So you got an external monitor to use with your MacBook or you’ve upped your game and got yourself two of them. Coding will never be the same, I’m telling you. Neither will writing, or research. With all that room you can have a lot of fun with multiple windows arranged just the way you like it.
Sep 25, 2013 Im working on a school paper in which i am using several word document, the problem is that i often have one document i screen 1, one in screen 2 and one in screen 3, and then my mac will after its own choice keep jumping from screen one to screen two whenever i am not doing anything with the document. Which is pretty annoying when I'm trying to read through my paper. Dec 18, 2019 With Split View, you can fill your Mac screen with two apps, without having to manually move and resize windows. Enter Split View Split View requires OS X El Capitan or later, and the steps differ slightly based on which macOS you're using. Jan 07, 2019 Using the Home app from your Mac means you don't have to look for your iPhone or tablet if you're at the desk and want to turn the lights off in a room that you're not using. Or if you want to lower the temperature in the house a bit, and your iOS device isn't right next to you, but you're at the computer, just do it from there.
Dealer management software. But when you attach a monitor to your Mac, it will default to mirroring mode. And that’s just the start of all the things you’ll need to change before the awesome productivity dream materializes. To make it easier for you, I’ve compiled all the multi-monitor pitfalls in this article. They include how to use your Mac in clamshell mode, how to configure multi-monitor displays, find awesome panoramic wallpapers and most importantly, how to take care of window management.
A note about connectors: MacBooks come with Thunderbolt ports but they are backwards compatible with mini DisplayPort. Plus mDP to HDMI convertors are pretty cheap. And although I don’t have any personal experience with them, you can also find USB to HDMI convertors if you want to attach more than one display.Setting Up The Clamshell Mode
If you’ve got a huge external monitor and wish to dock it with a MacBook and attach Bluetooth keyboard and mouse instead of creating a multi-monitor setup, you’ll need to use the clamshell mode.
All you do is connect your display to MacBook via the Thunderbolt adaptor and connect the power cable. Shut the lid and your MacBook now works as a desktop CPU unit. The most important part here is the power cable, without that your Mac will just go to sleep as soon as the lid is closed.
Default Display
If you want to change the default monitor from your MacBook’s screen to one of the connected displays, go to System Preferences ->Displays and you’ll see an Arrangement tab. This lists all the available monitors. First, make sure the Mirror Displays option is deselected.
In there you’ll see the menu bar sitting atop your MacBook’s display. Just click and drag it over to any of your external displays to make that one the default monitor.
Arranging Displays
In the same Arrangement screen you can drag the displays around to change the placement. If you’re mounting your external display above and your MacBook’s screen below, you can go ahead and drop it on top.
The display sizes are scaled accordingly. So if you have 27 and 24 inch monitors connected to a 13 inch MacBook, you won’t have any problems figuring out which is which. Replicate your physical monitor setup in this window to make the transition between multiple displays really easy.
Managing Workspaces
Thanks to Mavericks, the multi-monitor capabilities of Macs have improved exponentially. Now every new display gets its own workspace and you can create different desktops or fullscreen apps for individual monitors.
This is great if you plan on using one monitor just for media, to monitor your website, or for social media updates. The Mac will also remember these workspaces so you don’t have to start from scratch every time.
Multi Monitor Wallpapers
When it comes to multi-monitor wallpapers, Mac is kind of weird. When you right-click on the desktop and select Change Desktop Background the app will actually bring up the wallpaper picker window on each different screen.
Of course, there are apps out there that make the process of applying panoramic wallpapers easy but most of them are paid. But you can still do it for free; all you have to do is download panoramic wallpapers that are already cut out for individual screens. You can do that with Wallpaperfusion or dualmonitorbackgrounds.com.
Remote Desktop Mac Two Screens
Once you have your cut out wallpapers downloaded, select that folder from the sidebar and choose the relevant images for each screen.
Window Management with BetterTouchTool
And now we come to a grave problem with the Mac that only amplifies itself when you add more displays. Window management. Windows has great window management (had to live up to the name, I guess), where everything is tight and snaps into place.
Mac’s more liberal philosophy spills over into window management as well, where it can’t afford to be. You can’t fling a window to the side with one gesture, telling it to take up exactly 50% of your screen like you can in Windows with the Aero Snap feature.
Wait – actually, you can. Thanks to an awesome free app called BetterTouchTool. I’ve written about it in detail before but it’s basically an app that lets you create custom gestures for trackpad, keyboard and mouse (more on that below), and as a cherry on top, adds the same window snapping features. Omron blood pressure software for mac.
Once you’ve activated the Window Snapping feature from the pop-up and given the app accessibility permissions, it’s time to get snapping!
Just click and drag any window to the left or right edge to make it take up half the screen. Moreover, you can go to the corners to allot your window to the relevant quarter of the screen.
Finally, dragging a window up to the menu bar expands the window on the current screen (not to be confused with the fullscreen mode). The best part is that the app gives you a little preview of the exact space the window will take while you’re still holding the mouse on the hot corner.
