MacOS for Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to the Next Generation of MacBook and MacOS Mojave (Version 10.14)
By Brian Norman
()
About this ebook
I’ll make a wild guess: Mac isn’t the first operating system you’ve used. In fact, if you are like most people, you are probably a Windows person. But you’ve heard a lot of good things about Mac’s, it works alongside your phone, and it “Just works”—so you have decided to make the switch.
It&r
Read more from Brian Norman
Tech for Seniors The Ridiculously Simple Guide to iOS 12: A Beginners Guide to the Latest Generation of iPhone and iPad Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to MacOS for Seniors
Titles in the series (8)
Apple Watch For Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to Apple Watch Series 4 and WatchOS 5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsiPhone X, XR, XS, and XS Max for Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to the Next Generation of iPhone and iOS 12 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe iPad Pro for Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide To the Next Generation of iPad and iOS 12 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMacOS for Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to the Next Generation of MacBook and MacOS Mojave (Version 10.14) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsApple Watch Series 5 for Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to Apple Watch Series 5 and WatchOS 6 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsiPhone 11, iPhone Pro, and iPhone Pro Max For Seniors: A Ridiculously Simple Guide to the Next Generation of iPhone and iOS 13 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChromebook for Seniors: Getting Started With Chrome OS Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGmail For Seniors: The Absolute Beginners Guide to Getting Started With Email Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related ebooks
Windows 8 A Step By Step Guide For Beginners: Discover the Secrets to Unleash the Power of Windows 8! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMac Unlocked: Everything You Need to Know to Get Cracking in macOS Big Sur Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsiPad & iOS 8 for Creative Beginners Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsiMac and Mac Mini with MacOS Catalina: Getting Started with MacOS 10.15 For Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsApple Device Management: A Unified Theory of Managing Macs, iPads, iPhones, and AppleTVs Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMacBook Pro with MacOS Catalina: Getting Started with MacOS 10.15 for MacBook Pro Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsYosemite OS X Manual: Your Tips & Tricks Guide Book! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5MacBook Pro User Manual: 2022 MacBook Pro User Guide for beginners and seniors to Master Macbook Pro like a Pro Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMac User's Starter Guide - How To Master Mac In A Day Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mac mini with MacOS Catalina: Getting Started with MacOS 10.15 for Mac Mini Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsComputer Maintenance Hacks: 15 Simple Practical Hacks to Optimize, Speed Up and Make Computer Faster Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5iMac with MacOS Catalina: Getting Started with MacOS 10.15 for Mac Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsmacOS Sierra - Up To Speed Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWindows 10 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/52023 M2 Chip Powered MacBook Pro User Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWindows 10: Up To Speed Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Windows 10: The ultimate Windows 10 user guide and manual! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsmacOS High Sierra: Up To Speed Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEssential Android Tablets: The Illustrated Guide to Using Android Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Mac Terminal Reference and Scripting Primer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Debian: Try It; You'll Like It Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWindows 11 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Windows 8.1: 101 Tips & Tricks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsExploring Apple Mac: Big Sur Edition: The Illustrated Guide to using your Mac Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCandy Crush Soda Saga Game: Guide With Extra Level Tips! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ridiculously Simple Guide to Apple Services: A Beginners Guide to Apple Arcade, Apple Card, Apple Music, Apple TV, iCloud Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Hardware For You
CompTIA A+ Complete Review Guide: Exam Core 1 220-1001 and Exam Core 2 220-1002 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dancing with Qubits: How quantum computing works and how it can change the world Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Creative Selection: Inside Apple's Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Amazon Web Services (AWS) Interview Questions and Answers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tor Darknet Bundle: Master the Art of Invisibility Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsProgramming Arduino: Getting Started with Sketches Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra User Guide for Beginners and Seniors Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5CompTIA A+ Complete Review Guide: Core 1 Exam 220-1101 and Core 2 Exam 220-1102 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Raspberry Pi Cookbook for Python Programmers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBuild Your Own PC Do-It-Yourself For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Computer Science: A Concise Introduction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arduino: A Quick-Start Beginner's Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Raspberry Pi Electronics Projects for the Evil Genius Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Mastering ChatGPT Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMacs For Dummies Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fitbit For Dummies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsComputer Organization and Design: The Hardware / Software Interface Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Macs All-in-One For Dummies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsApple Watch Series 4: Your Ultimate Guide to Using the Apple Watch Like A Pro Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Teach Yourself VISUALLY Computers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGetting Started With MacBook Air (2020 Model): A Guide For New MacOS Users Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings3D Printing For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Debugging: The 9 Indispensable Rules for Finding Even the Most Elusive Software and Hardware Problems Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Upgrading and Fixing Computers Do-it-Yourself For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5TI-84 Plus CE Graphing Calculator For Dummies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Reviews for MacOS for Seniors
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
MacOS for Seniors - Brian Norman
Introduction
I’ll make a wild guess: Mac isn’t the first operating system you’ve used. In fact, if you are like most people, you are probably a Windows person. But you’ve heard a lot of good things about Mac’s, it works alongside your phone, and it Just works
—so you have decided to make the switch.
