatically be field then shows addresses trigger notifications. If you
sent to the site’s results in full. (Even with this setting never want any site to ask
page for your search terms – off, the full address is shown you, there’s a switch here
quite a time-saver! when you click in the field.) that prevents them doing so.

87 Keyboard access If you don’t want


to enable full keyboard access (tip 5) 91 Web inspection 92 Get responsive
throughout OS X, use å+† to step Develop > Web Inspector lets you dive The Develop menu’s Enter Responsive
between every interactive item on a beneath the surface of any web page, Design Mode command gives you the
web page in Safari. exploring the code that makes it work. means to see how sites look in a range
88 The Develop menu In Safari’s Although really for developers to debug of devices. For iPhones, click the device
Advanced preferences, turn on ‘Show sites, the Timeline tab’s interesting in icons to switch between landscape and
Develop menu in menu bar’. If a page a geeky way for discovering a site’s portrait orientations. iPads have more
doesn’t work in Safari, rather than various components and how long they options to cycle through, taking into
copy and paste its address into another take to load, while Resources lets you account Slide Over and Split View. Note
browser, choose Develop > Open Page extract images from a site. (Obviously, that if a full-size view won’t fit in the
With, then a browser listed here, which don’t reuse stuff without permission.) browser window, it will be scaled.
Safari has detected on your Mac.
89 Change the user agent
By default, the Mac version of Safari
identifies itself as such, but you can 93 Disable things 94 Try Chrome
change this under User Agent in the There’s a bunch of Disable options in It might sound a bit odd to have a tip
Develop menu. This can be useful when the Develop menu. Generally speaking, that essentially says ‘use something
a site blocks Safari for some reason. we wouldn’t recommend messing with other than Safari’ here, but Google’s
Also, you can switch it to identifying them, but if you’re struggling with a Chrome comes with a built-in version
itself as Safari for iPad when visiting slow internet connection, temporarily of Flash Player. This means you can
sites that use Flash for video on a Mac. disabling images can be useful. uninstall Flash from your Mac, thereby
90 Bonjour In Safari’s Advanced Disabling caches (temporary storage removing it from Safari, but still use
preferences, you can add Bonjour to that helps pages load more rapidly) can Chrome as a fail-safe of sorts – say, to
the Favorites bar. Some hardware on help if you have a problem accessing a watch the odd bit of video that demands
your network may advertise its admin site. You can empty caches here, too. it, or to play a Flash-based game.
page under this item for convenience.

36 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


104 Top Sites
Apple seems quite keen on
the Favorites view for new
tabs, but you can click the
grid button at the top-right
corner of it to switch back to
the old Top Sites view, which
shows large previews of up
to 24 regularly visited sites.
106 iCloud tabs

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


Put the pointer over one for
options to pin or remove it. If you’re all connected up
to iCloud, you can access
tabs open on your other
devices. Either click the
Show All Tabs button and
scroll down to see them,
or click the iCloud Tabs
button. If either of these is
missing, add it by choosing
View > Customize Toolbar.

105 New focus 107 Favourites


Safari’s General prefs let you If you open the same set of
separately set what’s sites often, open them all in a
displayed in new windows single window and then go to
and new tabs. They can be Bookmarks > Add Bookmarks
set to Top Sites/Favorites, for These Tabs. Put them in
a user-defined ‘Homepage’, the Bookmarks menu and
or nothing. New windows can their folder there will contain
automatically open a folder an item at the bottom that
of bookmarks, but be wary lets you open the lot in just
that this can be slow. two clicks.

99 Grab some extensions In Safari’s


95 Manage downloads 96 Quick shortcuts Extensions preferences, click the Get
In Safari’s General preferences, you can In Safari’s Tabs preferences, there’s a Extensions button to add features to
choose where file downloads are sent. checkbox labelled ‘Use ç+1 through the browser. Also, search online for
If you don’t want them to go to your ç+9 to switch tabs’. If this is filled, more – Apple doesn’t list NoMoreiTunes
Downloads folder, select Other in the you can switch to any of the first nine (nomoreitunes.einserver.de), yet we like
pop-up menu. Should you want Safari open tabs in a window (including how that one stops the app opening on
to ask where to save each one, you can pinned ones) by pressing ç and a visiting iTunes Preview web pages.
specify that. There’s also a checkbox number. If you clear it, Safari reverts 100 Read things later Safari provides
regarding opening safe files. Clear it if to older behaviour, enabling you to use the means to stash pages to read later,
you don’t want your Mac to open docs, the same shortcuts to quickly access even when you’re offline. Place the
distracting you from what you’re doing. the first nine links on the Favorites bar. pointer over the address bar and click
the +. Choose View > Show Reading List
Sidebar to access saved pages.
101 Try Instapaper Alternatively, try
97 Access passwords 98 Local keychain the free Instapaper service (instapaper.
Safari’s Passwords preferences are The idea behind iCloud Keychain is to com), which not only saves web pages
worth exploring. Here you can enable save time on devices you approve to for later, but strips away cruft, leaving
or disable AutoFill for usernames and use it by storing account credentials, only text and images. It integrates with
passwords, and check the details it uses bank card details, and known Wi-Fi Safari through a free extension.
to sign into sites. The search bar here network information. By default, this 102 Share things Use the Share
filters the list, and double-clicking an information is backed up to iCloud, but button to add the page you’re reading
obfuscated password requests an by skipping the creation of an iCloud to your bookmarks, or to share it by
administrator username and password Security Code, it’s stored locally only email or on a social network you’ve
to reveal it – you can then copy and on approved devices. Apple can’t help signed into in the Internet Accounts
paste the password elsewhere. recover your keychain in this scenario. pane. Click More to manage the Share
menu’s contents.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 37


Remotely access Macs
Use screen sharing and network features to control and access other Macs
108 Use Messages 109 Use Spotlight 110 Access your Macs
Friends can temporarily access each Another way to quickly connect is to If you have several Macs, it pays to set
other’s Macs using Messages. Open a search for the Screen Sharing app in them up to share services over your
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

conversation and then click Details (or Spotlight. Opening it gives you a small network. You can do this in the Sharing
≈-click a contact in the sidebar and dialog box that needs the name or pane of System Preferences. Within that
choose Details). Click the overlapping Apple ID to connect to. Enter one and pane, you can give the Mac a unique
rectangles icon next to the contact’s click Connect. The recipient will receive name (handy if, for example, you have
name and invite them to share your a notification and be asked whether two Macs of the same type), and turn
screen or ask to see theirs. If control of they accept or decline the connection. on the likes of Screen Sharing and File
the screen isn’t granted, the viewer can If they agree, their desktop will appear Sharing. The defaults should be fine,
still click to highlight areas of it. in a window on your Mac. but you can limit access by accounts.

111 Browse storage 112 Remote control 113 Back to My Mac


Select the Mac you want to browse in To perform a task on another Mac Back to My Mac lets you connect to a
the Shared section of Finder’s sidebar, that requires you to control its screen, Mac over the internet. Both Macs must
then click Connect As at the top-right find that Mac under Shared in Finder’s be signed in to the same iCloud account,
corner of the window. Connect as a sidebar and click Share Screen. If you The feature must be switched on in
registered user, and provide your are already signed in on the other Mac, iCloud preferences on the remote Mac,
username and password. On doing so, its desktop should quickly appear, and along with ‘Wake for network access’ in
the other Mac’s folders appear in the response time should be pretty good the Energy Saver pane. With Back to My
Finder window. They can be browsed over a typical home network. If Edit > Mac checked in Finder’s preferences,
like local storage, and you can copy Shared Clipboard is on, you can easily you should be able to access files or
documents to the Mac you’re using. copy and paste between the two Macs. share screens as per the last two tips.

System Preferences
Make it easy to pick out a setting from the many your Mac offers

114 Speedy access 115 Fast navigation 116 Hide panes


Rather than clicking a pane’s icon in While in a preferences pane, you don’t If you find you never use certain panes
System Preferences, try opening the need to return to the full list to access and want to reduce clutter when at the
pane using Spotlight. Type the first few another. Click and hold the toolbar’s top level of System Preferences, choose
characters of a pane’s name and it’ll grid button for a list of all panes, or go View > Customize. Clear the check mark
likely be the top result. Alternatively, to the View menu (any item in which next to any pane you want to hide, then
if you keep System Preferences in the can be given a shortcut in Keyboard click Done. Note that any such panes
Dock, you can ≈-click its icon there preferences), or press ç+F and type remain accessible via any of the means
and then select the pane you want it to in the search field. When you’re at the outlined in previous steps. To undo,
show immediately upon opening from top level of the app, the last method choose Customize again and place a
an alphabetically ordered list. highlights relevant panes as you type. mark next to those you want back.

117 Reorder panes 118 Uninstallation 119 Hidden talents


By default, icons for preference panes Plenty of third-party utilities install as In recent versions of OS X, the Displays
are organised by category, but recent (or with) a System Preferences pane. pane doesn’t show everything right
versions of OS X no longer label those If you no longer use one, you can get rid away. To see recommended resolutions
categories. (The one with Displays used of it: ≈-click its icon and pick Remove. your monitor can handle, click Scaled.
to be called ‘Hardware’.) If you find it Note that some panes will be apps that To see all resolutions, hold å and click
tricky to locate a pane, choose View > have deep integration with the system Scaled (if Scaled is already selected,
Organize Alphabetically to reorder and may need an admin password to click ‘Default for display’ first). Hold å
them. Third-party panes are then proceed further. Also, if you continue to then click the Detect Displays button
integrated into the main list, though use an associated product but not the and the desktop should extend to any
the alternating row colours disappear. pane, consider hiding it instead. displays that aren’t automatically found.

38 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Tone down system animations
Use Terminal to zap animations and get a snappier Mac
120 Speedy Dock 121 Calm Launchpad 122 Launchpad pages
When the Dock is set to hide itself, the Launchpad uses a crossfade with a When you have multiple pages of apps
time it takes to slide in and out of view fairly subtle zoom. This can feel laggy in Launchpad, swiping or pressing ç

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


can get annoying. Get rid of the delay and cause problems for people with and an arrow key will trigger a dizzying
by entering defaults write com. vestibular conditions. Get rid of both full-screen slide transition. Disable this
apple.dock autohide-time-modifier the entry and exit animations by with defaults write com.apple.dock
-int 0; killall Dock. The Dock then entering defaults write com.apple. springboard-page-duration -float 0.
appears and disappears instantly. dock springboard-show-duration (On our Mac, using a trackpad after this
To simply shorten the delay before the -float 0; defaults write com.apple. command still nudged the icons a little
animation starts, enter defaults write dock springboard-hide-duration before snapping to the new page, but
com.apple.dock autohide-time- -float 0; killall Dock. This takes using keyboard shortcuts resulted in no
modifier -float 0.15; killall Dock. effect as soon as the Dock restarts. animation at all.)

123 Mission Control 124 The menu bar 125 Open and Save
Some Mission Control animation can be You might wonder at what point the When opening and saving documents,
removed by entering defaults write menu bar animates, given it seemingly the Open and Save dialogs typically
com.apple.dock expose-animation- stays rooted in place. When you put an animate in as a sheet, which can seem
duration -float 0. This seems to app in full-screen mode and then move sluggish and also, again, cause issues
disable animation for Mission Control the pointer to the top of the screen, for people with vestibular disorders.
and viewing the Desktop (ç+£), but the menu bar animates in a manner Kill the animation with defaults write
not for App Exposé if any windows are similar to an auto-hiding Dock. If that -g NSWindowResizeTime 0.001.
minimised. Also, if you have many open annoys you, disable the animation with Note here that a setting of 0 will not
windows, you may get a split-second defaults write -g NSToolbarFullScr work. (0.2 is the default.) Furthermore,
delay on first opening Mission Control eenAnimationDuration -float 0; any changes you make will only take
after running this command. killall SystemUIServer. effect after an app is restarted.

126 New windows 127 Reverse changes 128 TotalSpaces


In many apps, creating a new window All of the tips on this page trigger The animation we’d like to see the back
causes it to zoom in from the centre of ‘hidden’ settings buried deep in OS X, of is the sliding transition when moving
the screen, which seems unnecessary which, for whatever reason, Apple has between spaces and apps in full-screen
and can be a bit slow on older Macs. decided to not provide a graphical mode. Sadly, a Terminal command for
To kill this animation, use defaults interface for. Most can be reversed by modern flavours of OS X eludes us.
write -g NSAutomaticWindowAnim switching a 0 for a 1 or a NO for a YES. One solution is TotalSpaces2, which can
ationsEnabled -bool NO. On our Mac, Alternatively, use defaults delete disable these transitions. However, in
this seemed to take effect immediately; before a setting’s name, and any El Capitan it requires you to disable
but if that doesn’t happen, restarting an relevant killall command, like: defaults System Integrity Protection settings
app should be enough to have windows delete com.apple.dock autohide- (see bit.ly/tssip), so use extreme caution
instantly appear on prodding ç+n. time-modifier; killall Dock. when exploring this option.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 39


Hardware upgrades
Boost your Mac’s performance by improving its specs
129 Boost storage 130 Fusion power 131 A new hard drive
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

Add to your MacBook’s built-in storage Boost a desktop Mac by making a If you can’t make a Fusion Drive for a
with a flush-fit SD card designed for Fusion Drive, which combines fast flash desktop Mac, install a larger and faster
your model, such as the Nifty MiniDrive storage with the large capacity of your hard drive instead to give OS X more
(minidrive.bynifty.com). Older models hard drive in a single volume. This is breathing room. To do it yourself you’ll
with optical drives can have that one possible in OS X 10.8.2 onwards, and is need to be brave enough to dive deep
replaced by a 2.5-inch hard drive or SSD done using the command-line version inside your Mac’s internals, and have a
in a special caddy; as this gives you an of Disk Utility and Apple’s Core Storage suitable dust-free environment in which
extra volume for files, create a symbolic tech. The SSD is best fitted internally or to work. You’ll find detailed instructions
link for Documents, say, so it’s easier to to a Thunderbolt or USB 3 port. (See for many Mac models on ifixit.com,
access directly from your startup disk. MF296 for a full project on doing this.) complete with photos to guide you.

132 Use your cores 133 Add memory 134 Even more RAM
In Activity Monitor, choose Window > In many Macs, it’s possible to increase Even if you bought your Mac with the
CPU History to keep an eye on the load the amount of memory (RAM). Check maximum amount of memory provided
placed on your processor’s cores. Older yours in Ö > About This Mac > Support > by Apple, it may be capable of taking
versions of some apps may hog a single Hardware Support and look for memory more. Check the Mactracker app’s
core, leaving the other cores only lightly upgrade instructions, or use Mactracker current recommendations, which take
loaded. If that’s the case, consider (free, Mac App Store). Recent versions into account more recent availability of
upgrading to the latest release (check of OS X need 2GB, but benefit from 4GB larger memory modules. Don’t use RAM
for a trial), which may make better use and come alive with 8GB or more. If you models other than those recommended,
of multiple cores. Sadly not all tasks can have less than 4GB, look seriously at as different ones are unlikely to work
be split across cores in this way, though. this – you may be able to do it yourself. properly and could damage your Mac.

Second-hand selling
Essential steps for protecting your purchases and files when selling an old Mac

135 The right model 136 Prepare to sell 137 Deauthorise it


Ensure you list the correct model Ensure that you have copies of all Work systematically through all apps
designation, so the purchaser knows documents from your Mac when you that have required authorisation, such
exactly what they’re getting. Use the start preparing it for sale. If you’re as Adobe products and QuarkXPress,
exact name given in the About This Mac unsure, clone its drive to an external and deauthorise them from that Mac –
dialog; though bought in mid-2014, your one so that you have a copy even after check with its publisher’s site or help
27-inch iMac may be a Late 2013 model. you wipe the Mac’s storage. Check that desk if you don’t know how. Deauthorise
Add the identifier shown when you click you have registration information for all the Mac from your iTunes and App
System Report, such as iMac17,1. Other apps installed on it too. It’s a good idea Store accounts, and sign out of iCloud
details, such as memory and storage to keep copies of your keychain and and similar services. This is better done
type and size, are important too. other important data too. on the Mac, as it’s more complex later.

138 Wipe older OS X 139 Wipe new OS X 140 Recycle wisely


If your Mac’s on OS X 10.6.8 or earlier, On more recent versions of OS X, start If you can’t sell or store your old Mac,
make an external boot disk or use an up in OS X Recovery (ç+r) or from a or donate it to charity, then recycle it.
install DVD. Start up from that, open USB disk (see apple.co/1Mq5cca). Open Prepare as if selling it, and wipe its hard
Disk Utility, then erase the internal drive Disk Utility, select your startup disk and drives. Erase each one to minimise any
completely to prevent the purchaser click Erase. Set the slider for performing risk of someone recovering data. Once
recovering your old files. The benefits multiple passes to an appropriate level shut down, remove the hard drives.
of multiple passes are debated by some, for the sensitivity of data on the drive. Smash them with a sledgehammer on
but, generally, the more sensitive your When erasing’s complete, reinstall OS X, a hard surface until the cases are well
files, the more passes you should make. then press ç+q once the Mac restarts opened and the platters are physically
Once erased, install OS X afresh. and invites you to select your country. disrupted or destroyed.

40 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Software-based updates
Learn how to tackle problems caused by troublesome software updates
141 Update server 142 Download updates 143 Combo curative
If you have several Macs, including one Instead of an update server, download If you’re left with strange issues after an

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


which you can leave running, install large updates for things like OS X from OS X update that can’t be fixed by other
OS X Server on the latter and set up its Apple’s support pages, rather than means, such as changing preferences,
Caching service. This keeps a copy of updating each Mac from the App Store. download that version’s Combo updater
software updates, App Store apps, and Use smaller ‘delta’ packages when from Apple’s support site and install it
some iCloud data. Macs running recent only upgrading to the next release, over your current installation: you may
versions of OS X then obtain updates or Combo updaters to move up more find your problems suddenly vanish.
from that server, saving download time than one minor version at a time. This can also restore normal function
and bandwidth. If any of your Macs use Copy updates to a common shared to a Mac App Store app that refuses to
iCloud, encrypt the server’s drive that’s folder on one Mac, or onto a USB flash offer updates. It’s not a universal cure,
used to cache, for privacy and security. drive to connect to each Mac in turn. but worth trying when other ideas fail.

144 Fix permissions 145 Disk first aid 146 Check manifests
When updating or upgrading versions of Sometimes updates can result in (or App installers (PKG files) that leverage
OS X prior to El Capitan, use Disk Utility worsen existing) disk problems. Running OS X’s built-in Installer app can be
to repair permissions on your startup Disk Utility’s First Aid feature is a good manually uninstalled by working out
disk after performing system software first-line treatment for such issues. It’s what was added and where. To see the
installations. This often fixes otherwise most effective when run from a volume full list of everything in a package, open
puzzling problems. It’s neither so easy other than your usual startup disk; use it and choose File > Show Files to display
nor so useful to do this in El Capitan OS X Recovery if it’s available. Beware a textual listing. This doesn’t include
due to System Integrity Protection (SIP), that some errors, such as cross-linked additional files created by the app post-
which prevents things tampering with files, are likely to lead to some data loss, install, such as preferences or additional
most system files, except for Apple hence the importance of ensuring you folders it may create in Library folders,
installers or in Recovery mode. have good backups before updating. but it helps you know what to remove.

147 App receipt list 148 Silent updates 149 Keep a fallback
All software updates and installations, Yosemite and El Capitan now undergo Before updating any app you depend
except those you perform by manually silent updates to security files, which on, ensure you either have a good Time
moving files, are recorded in the file may have odd effects. An update to the Machine backup of it, or make an extra
InstallHistory.plist in /Library/Receipts, XProtect security blacklist, say, might copy of the previous version. Should an
in chronological order from top to disable an old version of Flash or Java. update turn out to be dysfunctional,
bottom. If you’re unsure what has been Updates which affect SIP can disable or vital features are broken or missing,
installed or when, select that file in hardware such as network ports when you can then revert to your fallback
Finder and press the Spacebar to open your Mac is next started up. If you think copy and work normally again, waiting
it using Quick Look, then scroll to the a silent update has altered your Mac, for a further update to fix the problems.
end. Never edit the original: to browse check /Library/Receipts/InstallHistory. Make sure automatic updates aren’t
it in a text or XML editor, use a copy. plist to see what has occurred. enabled, so that you keep control.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 41


Text editing and replacement
Speed up working with text and adding characters and emoji to your documents
150 Master the basics It can pay to keep
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

your hands on the keyboard and not get


distracted by finding items in the menu
bar. Try to memorise commonly used
shortcuts, especially Cut (ç+x), Copy
(ç+C), Paste (ç+v), Undo (ç+z)
and Select All (ç+A).
151 Learn formatting basics Whether
you’re working on a formatted rich-text
document or a Markdown file, you will
sometimes need to emphasise text.
You can typically make a selection bold,
italic or underlined by pressing ç+B,
ç+I, or ç+U, respectively.
152 Paste and match styles In some
apps, you’ll find the text style comes
along for the ride when you paste a 161 To select a range of words, double-click the first one in it, hold ß, then click the last one.
copied selection into another document.
(To see this happen, copy from Safari insertion point one word at a time. ç+“ shortcuts used by Emacs, a text editor
and paste into TextEdit.) To avoid this or ç+‘ moves to the start or end of the favoured by programmers. One is really
happening, use Edit > Paste and Match current line. å+æ or å+æ moves to the handy: ≈+o adds a new line after the
Style (or press å+ß+ç+v). start or end of the paragraph (usually — insertion point.
153 Align text Most languages have a some apps vary), and ç+… or ç+æ 159 Hold for extended characters
default text alignment (for example, left jumps to the start or end of the document. If you can’t recall shortcuts for accented
for English). You may want to override this 155 Shift to select Hold ß as part of and other common special characters,
for stylistic reasons, in order to make any of the previous tip’s shortcuts to hold the key for the basic letter form.
headings or quotes stand out. OS X’s make a selection as you go. A pop-over menu will provide options:
default keyboard shortcuts for align left, 156 Select with pointer Double-click to pressing the number below the one you
centre and right involve holding ç and select a word, or triple-click to select its want will insert it. So for é, hold e and
pressing {, |, or } respectively. Note that paragraph. Keep the button held on the then press 2 when the pop-over appears.
alignment is only available in some text last press and then drag to extend the 160 Show the character viewers
editors, and shortcuts may vary — selection in whole words or paragraphs. The rest of this page explores OS X’s
Microsoft Word, for example, has its 157 Delete more easily To get rid of the character viewers, which make it easier
own ideas about what you should press. character to the left of the insertion point, to find all sorts of exotic glyphs to insert
154 Use arrow keys The arrow keys press ∫. To delete in the other direction, into a document. In System Preferences >
move the insertion point a character or use ƒ+∫. Press å+∫ to remove an Keyboard > Input Sources, turn on ‘Show
line at a time, but you can make larger entire word, or ç+∫ for an entire line. input menu in menu bar’ to add an icon
jumps by combining them with modifier 158 Insert a new line Apple’s system- you can click to open the Emoji & Symbols
keys. Press å+“ or å+‘ to move the level text-editing system supports window or the Keyboard Viewer.

162 Keyboard Viewer 163 Emoji & Symbols 164 Customise


Open Keyboard Viewer from the menu Choose Show Emoji & Symbols from Click the cog at the top-left corner of
bar. Its representation of your keyboard the menu bar icon mentioned earlier. the Characters window to customise it.
reflects any keys that are pressed. Hold The Characters window is displayed as Character size can be adjusted, which is
one or more modifier keys (ß, ç, å) a floating window belonging to the app good for more easily telling characters
and it shows characters available when you opened it from (several instances of apart. (The window can be resized to
using them in combination with specific it can exist, each from a different app accommodate this.) The Customize List
keys. Hold å and some keys go orange and in different places on the screen). item reveals a list of categories. Those
to indicate all those you can hold in Select a category to filter the list, or use that are checked appear in the window’s
order to call up the pop-over of the Search field to find a specific one, sidebar. Symbols in hidden categories
accented characters described earlier. such as ‘phone’ emoji or the letter ‘eth’). remain accessible in search results.

