Snow Leopard help: Macworld Total Snow Leopard Superguide

Macworld Total Snow Leopard Superguide

Become more productive and confident in Snow Leopard with advice from the experts at Macworld!

Hey, What's This?
This ebook looks a bit different from the Take Control series, but it has all the features you expect from our ebooks. It was written by our friends at Macworld (some of whom also write for Take Control).

Making the most of Snow Leopard is easy with this visually appealing book, written by a select group of Mac experts assembled by Macworld. Inside, you'll find a compendium of savvy information about Snow Leopard's new and updated features, whether you want to navigate the the Finder faster, search Spotlight more effectively, browse the Web better with Safari 4, or learn the secrets of hidden tools like Image Capture, Preview, and TextEdit. The ebook also offers problem-solving advice, a section on security, and Terminal tricks and tips.

More Info
Contents & Intro
FAQ

Read this ebook to learn the answers to questions such as:

How do I streamline editing an iCal event?
How do I set the default Spotlight search location?
How do I add comments and editing marks to a PDF in Preview.
In Safari, how do I open a typed URL in a new tab?
What's the best way to read RSS Feeds in Safari?
How do I set up and work with tabs in Terminal?
How do I send a video from QuickTime X to iTunes, MobileMe, or YouTube?
How do I store my passwords under a more complex password than my easy-to-type login password?
What are some whizzy ways to access my files? (hint: Snow Leopard introduced some fun changes to Exposé, the Dock, and Spaces)

We encourage you to download the free 22-page sample to see what it looks like, since it is rather different from our Take Control design. If you plan to print, print a few test pages from the sample first in case you wish to consider Macworld's $24.99 print version, which has higher-resolution images than are feasible in an ebook.

Book Info

104 pages
Version 1.0
Published Nov 17, 2009
8.3 MB download
ISBN: 9780982262146
Free sample with Table of Contents, Intro, Quick Start, and section starts.

iPad & Kindle

An EPUB is not currently available for this title.

A Mobipocket file is not currently available for this title.

About the Authors

The Macworld Total Snow Leopard Superguide was written by Christopher Breen, Glenn Fleishman, Dan Frakes, Rob Griffiths, Joe Kissell, Ted Landau, Kirk McElhearn, Rich Mogull, Dan Moren, Jonathan Seff, Michael Scalisi, Derrick Story, Ben Waldie, and Sharon Zardetto.

Book Reviews

AAUG (4 of 5)
Contact us for review copies

Author Interviews

Foreword

It’s hard to believe that just a decade ago, Mac OS X didn’t exist.

In the last half of the ’90s, Apple was desperate. The classic Mac OS was showing its age, and the company was foundering financially and producing uninspired hardware. It saw the need to move to a modern operating system, but the Copland project, designed to revive the Mac OS, crashed and burned. Salvation came when the company purchased Next, whose NextStep operating system became the foundation of Mac OS X. (If you don’t consider Mac OS X the vehicle for Apple’s salvation, I’ll point out that Steve Jobs returned to Apple as a part of the purchase of Next. The rest is history.)

But after a decade of constant advancement and regular operating-system upgrades boasting hundreds of new features, Apple has taken a pause with the release of Snow Leopard, also known as Mac OS X 10.6. Instead of adding hundreds of new features, Apple has chosen to use Snow Leopard to cut ties with the past, plan for the future, and take direct aim at its current competition.

The result is a Mac OS X update unlike any in recent memory, one that boosts speeds, reclaims disk space, tweaks dozens of features, and lays the groundwork for a new generation of computers that feature 64-bit multicore microprocessors, ultra-powerful graphics processors, and massive amounts of memory. These features, combined with the low upgrade price, make Snow Leopard the biggest no-brainer of an upgrade since Mac OS X 10.1. (And that upgrade, as you may or may not recall, was completely free.)

Here at Macworld, covering the Mac and Mac OS X is what we do. And we’ve published hundreds of thousands of words about Mac OS X since it first appeared. In this book, you’ll find a collection of the best information about Mac OS X—not just the new features and tweaks that arrived with Snow Leopard, but also the hundreds of features Apple has added to the operating system in the past few years. We hope you’ll find this book an indispensable resource for exploring and learning about Mac OS X in general and Snow Leopard in particular.

