Mac Life UK Protect Your Digital Life Never lose a photo, song, or file again May 2018 pdf pdf
Sure-fire ways The best HomePod tested to speed up new smart
| Hey Siri, which smart
High Sierra home tech speaker should I buy?
MAC iPHONE iPAD
S P R I N G 20 1 8 N O.1 4 0 YOUR DIGITAL LIFE Never lose a photo, song, or file again Back up with
Time Machine Safeguard your photos & videos
Keep precious files in the cloud
ONE MORE
H OW TO : THIN G…
Share calendars with others Improve drag and drop on iPad The b est Map your home in A.R.
Steve Jobs
S P R I N G 20 1 8 N O.1 4 0 W W W. M AC L I F E .CO M
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64 Protect your digital life One more thing... Smart home CES special
Never lose a song, photo, or file again The crowd loved it when Steve Jobs This year’s Consumer Electronics Show with our complete guide to protecting said “one more thing” — it meant had plenty of new gear to smarten up your data. Learn how to back up with something good was coming. We recall your Apple home. We share highlights Time Machine, safeguard your photos our favorite Stevenote moments. in security, lighting, and speakers. and video, and store files in iCloud.
Digital Life Head to techradar.com for the very latest news.
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Contents
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Consider The editor reflects on whether pro iOS apps are where they ought to be.
84
Share Email us your views at [email protected].
Apple thrives as global smartphone sales slip iPhone sales and profits buck the industry trend.
HomePod’s mark There’s already a blot on HomePod’s reputation.
The Shift David Chartier on slowing the pace of change.
Two displays, no keys? The shape of future Macs, or possibly iPads...
Crave The gear we’re lusting after, including a retro wireless keyboard.
Artstudio Pro for iOS Focos AudioFile – Voice Memo Notes Thumper: Pocket Edition Playdead’s Inside Cascable 3.2 Smash Tanks! Gorogoa 6 apps to keep up with the news Outcast Freeway SOS Sweatcoin Run with Zwift HomePod Linksys Velop Yi Technology 4K+ Action Camera Informant AfterShokz Trekz Air Earth Primer iON360 U Upright Go Keep It GearUp Start InnerSpace Ask Our experts solve your Mac and iOS problems.
Create a selective “color hold” effect How to type special characters Faster Find and Save Share calendars Make more of your Mac desktop and Dock Speed up High Sierra Create a ringtone in GarageBand, part 1 Improve drag and drop Map your home in AR Customize your Watch Random Apple Memory Flashback: We recall how Apple got into movies.
CES 2018 special Smarten up your Apple home with the best new tech from CES 2018.
Apple TV The latest apps and hottest hardware for your Apple TV.
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THE TEAM
>>> AN iPAD FOR PROS? AS WE PREPARED to send this issue
to press, rumors were circulating that Apple would introduce updated iPad hardware at some point in March.
By the time you’re reading this, we’ll know for sure how that panned out, but the mere possibility of new hardware, combined with talk that Apple would be relaxing its annual development cycle, got me wondering whether iPad Matt Smith software in 2018 is really where we
Art Editor expect it to be.
Matt’s old iPod nano
I don’t mean the operating system
has died and gone to the
itself, but apps for it. While Apple has Apple Store in the sky. taken steps to make the Mac and iOS RIP, ’90s summer playlist. devices great companions, such as by enabling us to move projects between Logic Pro X and GarageBand, I’ve recently found myself frustrated by the inability to do pretty simple things on my iPad.
Whe Ľrst is in Pages. \ou can apply paragraph styles such as headings and captions, just as in the Mac version. What you can’t do on iOS, though, is make changes to an applied style, update that style’s de
Ľnition, and have those changes applied to all instances of the style in your document.
\ou can certainly create good-looking docs on iOS, but at a certain point you’ll want to switch to a Mac to Ľnish the task eĿciently and comfortably.
