• Everything you need to know about Mac OS. Mac OS X or What everyone should know about Macintosh, Apple and operating systems

    About alternative operating systems ah, in which we looked at the advantages and disadvantages of Linux. In this publication, we will talk about another alternative to Windows – macOS, and consider its pros and cons.

    Why do we call these operating systems “alternative”? Because the average PC user uses Windows, and may not even know about other operating systems.

    macOS

    macOS is an operating system from Apple, formerly known as Mac OS X or OS X. It is the second most popular OS (after Windows), which is used by about 9% of personal computer owners. Mac OS was first introduced back in 1986 for the Macintosh.

    When developing macOS, Apple took the free POSIX-compatible Darwin OS as a basis. macOS uses the XNU kernel, based on Mach and program code FreeBSD. This means that you can use all the features of UNIX systems using the Terminal, just like in Linux.

    According to Apple representatives, the operating system should be as simple and user-friendly as possible. ordinary users. PC owners should not bother with installing and configuring software. People need to work with text, surf the Internet, listen to music, watch movies, edit photos, and not waste time setting up the system. All “service” activities are taken over by the OS.

    Apple is always “one step ahead” in the world of technology. Thanks to the quality and reliability of their products, Apple is trusted by millions of owners modern gadgets. This one is powerful Windows alternative has its advantages and disadvantages.

    Benefits of macOS

    • Graphical interface. macOS has a very beautiful and elegant graphical interface. Apple developers have really worked hard to create the best of its kind. graphical shell. Smooth transitions, stylish design, rounded corners, translucent panels and windows turn regular work on the PC for fun. The appearance of the programs is made in the same style.
    • Safety. macOS is a UNIX-like alternative operating system, like Linux. This means that you can forget about malware Oh. macOS security monitors every process and protects your data.


    Disadvantages of macOS

    • Link to architecture. macOS only runs on Intel processors. Windows or Linux can be installed on a computer with any processor. It may not be correct to consider macOS separately from the hardware component, but the fact remains.
    • Price. The price of a modern MacBook is an order of magnitude higher than the cost of models from other manufacturers. Not everyone can afford an Apple device. More than half of the software is paid. Our user is used to installing any software for free, even if its price is a few dollars.
    • Unusual software. macOS has good, high-quality software for a variety of tasks. But if you for a long time worked on Windows, you may experience difficulties during the transition. Some familiar programs simply don’t exist on Macs, so you’ll have to relearn them.
    • RAM consumption. Macs are used more RAM computer than Windows. () The same programs running under different OSes consume different quantities RAM. When buying a MacBook, pay attention to the amount of RAM. The best option 8 GB.
    • Keyboard layout. In macOS, switching the keyboard layout is done using the unusual CMD + Spacebar. By default, the system does not have a shortcut for changing the keyboard layout, so you have to tinker with the settings.

    macOS is an Apple alternative to Windows that focuses on user convenience. If you are planning to buy a poppy, or are already using it, share your impressions in the comments. I wish you good luck.

    Many people differentiate between a laptop and a MacBook, even though both devices are laptops. Of course there is fundamental differences. A laptop is a portable computer and a battery that allows you to work without being connected to power. The difference in appearance There is a difference between a MacBook and any other laptop, but the main difference is the operating system. It is this that makes it stand out from the crowd of laptops.

    The first glance at the system is reminiscent of good old UNIX. This manifests itself through general construction file system hierarchy, CUPS print manager, via network services which are managed by Samba . But this similarity is only at first glance, because the ideologies differ.

    The MacBook OS is an isolated system that provides the user with everything he needs, solves all his basic problems and needs, without burdening him with anything unnecessary. The main purpose of which is convenience, privacy and security. If the standard software is not enough for you, you can use Apple.com and supplement it with everything you need. Unfortunately, for an additional fee. Although you have to pay extra for additional features, the quality of the products offered is worth it.

    Many people use Windows and Linux. In the case of Windows in general, everything is clear and simple. But with Linux everything may seem complicated and confusing. And at first you will have to figure out what’s what. If you need to switch from a Windows system to Linux, there is a distribution that will help ease the transition. It's called Ubuntu.

