Lesson (01.02)
Making Your Mac Work for YOU!
BEGIN
Ever Feel Like This?
Sometimes, even when we do everything right, technology can be frustrating! Luckily, in this lesson, you'll learn some tips and tricks to help you make your Mac work better for you! Hopefully, you won't ever have to feel like this guy!
Lesson Index
Click on each concept to develop it with a brief definition or explanation.
Part II: Accessibility
Introduction
Part III: Customizing Settings
Objectives
Part I: Troubleshooting
Summary
Lesson Objectives
Goals:
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
- Follow the steps to submit a tech ticket when you have a computer issue
- Apply accessibility features and Mac settings to personalize your computer
Essential Questions:
- Where can I go when I need technology support?
- How can I customize my Mac settings to make my computer work for me?
Prior Knowledge:
- MacBook Basics and vocabulary
Lesson Vocabulary
Flip each card to preview your vocabulary for this lesson.
Tech ticket
Accessibility
A formal method of submitting a help or support request to the technology team at your organization
The practice of making information, activities, and/or environments meaningful and usable for as many people as possible
Spoken content
Dictation
Mac's built-in text-to-speech tool that will read highlighted text aloud to you
Mac's Speech-to-Text tool that will allow you to use your voice to type
Part I:
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Sometimes, technology just doesn't work. You might know exactly what you need to do, but something is amiss and you can't quite figure it out. Technology requires care and upkeep to ensure it works well. There are a few tricks you can try immediately to try to reset your computer and get it working properly again.
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 1: Restarting
It is recommended that you restart your Mac roughly once every week to clear out temporary files, refresh memory, and apply system updates. However, if you are experiencing tech issues, sometimes restarting immediately can fix the issue. To restart, click on your Apple icon in the navigation menu. Then, click restart. It is up to you if you'd like to check "Reopen winows when logging back in" before hitting restart. Restarting should be your first step when experiencing any tech issue!
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 2: Clearing Browsing Data
If you are working on a web-based application or task, another option for troubleshooting is clearing your browser history, cookies, and cache, also known as browsing dat. Keep in mind, doing so will likely log you out of any sites you're logged into, so you will need to log in again. Follow along with the videos to the right to learn how to clear browsing data in Chrome (top) and Safari (bottom), as these are the two recommended browsers for Mac users.
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 3: Submitting a Ticket
If you are still experiencing technology issues after restarting and clearing your browsing data, it's time to ask for some help. Most workplaces will have a technical support or IT team that can help you address any technology issues. At 21st Century, to contact Tech Support, you can submit a Tech Ticket via the platform Incident IQ. You can bookmark the ticket site, or you can find it linked at the bottom of every Schoology page. You may also reach Tech Support directly by logging into the Tech VO.
Tech VO
Incident IQ
Review
Which of the following is NOT a tip you should try if you are having tech issues?
Part II:
Applying Accessibility Features
Applying Accessibility Features
Accessibility
Oftentimes, when you hear the term "accessibility", people immediately think of tools for users with disabilities. By definition, accessibility is the practice of making information, activities, and/or environments meaningful and usable for as many people as possible. This means accessibility tools can help everyone succeed and make accessing material easier! Mac comes with some fantastic, built-in accessibility tools. In this lesson we will explore three tools: Spoken Content, Dictation, and Visual Settings. To access all of the Accessibility features on a Mac, including the ones we will highlight on the next few slides, you will: Click on the Apple in your navigation menu > Choose System Settings > Then, Scroll down and select Accessibility.
Applying Accessibility Features
Spoken Content
Mac's built-in text-to-speech tool is called Spoken Content. This feature allows you to highlight text and have it read aloud. It will read text anywhere on the screen, not just in Internet browswers. Follow the directions in the slides to turn it on and try it out!
Applying Accessibility Features
Dictation
The opposite of Spoken Content is a feature known as Dictation. This is Mac's Speech-to-Text tool that will allow you to use your voice to type. You can simply turn it on in any typable area and the Mac will listen to your speech and turn it into text. Follow the slideshow directions to enable this feature!
Applying Accessibility Features
Visual Settings
Finally, there are many visual features that will allow you to change how your Mac displays information. Scroll through the slides to see if any might be applicable or helpful to you!
Review
Drag the words into the correct blanks.