The second obstacle I ran into is the unavailability of pro-level
Rosie Hilder
iOS apps. Software developers have been talking for years about when the hardware and software might reach the point of Operations Editor enabling them to make iOS apps on iOS itself, rather than a Mac. Rosie has been lusting That’s a pretty complex scenario for various reasons, but my after a new DSLR camera needs are much simpler: I want to be able to create comparatively — her Wi-Fi-less model is simple documents on iOS. By which I mean electronic books. just not up to the job. I’m pretty disappointed that there isn’t a version of iBooks Author that runs on iPad — at least on the 10.5 and 12.9-inch Pro models.
Is this really where the iPad should be at in 2018, eight years after the Ľrst model went on saleB Apple may well be looking at alleviating some of the pressure in its development cycle, but as the iPad’s tenth anniversary draws closer, I really hope to see many more pro-level apps for it.
Matt Bolton Contributor After what felt like a very long wait, Matt finally got his hands on an iMac Pro Editor
ALAN STONEBRIDGE,
— expect a review soon! Twitter: @maclife
EMAIL: [email protected]
JOHAN ROSMAN Us, we’re still wary of smart electricity meters. About half of all US electricity customers have one, but who wants your life reported to your utility company minute by minute? Digital dilemma
What I have against the HomePod is that, just like with
Siri concerns 2
Emphatically NOT getting a HomePod. I have an Echo and Dot, and Alexa is 100 times better at understanding and responding than Siri is. I can’t even get Siri to work on the iPhone. I ask her to call someone in my contacts list and she looks up stores in my area. I was kind of excited about a new iMac until I saw the price… Emphatically not getting that either. AMBER HOUK
HOWARD DENNER We’ve heard from other people too, confirming that other brands of speaker have also left marks on their surfaces. Siri concerns 1
surface will leave a mark. When one adds in any amount of vibration, the effect will be amplified a great deal. So, please stop whining.
We produce several digital versions of Mac|Life. Your sub gives you a fully-interactive app for iPad or a slightly more modest app for iPhone, but there’s also a version you can read on a Mac (or PC) using the Zinio app — see zinio.com.
I have a digital subscription to Mac|Life, which I have tried to access on my MacBook with no success. I can always pull it up on my iPad and iPhone. Is this how a digital subscription works, no access on a laptop or desktop? SHARON HARRIS
I’ve been in the furnishings business for nearly 30 years, and I can almost guarantee anything left on an unprotected the Google appliance, we put a device in our house that is continuously listening to everything that is said in the house. Ten years ago, if anyone had predicted this, we would have yelled MADNESS. Now we pay for it. And we all know that anything that goes over the Internet is never 100% safe.
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KEVIN S. HENNING We look forward to hearing from HomePod buyers who’ve found “unexpected benefits.” Marks inevitable
Although I am a little disappointed HomePod doesn’t have more “skills” like the Amazon Echo, there is no question the speaker quality is far better than the Echo. I have placed my HomePod in my home office and I have found that it makes an outstanding speakerphone. It’s great for long conference calls — it’s easy to hear it throughout my office, and the microphone picks up my voice quite accurately. This feature has been an unexpected benefit of the HomePod for me, and may prove to be a niche use that appeals to other users.
Using HomePod
Apple is now endorsing and selling the Linksys Velop mesh networking package. See our review in this issue.
As an Apple supporter (aren’t we all?) it is good to see the company succeeding in so many areas, but therein lie some major hidden risks. I believe Apple is trying to innovate in too many areas nowadays, and we see the results in both iOS and macOS issues. Experience shows that businesses that spread themselves too thinly, trying to do too much at the same time, are likely to fail. One more thing... Why didn’t Apple include mesh Wi-Fi core capability in the HomePod? The combination of smart speaker, high quality audio, and mesh Wi-Fi networking really would drive us to use HomePods across many rooms in our homes. If you know Tim Cook’s email address, please forward this suggestion to him on my behalf. DAVID STAMP
There is a digital edition of Mac|Life for Macs, but it’s not the iPad one.
Got one? Share your HomePod experience!
TWITTER: twitter.com/maclife SHARE WITH US!
