Podcasts by Hands-On Mac (Audio)

HOM 110: No, NameDrop on iPhone Isn't Dangerous from 2023-11-30T12:59:22

Despite reports to the contrary, NameDrop — a contact-sharing feature introduced in iOS 17 — isn't a threat to your privacy. Mikah Sargent explains how to use NameDrop, debunks the reports that ...

HOM 108: How To Turn Off Video Reactions on Your Mac from 2023-11-09T13:08:17

If you've found yourself in the annoying or awkward situation of the sudden appearance of fireworks, hearts, thumbs, and lasers during a video conferencing call, you're not alone! In macOS Sonom...

HOM 105: How To Use Passkeys on macOS Sonoma from 2023-10-19T12:46:11

You can use iCloud Keychain to create and manage Passkeys on macOS Sonoma. Mikah Sargent walks you through the process of creating a Passkey for login and using it to log in to your online accou...

HOM 96: New Features in iOS 17 from 2023-08-17T12:57:28

With the launch of iOS 17 just around the corner, it's time to take a look at the exciting new features you can expect after you hit that update button. Mikah Sargent demonstrates several new fe...

HOM 77: macOS Keyboard Shortcuts: Text Editing from 2023-04-06T06:27:57

macOS has dozens of built-in keyboard shortcuts that make it possible to skip out on mousing altogether. Discovering those keyboard shortcuts, however, can be a challenge. Mikah Sargent shows yo...

HOM 66: How To Create a Bootable Installer for macOS from 2023-01-19T13:25:36

Mikah Sargent guides you through the process of creating a bootable installer for macOS Ventura. We'll cover downloading the installer from the Mac App Store, formatting your USB drive, and crea...

HOM 60: How To Get Your Apple Music Replay from 2022-12-01T13:05:13

Apple Music listeners, listen up! If you've been experiencing FOMO as Spotify subscribers post and share their Spotify Wrapped, this episode of Hands-on Mac is for you. Apple Music has a music l...

HOM 49: CleanMyMac X Is Good, Actually from 2022-09-08T13:07:41

How do you uninstall applications on your Mac? How do you make sure deleted files are truly, fully deleted? How do you troubleshoot a poor internet connection? Chances are you're using multiple ...

HOM 44: Exciting New Features in macOS Ventura from 2022-08-04T12:03:07

Apple will release macOS Ventura at some point in the fall, but that doesn't mean you have to wait to see some of the exciting new features in action. Mikah Sargent takes you through some of the...

HOM 40: Re-Introducing Hands-On Mac from 2022-07-07T10:00

Hands-On Mac explores and explains the Mac — and beyond! From clever Terminal commands to little-known iOS settings, Mikah Sargent shares all the best tips and tricks for your Mac, iPad, iPhone,...

HOM 39: The Future of Mac from 2020-12-18T12:00

Leo Laporte gives his thoughts on Apple's new M1 MacBooks and what it means for the future of the Mac.

Get the new Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Chip: Listen

HOM 38: iStat Menus from 2020-12-11T12:00

Leo Laporte shares a must-have app for macOS, iStat Menus from Bjango. This system monitoring app gives you real-time info on your Mac's stats, including a CPU monitor, GPU, memory, network usag...

HOM 37: macOS Big Sur from 2020-12-04T12:00

Want to know what's new with macOS Big Sur? Watch this!

• New features:
• Control center and the menu bar
• Notification center and widgets
• Messages
Listen

HOM 36: Mac Activity Monitor from 2020-11-20T12:00

Here's a tool that comes with every Macintosh - the Mac Activity Monitor. It's a lot more useful than you might think!

Leo Laporte gives you helpful tips to get the most from your Mac ev...

HOM 35: Securing macOS Big Sur from 2020-11-13T12:00

macOS Big Sur is here! now you have to keep it secure. Here are some easy ways (and some pretty tricky ways) to keep your Mac safe. You have a lot of security options with macOS Big Sur, and thi...

HOM 34: On the Road to Big Sur 5 from 2020-11-06T12:00

Here is everything you need to know to install macOS 11 Big Sur.

• Make sure you watch all the previous Road to Big Sur episodes first!
• Leo Laporte gives you helpful tips to...
  Listen

HOM 33: On the Road to Big Sur 4 - Inventory from 2020-10-30T12:00

Remember, I'm doing a clean install. To speed up the setup, I want an inventory of all my installed apps and configurations.

• If you've installed `mas` using `brew`, you have a command...
  Listen

HOM 33: On the Road to Big Sur 4 from 2020-10-30T12:00

Remember, I'm doing a clean install. To speed up the setup, I want an inventory of all my installed apps and configurations.

• If you've installed `mas` using `brew`, you have a comma...
  Listen

HOM 32: On the Road to Big Sur 3 from 2020-10-23T12:00

I have mentioned that this time I'm going to do a clean install of Big Sur, but even if you're going to just upgrade on top of your old macOS it's very important to make a backup of your system....