    Let's return to the MacBook and look at the operating system using the example of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard . She looks beautiful. System settings are located on a separate panel and look clear. The drivers you may need are already installed by the manufacturer. Connecting Internet networks and personal settings easy to connect.

    It’s easy to connect additional devices for ease of use of the laptop, such as a manipulator - mouse, headphones, joystick. Their installation will pass automatically and will not require your participation, except for connection, of course. Difficulties may arise if you connect, for example, external hard disk.

    If the drive has been formatted in NTFS MS Windows , most likely the Mac will recognize it and be able to read data from it. But you won't be able to write data to disk. This can only be done when using its native HFS and FAT (FAT32). In this situation, there are two solutions: format the drive again or use a program that allows OS X to interact with NTFS. Usage special program will be a better solution than reformatting the hard drive.

    Then it comes down to larger equipment, for example, a printer. In most cases, setup will be simple, because the OS has large number drivers for the most popular brands and their model series. So you can connect the printer and start printing right away. There are times when you will have to use the driver that comes with your printing device or download it from the manufacturer's official website.

    Unfortunately, there are printers that do not have drivers for the Mac system. Therefore, before purchasing equipment, check with the seller whether the printer has drivers for OS X. Installing any program is very simple. Just download it and move it to the “programs” folder. The process will then proceed automatically. Removal does not always go smoothly; there are cases when the program is not completely removed, some of its components remain.

    The system is equipped a large number pre-installed software. It is sufficient for the average range of needs. If you just bought a laptop, took it out of the package, you can start working right away. You can go online or send text to print. If the list of programs taking into account the specifics of your needs is narrow, you can additionally download the necessary ones.

    Overall the system works great. Program updates and all kinds of “patches” for bugs are checked automatically. Device security on high level like any product Apple. Of course, like any technology, failures occur, but they are very rare.

    Overview of installed software

    The MacBook is immediately equipped with a specific list of programs that will allow you to immediately start using the device. This list may well satisfy the basic needs of the average user. You will be able to go online, work with text documents, view images, listen to music. iLife is an additional Internet service that will allow you to edit pictures, videos, create a web page or music.

    iWork The package will provide the ability to work with documents, tabular data or create presentations. It will be available for a month, after the expiration of this period it will be necessary to pay for the program. Of course, it takes some getting used to using it. But after you use the laptop, you will understand how convenient and simple it is.

    Over time, you will remember the features of OS X and will easily minimize windows, not forgetting that here this function is located not in the right corner, but in the left. You can make it easier to use using already familiar programs. For example, use FireFox instead of Safari. And you don't have to buy the iWork package , if you can use free OpenOffice . Just keep in mind that the principle of using the program is still Mac OS. The program closes not through a cross, but through “OpenOffice - close”.

    Transfer from PC

    There is no need to get used to the features of OS X. You can use help special utility Boot Camp. It makes it possible to use Windows on a MacBook. This can be done by creating a partition on your hard drive for the Windows system. There are also consequences: battery life in offline mode will decrease by half. The case will also become very hot (this does not happen when working in the “native” system). Don’t rush to use this utility, because it’s not for nothing that OS X exists, which many people like.

    As mentioned above, it will help to facilitate adaptation using FireFoxand OpenOffice . So that you don't lose everything postal correspondence use Thunderbird . It's easy to install, just drag and drop it into your "programs" folder. Instead of a built-in chat called iChat , you can use the long-loved ICQ, but before that, install a protocol that will provide support. Adium client will do.

    Instead of a standard media player, you can install VLC, it will be more familiar to work with. Using familiar environments will allow you to transition to another system more smoothly. Already in the first weeks Mac use you will understand how easily and conveniently it is organized. After this, you are unlikely to want to switch from OS X to another system.

    Users modern computers with the Windows operating system they often encounter problems and even fear of accessing the Internet without installed antivirus protection. Many people have questions related to installing or uninstalling programs.

