Apple's delivering some big changes to OS X. For the first
time in over a decade, Apple’s desktop operating system has received a complete
overhaul, leaving no pixel unturned. In OS X Yosemite, everything from the dock
to the “stoplight” buttons have been given a visual makeover, but the changes
in Yosemite go far below the surface. Even without any new apps to play with,
Apple has given us plenty of things to explore, with an array of features that
make OS X more intuitive and powerful than ever before. But if you could use
some help adjusting to your new surroundings, pull up a chair and let us help
you out.
Today View in
Notification Center
OS X and iOS have been converging for years, and Yosemite
brings the tightest integration yet, from the way we share documents to how our
data stays synced across all of our devices. But Apple has also has added a
slew of minor adjustments to bring the two OSes in line. For example, head over
to the Notification Center and you'll find a new Today tab that mirrors the one
in iOS, providing a short summary and a quick glance at the day ahead.
Streamlined Toolbar
for Safari
Like the rest of Apple's apps, Safari has received a serious
makeover, losing many of its defining desktop characteristics and taking on a
decidedly iOS feel. Here’s a quick overview: The "add bookmark" icon
has been incorporated into the expanded share menu (which matches the iOS icon
now), and you’ll find a Top Sites toggle when you enter the tab view (which
also houses all of your iCloud tabs). But if all that’s too much to remember, a
trip to the view settings will still let you customize the toolbar and put
everything back the way you remember it.
Smarter Spotlight
Search
Spotlight has been greatly enhanced in Yosemite, evolving
from a simple system searcher to a full-fledged informant always at the ready.
Just press Command-Space and a giant search field will automatically pop up in
the middle of the screen. Of course, you can still use it to hunt for long-lost
files hidden in dark corners of your hard drive, but now it can find just about
anything else you may be looking for: maps, trailers, definitions, songs, phone
numbers — even pictures of yellow-bellied sapsuckers, if that's what you're
into.
Find your Safari
Favorites
The bookmark bar has been a staple of the desktop browser
since the days of Internet Explorer, but Apple has ditched it in Safari 8 for a
cleaner browsing experience. Of course, you can still get to them via the
dropdown menu or the sidebar, but Apple has given us a much easier method in
Yosemite: just click inside the address bar and a grid of your favorites will
automatically pop up. And if that’s still not good enough, you can bring back
the old-fashioned bar in the View settings.
See All of Your Open
Tabs
Tabs have always been an indispensable part of our
multitasking workflow, but Yosemite will make us more productive than ever.
Where the old system merely let us browse two or three sites at once, Safari’s
new tabbed view radically rethinks the way we interact with them. With a nod to
iOS, a click on the new tabs icon instantly brings you into a screen where you
can see all of the open tabs on your machine, all arranged neatly and grouped
by site so you can quickly switch between them.
Use DuckDuckGo to
Search
Speaking of privacy, Apple has added a new search option in
Safari. Click the magnifying class to the left of the address bar and you’ll be
able to select the speedy and spy-free DuckDuckGo instead of Google, Yahoo, or
Bing.
Show the Full Web
Address
In its constant effort to take away any and all distractions
from the browsing experience, Apple has stripped the Web address down to its
barest essentials in OS X. Instead of a lengthy Web URL with hyphens and
slashes, Safari on Yosemite distills it to only shows you the main site you're
on until you click into the address field. If you want to see the whole field,
however, head over to the Advanced tab in preferences to turn it on.
RSS Feeds in Safari
Safari has never been a friend to RSS feeds, but Yosemite
finally extends an olive branch. No longer do you need to install a third-party
reader to enjoy your feeds; at the bottom of the shared-links pane you'll find
a new Subscriptions button. Click it and you’ll be brought to a screen where
you can add an RSS feed from the site you’re reading (assuming it has one).
Record Audio in
Message
Sometimes words just aren't good enough to express what we
want to say, and in Yosemite they don't have to be. Just like in iOS 8, you’ll
see a new microphone icon next to the compose window in Messages. Click and
you’ll instantly be able to record an audio message and ship it as easily as
you can on your iPhone.
Share Your Screen in
Messages
Back in the days of iChat, Apple used to allow us to share
our screens or let us take control of someone else's, and in Yosemite it's
finally bringing the functionality to Messages. Inside the details menu you'll
see a new icon that looks like two overlapping squares. Click on it and you'll
see two options: "invite to share my screen" and "ask to share
screen," which will help when you need to troubleshoot your mom’s iMac.
Turn on iCloud Drive
Back when iOS 8 was released, you might have heard all of
the warnings about using iCloud Drive. Once you upgrade to Yosemite, however, there’s
no reason not to turn it on. Just head over to System Preferences and flip the
iCloud Drive toggle to green and you’ll get access to all of your documents,
faster and easier than before. And don’t forget to activate it on your iPhone
and iPad, too.
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