Show only one window

Hold the option key while selection an application in the dock, and all other windows will be hidden automatically, it may not always work with Finder windows.

Finder title bar trick

Did you know that you can click and drag the little folder icon in a Finder window’s title bar to copy/move the folder to another location? A secondary click on the title or the folder icon brings up a context menu listing the parent folders of the currently selected folder.

Widgets on your Desktop

If you are one of those people who hate the inconvenience of going to Dashboard every time you need some information… Then you may want to have your widgets on your Desktop at all times just open Terminal and enter the following code: defaults write com.apple.dashboard devmode YES; killall Dock

Hide Dock

Option-Command-D hides the dock and whenever you mouse over at the bottom of the screen it appears again.

Empty Finder Window

The quickest way to get to an empty desktop or Finder window is to use the keyboard shortcuts, Command-up arrow which skips windows to view different windows as an integration with Spaces.

Keyboard Shortcuts For Your Every Need

It’s raining keyboard shortcuts, UsingMac.com provides a useful and well one of their articles happened to be keyboard shortcuts, the link below includes over 200 keyboard shortcuts to satisfy every taste: http://www.usingmac.com/2007/11/21/mac-os-x-leopard-200-productivity-booster-hotkeys 

Time Machine: Back Up Now

Ever created a file and save it? Well, I have and you want Time Machine to immediately back up the file just simply plug in your external hard drive and right-click Time Machine icon and click Back Up Now. S -I-M-P-L-E!!!

Safari “Reopen All Windows From Last Session”

It doesn’t get simpler than this. If Safari seems to crash or by accident you exit Safari just go to History in the menu bar and click Reopen All Windows From Last Session or if you prefer Reopen Last Closed Window.

File Renaming in Finder

In previous versions of Mac OS X when you renamed a file it would delete the file extension then you may have forgotten by then what it WAS but Leopard makes it smart and easy, just click on the file and hit enter and you can type in the new name. 

Help Me!

Use the Help menu in the Apple toolbar at the top of your screen and you may search your question or get general questions.

Force Quit

Have you ever experience applications not responsing well here is a shortcut to Force Quit. Just hit Command-Option-Escape and select which programs are not responding.

Dictionary??

Included with Mac OS X is an Oxford English Dictionary which if you browse Finder through your Applications folder you may just find it. But if you are browsing in Safari and come across a word that you need the definition for just use the shortcut Ctrl-Command-D while mousing over the word. A dialog box appears highlighting the word with the definition below. The trick only works in specific applications.

Printing

Ready to print a file with no optional preferences? Just hit Command-P and then Enter and be ready for your file to print immediately.

Saving Documents as PDFs

Adobe’s PDF format allows great ways of formatting, communication and ability to send letters and electronic documents. But there really is an easy way to transfer documents using Microsoft Word and TextEdit including other word processors to PDF format. Simply hit Command-P as you would go to Print but click the PDF dropdown menu instead of printing and then click the option, Save as PDF… and a dialog windows opens, enter the name of the document including Author, Keywords and Subject and be sure to save the file in the right place you may then search for the file in Finder or Spotlight, your choice and ta-da you have created a PDF file!

Selecting Items

 key will give you the effect of toggling; It means that you can change the select/deselect status of certain items.

When keystrokes A is pressed, all items will be highlighted. It’s powerful, isn’t it? And one more thing, with this keystrokes, all highlighted items won’t be marked as Read, they will stay in their current condition. It’s all about using  key.

Get Info

Leopard offers a great new Get Info tool which Tiger previously boasts but Leopard adds to it. To view info about a specific photo, file, document or music file just single click on it while on Desktop or Finder and go to File and click Get Info. A window appears something like this depending on the file: 

Trouble running applications?

I was confused and yet troubled to why iPhoto was not responding and co-operating and while tampering with preferences and after a bit of agrivation, called Apple who said to go to Finder/Macintosh HD/Preferences/com.apple.iPhoto.plist and drag that file to the desktop and then try opening iPhoto. Guess what? It worked beautifully and no trouble any more, Thanks to Apple! Try it yourself… 

I hate kernel-panics…

Have any of you ever received any similar error messages like this? This has happened to me numberous times, probably about 4 or 5. From what I hear they are called kernel-panics. Rumors report that this is because of airport issues which may have an interference with Software Updates because Apple connected Software Update with Apple’s online software update downloads page available at http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/apple/ to view some of Apple’s new software update releases. I just learned that this very minute. I was running the current version of Leopard, 10.5.1 and just installed the MacBook Firmware Update and after re-booting a screen shown in the picture above appeared fading any activity on the screen, You need to restart your computer. Hold down the Power button for several seconds or press the Restart button. I experienced black-screen issues forcing my computer an erase of my hard-drive. I currently own and owned a Western Digital 160 GB external hard drive for my MacBook which the latest backup was on 11/11 a week ago. My disapointment was that I had created some extremely important files including new pictures and music. But it was too late, I was into my erase process of the hard drive @ The Apple Store. When I got home I had to take my Mac OS  X Install DVD 1 which traveled with my computer in the factory and do that which was installing Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger which at the time I bought my computer was the latest version which this took about 1 and a half hours. Now I have to download 20 Software Updates (3 h)  and then I have to install Leopard (1 h 10 min.) Once I am running OS X 10.5 I have to download and install all of my software programs again taking a good 2 hours including photo programs, iLife ‘08 the latest photo, movie, music, DVD software bundle, Microsoft Word 2004, The Print Shop 2 and more (4 h) and then the longest part, restoring files (photos, movies, documents, emails and music) (5 h). This was a pretty serious job and re-run causing much trouble for my computer and I. WHEW!    Share your computer troubles with us by visiting Contact Us page, we may even post them on this very website! 

Create your own Stack

1. Create a new folder, Click on to your desktop2. File and click New Folder 3. Rename it as your like, click on the New Folder on your Desktop and hit Enter, now type in your new name and click enter when done.4. Drag the folder onto the far right side of your dock past the dock seperator and then you may program your preferences as you like whether it displays as a fan or grid. If there are more than enough files that is able to display as a fan then it will automatically turn into a Grid. 

Web Clips in Dashboard

Add a Web Clip to Dashboard To add a Web Clip to Dashboard go to File and then scroll and click on Open in Dashboardand select the object on the webpage you would like to select, your screen should look like this You can even add  editing options once you are at your Dashboard object, just click the italic I with a circle around it to view options including change the view and sound options. PRETTY COOL, huh? Did you Know? You can even clip YouTube videos and watch them using one-click in Dashboard including other web objects! 

Screenshots Galore!!

To take a screenshot use one of the following choices:

• Command-Shift-3: Take a screenshot of the screen, and save it as a file on the desktop
• Command-Shift-4, then select an area: Take a screenshot of an area and save it as a file on the desktop
• Command-Shift-4, then space, then click a window: Take a screenshot of a window and save it as a file on the desktop
• Command-Control-Shift-3: Take a screenshot of the screen, and save it to the clipboard
• Command-Control-Shift-4, then select an area: Take a screenshot of an area and save it to the clipboard
• Command-Control-Shift-4, then space, then click a window: Take a screenshot of a window and save it to the clipboard