    For Macintosh systems, such operations are performed with one click. Also this system not susceptible to common diseases Microsoft Windows malware and does not need an antivirus, so you don’t have to worry about the safety of surfing the world wide web. Despite these and many other advantages, including a more user-friendly interface, the Macintosh OS also has disadvantages. In this article we will try to understand all the advantages and cons of MAC OS.

    How to decipher the full name of Mac OS X?

    Each part of the name is an abbreviation of words in English and number:

    • “Mac” refers to the Macintosh company name.
    • “OS” – operating system, that is, operating system.
    • “X” is the Roman numeral ten, indicating the OS version number.

    As a result, it turns out that the full name “Mac OS X” is the tenth version of the operating system for Apple computers Macintosh. There is an opinion that the name of the company's brand comes from the favorite apple variety of Apple's leading engineer at the time, Jeff Raskin. You can also sometimes hear guesses that the “X” symbol hints that this OS is based on Unix. Except regular Mac OS X this family includes a server version and specially designed operating systems for Apple devices TV (Apple TV OS), iPhone, iPad and iPod (Apple iOS).

    History of Mac OS

    The Mac OS operating system appeared along with the creation of Macintosh computers, which the Pple corporation released back in 1984. But to be precise, then this OS was called Macintosh System Software. It is interesting that the IBM PC, which is now leading, then lagged behind in almost all parameters of ease of use.

    For example, Mac OS already had a graphical interface and used a mouse in addition to standard keyboard. Apple computers were characterized by displaying text on the screen in exactly the same form as when printed on paper. Also, Mac OS users no longer needed to enter commands from the keyboard; now this could be done simply by clicking on an element with the mouse GUI. Well, the most important achievement of the Macintosh operating system was multitasking. Implementation of such opportunities on IBM computers appeared only in Windows 3.0, which was released only 6 years later in 1990.

    Advantages of Mac OS X compared to Windows

    1. Easy to use. If you learn to work with one program on a Mac, then mastering any other will take much less time than for programs on the Windows system. The reason for this is the strong similarity of all programs under Mac OS. They are also inherently easy to operate; there is no need to install each software separately and understand it. For example, all Macintosh computers come with iLife, which makes it easy to manage all music, video and photo files, process them and burn them to disk.

    2. Stability of operation. Software failures occur much less frequently since all software is developed specifically for computers. Apple, one and very large team of professional developers.

    3. No problem finding drivers for new devices. When installing a Mac operating system from DVD disc is happening automatic installation drivers. Their number is much larger than on Windows XP and approximately equal to the volume of Windows 7. If the device was connected during operation, you can always use a DVD, which is almost guaranteed to have the necessary driver.

    4. Much less spyware and hacking programs. Even despite the small number of malicious programs and the absence of entire classes of them (for example, viruses that infect email or websites), they will not be able to damage the system without manual triggering by the user via double click.

    5. Ease of use of the administrator role. To make changes to system settings, you simply need to enter your password. For Windows, this process requires several steps.

    6. Very easy installation the entire system and regular programs. For Mac installations OS X only requires a few clicks of the mouse. Full compatibility with Apple hardware allows you to have no doubt about the successful completion and functionality of the installed operating system.

    Most programs can be simply copied from other Macintosh computers while maintaining stability and reliability. Complex and time-consuming installation and uninstallation processes are rare. Double-click on the image file, specify the folder - that’s the entire installation. Need for installation distribution, like in Windows, is very rare. To uninstall, you just need to drag the program icon to the Trash.

    Disadvantages of Mac OS X compared to Windows

    1. Narrow range of computers. operating room Macintosh system is intended only for Apple computers. True, the latter produces iMac - all the components are located in the monitor (analogous to all-in-one PCs).

    2. Overpriced. Apple computers can cost up to twice as much as regular PCs. The difference is most noticeable when purchasing powerful models.

    3. The problem of program availability. There are fewer programs for Mac OS and they are harder to get, especially legal ones.

    4. Almost no games are developed for Mac OS. This operating system is not suitable for gamers, although there are several quite good games.

    Mac OS X versions

    In general there are two Mac versions OS X. The first is for desktops and laptops, the other is for server systems (Mac OS X Server). The first one has six subversions.