Part III:
Customizing Settings
Customizing Settings
Customizing your Mac
The Mac also allows you to change a few settings to make it work better for you. Click on each setting below to learn more about what it does and ways you can customize it.
Right Click
Appearance
Customize Pointer
Desktop & Dock
Review
Which of the following settings did you learn how to customize in this section?
Summary
Nice work! You've now explored all of the content presented in this lesson. Let's review - in this lesson you learned:
- Tech troubleshooting: Whenever you are having trouble, a computer restart and clearing browsing data are the first step. If those don't work, submit a ticket to your organization's technology department.
- Accessibility features: Accessibility features can help everyone! Use Spoken content to read text aloud. If you'd like to speak your words instead of typing them, try Dictation. You can also use Visual Settings to change how your Mac displays information.
- Customizing settings: Changing the systems settings can greatly improve your workflow. You can change the size, colors, and function of different things on your Mac to make it work better for you!
Lesson Resources
Navigate to each link below to access additional resources and learn more about the content used to create this lesson.
- How to Submit a Tech Ticket in Incident IQ: Video
- Mac Accessibility Features Guide
- Using Spoken Content: Video
Lesson Citations
Lesson Standards
Lesson Complete!
Great work! You've completed this lesson. Feel free to return to any portion of the lesson for review. When you are finished, return to the weekly folder. Then, double check to ensure that your score has been recorded in the gradebook.
Right Click
Your Mac will not automatically come with the "right click" feature turned on. The right, or secondary, click ability is extremely useful.Turn this setting on by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Trackpad." From here, you should see an dropdown next to "Secondary click" where you can choose how you'd like to "right click".
Lesson Standards
- BCIT: 15.4.12.E. Analyze the different operating systems and recommend the appropriate system for specific user needs.
Lesson Citations
- "ron swanson computer GIF." GIPHY, 17 Feb 2015. https://giphy.com/gifs/5eFp76zhsq3uw
Desktop & Dock
You can customize how your Desktop and Dock appear. Turn this setting on by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Desktop & Dock". Some of the most useful settings here are the size of your Dock, where it is positioned on your screen, and how it animates/moves when programs are opened and closed.
Customize Pointer
You can change the size and color of your pointer! Start by Clicking your Apple and going to System Settings. Select "Accessibility" in the menu on the left and the select "Display". Scroll down in the window and find “Pointer”.
Appearance
You can change the appearance settings for many things on your Mac. Try this out by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Appearance." Here, you can change if you'd like your Mac in Light or Dark Mode, what accent color and highlight color you'd like, as well as icon size, and scroll bar customization.
(1.02) LESSON: Making Your Mac Work for You
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Transcript
Lesson (01.02)
Making Your Mac Work for YOU!
BEGIN
Ever Feel Like This?
Sometimes, even when we do everything right, technology can be frustrating! Luckily, in this lesson, you'll learn some tips and tricks to help you make your Mac work better for you! Hopefully, you won't ever have to feel like this guy!
Lesson Index
Click on each concept to develop it with a brief definition or explanation.
Part II: Accessibility
Introduction
Part III: Customizing Settings
Objectives
Part I: Troubleshooting
Summary
Lesson Objectives
Goals:
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
Essential Questions:
Prior Knowledge:
Lesson Vocabulary
Flip each card to preview your vocabulary for this lesson.
Tech ticket
Accessibility
A formal method of submitting a help or support request to the technology team at your organization
The practice of making information, activities, and/or environments meaningful and usable for as many people as possible
Spoken content
Dictation
Mac's built-in text-to-speech tool that will read highlighted text aloud to you
Mac's Speech-to-Text tool that will allow you to use your voice to type
Part I:
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Sometimes, technology just doesn't work. You might know exactly what you need to do, but something is amiss and you can't quite figure it out. Technology requires care and upkeep to ensure it works well. There are a few tricks you can try immediately to try to reset your computer and get it working properly again.
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 1: Restarting
It is recommended that you restart your Mac roughly once every week to clear out temporary files, refresh memory, and apply system updates. However, if you are experiencing tech issues, sometimes restarting immediately can fix the issue. To restart, click on your Apple icon in the navigation menu. Then, click restart. It is up to you if you'd like to check "Reopen winows when logging back in" before hitting restart. Restarting should be your first step when experiencing any tech issue!
