OS X Mavericks tips and tricks:

OS X Mavericks tips and tricks: Here's what your Mac can do now :

Compiled a list of dozens of tips for you to get the most out of the new features Apple has added to OS X Mavericks. In some instances, the changes can be tricky to find, but once you find them, your workflow can quickly change for the better. Some are new, some you might know already, but we can promise this: all will help you get more out of your laptop or desktop.

Automatically check for updates

You can now turn automatic app update checks on rather than having to manually go and check to see if your favourite app has been updated.

Download and install app updates

Once you've checked them you can also have Mavericks download the update in the background and if you want to go one step further you can have it install the update for you too.

Automatically download apps purchased on other Macs

Got more than one Mac in your house? Of course you have. Now just like iOS 7 you can have any Mac purchases you make automatically download on all your Macs rather than just the one you are buying it on. Go to System Preferences > App store and tick the relevant box.

Disable app updates

If all this automatic downloading and updating sounds a bit to heavy handed for your liking you can turn it off. System Preferences > App Store and tick what you don't want.

Allow apps downloaded from anywhere

By default Apple stops you downloading every app available to help protect your computer from nefarious sources. To throw caution to the wind go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General and tick whether you want apps only from the Mac App Store, identified developers or anywhere. It's a feature that's been available for sometime but with a new instal it's worth noting where it is in case you want to change the settings with your new set-up.

Delaying updates

You now have the ability to delay updates if a restart is required for an update. You can now choose to either perform a Restart immediately, or choose an option like “Try in an Hour,” “Try Tonight,” or “Remind Me Tomorrow.”

Notifications 

Keep them off the Lock Screen

Just like iOS 7 you can see what notifications you've got while your computer is locked with the password. Mavericks gives you a summary of your notifications but this might let other people see how busy you've been or in the case of website push notifications what sites you read. To turn this feature off go to System Preferences > Notifications and select the apps in Notification Center that you don't want to show on the lock screen. In each instance there will be a "Show notifications on lock screen" option. Untick the box.

Hide share buttons in Notification Center

Notification Center shows you all all the notifications you are getting on your computer and can be revealed by a two-finger swipe from the edge of your trackpad (right to left). Within the Notification Center you can now iMessage, tweet, or write a Facebook status update. If you don't want to do this you can turn it off by going to System Preferences > Notifications and untick the Share Buttons option.

Sort Notifications by time

System Preferences > Notifications and then in the bottom left hand corner of the box select whether to "Sort Notification Center" by time or manually.

Do Not Disturb

If you've got work to do then the constant barrage of messages, alerts and other stuff can be annoying. Like before you can turn it off, either manually or a set time every day.

Do Not Disturb when mirroring to TVs and projectors

Tick this box and when you are doing a presentation you won't get a message from your partner asking you to wear something sexy later (as if that ever happens anyway).

But allow FaceTime calls

Apple clearly thinks getting a FaceTime call is important, more so above and beyond anything else as you can override Do Not Disturb settings by allowing Everyone or just Favourites to interrupt you. You can also set it to Allow just repeated calls although by that point they are probably calling your mobile to tell you that your cat is dead.

Turn on Do Not Disturb without going to System Preferences

Open Notification Center on the desktop and scroll down. The Do Not Disturb option will appear.

Send iMessages in Notifications Center

Two-finger swipe on your trackpad or press the list icon in the top right of your screen in the menu bar and then press on the speech bubbles.

Replying to interactive bubbles

Every time you get a notification an interactive bubble appears at the top right hand side of your screen. You can automatically reply to any message you get by hovering over the bubble and then pressing the Reply button.

Deleting Mail via interactive bubbles

For Mail notifications you can also delete them without even looking at your inbox.

General

Guest user

It's an old one, but still a handy one. Go to System Preferences > Users & Groups and set up a Guest User account. Now when people need to borrow your computer for something (if you are being nice) you don't have to worry about sharing your information, but also if your Mac stars acting funny you can see if its something you are running or whether it's the computer.

Setting your Face as your login picture

In Mavericks rather than just letting you choose a picture that is of a penguin or an owl, or take a picture with your build in camera, you now have a lot more options like iCloud, Faces, and Linked images from your social networks.

