# Joe's macOS Configuration
This is an update to a medium post I made in 2018 documenting the settings I usually change when I set up a fresh macOS installation.
This is mostly for myself, and to share with people who get their first Mac.
This guide was most recently updated 2024-01-15 with macOS 14.2.1.
Desktop
Turn on Dark Mode
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In Settings, under Appearance, Select Dark
mode.
Turn on Night Shift
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In Settings, under Displays, choose Night Shift
. Set Schedule
to Sunset to Sunrise
and turn Color Temperature
up all the way.
Display Seconds in Menu Bar
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In Settings, search the word seconds
. Select Display the time with seconds in the menu bar
. Turn Display the time with seconds
to On
.
Set up Dock
In Settings, under Desktop and Dock…
Under Dock
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- Slide
Size
to ~20% - Slide
Magnification
to ~30% - Set
Position on Screen
toLeft
- Switch
Minimize windows into application icon
toOn
- Switch
Automatically hide and show the dock
toOff
- Switch
Show indicators for open applications
toOn
- Switch
Show suggested and recent apps in Dock
toOff
Under Desktop and Stage Manager
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- Switch
Stage Manager
toOff
Under Mission control
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This is the stuff that makes using the Mac’s multiple desktop features feel really good.
- Switch
Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use
toOff
- Switch
When switching to an application, switch to a space with open windows for the application
toOff
- Switch
Group windows by application
toOff
- Switch
Displays have separate spaces
toOn
Finder
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In File > Settings, under General, uncheck showing any items on desktop.
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In File > Settings, under Sidebar, check all items under Favorites
and Locations
. I personally also disable the Recent tags
function, as I don’t use them.
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In File > Settings, under Advanced, checkmark Show all filename extensions
and both options for Keep folders on top
.
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In View, select to Show Toolbar, Show Path Bar, and Show Status Bar.
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While in any folder besides Recents, in View > Show View Options, set Sort By
to name
, then at the bottom click Use as Defaults
.
Keyboard
Keyboard Layout - Colemak
In Settings, under Keyboard, under Text Input, click Edit...
.
Then click the +
button at the bottom left.
Under English
, select Colemak
. Click Save
.
Touch bar
In Settings, under Keyboard, click Touch Bar Settings...
.
Set Touch Bar shows
to Expanded Control Strip
.
Then, click Customize Control Strip
. See my configuration below. Note the leftmost button is the Input Sources
touch key.
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While in Mail, go to Edit
, then under Spelling and Grammar
uncheck Correct Spelling Automatically
Screenshots
Change the default folder screenshots are saved to by running the following in your terminal:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture location [folder location here]
Fuller instructions available here
Shortcuts
shift-cmd-v to paste without formatting
- Open System Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts
- Then click on the Keyboard Shortcuts button.
- From the next screen, choose App Shortcuts from the list at left.
- From the Application drop-down menu, choose All Applications.
- Click on the + symbol to assign a new shortcut.
- In the Menu Title field, enter Paste and Match Style. Enter it exactly as is.
- In the Keyboard Shortcut field, press shift-cmd-v
- Click the Done button.