Tips and Advice

• Backup! You need a copy of your data in case of catastropic failure. So many times I've been approached by distraught individuals who knew better, but never got around to it. I can clone to one of the Custom Drives I build and automate the process. The cost? About $119 for a fast Solid State Drive, plus about 1.5 hr of my time. Best of all you'll be able to start up from this drive in an emergency, and clone back onto a replacement drive when necessary.

• If your Mac is 8-10 or more years old, you'll benefit from getting a newer Mac. Any new Machine should have a Solid State Drive (no spinning parts). This is essential for the 3 latest Operating Systems. Do not buy a model with a "Fusion" drive, they are failure prone and perform terribly. Buy as much Storage and Ram as you can afford as they are not upgradeable later (except for Ram in the 27 inch iMacs). I would also avoid the new M1 Chips for the first year, new Hardware usually comes with growing pains. Consider the Apple Refurbished Store, save money and still get a one year warranty: https://www.apple.com/shop/refurbished/mac

• If you need an All-in-One printer I currently recommend Epson Workforce. Avoid HP, their software is garbage. For pure black and white needs get a laser printer (cheaper to run), Brother makes a good one for a reasonable price. While wireless is all the rage , you'll have less set up hassles and better reliability if you stick to models with a USB Cable.

• Many of my new clients were living in Password Hell! You've seen it, passwords written on checkbook registers at all angles, some crossed out, most illegible. Take a look at PasswordWallet, they make a Mac ($20) and iOS ($4.99) version. https://www.selznick.com/index.htm

• If you want to wring a little more life out of your Mac I can install Ram upgrades and replace traditional spinning drives with Solid State Drives. The speed difference is amazing!

• If you have programs starting at System launch, go to System Preferences>Users & Groups> Login Items and remove everything in the list except CCC User Agent. As well, when you log out, if you see the box checked that says "Reopen windows when logging back in", UNCHECK IT! Having programs launch at startup can stop you cold, especially if you've accidentally installed some Adware or Malware.

• Do NOT install Adobe Flash Player plugin! It is the precursor to many Adware and Malware installations. It has been declared end of life by all the Major Web Broswer developers.

• Don't install Web Browser (Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari) Extensions unless you vet them first via a Google search to make sure they are safe. If you get prompted to install a search engine helper or anything else for that matter, back out! If you notice that your home page has changed or your search engine looks odd, you've probably been hijacked. Installing the AdBlock Extension can help you avoid getting tricked.