HOM 31: On the Road to Big Sur 2 from 2020-10-16T12:00

Is Big Sur compatible with your old Mac apps? Find out all the answers in this episode of Hands-On Mac.

Who can run Big Sur? Just because you're running Catalina does NOT mean you can ru...

HOM 30: On the Road to Big Sur 1 - How to clear out your computer to get ready to upgrade from 2020-10-09T12:00

When you upgrade to Big Sur, think about starting from scratch. Here's step one of how to prepare:

• Move your data to a new drive
• Create a ghost user account in the internal ...
  Listen

HOM 30: On the Road to Big Sur 1 from 2020-10-09T12:00

When you upgrade to Big Sur, think about starting from scratch. Here's step one of how to prepare:

• Move your data to a new drive
• Create a ghost user account in the interna...
  Listen

HOM 29: The New and Improved Safari from 2020-10-02T12:00

The first part of Mac OS 11 Big Sur is already here: Safari 14! Here's what's new:

• Customizable Start Page
• Privacy Report
• Improved Tabs Design
• Improved...
  Listen

HOM 28: Easily Adjust File Creation Dates for Photos - A Better Finder Attributes from 2020-09-25T12:00

A Better Finder Attributes Core features:

• batch change file creation date and time
• batch change file modification date and time
• batch adjust the Exchangeable Image...
  Listen

HOM 27: Organizing Windows (Magnet Tiles&Workspaces) - Organizing Windows (Magnet Tiles and Workspaces) from 2020-09-18T12:00

• Work in multiple spaces on Mac
• If the desktop on your Mac gets cluttered with open app windows, you can use Mission Control to create additional desktops, called ...
  Listen

HOM 26: Syncthing - Free, open-source, continuous file synchronization from 2020-09-11T12:00

Syncthing, a free open-source program, syncs multiple computers securely. Use it for backup, file sharing, or to keep the same files on all your computers -  Mac, PC, and Linux. Leo gives a demo...

HOM 25: Finder Tips - Resizing, Slideshows, Customization, and more! from 2020-09-04T12:00

On macOS the Finder is the program that runs all the time. With it, you can manage files, launch applications, and as we've learned, automate many of the tasks you perform all the time. Learning...

HOM 24: Writing Your Own Folder Actions with Automator - An Easier Way to Create a Script from 2020-08-28T12:00

Now it's time to really make folder actions sing with your own custom code. You can do this in Automator or Applescript (easier), or using a scripting language like shell, python, or Perl (advan...

HOM 23: Using Hazel with Folder Actions - An easy way to automate your Mac from 2020-08-21T12:25

Before we go too crazy creating scripts to attach to your folder actions let me show you the easiest way to automate your mac: a little utility called Hazel.
Hazel watches whatever folders ...

HOM 22: Folder Actions: Part 1 - Associate AppleScripts with folders on your Mac from 2020-08-14T12:00

From the TWiT Community forums, MrHomebrew says: "I've used a Mac for a while now (since 10.2) and have some geek cred, but I've never u...

HOM 21: Secret Mac Boot Commands - Mac Boot Key Combinations from 2020-08-07T12:00

From zapping the P-RAM to booting in safe mode, these are the secret key combinations handed down from Mac guru to guru. If your Mac is having trouble, give them a try!

Mac startup key c...

HOM 20: Install Mac Fonts on Terminal - Fastest Way to Add Mac Fonts from 2020-07-31T12:00

Here's how to use Homebrew and the Terminal command line to quickly install fonts.
Leo likes to use Fish, but you can use Bash as well.

• If you haven't already, install and update B...
  Listen

HOM 19: Make Free iPhone Ringtones - How to Make Ringtones With Mac from 2020-07-24T12:00

Sick of paying for Ringtones? You can make any song a ringtone for free on your Mac! Here's how:

Open Apple Music, or iTunes on older Macs.

1. Open Music -> Preferences clic...
   Listen

HOM 18: Mac Keyboard Magic - Mac Keyboard Shortcuts, Modifier Keys, Text Abbreviations from 2020-07-17T12:00

• Want to learn some powerful Mac keyboard shortcuts and how to create your own?
• Last week we spent some time in the Keyboard system preference pane, but you may have noticed many m...
  Listen

HOM 17: Getting Your Mac to Read to You - Mac Text-to Speech Accessibility Features from 2020-07-10T12:00

• As usual, go to the Accessibility System Preference pane to see Speech option.
• Select the "Speak selected text when the key is pressed" checkbox. By default, speaking is enabled w...
  Listen

HOM 16: Should I Get a New Mac Now or Wait? - Mac transitions to ARM-based Apple Silicon from 2020-07-03T12:00

Should you buy a Mac now? Should you wait for the new Apple Silicon Macs? Here's what we think.