165 Favourites 166 Pop-over window 167 View fonts


If there are symbols you want faster If you click the button at the top-right Some text editors have built-in palettes
access to, you have two options. First, corner of the Characters window, it for adjusting fonts, but many still enable
those you use often are automatically collapses into a simpler form, with a you to work with OS X’s Fonts window,
collected under Frequently Used (its search field at the top, then frequently accessed using ç+t. Use the window
contents can be cleared from an option used and favourite symbols. Categories to select a font and size, picking from
behind the cog). Alternatively, build a can be accessed by clicking icons at the collections in the sidebar. If there are
favourites list: select any symbol and foot of the window. If not already open specifics you use often, add them to
click Add to Favorites. This may seem in its larger version, this window can be Favorites by clicking the cog and
like more work, but it’s beneficial with called upon as a pop-over in many apps choosing Add to Favorites. Pick Show
the pop-over version of this window. by pressing ≈+ç+[spacebar]. Preview there to check your choices.

42 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


168 Replacements 169 Have a system Choose your corrections
In Keyboard preferences, click Text. When defining replacements, don’t
On the left is a large area that enables use plain words. For example, if you
you to configure OS X’s system-wide set ‘email’ to become your full email
text replacement feature. There are address, every typed instance of that
two columns: Replace and With. When word would be replaced. We suggest

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


something in the former is typed (in a prefixing the text to replace with a pair
compatible app), it’s replaced by what of symbols, such as two commas, that
is next to it in the latter. Add an entry you’re unlikely to use in typical writing.
by clicking the + button, and use the – A comma is easy to access on iOS too;
(minus) button to remove one that’s text replacements sync to iCloud and
selected. Be mindful; there’s no undo. your other devices signed in to it.

174 Enable autocorrect


Under Text in the Keyboard preferences
pane are options for activating spelling
correction (which defaults to automatic
by language). In many apps, you may have
to manually turn on spelling correction: go
to Edit > Spelling and Grammar, and activate
170 Symbols 171 Your details the relevant options (Check Spelling While
When used in tandem with the Beyond symbols that aren’t easy to Typing and Correct Spelling Automatically).
Character window, text replacements access normally from the keyboard,
can be powerful and a real time-saver. text replacement is handy for 175 Make corrections
For example, type ,,musicalnote in speeding up text you write regularly. When something’s typed that OS X thinks is
the Replace column, and in the With For example, if you have a blog, you wrong, a pop-over suggests an alternative.
column press ≈+ç+[spacebar] to could use ,,blog and the replacement Its suggestion will be used as a replacement
open the pop-over, then type ‘note’ in could be its address. Similarly, you can if you continue typing (and the new word
the search field. Click the note to use. cut down how long it takes to type out will be temporarily underlined blue). Press
You can employ similar thinking for your email address, by replacing ç+z to revert it. If OS X often changes
emoji, or in shortcuts for star ratings, ,,email (or a specific service, such as something that’s correct, ≈-click the
such as ,,threestars for +++++. ,,gmail) with the relevant address. reverted word and choose Learn Spelling.

176 Use substitutions


The aforementioned location contains
settings for using smart quotes and dashes
in documents. These also sometimes need
to be activated manually, which you can do
in most apps by turning on the relevant
options under Edit > Substitutions.

177 Show substitutions


You can get more of an overview of which
settings in Edit > Substitutions are active by
choosing Show Substitutions in that menu.
172 Multiline text 173 Go further This brings up the floating Substitutions
With careful planning, OS X’s text window, with checkboxes for activating
Although it’s not really set up for
replacement system is hugely useful, smart dashes, smart links, text replacement,
multiline text replacements, OS X’s
but it has drawbacks – notably, some and various kinds of smart quotes. OS X will
built-in system can accept them.
shortcuts taking time to become typically pick appropriate options for your
This means it’s feasible to have the
active (sometimes requiring an app primary language, but you can override it
likes of ,,address be replaced by a
restart), and limitations to formatting here, if, say, writing in English, but adding
properly formatted address — simply
a quote that needs French-style marks.
hold å when pressing ® after each and content. If you feel restricted, try
line. Alternatively, you can type your TypeIt4Me (£14.99, ettoresoftware.
text into TextEdit, copy it, then click in com), which enables images, advanced 178 Use smart links
formatting, markup and macros, with When you’re working with rich text, OS X
the relevant space in the With column
can intelligently transform plain text into
and paste it by pressing ç+v. better tools for managing snippets.
clickable links. So, you can type in an email
or web address, and later click on it to open
Mail or Safari, respectively. For the most
part, OS X picks up web addresses in the
format apple.com – continue typing and the
text will become a link. Sometimes, esoteric
domain name suffixes trip it up. When that
happens, try prefixing the text with ‘www.’
(without quotes, and if relevant) or http://.
Note that an individual link can be removed
by ≈-clicking it and choosing Remove Link.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 43


Notifications
Gain more control of your notifications – including those from iOS!
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

179 Make it quiet 180 Quick peeks 181 Sort order


If you want some quiet time, suspend If a notification disappears from view If you receive a lot of notifications,
notifications with Do Not Disturb. This before you get a chance to read it, you make stuff easy to find by selecting
can be scheduled in the Notifications needn’t move the pointer to the menu a sort order that suits you at the
preferences pane, or manually turned bar to open Notification Centre. If you bottom of the Notifications preferences
on: scroll up in Notification Centre for a have a trackpad, swipe two fingers in pane. Recents is reverse-chronological,
switch, or å-click Notification Centre’s from its right edge (check this gesture’s and Recents by App is the same, but
menu bar icon. Do Not Disturb can be enabled in the Trackpad preferences grouped by app. For a custom order,
important if you have a 2015 MacBook, pane), or set a keyboard shortcut for the select Manually by App, then drag items
which may wake up for ‘enhanced same effect under Shortcuts > Mission on the left into the order you want them
notifications’ — see apple.co/23ocK6L. Control in the Keyboard pane. to appear in Notification Centre.

182 Hidden options 183 Think privacy 184 iOS notifications


In the Notifications pane, some apps, If your Mac’s in a shared space where Continuity features in OS X and iOS
such as Mail and Messages, have extra people might see personal messages, are intended to make your devices work
options beyond the usual ones, but you be mindful that notifications default to better together, but they don’t extend
may find further settings exist within an previewing messages, even on the Lock to notifications. Those received on your
app’s own preferences. For example, in screen. To prevent this, select a relevant iPhone or iPad don’t appear on your
Mail’s General preferences, the ‘New app in the Notifications pane, then turn Mac (unless an equivalent Mac app also
message notifications’ item can restrict off ‘Show notifications on lock screen’. shows it). Third-party apps fill this gap:
notifications to your inbox, VIPs or a If you leave that on, you can turn off the put Pushbullet on your iOS device and
Smart Mailbox – great for being alerted item immediately below to see only an PushPal (£2.29) or the free Pushbullet
to emails that need immediate attention. indication of who has contacted you. extension for Chrome on your Mac.

Security settings
Understand more about locking down your Mac and keeping everything safe

185 Extra protection 186 Reset password 187 Assistive apps


Your account’s login password won’t If a user’s login (not firmware) password Some apps, such as window managers
help if a thief starts it up from another is lost or forgotten, an admin can reset and dictation software, use accessibility
disk, so set a firmware password to stop it in the Users & Groups pane: click the features to control your Mac. When first
them doing that. A firmware password padlock and unlock the pane, select a opened, they’ll likely direct you to allow
can be set by starting in OS X Recovery user, then click Reset Password and set this (old apps may direct you to an out-
(hold ç+r at the startup sound). Pick a new one. For an admin password, you of-date place). In System Preferences >
Utilities > Firmware Password Utility, can attempt to sign in until challenged Security & Privacy > Privacy, unlock the
click Turn On Firmware Password, set to use an Apple ID, or, if FileVault is pane with admin credentials, select
a password, quit the app, then restart turned on, potentially use the steps Accessibility in the sidebar and enable
your Mac. Don’t forget this password! Apple outlines at apple.co/1TLWPJx. apps you want to have this capability.

188 Gatekeeper 189 Parental controls 190 System protection


This feature restricts what apps can run Although designed to create limited El Capitan introduced System Integrity
according to their source, to reduce the accounts for children, the Parental Protection (SIP) to protect system files,
likelihood of installing malware. It offers Controls preferences pane has other which stops tools that used to patch the
three options in the Security & Privacy uses. Because you can explicitly limit system from working. It can be disabled
pane, under General: Anywhere gives access to apps and services, it can be (though it’s not generally advised) using
total freedom, essentially turning off a useful means of setting up a Standard csrutil disable in Recovery’s Terminal.
Gatekeeper; Mac App Store only lets account to work like the Guest one, but You can disable bits of it – TotalSpaces 2
apps from there run; and the middle without everything being lost at logout. works with csrutil enable --without
item also allows apps from other places At any point, an admin can delete or debug – but there’s no guarantee such
that are signed by identified developers. adjust settings for managed accounts. commands will exist in future updates.

44 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Pages, Numbers and Keynote
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

Boost your productivity with these essential iWork techniques


191 Text styles 192 Capitalise 193 Apply styles
Styles help with consistency Click the cog in the Text pane You can apply styles quickly
and make it easier to change of the Format sidebar, next to by pressing ! through to *.
things later on. Select some the Bold, Italic and Underline In the Format sidebar, click
text, choose the Title style in buttons, for a capitalisation the downwards-pointing
the Format sidebar, then set option. Select some text and triangle next to the style
the formatting options as you you can force it to uppercase, name, place the pointer to
want them. The asterisk next for example. Note that the the right of the style you
to ‘Title’ indicates the text’s mixed- or lowercase text you want to associate with a
look is based on that but typed is still stored that way function key and click the
doesn’t use it exactly. Click behind the scenes; it’s merely rightwards-pointing chevron
Update to amend the style transformed for display. This that appears, then pick a 214 Spacing
and every instance of it. is really handy if you start function key under Shortcut. Although you don’t have
To make a new style, format with an All Caps caption style, To use the shortcut on Macs fine-grained kerning
some text, click the triangle for example, but change your without dedicated function control between just two
next to its name, then + in the mind – so long as you wrote in keys, hold ƒ and press the characters in Pages, you
pop-up, and name your style. mixed case to begin with. corresponding number key. can tweak the spacing for
a word or a longer piece
of text from the cog menu
next to the Bold, Italic and
194 Cascade 195 Placeholders 196 Templates Underline buttons in the
If you always switch to your If you frequently update the Once you’ve set up your Format sidebar.
Body style after using images in a document, make styles, letterheads and so on,
another one you’ve made use of Media Placeholders, you can easily share the
called Pullquote, for example, onto which you can drag and template with others. Choose
you can instruct Pages to drop new images. Images are File > Save as Template. You’ll
automatically switch to the scaled and cropped to the be given the option of adding
Body style when you press ® correct size, and object styles it to your Template Chooser –
after typing something in the set on the placeholder are the gallery that pops up when
latter style. To set up this applied to them. Set up an you create a new document –
rule, select a piece of text image how you want it (with or saving the file externally to
that’s formatted with the crops, borders, reflections share with others; they only
Pullquote style, then click and so on), then pick Format > need to double-click the
More in the Format sidebar Advanced > Define as Media .template file, and they’ll be
and ensure Body is selected Placeholder. Images in given the option of adding it
for the Following Paragraph placeholders can be scaled to the Template Chooser for
Style option. and moved within them. their copy of Pages.

197 Custom bullet points Pages lets


you use anything you like as the bullet 202 Extend formulae 203 Concatenate
point for a list. Set your list to use text Select a cell that contains a formula, The ampersand symbol (&) has a special
bullets, then replace the • with any then move the pointer to the centre of function on a spreadsheet: to bring
character. (Press ≈+ç+[spacebar] to one of its edges and drag the yellow together values from other cells into
browse for one.) Image bullets let you handle that appears across adjacent one. It treats them as strings of text,
use any graphic on your Mac. cells. Numbers is smart enough to not mathematically, and it’s handy for
198 The default template In Pages’ update cell references in the formula to grouping stuff. So, with surnames in
preferences, you can specify which be relative to each newly filled cell. This column A, forenames in B, and titles
template to use when you press ç+N. also works with a series of numbers or in C, entering =C2&" "&B2&" "&A2 in
If you then want a different one, hold dates; enter at least two, then select column D would concatenate those
å and pick File > New from Template them and drag from the yellow border. values with spaces between them.
Chooser, or just press å+ç+N.
199 Copy and paste styles If you
won’t reuse settings for text, a picture
or a shape extensively then, rather 204 Special cell types 205 Interpret types
than define a style, select the object, Numbers supports some special cells If you want to have a formula act on the
choose Format > Copy Style, select that make it really easy to enter certain data in special cell types, look at the
another, then Format > Paste Style. kinds of data. These include clickable window’s bottom-left corner and you’ll
200 Lock objects Select an object, checkboxes, star ratings, and pop-up see what the actual, behind-the-scenes
then press ç+l to prevent changes menus so you can pick from a range value that’s recorded in that cell is – for
and deletion. To make changes to the of predetermined values. With a cell example, it’s FALSE for an unchecked
object, select it and press å+ç+l. selected, open the Format sidebar’s Cell checkbox and TRUE for a checked one.
201 Carriage returns in cells pane and click the Data Format pop-up This tells you what values to enter in
Pressing ® usually goes to the next menu at the top of it, then pick one of your formula – to check a special cell’s
cell down in Numbers. Use å+® to the last group of five formats. condition using the IF function, say.
move to a new line in the same cell.

46 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


215 Toolbar
You can customise the
toolbar in many apps, yet
it’s really useful in iWork.
Choose View > Customize

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


toolbar, then drag features
you use often onto the
toolbar, drag out those you 217 Format
don’t, and rearrange and You can have cells change
group the buttons using their appearance based on
spaces and flexible spaces. whether criteria are met,
such as making a total red
if you go over budget.
Select the cells to act on,
open the Format sidebar’s
Cell pane, and then click
Conditional Highlighting
to set rules and styles.

218 Highlights
It’s easy for your eye to skip
a row or a column, so hold
å while the pointer is over a
cell to highlight the cell’s row
and column in blue. (If you
do this often, consider using
Numbers’ Alternating Row
216 Live counts Color formatting option,
Pages has a live word count, which makes it easier to read
which you can activate from across wide spreadsheets.)
the View menu or button.
Click it to see other stats
about your doc or selected
text, and choose which stat’s
always visible. You can also
drag the counter anywhere
on the page, or snap it to the
document’s horizontal centre.

210 Set default text style If you find


206 Organise slides 207 Combine actions yourself setting the same styles on
Keynote lets you organise your slides Select an object, click Animate in the
every text box you create in Keynote,
into sections. Grab one or more slides in toolbar, Action, then Add an Effect.
do it once, then pick Format > Advanced
the left pane (hold ç when selecting Pick from the list of basic effects to
> Set as Default Text Box Appearance.
them) and as well as being able to move make it move, rotate, resize or change
Existing boxes are unaffected by this.
them up and down, you can group them opacity. Extra actions run in sequence
211 Share a link or a copy When you
by dragging them a little to the right. by default. To run them at the same
choose Share > Share Link via iCloud,
Afterwards, click the triangle next to the time, apply your first one, click Add
anyone with the link can access your
group’s top slide to collapse it. You can Action again, set up the new action,
document, and their changes (if you’ve
skip slides too: select some, ≈-click one click Build Order, click the new action
allowed editing) are reflected in your
of that selection, and choose Skip Slide. and change On Click to With Build 1.
copy. Choose Share > Send a Copy to
give them a copy independent of yours.
212 Share a collection of files Create
a Pages, Keynote or Numbers doc, then
208 Make templates 209 Distribute slides add and select some text (or an object
Once you’ve changed a template’s It’s easy to distribute a presentation. in Keynote) and add a link to it (Format
Master Slides (choose View > Edit Choose Play > Record Slideshow and > Add Link); paste the link to another
Master Slides) you can save it out for walk through it, recording yourself doc hosted on iCloud as the target. Add
colleagues to use by choosing File > speaking as you go. (Make sure the more links, then share this master list.
Save Theme. To build a template from correct mic is selected by å-clicking 213 Reduce shared file sizes Choose
scratch, you’re probably best picking the volume icon in the menu bar.) File > Advanced > Reduce File Size to
the White template and amending that. You can pause recording at any point. remove detail in high-resolution images
Delete the slide types you don’t want, Once done, choose File > Export To > and delete parts of media beyond your
add any extras you need, and set them QuickTime and set the Playback option chosen in and out points. This can help
up how you want them before saving. to Slideshow Recording. large docs fit in iWork for iCloud’s 1GB
limit and reduce upload/download time.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 47


System maintenance
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

Indispensable tools for fixing problems and keeping data secure

219 At startup 220 Top folders 221 Check logs


The most commonly useful The /System/Library folder When your Mac keeps 242 Image type
startup key combos are: and hidden ones like /bin spinning the wait cursor, When most disk images get
ß to enter Safe Mode; å to and /sbin are covered by apps quit unexpectedly, backed up by Time Machine,
select an alternative startup System Integrity Protection or just isn’t working right, the whole image is copied
disk; D to start a hardware (SIP) as they contain vital browse the logs immediately no matter how small the
diagnostics test, if available, files; In /Library are items in Console. In it, select All changes to it. Sparse bundle
or hold å as well to start it common to all users, such Messages and look for clues disk images start out small
over the internet; ç+r to as most app support files, to explain what went wrong. and grow as you add to
enter OS X Recovery, or fonts, scripts, and more. Entries are chronological. them – Time Machine only
hold å too for the online Your user’s Library folder Many processes are named backs up the changed parts
version; ç+å+p+r to (in Finder, hold å and as if they are websites in to be more economical.
reset NVRAM (see bit.ly/ choose Go > Library) holds reverse – com.apple.WebKit,
mf-nvram); ç+s or ç+v user-specific support and for example, which refers to
for single-user or verbose preferences, and sandboxes Apple’s WebKit components
mode (bit.ly/mfsuverb); and for Mac App Store apps in that support Safari and
t for target disk mode. the Containers folder there. other internet connectivity.

222 Auto-start 223 Caches 224 Go to sleep


Apps listed under Login Apps store temporary data Macs should sleep when
Items in the Users & Groups in cache files in /Library/ inactive for the delay set in
pane open when you log in Caches, ~/Library/Caches, the Energy Saver pane, or
to your account. However, and hidden system folders when you shut a MacBook’s
each Library folder can such as /tmp. These can get lid. If yours won’t, this may
contain LaunchAgents and overburdened, orphaned, or result from a process
LaunchDaemons, XML files corrupted, losing free disk preventing it. Open Activity
that control many periodic space and causing unwanted Monitor, and add a column
and background processes, behaviour. Starting in Safe to the table of processes
and more, which are run Mode cleans some caches, by ≈-clicking the column
automatically by the system including fonts. Go through header row: select the
launcher, launchd, and each folder trashing caches, Preventing Sleep item in
controlled at the command but be careful of what you the contextual menu, which
line by launchctl. Use Lingon remove. Tools such as helps to identify what’s
(peterborgapps.com) or TinkerTool System can clean preventing sleep, and then
similar to manipulate them. caches – see bit.ly/mfcac. quit those processes.

225 Delete broken aliases To clear


out aliases that are broken, TinkerTool 229 Stay smart 230 Use permissions
System (£12.82, bresink.com) can find Use a tool such as DriveDx (binaryfruit. Don’t just leave disk, folder and file
and delete them when you give it a com) or SMART Utility (bit.ly/1S7Kga9) permissions at their defaults. They’re
volume or a folder as a starting point. to keep a watch on the SMART status of intended to protect your own files and
226 Hide folders Keep private hard drives. Drives can still fail out of folders, just as much as for system use.
documents from prying eyes by putting the blue, but this tech can give early Select items to protect, press ç+I (or
them in a folder in Documents, then warning and enable you to prepare by ≈+ç+I for multiple files), then refine
enter in Terminal: chflags hidden, backing up and replacing them. You’ll access under Sharing & Permissions.
type a space, then drag the folder onto need to install an extension to check the To control more subtle aspects, such as
Terminal’s window and press ®. You status of USB and FireWire drives, which inheritance using Access Control Lists
can still use Finder’s Go > Go to Folder OS X normally can’t monitor. (ACLs), use MacPilot (koingosw.com).
command to open the folder again.
227 Repeat keys If you don’t want to
see accented key options when you
hold a key, but want the key to repeat, 231 Hidden tools 232 Check tasks
enter in Terminal: defaults write -g The /System/Library/CoreServices Some of the tasks running on your Mac
ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool folder and Applications within it contain may be puzzling or suspicious. To check
false then log out and in. To return to valuable tools for solving problems: which are genuine or might result from
accents, replace false with true. Archive Utility, with more compression adware or malware, use TaskExplorer
228 Lock keepers Protect important and decompression options than Finder; (objective-see.com). It checks network
files from inadvertently being trashed Network Utility, with various graphical connections, code signatures, and more,
by locking them when not being edited. network tools, Wireless Diagnostics for and returns a malware risk assessment
Select them in Finder, press ç+I and testing Wi-Fi; and Network Diagnostics from VirusTotal (virustotal.com). It isn’t
put a check mark next to Locked under for general network testing. All but the a substitute for antivirus checks, but
General. Attempting to trash locked last can be opened from Spotlight. should form part of your protection.
files prompts for confirmation.

48 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


243 Images
When moving sensitive
data and documents

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


around, particularly those
covered by the Data
Protection Act, store them
in encrypted disk images.
When the image contains
personal information
protected by law, choose
256-bit AES encryption.

245 FileVault
A Mac that could be lost or
stolen, and which contains
sensitive data, particularly
that covered by the Data
Protection Act, should be
encrypted using FileVault.
Turn this on in the Security
& Privacy pane, and keep
copies of the keys separate
for recovery purposes.

244 Secure disk 246 Restore


Volumes on external hard Disk images are ideal for
disks and SSDs, and non- keeping a restorable image
bootable internal ones, can of a clean Mac configuration.
be erased to a format with To restore from a disk image,
encryption to store sensitive start in OS X Recovery, open
or personal data. In Disk Disk Utility there, erase the
Utility, select a volume, destination volume, select
click Erase, and select that volume, choose Edit >
OS X Extended (Journaled, Restore, then browse to
Encrypted) as the format. and choose the image.

237 Burn a CD/DVD Burning optical


233 Complete backup 234 Tune backups discs has been removed from Disk
Keeping a complete backup of your Time Machine runs its automated Utility, but still works just fine in Finder.
startup volume enables you to get up backup service once an hour while Put files in a Burn folder, or select them
and running as quickly as possible in the your Mac’s awake. Adjust that in Time all and choose File > Burn to Disc (or its
event of disk or other hardware failure. Machine Editor (timesoftware.free.fr) equivalent in the contextual menu).
Time Machine is easy to set up and use, which takes over control of backupd, 238 Burn DVD-Video Authoring discs
but takes a while to restore to another the background service which runs the in DVD-Video format isn’t possible on a
drive. You can use Carbon Copy Cloner backups. You can no longer change it new Mac since iDVD was axed, but Burn
(bombich.com) or SuperDuper! (shirt- manually in the com.apple.backupd- (burn-osx.sourceforge.net) can do it.
pocket.com) to periodically update a auto.plist file as that’s protected by 239 Test restore Never just assume
bootable copy of your system and apps. SIP, and so could break Time Machine. that Time Machine backups are working
okay. Every few weeks, enter Time
Machine, browse through your backups
and restore an old document and folder
235 Rotate backups 236 Older backups to check. Ensure you don’t overwrite
If you use your Mac in two or more To browse backups made on another any current work in the process.
places, such as home and work, and Mac, or on an old backup disk you filled, 240 Exclude virtual machines
want to use Time Machine at each, å-click Time Machine’s menu bar icon, If you have virtualisation software, such
click Select Disk in Time Machine’s (or ≈-click its Dock icon) and choose as Parallels Desktop, add any virtual
preferences pane and add two volumes Browse Other Backup Disks to locate machines to Time Machine’s exclusion
to use. When asked, opt to use both and and select one, then click Use Selected list or they’ll swallow much disk space.
not replace the existing disk. The first Disk to browse it. If it’s on a network 241 File and folder shortcuts When
backup to each destination will be drive, you may have to manually mount working in Terminal, rather than type
complete, after which it’s incremental, the .sparsebundle disk image on the the full path to a file or folder as part
rotating through the list of disks. networked drive first. of a command, just drag it from Finder
and drop it on the Terminal window.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 49


Did you know?
300 Greatest ever Mac tips

Your Mac and its apps can do even more!


