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Press Cmd-Shift-Eject and your OS X Mac will immediately enter sleep mode.
 technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983

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More tips for Mac OS X users


March 3, 2004


By Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2004, Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2004, The Post-Standard

   Every operating system has hidden features. Here are more of my favorite undocumented, hidden or unappreciated tips and tricks for Apple's Macintosh OS X computers.
   1. Poof, you're gone: It's easy to drag any item to the dock. You simply drag it over to the dock and drop it there. But how do you get rid of a dock item you no longer want? Just drag it off.
   2. Clipper ship: Want to save a short snippet of a Web page you're reading? Drag your mouse over the text with the button held down. Let go, then click and hold. Drag the selected text off of the page. You've just created a text clipping. Double click the clipping to open it. (Bonus tip: This works will all text items, not just with Web pages.)
   3. Share, share alike: Have more than one OS X computer on a wired or wireless network? First, upgrade them so they're all running Panther (OS X 10.3) and then install the latest versions of iTunes and iPhoto. Turn on Rendezvous sharing in iTunes and iPhoto. Each OS X Mac will be able to listen to the music and view the pictures on the others.
   4. You're getting sleepy: If you wish your OS X desktop Mac could go to sleep instantly the way iBooks and PowerBooks do, you've come to the right place. Press Cmd-Shift-Eject and it will immediately enter sleep mode.
   5. It's a drag: Want to move a section of text from one place to another in your word processor? Select it, hold the mouse button and drag it to the new location.
   6. Picture this: Wish you had an easy way to save a picture you're looking at on a Web page? Just drag it onto your desktop.
   7. Wheelies: Any Windows mouse with a middle wheel should work perfectly on your OS X Mac. Just plug it in. You can scroll with the wheel and open context menus with the right mouse button.
   8. I'd like a Word with you: If you don't have Microsoft Word, don't fret when someone sends you a Word document. Run TextEdit, the Apple word processor, and drop the Word document onto the TextEdit icon in the dock. Text Edit knows how to handle most Microsoft Word documents.
   9. Mini-tunes: Wouldn't you love to find a program that could make the iTunes window just big enough to hold the transport controls? You've already got it. It's the iTunes program itself. Click the green Minimize-Maximize button.
   10. Shift lever: Safari, Apple's Web browser, lets you open new browser windows in tabs. But most Mac users miss the trick of having this done automatically without being taken away from the current window. First, make sure "Select new tabs as they are created" is checked under "Tabs" in the Safari Preferences. Then, to open new page in a background tab, hold down Cmd-Shift while clicking on the link.