Your opinions, rants & raves
FEED YOUR MIND. FEAST YOUR EYES. START
WORLDWIDE SALES OF smartphones fell in the fourth
quarter of 2017 compared to the corresponding quarter
Apple thrives
of 2016, according to leading data analysts. One of these, Gartner, Inc., said this is the
Ľrst year-on-year decline
as global
since it started tracking the global smartphone market in 2004. Apple, however, held up well: Despite supply shortages and buyers reportedly delaying their purchases
smartphone
to see the iPhone X, released only in November, total iPhone shipments in the quarter were almost the same
sales slip
as in T4 2016 and revenues were signiĽcantly higher.
Gartner estimated that global sales of smartphones
iPhone sales steady, profits
to end users totaled nearly 408 million units in the
up, as others feel the pinch
fourth quarter of 2017, a 5.6% decline compared to Q4 2016. The
Ľgures from IDF diļered only slightly — total
BY ALEX SUMMERSBY
shipments 40 6.5 million units, year-on-year decline 6.
6% — but interestingly, IDF reported that Apple had outsold Samsung and captured top position in the global market for the quarter.
Feed your mind. Feast your eyes.
ID F and Gartner had the same Ľgure for Samsung’s shipments in the quarter, around 74 million units worldwide, down 4.4% from the corresponding quarter of 2016, according to ID
F. Ior Q4 2017, IDF reported Apple’s phone sales at 77.
6 million units, a year-on-year decline of just 1.3%, while Gartner had Apple at around 73.2 million. The ID
F Ľgure corresponds to the Ľgure in Apple’s own statutory
IT COSTS HOW MUCH?
Ľnancial statements, and it is not clear why Gartner’s numbers are di ļerent +conceivably there is some technical distinction between shipments and “sales to end users,” which Gartner says it cites).
Whichever numbers you look at, both Apple and Samsung saw their market share increase
If third-party estimates are to be believed, there’s not as much margin in a HomePod as in most other Apple products — analyst firm TechInsights looked at all the components and reckons each HomePod costs Apple $216 to make, leaving a margin of just $133 per speaker before you even consider the costs of advertising, R&D, and other overheads.
News in brief Apple news in bite-size meaty chunks >
- to 19.2% and 18.4% respectively, on ID
- We’re using IDF’s Ľgures here in all cases.)
Ior the full year, IDF said, the worldwide smartphone market saw a total of 1.472 billion units shipped, a decline of less than 1% from the 1.473 billion units shipped in 2016.
“Developed markets such as Fhina and the Xnited
Samsung held on to the top spot over the full year, however, and despite the fourth-quarter slowdown, overall sales have held up.
ľagship devices.” It’s worth noting, however, that high prices do not seem to have hurt Apple. The company’s revenues from iPhone sales topped $61.5 billion in the quarter, a 13% increase year-on-year and more than double the
Ľgure for the previous quarter of 2017. “Although demand for the new higher-priced iPhone X may not have been as strong as many expected,” ID
F commented, “the overall iPhone lineup appealed to a wider range of consumers in both emerging and developed markets. Apple
Ľnished second for the full year in 2017, shipping 215.8 million units, up 0.2% from the 215.4 million units shipped in 2016.
“Apple continues to prove that having numerous models at various price points bodes well for bringing smartphone owners to iOS,” ID F said.
17.6% compared with Q4 2016.
Ľfth with 27.4m units and 6.8% market share. Other brands accounted for 151.3m units shipped and a hefty 38.6% of the market worldwide, but this was down
> BUILT LIKE A TANK
Our friends over at iFixit.com have undertaken one of their renowned teardowns, taking apart a HomePod, and concluded: “The HomePod is built like a tank. Durability should not be an issue.” Giving the unit a repairability score of just 1 out of 10, iFixit comment: “One thing’s for sure, the HomePod wins at being the worst device ever to open. This thing is bulletproof — meant to withstand intense vibration and minimize buzzing components. Despite the abundance of screws, it took a ton of heat and cutting tools to get anywhere.” This is not good news if you like to tinker with your tech, admittedly, but the guys at iFixit did add: “All told, we have to admit that we’re pretty impressed with the amount of tech Apple squeezed into this thing. From the speakers to the power supply, the internals are super dense, elegant and efficiently packed. Everything in it aims to deliver the biggest bang for the smallest area.”
