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Tech Tip - How To Set Up Hot Corners On A Mac

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Did you know there is a feature on a Mac called "Hot Corners"? What this allows you to do is to launch an application or carry out a routine on your Mac by just moving the mouse to the appropriate corner for that function.

It is also a great way to secure your Mac, which we will cover in this article.

How to setup Hot Corners

On your Mac, open the System Settings
Select "Desktop & Dock" from the list of menu items on the left hand side
Scroll down past all of the options in offer until you get to the very bottom of the list
Click on the "Hot Corners..." button
Once the Hot Corners configuration screen opens, select which corner you want to activate
Click on the drop down menu to select what you want the hot corner to do when you move the mouse there, for example use the bottom left hand corner
In this example we are going to get the hot corner to lock the computer, so from the list select "Lock Screen" then click Done
Close the System Settings

Now if you move your mouse to the bottom left corner of your Mac screen, the computer will lock, securing your computer, without needing to click on the Apple logo (top left) and select Lock Screen from the menu. Just quickly move the the mouse to the corner of the screen and hey presto, the computer is locked instantly, fast, effective, secure!

This is a REALLY handy feature to quickly launch various applications or system functions.

Tech Tip - Get The Most Out Of Windows Calendar

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Did you know you can do quite a lot with the built in calendar in Microsoft Windows?Here are some of useful tips on how to get the most out of it and help you to increase your productivity and punctuality.

Tips for Using the Windows Calendar

Calculate Dates with Ease Use the calendar app to quickly calculate dates for appointments, deadlines, or projects. Simply click the date or time in the taskbar to open the calendar.

Navigate Dates Effortlessly Navigate forward or backward using the arrows or scroll feature. Click on specific dates to view events or set reminders.

Customise Calendar Colours To change a calendar's colour, click on the calendar in the sidebar and select "Colour." For a custom colour, click "Colour > Custom" and use the Colour Picker.

Master Keyboard Shortcuts Here are some handy keyboard shortcuts for working with events:

Ctrl+G: Add recurrence to an event.
Ctrl+S or Alt+S: Save changes on a calendar item.
Ctrl+F: Forward a calendar item.
Esc: Exit the event creation window without saving.

Set Up Notifications Ensure you never miss an important event by setting up notifications. Go to the calendar settings and customize your notification preferences for different types of events.

Sync with Other Calendars You can sync your Windows calendar with other calendars such as Google Calendar or Outlook. This allows you to manage all your events in one place. Go to the calendar settings and add your other calendar accounts.

Use the Search Function Quickly find events or appointments by using the search function. Click on the search bar at the top of the calendar and type in keywords related to the event you are looking for.

Create Recurring Events For events that happen regularly, such as weekly meetings or monthly check-ins, create recurring events. When adding a new event, select the recurrence option and choose the frequency that suits your needs.

Share Your Calendar If you need to collaborate with others, you can share your calendar. Go to the calendar settings, select "Share," and enter the email addresses of the people you want to share your calendar with. You can also set permissions to control what others can see or edit.

Tech Tip - How To Show The Desktop Quickly And Easily

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A lot of people use their Microsoft Windows desktop to store files or folders or have running widgets that provide information, using the desktop as a repository, allowing quick and easy access to things that are important. But what do you do if you have a lot of Application Windows open, covering the desktop and want to see something stored there quickly?

What if there was a quick and easy way to minimise all running applications and access the desktop, then get back to where you originally were?

Well there is, all you need to do is this:

To have a quick peek at the desktop press Windows + , (windows key plus the comma key). This will make everything that is running temporarily disappear
To then bring everything back, let go of the Windows + , keys and everything will come back
If you want to be able to minimise all applications and then access the desktop press Windows + M (M for minimise) and all running application windows will minimise, allowing you to access the desktop
To go back to the last application you were in before minimising everything, Press ALT + TAB

See if this is of use and speeds up how you work.

Tech Tip - How To Create Transparent Backgrounds For Images Used In Email Signatures

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

There are more and more people using the new "Dark Mode" feature in Microsoft Office products, which can sometimes impact images, specifically images embedded in email signatures.