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 2: Clearing Browsing Data
If you are working on a web-based application or task, another option for troubleshooting is clearing your browser history, cookies, and cache, also known as browsing dat. Keep in mind, doing so will likely log you out of any sites you're logged into, so you will need to log in again. Follow along with the videos to the right to learn how to clear browsing data in Chrome (top) and Safari (bottom), as these are the two recommended browsers for Mac users.
Troubleshooting Tech Issues
Tip 3: Submitting a Ticket
If you are still experiencing technology issues after restarting and clearing your browsing data, it's time to ask for some help. Most workplaces will have a technical support or IT team that can help you address any technology issues. At 21st Century, to contact Tech Support, you can submit a Tech Ticket via the platform Incident IQ. You can bookmark the ticket site, or you can find it linked at the bottom of every Schoology page. You may also reach Tech Support directly by logging into the Tech VO.
Tech VO
Incident IQ
Review
Which of the following is NOT a tip you should try if you are having tech issues?
Part II:
Applying Accessibility Features
Applying Accessibility Features
Accessibility
Oftentimes, when you hear the term "accessibility", people immediately think of tools for users with disabilities. By definition, accessibility is the practice of making information, activities, and/or environments meaningful and usable for as many people as possible. This means accessibility tools can help everyone succeed and make accessing material easier! Mac comes with some fantastic, built-in accessibility tools. In this lesson we will explore three tools: Spoken Content, Dictation, and Visual Settings. To access all of the Accessibility features on a Mac, including the ones we will highlight on the next few slides, you will: Click on the Apple in your navigation menu > Choose System Settings > Then, Scroll down and select Accessibility.
Applying Accessibility Features
Spoken Content
Mac's built-in text-to-speech tool is called Spoken Content. This feature allows you to highlight text and have it read aloud. It will read text anywhere on the screen, not just in Internet browswers. Follow the directions in the slides to turn it on and try it out!
Applying Accessibility Features
Dictation
The opposite of Spoken Content is a feature known as Dictation. This is Mac's Speech-to-Text tool that will allow you to use your voice to type. You can simply turn it on in any typable area and the Mac will listen to your speech and turn it into text. Follow the slideshow directions to enable this feature!
Applying Accessibility Features
Visual Settings
Finally, there are many visual features that will allow you to change how your Mac displays information. Scroll through the slides to see if any might be applicable or helpful to you!
Review
Drag the words into the correct blanks.
Part III:
Customizing Settings
Customizing Settings
Customizing your Mac
The Mac also allows you to change a few settings to make it work better for you. Click on each setting below to learn more about what it does and ways you can customize it.
Right Click
Appearance
Customize Pointer
Desktop & Dock
Review
Which of the following settings did you learn how to customize in this section?
Summary
Nice work! You've now explored all of the content presented in this lesson. Let's review - in this lesson you learned:
Lesson Resources
Navigate to each link below to access additional resources and learn more about the content used to create this lesson.
Lesson Citations
Lesson Standards
Lesson Complete!
Great work! You've completed this lesson. Feel free to return to any portion of the lesson for review. When you are finished, return to the weekly folder. Then, double check to ensure that your score has been recorded in the gradebook.
Right Click
Your Mac will not automatically come with the "right click" feature turned on. The right, or secondary, click ability is extremely useful.Turn this setting on by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Trackpad." From here, you should see an dropdown next to "Secondary click" where you can choose how you'd like to "right click".
Lesson Standards
Lesson Citations
Desktop & Dock
You can customize how your Desktop and Dock appear. Turn this setting on by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Desktop & Dock". Some of the most useful settings here are the size of your Dock, where it is positioned on your screen, and how it animates/moves when programs are opened and closed.
Customize Pointer
You can change the size and color of your pointer! Start by Clicking your Apple and going to System Settings. Select "Accessibility" in the menu on the left and the select "Display". Scroll down in the window and find “Pointer”.
Appearance
You can change the appearance settings for many things on your Mac. Try this out by going to your Apple > Select "System Settings" > Scroll down to "Appearance." Here, you can change if you'd like your Mac in Light or Dark Mode, what accent color and highlight color you'd like, as well as icon size, and scroll bar customization.