247 Mail drafts 248 Labelling in Mail
In full-screen mode, new messages are Mail shows your inbox by default, but if
created in a panel that’s displayed in the you organise your email in folders (or in
middle of the screen, and in El Capitan you Gmail’s case, by label) then clicking on the
don't have to save them as a draft to look Mailboxes button in the top-left corner of
at other messages. Clicking outside of the the window shows them. You can create
panel causes it to slide out of the way to a new folder by choosing Mailbox > New 261 You can ‘sign’ documents in Mail. Click the Sign
the bottom. To get the composition panel Mailbox, then give it a meaningful name button in the Markup toolbar and you'll be asked
back, click the small bar at the bottom. and choose where you want to put it. if you want to write your signature by hand, using
your trackpad. The tool can also use your Mac’s
camera to take a photo of your signature on paper.
249 Sort with a swipe 250 VIPs in Mail
If you have a Mac with a trackpad, you can Mail has a VIPs mailbox that only includes
easily triage your emails with a swipe, your most important contacts, and it can
much like you can on an iPhone or iPad. notify you of only those messages. To set
Put the pointer over a message and then a contact as a VIP, place the pointer over
simply swipe two fingers left to trash the their name at the top of a message, click
message, or right to toggle the message’s the arrow to its right, then choose Add to
read status. No trackpad? Press ∫ or VIPs. In Mail’s General preferences, set
ç+ß+u , respectively. 'New message notifications' to VIPs.

251 Make a Smart Mailbox Set your conditions for processing


Choose Mailbox > New Smart Mailbox and messages, such as ‘If any’, ‘Any recipient’,
enter a name – something like ‘Old mail’ ‘contains’, and then list known addresses.
to archive old messages, say – and set In the actions section below, choose to 262 As well as processing mail as it arrives on your
criteria messages must meet in order to move messages to your new mailbox. Mac, you can set rules at iCloud.com to deal with
appear in the mailbox – such as ‘Date last 254 Apply rules To apply rules to mail any whose subject mentions viagra, say, before it
reaches your devices. In iCloud Mail, click the cog
viewed is not in the last year’. Click OK you’ve already received, select a mailbox,
at the bottom of the sidebar and choose Rules.
and you’ll have a collection of messages press ç+A to select all messages in it,
you’re unlikely to read again. then choose Message > Apply Rules.
252 Archive old mail ≈-click the Smart 255 Markup menu You can make quick
Mailbox you made in the previous tip, and annotations on images or PDF files that
pick Export Mailbox to save its contents you attach to your emails. Put the pointer
outside of Mail. You can now delete the over the image or PDF attachment within
Smart Mailbox’s contents to clear out old your email and you’ll see a little arrow
messages, freeing space in your account. appear at the attachment’s top-right
Use File > Import Mailboxes > Apple Mail corner. Click on this and select Markup
and choose the exported MBOX file if you from the pop-up menu.
need to refer back to archived messages. 256 Annotations The Markup toolbar
253 Process new mail You can use rules includes tools for adding text and shapes
to process new mail as your Mac receives for annotating. The pen tool can be used
it. Create and name a new mailbox. In Mail for freehand sketches. Mail smoothes
> Preferences, click Rules then Add Rule. drawings to make them look better too!
263 OS X’s Handoff feature lets you start writing
an email on your iOS device and then switch to your
Mac to attach a photo or file from there. Devices
257 Compress to email 258 Use Mail Drop must use the same iCloud account, be on the same
If you’re sending a folder full of large files, Mail Drop lets you send large attachments network, and be a model listed at apple.co/1I34axX.
you’ll want to compress them to save between 20MB and 5GB in size, even if the
upload time for you, and download time recipient’s server would normally reject
for the recipient. In Finder, put the files in them. In Mail’s preferences, click Accounts,
a new folder, ≈-click the folder (or right- select an account, click Advanced to the
click it with a two-button mouse) and pick right, and turn on ‘Send large attachments
Compress in the contextual menu. A Zip with Mail Drop’. Recipients not using Mail
file is then created alongside the folder. will see the attachment as a download link.

259 If Mail Drop fails 260 Send in iCloud Mail


If you ever have trouble sending things You can use an iOS device to send large
with the Mail Drop feature, you can check attachments via Mail Drop too, and the
the status of the service at apple.com/uk/ option is also open to you in iCloud Mail in 264 If you get an error saying you can’t send using
support/systemstatus; given how many a web browser. To send large files using Mail Drop, go to iCloud’s preferences, click Options
things this page details, you may find it’s iCloud Mail, click the cog below the sidebar, next to iCloud Drive, and put a check mark next to
worth bookmarking. If you want to know choose Preferences, then click Composing Mail in the list of apps that store data in iCloud. Mail
more about Mail Drop’s limits, head over and turn on Mail Drop – now you can use it Drop doesn’t actually use space on Drive, though.
to bit.ly/droplimits for more tips. away from your Mac or iOS device.

50 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


265 Schedule events 276 Time a reminder

300 Greatest ever Mac tips


To schedule an event in Calendar, just Place the pointer over a to-do you’ve
double-click anywhere on the calendar to created in Reminders and click the ‘i’ that
add an event at that time. The Inspector appears to the right. In the box that pops
window that appears allows you to add up, put a check mark next to ‘On a Day’,
invitees, and set a time, location and more. then click the date for a mini-calendar.
Drag an event to reschedule it. Double- Simply choose the date to be alerted about
click an existing event to edit it. The + the item, or choose ‘At a Location’ and
button at the app’s top-left corner lets then type an address or place name to be
you create events using natural language. reminded when you’re there – or set both!

266 New calendars 272 To set up a repeating event, double-click (or 277 Drag/drop reminders
By default, OS X includes two calendars: force click) the event to view its details, then click Double-click one of your Reminders lists to
Work and Home. If you want to create a the date. Click the Repeat pop-up menu, then pick a open it in another window. You can drag a
new one – say, to separately keep track of frequency. To set the event to repeat on a schedule reminder from one list to another this way
events for a social group you run – choose not listed, such as on specific days, choose Custom. (or by dragging to a list name on the left)
File > New Calendar and enter a name. For by clicking in the space after its text but
a list of all calendars you’ve created, click before the ‘i’ to the right (note the change
the Calendars button (top left). Use the of cursor). This is useful if Siri on your iOS
checkboxes next to each of the calendars device defaults to a particular list that
to decide which appear in the main view. happens to be the wrong one for an item.

267 Change calendar colour 278 Sort reminders


To change the colour or name of a Choose a sort order (due date, priority,
calendar, select it in the calendars list, creation date or alphabetically by title)
then choose Edit > Get Info. To remove a in View > Sort By. There’s a manual
calendar and all of its events, ≈-click it option too, but you needn’t choose it:
in the list on the left and choose Delete drag an item up or down and Reminders
from the contextual menu. You can switches to that sort method for you.
share calendars with other Apple device 273 You can view your entire schedule based on a 279 Manage subscriptions Not sure
and iCloud users from this menu too. different time zone than your Mac’s location, and whether Apple Music or a digital mag
set individual events to use a different one. Go to
268 Use the Inspector The Inspector subscription will renew automatically?
Calendar > Preferences > Advanced and turn on time
helps you fill out your events using zone support. Switch zone next to the search bar. Simply click your name in iTunes (next
autocomplete. Start typing an address to the search bar), choose Account Info,
and Calendar suggests matching places. then sign in and click Manage next to
Start typing the name of a contact in Subscriptions at the bottom.
your address book and the app suggests 280 Two-factor authentication
matching names based on people’s and Since OS X 10.11.4, iCloud’s two-factor
companies’ details you've added to the authentication feature is available for
Contacts app. all accounts. This security layer ensures
269 See event locations You can see only you can access your account by
an event’s location on a miniature map requiring your password and a trusted
in the Inspector. Click it to open a full- device. Set it up in  > System Prefs >
size view in the Maps app. The mini-map iCloud > Account Details. If you’ve enabled
shows estimated travel time to your two-step verification before, you may need
appointment, and the weather there. to turn it off first at appleid.apple.com.

274 Calendar’s travel time option only calculates


270 Add Facebook events times for driving or walking, yet Maps also includes 281 Battery checking
You can add appointments from other transit info that shows routes and times for public It's easy to check on the health of your
popular services to Calendar – notably transport (see bit.ly/AppleMapsTransit). If you don’t MacBook’s battery by å-clicking the
drive, look up this info in Maps before you leave.
Facebook, but also Exchange, CalDAV and battery icon in the menu bar. Click on the
Yahoo. Choose  > System Preferences status there for an explanation of how it’s
and click Internet Accounts, then click the doing (‘Normal’ is best). You can get
+ button. Choose the account type and additional information about how many
enter your credentials. With the account charge cycles it’s been through (to aid a
selected, put a check mark next to repair person, say) in  > About This Mac >
‘Calendars’ to add its events to Calendar. Overview > System Report, under Power.

271 Attach files to events 282 Better resolutions


You can attach a file directly to an event Switching screen resolutions is easy
in Calendar (for example, a document to enough in System Preferences > Displays,
share at a meeting). Just drag and drop but a far more flexible switcher is EasyRes
the file onto the event, or double-click 275 To turn an email into a reminder, drag and drop (£5.99, Mac App Store). It can run in both
the event, click Add Attachment, then it from Mail onto a list in Reminder’s left pane or a the menu bar and Notification Centre, and
choose a file. To preview an attached file, blank space in the list on the right. The reminder provides live previews of how much space
double-click the event, select the file, then will display a ‘Show in Mail’ link, which opens the windows will use at different resolutions.
press the Spacebar. To remove a file, select full original message in Mail. It’s very handy when you quickly need
it as before, but press ∫ instead. more desktop space on a Retina display.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 51


283 Default camera app 294 Speak to Spotlight
300 Greatest ever Mac tips
Want to open an app other than Photos In System Preferences’ Dictation pane,
when you connect your camera or an iOS turn on Enhanced Dictation, then go to the
device? Open Image Capture (found in the Accessibilty pane, select Dictation and turn
Applications folder), select the device in on the keyword phrase. Click the Dictation
the left pane, then click the triangle in a Commands button and enable advanced
rectangle at the bottom-left corner of the commands. Now say something like,
window if you don’t see an option labelled “Computer, search Spotlight for emails
‘Connecting this <device> opens…’ there. from Christian”. Note that you can even
Open that pop-up menu and pick an app. personalise the keyword phrase.

284 With multiple cams 290 If you watch videos in iTunes with subtitles but 295 Open an app
If you have more than one camera, such as dislike their style, go to Accessibility preferences, There’s no guarantee entering an app’s
an iPhone and a DSLR, and you use Image select Captions on the left, then choose a preset or name in Spotlight will list it above other
Capture to import from them to a folder on click + to pick a font, colour, size and background, results. Launchpad is more reliable: recent
your Mac, connect and select a camera on
and to stop videos overriding your choices. Mac keyboards have a dedicated key in the
the left, then open the Import To pop-up top row to open it. On others, set up a key
menu and choose ‘Make subfolders per combo in the Keyboards pane > Shortcuts
camera’. Importing then creates a folder > Launchpad & Dock. In Launchpad, type
based on the camera/storage card name in an app’s name, select a match using the
whatever folder you choose in that pop-up. arrow keys, and press ® to open that app.

285 Extract a frame in QuickTime 296 Mute noisy conversations


Rather than go through the rigmarole If a conversation in Messages distracts
of importing a video into iMovie, say, to you with a swarm of notifications at
extract a single frame, import the video the corner of the desktop, rather than
from your iPhone using Image Capture, turning on the Do Not Disturb feature
then open it in QuickTime Player 10, find of Notification Centre, which mutes all
the frame you want, press ç+C, open notifications, open the conversation,
Preview and press ç+n to paste it as a 291 Though Maps works best with a trackpad, it has click Details at its top-right corner, and
new image. Choose File > Export to save mouse and keyboard shortcuts for the camera: put a check mark next to Do Not Disturb
å+“ and å+‘ rotate the map, and ç+…
the photo. If you’re working with a 4K here to mute only this conversation.
resets to facing north. Hold the mouse button and
video from an iPhone 6s, say, this will drag up or down to change the angle of elevation. 297 Mute unknown senders
give you an 8-megapixel photo. If you’re making use of OS X’s capability
286 Adjust colours in Preview to receive and send SMS and MMS
Photos you’ve extracted from a video messages through your iPhone (when
may look less nice than those taken with it’s nearby), make sure ‘Notify me about
a filter app. Choose Tools > Adjust Color messages from unknown contacts’ in its
for a set of basic adjustments similar to General preferences is disabled, so you
those available in the Photos app. don’t get unwanted notifications from
286 Share on a social network marketers on your Mac as well.
Once you’ve improved a pic’s look, post 298 Text size adjustments
it from Preview to Facebook or Twitter Pressing ç++ or ç+- tweaks the
(if signed in through System text size in Messages, and your choice is
Preferences > Internet Accounts) using remembered. You can also change the
the Share button in the app‘s toolbar. font in the app’s General preferences.

292 To try out several fonts at once, open Font


288 Font collections Book and choose View > Custom. Click the sample in 299 Multiple libraries
As an admin user who uses the Font Book the right pane and type some words, then ç-click Photos and iTunes let you create and
app to install new fonts on your Mac, you whole families or individual typefaces in the middle switch between multiple libraries: hold å
may want to change a preference for the column to see how your words look in all of them. while opening them. This is helpful if your
app so that those fonts are made available collection exceeds iCloud Music Library’s
to other user accounts on the computer, 100,000-track limit or you don’t want
not just your own – so your kids can make every photo to go to iCloud Photo Library.
use of them for design work, say. In the Only one local library can be set as your
app’s preferences, change the default System Photo Library (in Photos’ prefs),
install location from User to Computer. which is the one that uploads to iCloud.

289 Fonts for everybody 300 Secure keychain notes


Text formatting tools in Pages and other In OS X 10.11.4, Notes lets you protect items
apps provide access to all available fonts. with a password, but all such notes share
If that list is uncomfortably long, consider the same one – not so good if Notes syncs
using the Fonts window instead, which is 293 Archive Utility (/System/Library/CoreServices to iCloud and then to a shared iOS device
revealed in many apps with ç+D. In it (or /Applications) provides smart behaviours for on which you’ve allowed Touch ID to unlock
Font Book), make a collection in the left archiving files, such as trashing originals and where them. For things you want to keep private,
column, drag families or typefaces from archives are created when you drop things onto it. open Keychain Access, click the iCloud
the right onto it, then select the collection To archive multiple items, first put them in a folder. keychain (if you want it on all of your
to work with just the fonts you need. Macs), then pick File > Secure Note Item.

52 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


What’s inside

54–55
BROWSE THE
WEB IN PRIVATE
Keep online activity
under wraps to avoid NEW
spoiling family surprises EDITED BY ALAN STONEBRIDGE IDEAS
56–57 Your new-look guide to
MAKE YOUR getting more from
OWN EBOOKS your Apple kit
Use Apple’s free tool
to make great-looking
books with interactivity

58–60 DISCOVER
WHAT’S NEW
MAKE YOUR OWN IN iOS 9.3
CLOUD STORAGE p62
The cloud is really just
an online server, so you
can make up your own

62–63
NEW FEATURES
IN iOS 9.3
Discover Night Shift
and other new features
for iPhone and iPad Understand iOS gestures
64–65 A tap is a brief contact of Swipe means move one or Pinch means move two
MASTER (usually) one finger on your more fingers across an item fingers together or apart,
AFFINITY PHOTO device’s screen. or the screen, then let go. usually to zoom in or out.
Make your landscape
photos look stunning To drag is to move a finger A flick is like swiping, but it’s Touch and hold means lightly
with a graduated filter across the screen to scroll quicker, and is often used to rest your finger on an item
or pan around content. scroll content more quickly. and wait for a reaction.
66–69
ADD AIRPRINT TO
YOUR PRINTER Master Mac keyboard shortcuts
Add wireless printing
for your Mac, iPhone When you see a shortcut like ≈ means the Control key, insertion point. Press ƒ+ ∫
and iPad at low cost ç+å+C, hold all but the labelled ctrl, and shown as ^ to delete to the right.
last key, then press that one. in shortcuts in the menu bar.
† is the Tab key, which shifts
ç is the Command key, ß is the Shift key, which is the focus between some
which is also labelled cmd. typically just labelled shift. controls in windows and web
forms. Turn on Full Keyboard
å means the Option key, ∫ means the Delete key, Access in System Preferences
labelled alt or opt. which deletes to the left of the to jump between all controls.

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 53


APPLE SKILLS Mac Software

1 3
Shortcuts Private
In View > browsing
Customize 1 2 Any activity in
3
Toolbar, you can a Safari window
add buttons for whose address
your browsing bar is dark grey
history and isn’t recorded
favourite sites. on your Mac.
This includes
2 any files you
Show all tabs download, which
This displays all are omitted from
the open tabs the browser’s
from the current Downloads list.
Safari window as
thumbnails, and
tabs left open on
your iOS devices.

Browse the web in private


Keep your online activity under wraps to avoid spoiling family surprises
IT WILL TAKE If you share a Mac with other any more; you need to make sure the browser
30 minutes people at home or at work, or and your account forget you ever visited the
particularly if you regularly step web pages in question.
YOU WILL LEARN away from your Mac without
How to cover your logging out, your web browsing habits are A silent witness
tracks when you easily discoverable. For most of us, most of There’s another problem to consider in the
browse the web the time, that’s not a problem. However, if you form of tracking. You’ll have noticed that when
in Safari on a Mac use the web to search for and buy gifts for a you research a new purchase online, you seem
family member, or you indulge in personal to be pursued endlessly by adverts for the
YOU’LL NEED browsing on a work-owned computer during very products you’ve been investigating.
Safari 9 breaks, you may want to keep that activity That’s because your browser stores ‘cookies’,
hidden from other people’s sight. which track the pages you’ve visited, and that
Until relatively recently, that just meant information is then used by advertisers to
deleting the browser’s History cache, but now decide what adverts to show you. The last
there’s more to think about, both in terms of thing you want a week before your partner’s
how your web browser responds to your birthday is for an advert for the gift you’ve
activity and extra ways to keep your browsing carefully researched to pop up while they’re
private. For example, if you use an iPhone or using your shared iPad, or while looking at
an iPad in addition to a Mac and you’re logged something together from your Mac account.
If you buy into iCloud on all your devices, sites you visit If dealing with all that sounds like too much
gifts for your on one of them are visible on the others linked trouble, there’s another option. Safari, Chrome
to your account. Also, modern browsers learn and many other browsers feature a mode
family online, about what sites you visit regularly and use where nothing you do and none of the sites
you can hide that data to display ‘favourite’ and frequently you visit are recorded. By enabling that mode
visited sites, or to autocomplete addresses. before you start surfing, you ensure that none
that activity Keeping browsing private, then, isn’t just of the pages you visit are stored locally and
from them a matter of deleting pages from your history you won’t be tracked. Kenny Hemphill

54 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Cover your tracks online APPLE SKILLS

HOW TO Use Safari’s privacy protections Jargon Buster


Do Not Track (‘Ask
websites not to track
me’ in Safari‘s Privacy
preferences) is a
request made by a web
browser to sites you
visit, asking them not
to track you. It’s up to a
site whether it complies.

1 Start Private Browsing


In Safari, choose File > New Private Window.
A new window with a dark grey address and
2 Close iCloud Tabs
Left a page open on another Mac or iOS
device that uses your iCloud account? Click the
search field will open. None of the sites you ‘Show all tabs’ button in Safari’s toolbar, then
visit in this window will be remembered, and scroll down to iCloud Tabs, put the pointer over
websites will be asked not to track you. the one to close, then click the ‘x’ next to it.

3 Clear a period from History 4 Clear specific History items


To cover up a large amount of activity,
choose History > Clear History, then choose a
To clear the record of a specific page,
choose History > Show History, then hold ≈,
duration. When you click Clear History, sites click on the page’s row and choose Remove.
visited, cookies and cached data from that To clear several at once, hold ç and click each
period are cleared from your Mac and iCloud. in turn to select them all, then press ∫.

Genius Tip!
The ultimate way to
cover your tracks is to
use your Mac’s guest
account. Everything you
do in it is deleted when
you log out of it.

5 Clear a site’s cookies


In Safari > Preferences, click the Privacy
tab, then the Details button halfway down the
6 Hide frequently visited sites
Safari’s Favorites view shows sites you visit
often as well as those you’ve explicitly added to
window. Scroll through the list of sites to find it. To remove one of them, ≈-click its icon and
the one you want (or enter part of its name in choose Remove, or just drag its icon out of the
the search box), select it, then click Remove. group until the pointer shows an ‘x’, then let go.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 55


APPLE SKILLS Mac Software

Make interactive books


Use Apple’s free authoring tool to make your own great-looking iBooks
IT WILL TAKE Want to be a published author? sections and pages – can be set to use one of
30 minutes Apple’s iBooks platform is a range of ready-made templates or, for
fantastic for digital publishing, pages, you can use blank ones and build things
YOU WILL LEARN and its iBooks Author app is a yourself if you prefer, and make your own
How to make ebooks surprisingly good tool for creating beautiful templates. It’s a fairly foolproof system, as
rich with interactivity. interactive books. Unlike basic Kindle-style long as you work with it rather than against it.
ebooks, iBooks Author lets you create proper
YOU’LL NEED page layouts with beautiful typography and Books with a special touch
iBooks Author, enhance the pages with a range of interactive What makes iBooks Author really interesting
iBooks, and some media tricks. It’s free, and so is publishing to are its ‘widgets’. These are ways of adding
media files. the iBooks Store. You can keep your creations content that’s more interactive to your pages,
to yourself, but once you’ve completed our from slideshows and movies to multiple-choice
tutorial and produced your first rich-media quizzes, embedded Keynote presentations,
masterpiece, why not share it with the world? and even custom HTML content. Widgets can
iBooks Author will feel familiar to anyone be played ‘inline’ in the layout or set to open
who’s used Pages, Keynote or even Numbers. full-screen, hiding the rest of the page as they
In fact, you can even import Pages and do. The one point to remember is that they
Keynote documents directly into an iBook show a preview image until they’re touched,
document. But before you begin, the first and only then do they become active.
thing to do is sketch out a plan. Seriously, get If you want more than the standard set
iBooks Author a pencil and paper and scribble out your ideas, of widgets, take a look at bookry.com and
is surprisingly then gather your media: photos, movie files, bookwidgets.com. Both sites have extensive
audio clips, and any writing you’ve done. libraries of widgets, many of them free.
sophisticated, The structure of an iBook is quite Alternatively, you can create widgets from
and works a straightforward. Everything is arranged in scratch to serve your exact needs. To get
chapters, each chapter has one or more started with this, you only need basic HTML
lot like Apple’s sections, and each section can have one or skills and some information provided by Apple
iWork apps more pages. Every one of these – chapters, on how to package things. Keith Martin

HOW TO Make interactive digital books

1 Choose a template
The Template Chooser makes layout
decisions extremely easy. If you want an
2 The Blank template
Alternatively just pick the ‘Blank’
template to get the kind of empty page
3 Add a cover design
Begin with your book’s cover, called
Book Title on the left. This will be shown
easy life, just pick a template that you like starting point you get in professional in your iBooks library and on the iBooks
the look of – for horizontal or portrait desktop publishing tools. Choose this if Store, so make it look good small as well
layout – and add your content to it. You you want to create layouts from scratch, as large. Add an image, then enter and
can adjust almost anything about it. though we’ll work with a template. format a title (View > Show Format Bar).