As you’d imagine, this window snapping doesn’t always work between multiple monitors. But fear not, because alternatives exist and they are discussed below. Mac app mouse cursor make water waves.
Window Management With Multiple Monitors Using Shortcuts
As I said above, BetterTouchTool lets you map specific actions to trackpad, keyboard and mouse shortcuts. And BetterTouchTool has an amazing library of window management actions. You know where this is going.
From all the great actions available, here are the highlights.
- Move window one space/desktop left or right
- Maximize window to the next monitor
- Move window to the next monitor
- Plus all the window snapping shortcuts and a lot more can be turned into actions
That’s right, using a keyboard/mouse shortcut or just a trackpad gesture, you can fling the current window either to the next monitor or make it full screen when it gets there.
As you can see below, I’m unable to dock the window to the right side of the screen. But thanks to some pre-configured shortcuts, I am able to do so. Using similar keyboard shortcuts, I can fling the window to another monitor as well.
You’ll find a lot of apps out there for doing these things. In my research I found apps ranging from $5 to $20 dedicated to window management. But I’m telling you, you don’t need them. BetterTouchTool will take some time to set up but once done it will be your setup. You can set any kind of crazy keyboard shortcut or trackpad gesture for snapping or moving windows. It will be personal and intuitive, and it will work.
Here’s what I say to everyone after I recommend BetterTouchTool and I’ll say it to you as well.
Go Crazy.
App To Make Two Screens Macon Ga
A Simpler Alternative To BetterTouchTool
If you find the feature set overwhelming and don’t want to endlessly customize BTT, try Spectacle. It’s a little app that comes pre-programmed with keyboard shortcuts (that are customizable) for the same kind of window snapping features of BTT. There’s also a shortcut for flinging a window to another display.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Also See#monitor #Software
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It's hard to not have any smart tech in your home these days. Smart home tech is fairly ubiquitous, and most of us have some form of it in the house. Many of these products also utilize Apple's HomeKit (check out our ultimate guide), so you can control your house gadgets directly with your iOS device or even Mac.
But how do you get started with it on the Mac? Don't worry, we're going to walk you through it now.
How to set up Home app on Mac
![Two Two](/uploads/1/2/6/4/126491157/282787762.jpg)
Unfortunately, you can't directly set up the Home app on your Mac. Instead, you'll need to set it up on your iOS device first.
- Make sure that your HomeKit accessory is powered on and near your iOS device. You'll also want to double check if there is any additional equipment you need for it to work with iOS (i.e. Philips Hue Bridge for Philips Hue bulbs).
- On your iOS device, launch the Home app.
- Tap on Add Accessory.
- Scan the accessory's eight-digit HomeKit or QR code with your iOS device's camera. For those using an iPhone 7 or later and there's an NFC wireless icon on the accessory, you may hold your iPhone near the accessory to add it to the Home app.
- Tap on your accessory when it pops up on the screen to add it. If the prompt Add Accessory to Network pops up, select Allow.
- Give your accessory a name and then assign it to a room. Organizing by room makes it easier to identify accessories in the Home app and control them with Siri.
- Tap Done.
In order to get your HomeKit accessories to show up in the Home app on Mac, you'll need to be signed in on the same Apple ID on both devices, have iCloud Keychain turned on, and make sure Home is toggled on in your iCloud Settings. Both iOS and your Mac should be updated with the latest software.
It's a bit disappointing that you're unable to add new accessories directly in the Mac version of the Home app, but you can still get most of the other features that Home is capable of.
Getting started with Home on macOS
When you first launch the Home app on your Mac, it'll ask for permission to connect to your iCloud account. When it gains access, it'll check for all of your HomeKit devices and add them to your 'Favorites' by default.
To turn a device ON/OFF, just click on it. Grayed out icons means that the device is currently OFF, while white means it's ON.
Right-click on a device and you'll get two options: Show Controls and Settings. The Settings allows you to do things like renaming your devices, which is useful when moving things around the house.
Settings will allow you to see the device name and room. From here you can add a device to your favorites list, include or exclude it from status updates (they are included by default), group accessories, and see details about the device manufacturer, model number, firmware, and serial number.
When you click on Show Controls, you'll have access to such things as dimming the lights, adjusting temperature, and more, depending on the devices you have. For those who use Philips Hue whit and color bulbs, Show Controls would also give you the option to change the color of your lights.
Automation for all
Even though it seems that Home for macOS is a little half-baked with the fact that you can't add devices directly, it's still a useful tool to have. Using the Home app from your Mac means you don't have to look for your iPhone or tablet if you're at the desk and want to turn the lights off in a room that you're not using. Or if you want to lower the temperature in the house a bit, and your iOS device isn't right next to you, but you're at the computer, just do it from there. It's never been easier, especially if you're lazy.
If you're not convinced about smart home tech, maybe the ability to control your house from your computer will change that.
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