Do you want to customize or speed up your Mac’s performance?
One simple secret to improving your Mac’s performance is to change some Mac settings. You don’t need to download any fancy apps or anything else.
Today, over 100 million active Mac computers are in use worldwide. As one of the best consumer-level computers, Mac is versatile and powerful. If you haven’t explored or tinkered around with your Mac settings yet, do it now.
Continue below to learn six things you can do with your Mac settings to boost your user experience.
Table of Contents
1. How To Set Up Messaging on Mac
Did you know you can use your Mac computer to send SMS messages? You don’t need to switch between devices anymore when you’re working and conversing with someone. All you need is to set up your iMessage using your Apple ID.
The first step is to open the Messages app and sign in with your Apple ID. Next, open Preferences and click iMessage. Then, set up the following options to your preferences:
- iCloud message storage
- Read receipt option
- Email and phone number contact details
- New conversation-starting option
- Name and photo sharing
- Notification sounds, alerts, and settings
iMessage is a secure service for sending messages between Apple users. Also, you can send unlimited messages from your Mac to other Apple devices.
If you didn’t like using iMessage, here is how to disable it.
On the Messages app, you open Preferences, iMessage, and Settings. Click on the Sign Out button for iMessage. Signing out stops your Mac from receiving messages.
Where Is “Settings” on Mac?
Are you having trouble finding the Settings app on Mac? Shifting from Windows to Apple products can create much confusion and a headache. Here is how to find the Settings menu on Mac.
Your Mac’s System Preferences is the Settings app. You’ll find it in your Applications folder. You can also click the logo on the top-left of the screen to open the Apple menu and find System Preferences.
2. Make Screen Corners Your Shortcuts
Macs have a setting that allows you to turn your screen corners into shortcuts. By screen-corner shortcuts, we’re not only referring to the quick switch to the desktop. Mac lets you do more than minimize all your open windows and apps.
The other commands that you can set as screen corner shortcuts include:
- Open Mission Control
- Mac sleep settings (display only)
- Start the screensaver
To set up your screen-corner shortcuts, open System Preferences. Choose Desktop & Screen Saver options and open the Screen Saver tab. Click on Hot Corners and choose what actions you want to set for each corner.
3. Customize Small Details
Did you know that you can change the appearance of your Mac’s Finder?
Switch out of the Finder’s default view by opening Finder first. Next, open the View menu and select Show View Options. After clicking it, a dialog box will open. Use it to select your icon sizes, text label size, grid spacing, and more.
You can also have your menu bar show your apps in a specific order by holding the Command key and dragging the icons. You can even remove all the icons if you prefer a blank Menu bar.
Customizing the small details on your Mac is a great way to pass the time and show off a bit of your personality. Learn more about changing file colors, icons, and more by visiting setapp.com.
As a warning, don’t reset Mac to factory settings if you dislike the new customizations. Resetting to factory settings will erase all the data you have on your Mac. Instead, restore the old settings by reversing the process that led you here.
4. Manage the Startup Apps and Programs
Startup apps can slow down your computer’s startup time. They take up resources while the Mac is still launching and booting up. If you don’t enjoy using them, you have the option of disabling them.
The first step to managing and disabling them is as easy as opening your System Preferences. Next, click on the Users & Groups option, then your username. Look for Login Items and check the apps and programs.
Keep them from launching on startup by clicking the “-” button below each program. You can disable all the apps from starting up on automatic for a quick startup process. Or, you can keep only a handful of apps enabled for automatic startup.
5. Specify Your Spotlight Search
The Spotlight search tool shines bright in its usefulness at the best of times. However, sometimes, it may take too long to find a specific file or photo for you. The reason is that it may comb through the whole computer’s memory to search for one file.
You can specify where the Spotlight searches with a simple trick. First, here’s a quick tip for launching Spotlight within a half-second. If you don’t know it yet, the trick is to press Command + Space to launch Spotlight.
However, if you want to search a specific set of folders, open System Preferences first. Click on Spotlight, then Search Results. Deselect the boxes with categories you don’t need.
6. Update Your Mac Often
The expected lifespan of a Mac is between five and eight years. Once your Mac reaches this age, it may start lagging or slowing down. You can do various things to your Mac to fix this issue.
It includes upgrading RAM, adding storage, and more. Does your Mac computer keep slowing down again? Don’t give up yet because you can still do a few things to boost it.
One tip is to update the operating system of your Mac computer. Often, Macs do this without your help. However, your computer may sometimes fail to update, too.
To check and update, click the Apple icon at the top-left corner of the screen. Click on the About This Mac option. From here, you’ll learn if you have the latest operating system or if you need to update it yourself.
Also, remember that your computer is like the human body. The operating system works like the brain, while the physical computer is like the body. Never overlook the hardware if you want your Mac to get an excellent performance boost.
Boost Your Computer by Changing up Some Mac Settings
Now, you know how to switch up some Mac settings and tips when doing so.
Do you want to know more about some Mac camera settings tips? Check out our guide to see tech-focused content and more.
