Book tip: "Mac Keyboard Shortcuts" - work faster with keyboard shortcuts in OS X

If you work a lot on your Mac or MacBook, you can look forward to the possibility of doing a lot of work that you would normally have to do with several clicks can be done with just a few keyboard shortcuts. I've been used to a number of keyboard shortcuts for many years. People who watch me working on my Mac are mostly amazed at how quickly I can handle the combination of mouse and keyboard get to the goal.

Besides copy, cut, paste, save, and print, there are many other shortcuts you can use on the Mac. Therefore, in this article, I would like to draw your attention to a booklet that not only conveys the concentrated power of key combinations, but also comes along very cheaply. An investment that is guaranteed to pay off in "more free time" if you really "free" the time saved! ;)

"Keyboard shortcuts for the Mac - All important functions" by Ulrich Vermeer

Of course, you can also search for the correct key combination for word processing Pages, Number, Affinity Photo, Photos, Photoshop, Final Cut, GarageBand and the like. But why spend time with every new standard and additional program when you can a comprehensive reference work for only 4,95 euros (or 3,99 euros for the Kindle edition) receives?

The 96-page booklet that just got the badge on Amazon "Bestseller #1" in the field of Mac software, was compiled by Ulrich Vermeer. In addition to the keyboard shortcuts for working on the Mac, it also offers an insight into the settings of OS X so that you can cobble together the little helpers individually. But let's take a look at the book ...

From the contents of the keyboard shortcut reference book for Mac users

Before we get to the finger contortions in detail, important keys are shown on the first pages of the booklet. Then it's straight to the point to change keyboard shortcuts. So you can make adjustments in the further course. It also goes under the heading "Keys and Gestures" about the Magic Mouse 2 and the Magic Trackpad 2 (you can see, the booklet is up to date!).

The basic workflow

Then everything revolves around the "Basic workflow“. This 10-page area is mainly about the basic commands on the Mac, but they also save time in everyday use if you shorten them. In addition to text editing, the most common keyboard shortcuts for Mac operation itself are listed here, for the Finder as well as system startup, hibernation and shutdown; as well as some other areas of the basic workflow.

Smart surfing - save time while surfing

On a few more pages it goes under the heading "Smart surfing' for the keyboard shortcuts for using Safari. Then comes the large area "Media Center" in which the key combinations for iTunes, iBooks, iBooks Author, iMovie, GarageBand and other media programs are presented. This is followed logically by the "photo workflow" in which programs for image processing and the appropriate shortcut keys are shown.

Abbreviations for important utilities: Organize and OS X Tools

The last two major sections are named "Organize" and "OS X Tools". If you want to organize yourself and your work, you will find shortcuts here for e-mail, your contacts and the calendar, reminders, messages and notes as well as for FaceTime and cards. With the OS X tools, for example, the calculator, TextEdit, screenshots, the font collection and keychain management are dealt with.

And otherwise?

In addition to not so boring texts, you will also find many illustrations and screenshots in this extensive work for a better explanation of individual steps and functions.

The book and its reputation on Amazon

As you are used to from me, I will of course only present products that have good reviews. The book presented has a star rating of 10 on Amazon based on 4,6 ratings - with 5 possible stars. A total of 8 ratings are in the 5-star range. The 2-star rating results from the fact that someone could not read the supposedly too small font - by the way, with the Kindle eBook you can set the font size yourself. ;-)

But if you can still call your own really good eyes or reading glasses, you should probably listen more to the good reviews, like these here:

“Many of the MAC key combinations are hardly known and the possibilities are really huge. So it's very useful to have this little booklet on your desk to look up. One constantly forgets special characters or key combinations for quick commands. Small format, handy and complete! Highly recommended!"

or

"I bought this Kindle book by Ulrich Vermeer in the hope of finding all the keyboard shortcuts for the Mac in one book and I have to say that it really does exist."

Would you also like to take a look at this little book? Then you will find it behind this link on the Amazon.de page. Have fun optimizing your workflow on the Mac or MacBook!

Jen Kleinholz( Founder & Sir Apfelot )

Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He appears as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with problems of a technical nature. In his free time he drives electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with his iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions for current bugs.