Now that the election is over, we’re back to normal… but Apple is trying to sell the new iPhone 12 without much success. People are hesitating, and with the economy and the pandemic out of control, many don’t want to spend $1,400 on a new iPhone that hasn’t been tested yet. I have an older iPhone 10 — and it’s still working — so I’m going to stick with it for another year or so.

Apple just released a new Macbook Pro that starts around $2,300, and some of the new iPads come in about $800. In the long run, even though their products cost more, they are built better and last much longer than most PC brands.

Everyone forgets a password now and then, and if you threw away the paper towel that had them on it, you’re screwed. But I’m going to save your life. Ready?

Just click on the Spotlight colored circle icon on the top right corner of the screen on your Mac. You’ll hear a beep. What you did was activate Siri, and she’s waiting for you to say something. So go ahead and say, “Open up Keychain.” A screen called “Passwords are Locked” pops up, where you put in your Apple password that you use every day to get on your desktop. Don’t just sit there — put in your password. Presto! A screen appears with all your websites. Your username and the passwords are all ****** stars. Well, don’t freak out. Just click on the yellow triangle to the far right and bingo — there is your password!

If you want to view what’s on your friend’s computer, who lives in Podunk, Arkansas, and help him set up his e-mail or view his Da Kine Pictures, it’s not that hard to do. Actually, it’s fun, and I think you’ll get a thrill trying this out with a friend.

First open up System Preferences and click on Sharing, then click on Screen Sharing. Not hard to do that, was it? Okay, now again we’re going to click on the Spotlight Icon on the right top side of the screen; when you hear the beep, just say, “Launch Screen Sharing.” A menu pops up showing “Connect To.” That’s where you put in your friend’s Apple ID, which is the iCloud ID he uses. If he doesn’t know where it’s at, tell him to click on System Preferences. On the top is an icon called “Apple ID;” once he gives it to you, go ahead, type it in and wait a second. Your friend’s computer gets a message to accept your invitation, and after he clicks and accepts it, his whole screen magically appears on your screen. Now you get to see all his secret pictures, and you have total control of his computer. Don’t believe me? Move your mouse around his screen and open up his Photos App.

If you want your iPhone iMessages to appear on your Mac or iPad, go to Settings on your iPhone, iMessages, Text Message Forward and click on all the devices listed.

Hitting Shift-Command-4 captures a screen shot of your desktop. A file appears on your desktop with the extension of PNG. That’s nice and all, but if you want to send that photo to someone, they probably won’t be able to view it because most photo files have the JPG extension. Well, you can easily change that by doing something incredible.

Ready for some more fun? We’re going to use the Terminal Program to change it. So let’s start out by clicking on GO at the top of your screen and then clicking on Utilities, Terminal App. Again, don’t freak out looking at that weird screen that just popped up. Now type in: Defaults write com.apple.screencapture type jpg (don’t put in the period). Okay, now just hit Enter. That’s it… go ahead and make a screen shot, and you’ll notice it’s saved as a JPG file. You can send the photo to anyone, and they will now be able to open it and view it.

Had fun doing all that cool stuff? Wait for my next issue.

Send your computer-related questions to MauiMist@aol.com.