Image: iFixit.com It took iFixit a lot of work (and cutting) to get inside.
F’s Ľgures). Fhinese manufacturers made up the rest of the top Ľve: Kuawei held on to third place with 41m units shipped in the quarter and 10.2% market share; Xiaomi jumped into fourth place with 28.1m units and 7.0% market share, almost double its Q4 2016 performance; and OPPO came in
States both witnessed a decline during the fourth quarter,” ID F commented, “as consumers appeared to be in no rush to upgrade to the newest generation of higher-priced
HomePod makes its mark… on surfaces Apple’s smart speaker is having an impact on buyers’ homes... not in a good way
BY ALEX SUMMERSBY
SOME NEW PRODUCTS
(or words to that e ļect). It has emerged, however, that Apple is correct: It’s not only the HomePod that produces this problem.
>>> Start
Take care with some wooden surfaces...
If you own furniture with a porous or polished wood surface, you’re probably used to being pretty careful about it, insisting on coasters under your hot or cold drinks and mats under your dinner plate. Or possibly you’ve embraced the alternative view — the farmhouse philosophy,
Ľrm it — trustedreviews.com, for example, notes that similar marks were left by Sonos One speakers. What’s more, the problem doesn’t seem to arise on all surfaces: We contacted a number of HomePod users, who all reported that they have not had this problem. Maybe it’s just that we don’t know anyone with expensive enough furniture…
Apple-specialist websites were inevitably quick to report this, but less partisan sources con
This response has generally not been well received. To some, it echoes Steve Jobs’s notorious response to complaints about the iPhone 4’s poor phone signal reception: “You’re holding it wrong”
you might call it — and accepted that scratches, marks, and stains over time form a unique patina that actually gives your table or sideboard greater character.
bit.ly/ml140homepod): It is not unusual for any speaker with a vibration-damping silicone base to leave mild marks when placed on some wooden surfaces. The marks can be caused by oils glļxvlqj#ehwzhhq#wkh#vlolfrqh# base and the table surface, and will often go away after several days when the speaker is removed from the wooden surface. If not, wiping the surface gently with a soft damp or dry cloth may remove the marks. If marks persist, clean the surface with the furniture manufacturer’s recommended cleaning process. If you’re concerned about this, we recommend placing your HomePod rq#d#glļhuhqw#vxuidfh1
Apple has acknowledged the issue but made light of it, saying in a support note concerning “Cleaning and taking care of HomePod” (read it in full at
seem to hit the spot and just take o ļ, like the original iPhone, say. Others are plagued with problems and criticisms. HomePod seems to fall into the latter category. On top of complaints about its shortcomings, some early buyers have found that their expensive new smart speaker is leaving a white ring on their even more expensive wooden surfaces.
How does HomePod shape up? See MSP @AÐLEREÌA RAQR EL RDEQ EQQSA
Now that we’ve been alerted to the situation, though, there’s surely an entrepreneurial opportunity here for someone to market an iCoaster or a HomePodPad…
ľak for not issuing any warnings. (The HomePod has been in development for at least Ľve years, and you have to expect that the development of the mesh casing was given due attention as much as the insides…)
Either way, this is not the kind of unexpected feature you want from a new premium speaker, and once again Apple is taking
12 Feed your mind. Feast your eyes.
IKE EVEN THE
>>>
David Chartier is a content strategist and writer with vast experience analyzing the tech world.
He runs the website Finer Things in Tech (finerthings.in) and hosts its podcast, The Finer Things In.