56 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Make your own iBooks APPLE SKILLS

CONTINUED… Make interactive digital books

4 Add an intro video


The ‘Intro Media’ stage, listed on the
left, is optional. It plays a video when the
5 Add pages to your iBook 6 The Media widget
Under Insert > Pages, pick a template
and add media to it. Text boxes are linked
The Media palette enables you to
browse and add items from your Movies
book is opened. Use the Media palette to so that words flow from one to the next. folder, or you can just drag a video from
browse your videos, or drop one into this Under Insert > Insert Chapters From, you Finder into your book to add it as a
page directly. When this video ends, the can add text from Pages or Word docs or ‘Media’ widget. Use the Preview icon in
first chapter is automatically shown. whole layouts from InDesign IDML files! the toolbar to check your work in iBooks.

7 The Keynote widget


Click Widget in the toolbar, choose
Keynote, then click the rightmost icon at
8 Create a custom widget 9 Configure the widget
How about adding a map to your
book? We’ll use bookry.com to make one
In Google Maps, click the menu icon
(three lines) and choose ‘Share or embed
the top of the Inspector to choose your of these. Sign up on the site, then go to map’. Copy the code under Embed Map
Keynote file. Almost anything that works My BookShelf and start a new ‘book’ to and paste it into Bookry’s Google Maps
in a presentation played in Keynote itself store your work in your Bookry account. Link field. To the left, ‘Freeform’ sets your
will also work within an iBook. Click Add Widget and pick Google Maps. widget to a specific size on a page layout.

10 Use it in your iBook


Click Save & Preview to check the
map widget’s appearance, then download
11 Roll your own widgets 12 A new perspective
It turns out that writing your own
widgets isn’t all that hard; basic HTML5
Some third-party media tools have
started supporting widget production too.
it, unpack the Zip archive, and drag the skills are really all you need. Make a web If you have a 360° camera such as the
widget file into your iBook. It’s branded page that displays what you need, such Ricoh Theta, Pano2VR has a widget-
with the Bookry logo unless you pay to as a map, then use the guide at bit.ly/ making template (bit.ly/360widget) for
remove it or write your own widget. ibookshtml to turn it into a widget. embedding 360° panoramas in iBooks.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 57


APPLE SKILLS Mac Software

Create a personal cloud


Set up remote access to your files and add personal cloud services
IT WILL TAKE Anyone who’s used iCloud files accessible wherever you happen to be.
45 minutes Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or If you want to replicate the feature set of
Dropbox will know the many iCloud and its ilk, you can build your own cloud
YOU WILL LEARN benefits of cloud storage. using a network attached storage (NAS) drive
How to set up Firstly, your data is stored remotely in another or the versatile Raspberry Pi. Your data won’t
Back to My Mac physical location, protecting it should your be stored offsite, but you can keep it stashed
and ownCloud. Mac be damaged or stolen. Secondly, cloud away somewhere relatively safe (under the
storage makes it easy to keep files in sync stairs or in your attic, say), giving you full
YOU’LL NEED between all of your computers and mobile control over how far your data can travel and
An AirPort Extreme devices, giving you convenient access to them who can access it. Read on to find out how.
with a USB drive, or an wherever you happen to be.
AirPort Time Capsule, There are drawbacks too, though – if you The Apple solution
or a NAS or Raspberry have a lot of data to back up, you may end up Our first approach may appeal if you own an
Pi 3 running ownCloud. paying an expensive monthly subscription to AirPort Extreme or Time Capsule. This won’t
retain access to it. There’s also the question of give you all the features of the cloud in your
trusting a third-party provider – how long will personal system, but you’ll be able to attach
If you want a they provide the cloud storage for, and is your a USB hard drive to your router and make it
fully functional data safe and secure in its hands? available as a central location for backups
If you’re tempted by the pros, but put off (using Time Machine), and you can set up
alternative to by the cons, setting up your own personal shared folders for other purposes. By default,
Dropbox or cloud storage system is the answer. If you access is restricted to your local network, but
have an AirPort Extreme or AirPort Time by enabling the Back to My Mac feature, you
iCloud Drive, Capsule router, the Back to my Mac feature can gain secure access to your files over the
try ownCloud provides a decent solution to keeping your internet too from other trusted Macs.

58 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Make your own cloud storage APPLE SKILLS

EXPLAINED… The ownCloud client app


1 3
Sync markers 2 Client settings
Look out for These buttons
the handy icons alter the client’s
next to files and options, such as
folders, which 1 whether or not it
indicate their starts up when
sync state with 3 you log in.
your server.

2 4
Configure 4 Detailed
ownCloud overview
Click ownCloud’s The main view
menu bar icon to lets you browse
access server and your sync folder
client settings, in greater detail,
and to review and switch
recent changes. user accounts.

We covered the process of sharing folders both ‘Enable file sharing’ and ‘Share disks over
over the internet using an AirPort Extreme WAN’ to allow access over the internet, then
router back in MF293, but here are the basic choose ‘With accounts’ from the ‘Secure
steps you need to follow: first, open System Shared Disks’ pop-up menu. Click Update and
Preferences and click iCloud, scroll down the choose to restart the router. Once done, you
list of services, put a check mark next to ‘Back should have access to the disks over the
to My Mac’ and wait. If your firewall throws up internet through Back to My Mac.
a warning, make sure you give Back to My Mac Jargon Buster
the access it needs. Once done, you’ll be able A full-blown cloud solution NAS stands for
to access that Mac’s drive whenever you’re If you want a fully functional alternative to the Network Attached
signed in to your iCloud account on another likes of Dropbox and iCloud Drive, you’ll need Storage, and refers to
Mac with internet access. Just enable the to explore an alternative method: ownCloud hard drives that are
feature on all your Macs and you’ll be able to Server (owncloud.com). This open-source connected directly to
access any of them securely when required. software solution offers the same features as your network using
Back to My Mac also works with any USB cloud storage, but your data is stored inside an Ethernet cable.
hard drive connected to your AirPort Extreme your own network on a file server, so there
router, as well as the internal drive of a Time are no subscriptions to pay and you retain
Capsule. The drive needs to be formatted with complete control over who gets to access it.
Apple’s OS X Extended file system. This will You’ll have to pay upfront for your file
wipe the drive, so back up its contents first. server, which can either be a NAS drive that
Next, connect it to your Mac, open Disk Utility supports ownCloud, or a PC running Linux.
and format the drive using the recommended If you go down the NAS drive route, Zyxel and
OS X Extended (Journaled) option, and then Synology drives support ownCloud – just make
connect it to your AirPort Extreme router. sure you purchase a model with enough Genius Tip!
Open AirPort Utility (from /Applications/ processing power to run it efficiently. Zyxel’s In ownCloud’s web
Utilities), click your router’s icon in it, and click NAS520 (£110, plus the cost of hard drives) interface, select admin >
Edit in the pop-over. In the Base Station tab, is a reasonable entry-level model, but if you Admin, then ‘Server-
link Back to My Mac to your Apple ID (you can want maximum performance, try Synology’s side encryption’ to add
link it to multiple IDs if you want). Next, switch LinkStation DS216+ (£240, plus the cost of extra protection to the
to the Disks tab and put a check mark next to drives – see review in MF299) instead. files on your server.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 59


APPLE SKILLS Mac Software

If your budget doesn’t stretch that far, should have few problems. To avoid issues
then consider pairing a USB hard drive with with access permissions on the Pi, make sure
the inexpensive Raspberry Pi 3 – a starter you format the USB drive in ext3 format.
kit costs about £50 from thepihut.com,
including a case, cables, a power adapter Sync your files
and a MicroSD card preloaded with NOOBS. Once ownCloud is installed, the step-by-step
Jargon Buster The Pi 3 has a quad-core 1.2GHz processor, guide below walks you through the key steps
If you plan to use your which should provide decent performance. in setting up the server, as well as downloading
ownCloud server over You then need to install ownCloud on your the client on your Mac, which makes it easy
the internet, set up file server. NAS users need to install it from to set up and manage the syncing of folders.
a free static address at their drive’s package manager. Version 7.0.4 It’s pretty straightforward, but refer back to
noip.com/free to ensure is provided with Zyxel drives, but LinkStation the annotation on the previous page, which
you can reach it. owners first need to add the SynoCommunity reveals some useful tips and tricks. You can
repository – see synocommunity.com for info. also install the free ownCloud app on your
Installation on Pi is less straightforward, but if iPhone, iPad or Android device to get access
you follow the guide at bit.ly/owncloudpi you to your files on those too. Nick Peers

HOW TO Set up ownCloud

1 Access the admin tool


Open a web browser on your Mac and
enter 192.168.x.y/owncloud in its address
2 Set up administrator
Provide an administrator username
and password, then expand ‘Storage &
3 Set up a regular user
Clear the first screen, then choose
‘Users’ from the ‘admin’ pop-up menu.
bar, substituting 192.168.x.y with the IP database’ and choose the MySQL option Enter a username and password, then
address or hostname of your NAS drive for faster file transfers, if it’s available. click Create. Click the pop-up menu in the
or Raspberry Pi. Click Continue if you’re Set up a database, a username and a Quota column, which says Unlimited, to
prompted about the address’s identity. password, then click ‘Finish setup’. cap a user’s storage if you require that.

4 Log in as a user
Click admin > Logout. Now log in as
the user you just created to set up your
5 Set up client
Launch the app and enter the
address for your ownCloud server. Click
6 Browser configuration
Explore the options given for your
personal user profile through the web
personal storage space through your Next, trust the certificate that’s shown, interface – you can tweak your profile
web browser. Start by clicking the link to log in with your user details, and then (using the username menu), access files
download and install the client software choose what to sync, and which folder through the browser, and even recover
on your Mac. on your Mac to sync it to. deleted files too.

60 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


APPLE SKILLS Mac Software

Make perfect landscapes


Overcome the challenges of tricky landscape exposures in Affinity Photo
IT WILL TAKE Landscape photography is hard to get exposure levels right for both areas.
About an hour to get right. Getting a balance A really good set of these filters can cost
between composition and light to about £200, and they’re fiddly, needing to be
YOU WILL LEARN create unique images is tough repositioned with each composition change.
How to work with enough, and that’s before you start spending If you snap landscapes only occasionally,
masks, graduated big money on posh lenses and filters to try to there’s a digital solution that takes seconds
overlays, and the make your images stand out. to apply, yet it can make a huge difference.
Develop persona. One big problem landscape photographers
have is the big difference in brightness that Doing it digitally
YOU’LL NEED scenes often exhibit. Even on days with blue A digital graduated filter works the same way
Affinity Photo skies, the top part of an image can often be as a piece of glass over your camera’s lens.
extremely bright relative to the ground in the The ‘graduated’ part means blending the
bottom part of a shot. That means if you set difference in exposure gradually, avoiding a
your camera to provide the correct exposure sudden transition between the two areas.
for the sky, you can end up underexposing the Affinity Photo gives you nearly limitless
ground beneath, but if you set your exposure control over graduated filters. Here we’ll use
to get the foreground correct, you can end up a series of adjustment layers to get our sky
overexposing the sky instead. looking right, then use a graduated layer
Balancing exposure is hard, which is why mask to blend our corrected colours with the
TUTORIAL many professionals opt for a graduated filter. unaltered foreground beneath. The app’s own
SERIES
This handy sliver of glass is translucent at the file format preserves layers, adjustment layers
PART 5 bottom and dark at the top, with a graduation and layer masks, so you’ll be able to revisit
OF 5 in between, so the bottom part of an image your file and make adjustments until your
exposes faster than the top part, allowing you image looks its very best. Dave Stevenson

EXPLAINED… How a digital graduated filter works


1 3
Think pink Take control
Pink overlays Until you leave
show the bits of the Develop
your image that persona, you
will be affected 3 can move the
1
by your changes overlay by
in Affinity Photo’s dragging the
Develop persona. handles at
either end of it.
2
2 4
Basic edits Experiment
These tools are This type of
normally used 3 filter is usually
for initial editing. 4 applied to
You can use a landscapes, but
graduated overlay it can help with
to control where many other
edits show up. image types.

62 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Make better landscapes APPLE SKILLS

HOW TO Create a graduated filter

1 Developing agent
One way to set a graduated filter is to
use a series of adjustment layers, then
2 Get the foreground right 3 Create an overlay
Before you go further, get the pic’s
foreground ready, including saturation
Press g to select the Gradient tool.
Drag downwards from the top-centre of
put a layer mask over the top, which or exposure tweaks. Once you leave the your image and you’ll see a red overlay
allows later alteration. We’ll use a method Develop persona, any changes you make that fades at the bottom. For our image,
that can’t be changed after saving, but is will affect the entire image, so get the we’ve dragged until the overlay’s bottom
faster. Switch to the Develop persona. foreground looking how you want. rests on the foreground’s top edge.

4 Fix exposure
In the panel on the right, select the
Basic tab and click on the main Exposure
5 Saturate weak colours 6 Go easy on adjustments
The main problem with this image
is saturation – the sky isn’t blue enough
If your changes start to look a bit
dramatic, it’s often worth dialling them
slider at the top of that tab. As soon as to do the scene justice. Further down the back. Edits that look great on a glossy
you start dragging it left to reduce the Basic tab, drag the Saturation slider right screen can look silly in print – you’re
exposure in your image, you’ll see the top to embolden the colours in your image. aiming to perfect your image, not make
part of your image start to change. A tug on Vibrance can work wonders too. it unrecognisable from the original.

7 Move the gradient


As long as you’re in the Develop
persona, you can change your gradient.
8 New gradient overlays 9 Fear of commitment
In the Overlays tab, click the Add
Gradient Overlay icon (bottom-right).
Got it right? Click the blue Develop
button near the top-left corner of the
Click the control blob at its top, say, and This will create a new gradient on top of window and your changes will be saved;
you can drag the gradient overlay side to your first one, allowing you to infinitely you can’t go back and change them now,
side – useful if, as here, you’ve got bright fine-tune your edit. Each gradient you but you can still work on your image with
white clouds towards a shot’s corner. add is listed here – click one to change it. Affinity Photo’s normal tools.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 63


APPLE SKILLS iOS Software

Use new features of iOS 9.3


Discover the improvements Apple just made to your touchscreen device
IT WILL TAKE Don’t be fooled into thinking iBooks Store. The app can now sync those
20 minutes that iOS 9.3 has little to offer items between all of your devices over iCloud.
on the grounds of its relatively However, you still can’t annotate PDFs, so you
YOU WILL LEARN small bump in version number. may prefer to stick with an app such as PDF
How to use the key Yes, it fixes and tweaks some existing features, Expert (£7.99, readdle.com) if you need that.
features introduced but it also adds some significant new ones to You’re now able to redownload your past
or improved in the your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad as well. purchases of audiobooks, and they’re eligible
latest version of iOS. Its headline feature is Night Shift, which for Family Sharing too (see MF297).
reduces the amount of blue light emitted by
YOU’LL NEED your device’s screen. Research says this kind Take note
iPhone 4s or newer, of light disrupts your circadian rhythm and Notes already became far more capable in
iPod touch (5th or your sleep quality. The idea of counteracting iOS 9.0 with the ability to add checklists,
6th generation, or an this has been around for a long time – on the sketches, media and other items. Now you can
iPad 2 or newer. Mac, in the form of f.lux (free, justgetflux.com). lock individual notes too, and later gain access
OS X 10.11.4 (optional). Learn how to use Night Shift in iOS below. to them using a password or Touch ID. (The
If you have an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, more former method is also avalable in OS X 10.11.4.)
of iOS’s built-in apps offer 3D Touch shortcuts There are new sorting options for arranging
when you press firmly on their Home screen your notes, and new shortcuts to help you
icons. The most notable of these is Settings, start a new sketch or checklist, too.
which provides shortcuts to its Battery, Wi-Fi There’s a lot more to discover in iOS 9.3,
Night Shift and Bluetooth pages. The App Store now has including improvements to Health and News,
counteracts an Update All action that takes you directly sharing Live Photos with Macs using AirDrop
to its Updates page and starts downloading or Messages, enhanced support for hardware
the disruption whatever is available – though we’ve found keyboards, and the ability to pair multiple
caused by blue that sometimes that process fails to start. Apple Watches with a single iPhone. We’ll walk
Apple’s ebook reader, iBooks, now plays you through the most important features, but
light from your nicer with things in ePub or PDF format that check the full list at bit.ly/ios9info as well.
device’s screen you’ve bought from places other than the Alan Stonebridge

HOW TO Feel more rested by using Night Shift

1 Set a colour temperature 2 Schedule Night Shift


As you adjust the slider in Settings >
Display & Brightness, the screen’s colour
Night Shift is usually active between
sunset and sunrise, or you can tell it to
3 Manually enable it
As you adjust to using Night Shift,
you may find things are harsh to look at
previews how things will look when Night switch on between times you want: turn ahead of sunset or your scheduled start
Shift kicks in. The difference will seem on the Scheduled switch, tap the From/To time. Though you can manually turn it on
extreme at first, so give yourself a couple row, select Custom Schedule, then dial in in its Settings page, there’s a shortcut in
of days to adjust before changing this. your desired times below that. Control Centre to save you going there.

64 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


What’s new in iOS 9.3 APPLE SKILLS

HOW TO Add an extra layer of security to your notes

1 Set up a password
In Settings > Notes, tap Password and
enter one to use with this app only. You
2 Protect a note
Open a note, then tap the Share icon
and choose Lock Note. You can’t protect
3 Reset the password
When you unlock a note, all of them
become accessible until you tap the lock
can set a reminder (Apple can’t help with notes that have audio, video, a PDF or an icon, force the app to close, or lock your
a forgotten password), and allow access iWork document attached, and locking is device. Changing the password updates
using Touch ID – be careful that anyone available for notes stored on your device notes protected by the old one. Resetting
registered to use it can unlock notes. or in iCloud, but not other account types. it leaves them alone, in case you recall it.

HOW TO Take greater control of your music library

1 Avoid library clutter


Adding a track from Apple Music to a
playlist also adds it to your library. This is
2 Go to an album
At the Now Playing screen, you can
tap the track’s name to go straight to the
3 Popular tracks
With so many albums for you to
investigate, Apple Music now displays a
avoidable thanks to a new item in Music’s album it’s from. This is especially handy star next to popular tracks in its library,
settings: switch off Add Playlist Songs to if you’re listening to a ‘radio’ station and helping you to identify good starting
My Music in Settings > Music. There’s an it throws up a track by an artist or from points for artists or albums of which you
equivalent setting in iTunes on the Mac. an album you’re unfamiliar with. have little or no knowledge.

Improvements to photo editing


Duplicating photos affords more experimentation
The Photos app now grants you the ability to make multiple versions of the same
photo on an iOS device, perhaps because you want to try out several photo filters
or even just minor variations of the same one. Open an individual photo, or select
more than one if you want to create copies of several at once, then tap the Share
icon and choose Duplicate from the sheet’s bottom row. This also enables you to
edit the still part of a duplicated Live Photo and retain the original with its moving
part, where before you had to abandon changes to a Live Photo to watch its video.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 65


APPLE SKILLS Project

Build an AirPrint receiver


Add AirPrint support to any USB or network printer in your home
IT WILL TAKE Anyone who’s needed to print You’ll need four products, totalling £30.20
At least 30 minutes a document from their iPad or before postage: the Pi Zero with adaptors
iPhone will know the value of (product code RPI-009); the Broadcom USB
YOU WILL LEARN AirPrint. Apple introduced it Hub and Wi-Fi adaptor (BROAD-WIFI); an
How to set up a back in 2010, and it’s steadily grown in official power adaptor (RPI-SUPPLY); and a
Raspberry Pi Zero as a popularity – over a thousand printers now ship NOOBS 8GB card (NOOBS-SD-8GB). The Pi
print server so you can with built-in AirPrint support (see Zero is often out of stock, so sign up for email
print wirelessly from bit.ly/mfairprint for a list). But don’t despair if notifications to secure one when it’s next
Macs and iOS devices. your trusty printer isn’t supported – you can available, if necessary.
hook it up to an AirPrint-enabled print server. You can save money by reusing an existing
YOU’LL NEED You could splash out up to £95 on something MicroSD card, which must be 8GB or larger,
Raspberry Pi Zero, like StarTech’s Wireless-N USB AirPrint Server, and you’ll also need an SD card adaptor or
a MicroSD card, and but why spend all that money when we’ve USB MicroSD card reader depending on
other accessories come up with a do-it-yourself project that’ll whether or not your Mac has an SD card slot.
listed in the tutorial. cost you less than a third of that? Follow the instructions at bit.ly/startnoobs to
download NOOBS on to it.
What you’ll need You’ll need access to a monitor with an
You can add This project uses the flexible Raspberry Pi HDMI input, and a USB keyboard and mouse to
Zero. We’ve shopped for all our components install and configure Raspbian. The big issue is
AirPrint to from one place (shop.pimoroni.com), and left that the USB hub only has two ports – this isn’t
your USB out any unnecessary add-ons to keep the cost a problem if your printer connects directly to
down – including a case, but if you have a bit of the network (wirelessly or using Ethernet), but
printer using flexibility in your budget, the Best Buys box on if it’s a USB model you’ll need to combine the
a Raspberry Pi page 69 suggests one of those. mouse and keyboard on a single port. Apple’s

66 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Make an AirPrint receiver APPLE SKILLS

Make an
AirPlay receiver
Don’t miss out
on our advice in
MF298, see p78
for details

You’ll spend a little bit of time with


a command line for this project,
but it doesn’t involve anything
Adding AirPrint capabilities to your old home printer will extend its life for use with your Mac and iOS devices. particularly complex.

wired keyboards have two built-in USB ports, the network icon in the top-right corner to
allowing you to connect the mouse through connect to your local Wi-Fi network. Jargon Buster
that. Or, consider this budget wireless Next, it’s time to get your hands dirty using CUPS stands for
keyboard and mouse set (£12.99 from bit.ly/ Raspbian’s Terminal. Click the shortcut to it Common Unix Printing
xentainput), which share a single USB receiver. (the black monitor) in the menu bar. First, if System, and is an
your printer is connected using USB, enter open-source technology
Basic installation lsusb. (Skip this if you’re planning to connect developed by Apple to
Start by inserting the NOOBS card into your to a network printer.) This lists all the USB- allow a computer to act
Pi Zero, then connect the Broadcom adaptor connected devices on your Pi, among which as a print server.
to the Pi using the USB converter cable. you should see your printer’s manufacturer,
Connect the keyboard to one USB port on the confirming it’s connected.
adaptor, plug the mouse into the keyboard, Enter sudo apt-get update && sudo
and your USB printer on the other port. apt-get upgrade to ensure installed packages
Switch on the printer and monitor, then plug are up to date, then the following command to
in the power – there’s no switch so, if all is well, install the Samba sharing components and the
the Pi should start up immediately. CUPS printing system: sudo apt-get install
You’ll see a screen with just one entry: samba && sudo apt-get install cups.
Raspbian. Select that, then click the Install Follow any prompts and, after both packages
button followed by Yes, and wait for the files
to be copied. This is a lengthy process, so be
patient – while you wait, verify the language
and keyboard settings are correct at the
bottom of the screen. Once complete, click Genius Tip!
OK to restart the Pi Zero in Raspbian. Visit bit.ly/pivnc for
You’ll see a series of scrolling messages, details on setting up
and after about a minute the screen will go VNC software on your
blank – again, be patient, and the Raspbian Pi, which enables you to
desktop should eventually appear (future remotely access the Pi’s
startups are much quicker). Test both the Once the AirPrint server is set up, your printer is also desktop from your Mac
keyboard and mouse are working, then click accessible from your Mac and other computers too. to administer it.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 67


APPLE SKILLS Project

EXPLAINED… What you’ll need


1 3
Pi Zero Power
We’ve chosen adaptor
the Pi Zero due The official
to its low cost Raspberry Pi
and incredibly adaptor is a
small size. great choice for
1 supplying power
3 to the Pi Zero.

