Articles by Matt Cone
Matt Cone is a technical writer at Fastly. He has experience creating documentation for organizations like Linode and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Matt’s first book, Master Your Mac, was published by No Starch Press. To get in touch with Matt, visit https://www.mattcone.com.
How to Find Software Optimized for M1 Macs
April 9, 2021
Newer Macs use Apple’s M1 processor, a giant upgrade in terms of performance and power consumption. Since this processor is substantially different from the previous Intel chips that were used, developers will need to essentially rewrite their applications to take advantage of the M1 processor. Applications that haven’t yet been rewritten for the M1 processor can run very slowly, so it’s important to find applications that run natively on the M1.
How to Find Your iPad's Serial Number
April 8, 2021
Every iPad is assigned a unique serial number. This isn’t something you’ll need to know under normal circumstances, but if you ever need to check your AppleCare status or have Apple repair your iPad, you’ll need to provide them with your iPad’s serial number. Here’s how to find your iPad’s serial number: From the iPad’s home screen, tap Settings. Tap General, and then tap About. Your iPad’s serial number is displayed at the top of the page, as shown above.
How to Remove an App From Your Mac's Dock
April 7, 2021
Your Mac’s Dock is an application launcher that lets you quickly open applications and see at a glance which applications are already open. Your Mac automatically displays the icons of open applications on the Dock, and it also displays the icons applications that were put there by you (or Apple). All of the application icons (except the Finder and the Trash) can be removed from the Dock. Here’s how to remove an app from your Mac’s Dock:
How to Block Text Messages on Your iPad
April 6, 2021
Getting unwanted text messages on your iPad? You can use a feature on your iPad to block the phone number from sending text messages to your iPad again. After you block the phone number, you won’t get any more text messages from that phone number again. Here’s how to block text messages on your iPad: From the iPad’s home screen, tap the Messages icon. Tap the message from the phone number you want to block.
How to Block Text Messages on Your iPhone
April 5, 2021
Getting unwanted text messages on your iPhone? You can use a feature on your iPhone to block the phone number from sending text messages to your iPhone again. After you block the phone number, you won’t get any more text messages from that phone number again. Here’s how to block text messages on your iPhone: From the iPhone’s home screen, tap the Messages icon. Tap the message from the phone number you want to block.
How to Disable Automatic Updates on Your iPad
April 1, 2021
Your iPad is designed to keep itself up-to-date. It automatically checks Apple’s servers for new software updates, and it tries to automatically install new updates when they become available. But sometimes you don’t want your iPad to automatically install new software. If that’s the case, you should disable automatic updates on your iPad. Here’s how to disable automatic updates on your iPad: From the iPad’s home screen, tap Settings. Tap General.
How to Disable Automatic Updates on Your iPhone
March 31, 2021
Your iPhone is designed to keep itself up-to-date. It automatically checks Apple’s servers for new software updates, and it tries to automatically install new updates when they become available. But sometimes you don’t want your iPhone to automatically install new software. If that’s the case, you should disable automatic updates on your iPhone. Here’s how to disable automatic updates on your iPhone: From the iPhone’s home screen, tap Settings. Tap General.
How to Disable Automatic Updates on Your Mac
March 29, 2021
Your Mac is designed to keep itself up-to-date. It automatically checks Apple’s servers for new software updates, and it tries to automatically install new updates when they become available. But sometimes you don’t want your Mac to automatically install new software. If that’s the case, you should disable automatic updates on your Mac. Here’s how to disable automatic updates on your Mac: From the Apple menu, select System Preferences. Click Software Update.
How to Reduce Mac Menu Bar Transparency
March 26, 2021
By default, your Mac’s menu bar is transparent, which means the menu bar background color automatically changes depending on whatever application you’re using. You can disable this transparency feature to keep the background color of your menu bar consistent no matter what application you’re using. Here’s how to reduce your Mac’s menu bar transparency: From the Apple menu, select System Preferences. Click Accessability. From the sidebar, select Display. Select the Reduce Transparency checkbox.
How to Change the Name of Your iPad
March 25, 2021
Your iPad has a name that is visible to other devices on the network it’s connected to. This hostname can be important when trying to share files or otherwise communicate with another device. You can change the name of your iPad to give it a personal, memorable name that is easy to remember and recognize. Here’s how to change the name of your iPad: From your iPad’s home screen, tap Settings.