Tech Me Back

All your Apple devices should have automatically adjusted the time overnight. If that did not happen, give me a call!

The Carolinas are not on this list yet. I look forward to this convenience when it comes to our area! What are your thoughts on this idea?

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Coming to These U.S. States Next In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a...

*** FRIDAY FUNNY! ***

Welcome to November!

Happy Halloween! 🎃

New M4 Pro & M4 Max powered 14” & 16” MacBook Pros were announced today!

Apple unveils new MacBook Pro line with M4, nano-texture display, Center Stage camera, more - 9to5Mac Following the launch of the new M4 iMac and Mac mini, Apple has one more announcement today. In a press...

So today, Apple announced “new” MacBook Airs with twice the base amount of RAM standard (16GBs of RAM instead of 8GBs) for the same price as the old MacBook Airs!

Apple Announces MacBook Air Now Starts With Increased 16GB of RAM With No Price Increase Apple today in its new MacBook Pro press release announced that the MacBook Air lineup now starts with 16GB of RAM, up from 8GB previously. This...

The recent update to watchOS 11 added support to send money using Tap to Cash. Here's how it works:

On your Apple Watch
• Open the Wallet app, touch your Apple Cash card, then scroll down and select "Tap to Cash."
• Enter the amount you want to send, then tap Next.
• Double-click the side button to confirm (the long button, not the Digital Crown).
• Hold your Apple Watch near another Apple Watch or iPhone.

Within a 7-day period, you can send or receive a maximum of $2,000.

Tap to Cash works on iOS 18 as well, so you can do this on your iPhone, too.
• Open the Wallet app, tap your Apple Cash card, then tap "Send or Request."
• Select "Tap to Cash."
• Enter the amount, then add a note if you want to identify what the payment is for.
• Tap "Next."
• Double-click the side button to confirm.
• Hold the top of your iPhone near another iPhone or Apple Watch.

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

New M4-powered Mac minis are out and they are NICE & COMPACT! They also start at $599 too! What a deal!

In case you're wondering, it's 5" wide x 5" deep x 2" tall (12.7 cm wide x 12.7 cm deep x 5 cm tall).

Apple unveils redesigned Mac mini with M4 and M4 Pro, Thunderbolt 5, more - 9to5Mac Apple’s exciting week of Mac announcements continues today with the introduction of the completely redesigned Mac mini. The new Mac...

Earlier today I posted about Profiles in Safari on your Mac.

Similarly, you can use Profiles in Safari on your Apple mobile device (iPhone or iPad). Here's how:

• Go to Settings on your device.
• If you are running iOS 18, scroll down to and touch Apps.
• Search for or scroll down to Safari and touch it.
• Scroll down to the "Profiles" heading. If you are not already using profiles, touch "New Profile."'

Here you will find the same options outlined in today's earlier post about Safari profiles. Establish a name, icon, and color, as well as settings for Favorites and opening new tabs.

To switch between profiles in Safari, touch the Tabs icon and then touch the "Profile" icon at the bottom. Select "Profile," then choose the profile you wish to use.

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

Safari prompts many questions from clients and friends. One recurring question is about separating tabs and activities for different purposes. For example, keeping work and personal things separated.

Generally, I recommend using separate windows to solve this. Each window can have multiple tabs. In the example above, you would have one window for work-related tabs and another for personal tabs. That is sufficient separation for most.

If you really want to delineate your browsing in Safari, you can create separate profiles as well. In the example above, you could have a work profile and a personal profile. Here's how:

In Safari on your Mac
• Click on "Safari" in the menu bar in the upper left corner.
• Click on "Settings." This opens your Settings, which includes a number of controls. You should see icons across the top: General, Tabs, AutoFill, etc.
• Click on "Profiles" from the Settings pane icons.
• Click on "Start Using Profiles."
• Enter the name of the profile you are establishing (Work, Business, Home, etc.). This is a free-form field.
• Click on the symbol you would like for the profile, as well as the color you would like for the Start Page of the new profile.
• Next, instruct Safari if the profile should create a new bookmarks folder or use an existing folder. This is another way of keeping things separate.
• When you are done, click on "Create Profile." Safari will open the new profile for you in the background, complete with the Start Page color.

Once enabled, you will see a couple of differences. The Profile name will appear in the upper left of every Safari window you have open and when you click on "Window" in the Safari menu, you will see the Profile name first, followed by the page name. These are all queues to help you keep browsing separated.

Keep in mind, this relates only to Safari and does not create a separate user on your Mac. If you would like to create another user to establish different controls on my Mac, please reach out.

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

Last, but not least, Apple released a software update to macOS 15 "Sequoia" today!

macOS Sequoia 15.1 now available with Apple Intelligence and new features Apple has released macOS Sequoia 15.1, the latest Mac software update that includes the launch features for Apple Intelligence and even more.