2 4
Accessories USB hub
You’ll need a 2 This Broadcom
MicroSD card, hub includes two
plus adaptors 4 USB ports and
to connect a built-in Wi-Fi
your monitor, 2 adapter. It does
a keyboard not require a
and a printer. power supply.

have been installed, enter this command, take effect. To verify your settings, enter
Jargon Buster which lets you set up and manage your printer: ifconfig in Terminal. If there’s no reference to
NOOBS is software sudo usermod -a -G lpadmin pi. power management, it has been disabled.
that comes preloaded Printer setup is the trickiest part of the The final step of the process is simply to
on SD cards for Pi (or it process, depending on whether it’s supported install a single app to enable AirPrint support,
can be downloaded) to and what drivers are available for it, but at again from the command line: sudo apt-get
simplify the installation least CUPS is configured through your web install avahi-discover. Once done, that is
of Raspbian and other browser, providing you with a more user- literally it. On your iPad or iPhone you should
operating systems. friendly interface. The walkthrough opposite find your printer is now visible as an AirPrint
will help you with this part of the process. destination and, crucially, that it works.
Once you’ve successfully printed a test
page, there’s just one last tweak: switch to Make it headless
CUPS’ Administration tab, turn on ‘Share There’s no need to keep the keyboard or
printers connected to this system’ (and ‘Allow monitor connected now, but it’s handy to
printing from the internet’ if required), then perform a few tweaks should you need to
click ‘Change Settings’. Your printer will now access the Pi Zero later on. First, support for
be set up, shared and ready for the final stage. command-line access via your Mac’s Terminal
app is already set up – just enter the following
Set up AirPrint command to log on: ssh pi@raspberrypi.
The Pi’s Wi-Fi adaptor has power management local and enter yes when prompted, followed
switched on, which can cause problems, so by your password, which is raspberry, and
Genius Tip! let’s disable it (its power consumption is you’ll find yourself at the Pi’s command line.
Once Raspbian is minimal anyway). In Terminal, enter sudo If you want remote access to the Pi’s graphical
configured, go to Menu > nano /etc/network/interfaces. Find the desktop, you’ll need to install VNC software on
Preferences > Raspberry first line that begins ‘wpa-conf’, and on a new it – see the Genius tip on page 67 for details.
Pi Configuration and line directly beneath it, above the ‘allow- You can now shut down your Pi Zero,
choose ‘To CLI’ next hotplug wlan1’ line, type wireless-power off. disconnect the keyboard and monitor, then
to Boot to quicken the Press ≈+x, then y when prompted to power it back up. Congratulations, your printer
time it takes the print save your changes. Close the Terminal window, is now AirPrint-enabled and easily accessible
server to start up. then reboot your Pi Zero for the change to from other computers too.

68 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Make an AirPrint receiver APPLE SKILLS

HOW TO Install your USB printer

Best Buys!
Give your Pi Zero extra
protection and reduce
the number of cables
you need to connect
with these optional
extras. You can get
the case and shim from
shop.pimoroni.com,

1 Access CUPS
In the menu bar, choose Menu > Internet >
Epiphany Web Browser. Type 127.0.0.1:631 into
2 Select your printer
Enter your user credentials (unless you’ve
customised them, the username is pi and the
and the Wi-Fi adaptor
from modmypi.com.

the browser’s address bar and then press ® password is raspberry), then click OK. Your
to access the CUPS management interface. printer should be listed under Local Printers
Switch to its Administration tab and then click and/or Discovered Network Printers. Select
the Add Printer button. your desired connection and click Continue.

Pibow Zero case


Protect your Pi Zero by
housing it in this neat,
protective case for just
£4. DIY assembly is
easy, as is access to
the MicroSD card.

3 Check for a driver


You can change the printer’s name if you
want, but make sure you click the checkbox next
4 Manually find a driver
Open a new browser tab, then try your
printer maker’s website, or visit openprinting.
to Share This Printer before you click Continue org/printers where you can browse by make
again. CUPS will provide you with a list of available and model to look up a recommended driver,
printer drivers – if one for your model is present, which is listed at the top. Switch to the Drivers USB to Micro-USB
select it; if not, read on. tab to locate links to the recommended driver. port shim
This £2 extra provides
a neat way to connect
the USB hub directly to
the Pi Zero, but don’t fit
it until the Pi is headless.

5 Install the driver


You may have to download and then
compile the driver – instructions for doing this
6 Finish adding the printer
Switch back to the tab in Epiphany where
you were adding a printer. Reload the page and
Official Wi-Fi adaptor
If your printer uses
are provided on the website you got the driver entries relating to your printer will appear. Ethernet rather than
from. Follow the instructions carefully, but be Select one and then click Add Printer. Switch to USB, reuse the hub and
reassured that although they look complicated, CUPS’ Printers tab to select Maintenance > add this adaptor (£6) to
it’s mostly a copy and paste job. Print Test Page and check it’s all working. the Pi once it’s headless.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 69


FREE
DIGITAL VERSION
WITH THIS
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Buy your copy today!


www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/computer
What’s inside

71
MAC SOFTWARE
Get rid of persistent
adware you didn’t want
in the first place EXPERT
EDITED BY HOWARD OAKLEY ADVICE
72–73
NETWORKING Our resident genius
Trace a route back to solves your Mac and
the internet with this
plain connection advice
How can I break iOS problems

74–75 free of endless


MAC SOFTWARE
Ease your app-fuelled log references
anxieties and get your
productivity on track and prompts
76
iOS SOFTWARE
to update the
Swipe away your
touchscreen troubles
Olivernetko app?
and love iOS once again I keep getting troubled by
Q Olivernetko.download, which is also
filling my logs. I am told to get a
new version every day, which I already have
and don't want. How can I get rid of it?
by M I K E B I R D

Although Olivernetko is not actually

Contact us A full-fledged malware, it is infuriating


adware that tries to make money out
of you. As it can also download and install
other apps without seeking your permission,
Email your queries it could easily bring malware to your Mac.
and your questions to You need to remove and avoid it as a matter
MalwareBytes’ removal tool is free,
genius@macformat.com of top priority. and should be able to clear the last
First check in the extensions section of vestiges of Olivernetko from your Mac.
Keep up to date by each of your web browsers’ preferences, and
following us on Twitter remove Olivernetko from any where you find to clean any remaining traces
@macformat it. Then check your ~/Library/LaunchAgents from your Mac. Finally scrub the
and ~/Library/Application Support folders for adware from Safari pages: open
Join the conversation suspicious files, such as Olivernetko.download. Apple’s browser, set it to open new windows
at facebook.com/ plist. Remove any instances you find, perhaps to an empty page (in its General preferences),
macformat moving them to a holding folder in your quit the app, then reopen it with ß held
Documents folder for the time being, before to clear its records of pages that were open
Get the latest putting them in the Trash. during your previous session. Open its Search
subscription offers at Use an adware removal tool such as preferences and ensure Olivernetko hasn’t
macformat.com Anti-Malware for Mac (free, malwarebytes.org) hijacked any of the settings there as well.

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 71


GENIUS TIPS Networking

Networking
Trace a route back to the internet with
plain advice that’ll help you stay connected
Networking
quick-fire
questions
Are powerline
adaptors as good
as Ethernet?
> With good quality
modern mains cabling
they can achieve the Macs and other
same gigabit transfer devices that seldom
move are best
speeds as dedicated assigned static IP
Ethernet connections. addresses, rather
They can be more than using DHCP.
susceptible to electrical
interference though,
which Ethernet cabling
is designed to minimise.
If you can afford to run
Category 5e or better
Lost network connection
cabling, Ethernet should My iMac is connected via Ethernet refer to Devolo’s documentation to interpret
deliver more consistent
network performance.
Q cable to a Devolo 1200+ Wi-Fi hub,
and the Devolo at the other end
what their current status indicates. If that
doesn’t fix the problem, move your iMac to
connects via another Ethernet cable to my connect direct to the Home Hub using an
BT Home Hub 5 to reach the internet. Ethernet cable, to prove that you can hook up
Although this worked fine, the iMac has now to the router correctly.
lost its internet connection, and its Network Unless your iMac is mobile – that is, you
pane shows a self-assigned IP address. How take it to other locations and use it on another
can I restore the internet connection? network – assign it a static IP address on the
How can I tell if a by J O H N S T U B B S same subnet as the router. The normal default
network device address for Home Hubs is 192.168.1.254, so
provides DHCP? Check that all physical connections give your iMac an address of 192.168.1.1, with a
> Check the device’s
user guide, then
A are sound, and that none of the
cables have been disturbed during
subnet mask of 255.255.255.0. Using Network
Utility on your iMac, select the Ping tool, and
connect to its admin cleaning. Inspect the Devolo adaptors and prove that it can see the router by pinging its
interface. If you already ensure their LEDs are white. If they aren’t, IP address of 192.168.1.254.
have another device To ensure the router doesn’t try to allocate
providing DHCP you It’s best to assign a your iMac's new static address to another
should be able to device, connect to its admin page and set it to
disable that service static IP address to each use DHCP to allocate addresses in the range
altogether, or limit the 192.168.1.10 to 192.168.1.250. Check no other
range of IP addresses device that remains at device on your network is issuing IP addresses
that your primary DHCP using DHCP, which would conflict with the
server can allocate. home on your network router: if there is, turn off its DHCP server.

72 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Networking GENIUS TIPS

Can I improve my
internet speed by
using Wi-Fi too?
> Ethernet and most
modern Wi-Fi networks
are much faster than
the majority of internet
connections. Hooking
up your Mac to the
same router using both
Ethernet and Wi-Fi
won’t make a positive
difference to the net
This log shows what happened when Apple inadvertently With the extension disabled, the Ethernet port's MAC transfer speed, and
blacklisted the kernel extension needed for Ethernet. address was unreadable, causing many other problems. could even reduce
it slightly.

Sudden loss of the Ethernet port How do I switch


between routers
My iMac had been working perfectly run Apple Diagnostics (on Macs released after on one network?
Q on the internet, but when restarted
it lost its Ethernet connection,
June 2013) or Apple Hardware Test (on Macs
from before June 2013).
> Set up the first
network connection in
complaining it had become disconnected. If it passes the tests, you can be fairly the Network pane, and
Its cables are fine. What can I do apart from confident the cause is a software driver issue. save it as a new location
connect the iMac using Wi-Fi? Back in February, Apple pushed out a silent using the pop-up menu
by O R S O N H U G H E S update to its security protection which at the top of the pane.
inadvertently disabled Ethernet ports in some Set up the other and
There are two likely explanations. Mac models. Review your logs using Console, save it as a different
A More worrying is hardware failure:
restart it with just a wired USB
looking back in the seconds after it last started
up for complaints about a kernel extension
location. Switching
between them is just
keyboard and mouse connected, holding D (kext) being in the exclude list. Further a matter of changing
before the grey screen appears at startup to information is on my blog at bit.ly/1Szrh4a. the Location setting.

Mac Pro, can be configured to use link


Two broadband lines, aggregation to spread their load over
each port and separate routers.
double the speed? You can configure link aggregation
in System Preferences’ Network pane:
We can’t get an internet connection ensure that both Ethernet ports are
Q faster than 4Mbps. Could we double
our effective bandwidth by getting a
connected to discrete modem-routers,
and that both are activated in the pane.
second broadband connection? Click the button that’s labelled with a
by D A V E J O R D A N cog icon below the list of network
interfaces on the left, then choose
Yes, you could, but it isn’t as simple Manage Virtual Interfaces. In the next
A as just adding an extra modem-
router. This is because each Mac
pane, click the + button to create a new
link aggregate, and select the Ethernet
or other device will normally connect one ports to add to that. The two Ethernet
network port, such as an Ethernet port, to a ports will then work as one, using the
single router at a time. Link Aggregation Control Protocol
If multiple devices use the connections, (LACP) to balance the traffic load
you can set them up to use one or other of the between them.
routers, making allocations to try to even the Unfortunately, network devices
OS X can spread traffic load between ports,
load on the two internet connections. Macs which you can pair with a second broadband which perform similar link aggregation
with two built-in Ethernet ports, such as the line to boost your internet connection. are expensive, and not easy to obtain.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 73


GENIUS TIPS Mac Software

Mac Software
Ease your app-fuelled anxieties and get your
productivity back on track with this advice
Software Getting Amazon Prime Video to work
quick-fire
questions I have taken out a free

Can I watch BBC


Q trial of Amazon Prime
Video, but when I try
iPlayer in Safari to watch its streamed movies,
without Flash? I keep seeing an alert telling
> Currently iPlayer me that Microsoft Silverlight
doesn’t serve its new is not installed. My 24-inch
HTML5 version to Safari iMac (Early 2008) is running
for Mac. However, turn El Capitan and has 4GB of
on Safari's Develop memory installed. Although
menu in its Advanced I have installed Silverlight
preferences, choose several times, I cannot make
Develop > User Agent > that alert disappear so that
Safari — iOS 9.3 — iPad, I can watch Amazon’s movie
then connect to the library. Does Amazon Prime
iPlayer site. When told Video not work on Macs yet?
your Mac is an iOS by S T E P H E N S T U R G E S S
device, iPlayer should
then serve up HTML5 Yes, it does, but many
video rather than Flash.
A other Mac users have
reported similar
Before trying to use Silverlight
to play streaming video, visit
problems in getting it set up and the plug-in’s test pages to
check it works properly.
running. You should ensure that
you have downloaded and
installed the very latest version Video service using Safari rather than Firefox,
You can trick Safari for Mac of Silverlight, as OS X will now block some as Safari is generally reported to be the more
into serving you HTML5 video. older versions because they suffer from reliable of the two for this. If you can’t get
security vulnerabilities. Safari to work, you may find the only way to
How can I Microsoft provides test and demo pages view Amazon’s movies is to download and
efficiently draw against which you can confirm that Silverlight install the latest release of Chrome, which
a lot of timelines? has installed and is working properly, such as does not require the Silverlight plug-in.
> Look first at Aeon the page at bit.ly/23EzVGF. Because the video playback functionality
Timeline (£29.99, Mac With Silverlight installed and proven to be that’s required is built into Google’s browser,
App Store). Although it working, try accessing the Amazon Prime this one often proves to be the most reliable
seems costly, it lays out option of all.
timelines from simple Try the latest version of If you still can’t get Silverlight or Chrome
data entry, saving you to work, or you want to avoid Chrome, then
the pain of drawing Chrome, which doesn’t Opera might do the trick. Amazon provides
each individually. further instructions for dealing with issues
It exports to various require the Silverlight with the Amazon Video service at amzn.to/
image formats, 1TRcuXU, which you may find helpful, including
PDF or HTML. plug-in for Prime Video further Silverlight-specific troubleshooting.

74 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Mac Software GENIUS TIPS

Mail’s junk mail


Opening old filter doesn't work.
How do I fix it?
AppleWorks > Ensure OS X is fully
up to date, then try
spreadsheets resetting filtering in
Mail's preferences, and
on today’s Macs letting it settle. If it still
won’t work, consider an
I have several old documents that alternative such as
Q were created using the spreadsheet
module in AppleWorks. I’ve tried
SpamSieve ($30 – about
£21, c-command.com),
opening them using the current version which works with most
of Numbers, but it refuses, reporting that LibreOffice claims to be able to open a huge range of mail clients, runs as a
the version of AppleWorks which I used is different file types, including many old spreadsheets. separate app, and
unsupported. How can I open them now? learns very well indeed.
by G A R R Y run under El Capitan. Alternatively, the free
LibreOffice suite (libreoffice.org) may well How can I hide
Unfortunately this may not be cope with your AppleWorks files. group addresses?
A possible without access to an old
copy of AppleWorks, which can’t be
If neither of those works, the only solution
is to find someone with an old Mac still running
> When you send a
message directly to
run on any vaguely recent version of OS X. AppleWorks, although you will be very lucky a group of addresses,
Older versions of Numbers are more to discover someone offering this as a service, recipients will see all
likely to be able to open such old AppleWorks as such. Save your files in an accessible format the addresses. To hide
spreadsheets, but you will need to go back to such as CSV or tab-delimited text, so that you them, send the message
that in iWork ’09 or earlier, which might still can import those files to modern apps. to yourself and put the
group addresses in the
Bcc field (View > Bcc
messages from that address, and then simply Address Field) instead.
Automatically calls your script to save each message to your
designated folder for that sender.
saving incoming The snag with these script approaches
is that you will need to hard-code the path
messages into to each folder in which the messages are to
be saved, which makes them inflexible and a
folders on disk nuisance to maintain. If you decide to move
those folders, you would have to change every
The Bcc field setting is sticky,
How can I get Mail to save out one of the scripts. so Mail always shows the field
Q incoming messages automatically
into separate folders according to
A much simpler approach, which does
not require any AppleScript, would be to use
in new messages once it’s on.

the sender's mail address? a basic rule to move messages to different Why do some new
by P A U L S T A N T O N custom mailboxes in Mail according to the messages not
sender's address, then to manually save from appear in Mail?
The most practical way to do this each of those mailboxes as needed. > Try rebuilding your
A directly in Mail is by setting a rule,
which requires AppleScript, but is
inbox (or the mailbox
where new messages
non-trivial. If you want to try your hand at it, should appear): select it,
there’s a helpful example at bit.ly/1VV4wNu then choose Mailbox >
that performs the same task for attachments Rebuild. If you have
to get you started. an old version of Mail,
You may find it easier to use a set of some people have had
simpler rules, each of which calls a separate problems, particularly
AppleScript to actually perform the task with Smart Mailboxes;
of saving. For example, if you get a lot of updating to the latest
messages from me@me.com, you could make Use rules in Mail to deal with new messages, but beware release of Yosemite or
a rule in Mail's preferences which handles all that your desired action may require coding AppleScript. El Capitan should help.

macformat.com @macformat 2016 | MACFORMAT | 75


GENIUS TIPS iOS Software

iOS Software
Swipe away your touchscreen troubles and
rekindle your love of Apple’s mobile devices

iOS software How do I prevent


quick-fire tracks disappearing
questions
From where can from my iPhone?
I get the iPad Pro
user guide? I don't use iTunes Match, and I am
>The iPad User Guide for
iOS 9.3 covers all iPad
Q not even too sure which version of
iOS my iPhone 5s is running, but
models, and is available the Music app keeps removing songs from
free from the iBooks my phone and putting them back into the
Store (and the iTunes cloud. This makes it impossible for me to
Store on your Mac). listen to those tracks when I don't have an
Normally user guides internet connection. How can I prevent this?
are also provided in PDF, by É L I S E G O Y E T T E
but Apple has not done
so for the iPad and Discover which version of iOS your
iPhone ones. However,
there’s a version you
A iPhone is running by going to
Settings > General > About, and check
can read in a browser Software Update alongside that – it’s worth
at apple.co/1SzQ8Vu. updating to the latest version to gain fixes
for security issues, and to smooth out earlier
How can I change issues with iCloud, backup and other things.
my details that are It sounds like your device is automatically
used by AutoFill? managing its storage and, when it runs low
> The personal info on free space, it’s sacrificing songs in Music.
about you that’s used When you tap the row for a track that’s stored
by Safari's AutoFill
feature is normally iOS is automatically
taken from the Contacts
card designated as ‘me’. managing its storage
Choose your card in
Settings > Safari > space, which is low, Music caches tracks played from the cloud, or you can
download them to guarantee they’ll be available offline.
AutoFill > My Info. Edit
the card in Contacts and sacrificing music relevant tracks, and will eventually change to
app, where it should be tiny device icons, telling you iOS’s automatic
at the top of the list. in the cloud (which will be tracks you have storage management will no longer clear
bought from the iTunes Store), the Music app those items off your device. To manually get
downloads a copy to your device, but it only rid of such an item, tap its ellipsis, then the
persists there for as long as you have plenty device icon, and pick Remove Download.
of free space. To ensure an item stays on your To see only music that’s available offline,
device, tap the adjacent ellipsis, then tap the tap My Music, then the category selector (just
cloud with a downwards-pointing arrow. under the Recently Added row) and turn on
Download progress indicators appear next to the switch labelled Only Downloaded Music.

76 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


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78 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


What’s inside REUSE
OLD KIT
80–81 Inspiring ideas for
MAKE AN OLD revamping your old
Apple devices
MACBOOK AIR
USEFUL AGAIN
Make Apple’s first
ultra-slim notebook EDITED BY LUIS VILLAZON
better by fitting an SSD.

82
INSTALL AN SSD
Learn how to remove
A new hard disk and a fresh battery
the stock hard drive and
connect a replacement.
will revitalise this 2008 MacBook Air
hristian has given me a first-gen
C MacBook Air to refurbish this month.
At eight years old, it’s very old for
a laptop, but it can just about run OS X Lion,
so it could still be useful. What it really needs
is a speed boost, but its processor, graphics
chip and memory are all soldered onto the
motherboard, so I can do nothing about them.
I can change the hard disk though. The current
one has a pitiful 80GB capacity – I have more
storage in the cloud! Fitting a 128GB SSD will
give me more room for apps and documents,
and improve loading times. I can improve the
battery life, too. The original one is well past
its nominal lifespan of
500 charge cycles, and Fewer parts of a
is down to about half of MacBook Air are
its original 4.5-hour ugpradeable than
older MacBooks,
Contact us duration. Swapping it for but you can still
an aftermarket battery is revitalise one.
an easy way to freshen
Email your queries up this laptop.
and your questions to
lovemac@macformat.com

Keep up to date by LUIS’S APPLE CLASSIC!


following us on Twitter
@macformat The clamshell iBook G3 looks like no other MacBook. Its translucent
coloured case almost looks like a nursery school ‘speak-and-spell’
Join the conversation pretend laptop – but that’s what’s great about it. You don’t need a
at facebook.com/ bag for it as there’s a built-in carrying handle. It looks fun and it feels
macformat robust. Back in 1999, it was no slouch either; Apple billed it as
the world’s second-fastest portable computer
Get the latest (after the Lombard PowerBook G3). It came
subscription offers at with 32MB of memory and a huge 3.2GB drive.
macformat.com

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 79


LOVE YOUR MAC The original MacBook Air

Hardware
quick-fire
questions
Can I use Time
Machine to backup
A breath of
fresh Air
the drive instead?
> You can, but it’s more
work. You can’t start up
from a Time Machine
volume, so you’ll need
to restore a working
operating system first. Boost your first-gen MacBook Air’s
Since the new disk won’t
have a Lion Recovery performance with two easy upgrades
Partition on it, you’d
need to pay Apple for a 1 2
Lion thumb drive, build Ports Screen
your own from the Lion To preserve its sleek lines, The 13.3-inch display has
installer from the Mac the first-gen MacBook Air has a resolution of 1280x800
App Store, or use the a single USB port, headphone pixels, so you can watch
Recovery Disk Assistant jack and Mini DisplayPort. 720p movies on it. 2
(apple.co/1Sc8HSA).
Cloning the original disk 3 4
before swapping drives Networking Weight
is much simpler. This MacBook doesn’t At 1.36kg, the 2008
have built-in Ethernet or MacBook Air is nigh on
FireWire ports, only the same weight as the
Wi-Fi and USB. current 13-inch model.

