Dashboard is a feature of OS X that Apple launched in 2004 with version 10.4 (Tiger). Dashboard appears as an overlay or a separate space and contains widgets — little apps that provide information, status, and access to various services. For example, Apple provides widgets like calendar, calculator, weather, stocks, and dictionary. Some accept input, [...]
What a busy week! Since last week’s post, I have met with four new clients, each with her own set of needs and a different level of technical savvy than the next. Client #1: Happy Camper On Friday I met with my friend Lynn for the first time. She has a relatively new MacBook Air [...]
A month ago, I wrote about tracking task time, various tools I have used, and my interest in a new app called Hours. I promised a follow up post about Hours based on my experience with it. This is that post. Shifting to Hours was easy and has made my work time much more productive. [...]
Are you a fan of gadgets? I have always loved kitchen gadgets, desk accessories, and other products that purport to ease my daily doings. A question on one of my forums this week asked about the physical products that make our lives easier. This got me thinking about gadgets that improve my productivity. The prompt [...]
Do you feel like you live in your email?! How many messages do you have in your inbox today? How many hours do you spend trawling through it every day? What about the messages you file in those umpteen other folders? For me, email has become a time-wrenching beast that steals my focus from productive [...]
“How can I send email to a group—from my iPad?” This is one of the important workflow questions my new client Beth asked me when I first met with her last week. She needs to send announcements to a few small groups and she would prefer to use her iPad than her Mac. Apple makes [...]
Actually, I had a really productive week! Four clients; seven billable hours; one client wants to see me more than once. I’m hoping the coming week fills in quickly. Surely there are more Mac users looking to learn new things about how to use their devices more effectively, more confidently, more happily. (Maybe I’ll hear [...]
Many of us are required to complete some kind of timesheet. Even if filling out hours on a timesheet isn’t a necessity, we may still track our time on various projects. For freelancers, this may be useful for tracking time working for a client or just building an awareness of how long a particular task [...]
How many icons are on your desktop? Do you have a special way of organizing your files? I've discussed the benefits of keeping enough free space on your computer’s storage drive. Once you’re there, how do you stay there? Apple has enabled users to avoid any semblance of organization by offering Spotlight, OS X’s system-wide [...]
A few weeks ago, I responded to a Craigslist ad asking for a Mac Genius. Thomas was on the other end looking for ongoing help with various issues that come up for him with his Mac and iPhone. The first was a major frustration with Reminders, Apple’s todo list app, and led to some research [...]