Apple also released software updates for iPhones and iPads. Take a look!

iOS 18.1 now available with Apple Intelligence features, more - 9to5Mac After three months of beta testing, iOS 18.1 with the first Apple Intelligence features is now available to everyone. This...

Another software update available, this time for the Apple TV and HomePod.

Apple releases tvOS 18.1 and HomePod 18.1, here’s what to expect - 9to5Mac Apple has released tvOS 18.1 and HomePod 18.1, bringing the latest software updates to the company’s home products. Here’s what to expect.

Apple also released a lot of different software updates today. First up, the Apple Watch!

Apple Watch users can now update to watchOS 11.1 - 9to5Mac Following the release of iOS 18.1 with Apple Intelligence for the public, Apple is also rolling out watchOS 11.1 for...

Apple came out with a new iMac sporting a M4 CPU and 16GBs of RAM standard today. . .

Apple unveils M4 iMac in new colors, nano-texture display option, more - 9to5Mac Apple is kicking off its promised “exciting week of announcements” today with the introduction of the M4-powered iMac. In addition...

Some hardware updates today . . .

Apple brings USB-C to new Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse - 9to5Mac Apple has finally brought USB-C connectivity to the Mac’s key accessories, the Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse.

Happy new week!

What's up with your Apple products?
(NOTE: I understand if you need to sit down after reading that!)

If you're in the market for a new iMac, MacBook Pro, or Mac mini, you may want to read this article ASAP!

Apple confirms 'exciting week of announcements' for Mac starting on Monday - 9to5Mac While it’s not an event, Apple has officially confirmed that next week will be an “exciting week of announcements” starting...

🚨 SCAM ALERT! 🚨

If you receive a text or email with this type of message, delete it and, if you have the option, report it as junk. U.S. Customs is not going to email or text you on behalf of the USPS. This is an attempted scam!

*** EXTRA FRIDAY FUNNY! ***
(feline edition – 🐈)

*** FRIDAY FUNNY! ***
(canine edition – 🐕)

Cat lovers, your version is coming soon! 🙂

I have heard from many clients and friends (and Mrs. Tech Me Back) that the Photos app in iOS 18 can cause headaches. Let’s talk about it.

When the updated version of iOS was released, Apple removed tabs in Photos and introduced a new unified design. In the unified view, you scroll to access different collections. By default, every collection is enabled, which means that if you have tens of thousands of photos, you can scroll and scroll and scroll.

The good news is, you can customize which collections you see and where they are located in the ‌Photos‌ app interface. Here’s how:

• Scroll to the bottom of the ‌Photos‌ app.
• Touch “Customize and Reorder.”
• Remove the checkmark to the left of any collection you do not want to see.
• Use the “hamburger” (the three horizontal lines) to re-order your collections to your preference.
• When you are done, touch the “X” in the upper right corner of the screen.

You can continue to customize and reorder your Photos collection to achieve an interface that works for you.

Hopefully, this addresses Photos headaches!

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

Do you wear an Apple Watch Series 9 or 10, or an Ultra 2? If you answered “yes” to that question, watchOS 11 added a new feature you should try. It’s called “Double Tap” and it’s a new gesture that allows you to answer a call, reply to a message, see and scroll through your Smart Stack, scroll through supported apps, and more - all by tapping your thumb and index finger together twice. Here’s how it works:

Start by setting a preference for what double tap does.
• On your Apple Watch, press the Digital Crown to access your app list.
• Scroll to Settings.
• Touch “Gestures,” then “Double Tap.” • Next, choose from among these options:
Playback: Choose Play/Pause or Skip.
Smart Stack: Choose Advance or Select.

If you prefer, you can also go to the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, touch “My Watch,” go to Settings > Gestures, then tap Double Tap.

Of course, if you find you do not like this gesture after you have enabled it, you can turn off Double Tap whenever you would like.

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

Last month I realized I miss fun screen savers. Flying toasters, fish, bouncing globes. Do you miss them too?

If you do, the recent release of macOS Sequoia brings a touch of nostalgia to your Mac.There are no toasters 😕 - but there is a fun new Macintosh Automated Wallpaper (which can be a screen saver). It pays tribute to none other than Susan Kare, the brilliant designer of many of Apple’s original icon set, including Clarus the dogcow. Moof! Sequoia also supports customizing the color in Spectrum.

I love it!

Here’s how to set your screen saver in Sequoia:

• On your Mac, click on the Apple menu in the upper left corner.
• Go to System Settings, then click Screen Saver in the sidebar (You may need to scroll.).
• Select a screen saver from one of the available categories:
• macOS: These are slow-motion images.
• Landscape, Cityscape, Underwater, and Earth aerials: These slow-motion images show dramatic views.
• Shuffle Aerials: These slow-motion images change at an interval you set.
• Other: These are your photos and distinctive screen savers that allow you to show a message, see a “Word of the Day,” and more.
• Then, set options for your screen saver. Options vary based on the screen saver you choose.

Questions? Please comment/call/text/email. I will be glad to assist!

Happy new week! What’s up with your Apple products?