defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool TRUE
Then, to let these adjustments take impact, restart the Finder by operating:
killall Finder
You also can mix these two instructions with some ampersands:
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool TRUE && killall Finder
(For the sake of simplicity, I’ll try this for the remainder of the instructions on this record that require restarting a service.)
To cover your personal folder or file, you possibly can run:
chflags hidden ~/Dekstop/MySecrets && killall Finder
… changing ~/Dekstop/MySecrets with the trail to your personal secret folder or file. (The ~ denotes your private home folder, additionally discovered at /house/[yourusername].) To make hidden recordsdata and folders invisible once more, simply run the unique command with FALSE instead of TRUE.
Customize the Dock
The Dock is a crucial piece of the macOS interface: You retailer your most-used shortcuts there, use it to hop between home windows, and conceal minimized apps you do not want proper now. And whilst you’ll discover some helpful tweaks underneath macOS’ Settings > Dock menu, you possibly can customise it even additional with a number of terminal instructions.
For instance, wish to add a clean spacer to assist manage your apps into teams? Run:
defaults write com.apple.Dock persistent-apps -array-add ‘{“tile-type”=”spacer-tile”;}’ && killall Dock
Or, when you’d choose to maintain the dock as minimalist as potential, you possibly can cover all apps that are not at present operating with:
defaults write com.apple.Dock static-only -bool TRUE && killall Dock
If you utilize Command+H to “cover” apps on the common, you possibly can even dim their icons within the dock, so they’re hidden:
defaults write com.apple.Dock showhidden -bool TRUE && killall Dock
Finally, when you like to indicate and conceal the Dock mechanically, you have in all probability seen there is a one second delay to that animation—that’s, if you mouse over the underside of your display screen, it’s going to take a few second earlier than the Dock slides in. To take away this delay, run:
defaults write com.apple.Dock autohide-delay -float 0 && killall Dock
Alternatively, you possibly can change that Zero to the next quantity to extend the delay. To return to the default auto-hide settings, run:
defaults delete com.apple.Dock autohide-delay && killall Dock
Tweak the Way Your Mac Takes Screenshots
Taking a screenshot on a Mac is tremendous straightforward: Just press Command+Shift+four to seize a window or portion of the display screen. Unfortunately, you do not have lots of management over how these screenshots are saved—at the very least, from the onscreen menus. You can, nonetheless, customise issues from the Terminal.
If you wish to change the place screenshots are saved, for instance, you possibly can run:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture location ~/Pictures && killall SystemUIServer
Replacing ~/Pictures with no matter folder you wish to use. If you wish to restore the default habits, simply exchange that path with ~/Desktop as an alternative.
Next, you possibly can take away the drop shadows round screenshots with:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture disable-shadow -bool TRUE && killall SystemUIServer
You can deliver them again by rerunning that command with FALSE as an alternative of TRUE.
In addition, you possibly can change the file kind of these screenshots—which is PNG by default—to one thing else with:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture kind JPG && killall SystemUIServer
You can exchange JPG with a number of file sorts, like PDF, when you so select.
Finally, you possibly can change the default identify of the screenshot recordsdata with:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture identify “mycapture” && killall SystemUIServer
You can exchange mycapture with no matter you need the filename to be. With these few instructions, it’s best to be capable to get your Mac taking screenshots precisely the way you need with out an additional program.
Watch Star Wars (Yes, Really)
A very long time in the past, in a terminal far, distant, some enterprising of us recreated the whole thing of A New Hope in ASCII. It’s nonetheless obtainable in terminals immediately, and on present variations of macOS, you possibly can run:
nc towel.blinkenlights.nl 23
To watch the story play out in textual content kind. Enjoy.
More Great WIRED Stories