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Disable period typing after double space on macOS Ventura

If you have updated to macOS Ventura, you may have noticed that if you double type a space, you end up with a period automatically typing itself. Some users may appreciate the automatic typing of periods after hitting the spacebar twice, but many Mac users who write code, scripts, or write professionally, can be annoyed by the automatic typing of periods with the space bar.

Here’s how you can turn off the auto-typing of periods after hitting space twice in macOS Ventura.

• Go to the  Apple menu and choose "System Settings"
• Scroll down in the list and choose "Keyboard"
• Look for the Text Input section for "Input Sources", and click the "Edit" button next to that
• Locate the switch for "Add period with double-space" and toggle that off
• Click "Done"

Now when you hit the space bar twice, the Mac will no longer automatically type a period.

Fix File Sharing not working in macOS Ventura

Some MacOS Ventura users have found that file sharing between a Mac running macOS Ventura does not work reliably between Ventura and another Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows PC, and even some NAS drives like Synology. For many users, file sharing setups that worked fine for years prior to updating to macOS Ventura are now no longer working at all or behaving in an inconsistent manner.

If you’re experiencing problems with file sharing not working in macOS Ventura, there is a fix to resolve the issue. This solution applies to SMB file sharing with macOS Ventura and devices connecting to or from the Mac, whether you’re experiencing connectivity failures, time outs, server unavailable, server may not exist, or other similar error messages.

• Open the "System Settings" on Mac from the  Apple menu
• Go to "General" and then to "Sharing"
• Find the switch for "File Sharing" and toggle it Off
• Restart the Mac by going to the  Apple menu and choosing Restart
• Upon reboot, return to the Sharing system settings panel and turn "File Sharing" back to the On position
• Resume file sharing as usual, it should work as expected

You may need to repeat this process after a few days, or at random, if file sharing suddenly stops working again between the macOS Ventura Mac and another Mac or device. Why you need to disable file sharing, reboot, then re-enable file sharing, is a bit of a mystery. Simply toggling file sharing off and on does not do the trick.

Convert images quickly from Finder

Posted in Finder Tips & Tricks

macOS offers a super simple and fast way to convert images, directly from the Finder. Thanks to the handy Quick Actions feature, Mac users are able to convert any images from anywhere in the Finder, with just a few clicks.

This is a powerful and useful feature that is often overlooked. Here’s how it works:

• From Finder, locate the image you want to convert

• Right-click, control-click, or two-finger click on the image you wish to convert, and go to “Quick Actions” and then select "Convert Image" from the menu

• Select the file format type you wish to convert the image to and select the image size (choose "Actual Size" if you do not want to resize the image), choose whether or not you wish to preserve metadata, then click on the "Convert" button

The image will convert almost instantly and appear in the same folder with the same file name as the origin image. This Quick Action image conversion tool is super fast and powerful, but is limited to JPG, PNG, and HEIF/HEIC formats. If you wish to convert to additional image file formats, you will have to use Preview.

Three quick macOS tips

Here are three quick macOS tips that once you start using should make the time you spend on your Mac a more effortless experience. The following assumes you're running macOS Ventura, but most if not all of these tips should work on earlier versions of Apple's Mac operating system.

• Open a Copy of a File by Default

Stationery Pad is a handy way to nix a step in your workflow if you regularly use document templates on your Mac. The long-standing Finder feature essentially tells a file's parent application to open a copy of it by default, ensuring that the original file remains unedited. Almost any file type can be defined as a template with Stationery Pad – it could be used to streamline common Photoshop jobs, create skeleton HTML/CSS files, or help with Word document invoicing.

To take advantage of it, right-click (Ctrl-click) the file that you want to use as a template, select Get Info, then check the Stationery Pad checkbox under the General section. Lastly, click the red traffic light button to close the Get Info window. Next time you double-click the template file, Finder will automatically create and open a copy of it, leaving the original untouched.

• Access More Preview File Format Options

When you come to save or export a file in Preview, Option-click the Format dropdown to get access to several additional file types.

• Add App/File/Folder Shortcuts to Finder's Toolbar

Here's how to add convenient app, file, and folder shortcuts to the toolbar of Finder windows: Simply begin to drag the item within the Finder window, then hold down the Command (⌘) key and drop it onto an available space in the toolbar.

How to fix "macOS could not be installed on your computer" error

The "macOS could not be installed on your computer" error is one of the last ones you want to see. It pops up when you're updating your Mac's operating system but can't complete the operation. Despite the wording, it doesn't mean your installation will never work. It just means it failed that one time. The bad news is this error could be occurring due to a number of reasons. The good news is you can get your Mac back up and functional with a little work.

What causes the "macOS could not be installed on your computer" error? Several issues could cause the problem. However, the error screen should give you some idea of what's gone amiss. Here are some messages you might see underneath the warning:

• The path /System/Installation/Packages/OSInstall.mpkg appears to be missing or damaged
• An error occurred installing macOS
• Unable to unmount volume for repair
• Storage system verify or repair failed
• An error occurred while verifying firmware

Some of these offer more information than others, but they point to different stages of the installation that failed. The following steps and fixes should sort out any of the problems mentioned above.

Fixing this error may require some patience. It's best to start with the simple fixes, which often solve the problem, but if they don't, you have other options. Here are the approaches to try.

1. Restart and try the installation again. This may seem counterintuitive to redo the thing that didn't work, but sometimes a restart is all your Mac needs to sort itself out.

2. Check the Date & Time setting. If the displayed date and time don't match reality, this could be the problem. Restart your Mac again if necessary, then go to System Settings > Date & Time and enable "Set time and date automatically" setting. After this, try the installation again to see if it works.

3. Free up space. In some cases, macOS fails to install because there isn't enough room on the hard drive. To see how much is available, click the Apple logo and select About This Mac, click More Info, scroll down and click Storage Settings. You'll see a breakdown of what's living on your computer. If the available space seems low, move some nonessential files off temporarily to see if that lets the installation proceed.

4. Reset the NVRAM (https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT204063). This tiny chunk of memory stores basic information such as the time, monitor resolution, and which disk to start up from. You may need to go back into System Settings to switch any settings this changed, but you can try the installation again before that to make sure the problem is resolved.

5. Restore from a backup. If you use Time Machine to regularly back up your Mac, you can go back to an earlier state using Recovery Mode to see if it's more compatible with the installer.

6. Run Disk First Aid (launch Disk Utility located in /Applications/Utilities). This may help if you're getting the "Unable to mount volume" error. First Aid checks the internal hard drive and makes any fixes it can. It may even be able to mount the volume after it's done. Then you can retry the installation.

If none of the above worked, it may be time to turn your computer over to the professionals.