It’s not the most complicated operating system—in fact, it’s simpler than Windows once you dig into it a little bit and start using it. But there is still a learning curve.
This book was written with Window users in mind. I’ll walk you through how to use it, but also compare it to Windows—so if there’s a feature you are used to in Windows, I’ll show you where that same feature is in MacOS.
It’s not a comprehensive guide, as you have probably noted by the number of pages. It’s meant to be a guide that gets you up and running as quickly as possible. If you are looking for something that teaches you all about Unix command prompts in Terminal, then there are plenty of heftier books out there that are also excellent for doorstops. This book is for people who just want to know how the darn thing works so they can start using it!
I purposely have done my best to make this handbook a little more casual and fun then what you expect from most Mac OS manuals. Mac OS is an operating system, and any guide you read should be an equally fun read.
This book is based off the bestselling Mac The Ridiculously Simple Guide to MacBook, iMac, and Mac Mini.
Are you ready to start enjoying the new Mac OS? Then let’s get started!
[1]
Why People Love Mac
Before diving into the actual software, let’s address the obvious: why pick Mac?
I was in the Windows camp for a long time; I’d see the Mac and think it was just a computer for hipsters. Sure they were nice to look at—they were shiny and didn’t look plastic-y and cheap…but they were also expensive.
But then I actually used one, and I was blown away. Here’s why…
Fewer Viruses
You’ve probably heard someone say they use a Mac because they don’t get viruses. That’s not true. Any computer can get a virus. But it is true that Macs are generally less prone to viruses and are more secure.
The reason you don’t hear about Mac viruses very often is twofold:
While it’s hard to pinpoint just how many computers there are in the world, most computers are still Windows. So if you are a hacker wanting to wreak havoc into cyberspace, then your obvious target would be the one with the largest audience.
The second reason is Mac OS is built by Apple, for Apple. Windows builds their OS to be built for essentially any computer, which opens the door for vulnerabilities.
I know a lot of Mac users and rarely do I hear someone say they have a virus. If you are concerned, however, one popular free virus protector is called Bitdefender Virus Scanner (http://www.bitdefender.com/).
Keeping It Simple
When it comes to design, Apple likes to make things that are beautiful and simple. This philosophy can be seen in their watches, iPhones, and iPads—across all their products.
Because Apple spends so much time keeping it simple, you also have seen the last days of computer crashes and blue screens of deaths.
Apple spends a lot of time thinking not just about what the computer should do, but how people will do it. If you’ve been using Windows all of your life, then all the different menus and buttons might seem intimidating at first—but don’t stress! This book will show you how much easier it actually is.
If you have any other Apple product, then many of the common Mac tasks will probably seem very similar to you. What’s more, if you have an iPhone, iPad, or even Apple TV, then they all work and interact with each other.
No Bloat
I remember my last Windows computer. I couldn’t wait to turn it on…and then I couldn’t wait to turn it off! Your first hour should be spent just having fun exploring it, but my first hour was spent uninstalling programs!
One reason Windows computers are cheaper is that manufacturers team up with software companies and install all kinds of unnecessary programs—most of them are just free trials.
With Mac, you turn your computer on for the first time, create an ID if you don’t already have one, put in your Wi-Fi, and log in to iTunes / iCloud. That’s it. It should take less than ten minutes to get your computer up and running once you get it out of the box.
[2]
Common Windows Features On Mac OS
So exactly how is Mac different from Windows? Throughout the book, I’ll be making comparisons to help you, but first I want to give a rundown of some of the major differences.
Right Click
Right-clicking is probably second nature to you if you are a Windows user; on the Mac, it’s all about gestures—touching the trackpad (Mac’s mouse) a certain way (or on new Macs, using more or less pressure) will bring up different options and menus.
As weird as it sounds, the first time I used a Mac, the right-click (or lack thereof) drove me crazy…until I figured out that right clicking was actually there. To right-click on a Mac, click with two fingers instead of one. Alternatively, you can press Control and with one finger.
If you have an old Windows USB mouse, you don’t have to toss it—you can plug it into your Mac and it will work with no installation. The right click will even work.
I’ll explain how to customize your TrackPad later in the book, but if you’d like to jump ahead, you can go to System Preferences>TrackPad.
And don’t worry about messing something up; it’s very hard to