    • Cheetah (Cheetah) – OS X 10.0. It was released in March 2001, making a breakthrough, but had a number of errors and the absence of some functions.
    • Puma (Puma) - 10.1. Free update, came out almost immediately after 10.0.
    • Jaguar (Jaguar) - 10.2. Has hardware acceleration video cards and graphical interface design similar to Aero in Windows Vista.
    • Panther (Panther) - 10.3. Published in October 2003. File-Vault encryption technology has been introduced.
    • Tiger (Tiger) - 10.4. April 2005, appeared very convenient function search Spotlight and Dashboard - the first widgets (mini-programs).
    • Leopard - 10.5. October 2007, the following new features appeared: installation of a second OS, for example, Windows; data backup; preview file contents and other much needed improvements.
    • Snow Leopard— 10.6. August 2009, the amount of working memory can be expanded up to 16 TB, some applications run in 64-bit mode, which improves performance. Support for Intel processors.

    It should be noted that each of the listed versions has its own free additions, for example, number 10.6.3.

    Can Mac OS X run on computers other than Apple?

    The agreement between Macintosh and Apple prohibits the use of this OS on traditional PCs. But there is a lot of information on the Internet on how you can install Mac OS X on an IBM-compatible computer using an EFI emulator. There is also a special USB module that allows installation even from the original DVD.

    Is it possible to run programs written for Windows on Mac OS?

    Yes, it's possible. To do this, you need to have special programs and installation disk systems from Microsoft. There are several ways to make Windows programs work on a Macintosh computer.

    1. You can use the Boot Camp utility built into Mac OS X starting with version 10.5 to install a second operating system. The disadvantage is the inability to work with data saved in Mac OS.

    2. Parallels Desktop or VMware Fusion programs allow you to create a virtual Windows environment and run applications in parallel. The exception is programs that require direct access to the computer hardware, for example, games.

    3. You can use emulation, that is, force, using a special program, for example, CrossOver, to launch applications that will think that they are running under Windows. The disadvantage of this method is low performance And unstable work, provided that the program does start.

    Are the accessories suitable for a regular PC for Mac?

    1. Keyboard and mouse. Such devices will always work provided they have USB output. True, they will then need to be configured as the actions of some buttons are different.

    2. External drives information. All flash drives and hard drives will be read if they are formatted as a file NTFS system. Registration is only possible in stock free utility MacFuse.

    3. Monitors with VGA and DVI connectors connect without problems. Adapters and adapters are only needed for Macintosh laptops and if the monitor has an HDMI input.

    4. Drivers are needed to work with printers and MFPs. The manufacturer almost always provides them with the equipment, so there are no problems.

    The principles of operation in OS X are somewhat different from Microsoft Windows, so users who have recently purchased a Mac experience some difficulties as a replacement for a computer with the Redmond OS. If in the USA and Europe people begin their acquaintance with computers with both PCs and Macs, then in our country and the CIS there is no particular alternative. There is a 99% chance that your first computer experience will be Windows. Relearning, as we know, is much more difficult than learning again, but following our simple tips, you can reduce all the difficulties of the transition to a minimum.

    Installing and uninstalling applications

    Your first search query in Safari it will most likely be: “How to install programs on a Mac?” This simple operation that you will inevitably encounter is radically different from that in the Microsoft OS. And what’s remarkable is that installing the application will take less time than you will spend on a search query.

    Most programs are distributed in dmg archives (images) and are installed in just a couple of clicks:

    • open the downloaded .dmg file (it will be visible in Finder as a removable disk);
    • drag the directory with the application into system folder"Programs";
    • The application will appear on Launchpad in a couple of seconds (pinch gesture to open) and will be immediately ready for use;
    • You can now extract the distribution image in the Finder sidebar and delete the .dmg file;

    You can install the application from a .dmg file in any folder convenient for you, but then the program icon will not appear in Launchpad. Therefore, I recommend using the “Programs” folder, especially since that is what it is intended for.

    Some applications have their own installer and are installed through it. In this case, you will see a dialog box with buttons “Accept”, “Next”, “Install” (hello, Windows!).

