Mac Operating System

Not software for the OS, but literally the Mac OS

Mac OS Hotkeys & Shortcuts

This section is all about non-listed or non-obvious hotkeys for software. These keys lean Mac OS, but many work on Windows if you substitute Command for Alt. 

In creative applications “shift” is generally used as a modifier key to increase the units of an action. In After Effects, for example, shift is a modifier x10 – so if you use the hotkey to advance one frame, and hold shift, it advances 10 frames. 

Symbols can be found in file→emoji and symbols work within most applications.

 

The command graphic is called “Place of Interest Sign” (and not “Command”) lol. 

 

Point being, if you're looking to write out a bunch of hotkeys, you gotta type "Place of Interest Sign" in the character viewer.

PlaceOfInterest.png

Mac OS System Wide

⌘+, This triggers preferences or settings in many applications
⌘+C / ⌘+V Copy / Paste
⌘+Shift+V Often used as “paste values” rather than paste items. 
⌘+S Save
⌘+Shift-S Save As
⌘+A Select All
⌘+I Get Info
⌘+Option+I Combined Info of all selected files (allows you to quickly tally up file sizes without manual entry!)

Mac OS Finder & System Preferences

Cntrl+⌘+Spacebar  Will open character viewer (on full keyboards, FN does this)
⌘+fn+F1 This will mirror your displays. This is very helpful when you have a dead display and need to access your files on an external monitor and it’s stuck on “extend.” 
⌘+F1 Toggles mirroring on and off. 
⌘+Shift- Show hidden files (system wide, not just the active directory)
Opt+☼ (Brighten or dim keys, usually F1/F2) will take you to Display system preferences
Opt+(any audio key) (Usually F10/F11/F12) will take you to Sound system preferences
Opt+Right Click+Click File Gives you more contextual options, copy file path is a big one that I can’t believe I’m just learning in 2024. I’ve been dragging files into terminal to get the string for years.

Mac OS Specific Hot Tips

Stuck Application Windows

Do you have a window that you can’t make full screen because the top of the window is hidden in a nebular black hole between displays? This happens fairly regularly in Premiere. Solution: Hover over any corner until your mouse becomes the resize icon, hold option and then double click. Congratulations, you’ve got your window back and you can bend it to your will. 

Wireless Keyboard Chaos

Keyboard not working? “Forget this device” in system prefs, then restart. Toggle the keyboard on and off, and then hold the Command key. You can re-pair it (pun intended). 

Computer Not Responding

First try to alternate the following hotkeys in rapid succession ⌘+Tab ⌘+Q. If that doesn’t work, hold down ⌘+Option+Esc for Force Quit. If that doesn’t work, hold the power button down. 

System Scheduling

System scheduler is no longer working because Apple got rid of it, and you have an installation that would benefit from an on/off schedule or an auto restart? You gotta do it in command line now. It’s actually pretty easy: See here. 

Safe Mode

So, you think you installed something naughty that’s really screwing up your computer? Boot up your computer holding the shift key, this will disable all third party things and you’ll be able to remove things as needed.

Recovery Mode

So, your computer is really struggling and you need to hit up disk utility and/or you need to reformat? Turn on your computer and immediately press ⌘+R fo recovery mode. 

Reformatting to APFS

In disk utility, select view and choose “View All Devices” then select the drive’s highest hierarchical item (typically the brand’s enclosure), then hit erase, then hit scheme GUID, then select APFS as the format.

All Computer Characters in Sort Order

On Mac OS, file name sorting isn't case sensitive. Here's a breakdown of sort order from Engadget. 

Migration Assistant Fastest Method (Thunderbolt, Baby!)

  1. Make sure the destination Mac has a higher OS than the previous Mac.
  2. If the destination Mac is new, you can skip this:
    1. If you're resetting the destination Mac, make sure you have access to the Apple ID associated with it so that when the computer resets you don't get stuck in recovery lock!
    2. Reset the mac using Transfer or Reset.
  3. On the destination Mac, you want to be "fresh outta the box mode" - running Migration assistant after setting up an might not work. Don't fear though, if you've already done that, see Step 2.
  4. On the older mac, unplug all ethernet and remove any saved WiFi passwords – this will prevent it from auto-connecting to Wi-Fi during the transfer.
  5. On the newer mac, when it asks you how you plan to connect to the internet, there's an option for "I don't plan to connect to the internet" - select that one. 
  6. Plug the old mac into the new mac via Thunderbolt
  7. On the newer mac select the I want to transfer from an existing Mac
  8. On the older mac, launch migration assistant, and select transfer to a new Mac
  9. Follow the instructions
  10. Thunderbolt should be seen as only connection option
  11. ZIPPY

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