Let me tell you, the small things really trip new Mac users up. If something is just a little different, most normal people are thrown through a loop. I don’t blame them at all. I’m a nerd. Small changes don’t usually phase me. I can figure things out by playing with them because I love computers. I’m sure people who love cars can adapt to different automobile set-ups much easier than I can. It is natural.
When the arrows on the scrollbar are set together, I have seen people freak out. Don’t even get me started on hot corners. I keep hot corners enabled, and it rubs everyone in the world the wrong way except for yours truly. If I throw the dock on the side or, god forbid, I hide the dock, people will just stare at my screen in shock and awe. “Where did the buttons go,” they’ll cry. “Fear not, grasshopper. I will show you the way of the Mac, and you will one day be the master.”
When your friends and family are thrown by a few small things, just stop. Then explain what is happening. If they know what is going on, they won’t panic. It takes some time to get used to a different environment. Just keep that in mind.
So, Here’s A Tip
Windows users are used to Alt+Tab switching between application windows. When they come to the Mac, they find that Cmd+Tab switches between each application, but not each window. So after triggering Cmd+Tab, tab to the application you want. Now press Cmd+Tilde (The squiggly dash: ~) to switch between the different windows within the frontmost app. This will save you plenty of time when working between multiple windows. I’m looking at you, Finder!
Photo Credit: striatic