    Starting with version 10.7, OS X introduced the Mac App Store App Store, similar to the App Store on iOS. It’s even easier to work with; to install, just click the “Install” button on the application page.

    By analogy with installation, uninstalling an application consists of removing it from the “Programs” folder. We drag the catalog with the application into the “Trash” - and the job is done. If the program has its own installer, then uninstallation also occurs through it.

    Interaction with windows. Close or collapse?


    Windows users are shocked at first: not only are the window control buttons on the left, but they also work differently. In fact, the “x” button does not close the program, but only closes its window. This is due to the fact that in OS X applications can have several windows and after we close the window the program continues to work. The “+” button does not expand the window to full screen, but scales it to the size of the displayed content.

    In order to completely terminate the application, press “Cmd+Q” or right-click on the icon in the dock and select “End”.

    It is convenient to monitor running programs using the indicator in the dock. This feature is enabled in system settings, in the “Dock” section.

    Also, as of version 10.7, OS X applications can run in full screen mode when the dock and menu bar are hidden. To activate this mode, you need to click the arrow icon in the upper right corner of the screen.

    Using multi-touch gestures

    One of the main features of OS X is support for multi-touch gestures. There are a lot of them here (I counted more than 10 gestures), and most importantly, thanks to the wonderful trackpad, they work just great.

    Opening system settings and go to the “Trackpad” (“Mouse”) section, enable the necessary gestures and watch a demonstration of their operation. In addition to the banal imitation of the right mouse button, scrolling and dragging windows, using gestures we can: search for the highlighted word; rotate, scale images; open Launchpad, Mission Control, Notification Center.

    Taking a few minutes to learn the gestures will make your work in OS X more productive and much more enjoyable.

    Useful functions of the Fn key

    Using the Fn button you can get quick access to many system functions. Here are some useful shortcuts:

    • Fn+Ctrl+F2 allows you to navigate the menu without using a mouse;
    • Fn+Backspace replaces the Delete button;
    • Fn+F11 show desktop;
    • Fn+up arrow replaces the Page Up button;
    • Fn+down arrow replaces the Page down button;
    • Fn+left arrow replaces the Home button;
    • Fn+right arrow replaces the End button;

    These shortcuts are very easy to remember and I recommend using them in everyday work. By the way, there is a tiny utility called CheatSheet that will help you remember and use all the available abbreviations. After installation, it is built into the system and when you press the “Cmd” key, it displays full list abbreviations, available in the open application.

    Adding applications to Startup

    When installed, some applications are immediately added to the list of programs that will be automatically loaded when the system starts. You can edit this list as you wish for more fine tuning for yourself.

    Open “Settings” - “Users and groups” and on the “Login Objects” tab, edit the list using the “+” and “-” buttons. On older poppies it makes sense to remove extra elements, this will speed up the system boot.

    Detailed information about your Mac

    IN Windows environment in order to get full information about the computer hardware you have to use third-party utilities, like AIDA 64. Apple's operating system compares favorably with its competitor in this regard. OS X includes the System Information utility, which gives us a detailed report of absolutely all hardware and software. Here we can see the processor frequency, number of slots and memory type, wifi and bluetooth MAC address, as well as a lot of other service information.

    You can find System Information in the Utilities folder on Launchpad or by clicking the Apple icon in the menu bar and selecting About This Mac.

    Quickly view files

    My favorite built-in feature in OS X is Preview. In the Finder, on any file or folder, pressing the spacebar will open a window quick view. All file types supported known to the system: images, videos, documents. Close the viewing window by pressing the space bar again. Fast, simple and convenient.

    Force termination of applications

    It happens that programs stop responding to requests or, more simply put, freeze. For example, you have opened a large number of tabs in Chrome or launched several “heavy” applications. Windows users They are familiar with the shortcut “Ctrl+Alt+Delete”, which they use regularly. In OS X, to bring up the application termination dialog, you need to press “Command + Option + Esc”, here we select the frozen program and click “End”.

    This may rarely happen on Mac OS, but if it does happen, you will know what to do.