L
most modern of houses, our technology has bugs — little (and sometimes big) ways it doesn’t quite work right. It’s nearly impossible to squash all the bugs, but some apps, devices, and operating systems have more bugs than others. Much of Apple’s foundation was built on the overall quality of its user experience. In recent years, however, “it just works” has become “wait for an update or two and then it should just work. Maybe.” The latter doesn’t quite roll o
SLOW DOWN
ļ the tongue, and Apple knows it. That’s why the company has started some spring cleaning and slowing down, and I think it’s the right thing to do for a few reasons.
Apple has been releasing major operating system upgrades and new features every year, for over a decade. While it makes for a good yearly show, it has ultimately made for devices that have lost some of their luster of reliability. Apple still sells millions upon millions of devices every year, but it’s hard to ignore that, with many people, a sentiment has arisen of “wait for the second version.” Recent operating system releases have stumbled over major bugs and missing features that weren’t ready, while some new Mac hardware has missed the mark in performance or purpose.
There are a lot of reasons w a company as monumentally successful as Apple might stumble like this, but I think a large factor is simply speed. Many tech pundits were surprised when Apple started a yearly software cycle. To be fair, the regular attentio and constant stream of new features contributed quite a lot to Apple’s success. But it also seems clear now that this pace sacri
Ľced at least some level o quality in software development and product reliability.
This is why I’m excited that Apple is changing things up. A renewed focus on quality and reliability — instead of packing every release with tons of new features — can help restore some of the reputation and excitement that has been lost. People may be able to get back to looking forward to Upgrade Days instead of putting them o
ļ for as long as possible, or until they can no longer abstain from that new set of emoji.
I Ľnd one aspect of Apple’s new approach to software releases particularly promising: waiting to release features until they’re ready. While this should also help in the reliability department, it might also allow Apple to roll out more focused releases that are more inviting to regular users. Fewer, but more polished, features might allow each release to feel less intimidating and more exciting. New features won’t amount to much if people are too overwhelmed to learn them, or if the features simply don’t work.
I know it might seem counterintuitive. But I do think that Apple slowing down (if only just a little) might enable its products and new, ideally helpful, features get adopted more quickly. Eventually, maybe we can even get back to saying “it just works,” and mean it.
Regular software updates are a great selling point... But slowing the pace a little might make a lot of sense, says DAVID CHARTIER >THE SHIFT
maclife.com SPRING 2018 13
TOUCHSCREENS ARE THE future,
right? So who needs a physical keyboard? If a new patent is any indication, Apple could be planning a portable device consisting of two displays, one of which could function as a virtual keyboard or other types of interface — think a Touch Bar expanded to full screen size.
Specialist website Patently Apple (patentlyapple.com) reported on the patent granted to Apple by the US Patent and Trademark O
Ŀce at the end of February. The patent illustrates a dual-display notebook that eliminates a physical keyboard and track ad entirel . Instead the secondary display can function as a virtual OLED keyboard — or, even more excitingly, become a sketch pad, or present the full custom controls for a game. Potentially, the controls and interface could transform completely to suit whatever activity you wanted to do at the time.
Instead of a permanent hinge, the patent includes the possibility of a magnetic connector, which could mean a detachable accessory for an iPad rather than a future notebook.
A signi Ľcant part of the patent deals with using “polarizer la ers” to hel reduce an
Future MacBook with two displays and no keyboard? A new Apple patent suggests a new display of innovation, which might even work outdoors
News in brief Apple news in bite-size chunks > GET YOUR FAVORITE APPLE TECH FROM HP
Where do you get your Apple gear? Online, at an Apple Store, or at a third-party reseller? Add PC vendor HP to the list: HP has expanded its Device as a Service (DaaS) program in the US — under which businesses can purchase hardware via a subscription instead of paying upfront — to offer Apple devices as well as its own. You’ll be able to get a Mac, iPhone, or iPad, backed by HP’s tech support and managed services.
