Great MacBook Tips for Freelancers
Apple’s influence continues to grow all over the world. The company has a large share of the smartphone and tablet market, but that is not where it all ends. Macs have been a big part of the modern era, and it would seem that more and more people are looking to buy one themselves. Freelancers are without a doubt the biggest group of those who at least consider it. Nevertheless, switching to a MacBook from a regular laptop is a bit troublesome. Therefore, if you do decide to do it, this article will be a life-saver.
Change the Sleep Mode
When you put your MacBook to sleep, there is not much to think about, right? Well, there actually is. Sleep, Hibernation, and Safe Sleep are three options. While safety is the same as it would be when you are working, memory usage is a bit different. If you have concerns about it because your MacBook is relatively old, consider doing more thorough research about sleep modes.
Time-tracking Apps
If you are a freelancer, it means that you might have projects which are paid by an hourly rate. Therefore, tracking time is a very important thing. There are quite a few apps that can help you with that. On the Job, iBiz, and Klok are three of the most popular. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. It will not take too long to try all of them, and once you determine the best for yourself, stick to it.
Multiple Desktops
MacBooks are great because you can have as many desktops as you want. Depending on what you are working on, this particular feature can be immensely useful. For example, let’s say that you are working as a freelance writer. You will definitely need more than one desktop open. Disregard the home page and the article itself, even though that’s two already. Another will be used for sources, and some writers like to have a blank page so that whenever something comes to their mind, they will write it down for the future. After all, you never know when an interesting idea pops in the head.
The bottom line is that organizing work this way is much more efficient.It might take some time getting used to, and you will need to set shortcuts for each desktop. However, once you get used to it, you will not think about getting back.
Download Videos
Working on a project means that you might be learning new things. Hardly anything has as many sources as YouTube. It might sound like a stretch, but you never know when your internet connection goes down. Therefore, an option to save YouTube videos directly to your computer should be taken into consideration.
Organizing Files
If you happen to be working with a lot of different files, Mac OS offers plenty of features to make everything easier. You can use the Preview app to rename multiple files, add tags and stacks, do an advanced search, and so on.
Shortcuts
Switching from Windows OS to MacBook means that you will need to become familiar with shortcuts. Everyone benefits from learning them as they increase your efficiency by a big margin. There are plenty of sources about the most important keyboard combinations, so be sure to familiarize yourself with it.
Run Windows OS
Even though you have just switched to another OS, the Windows system is still not out of a question. If you still would like to use certain features of Microsoft, it has become a possibility with the most recent versions of the Mac OS. Again, look for a guide on how to switch to it online.
Continue Using the Mac and Learning
The final piece of advice might sound vague, but it is true nonetheless. The more time you spend on the computer, the more familiar you will become with it. It takes time getting used to new things and MacBooks are no exception to this.
To make a conclusion, regardless of whether you are a freelancer or not, these tips will make your life much easier if you follow them. Like already mentioned, it will take some time before you are comfortable with most of them, but the effort is worth your while.