Say you want to look up a topic online, so you type a search word or phrase into Safari's address bar. The first link in the returned results looks promising, so you click it. On the site you're sent to, you see another link about a related topic, so you click that, too. Then another link grabs your attention, and you decide to check it out. Soon you're distracted by some other tangential subject, and before you know it you've fallen down a rabbit hole of clicks and links without finding out much about what you were actually looking for in the first place.
If that sounds familiar, the "Return to Search Results" feature in Safari can help. It saves having to tediously click the previous page button multiple times to return to your original search results, or start rooting through your web history to locate where your latest online meander began. You can find it in Safari's menu bar, under History > Return to Search Results, or even better, use its Command-Option-S keyboard shortcut.
Note that this feature only works if your wayward browsing occurred in the same tab that you used to initiate the search, so if a link you clicked on opened a new tab and you continued browsing in that, the "Return to Search Results" menu option will be grayed out. Also, the search needs to be performed from Safari's address bar or from the website of the search engine that Safari is set to use.
In macOS Mojave or later, the Finder includes Quick Actions that make it easier to perform quick edits to files without having to open the apps associated with them. In the default set that Apple includes with every macOS install, there's a very handy Quick Action that allows you to remove the background from a selected image or photo.
The feature lifts the subject out of the picture and turns it into a PNG file, which makes the background transparent. The Quick Action works best on images with a clearly defined subject in the foreground, like a person or object, set against a fairly uniform background.
To use the Remove Background feature in macOS, simply right-click an image file in Finder, hover your cursor over the Quick Actions submenu, then click Remove Background.
Wait for the image to be processed, and you should soon see a transparent PNG version of the file appear in the same location as the original image, titled "[original filename] Background Removed.png.".
If you are tired of pop-ups and banners interrupting your web browsing experience, it's worth getting to know Distraction Control, a new Safari feature that helps you focus on the content that matters by minimizing intrusive elements on webpages. While it's not designed as an ad blocker, Distraction Control can significantly improve your reading experience by hiding static distractions.
To nix a distracting item on a webpage, click the Page menu icon in the address bar and select Hide Distracting Items. Then simply hover your pointer over the item in question, whereupon it will be auto-selected for removal. With another click, the distraction will disintegrate before your eyes. When you're finished, click Done in the address bar. If you're on a webpage where you've hidden items, a crossed out eye icon will appear in the address bar, indicating that you can make them visible again by revisiting the Page menu and selecting Show Hidden Items.
Are there times when you sit down to work on your Mac and struggle to see items on the screen? Whether it’s the app icons on your desktop, text in emails or webpages, or simply your mouse pointer, there are ways to improve your screen space.
You should never have to strain to read or see what’s on your computer screen. So, here are several adjustments you can make to improve your Mac experience.
Find your pointer faster
Starting with the simple things, you may have trouble seeing your pointer on the screen or just lose track of where it is.
You can adjust the size of your pointer, so it’s easier to spot. Open System Settings.. from the Apple menu and go to Accessibility > Display. Use the Pointer size slider to increase the size of your mouse or trackpad pointer. A super handy feature on Mac is that you can shake your mouse to briefly increase the size of the pointer and thus making it simpler to find. This setting is in the same spot as the cursor size. Go there and enable Shake mouse pointer to locate.
Make text bigger in specific apps
If it’s reading words that you’re having a hard time with on Mac, you can make the text size bigger.
Font size in Messages: Go to Messages > Settings... and on the General tab. From here, move the slider at the bottom for Text Size.
Font size in Mail: Go to Mail > Settings..., and on the Fonts & Colors tab, change the text sizes using the Select button for each font at the top.
Font size in Safari: Go to Safari > Settings..., and on the Advanced tab, check the box for Never use font sizes smaller than and pick a minimum size in the drop-down list.
Font size in Notes: Go to Notes > Settings... and move the slider at the bottom for Default Text Size.
For other Apple or third-party apps on your Mac, check the app’s Settings/Preferences or the Help section for instructions on increasing the font size if available.
Make desktop text and icons larger
In addition to increasing the size of the text in apps, you can make your screen font and icons larger as well. You can do this for text and icons on your desktop, in Finder, in your sidebars, and in your menu bar.
You can increase the size of the items on your desktop pretty easily. Right-click or hold Control and click an empty spot on your desktop and select Show View Options.
Choose a Text Size from the drop-down list and use the slider for the Icon Size. You can change the size of the font in Finder if you use Icon, List, or Column view. Open Finder and click View > Show View Options from the menu bar. Choose a Text Size and Icon Size.
For an overarching larger icon size in sidebars, head to Apple menu > System Settings... > Appearance and select Small, Medium, or Large for Sidebar Icon Size.
Text in the menu bar
You can increase the size of the text in the menu bar. Head to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility. Select Display, and select Large as the Menu bar size. You’ll need to log out and back in to see this change.
Use system-wide large text
Besides the above finer options, you can also significantly increase the overall text size of all apps and windows. To do that, go to Apple menu > System Settings... > Displays and choose an option next to Larger Text.
Adjust the appearance of your desktop
You can make some simple tweaks to make items easier to view on your desktop, in menus, and for borders. These types of adjustments are related to the colors on your screen.
Turn transparent areas of the desktop gray in Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility. Select Display and enable Reduce transparency.
Darkening the borders also reduces transparency and makes things simpler to see. Go to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility. Select Display and enable the switch for Increase contrast.
If seeing white on black is easier on your eyes, you can head to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility > Display and enable Invert Colors.
For statuses and information, you can choose to see shapes instead of or in addition to colored text. Go to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility > Display and enable Differentiate without color.
Adjust the overall contrast for the display. Head to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility > Display and move the Display contrast slider.
For protanopia, deuteranopia, tritanopia, or a color tint, you can use filters. Go to Apple menu > System Settings... > Accessibility > Display. Enable Color Filters. Select the Filter Type and then use the adjustments options that display to personalize the filter or color tint.
Use Night Shift
Another built-in Mac feature called Night Shift can make your screen easier on the eyes. You can turn it on quickly from the Control Center or schedule it to turn on regularly. In Control Center, click Display and then the Night Shift. To Schedule Night Shift, open Apple menu > System Settings... > Displays and click the Night Shift.
Among the new features in the Messages app, you can now add neat text effects to your messages to make them more expressive.
The new animated text effects can be applied to your entire message, a single word, a phrase, or even an emoji or sticker. The options include Big, Small, Shake, Nod, Explode, Ripple, Bloom, and Jitter.
Using the same contextual menu, you can also now add emphasis to your text messages using bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough formatting. You can now apply these formatting options to entire messages, individual words, or even specific letters, offering a higher degree of customization in how you communicate.
