The new Sierra system on Mac is definitely not a turning point or a radical update, but like any new release it naturally brings some useful improvements and functions that were not available in the previous version. Since these are rather subtle changes, we see below the best tricks and hidden functions of Mac Sierra to maximize the experience with Apple computers, both for expert users and for novices, who will be able to do things more or differently than previous versions.
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1) Use tabs and filters in the Mail app
Sierra supports tabs in many applications, including the Finder and maps.
To use them, you can press the Command + T keys together or press File -> New Tab from the menu bar, as you would on Safari or other browsers.
Sierra also supports tabs in Mail, although to open new tabs the keyboard shortcut is different and is not Cmd - T.
In Mail, to open a new tab, you have to press the Command - Alt - T keys together.
This shortcut, however, does not work unless you first make a change in System Preferences -> Dock and select that when opening new documents you should always use the tabs.
In Mail you can also use filters, which can be activated by pressing the small gray icon at the top right of the message column, the one with a circle with three horizontal lines.
You can then filter the incoming messages starting from the unread ones.
By pressing on the word of the unread, you can change the filter and then view the emails with attachments, those marked from VIP users or other orders.
The filters in Mail will not be seen if you use the classic layout which must therefore be disabled from Mail Preferences, in the Display section.
2) Open recently closed Tabs in Safari
Before Sierra (or rather before Safari 10), it was possible to use the CMD - Z key shortcut to open the most recent tab that has been closed.
Now, finally, it is possible to press those keys several times to open, in closing order, all the tabs that have been closed.
In all browsers, such as Chrome and Firefox and also Safari, this function also occurs by pressing the Command - Shift - T keys together.
To see a list of recently closed tabs, there is no need to go to History now, but directly from the tab bar, by clicking and holding the " plus " button on the far right.
3) Annotate the images in Photos
On Mac Sierra you can now open an image in the photo app, click on the edit button at the top right next to the detail one, press on Extensions and then use the Markup from the right sidebar to open the formatting and adding text, shapes or hand drawings on photos.
If you don't see the design extension in the sidebar, go to System Preferences -> Extensions -> Photos and activate it.
4) Change text size in Notes
The note-taking and note-writing app on the Mac works well, but in previous versions of MacOS the font size was small and uneditable.
Now Apple has solved the font size problem in Notes with Sierra, which allows you to choose the size of the text under Notes Preferences .
5) Move the menu icons
In Sierra it is possible to move all the icons of the menu bar by holding down the Cmd key and dragging them with the mouse, not only the system ones, but all of them.
6) Capitalized words and word wrapping automatically
The Mac's AutoCorrect feature in Sierra has a few more options found in System Preferences -> Keyboard -> Text .
You can then choose to automatically capitalize the first word of each sentence and add a point by pressing the space bar twice quickly.
7) Automatically earn free space in Sierra
The option to automatically empty the recycle bin is just one of the new Mac Sierra features to free up disk space.
You can go to About this Mac -> Archive -> Manage to find some recommendations that allow you to save space on Mac by deleting unnecessary things.
In particular, you can make sure that personal files and photos are saved in iCloud, you can make sure that the films downloaded with iTunes have already been viewed, view the largest files and then activate the automatic deletion of the files in the trash after 30 days.
To empty the recycle bin automatically, open the Finder Preferences and go to the advanced options tab to find the option to delete files from the recycle bin after they are there for 30 days.
This way you can keep your Mac clean from junk without manually intervening.
8) Invite people to collaborate on Notes
On the Notes app you can invite other people to write on the same sheet.
To send an invitation, click the Add people button on the right side of the Notes toolbar.
When you click this button, you can indicate the email addresses of the guests or get a shareable link to send.
If you want to stop sharing a note or remove a collaborator or add a new one, click on the same button again to find all the management options.
9) Event log
The Console application (found in Applications -> Utilities ) keeps track of everything that happens on the Mac and also how it is used and when.
It is therefore easy to find out if anyone has used our Mac in our absence.
The novelty is that using the console has become much simpler in Mac Sierra and much easier to understand.
10) Show folders first by sorting files by name
In Sierra, you can change an option in Finder Preferences to be able to view folders at the top when files are sorted by name, which is very useful for searching.
11) Use the PIP picture-in-picture mode for iTunes and Safari
Picture in Picture means that you can keep a video open in a box and do more on the application at the same time.
To use this new feature on Mac with iTunes, just start playing a video, place the mouse over the video window and click on the pop-out icon.
In Safari, on a site like Youtube, press the right button on the video and then press it again with the right button to find the PIP option.
12) Universal Notes
Having an iPhone pays if you own a Mac, because they integrate very well by exchanging files easily and, now, even having synchronized the notes of the copy and paste.
In practice, you copy text on Mac and find it ready to be pasted on iPhone or vice versa.
What Apple calls universal clipboard can be used if on the Mac and iPhone and iPad you log in with the same iTunes account and the Handoff function is activated on both devices.
On Mac this option is in System Preferences -> General while on iOS in Settings> General .
13) Automatic unlocking of Mac with Apple Watch
If you use the same Apple iCloud or iTunes account on Mac and on Apple Watch, go to Mac in System Preferences -> Security and Privacy to activate the automatic unlocking of the computer when you approach it having the Apple smartwatch on your wrist.
Some of these Sierra changes might seem insignificant, but I'm sure many are appreciable, especially to improve daily work with a Mac.
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