—Jason Snell, Editorial Director, Macworld
San Francisco, October 2009

Installing Snow Leopard

Perform a Basic Upgrade: What you need to know to install Snow Leopard, including backup advice and customization tips.
Installation Alternatives and Fixes: If you run into any problems while installing Snow Leopard, this chapter will talk you through the fixes.

Inside Snow Leopard

The Finder, the Dock, and Exposé: Apple made a host of changes to the Finder and some small tweaks to the Dock and Exposé. Find out what’s new with OS X’s navigation apps.
QuickTime X: QuickTime received one of the biggest makeovers. Version X has some new features but is missing some old ones, and it offers smarter workflows.
Automation Features: Snow Leopard features newly revamped services and adds helpful text-substitution tools.
Exchange Support: In OS X 10.6 you can finally sync iCal, Address Book, and Mail with Microsoft Exchange 2007 servers.
Preview: OS X’s humble Preview application gets a feature boost. Meet the new tools and additions in version 5.
Wake on Demand: Your Mac can do more while sleeping, thanks to Snow Leopard’s new Wake on Demand features.
Accessibility: Apple has upgraded the Trackpad, VoiceOver, and Hearing features to make Macs easier to use for people with physical disabilities.
Under the Hood: Learn more about Grand Central Dispatch, OpenCL, and the jump from 32 to 64 bits.
13 Hidden Features: Get to know these hidden goodies and minor tweaks in Snow Leopard.

Work Smarter

Quickly Track Down Files and Folders: Use the Finder, the Dock, and Quick Look to work more efficiently with these timesaving shortcuts.
Tame Cluttered Windows: Fight window clutter with Spaces, OS X’s updated window-management tool.
Fill In Text with Substitutions: One of the most useful new features in Snow Leopard is text substitution.
Automate Repetitive Tasks: Automator can handle tedious tasks. This section teaches the basics and provides some sample workflows.

OS X’s Hidden Tools

Image Capture: In Snow Leopard, you can use Image Capture to set default applications for your camera and share images with other users on your network.
Preview: The beloved and dependable Preview also has a few new tricks up its sleeve, including broader PDF powers and more image-editing tools.
TextEdit: TextEdit’s genius is that it seems simple but can actually do some heavy-duty word processing.

The Secrets of Safari 4

Better Browsing: Safari 4 makes searching and browsing easier than ever. These tips will help you organize the time you spend on the Web and use it more productively.
Take Control of Tabs: Overwhelmed by a sea of Web pages? Keep your multitasking browser activities in order with tabs.
Manage Bookmarks and RSS Feeds: You have a library of links to sort and tons of RSS feeds to read. Safari 4 has tools to make both tasks more manageable.
Search Smarter: Make your quest for information easy and fun with the best of our Safari search tips.

Search Your Mac

Spotlight Basics: Master OS X’s powerful catchall search tool, Spotlight. Change its preferences and troubleshoot any issues that may pop up.
Create Smarter Queries: These tricks will ensure that you find exactly what you’re looking for with Spotlight searches.
Perform Advanced Searches: Spotlight shares its powers with other Mac applications. For heavy duty searches, turn to the Finder.

Snow Leopard Security

Put User Accounts to Work: The key to keeping your data safe is knowing who has access to what. Control your Mac with user accounts.
Create Strong Passwords: Follow these essential tips to make sure the passwords you select are secure.
Encrypt Your Data: Protect your information by encrypting it—follow our step-by-step instructions.
Make Secure Connections: Guard your system against intruders when you connect to outside networks.
Stay Safe Online: Avoid spammers, phishers, and hackers by staying sharp and abiding by these rules for safe browsing.

Troubleshooting OS X

Your Troubleshooting Toolbox: Do you know what to do when your Mac misbehaves? We’ll tell you all the steps you can take to remedy common OS X issues.
Advanced Fixes: When the problems are more advanced, combine some sleuthing with other possible solutions.
Seek Outside Help: It’s OK to ask for help, but whom exactly do you ask? Here’s where to turn if your Mac is having bigger problems than you can handle.
Back Up with Time Machine: Keep your data 100 percent safe with a backup. Figure out the best data-storage plan for your setup.

Terminal Tricks

Terminal Basics: Learn how Terminal works, and discover some easy ways to make it work harder for you.
Easy System Tweaks: Change small features of OS X’s built-in programs from Terminal.

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