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SHARE WITH US! FACEBOOK : facebook.com/maclife TWITTER: twitter.com/maclifeOur advice may refer to
the following features;
check out the support
articles linked below
for full instructions.macOS RECOVERY
The Recovery system
contains tools to help
you look up info online
when macOS won’t start,
and to repair or reinstall
the system. Learn more
at bit.ly/mlrecovery.SAFE MODE
When you start your Mac
in Safe mode, macOS
performs extra checks
and stops certain third–
party software from
running. See how to use
it at bit.ly/mlsafemode.RESET SMC & NVRAM
These features handle
low–level functions and
store key settings for
your Mac, respectively.
Resetting them can fix
various issues described
at bit.ly/mlresetsmc and
bit.ly/mlresetnvram.HARDWARE ISSUES
Your Mac includes tools
that check for certain
hardware issues without
going to a Genius Bar.
For Macs introduced in
June 2013 or later, see
bit.ly/mldiag, otherwise
see bit.ly/mlahwt.Essential
supportarticles
Getting Preference changes to stick
I’ve been trying to change a hidden setting in a preferences file, but can’t get it to stick.
Any idea what am I doing wrong?
Don’t be fooled into thinking that what you
see and can change in the Property Lists in
a Library/Preferences folder controls those
settings. This is because apps generally don’t
access those preferences directly, but
through a server built into macOS named
cfprefsd. That loads the settings into its
cache, and may keep them there even when
the application is no longer running.
When you open one of those files and
make changes, you won’t change the data
that’s being cached by cfprefsd, and when it’s
written back to the preferences file, that will
overwrite any changes you made. The same
can apply to files which appear to be broken,
so you’ve thrown them into the Trash — they
may simply be recreated by macOS.
There are two reliable ways to make
changes to Preferences files so they stick:
one is using the defaults command in
Terminal’s command line, which is often used
in recipes to change features in Finder. The
other is to use an app that works with rather
than against cfprefsd, such as Thomas
Tempelmann’s free Prefs Editor (apps.tempel.
org/index.php).How are some copies of
large files made instantly?
When you make a copy of a file on the
same APFS volume, instead of creating
a new file, macOS makes a clone, a new
record for the same shared data. Only
when you alter either copy does it write
changes to disk. This saves time and space.
How do I make my pointer
more readily visible?Open the Accessibility pane, select Display
at the left, and check the “Shake mouse
pointer to locate” box. When you can’t see
the pointer clearly enough, simply wiggle
your mouse or your finger on a trackpad,
and the pointer gets larger.Editing preference files directly is usually unsuccessful. Use a utility like the free Prefs Editor instead.
Tech Support & Techsplanations
maclife.com DEC 2019 77