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July 29, 2026

Use Fake Contacts to Improve Dictation Accuracy

July 29, 2026/ Tom Puls
Use Fake Contacts to Improve Dictation Accuracy

Frustrated when Dictation on the iPhone mangles what you meant to say? Create fake contacts for troublesome words, and Dictation will learn to recognize them correctly across all your Apple devices.

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July 29, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iPhone, iPad, iMac
July 27, 2026

Office 2019 for Mac Goes Read-Only on July 13, 2026

July 27, 2026/ Tom Puls
Office 2019 for Mac Goes Read-Only on July 13, 2026

Microsoft Office 2019 for Mac will become read-only on July 13, 2026. Check your version now and explore your upgrade options before you lose the ability to create and edit documents.

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July 27, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iMac, Microsoft
July 20, 2026

Control Center Is Improved—and Highly Customizable—in macOS 26 Tahoe

July 20, 2026/ Tom Puls
Control Center Is Improved—and Highly Customizable—in macOS 26 Tahoe

Stop wasting menu bar space. macOS 26 Tahoe’s revamped Control Center lets you add, remove, resize, and rearrange controls—including third-party ones—to fit your needs.

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July 20, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
macOS, iMac
July 13, 2026

Apple Raises Prices on Macs and iPads, but not iPhones or Apple Watches… Yet

July 13, 2026/ Tom Puls
Apple Raises Prices on Macs and iPads, but not iPhones or Apple Watches… Yet

Apple just raised Mac and iPad prices by 15–33%, blaming the AI industry’s hunger for memory and storage chips. The iPhone and Apple Watch were spared, but the next new models may be more expensive. Here’s what you need to know.

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July 13, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iPad, iPhone, iMac
July 06, 2026

Not Sure If You’re Presentable for a Video Call? Try Hand Mirror

July 06, 2026/ Tom Puls
Not Sure If You’re Presentable for a Video Call? Try Hand Mirror

About to join a video call? The free Mac app Hand Mirror adds a menu bar icon that instantly shows your webcam view so you can check your hair before anyone else sees it.

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July 06, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iPhone, iPad, iMac
July 01, 2026

Choosing the Best Mac for a College-Bound Student in 2026

July 01, 2026/ Tom Puls
Choosing the Best Mac for a College-Bound Student in 2026

Which Mac is best for a college student now? The 13-inch or 15-inch M5 MacBook Air hits the sweet spot of performance, portability, and price. If budget is a constraint, consider the MacBook Neo; for more power, choose the 14-inch MacBook Pro.

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July 01, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iMac
June 24, 2026

When Should You Upgrade Your Apple Devices?

June 24, 2026/ Tom Puls
When Should You Upgrade Your Apple Devices?

When’s the right time to upgrade your Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch? The key warning signs: a battery that no longer lasts all day, performance lags, and the end of security updates. Here’s how to time it right.

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June 24, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch, iMac
June 03, 2026

Get to Your Files Faster by Choosing the Best Finder View

June 03, 2026/ Tom Puls
Get to Your Files Faster by Choosing the Best Finder View

Icon, List, Column, or Gallery? Each Finder view has its strengths. Match the right view to your task and spend less time wrestling with your files.

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June 03, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iMac, macOS
April 29, 2026

Check Your Input Source If Your Mac Types Unexpected Characters

April 29, 2026/ Tom Puls
Check Your Input Source If Your Mac Types Unexpected Characters

Is your Mac typing the wrong characters or rejecting your password? You may have accidentally switched keyboard layouts. Here’s how to check your input source and prevent it from happening again.

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April 29, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
Mac, iMac
April 06, 2026

Apple’s Focus Is Powerful but Unpredictable

April 06, 2026/ Tom Puls
Apple’s Focus Is Powerful but Unpredictable

Apple’s Focus can silence distractions when you need quiet time, but its complexity can cause you to miss important notifications. Learn how to configure it safely—and avoid the pitfalls that lead to missed calls and messages.