    We enable support for all video formats

    Built-in QuickTime supports major video formats and is sufficient for the needs of most users. But if you have a diverse video collection, you will have to expand the list of supported formats. This can be done using the Perian codec pack or by installing a third-party media player such as VLC. Both solutions are free.

    Don't forget to make backups

    The last piece of advice is banal and hackneyed, but nevertheless constantly ignored. To ensure that your data is always completely safe, use backup, and make regular backups using Time Machine. This will also allow you to experiment with the system without fear, which will be inevitable at first.

    When you encounter a problem with your Mac, the first thing you need to do is determine whether it is hardware related or caused by software glitch. But even this is sometimes quite difficult to do, since the symptoms can be very different, and there are several reasons for their occurrence. To understand this intricacy of causes and effects, you need to have at hand detailed information about the device and what is going on in his head. That is why we begin studying the problems of almost every user who turns to us for help with a request to send us a report on the system. You can do it quickly and without unnecessary hassle using the utility included in OS X System information, which many of our readers and Mac users have probably already heard about. And yet, I would like to talk in more detail about how useful reports can be and how they can be used. However, first things first.

    How to create a system report

    Like almost everything in OS X, there are several ways to create a system report. The easiest way is to launch System Information from the “Utilities” folder and, after a new program window appears, select the File → Save menu.

    You can also click the  icon in the upper left corner of the screen, select About This Mac, and in the window that opens, click the System Report button. As a result, the utility will launch System information and all you have to do is save the report as described above.

    If for some reason the previous options do not suit you or you prefer to use Terminal, you can enter the command system_profiler -detailLevel full -xml > ~/Desktop/system_report.spx This will save a system report file on your desktop called “system_report”.

    Window System information is divided into two parts: on the left there is a list of categories, when selected, the corresponding information will be displayed on the right side of the window. The categories themselves are divided into several groups: hardware, network and software, which makes it much easier to navigate through all this abundance.

    Hardware

    This group provides detailed information about the configuration of your Mac, including information about the computer model, its components, interfaces and external devices that are connected to them.

    If you click on the name of the group itself, you will see general data about the configuration of your device (model, processor type and frequency, amount of RAM), as well as serial number devices, which is quite convenient, since from the window System information The data can be freely copied. This frees you from having to enter the serial number manually, for example, when checking its warranty on the official Apple website.

    Power supply

    If your laptop stops holding a charge (or charging at all), the first thing you should look at is “Power Options”. Here is detailed information about battery your beech, including data about its capacity, current operating mode, charge, as well as the number of charging cycles and general assessment of condition.

    If the beech has been used for a long time, it is worth checking the current number of cycles with the table presented on the official Apple website and thus determine whether the battery is approaching exhaustion of its resource. If the resource is exhausted, or the system detects another malfunction during self-diagnosis, the entry “Service required” may appear in the “Status” line. In this case, it is worth considering the possibility of contacting service center to troubleshoot (which will most likely involve replacing the battery). To ensure that your laptop's battery, whether new or old, lasts longer, you should follow Apple's instructions regarding its use and storage.

    When purchasing used Apple laptops, it can be very useful to study the "Power Options" section to avoid the surprise of additional battery replacement costs.

    Storage

    When diagnosing problems with your Mac (especially performance-related ones), it's also worth looking at the Storage section, which provides information about all the drives connected to your computer, both internal and external.

    First of all, you should pay attention to the disk capacity and available volume(especially when it comes to system disk). Ideally for correct operation system, it is highly desirable that the volume free space on the disk was at least 10% of its capacity. In case free space There is less left, it’s worth thinking about deleting or transferring unnecessary data to another drive, and possibly replacing the drive with a more spacious one.

    In addition to capacity and free space, this section also provides information such as disk model, file system, disk access rights settings and its S.M.A.R.T. status, which can also be very useful for further diagnostics.

    External and internal interfaces

    In addition to the items described above, the “Hardware” group contains sections corresponding to all types of interfaces available on your computer, including external (USB, FireWire, Thunderbolt) and internal (ATA, SATA), as well as wireless (Bluetooth) . When you select the section you need, you can see detailed information about the corresponding interface, what devices and components are connected to it, what mode they operate in, their current settings and status.