> GOOGLE FIGHTS IMAGE THEFT
Google has made a significant change to its Google Images search engine, in a bid to prevent people from downloading copyrighted images. It has removed the “View Image” button from its image search results. This used to be the second button, just next to “Visit Page,” in the image preview that pops open when you click a thumbnail on the initial search results page. The move should encourage searchers at least to visit the site — and view any copyright or usage warnings — before stealing images... It remains possible, however, to Ctrl-click on an image and select View Image.
p y , y p y possible re ľections of the light of one screen on the other, which
might also enable the user to
view the screens outdoors while wearing sunglasses.As ever, the granting of a patent does not guarantee that Apple will ever be shipping a product based upon this
technology. But we can
dream, can’t we?>>> Start
Feed your mind. Feast your eyes.
BY ALEX SUMMERSBY
Sta u to date with the y p
latest Apple news
maclife.com
Sign up for our weekly email newsletter at
>>> Start
Feed your mind. Feast your eyes.
CRAVE THE GEAR WE’RE LUSTING AFTER Olympus PEN E-PL9 olympus.com
$TBC
>>> We’re totally in love with the looks and
details on this retro-styled mirrorless camera: the debossed name in the leatherette wraparound; the finely curved grip for more stable shooting; the chamfered top; the metal finishing all over. It’s a work of industrial design art. It’s also a pretty sharp camera, usefully. A super-fast 121-point autofocus helps you make the most of the 16-megapixel sensor, while five-axis image stabilization keeps your shots crisp. It also shoots 4K video, and the screen flips out 180 degrees for snaps of yourself.
AZIO Luxury Retro Wireless Keyboard aziocorp.com
$219.99 Looking like it’s fallen through a portal from
>>>
a steampunk alternative universe, this keyboard gives you solid typewriter-style keys with a clicky mechanical action to use with your Mac, iPad, or anything else over Bluetooth (a wired version is also available). It comes with Mac-focused keys in the box (you have to pop them on yourself), and is available in copper and black leather, black on black, copper on white, and black and wood finishes. The keys are backlit, and the big 6,000mAh battery should keep it juiced for a long time.
DJI Mavic Air dji.com
$799 Photography/video enthusiasts get the drone
>> > the ey’ve been waiting for in the Mavic Air. You get 4K rec orded at extremely high-quality 100Mbps bitrate, stab ilized with a three-axis gimbal, so when the dron e changes direction or is buffeted in the wind, the v ideo stays smooth. It can fly itself, tracking and follow ing you and responding to gesture commands.
When you’re done, it folds up into a (just about)
pocketable size. It can take 12MP HDR still shots or 32-megapixel sphere panoramas.
B&O BeoPlay E8 beoplay.com
$299 AirPods are unbeatable when it comes to
>>>
convenience working with Apple gear, but their audio quality and noise cancelation aren’t quite as hot. B&O’s E8s are true wireless headphones with top-end headphone engineering built in, meaning they’re incredibly good at cutting out the world around you and pushing full and detailed sound. They’re sharp lookers, too, especially in the new all-white and all-white black finishes, which go well with your choice of iPhone X color. They have touch panels for control, and, like AirPods, they charge from their own mini-case.
maclife.com SPRING 2018 17
YOUR DIGITAL PROTECT >>> Feature
18
> Time Machine
Apple’s backup system is built into macOS and offers key benefits: It requires almost zero effort to get working, and enables you to recover old versions of files, even those that have been deleted, or your entire system. Its Snapshots feature stores content on local drives with enough space, too, so you may be able to recover a recently removed/edited document even if your Time Machine drive is unavailable. Wireless backups are an option, through Apple’s AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule or a compatible third-party NAS, although wireless backups can be sluggish if your network isn’t fast enough.
> Local clones
Once, cloning was a lengthy one-off operation, producing an archive of your files at a moment in time, but it’s more flexible today. Modern cloning apps such as Carbon
Copy Cloner and SuperDuper are robust and smart, and although an initial clone might take hours to complete, subsequent incremental clones update only what needs changing. This can be done to a schedule, creating exact, up-to-date copies of your Mac’s drive. Unlike with Time Machine, you cannot recover multiple iterations of a file from a clone, but you can start up your Mac from it — a big benefit in the event of catastrophic hard drive failure.