5 6
CPU Soldered memory
The 1.6GHz Intel Core Duo The biggest limitation of
SuperDuper is an easy way to processor is about this MacBook Air is that its
copy the contents of an old three-and-a-half times memory is soldered in place,
disk to a replacement one. less powerful than the so it can’t be upgraded past
Early 2015 MacBook Air. the standard 2GB.
Can I connect the
MacBook Air to an
HDMI monitor?
> Yes, you can. You’ll
need a Mini DisplayPort
to HDMI adaptor, which
will cost you less than
£10 from Amazon. 6 5
Your external monitor
probably has a much
higher native resolution
(likely 1920x1080) than
the 2008 MacBook Air’s
built-in display, but most
monitors will upscale
4
a mirrored desktop
without too much
loss of sharpness.
1 3

80 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


hen buying
W replacement
Mac parts, ‘Early
2008’ isn’t enough to specify
which model you have, because there
are often slight hardware changes made
within a given generation. Instead you need The original MacBook Air
the specific model number, which is printed in came with a miniscule
hard drive, which can be
very tiny letters on the underside, next to the replaced with an SSD for
regulatory blurb and recycling information. a new lease of life.
This MacBook Air is model A1237. Armed with The hard disk is that box
this detail, I did a quick search on eBay and
found several listings from reputable sellers underneath the daunting
for compatible parts. A battery cost £17 and a
128GB SSD of the right physical size was £50. matrix of cables
While I waited for them to arrive, I profiled
the current battery life so I could compare the on the small plastic tab, so you don’t wrench
improvement after the upgrade. This simply the connectors.
involved charging the battery to full, then This provides access to the hard disk,
playing a full-screen QuickTime video with all which is in the playing-card-size box sitting
of the Energy Saver options turned off until underneath a daunting matrix of ribbon
the battery died. It lasted 2 hours 13 minutes. cables. Thankfully, Apple uses really nice
I also cloned the hard disk to a USB drive using ribbon connectors that use a contact pad,
SuperDuper (£21.57, shirtpocket.com). instead of an edge connector. The two cables
on the right-hand side can just be prised gently
Once the new SSD is installed,
No tricky screws up. The much smaller power cable on the left you can just copy your cloned
Once the new parts arrived, the upgrade itself is more fiddly; its easiest to remove this using disk back over to it.
was pretty straightforward. It took me about
45 minutes. The only screwdriver I needed
was a Phillips #00 (the very small one from
a watchmakers set). The back case is held on
with 10 screws around the edge, of various
sizes, so it’s important to keep track of which
is which. I usually just put them down on the
table in the same pattern as they appear on
a MacBook, relative to me.
With the screws removed, the case slides
off towards the screen hinge. The big black
slab underneath is actually the battery,
although it just looks like a piece of backing
plastic. The battery is held in place with
another eight screws of varying lengths
around the edges, and a ninth screw in the
middle that’s easy to miss. You need to unplug
the battery from the motherboard by pulling

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 81


LOVE YOUR MAC The original MacBook Air

HOW TO Install the SSD

1 Data cable
The ribbon cable from the old drive is
held in place by a small black bar latch.
2 Drive caddy
SSDs aren’t vulnerable to vibration,
unlike traditional spinning hard disks, so
3 Screw clearance
There’s a thin black wire that runs
along the top edge of the drive caddy.
This is covered by black tape. Peel the you don’t need to worry about reusing One of the clips that holds this in place is
tape away, and push the bar away from the foam padding glued to the old drive. glued directly over the caddy fixing screw
the drive and toward the cable to unlock You will need the rubber shock absorber in the top-right corner. You don’t need to
it. Next, remove the ribbon cable, insert surround so the SSD fits in the drive bother replacing this clip, but make sure
it into the replacement SSD, and pull the frame. Make sure it’s the right way round that the black wire is clear of the screw
bar latch back towards the drive. to line up with the screw mounting points. holes for the laptop’s backplate.

a pair of needle-nose and turned on the MacBook. The new drive


pliers or tweezers. That was unformatted, of course, so the Mac
just leaves one ribbon booted from the clone on the USB drive, and
cable that seems to be I used Disk Utility to format the internal SSD
attached directly to the and ran SuperDuper to clone the backup
drive frame. But, luckily, drive’s contents to the SSD.
you can remove the While I was doing this, I ran the MacBook
drive from the frame on battery power to drain it down to 2%
without disturbing the capacity, and then plugged in the mains
The original MacBook Air uses cable. The frame is held in place with four adaptor to charge it back up to 100%. This
the same 80GB ATA hard disk screws, but one of them is hidden underneath initial drain-and-charge cycle is important to
found in the iPod classic.
a cable clip for the black wire that runs parallel condition a new battery. You shouldn’t drain
to the screen hinge. See the walkthrough it all the way to 0% if you can help it, as this
above for more detail on this, and how to causes corrosion on the cell electrodes and
install the new drive. reduces the overall capacity of the battery.
Once it came round from the anaesthetic,
Back to life this MacBook Air was noticeably livelier than
After the SSD was securely connected and before, and its battery life had roughly
screwed into place, I connected the new doubled. It’s still fairly slow compared to a
battery and refitted the back cover of the recent model, but it’s easily useful enough
MacBook. Then I plugged in the backup disk to keep around for another year or two.

The SSD isn’t as fast as


Apple’s latest ones, but the
performance boost nicely
Next Issue! extends the Air’s useful life.
Luis opens up an iPod
classic to replace its
mechanical hard drive
with a much more
energy-efficient SSD that
can better take knocks.

82 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


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macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 83
Discover
HomeKit
Turning your house into a smart home used to be an expensive undertaking.
Not any more thanks to Apple’s HomeKit tech. Rob Mead-Green explains all…

Lights
Automate your lights
Blinds so they’re on when
you come home.
Don’t waste time in the
morning: have HomeKit
open the blinds for you.

Thermostat
Keep your home at a
comfortable temperature,
right from your iPhone.

M
ost homes are pretty Thanks to home automation, you making your home truly smart.
dumb when you can go from home to ‘smart home’ Although HomeKit first
think about it: you without the need for an expensive appeared in iOS 8, it has taken
have to physically team of professionals – Apple’s smart device makers a little while
lock and unlock the HomeKit does away with all of that. to catch up. The great thing about
doors, manually switch lights on HomeKit not only enables you to it is that it’s so simple to set up and
and off, use timers to fire up and control the heating and lighting from use, and you can use it in more
shut down your central heating… your iOS device, but also enables than one location – your home and
it all seems rather archaic now. these devices to work together, your office, say. Let’s get started…

84 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Managing your smart home
There’s a lot more to home automation
than simply switching lights on and off

T
he thing that really set to carry out the opposite actions
separates an ordinary when you arrive home too, if that’s
home from a smart home what you want.
is the ability to create
custom actions. In old Smarter living
school computer-speak you might call HomeKit, like most smart home
these macros – triggers for a series of systems, offers different levels of
commands or tasks that are carried granularity. You can create a ‘home’,
out together or in sequence. comprising every room and all of the
Imagine that you’re driving home smart home systems contained within
and want to be assured of a warm them; ‘rooms’, which can be tailored
welcome. You could simply say, “Hey to control devices in different rooms
Siri, I’m coming home” to have it relay in your home – you could have one
that command to HomeKit-compatible called ‘kitchen’ or ‘living room’,
devices in your house, switching on for example; and you can also have
the lights and the heating so that ‘zones’, which can comprise whole
everything is ready for when you walk areas of your home – ‘upstairs’ and
up to your front door. ‘downstairs’, for example.
HomeKit also includes support Another smart home feature is Smart lights are some of the most useful and least
for geofencing – a wireless boundary something called a ‘scene’. These are expensive products to feature HomeKit integration.
around your home that can be set the custom actions we referred to
so it automatically locks the doors, above. Scenes are incredibly powerful down the heating, switching off the
closes the windows, switches down and can be both time and location- lights and locking all your doors when
the heating and turns off the lights based. Instead of you having to you’re about to turn in for the night,
whenever you depart – and it can be wander around the house turning you could simply create a ‘bedtime’
scene using the smart home app on
your iPad or iPhone, then tap it or say
“Hey Siri, bedtime” to perform all of
these things for you. Clever, eh?
HomeKit devices usually rely on
Bluetooth Low Energy (also known as
Bluetooth Smart) and/or Wi-Fi to relay
the actions that you want to carry out,
which is fine when you’re at home.
But what if you’re away?

Which Apple devices?


iOS 9 can access HomeKit devices
remotely using iCloud. Go to Settings
> HomeKit and switch on Use iCloud,
then to Homes > [your home name] >
and switch on Allow Remote Access.
In iOS 8, you’ll also need a third-
gen or later Apple TV, to have iCloud
Drive and iCloud Keychain enabled,
and for the devices to be on the same
network as your Apple TV, or within
Elgato’s Eve app is a great example of the complete control you can now get of your home’s systems. 25 feet if triggered using Bluetooth.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 85


DISCOVER HOMEKIT

HOW TO Add HomeKit gear to your home

Genius Tip!
Elgato’s Eve app gives
you the ability to create
‘rules’, which enable
certain actions to take
place when particular
conditions are met.
A rule contains three
components: Triggers,
Conditions and Scenes.

1 Add your accessory


To add your first accessory click on the cog
in the top-right corner of the accessory’s app
2 Finish adding it
Once found, your accessory should pair.
In Elgato’s Eve app, you can capture the set-up
Triggers can be location
or value-based, so you
could create a rule that
then tap Add Accessory to Home. The app code by pointing your iOS device’s camera at automatically switches
detects nearby accessories, provided they are the printed sticker on the device. You can then the lights on or off when
powered up and close to your iPhone or iPad. assign it to the ‘room’ where it’s located. you arrive or leave
home, and another that
fires up your central
heating when your Eve
Room sensor detects
a drop in temperature.

3 Choose your location


Next you need to set the location of the
accessory – this could be your home or office.
4 Give it a name
For Siri to work with your HomeKit
accessory, you need to give it a unique name. Jargon Buster
We’re using Elgato’s Eve app, but similar steps We’re setting up an Eve Energy smart plug A geofence is a virtual
will apply to any other apps or devices you are here so we’re simply going to call it ‘Table perimeter around a
using. The default setting is ‘Home’. Lamp’ as that is what’s plugged into it. particular location that
you can set to trigger
certain actions when
you arrive or leave the
house. Geofences are
built into iOS and are
used in apps like
Reminders to prompt
you to do certain things:
“Remind me to buy milk
when I get to the shop”,
for example. Geofences
are also very useful in

5 Create a zone
If you have multiple HomeKit devices, you
can assign zones to them. Here we’re adding
6 Create a scene
HomeKit can also create scenes – macros
that cause certain HomeKit actions to take
HomeKit devices,
because they enable
your smart home kit to
our smart plug to a zone called ‘Downstairs’. place. Here we’ve made a ‘Good Morning’ take certain actions
So, when we say, “Hey Siri, turn off the lights scene, which automatically switches on the without you having to
downstairs”, it will do exactly that. lights when we say, “Hey, Siri, good morning”. do them manually.

86 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


DISCOVER HOMEKIT

Siri commands
Need your smart home to do something? Just ask Siri

G
oing hand in hand with The complete list of HomeKit
HomeKit, of course, commands is at apple.co/1MAVC5V,
is Siri, iOS’s virtual but here are a few examples:
personal assistant.
This means that instead “Turn on the lights”
of opening an app and tapping to “Turn off the lights”
get your smart home gear to do “Set the temperature to 22 degrees”
something, you can ask Siri instead. “Turn on the printer in the office”
Before you start using Siri to “Turn on the living room lights” or
control your home, you need to give “Turn off the living room lights
every HomeKit-compatible device “Set the home to 22 degrees”
in your home a unique name that “Set the thermostat downstairs
Siri will recognise. You can’t just to 18 degrees”
say, “Hey Siri, switch the table lamp “Goodnight”
on” if you have more than one table
lamp. The good news is that you can As more HomeKit-enabled devices
also use Siri to action any Scenes become available, the more
you’ve set up, so saying “Hey Siri, capable Siri will come. At WWDC
I’m home” will automatically trigger 2015, Apple announced it was
lights, heating and anything else adding support for blinds, alarms,
that you have included as part sensors, doors and windows, as
of your ‘Home’ scene. Creating a well as programmable switches to
‘Goodnight’ scene will also enable HomeKit, which can be accessed
Siri to switch off lights and turn securely using the HomeKit Access
down your heating, simply by you Protocol (HAP), which runs on top
saying “Hey Siri, goodnight”. of Bluetooth.

Alternative tech
The ability to take control of include ZigBee (zigbee.org), an
smart devices in your home may open standards, cross-platform
seem like a recent development, wireless technology that’s been
but the technology has been around since 2002. There’s also
around for many years – and Z-Wave (z-wave.com), a proprietary
Apple is far from alone in wanting home automation technology
to command this space. One-time that’s already been integrated into
Apple Store darling Nest (nest. hundreds of devices, and is iOS-
com) was snatched up by Google and Apple Watch-compatible. For
in 2014, with the company creating iOS users, HomeKit naturally offers
its own set of ‘Works with Nest’ the easiest way to get started, but
APIs that gadget makers can rivals such as Savant (savant.com)
harness for their own devices, and have deeper integration with older Nest is one of the most popular routes
it’s iOS-compatible. Rivals also home automation systems. into creating your first smart home.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 87


DISCOVER HOMEKIT

HomeKit gear to buy right now


Ready for some smart home action? You’ll need these…

Netatmo Thermostat Philips Hue Starter Kit


£150 FROM netatmo.com FEATURES Automatic £150 FROM philips.co.uk FEATURES Automated light
temperature adjustment, energy consumption report schedules, preset and custom lighting modes

This thermostat enables you to take control of your This kit of three smart
home’s heating from your iOS device, from home bulbs and a HomeKit-
or the other side of the world. You can set custom compatible bridge is
on/off times plus temperatures everything you need
for different times of day, and to enjoy atmospheric
Auto Adapt cleverly adjusts lighting at home. You
your heating based on outside can create custom on/off schedules and change the
temperature. Netatmo reckons bulb colours to suit your mood, from presets or by
it can also shave up to 37% off picking your own. You can sync the bulbs with music
your energy bill. and movies, and control up to 50 from one bridge.

Withings Home Elgato Eve Door & Window


£170 FROM withings.com FEATURES 1080p Full HD £35 FROM elgato.com FEATURES Wireless contact
recording quality, live streaming, air quality sensor sensor, open/closed states with time and duration data

This security camera is Did you remember


the perfect way to keep to close that window
tabs on what’s going on before you left home?
at home, whether you’re This contact sensor
in or out. It includes motion can help tell you if you
and sound sensors and can did, by transmitting its
automatically start recording state to the Eve app on
when it detects movement, your iPhone. You’ll still
and you can use it as a baby have to go back and
monitor too. shut it, though.

Insteon Hub Pro Elgato Eve Weather


£100 FROM insteon.com FEATURES Schedules and £45 FROM Elgato, elgato.com FEATURES
scenes, works with Insteon and HomeKit devices Temperature, air pressure and humidity data

US company Insteon is famous for Need to know whether


its range of smart home devices, to take a brolly or
which include sensors, door locks, a jumper with you
fans and security cameras. This before you head out?
hub makes most of its products The water-resistant,
compatible with HomeKit. battery-powered Eve
Weather sensor can
tell relay the essential
info, both right now
and over time.

88 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


PRIZES
WORTH
AROUND
£600!

In association with

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90 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016


What’s inside

92–94
APPLE KIT
Our look at the new
iPad Pro & iPhone SE

95–97 EDITED BY ALEX BLAKE


BUYING
MAC HARDWARE ADVICE
New iOS gadgets and a
Our authoritative reviews
‘quantum dot’ monitor help you make more
informed choices
98–101 iPHONE
SE
GROUP TEST p94
Improve docs with a
colour laser printer

102–104
MAC SOFTWARE
Apps to enhance your
Finder, and more!

105
iOS SOFTWARE
New photo editor, and
a cool tool for writers

Manifesto – our ratings explained


Our reviews are totally the best we can find from +++++
independent; we’re not a reputable online dealer, Worth considering, though
affiliated with Apple or excluding delivery. there may be better options
anyone else, nor are we
Contact us influenced by advertisers. +++++ +++++
You can trust us to give A brilliant thing in all regards, Fundamentally flawed; look
an honest assessment and worth every penny at alternatives as a priority
Email your queries of a product’s worth.
and your questions to The prices quoted for +++++ +++++
letters@macformat.com products are correct at Strongly recommended; any A waste of your money and
the time of writing and are flaws are only minor concerns everyone’s time; do not buy!
Keep up to date by
following us on Twitter
@macformat The MACFORMAT Awards
Join the conversation Awarded to a Given to a Our group test
at facebook.com/ five-star product hardware or winner gets this
macformat we believe is truly software product award for being
exceptional in its that might not be the best of its
Get the latest category. Given solely at the the very best in its category, kind when pitted against
subscription offers at discretion of the Editor. but is a noted for affordability. other comparable products.
macformat.com

JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 91


APPLE CHOICE Apple Kit

iPad Pro (9.7-inch)


The Air clears to make way for a smaller Pro
Reviewed by CHRISTIAN HALL

From £499 FROM Apple, apple.com/uk


FEATURES True Tone display, Smart Connector, 12MP iSight camera, 4K video recording

here’s no denying the 9.7-inch


T form factor is the sweet spot for
most tablet buyers, and what was
set to be the iPad Air 3 has turned out to
be exactly that – except in name. The new
iPad Pro has very much the same look and
feel of the feather-light iPad Air 2, but with
Pro features added: top-end camera tech,
No longer will you feel a bit Apple Pencil support, and the best iPad
stupid taking an iPad photo display yet. Incremental improvements you
or video, because the new
Pro is just as capable as the might say, suitable and expected of an ‘iPad
top-end iPhones thanks to its Air 3’, but in combination they make this
brilliant camera and, for the hands down the best iPad model yet, and
first time in an iPad, a flash.
wholly suited to its Pro denomination.
We loved the iPad Air 2. It was an
expression of Apple’s tablet vision so refined
that it had seemingly reached the perfect
balance of features. Apple was confident in
that, which is why we see exactly the same iPad’s display (at the moment unique to this
thiness of 6.1mm here and no thinner. We said model) is a little like a ‘Day Shift’ feature,
in 2014 that the iPad Air 2 just wouldn’t feel warming up the screen as it adjusts to
right if slimmed down further, and we now ambient light. Coming from another iPad
get an enhanced iPad of the same size and with a Retina display, you’ll take a little while
weight that made the Air 2 so attractive. getting used to the warmer look, but it’s a
welcome change. It’s designed to complement
Tonally good screen Night Shift, and for the most part you won’t
While the Retina display here is identical to notice the screen changes colour, particularly
the Air 2’s in resolution (2048x1536 pixels) when Night Shift activates on schedule –
Alan says… and density (264ppi), we have little to grumble unless you’ve turned that up high, though
This iPad’s display has about: it’s pin-sharp, and text in documents hardly anyone will find that agreeable!
me envious, given my and Safari, for example, looks just sublime. True Tone isn’t the only display change.
months-old 12.9-inch Where the display differs is its anti-reflective This iPad Pro has the same P3 colour gamut
model doesn’t have it. coating. This particular iPad Pro is touted by as the most recent 4K and 5K Retina iMacs.
But I’m still uncertain Apple as 40% less reflective than the Air 2. We can’t complain about this tweak, which
about the ergonomics We praised the Air 2 when we reviewed it for punches up reds and greens in particular, but
of either model being opening our eyes to how bad previous iPad the results are slightly less pronounced than
used with an external screens were outdoors. We’re impressed on the iMacs. If you use one of those to edit
keyboard, like a laptop, again, though we struggled to see significant photos, you’ll definitely prefer to have this
which requires you to gains over the Air 2’s excellent screen. iPad for the sake of consistent presentation.
reach up to the screen What we do have is the ability in Settings
for many interactions. to enable the True Tone feature. iOS 9.3’s Pro power
I still prefer to use a Night Shift (see page 64) is designed to reduce So, this iteration has the perfect form factor
MacBook for most work your exposure to blue light by warming up for most iPad users, a display that’s as yet
tasks, beyond typing. the screen. The True Tone element of this unrivalled in an iOS device, and support for

92 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


9.7-inch iPad Pro APPLE CHOICE

ALTERNATIVE CHOICES

iPad Pro (12.9-inch) iPad Air 2


From £679 From £349

SPECIFICATIONS SPECIFICATIONS
32, 128, or 256GB 16 or 64GB
2732x2048-pixel display 2048x1536-pixel display
at 264 ppi at 264 ppi
A9X and M9 chips A8X and M8 chips
8MP iSight camera 8MP iSight camera
1080p video recording 1080p video recording
at 30fps at 30fps

Apple’s much-loved Pencil, but how does it preferred option, it’s the most compelling
perform over the many other iPad models that upgrade in the iPad range so far.
are still available to buy today? The final additions that bolster the Pro
It’s powered by the same A9X and M9 nature of this iPad are a 12MP camera, the
processors from the larger iPad Pro, although same as the iPhone 6s and, for the first time
the Geekbench 3 app confirms that this one’s on an iPad, a flash. It’s easy to snigger at iPad
A9X is fractionally underclocked at 2.13GHz, photography or video shooting, but with this
compared to 2.24GHz in the 12.9-inch Pro. model in your hand you won’t feel like an
Any app we used to find any recognisable amateur – you’ve got some great photo and
performance difference concluded nothing – video kit here. 4K recording is made all the
this model is every bit as powerful as it’s more compelling with iMovie’s 4K editing
bigger sibling, and having half the RAM (2GB update, but perhaps more useful is the 60fps
here) makes no apparent difference either. setting for 1080p video recordings, in contrast
Our Geekbench tests (taking an average with the 30fps limit on the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. VERDICT
of three results) recorded the 9.7-inch iPad at The camera protrudes from the body, just It’s the perfect
5,292 points compared to the 12.9-inch’s 5,508 like on the iPhone 6 and 6s, but this didn’t package for a tablet,
on the multicore test. Comparing that to the detract from our enjoyment, and the annoying delivering amazing
iPad Air 2, it’s in the region of 20% better. wobble you would expect with the iPad laid performance, with
Both Pros significantly outperform the rest flat on a table is avoided. We also love the new key features from the
of the iPad range, and the slight differences design for cellular models, which dispenses flagship iPhone 6s.
between their benchmark scores shouldn’t be with the black or white plastic block in favour
a factor in choosing which is right for you – of an aluminium area instead. Of course, this +++++
they are both Pro by name for a very good being an iPad Pro, it’s also equipped with Stunning performer
reason. We don’t doubt that this iPad was Apple’s Smart Connector, which allows you Apple Pencil support
released because of the swell of buyers who to attach its external Smart Keyboard for a 12MP/4K shooting
still want this screen size. If 9.7-inches is your more laptop-like experience. Smartest chassis yet

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 93


APPLE CHOICE Apple Kit

iPhone SE
Mini but mighty, the latest iPhone
is simply a wonder to use
Reviewed by ALEX BLAKE

From £359 FROM Apple, apple.com/uk


FEATURES 16GB or 64GB, Retina display, A9 chip, 12MP rear camera, Touch ID

he iPhone has been getting


This kind of
performance T larger in recent years, but
unless we’re very much
mistaken, hands haven’t been evolving
in such a tiny upwards and outwards at quite the same
package is rate. Apple seems to have realised this and
has done the unthinkable in an age of
staggering expansion: it’s brought out a smaller iPhone.
At first glance, you might be suspicious.
Isn’t that the old iPhone 5s chassis? It is, but
let’s not get too hung up on that. Yes, a new
design would have been great, but that’s not
the point of the SE. This is an iPhone aimed
at upgraders, people who like the guts of the
iPhone 6s but are put off by the substantial
size and its equally large price tag. Keeping
the old design (Apple calls it “beloved”) allows It may be housed in an iPhone 5s body, but the
iPhone SE is a very different experience.
for a lower price point.
But, this is not a ‘cheap’ phone. It’s got If you’re used to Apple’s larger phones,
the same A9 chip as the 6s, and the same M9 the iPhone SE may at first seem a little too
motion coprocessor; the same 12MP camera small. You’ll probably misspell words, and
with Live Photos; and the same pixel density content will feel a little more cosy and
in its Retina display. In some ways, it’s a 6s constrained – but this is a minor, passing
squeezed into a more palm-friendly form. concern; spend a few days with the SE and
In fact, the only things of note that the 6s has you soon get used to its compact dimensions.
over the SE are 3D Touch, higher-res front If you’re upgrading from the iPhone 5s or
camera and the 128GB capacity option. (The earlier, the SE will be perfect for you. It’s got
SE’s maximum is 64GB, and Apple has still all the grunt of Apple’s plus-size flagships,
stuck with 16GB as the entry-level option.) but without the pocket-obliterating, thumb-
VERDICT straining, self-conscious-phone-call-making
Affordable and Great things in small packages unwieldiness of the chunkier iPhones. And
powerful, this is an In practice, the SE is an absolute pleasure to you’ll save yourself a pretty penny, too. In
amazing iPhone use. Its display is bright and crisp, and things fact, this is Apple’s cheapest ever iPhone.
that’s ideal for zip along smoothly. The 12MP rear-facing It’s not all perfect. The battery life can’t
upgraders or those camera produces fantastic images, and you live up to the 6s Plus, and it’s missing a few
with smaller hands. rarely get the feeling that corners have been features like 3D Touch and optical image
cut to bring the price down. Most importantly, stabilisation. But at this price we really can’t
+++++ perhaps, it’s easy to use with one hand! complain, and our experience has probably
Brilliant performance It was in our benchmarking that the SE been tainted by using Apple’s larger iPhones
Compact design really shone. It beat every iOS device bar the for so long – if you’ve never had an iPhone
You can reach the iPad Pro in our CPU tests, and just beat the 6s bigger than four inches, you’ll have no
corners with one hand! in battery life. This kind of performance in problem. Even if you have, this is a powerful,
No 3D Touch such a tiny package is staggering. compact phone that demands attention.

