The big misses are if you’re going from macOS to Windows, because you won’t get access to any of Apple’s apps bar iTunes: It’s time to say so long to Mail, Maps, Pages, Numbers, Keynote. The Operating System Got a Lot Better. OS X for Apple was a gamechanger. QUESTION: 2019 is the year that I want to switch from Windows to Mac, but how difficult is it to make the transition? ANSWER: Despite the popularity of the Apple brand of computers, Mac OS based. About Switching to Mac. Welcome to Switching to Mac - a blog that is dedicated to convincing you that switching from Windows to Mac is a great choice! My name is Aseem Kishore and I am a full-time professional blogger. I graduated from Emory University with a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics.
- Switch To Mac From Windows
- Switching To Mac From Pc
- Switch Back To Mac From Windows 10
- Switching From Windows To Mac 2018 Free
OS X, the operating system that all Macs run, can be confusing and overwhelming at first to Windows users who’ve just made the switch. In fact, perhaps the hardest part of switching to a Mac is not the system itself, but the habits that most of us carry from using Windows for years.
So, if you recently got your first Mac and are wondering what awaits you, read on to find out about the most common mistakes that Windows users make when using their Macs for the first time.
1. Not Learning About Basic Keyboard Shortcuts
This one is almost self-explanatory. In fact, every Mac owner that wants to be truly productive with their Mac needs to learn useful keyboard shortcuts, like the ones we showcased here. Many OS X features and several Mac applications are built with shortcut-users in mind.
2. Closing Applications Is Not the Same as Quitting Them
When you click on the ‘X’ button at the top right of any Windows app, it quits that app entirely. But when you do the same with a Mac app (buttons are at the top left of apps in this case), the app will only close but not quit, allowing you to ‘reopen’ it much faster in case you need to access it again.
To completely quit an app on Mac press Command + Q or click on its main toolbar menu and select the right option.
3. Running a Downloaded App From Its Disk Image
Disk images are containers for Mac applications and several new Mac switchers mistake them for installers, so they click the app icon inside the disk image thinking it will install the app, when in fact it will open the actual application in most cases, which has to be dragged into the Applications folder before using. So just eject the disk image after you drag the app to the Applications folder.
4. Maximize and Minimize A Window
Double-clicking on the top bar of a program window on Windows always takes the window to fullscreen. If you do that with a Mac app though, you will achieve the exact opposite result, sending the app straight to the Dock in minimized form.
To maximize an app’s window on a Mac, click on the ‘+’ button at the top left of the window.
5. Looking For Menus At the Top Of Every Window
It takes a while, but all Mac users get used to look for the menus of applications on the menu bar that sits at the top of the screen, instead of each app wasting space with its own set of options.
6. Using the CTRL Key Instead Of the CMD Key For Shortcuts
Pretty self-explanatory. Macs use the Command key instead of the Control key for most of their shortcuts.
7. Using Uninstallers
Windows users are used to dedicated uninstall programs to remove other programs from their computers, which is why we tend to look for those kinds of apps when we first start using Macs. On Macs though, all you have to do in most cases is to simply send the application you want to delete to the trash and empty it.
8. Delete vs. Backspace
Switch To Mac From Windows
If you come from Windows, seeing that “delete” key on your Mac’s keyboard can be confusing. On Windows, you use the “Backspace” key to backward-delete and you use “delete” to do the opposite. On a Mac though, the “delete” key deletes characters backwards, and to forward-delete you have to press the “Fn” key while pressing the “delete” key. Crystal clear, right?
And that’s about it. So now you know which mistakes to avoid if you are switching to a Mac from a Windows PC. Put them to good use! And don’t worry it only takes a while to get used to OS X.
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.
Read Next
How to Set Up Local Folder Sharing Between Windows and Mac
Are you looking to set up local #folder #sharing between your PC and #Mac? Here' s="" a="" solution="" to="" setup="" a="" local=""> #folder #sharing between #Windows and #Mac.
If you use both a Mac and a PC, perhaps Windows at work and a Mac at home, you’ll know that while they do similar things and in many cases run the same applications, there are lots of differences between the two. Switching between Mac and PC can be frustrating, but with the help of the tips we’ve listed below, it will be a lot easier.