    For example, if you select the SATA/SATA Express interface in the list, you will be able to see the optical drive and hard drives installed in your computer. By clicking on one of the disks, you can view information about it and the partitions created on it.
    In the same way, you can view information about any device connected to your computer, be it a mouse and keyboard or your phone. Therefore, if you are having problems connecting or identifying external device in the system, you can start the investigation from here (for example, if the connected device is not in the list at all, the problem is most likely of a physical nature).

    This is not a complete list of hardware mentioned in the system report. If you wish, here you can find detailed information about almost everything that is related to your computer, including monitors, cameras, printers, card readers and even RAID controllers.

    Net

    By clicking on the name of the “Network” group you will see all the types configured on your device network connections, regardless of whether they are currently used to connect to the Internet or not. And by selecting the connection you are interested in from the list, you can view detailed information about it and its configuration method (manually, using DHCP or another method).

    Also in this group there is a separate section called “Wi-Fi”, which contains information about software, through which the connection is made and its configuration, about the interface itself, the modes and channels it supports and its current status, as well as about wireless networks, not only the one to which it is connected, but also others detected by your device.

    In the “Firewall” section, you can see whether this service is enabled and what rules are configured for it, which can be very useful if you are having problems connecting to the server of a particular application.

    Software

    The sections in this group, as the name suggests, describe the software aspects of your computer. Simply put, here you can see what has been going on in his head lately.

    Particular attention should be paid to the “Programs” section, which provides a complete list of applications installed on your computer. For each of them, the current version is indicated, the source from which it was obtained (for example, Apple, App Store or established developer), as well as the date it was last modified. If you click on a mouse to select a specific application from the list, you can also see where it was installed (most often in the “Applications” folder, also known as “Programs”, but there are exceptions) and by whom it was signed (you can read more about application signing in one of ours) . If you see an application you don't recognize that is not signed and obtained from unknown source, it’s worth studying it in more detail and possibly checking the system for malware.

    If the problem has recently arisen, it makes sense to also examine the “Settings” section and check if there have been any updates or any programs recently installed that could have caused the problem. There is much less information in this section than in “Programs,” but it is quite enough to determine what changes have occurred in the system recently.

    Magazines

    The last section on our list, but far from the least important one, which I would like to especially mention, is one of the most informative and at the same time confusing sections, called “Journals”. This contains recent system logs. Unfortunately, their volume is limited, therefore, the more actively you used the computer, the shorter the period of time displayed in these logs. In this regard, in order not to lose anything, we recommend saving the report immediately after the problem occurs (or, if necessary, after restarting the computer).

    First of all, you should check if there are any system faults (failures) in the list of logs. They are only present in the list if there have been critical system failures in the past. If you have such reports, it is worth studying them carefully; perhaps in them your Mac describes in its own way the problem you are encountering. Often, after the title “*** Panic Report ***” the wording of the error or the supposed cause of the failure is indicated, which will already give you a clue to search for a solution on thematic forums and search engines, or can greatly help the service technical support, which you can contact.

    In messages syslog Apple displays everything that has happened to your computer recently. There is a lot of information here and it is easy to get confused. Knowing the exact time the problem occurred can help, as all records are time and date stamped. First of all, it’s worth looking at what was happening at the time the problem occurred and a few minutes before it. You can also use the search by pressing the key combination ⌘Command + F and entering part of the program name if you know for sure that the problem is related to it, or keywords"error" or "warning", which are most often found in error messages.

    The rest of the magazines on the list are no less useful, but they should be studied on a case-by-case basis. If you have difficulty connecting to wireless network, most likely you can find the reason in the Wi-Fi log. If your Mac won't go to sleep, it's very likely that you'll find a program or process that's preventing it in your power management log. There can be many options, but in most cases, if an error occurs during system operation, it will be stored in the logs, which means it can be found in the logs.

    There can be a great variety of options for using a system report, which allows you to use them not only to diagnose a specific malfunction, but also when studying the condition of a used device that you are planning to purchase.

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