TWiT's Leo Laporte gives you helpful tips to get the most from your Mac every week on Hand...

HOM 15: Mac Voice Dictation Needs Work - How to get your Mac to Listen to You... Badly from 2020-06-26T12:00

• ​Dictate your messages and documents on Mac
• Say the name of the punctuation mark, such as "exclamation mark."
• Say "new line" (equivalent to pressing the Return key once)...
  Listen

HOM 14: Aliases, What Are They Good For? - Aliases, soft links, and hard links explained from 2020-06-19T12:00

An alias can be used anywhere you can use a file or folder

• Soft Links (ln -s original alias)
•  can cross the file system,
•  allows you to link betwe...
  Listen

HOM 13: 12 Hidden Free Fonts in Catalina - How to Get 12 Free Fonts for Your Mac from 2020-06-12T12:00

• Steve Jobs loved typefaces and typography. He says his love began when he audited a calligraphy course at Reed College. I'm glad he did because one of the things that have distinguished the...
  Listen

HOM 12: Inside the Mac Filesystem - How to Navigate Your Mac Filesystem from 2020-06-05T12:00

The macOS filesystem is trickier than it looks! But once you know a few simple things, finding files on your Mac can be easy. Here is one place to start - Apple documents its file system here: <...

HOM 11: Using an iPad as a Second Monitor - How to use an iPad as a Monitor from 2020-05-29T12:00

• In years past programs like Duet Display and the hardware-based Luna Display let Mac users use their iPads as second displays. But these programs were "Sherlocked" by Apple when they releas...
  Listen

HOM 10: Using FileVault to Secure Your Data - How to Encrypt your Data with Filevault from 2020-05-22T12:00

• Filevault is Apple's proprietary full-disk encryption technology. It uses XTS-AES encryption, the industry-standard used by Microsoft's BitLocker, and the open-source Veracrypt among many o...
  Listen

HOM 9: Homebrew Bundle: Set Up a Mac Fast - Install Multiple Mac Programs Fast with Homebrew from 2020-05-15T12:00

This episode requires Homebrew, so if you haven't yet installed it, watch last week's Hands on Mac and install it now.

Then open the Terminal and type

`homebrew bundle`
Listen

HOM 8: Homebrew: macOS Package Manager - Homebrew Installs Apps from the Terminal from 2020-05-08T12:00

Homebrew Installs Apps from the Terminal

Host: Leo Laporte

For full show notes, visit Listen

HOM 7: Spotlight on Spotlight - Spotlight Does More Than You Think! from 2020-05-01T12:00

The only problem with the Mac's GUI interface is that it may take some digging to find the file or application you want to use. But Apple has a fix for that: Spotlight, and it's the easiest way ...

HOM 6: MacBook Air 2020 Review - Leo looks at the new Macbook Air, the good, the bad, and the ugly webcam. from 2020-04-24T12:00

Leo looks at the new Macbook Air, the good, the bad, and the ugly webcam.

Starting at $999 ($899 education pricing) with dual-core 1.1Ghz i3, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage in Silver, Space Gray...

HOM 5: Fun With Mac Terminal Commands - Terminal Commands for Your Mac from 2020-04-17T12:00

Did you know that hidden in your Mac is a powerful Unix-style command line? Open up the Terminal, and try out these simple commands:
cd: change directory
ls: list the current directory...

HOM 4: Get to Know Your Terminal - Fun With the Mac Command Line from 2020-04-10T12:00

Hidden deep in your Mac lies a Linux command line. Welcome to the Terminal: the most powerful tool on your Mac that you aren't using! On this episode of Hands-on Mac, Leo runs you through some b...

HOM 3: The Ins and Outs of Gatekeeper - Install apps from anywhere on your Mac from 2020-04-03T12:00

Gatekeeper is a behind the scenes utility that first shipped in Mountain Lion. It's designed to protect you from rogue programs and verify downloads before you run them to keep you safe. It's pr...

HOM 2: Protect your Mac with Lulu - Lulu is Outbound Protection for Your Mac from 2020-03-27T12:00

The best outbound firewall for Mac! Apple's macOS comes with an excellent firewall that blocks inbound traffic, but what about outbound traffic? The first thing malware installed on your Mac wil...

HOM 1: BetterTouchTool - Making the Touchbar Useful - BetterTouchTool Makes the Touchbar Better from 2020-03-20T09:59:22

Leo Laporte gives you helpful tips to get the most from your Mac every week on Hands-On Mac.

folivora.ai - Great Tools for your Mac!

Introducing Hands-On Mac! from 2020-03-10T14:00

Leo Laporte gives you helpful tips to get the most from your Mac every week on Hands-On Mac.

Host: Leo Laporte

D...