94 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Osmo Starter Kit Osmo’s Numbers game

with Numbers adds up the value of tiles


in its view. It's real-time
and a child doesn't need
to be too neat either.
The FaceTime camera kids can love
£98 FROM Osmo, playosmo.com FEATURES iPad base unit
and mirror, five games (three using physical items)

he iPad has iPad, while the iPad sits in a (something that’d quickly
T become a de facto
tool for children's
base unit, slightly tilted back.
The area immediately in
frustrate a child if it were too
fussy). In the Numbers game,
entertainment and early front of the child becomes for example, it takes just a
years education, but if you the 'playing field', and fraction of a second to add up
fear your little ones are through word, number and the total of the tiles that a
getting too much screen creative games a child can child has arranged, and they
VERDICT time, this is a worthwhile use their hands away from don't need to be at all straight
A combination of addition to their fun. the touchscreen to engage or neatly arranged, Osmo
the physical and Osmo regains what your with the educational games. just 'sees' it (as long as they
virtual world that child may have been lacking You soon realise that it's aren’t out of camera range).
really works well. through overuse of the because of the speedy camera Osmo is simple, fast, and
touchscreen – real-world recognition that this device generally has good quality
+++++ interaction. Here, a small really does work well – it's games. But, many App Store
Kids will love it mirror is placed over the also rather forgiving in terms learning apps go deeper for
Longevity is an issue front-facing camera of the of accuracy of placement less cost. CHRISTIAN HALL

360fly The large lens has a


360° horizontal view,
and 240° vertically.

Surround yourself with video


£399 FROM 360fly, 360fly.com
FEATURES Shock-resistant up to 1.5m, 5 atm water resistance,
IP6X dust-resistance rating, accelerometer for camera orientation

he 360fly is like
T no other action
camera. The
exterior is formed of
geometric patterns that
form a spherical shape,
to capture video in all resistant up to 50m – though the frame is softer and lacks
directions. There’s no a little rubber plug needs to detail, although tone and
housing for the lens, so it’s be inserted into the mic hole. colour are good.
VERDICT remarkably open to the Although the camera All operations for the
Share stunning elements, but we found it is ‘360’, this refers to the camera are handled by the
and immersive stood up to a variety of horizontal rotation – you Bluetooth-enabled 360fly
360° video easily and weather conditions. actually get a 240° field of app. It’s easy to use, but
without adding extras. Elsewhere on the body, view vertically. As the lens we would have liked some
you’ll find a small on/off points up, the sharpest part flexibility over white
+++++ push button on the side, and of the what’s captured is balance, sensitivity and
Well-designed app an even smaller microphone directly above the camera; frame rate settings.
Lacks adjustments hole. The camera is water- footage around the edges of ALI JENNINGS

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 95


APPLE CHOICE Mac Hardware

Philips 276E6ADSS
A reasonably priced display
that’s great for design work
Reviewed by KEITH MARTIN

£240 FROM Philips, philips.co.uk FEATURES 1920x1080-


pixel resolution, HDMI, DVI-D, VGA, audio passthrough

The 27-inch ost monitors

E-Line offers M produce colour


that, well,
great colour most people would be
happy with, but if you’re serious
accuracy, but about your Photoshop work, video
its case isn’t editing, page layout or any other
creation, you shouldn’t settle for
as impressive ‘average’. Philips says this display
The 27-inch E-Line’s
reproduces 99% of Adobe RGB, the range of viewing angles
colour space that’s relied on by media is incredibly good.
pros. The focus on colour reproduction
means it doesn’t have any extra features. that our review unit achieved 98% of Adobe
There are no passthrough USB ports or RGB, which is a negligible variance – you’re
built-in speakers, but there is a passthrough not going to notice it in practice.
audio jack if you connect to your Mac using
HDMI. The official name of this display is the Movies, crops and filters
276E6ADSS, but that’s so unmemorable that On the technical front, the 27-inch E-Line is a
we’ll call it the 27-inch E-Line. really impressive display, but it isn’t all roses.
Aesthetically, this is a moderately The gloss-white plastic casing looks good, but
elegant-looking device. It has a white bezel it’s rather thin and prone to bending if you
around the 27-inch LCD panel, and it rests on grip the top or the sides. It creaks and pulls
a slim, curved aluminium base. It has a 25° slightly away from the LCD panel when tilted
range of tilt, although only five of those are forward or back, somewhat undermining the
leaning back from vertical. We should add display’s credentials as a high-quality device.
that this was fine in our studio environment, The buttons for power, calling up the
and it also has an extremely good viewing on-screen controls and configuration are
angle range. The specifications say this is 178° touch-sensitive spots under the front edge.
VERDICT both vertically and horizontally; we prefer to There’s no tactile element, and you’ll have to
A very high-quality say that what’s on the screen looks the same look carefully to ensure you tap the right bit of
LCD panel that’s until you’re so nearly edge-on that it’s silly smooth plastic, so it’s an annoyance that
better than almost looking any more. So, the 27-inch E-Line gets they’re halfway out of sight. We’ve seen this
anything in its class, a definite thumbs-up from us here. before, but it’s form over function.
but its build quality Philips says this is the first monitor with The LCD display’s quality is undeniably
doesn’t match that. ‘Quantum Dot Colour Technology’, using great. Yes, you can find a Full HD, 27-inch
nanomaterial that produces more precise display for £100 less, but you won’t get this
+++++ colour control. The 99% Adobe RGB claim one’s level of colour reproduction. The case’s
Almost 100% Adobe that Philips makes is a bold one. There are quality isn’t as good, and the controls (like
RGB colour rendering monitors that achieve this but, really, the vast many) are annoying. Once it’s set up, though,
Audio passthrough majority settle at achieving the colour range you’ll rarely need them – except the power
Cheap-feeling body of the more basic sRGB gamut. We tested the ‘button’. We’re torn. You’ll simply have to
Awkward controls display with Datacolor’s Spyder and found decide whether build or colour matters most.

96 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016


Head to Head APPLE CHOICE

Reviewed by HOLLIN JONES


Zeppelin Wireless Air 200
An unusual design that results Great sound and a physical
in crisp, room-filling sound remote for better manual control
£499 FROM Bowers & Wilkins, bowers-wilkins.co.uk £400 FROM Cambridge Audio, cambridgeaudio.com
FEATURES Wi-Fi or Ethernet, Bluetooth, 3.5mm aux input FEATURES Wi-Fi or Ethernet, Bluetooth, 3.5mm aux input

Ease of setup +++++ Ease of setup +++++


Download the app for iOS or Mac and in just a few taps the The speaker has an option to join your Wi-Fi network,
Zeppelin is connected to your Wi-Fi network. Connecting but we had some difficulty at first getting this to work.
over AirPlay is a breeze, and you can link up using Wi-Fi setup could perhaps be more streamlined, though
Bluetooth from any device that can stream audio. streaming over Bluetooth was simple to set up.

Network performance +++++ Network performance +++++


We saw virtually no startup lag when streaming music We had no issues streaming from different devices over
over AirPlay, and no dropouts while moving around our Wi-Fi. Bluetooth performance was also excellent, with the
home. Bluetooth’s range is shorter, but it was equally speaker using aptX technology to more efficiently transfer
impressive, maintaining a connection from the next room. high-quality audio streams between different locations.

Sound quality +++++ Sound quality +++++


The Zeppelin is capable of astonishing volume given its A well-rounded sound with plenty of bass, though not at
size, and the clever design means that while bass is deep the expense of a balanced sound stage. Mids are solid,
and rich, and mids and treble are crisp, a good balance is treble is crisp, and there’s plenty of power. Cambridge uses
always maintained. This thing sounds much bigger than Balanced Mode Radiator technology to provide a sound
it has any right to, with fantastic clarity and accuracy. that’s more room-filling and less directional.

Inputs and outputs +++++ Inputs and outputs +++++


There’s no physical remote, but there are handy controls You get a physical remote and Ethernet, plus a manual
on the unit for playback, volume and Bluetooth pairing. bass level control on the back. A standard mini jack input
An Ethernet port is provided, as well as a mini jack for older MP3 players is joined by phono aux inputs, giving
auxiliary input for connecting cabled audio devices. you more flexibility to connect other gear like turntables.

A room-filling and surprisingly powerful A solid speaker with good input and output
speaker with Spotify Connect and a seamless options, but perhaps lacking the design finesse
set-up process. A superb performer. and transparent set-up options of some rivals.

+++++ VERDICT +++++

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 97


APPLE CHOICE Group Test

COLOUR LASER
Good quality laser
printers aren’t just
for big business
users any more
Reviewed by CLIFF JOSEPH

PRINTERS
ON TEST…
Brother HL-3150CDW
Canon LBP7110Cw
Dell H625cdw
Epson Aculaser C2900N
Samsung Xpress C1810W
Xerox Phaser 6500

raditionally, the printer market review can churn out pages at speeds no How we tested
T has been divided into two quite
distinct categories. Inkjet printers
comparably-priced inkjet printer can hope
to match. A low-cost laser printer does have
To assess text quality
we used a text-only
were the low-cost option for home users, to make some compromises, though. You’re document in Microsoft
while businesses had to fork out hundreds – unlikely to find a multifunction laser printer Word, which included a
or even thousands – of pounds for high-speed, that also includes a scanner, copier or fax for number of fonts, sizes
high-quality, network-connected laser less than £200, whereas those features are and styles. For colour
printers. But, in recent years, those categories now standard even on inkjet printers costing printing we used a PDF
have become a bit fuzzy around the edges. less than £100. The traditional Achilles’ heel marketing brochure that
The latest inkjets are starting to rival laser combines text with
printers for speed and quality, while laser If you want to impress your some small product
printers have come down in price to the point photos, graphs and
where they are now well within the budget of
colleagues and clients, then charts. Laser printers
many home workers and small businesses. a laser printer is hard to beat aren’t designed for
With that in mind, we’ve gathered together photographic work,
a number of affordable colour laser printers of the laser printer hasn’t gone away either, but presentations and
aimed at those kinds of buyer. and they can’t match the high-quality glossy product brochures
The traditional strengths of the laser photo prints that you can get from even really might occasionally
printer remain the same, though. If you want low-cost inkjet printers. Even so, with more require photo output, so
to impress your colleagues and clients, then people now working from home, there’s a real we also included one A4
the high-quality text output of a laser printer demand for affordable colour laser printers photo print in our tests.
is hard to beat, and even the low-cost laser that provide professional quality for your
printers that we’ve gathered together for this business documents and marketing materials.

98 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Colour Laser Printers APPLE CHOICE

Higher:
HP couldn’t find a
low-cost laser for this
review, but its Color
LaserJet M553n zips
along at 38ppm for a
price of around £280.

Things to consider…
Everything you need to know before getting started

Starter kits Month by month


1 Watch out for low-capacity ‘starter 4 Printer manufacturers give their printers
cartridges’. The Canon and Samsung printers a ‘recommended monthly volume’, indicating …or lower?
reviewed here are cheap, but may only print how many pages should be printed each month. The cheapest colour
800–1,000 pages before running out of toner. It’s usually around 1,000–1,500 pages. laser printer we’ve ever
seen is Oki’s C301dn
Short fuse Size isn’t everything (£80). Oki quotes speeds
2 As well as toner cartridges, laser printers 5 The more compact laser printers, like of 22ppm, but we
also have mechanical parts, such as the ‘fuser’ Brother’s HL-3150CDW, can match the speed, wouldn’t bet on it.
that applies toner to paper. These may need to quality and features of big beasts like the Dell
be replaced every 2–3 years, so check the cost. H625cdw – useful when space is at a premium.

In design Say cheese


3 The Epson and Xerox printers support 6 Inkjet printers still have the edge when
Adobe’s PostScript programming language, printing photos. There are also specialised
useful for designers who work with apps like inkjet printers that use more inks for really
Adobe Illustrator or InDesign. accurate colour reproduction.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 99


APPLE CHOICE Group Test

Test 1 Features Test 2 Connectivity


Which features are right for you? A good office printer can be shared
The low-cost laser printers we’ve As you’d expect, all these printers
tested here really aren’t much more include a USB interface to connect
expensive than inkjet printers, but directly to a Mac. The Brother, Dell,
they do have to make a few Canon and Samsung printers also
compromises in order to keep the have Wi-Fi for network connectivity,
price down. Most of them are so that you can share the printer
single-function printers, and it was with other people on your home or
only Dell’s multifunction H625cdw, office network. If you’re using an
pushing our price limit at £240, that includes a scanner as well. iOS device for office work, you’ll also appreciate the AirPrint
Dell and Brother were the only manufacturers to include support provided by Brother, Dell and Samsung. Canon
duplex (two-sided) printing, although Samsung does include a doesn’t support AirPrint, but does provide a printing app for
manual duplex option with its C1810W. iOS devices. However, the Epson and Xerox printers are older
One other thing to consider is size. The Canon, Brother and models that lack Wi-Fi and rely primarily on Ethernet for their
Samsung printers are relatively compact – just about small networking features. Many people – including the MacFormat
enough to fit onto a shelf in a small home office – but the bulky, team – do prefer to use reliable old Ethernet for their office
heavy printers from Dell, Epson and Xerox will require a table network, so that’s not necessarily a deal-breaker, but it does
all to themselves in your workspace. mean that these printers aren’t ideal for use with iOS devices.

TEST RESULTS TEST RESULTS


Brother HL-3150CDW +++++ Epson C2900N +++++ Brother HL-3150CDW +++++ Epson C2900N +++++
Canon LBP7110Cw +++++ Samsung C1810W +++++ Canon LBP7110Cw +++++ Samsung C1810W +++++
Dell H625cdw +++++ Xerox Phaser 6500 +++++ Dell H625cdw +++++ Xerox Phaser 6500 +++++

Test 3 Laser quality Test 4 Running costs


High-quality text and graphics? Keep an eye on ongoing costs
One of the main advantages of a If you thought inkjet cartridges
laser printer over less expensive were expensive, wait until you see
inkjet printers is the crisp, smooth the cost of laser toner cartridges.
text output that provides the very A complete set of four CMYK
best quality for business documents. cartridges can easily set you back
The six laser printers in this group £200 or more. Fortunately, you’ll get
test all share the same 600x600dpi 2,000–3,000 pages out of each set of
resolution and produce similar high- them, which makes the pain a bit
quality text output. The same was true with our PDF test easier to bear. Watch out for Xerox, though, which sells its
documents, which combined text with simple colour graphics. colour cartridges in two sizes. The standard ones work out at
Some laser printers can print on glossy photo paper, but a whopping 15p per page for colour printing, so you need to get
laser technology still isn’t ideal for printing larger, high-quality the XL cartridges to bring that down to about 9.5p, which is in
photographs. The A4 photo prints produced by Brother, Epson line with the other printers in this test for colour printing.
and Xerox were rather grainy, while Canon’s printer noticeably Mono (black-only) printing is fairly consistent across the group
oversaturated the colours. Dell’s photo output came out rather at around 2p per page, but Dell’s standard black cartridges
dark, while Samsung managed to be both grainy and dark. In work out at an extravagant 4p per page. Its XL cartridge is a
other words, inkjet printers still rule the photo-printing roost. better deal, bringing that cost down to a more competitive 1.8p.

TEST RESULTS TEST RESULTS


Brother HL-3150CDW +++++ Epson C2900N +++++ Brother HL-3150CDW +++++ Epson C2900N +++++
Canon LBP7110Cw +++++ Samsung C1810W +++++ Canon LBP7110Cw +++++ Samsung C1810W +++++
Dell H625cdw +++++ Xerox Phaser 6500 +++++ Dell H625cdw +++++ Xerox Phaser 6500 +++++

100 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Colour Laser Printers APPLE CHOICE

THE WINNER Brother


Size isn’t everything…
aser printing is a mature technology
L that’s been around for decades, and
we’d be hard pushed to choose
between these six printers when it comes to
the quality of text and colour graphics they
produce. That means your choice will largely
depend on price and any specific features that
you may require. If you’re a graphic designer,
the PostScript support of the Epson C2900N

We’d be hard pushed to Paul says…


The ever-dropping
choose between these six The HL-3150CDW from Brother has a great balance of prices of laser printers
printers when it comes to the features, from high-quality prints to fast output. really makes them
accessible to a lot more
quality of text and graphics H625cdw and Brother’s more compact people than ever before.
and Xerox Phaser 6500 could be useful, with HL-3150CDW. On paper, Dell has an edge on Making the decision
Xerox having a slight edge on pricing. speed at 23ppm, but Brother’s 18ppm should between inkjets and
For more general office use, we’d be still be perfectly adequate for most people, lasers is much harder
inclined to focus on features such as duplex and its lighter and more compact design than it used to be – but
printing and Wi-Fi connectivity – preferably makes the HL-3150CDW the best all-round it’s a nice problem to
also with AirPrint for iOS devices. That option for use at home or in a small office. have with printers as
narrows the choice down to Dell’s monolithic That gets it the nod from us. good as these!

How
do they
compare?
>THE SPECS > Brother > Canon > Dell > Epson > Samsung > Xerox
PRICE £190 £150 £240 £210 £160 £175

RESOLUTION 600x600dpi 600x600dpi 600x600dpi 600x600dpi 600x600dpi 600x600dpi

SPEED 18ppm 14ppm 23ppm 23ppm 18ppm 23ppm


iOS DEVICE
AirPrint Canon Print app AirPrint n/a AirPrint n/a
COMPATIBILITY
Wi-Fi, Fast Ethernet Wi-Fi, Fast Ethernet Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet,
CONNECTIVITY
(10/100), USB 2.0 (10/100), USB 2.0 USB 2.0 USB 2.0 USB 2.0 USB 2.0

DUPLEX PRINTING Yes No Yes No Yes (manual) No

PAPER TRAYS 250/150 sheets +


250/100 sheets 150/124 sheets 250/150 sheets 250/100 sheets 250/150 sheets
(INPUT/OUTPUT) 50-sheet second input

DIMENSIONS
24x41x46.5cm 25.5x40.6x45.4cm 50x42.9x50.4cm 41.6x40.4x44cm 26.4x42x42.6cm 41.6x40.4x42.6cm
(HxWxD)

FEATURES +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++


CONNECTIVITY +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++
LASER QUALITY +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++
RUNNING COSTS +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++
FINAL VERDICT +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 101


APPLE CHOICE Mac Software

Default
Folder X 5
Power up file management
Reviewed by CRAIG GRANNELL

£27.09 FROM St. Clair Software, stclairsoft.com


NEEDS OS X 10.10 or higher

pple’s drive towards minimalism dialogs. Default Folder X’s extensive


Default Folder
is chock-full of A can prove frustrating in Open
and Save dialogs, which have
preferences enable you to define keyboard
shortcuts for menu commands and favourite
barely changed as OS X has evolved. folders, the latter vastly speeding up access to
features that Aside from some stashed favourites and a key locations when using Finder or opening/
power up handful of recent places in a pop-up menu, saving files. You can also create folder sets
they do little to speed up your workflow. (for example, to have unique folder shortcuts
Open and By contrast, Default Folder X is chock-full for individual projects), which can be selected
Save dialogs of features that power up these dialogs in a from the aforementioned menus. In addition,
major way, and boost other key areas of OS X. default folders can be defined for individual
The first time you use Default Folder X, apps, and limited to a specific extension.
its presence is felt. It surrounds the Open and So if you usually save TIFFs in one place but
Save dialogs, adding several new menus. JPEGs in another when working in an image
These house all manner of commands, editor, you can configure the app to
including the means to change a selected item automatically go to the correct initial location
(rename, duplicate, compress, and so on), and to open or save a file according to its type.
access to recent files, folders and open Finder This is all good stuff, but the latest version
windows and tabs. A less obvious but hugely of Default Folder X isn’t all sunshine and
useful transformation is the switching of the roses. Although it adds full compatibility
menu for accessing recent places and folders with El Capitan, it sometimes feels sluggish.
above the current location for one that lets you It’s noticeably slow to appear when activated,
browse the entire file system at speed. and lags a touch when shortcuts are invoked.
We also found the new features hit and miss.
Access all areas It’s great to have a recent files list and fast
This menu is optionally mirrored in the menu access to Finder tabs, but the new sidebar for
bar and Finder’s toolbar, and there are other stashing documents (available as a drawer in
goodies lurking outside of Open and Save Finder) seems superfluous. Also, while we
appreciate the app adding a tagging system
for files and folders, we didn’t use it much
VERDICT after our initial curiosity wore off.
Occasionally slow There’s also an ongoing nagging feeling
but still indispensable, that Default Folder X can be initially baffling
Default Folder X is and overwhelming – something that new
a huge timesaver features and added complexity fail to dispel.
Still, as ever, it remains an app that rewards
+++++ investment. Spend some time learning the
Speeds up navigation ropes and setting things up, and you’ll gain
Per-app defaults many more savings in the long run; chances
Folder shortcuts Being able to access your file system, favourites and are, Default Folder X will become one of those
Sluggish to activate Finder windows from the menu bar is handy. apps your Mac feels naked without.