> iCloud
When you leave your iOS devices plugged in, connected to a Wi-Fi network, with the screen locked, they’ll be backed up on a daily basis (typically overnight). There must be enough storage space in your iCloud account; you can buy more, but if space is a problem (or you just want to control what to keep), you can manually manage what’s backed up on each device. In addition, iCloud Drive can store your photos, videos, music, and Mac as well as iOS documents and apps, syncing everything across all your devices — but this is not ideal for backup, because changes (including deleting a file) will propagate across all your devices.
M ODERN LIFE IS increasingly reliant on digital content, which impacts heavily on things that are important to us all. Cherished memories exist as photos and videos inside of computers. Schedules and appointments appear on calendars on your
Mac, rather than scrawled on paper equivalents pinned to a wall. Essential documents for managing your home and work are less commonly printed out — again, they often exist only on your Mac.
That’s hugely convenient, mostly, but also potentially a big problem. Digital Ľles shouldn’t exist only in one place. After all, what happens if you lose your Mac, or drop it, or it’s fritzed in a massive power outage, or it’s damaged in a Ľre, ľood, or other natural calamity? In the same way, what happens to everything on your iPhone if that device is mislaid or stolen? The simple answer: the data is lost.
From pictures of your family to that dissertation you’ve piled months of time into. All gone.
This is why it’s vital to back up. When you have only a single copy of a Ľle, it’s vulnerable. For anything you care about, you must make copies on an ongoing basis, just in case disaster strikes. The positive side is that it’s potentially far easier to preserve your valued content in digital form than it ever was to make copies of your family photo album, for example, and store them at your Mom’s for safekeeping.
Of course, you could still copy all your stu ļ to a portable hard drive and store it at your Mom’s. But over the next few pages, we’ll look at a whole range of ways to build and use a robust, complete, fuss-free backup system to signi Ľcantly reduce the risk that you ever lose data again.
Safeguard your data, in case of disaster Three key backup options LIFE
Keep your stuff safe pple provides a completely free, easy- to-use, powerful backup utility as part of mac
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HOW TO Recover a file using Time Machine
RESTORE THE FILE Select the item you want and click the Restore button. It’s copied back from your backup to its original location on your Mac. To copy it elsewhere, click the toolbar’s cogwheel and pick the option to restore to another location.
ENTER TIME MACHINE In Finder, open a folder that contains (or contained) a file you’d like to restore to an older state. Pick the option from step 1, then click the timeline down the screen’s right edge to move through the folder’s contents back through time.
USE THE MENU BAR ICON Go to System Preferences > Time Machine and check “Show Time Machine in menu bar” if it’s not already checked. Click the menu bar icon to see the time when your last backup was made, and the option to enter Time Machine.
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> SEND IN THE CLONES Backups are about making data recoverable. Clones provide a bootable drive you can start up from in the event of your drive failing. Or you might be away from your Mac but need access to all of its data, apps, and setup. Or you can keep a snapshot of an old Mac or old system version, complete with data and apps.
Various apps offer cloning, like Carbon Copy Cloner ($39.99, bombich.com) and SuperDuper ($27.95, shirt-pocket.com). In brief, you choose a source (usually your Mac) and a destination. Click a button and the clone is created, which can take several hours if there’s a lot of data. Further options include scheduling (overnight is a good time), incremental updates (copying across only new/updated files), and omitting specific files/folders. You should test any clone you make: connect the drive to your Mac, go to System Preferences > Startup Disk, select the clone, restart your Mac, and play around in the cloned system for a bit to ensure everything’s present and fully working.
USE macOS RECOVERY Restart or power on your Mac and hold down Cmd+R until macOS Recovery opens. If the startup disk is damaged (but not physically), you can use Disk Utility’s First Aid feature to attempt repair, or use that app to erase the macOS partition.
Select “Restore from Time Machine Backup” and click Continue. Note that in this mode, input devices work using Apple’s default settings, and so if you tap to click on your trackpad in macOS, you’ll need to press to click here.