Go to System Preferences > Users & Groups and then click on the picture you currently have. The options are now much more expansive.

Turn on offline dictation

Mountain Lion featured the ability to talk to your computer and then it type what you say, but the problem was, was that it needed you to be online for it to work. Now you can use it offline. Hidden in System Preferences > Dictation & Speech > Dictation is a tick box titled "Use Enhanced Dictation". Ticking this box lets you use the service offline and offers continuous dictation with live feedback. It will require 491MB of storage space though.

Launchpad sparkles

A little UI feature Apple added to Launchpad in Mavericks is a sparkly star animation that briefly appears around a newly download app’s icon. If you've got new apps, that's why they've got sparkles around it. 

Adding LinkedIn contacts

You can now add profile pictures and LinkedIn contact detail to your contacts. Go to System Preferences > Internet Accounts > and add your LinkedIn details. 

Checking your battery condition 

Hover over the battery icon in the menu bar and press alt as you click it to view your battery’s condition.

Multiple displays

Multiple screen support with Apple TV

You can now use an Apple TV connected to an HD TV and treat it as a completely separate screen rather than just mirror it as you could do in Mountain Lion. To do this make sure the Apple TV and Mac are one the same network and then click on the square icon with a triangle in it on the menu bar at the top of the desktop. Select your Apple TV and start sharing.

Managing multiple displays

On the Menu Bar go to Apple logo > System Preferences > Display > Arrangement and drag the secondary screen where you want it in relation to your Mac screen

Displays have separate Spaces

New displays have a separate window in Mavericks, something that is very much welcomed, but some people no doubt will find that annoying. To turn it off go to System Preferences > Mission Control and untick "Displays have separate Spaces". It will require a reboot, but then things will be back to normal.

Safari

Rearrange Top Sites 

You can rearrange the top site order on the first page of Safari quickly and easily. To rearrange the pages simply click and drag them to where you want them to be on the page. To delete them press the "X" in the top left corner and to pin them in position so they are always the top site click on the pin icon. If you want to get to this page quickly either press Option + Command + 1 or click on the grid of square icons next to the open book on the favourites bar. 

Add webpages to your Reading list

Adding webpages to your reading list has got even faster in Mavericks. Now just press the big "+" symbol next to the URL address bar and it's automatically added and synced across your iCloud devices.

Shared Links tab

New to Safari in Mavericks is a Shared Links tab that allows you to quickly see what links people are talking about in Twitter and Facebook (if you've logged into those social networks). Click on the open book icon in the favourites bar in Safari and then go to Shared Links to see what your friends are talking about.

Getting to Bookmarks quickly

You can now access your bookmarks and manage them quickly without having to go to a menu bar option. Click on the open book icon in the favourites bar in Safari and see the bookmarks you've got.

Show all or unread Reading List saves

Click on the open book > Reading List and then scroll downward to reveal an All / Unread toggle switch.

Search Reading List

Click on the open book > Reading List and then scroll downward to reveal search box.

See which plug-ins are running

Go to Safari > Preferences > Security > Manage Website settings. From here you can see what plug-ins are running and what you want to stop or disable.

Blocking Flash Player or Reader

Go to Safari > Preferences > Security > Manage Website settings and then select Adobe Flash Player to see what sites you have open are currently running Flash Player. You can then Ask, Allow, Block, or Always Allow individual sites or just blanket cover all of them. You can apply these rules to Reader as well so that it always asks before giving you access to the pdf you are wanting.

Adding Credit Card details

If you are a heavy online shopper you can add your credit card details to Safari to save you having to type them in over and over again. To do this go to Safari > Preferences > Autofill and then edit. Apple lets you store multiple credit cards that can then be easily called when the form requires it.

Turn off preloading Top hit in background

To speed up search results Safari preloads your Top Hit when you search for anything via the address bar. To turn this off to save data if you are on the road, go to Safari > Preferences > Privacy and click on the "Do not preload Top Hit in the background" option.

Turning off Safari Push Notifications in Notification Center

If you've said yes to a website that is using the new Push Notifications you can turn them off by going to Safari > Preferences > Notifications and press Remove on the one you want to ditch.