102 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Mac Software APPLE CHOICE

TextSoap 8
Give reused text a good scrub
$39.99 (about £28) FROM Unmarked Software, unmarked.com
NEEDS OS X 10.10 or higher

nyone who works


A with text, whether
writing, editing or If you can’t find a Cleaner in the
library, you can create your own.
repurposing it, knows the
pain of trying to work with
the same passages of text Version 8 has a new look In use, we found TextSoap
in different tools. that, while not perfect, is worked well and did all we
TextSoap 8 is designed to much more in keeping with asked of it. Its interface isn’t
fix this problem and many El Capitan’s flat, pared-back as polished as we’d like: the
more that occur when taking aesthetic than previous buttons on the toolbar look
VERDICT text written in one tool and TextSoap versions. Also new like an afterthought, for
If you need to clean pasting it into another. For is the custom cleaner editor. example. On the plus side,
up text for reuse, example, when someone Cleaners are actions in support for OS X’s Services
you’ll find TextSoap to sends you text in the body of TextSoap that carry out means you don’t even have
be a real timesaver an email that’s destined for specific functions on text. to open TextSoap to use its
your InDesign layout, you can There’s a library of over 100 of functions; just call them from
++
++++ use TextSoap to strip out stray them, but the custom cleaner the contextual menu in any
Lots of one-click fixes hard returns so you won’t editor allows you to add more app that supports Services.
Interface lacks polish have to track them down later. by creating your own. KENNY HEMPHILL

Airfoil 5
An ingenious wireless audio tool
$29 (about £20) FROM Rogue Amoeba, rogueamoeba.com
NEEDS OS X 10.9 or higher

irfoil has been


A a popular audio
utility for many Airfoil lets you stream audio
from an individual app.
years, and it’s still adding
new features that make it a
useful tool for people who iTunes or Spotify – as the You can also create a
need precise control over audio source. Any other audio multiroom audio system by
their Mac’s audio output. played on your Mac, such as sending your audio source to
This new version adds the BBC iPlayer running in multiple speakers, and Airfoil
ability to stream to Bluetooth Safari, will then continue includes a free app called
VERDICT speakers in addition to to be played on your Mac’s Satellite that streams audio to
A clever tool with AirPlay speakers and devices internal speakers. This will be other Macs, iOS devices, and
more control than such as the Apple TV (which useful if you want to stream even Windows PCs.
conventional Bluetooth were already supported). Of music to another room while Airfoil isn’t too expensive,
and AirPlay streaming. course, Bluetooth is already using your Mac or if, like us, and there’s a trial version that
built in to your Mac, but you like to listen to music on streams music for 10 minutes
++
++++ Airfoil gives you more control Bluetooth speakers while at a time to give you a taste of
Selective streaming by allowing you to select just hearing a game’s sound effects its capabilities before you buy.
No video streaming one specific app – such as coming from your Mac. CLIFF JOSEPH

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 103


APPLE CHOICE Mac Software

Day of the
Tentacle
A true classic of 1993 gets a facelift
£10.99 FROM Double Fine Productions, doublefine.com
NEEDS OS X 10.6.6 or higher
What possible harm could one
insane, mutant tentacle do?
ew games remain
F playable decades
after their original Hoagie dash to Green’s aid, This version’s voice acting
release, but this LucasArts dumbly unleashing his evil is free of the crackles of 1993
point-and-click adventure brother at the same time. audio compression, and its
holds up extremely well. As Purple sets to work on redrawn graphics retain the
DOTT is a time-travelling world domination, Edison original’s essence. Frames of
VERDICT romp through a world where sends Hoagie and Laverne animation remain few, though
A preposterous plot, Purple Tentacle, a creation of into the past and future using arguably that reinforces some
nice visuals and great mad scientist Dr. Fred Edison, time machines made from quirky characterisations. The
voice acting add up to has drunk toxic sludge that’s portable toilets. You control oddball concept means really
a chucklesome caper. only caused a further thirst – the student protagonists, having to think out of the box
for power. Edison’s set to kill flushing items scavenged to solve some puzzles, though
++
++++ Purple and his brother Green, from three time periods to trying out things is just part
Restrained remaster until Bernard Bernoulli and each other to manipulate the of the frivolous fun. Get this
Some jokes lost in time his roommates Laverne and timeline and save the future. game! ALAN STONEBRIDGE

Get Backup Pro 3


This utility has your data covered
£14.43 FROM BeLight Software, belightsoft.com
NEEDS OS X 10.9 or higher

nless you’re a bit


U weird and don’t
care about the data Get Backup Pro has plenty of options, yet its
interface is friendly and straightforward.
on your Mac, you have a
duty to safeguard it against
drive failure. Rather than project, decide on settings SuperDuper, and there was a
making assumptions about (exclusions, incremental/full, more noticeable performance
the type of backup you want, scheduling), and let the app hit in cloning, but the bootable
Get Backup Pro offers four get on with it. Sync’s ‘never clone worked. The exclusion
alternatives: ‘Backup’ copies delete anything’ option means and scheduling features did
VERDICT user-defined items to another you could constantly archive their jobs ably, and sync jobs
With plenty of location; ‘Archive’ encrypts downloads to a huge drive. impressed by not seeming to
options and a great and compresses a volume or Projects can be coloured to hurt performance at all.
interface, this is an selected files; ‘Clone’ creates help you easily check statuses. You’re unlikely to switch
excellent backup tool. a bootable backup; and ‘Sync’ Reliability is key in this from an already dependable
keeps things synchronised kind of app, and we had few back-up app, but this one’s
++
++++ between computers or drives. problems during testing. The low price makes it worth a
Nice interface design All four types use broadly app appeared slower to gather look for alternative kinds of
Excellent value the same method: create a file data and clone things than backup. CRAIG GRANNELL

104 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


APPLE CHOICE iOS Software

ProCam 3
A huge collection of editing tools
£3.99 FROM Samer Azzam, procamapp.com
MADE FOR iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Apple Watch

his peculiar grab


T bag of tools for
taking and editing The geotagging feature is
useful for quick organisation.
photos and videos with
your iPhone or iPad lacks
polish, but it might contain info and/or copyright into the There’s a slow shutter mode,
just what you need. picture itself. with presets for motion blur
Like many other ‘pro’ Some features miss the and light trails, and you can
camera apps, ProCam allows mark for pros; the histogram lower the shooting resolution
you to set exposure, shutter, is coarse and only shows of video, then add music when
VERDICT ISO, focus and white balance overall light, not per-channel editing it, and extract frames.
Reasonably priced, manually – in a slightly fiddly levels, and focus peaking Some options seem a bit
even if the selection but usable manner – as well as (highlighting in-focus areas pointless, but there are useful
of tools sometimes changing the aspect ratio and with an outline) needs tools to be found. We wish the
seems a little random. showing a range of grids to conscious interpretation app looked as polished as
help compose dynamic shots. rather than being a quick Camera+, and there are some
++
++++ You can save in TIFF format shortcut when focussing feature and interface gaffes,
Some tools are great… rather than JPEG, toggle manually. But there’s still but there’s a lot on offer.
…but plenty aren’t geotagging, and burn location loads of useful stuff here. CHRISTOPHER PHIN

Ulysses Mobile
You’ll love this app for writers
£18.99 FROM The Soulmen, ulyssesapp.com
MADE FOR iPhone, iPod touch, iPad

lysses is one of
U our favourite Mac
writing apps. It’s a Ulysses is optimised for iOS devices
and makes full use of larger displays.
fast and flexible text editor
with Markdown support,
which enables you to sync with iCloud as you work confuses it – you need to mark
format documents or add on them. You can export your the insertion point as a code
links and other code with a sheets in text, PDF, ePub, block before adding your code
few keystrokes. The arrival HTML or DOCX format. – and the lack of WordPress
of an iPad app made it even Let’s be honest: the iPhone output is a strange omission,
VERDICT more useful, and now there’s isn’t the best device to write but it’s easy to send HTML to
Not just for novelists. an iPhone version too. on. However, Ulysses makes the Clipboard and then paste
This is a superb app Ulysses’ file management it as pleasant as possible with it into a blog or CMS.
for any kind of writing feels more like Mail than formatting and code options Ulysses’ publicity focusses
and any kind of writer. Finder: you create folders and just one tap away from the on novels and journalism, but
subfolders, and then your keyboard, plus there’s easy it’s great for scripts, blogs,
++
++++ documents are ‘sheets’. These access to tagging, image note-taking and organising
Extremely fast can be dragged from folder to attachments, notes and ideas too. It really is a superb
Lots of shortcuts folder, and they automatically writing goals. Pure HTML app. GARY MARSHALL

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 105


STORE GUIDE Apple Kit

UPDATED
OCT 2015
EXPECTED
LATE 2016

EDITED BY ALEX BLAKE


iMac
Your complete guide to the Ever since the famous Bondi Blue iMac debuted
way back in August 1998, Apple’s all-in-one
best Apple hardware and desktop computer has been setting standards
in gorgeous design and powerful performance.
third-party accessories Apple’s spirit of innovation was as clear back then
as it is today – the iMac was the first Macintosh to
elcome to MacFormat’s Store Guide, the place to go to find out abandon the floppy disk in favour of USB ports,
W about all the Apple kit that matters – updated this issue to
include the revamped 12-inch MacBook with speedier specs.
and its bright, colourful aesthetic set it apart as a
playful pretender in a world of staid beige boxes.
We’ve chosen our top products from Apple’s product line-up, plus the These days Apple is again pushing boundaries
best third-party kit that meets our quality standard. with the iMac, blessing all of its 27-inch models
Whether you’re a recent convert or a seasoned Apple user, we highlight with the world’s best display, which has a massive
a model of each product that’s ideally suited to your needs. So, check our 5K (5120x2880) resolution. Add in a quad-core
handy tables to see which Mac, iPad or iPhone is best for you. We’ve also Intel Core i5 processor (configurable from 3.2GHz
highlighted the gold standard in audio, storage, cameras, and many other up to 4.0GHz), 8GB of RAM, a fast and capacious
categories to complement your Mac or iOS device with the best accessories. Fusion Drive, and a powerful AMD Radeon R9
graphics processor – and the large iMac is the
desktop system to own. In 2015, Apple lowered the
Who’s it for? price of the top-spec 27-inch model by £150 and
introduced the first 21.5-inch iMac with a Retina
ENTRY LEVEL UPGRADER HIGH END 4K display. All iMacs (except the entry-level,
You’re just getting A firm Apple user, Apple is your life. 21.5-inch model) have a quad-core processor.
started in the world you’re ready to move You prize quality and
of Apple and need to on and get even more want the best that
know where to begin. from your tech. money can buy. Choose an iMac
MODEL KEY SPECIFICATIONS PRICE
21.5-inch RAM 8GB of 1867MHz LPDDR3 £1,049
ENTRY LEVEL

Inside your buying guide… 2.8GHz


quad-core
GRAPHICS Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200
STORAGE 1TB (5,400rpm)
Intel Core i5 DISPLAY 1920x1080 (IPS, sRGB gamut)
iMac.................................................106 Monitor .......................................109 Wireless speaker...............110 ALSO Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard
MacBook ....................................107 Ultra HD monitor .............109 Portable speaker ...............110
UPGRADER

21.5-inch RAM 8GB of 1867MHz LPDDR3 £1,199


MacBook Pro ........................107 Portable storage..............109 On-ear headphones.......110 3.1GHz GRAPHICS Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200
Mac Pro .......................................107 Network storage..............109 In-ear headphones..........110 dual-core STORAGE 1TB (5,400rpm)
Intel Core i5 DISPLAY Retina 4K (IPS, P3 gamut)
Mac mini .....................................107 Wireless router...................109 Portable battery.................110 ALSO Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard
iPhone..........................................108 Thunderbolt dock ...........109 Action camera ......................110
HIGH END

27-inch RAM 8GB of 1867MHz DDR3 £1,849


iPad...................................................108 Printer...........................................109 IP camera....................................110
3.3GHz GRAPHICS AMD Radeon R9 M395
iPad Pro.......................................108 Desktop speaker ..............109 iPhone stand...........................110 quad-core STORAGE 2TB Fusion Drive
Apple Watch...........................108 MacBook bag........................109 Apple Watch stand ..........110 Intel Core i5 DISPLAY Retina 5K (IPS, P3 gamut)
ALSO Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard

106 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Apple Kit STORE GUIDE

UPDATED UPDATED UPDATED


APR 2016 MAY 2015 DEC 2013
EXPECTED EXPECTED EXPECTED
2017 SOON SOON

MacBook MacBook Pro Mac Pro From


£2,499

The baby of Apple’s laptop family, Following hot on the heels of the If you need power – and we mean
the MacBook was recently updated MacBook, the MacBook Pro recently serious power – this is the computer
with slightly improved specs and a new gained a Force Touch trackpad. At the for you. Even the entry-level model
Rose Gold colour. Weighing in at just same time, the MacBook Pro range saw comes with 12GB of RAM, a quad-core
0.92kg, it’s Apple’s most lightweight small boosts to its Intel and graphics 3.7GHz processor, 256GB of speedy
laptop but still packs in a 226ppi pixel processors. The top-of-the-line model PCIe flash storage and dual AMD
density in its 12-inch Retina display. is currently the only one to offer a FIrePro D300 graphics cards. However,
The MacBook is powered by an Intel discrete graphics processor, in the form with a price point to match, it last being
Core M processor (at 1.1GHz, 1.2GHz or of the AMD Radeon R9 M370X – the updated in 2013, and Thunderbolt 3
1.3GHz), which doesn’t require a fan to other models have an integrated Intel just around the corner, consider
keep cool, so the MacBook runs silently. Iris or Iris Pro graphics processor. holding out for the next version.
It also features a Force Touch trackpad, All except the entry-level MacBook
which can trigger different responses Pro are equipped with a Retina display,
as you apply more pressure. All models in either 13-inch or 15-inch sizes. They UPDATED
OCT 2014
of the MacBook come with 8GB of also have two Thunderbolt 2 and two EXPECTED
1866MHz memory, with no option to USB 3.0 ports, an SDXC card reader, LATE 2016

add more, and Intel HD Graphics 515 – and their flash storage ranges from
that’s 25% faster than the previous 128GB to 1TB, depending on the model
iteration – and there are 256GB or you pick as a starting point. Battery life
512GB flash storage options. There are is also improved, with the 13-inch model
four colour options: Silver, Space Grey,
Gold, and the new Rose Gold.
lasting 10 hours and the 15-inch model
going strong for nine hours. Mac mini From
£399

A welcome update in 2014 brought a


Choose a MacBook Choose a MacBook Pro £100 price drop to the most affordable
Mac. The mini has some interesting
MODEL KEY SPECIFICATIONS PRICE MODEL KEY SPECIFICATIONS PRICE talking points: the entry-level model
12-inch 1.1GHz RAM 8GB of 1866MHz £1,049 13-inch RAM 8GB of 1866MHz £1,199
ENTRY LEVEL

ENTRY LEVEL

has a 1.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5


dual-core LPDDR3 2.7GHz LPDDR3
processor and 4GB of RAM, making it
Intel Core m3 GRAPHICS Intel HD dual-core GRAPHICS Intel Iris
Graphics 515 Intel Core i5 Graphics 6100 akin to the entry-level MacBook Air
SSD 256GB SSD 256GB but with a 500GB hard drive and no
display. Higher end models come with
UPGRADER

UPGRADER

12-inch 1.2GHz RAM 8GB of 1866MHz £1,299 15-inch RAM 16GB of 1600MHz £1,599
dual-core LPDDR3 2.2GHz DDR3L 1TB storage (a Fusion Drive option is
Intel Core m5 GRAPHICS Intel HD quad-core GRAPHICS Intel Iris Pro available), 8GB of RAM, a better
Graphics 515 Intel Core i7 Graphics
SSD 512GB SSD 256GB graphics processor and either a 2.6GHz
or 2.8GHz Intel Core i5 for £569 and
HIGH END

HIGH END

12-inch 1.3GHz RAM 8GB of 1866MHz £1,249 15-inch RAM 16GB of 1600MHz £1,999
dual-core LPDDR3 or 2.5GHz DDR3L
£799, respectively. Those models can
Intel Core m7 GRAPHICS Intel HD £1,419 quad-core GRAPHICS AMD Radeon be upgraded to Core i7 processors,
Graphics 515 Intel Core i7 R9 M370X though there are no quad-core options
SSD 256GB or 512GB SSD 512GB
available – you’ll need an iMac for that.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 107


STORE GUIDE Apple Kit

UPDATED
SEPT 2015
EXPECTED
Q3 2016

UPDATED
MAR 2016 UPDATED
EXPECTED MAR 2016
SEPT 2016 EXPECTED
Q3 2016

iPhone iPad iPad Pro From


£499

Apple brought 3D Touch to the iPhone Aside from the beautifully gargantuan The iPad Pro now comes in 9.7-inch
with the 6s and 6s Plus, providing extra 12.9-inch iPad Pro (see right), there was and 12.9-inch sizes, packed with either
interactions depending on the level of a small but very welcome change to 32GB, 128GB or 256GB of storage.
pressure you apply to the screen. For Apple’s tablet line-up last September All models except the 32GB, 12.9-inch
example, a light press on an email lets with the addition of the iPad mini 4, one are available with the option of
you ‘peek’ at its contents, so you can which is essentially an iPad Air 2 in mobile network connectivity. The Pro’s
decide whether to delete it or, with a a smaller chassis. The Air 2 hasn’t A9X chip is the most powerful in any
firmer press, ‘pop’ it open to reply to it. changed since late 2014, though. iOS device, and it has an impressive
While the new iPhone SE lacks 3D On the software side, iOS 9 has four-speaker sound system, too. Adding
Touch, it matches many features of the brought multitasking features, which the pressure-sensitive Apple Pencil
iPhone 6s, from a 12MP rear camera are a boon for productivity. You can makes it an accomplished drawing tool.
and 4K video recording to an A9 chip slide a second app over the right side
and M9 motion coprocessor. All that of the one you’re working in (great for
comes in a compact 4-inch case, so it quickly checking email), then dismiss it UPDATED
SEPT 2015
has plenty of power and is perfect for to get back to work. Picture in Picture EXPECTED
anyone put off by the larger iPhones. enables you to watch video in a corner MID 2016?

All models have front-facing of the screen – but it may be a bit too
cameras for video calls. There’s also small on the mini. Those two features
Live Photos, which capture the work on the Air 2, mini 2 and Pro and
moments before and after you take a newer models. There’s also Split View,
photo to make a short video, plus all
feature high-quality Retina displays.
on the Air 2, mini 4 and Pro, which lets
you work on two apps side by side. Watch From
£259

Apple’s first foray into the world of


Choose an iPhone Choose an iPad high fashion certainly turned heads
when it arrived on the scene. Apple has
MODEL KEY SPECIFICATIONS PRICE MODEL KEY SPECIFICATIONS PRICE since released a slew of updates in the
iPhone SE CAPACITY: 64GB £439 iPad mini 4 CAPACITY 64GB £399
ENTRY LEVEL

ENTRY LEVEL

form of watchOS 2, which expands the


(4-inch PROCESSOR: A9 PROCESSOR A8
capabilities of third-party apps, as well
display) 3D TOUCH No CONNECTIVITY Wi-Fi
CAMERA 12MP photos, CAMERA 8MP as a range of new case colours and
4K video recording TOUCH ID Yes strap options (although hardware
specifications are unchanged).
UPGRADER

UPGRADER

iPhone 6s CAPACITY: 128GB £619 iPad Air 2 CAPACITY 64GB £429


(4.7-inch PROCESSOR: A9 PROCESSOR A8X Among the new straps are several
display) 3D TOUCH Yes CONNECTIVITY Wi-Fi Woven Nylon models in various vibrant
CAMERA 12MP photos, CAMERA 8MP
4K video recording TOUCH ID Yes colours, plus a snappy yellow Sport
Band made of comfy fluoroelastomer.
HIGH END

HIGH END

iPhone 6s CAPACITY: 128GB £789 12.9-inch CAPACITY 128GB £799


Plus PROCESSOR: A9 iPad Pro PROCESSOR A9X
The Watch comes in aluminium,
(5.5-inch 3D TOUCH Yes CONNECTIVITY Wi-Fi stainless steel or 18-carat gold cases,
display) CAMERA 12MP photos, CAMERA 8MP the first of which now has Gold and
4K video recording TOUCH ID Yes
Rose Gold colour options.

108 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


Mac Hardware STORE GUIDE

BEST BUYS… curated picks of third-party kit


MONITOR ULTRA HD MONITOR PORTABLE STORAGE

ViewSonic VP2772 AOC U3277PQU Samsung T1 SSD


£569 £574 From £88
viewsonic.com aoc.com samsung.com

If you’re not fussed The recent winner of Light, speedy and


about 4K but still want our 4K displays group astonishingly small,
exceptional image quality, test, this 32-inch screen the Samsung T1 is the
this IPS display is truly is a joy to work with, and definition of portable SSD
superb. It offers 99% a monitor of this size is storage. As well as having
coverage of the Adobe the perfect setting for 4K an attractive design, it is
RGB colour space, 10-bit colour and a to really come into its own. From stunning among the best-performing drives of its
2560x1440-pixel resolution. It has HDMI picture quality and top-notch contrast kind that we’ve tested, features AES-256
1.4, DVI and Mini DisplayPort connections, ratio to the reasonable price for such a hardware-based encryption, and is more
and four USB 3.0 ports for expansion. wide display, it’s a winner all round. affordable now than when we reviewed it.

NETWORK STORAGE WIRELESS ROUTER THUNDERBOLT DOCK

Western Digital Netgear Nighthawk X4S CalDigit Thunderbolt


My Cloud Mirror £255 £252 Station 2 £180
wdc.com netgear.co.uk caldigit.com/uk

Winner of MF294’s NAS This aggressively-named Our MF297 group test


group test, the My Cloud router may be expensive, winner got the nod for its
Mirror provides Apple-like but it’s one of the best beautifully compact form
ease of use – but it’s no that money can buy. and superb menu bar
Time Capsule knock-off; Sporting four aerials, the tool, which lets you eject
with top performance Nighthawk boasts four individual drives as you
(thrashing its group test rivals when it separate signals for a total speed of 2.5 please (something its rivals failed to offer).
came to writing large files), whisper-quiet gigabits per second. And with dual-band It’s not the most laden with ports, but has
operation and a good range of features, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, AirPrint support and an everything that most people will need,
it’s great if you want more from a NAS. excellent app, it’s one powerful router. and comes in at a great price point.

NEW! PRINTER DESKTOP SPEAKER MACBOOK BAG

Brother HL-3150CDW Roth OLi POWA-5 Knomo James


£149 £200 £169
brother.co.uk rothaudio.co.uk knomobags.com

This versatile laser Just one listen to these A beautifully made bag
printer got the nod in desktop speakers will tell with a surprising amount
MF300’s group test. you they’re in a class of of space inside. You’ll love
Its light design, feature their own. Their firm bass the little touches, such as
list, and impressive print and detailed, rich sound its big chunky zips and
quality make it a great packs a punch thanks to flashes of colour. It’s easy
choice for home office users. AirPrint and 80W output, and they feature Bluetooth to turn the Knomo James into a smart
Wi-Fi connectivity means it plays nice with streaming and a wide range of analogue office bag by removing the backpack
your iOS devices. It’s not great for printing and digital inputs. Hi-fi quality audio for straps, and Knomo provides each bag with
photos, but is a winner at everything else. £200? Sounds great to us! a tracking ID in case yours goes AWOL.

macformat.com @macformat JUNE 2016 | MACFORMAT | 109


STORE GUIDE Mac Hardware

BEST BUYS… curated picks of third-party kit


WIRELESS SPEAKER PORTABLE BLUETOOTH SPEAKER ON-EAR HEADPHONES

Bowers & Wilkins Kef Muo Plantronics Backbeat


Zeppelin Wireless £499 £299 Pro £125
bowers-wilkins.co.uk kef.com plantronics.com

This airship-inspired Hi-fi king Kef brings its Wireless headphones


speaker is certainly audio know-how to the are often blighted by
striking, but it’s more than portable speaker world meagre battery life, but
just a looker, with crisp, and blows away the not so with these cans,
clear treble and refined competition. Firm bass, which run for more than
bass output over previous a rich, detailed sound 25 hours. They offer
Zeppelin models. Support for Bluetooth, and sturdy build combine to form one active noise-cancelling, brilliant wireless
Spotify Connect and AirPlay makes for impressive package, while you won’t be let range, superb comfort and a huge range
plenty of connectivity, and dynamic EQ down by the solid battery life. It’s one of of intuitive touch controls, making these
ensures controlled bass at all volumes. the best portable speakers you can buy. the wireless headphones to beat.

IN-EAR HEADPHONES PORTABLE BATTERY PACK NEW! ACTION CAMERA

RHA MA 750i Apple iPhone 6s Smart GoPro Hero4 Session


£90 Battery Case £79 £159
rha-audio.com apple.com/uk gopro.com

These in-ear buds Despite that silly-looking GoPro has built a truly
impress on nearly every hump on its back, the formidable reputation for
level. They come with official battery case for itself as an action cam
easy-to-use inline controls the iPhone 6 and 6s is champ, and rightly so.
and a steel-reinforced impressive. It’s easy to fit, The Hero4 Session may
cable, while faultless low the buttons feel great, be compact, but it’s a
and mid range reproduction and a crafted, and the soft inner lining protects against great all-rounder. Internal waterproofing,
premium feel make them earphones of scratches. It isn’t the largest capacity case, an outstanding app and impressive video
distinction. They are a world away from yet it has more than enough juice for busy quality, combined with an affordable price
Apple’s cheap earbuds. days, and the bump is surprisingly comfy. tag, make it a firm favourite at MacFormat.

IP CAMERA iPHONE STAND APPLE WATCH STAND

Logi Circle Just Mobile AluBolt Nomad Stand for


£120 £41 Apple Watch £50
logitech.com just-mobile.com hellonomad.com

Winner of MF299’s Charge your iPhone in Nomad’s stand is an


group test, the Logi Circle style with this simple yet absolutely gorgeous
is packed with features. elegant stand. From the Apple Watch charging
It’s so easy to use and can curved backstop to the dock – carved from a
be powered by batteries, rounded aluminium base, single piece of curved
making it highly portable. it oozes Apple-esque aluminium, it looks like
With a wide 135° field of vision, it captures design chops and will fit right in among it could have been designed by Apple.
plenty of detail, and is very affordable. The your other Apple kit. The Lightning Its weighty base keeps everything in place
Logi Circle is a barnstorming all-rounder, connector can be tilted to help mount and the cable management is so tidy that
and looks great on your mantlepiece. your iPhone on it, which is a nice touch. it looks like there’s no cable there at all.

110 | MACFORMAT | JUNE 2016 macformat.com @macformat


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now’s the time to boost it further CONTRIBUTORS


EDITORIAL: Adam Banks, Matt Bolton, Craig Grannell,
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to enhance the latest Mac OS. Nick Peers, Christopher Phin, Dave Stevenson, Luis Villazon
ART: Apple, Future Photo Studio (Olly Curtis, Joby Sessions),
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