Quick access to often used folders, applications and files
Finder Sidebar Click to see a larger image
The Finder Sidebar is the light blue pane at the left of each Finder window. It is divided into DEVICES which shows your connected hard drives, SHARED which shows other computers that you have access to, PLACES which shows common folders on your hard drive, and SEARCH FOR which contains preset searches for items on your hard drive. Each section has a disclosure triangle that you can click to show or hide the items in that section.
There is only so much space on your Mac screen, so when you have multiple
applications
open, they stack on top of each other. Exposé is a great tool for sorting through all those overlapping windows, but if you just want to get rid of some of the clutter, Hide and Minimize are the tools to use.
Most Widgets have a back flip side where you can change the settings. For example, your Clock Widget and your Weather Widget may be set to the wrong location. By flipping to the back side of the Widget, you can set the proper city.
Here is a nifty trick that I just learned myself. Many applications like email or word processors will let you insert media such as music, photos or movies. If you have a large monitor, drag and drop from iTunes, iPhoto or iMovie works great. But if you don't have a large enough screen to show both applications at the same time, you can access your media items directly from the Open file dialog.
One of the reasons that people like Firefox so much is its ability to add extensions. The latest version of Safari (5.0.1, available through Software Update) introduces the Safari Extensions Gallery.
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