1. Keyboard shortcuts
If you use lots of keyboard shortcuts on your Mac, you’ll know that they don’t work on a PC. That’s because most common keyboard shortcuts on the Mac use the Command key and there’s no equivalent of the Command key on a PC keyboard. Windows keyboard shortcuts tend to use either the Control or Windows keys. Lots of shortcuts that use the Command key on the Mac can be replicated on a PC by swapping command for Control. For example, copy and paste on a Mac is Command+C and Command+V. On a PC, it’s Control+C and Control+V. So if you want to use a keyboard shortcut on a PC, try using the same shortcut as on the Mac, but with Control instead of Command.
2. Application windows
Application windows work differently on a PC. While on Mac, clicking on the red button in the top left corner closes the window, but leaves the application open, even if all the windows are closed, clicking the red button on the last open window in a PC application quits the whole application. It’s worth remembering that if you don’t want the application to quit, you should keep a window open.
3. Updates
This is one that frequently frustrates Mac users. While in macOS, you control when system updates are installed — via the Updates section of the Mac App Store — Windows system very often takes it upon itself to start updating your PC, seemingly at random. When that happens, there’s not a lot you can do except go and make a cup of coffee and wait for the update to finish.
4. System fonts
MacOS and Windows have different system fonts installed. For example, you won’t find Calibri on a Mac, or Helvetica Neue on a PC. There are, however, several fonts that are common to both. If you start working on a document in, say, Word, on one system and plan to switch to the other, and want it to look the same on both, you should choose a font, such as Arial, that’s available on both.
Switching To Mac From Pc
5. File Explorer vs Finder
File Explorer and the Finder do very similar jobs – they allow you to organise, open, move and remove files. However, they do it in very different ways. Sure, you can drag and drop files between folders in both systems, and you can create shortcuts to folders in both. In Windows, though, there are tools in the toolbar for copying, pasting, and moving files, whereas on the Mac, to copy and paste files, you need to either use a keyboard shortcut or Control-click on a file or folder and choose an option from the dropdown menu.
6. Back slash and forward slash
Mac has supported the same protocol - SMB - for connecting to servers as Windows does for several years now, though it also still uses Apple’s proprietary file protocol AFP. If you use SMB to connect to the same servers on a Mac and PC, you can just copy and paste the “SMB:” address from File Explorer to the Finder’s Connect to Server window — with one important change. In Windows, directories on servers are separated by a backslash. In macOS, it’s a forward slash. So, when you copy a server address from Windows PC to Mac, you need to swap the backslashes for forward slashes, and vice versa.
7. Uninstalling applications
On a Mac, most applications don’t come with a dedicated uninstaller. To get rid of them, you need to drag them to the Trash and then track down all the associated files and delete them manually. Or, you can use a dedicated uninstaller. On Windows, most apps have their own uninstaller that can be run by right-clicking on an app. However, even those uninstaller don’t always track down and remove every file. And apps downloaded from the Windows Store are more difficult to uninstall.
The solution for a PC, is to use CleanMyPC Multi Uninstaller, which makes it very easy to uninstall several apps at a time, thanks to its Multi Uninstaller tool.
How to uninstall applications on PC with CleanMyPC
- Launch CLeanMyPC and open the Multi Uninstaller module in the sidebar
- Wait for the list of applications to appear and choose those you want to uninstall (you can uninstall up to ten at a time)
- CleanMyPC will locate the uninstaller for each app and run it. You will need to confirm that you want to uninstall each app, as the uninstaller runs and displays a confirmation dialog box
8. Startup programs management
Switch Back To Mac From Windows 10
On both Mac and PC some applications will launch and run immediately on startup. This can increase the length of time it takes your computer to startup and is often unnecessary.
Switching From Windows To Mac 2018 Free
To stop applications launching on startup on the Mac, go to the Apple menu, choose System Preferences and click Users & Groups. Draw floor plan mac. Click the Login Items tab, click on the item you want to stop running on startup, and press the “-“ key.
On a PC, you can use CleanMyPC Autorun module to prevent applications from running automatically.
- Click on the Autorun utility in CleanMyPC’s sidebar
- Find the application you want to stop autorunning
- Toggle the switch next to it to the off position
As you can see, there are lots of similarities between Mac and PC, but lots of differences too. You may need to retrain your brain a little to use different keyboard shortcuts, but overall, switching between Mac and PC, even if you do it several times a day, is very straightforward.