In dark mode, images without transparent backgrounds (typically a white background instead of transparent) stick out like a sore thumb and can look off, and by using a transparent background for images instead of white, it will adopt the background colour of the computer, so in dark mode, the image will use the dark coloured background, preventing it from looking odd and standing out. A transparent background seamlessly adapts to both dark and light modes used by users, allowing you to maintain a polished, consistent brand image.

How to create a transparent background for your image

Use a search engine tool, such as Google, to search for "Make image background transparent" and use one of the tools available, Adobe, for example offer a free background removal tool available here: Adobe background removal
Upload the file, follow the instructions to remove the background and download the image in a PNG (portable network graphic) format so it will preserve the transparency
Use the image in your email signature - using either the signature tool in Outlook or your email client OR by using a tool such as a cloud email signature manager.

You can test that your image is working by sending it to yourself and switching your computer / application between light and dark mode to test the image look and ensure there are no large blocks of background that are still not transparent!

If you would like to see what a cloud based email signature solution looks like and how it works and applies a signature to your emails automatically, no matter which device you send it from, ensuring you have a consistent look for your business.

Tech Tip - Create "Hidden Folders" To Keep Files Private

Wed, 04 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Did you know you can hide folders in Microsoft Windows? In fact, Microsoft does it automatically for certain system folders to protect their content from users accidentally deleting important system files so why not take advantage of this functionality and use it to help secure files on your computer.

Here is how to do it:

Within Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder you want to hide
Click on the folder using the right mouse button and select "Properties" from the menu
Click on the "General Tab" and in the attributes section you will find the "Hidden" check box, click this to ensure it is selected to hide the folder
Once the check box is selected click on OK which will then hide the folder from general view in Windows Explorer
Now if you want to navigate to this hidden folder you have a couple of choices, either type in the folder path in Windows Explorer in the navigation box, such as C:\data\my-hidden-folder
or
in Windows Explorer change the view properties to show hidden items
- Windows 10 - Open Windows File Explorer
- Click the View tab in the ribbon at the top
- Check the box for 'Hidden' items under the 'Show/Hide' group
- Windows 11 - Open Windows File Explorer
- Click the View button (the three horizontal dots in the toolbar)
- Select Show > Hidden items to toggle visibility.

See if this is useful for you, give it a go...

Tech Tip – Use "Sticky Notes" for Quick Reminders and To-Do Lists

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

There is a handy little application in Windows called Sticky Notes that is a great way to make quick notes, to do lists, shopping lists and general reminders of things you need to do or remember, that you can jot down and keep on your desktop, just like digital post-it notes.

Here is how to use Sticky Notes:

In Windows, press the Windows key + S, then type Sticky Notes and press enter to launch the app
Once it is running, you can create a new note by clicking on the +Note button
You can change the colour of the Sticky Note, or copy it, or delete it by clicking the three dots at the top right hand corner of the note
Once you have created a note, you can click the "Pop out note" button at the top right hand corner of the note, next to the three dots. The Sticky Note will remain on the desktop at all times, until you close the note, you can drag and drop it anywhere on the screen you want to position it, for example, having your Sticky Notes around the edge of the screen
When you create a Sticky Note, it automatically saves it, either locally, or to your Microsoft 365 account, which means you can open old Sticky Notes simply by launching the Sticky Notes application.
All Sticky Notes that have not been deleted will be in the Sticky Note application, but you will need to pop them out again if you want to have your Sticky Notes so that you can arrange them on the desktop.

Sticky Notes are a great way to organise things on your computer, especially if you have found paper post-it notes useful in the past.

It is also a great way to brainstorm ideas in meetings or team huddles. You can also share Sticky Notes with other Microsoft users and if you have synchronisation turned on in your Microsoft account, your Sticky Notes will follow you across all computers you login to with your Microsoft account.

Have some fun with it, even if it is just for the novelty factor of using digital post-it notes for a brief blast from the past!