Dorchester — Jun 12th 2018
Mick talked us through the basic file structure on the Mac starting at the “top level” Hard Drive. He advised that other than Users and Applications, leave well alone. The Finder is the heart of the Mac system and Mick took us through Finder Preferences. He ran through the default files under any user and explained that the Application folder here is normally empty as any app there would be accessible only by that user, whereas apps in the top level Applications folder are accessible to all users. Mick showed the use of the side bar and how files and folders can be held there for easy access even if temporarily. Having run through the basic folders, Mick explained how to move files from one folder to another, if on the same drive dragging moves the file from one place to another; holding the option key whilst dragging copies the file to the new location. Dragging a file or folder from one drive to another by default copies rather than moves. Mick showed the use of Finder Tabs, particularly useful on smaller screen computers, simplifying moving and copying. Switching to IOS Mick showed the new Files Menu, the top level folder being Locations which can include, not only Apple’s iCloud Drive, but other cloud storage options such as DropBox. All these can be accessed via both the Mac or an IOS device though there will need to be a suitable app on the device to open a specific document. New folders can also be created on iCloud Drive and other cloud storage but, answering Euan, we could not see how to create a new folder locally on an IOS device.
David M ran through Contacts showing that, whilst it is more comprehensive on Mac OS it coordinates well with IOS. He showed how various app such as WhatApp access Contacts, a good reason for using and keeping contacts up to date. David advised keeping contacts on one internet account suggesting iCloud as the obvious choice. He showed how to use groups. Whilst Groups cannot be set up on IOS, groups are accessible and new contacts can be added to a group. David gave a brief example of setting up a smart folder. Whilst sending group emails (Note, always Bcc) has been a Mac OS norm, it is now possible to do the same from IOS. On the Mac you can set the default email address of each member, assuming they have more than one, via Edit Distribution List, whereas IOS asks you to select the preferred address whilst entering the Group in the email Bcc. He finished by showing the various Contacts print options on Mac OS.
