OS X Yosemite Interactive Starter Guide

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Looking for a a quick way to get up to speed on all of OS X Yosemite’s most outstanding features? Our OS X Yosemite Interactive Starter Guide is a visual tool to help you become quickly acclimated with some of Yosemite’s most notable new additions, improvements, and changes.

Each item showcased includes a hand-crafted video walkthrough with guided voice over. More importantly, it’s designed to be easily digestible.

You may have noticed that over the past few weeks, we’ve posted excerpts from the guide right here on iDB. In fact, you can read all of its excerpts by visiting the guide’s tag page. Of course, you also have the option to buy the OS X Yosemite Interactive Starter Guide directly from the iBooks store for only $0.99. Not only do you get a guide that you can take with you and reference while offline, but you also get to support iDB in the process. It’s a win-win scenario. Check inside for more details.

The book, which has been in the top 2 spots on the iBooks Store’s Computers and Internet section since release, will bring you up to speed on the following topics:

  • Helvetica Neue Typeface – A look at OS X Yosemite’s new default system typeface, Helvetica Neue.
  • 2D Dock – The Dock in OS X Yosemite has changed its look significantly. See what’s new.
  • New Resize Controls – Full screen controls now work differently in OS X Yosemite.
  • Translucency – OS X Yosemite adopts a Windows Vista like view. Inside we’ll show you how to disable translucency as well.
  • Dark Mode – We show you how to enable Dark Mode, and tell you what aspects of OS X this new mode affects.
  • Spotlight Search – Like iOS 8, Spotlight Search has improved for the Better in OS X Yosemite. Check out this post to see what’s new.
  • Notification Center Today View – Notification Center can now host widgets! This tutorial shows you how to add these new Widgets to the Today view in OS X Yosemite’s Notification Center.
  • iCloud Password – Simplify your life with a new login option for OS X Yosemite.
  • iCloud Drive – See Apple’s answer to Dropbox storage.
  • Extensions – Again, like iOS 8, OS X Yosemite adopts a new Extensions feature to enhance the way apps and services work together.
  • Recording the iPhone’s Screen – Did you know that you can easily record the iPhone’s screen with the QuickTime app? This feature also lets you clean up your iPhone’s status bar for videos and screenshots.
  • AirDrop with iOS – AirDrop now plays nice between iOS and OS X. See how to use it in this post.
  • Handoff – A flagship feature of OS X Yosemite and iOS 8, Handoff allows you to pick up right where you left off on your Mac, iPhone, or iPad.
  • Make and Take Phone Calls – You can now take and make phone calls directly from your Mac. We show you how to set it all up.
  • Instant Hotspot – Work away from the office a lot? Checkout this awesome new timesaving feature that helps keep you connected wherever you may be.
  • Text Message Forwarding – Yes, you can take and make phone calls in OS X Yosemite, so it’s only right that you can do the same thing for traditional SMS messages.
  • Do Not Disturb for Messages – iMessage now has a do not disturb feature in the Messages app.
  • Managing Group iMessages – There’s better group message management in OS X Yosemite. Find out how to get the most out of group messages in this post.
  • Send Quick Voice Messages – Who needs text when you can send a quick voice message? OS X Yosemite now has the ability to do just that.
  • Predictive Text – It’s not quite like iOS’ QuickType feature, but there is a new predictive text tool for some apps in OS X Yosemite.
  • Safari Enhancements – Safari has made tons of improvements in OS X Yosemite. See why Safari is now our favorite new browser after the changes.
  • Annotating Mail Attachments – You can quickly annotate email image attachments without leaving the Mail app. It’s all thanks to a new Markup extension that plays nice with the stock Mail app.
  • Mail Drop Sends Large Attachments – Have a file that a few gigs in size? No problem. Apple’s new Mail Drop feature can handle it quickly and securely.
  • Calendar’s Day View – There’s a new Day view feature in the stock Calendar app. Get a quicker glance at your day using this new iOS-inspired addition.
  • A Revamped iTunes – iTunes has been redesigned to look more native in OS X Yosemite. Check out some of its changes in this post.

You’ll be happy to know that our guide works on the iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and Mac. As you can see, that’s a wealth of information to digest. In fact, we’ve compiled over 35 minutes of video that help guide you through each of these features.

Thank you for supporting iDB and purchasing the OS X Yosemite Interactive Starter Guide from the iBooks Store.