 

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April 06, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iPhone, iPad, iMac
March 30, 2026

Why Cloud Storage Isn’t a Backup

March 30, 2026/ Tom Puls
Why Cloud Storage Isn’t a Backup

Do you think using Dropbox or iCloud Drive means your files are backed up? Wrong. Delete or corrupt a file, and that change syncs everywhere instantly. Here’s why cloud storage isn’t a backup—and what to do about it.

 

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March 30, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
Mac, iMac, macOS, iCloud
March 16, 2026

Why Your Windows Reopen (Or Don’t) As You Expect

March 16, 2026/ Tom Puls
Why Your Windows Reopen (Or Don’t) As You Expect

Frustrated when your Mac apps don’t remember their windows—or when they stubbornly reopen old documents? Two little-discussed settings control this behavior. Here’s how Apple’s Resume technology really works.

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March 16, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iMac, macOS
March 11, 2026

Make Finder Window Columns Resize to Fit Filenames

March 11, 2026/ Tom Puls
Make Finder Window Columns Resize to Fit Filenames

Tired of truncated filenames in the Finder’s Column view? macOS 26.1 Tahoe adds a simple checkbox to auto-resize columns—and you can enable the same feature in earlier macOS versions with a quick Terminal command or free utility.

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March 11, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iMac
March 04, 2026

New Apple Creator Studio Bundles Pro Apps

March 04, 2026/ Tom Puls
New Apple Creator Studio Bundles Pro Apps

Apple’s new Creator Studio bundle includes Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, and more—plus premium content and AI features in the iWork apps—for $12.99/month or $129/year. Don’t worry—Keynote, Pages, and Numbers stay free for existing features.

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March 04, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iPad, iMac
February 23, 2026

Upgrade to macOS 26 Tahoe When You’re Ready

February 23, 2026/ Tom Puls
Upgrade to macOS 26 Tahoe When You’re Ready

When should you upgrade to macOS 26 Tahoe? There’s no rush to install it today, but we believe it’s safe for those who want to take advantage of the new features. Here’s what to do before, during, and after the upgrade.

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February 23, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iMac, macOS
February 11, 2026

Try macOS 26.2’s Edge Light for Low-Light Video Calls

February 11, 2026/ Tom Puls
Try macOS 26.2’s Edge Light for Low-Light Video Calls

Dark room, important video call? macOS 26.2’s Edge Light transforms your Mac’s display into an on-screen ring light, illuminating your face so you’re visible on camera.

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February 11, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
macOS, iMac
February 09, 2026

How to Ensure You Don’t Miss Reminders

February 09, 2026/ Tom Puls
How to Ensure You Don’t Miss Reminders

Apple’s Reminders app offers more than simple notifications—from location-based alerts to the new alarm feature in iOS 26.2, here’s how to make sure you never miss an important task.

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February 09, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iPhone, iMac, iPad
January 28, 2026

Reminders (Finally) Adds Time Zone Support

January 28, 2026/ Tom Puls
Reminders (Finally) Adds Time Zone Support

Traveling across time zones? Reminders in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26 finally lets you set a time zone per reminder so alerts fire at the right local “wall clock” time.

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January 28, 2026/ Tom Puls/
macOS, iPadOS, iOS, iPhone, iPad, iMac
January 26, 2026

Spotlight Gets Brighter in macOS 26 Tahoe

January 26, 2026/ Tom Puls
Spotlight Gets Brighter in macOS 26 Tahoe

Spotlight in macOS 26 Tahoe received a major upgrade, and you can now filter results, run app actions, search sites directly, and browse clipboard history—all starting from a quick press of Command‑Space.

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January 26, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Article
iMac, macOS
January 14, 2026

Messages Now Offers Shared Conversation Backgrounds

January 14, 2026/ Tom Puls
Messages Now Offers Shared Conversation Backgrounds

Conversation backgrounds in Messages look cool, and they’re shared with others on iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26 Tahoe. Pick an appropriate image and explain what you’ve done to delight your contacts rather than confusing them.

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January 14, 2026/ Tom Puls/
Tips
iPhone, iPad, iMac, iOS, iPadOS, macOS
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Out of the Box IT
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