A new, unpleasant report making the rounds today is a great reminder that your Mac's Quick Look feature - useful as it might be for previewing files by mashing your space bar - stores information about the contents of encrypted USB drives you've connected to your system.

My girlfriend Jessica just got a brand-new MacBook Pro — keyboard issues be damned. It can feel a little jarring to go from physical buttons to the MacBook Pro's new Touch Bar, especially when you're used to being able to just function-key your way through system commands in macOS.

Mac: Just because we love symbolic links on Windows so much - thanks, Steam Mover - we're going to show you a handy macOS app that lets you set up symbolic links on Apple's operating system as well.

Mac: Apple made Safari Technology Preview Release 58 available this week for people running macOS High Sierra and developers running the beta version of macOS Mojave. If you're already running a previous Safari Technology Preview then you can update your version from the Mac App Store's Updates tab. If you aren't, you can download it.

Mac: Of all the days to (finally) launch a version of its app for macOS, Houseparty picked yesterday - the start of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference - to make a big (themed) splash onto Apple desktops and laptops. And while Apple's announcement of FaceTime group hangouts probably took a little wind out of Houseparty's sails, the app is still makes it incredibly easy to chat with a bunch of your friends at once.

Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference, also known as WWDC, officially kicks off on Tuesday. As the name suggests, the annual conference is centred around the developers that are making apps and services for things such as your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Mac: It's been a few years since we've seen AgileBits release a major update to its killer password management app, 1Password, which is why everyone's so excited about last week's debut of 1Password 7. This app should pretty much be a household name at this point, as it's one of the major password managers we recommend to create and store super-secure passwords and passphrases.

I have a bit of reputation with my family and friends for knowing how to fix people's computer problems. When that person is in front of me, then explaining how to do that thing on Facebook or change that computer setting is pretty simple, but when I'm talking to a friend or family member across the country things get a little dicier.

It's been a long time since Apple could claim its computers were really virus-free. Even mighty Mac owners have to keep an eye out for the latest vulnerabilities and malware, just like everyone else, and there's some new malicious Mac software making the rounds that you should know about.

When it comes to messaging apps, Signal is one of the most secure options around, but it turns out the service actually has a pretty big vulnerability if you're using it on a Mac.

So I tried to switch to Apple Music. I was sick of Spotify and its thousand little problems and I missed iTunes. (Actually I missed Winamp, but that's not an option.) iTunes feels less like a spreadsheet. It handles device downloads better. It works great with Siri and my Apple TV. Plus it's got all the music I actually own, including all the weird little mashups and SoundCloud downloads that Spotify can't give me.

Mac: The best way to ensure that nobody tries to open, log into, or otherwise screw around with your MacBook is to make sure that they don't have physical access to your laptop. This isn't always possible.

I'm a fan of encrypting your hard drive. It's a low impact and simple way to add a layer to your computer's security that doesn't make life harder for the user. But it can be a pain to set up on a fleet of systems as it requires some user intervention along the way. However, some clever folks have found a way to automate the deployment and configuration of FileVault 2.

Apple makes some good-looking computers: they're made of aluminium, have impressive displays, and always push the envelope in one way or another (for better or worse). That doesn't mean they're easy to interact with. Ever try to plug something into an iMac? Yeah.

It makes more sense than ever to put some Android apps on you laptop. As well as giving you access to apps that have no desktop or web equivalent (like Snapchat), it's great for playing games on the big screen - we got Alto's Adventure up and running on the Pixelbook with no problems, and plenty of other games would benefit from the extra screen space too.

iTunes is bloated. If you just want to play some MP3s like you did in the old days, try Tiny Player for Mac.

Mac/iOS: Setting an alert on your iOS device or Mac computer can be done in a variety of ways. You can ask Siri, use your Clock app, set up a reminder, or make an alarm. Unfortunately, these all come with a few caveats that may leave you confused as to why your phone is buzzing at 3AM - or end up with you rushing out the door thanks to a missed reminder you thought your HomePod would share with you. Engineer Dr Drang took a look at how it all worked and found that, well, it was pretty confusing.

iOS/Mac: Whenever I plug my MacBook into a TV to share, say, a video with my friends, I end up on the floor, squatting in front of the laptop, while everyone else sits back and enjoys themselves. Since I occasionally use my Mac to manage the streaming media in my home and often find myself connecting it to some big screen via its HDMI port or through something like a Chromecast, a remote control would be a lifesaver.

Doing stuff with your mouse is cool. Doing stuff with your keyboard is cooler. These are the most important keyboard shortcuts, ranked from best to worst. (Unless noted, we've listed the Windows shortcuts; Mac users substitute Cmd for Ctrl.) With one exception, despite any flaws, all the shortcuts below are fundamentally good.