Troubleshooting

The different Mac startup tones and the problems they indicate

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated October 4, 2018

The infamous startup tone that the Mac is known for when you turn it on isn't just a sound, but is actually a very important part of your Mac's boot up process.

Unless your volume is turned all the way down, not hearing your startup tone at the time you power on your Mac may indicate a problem with your machine. Additionally, unusual startup tone sequences are also indicative of a problem with your Mac and will require troubleshooting to resolve.

In this piece, we'll attempt to outline what all the different scenarios of the Mac startup sounds mean to give you better understanding of what to do should you ever end up in a situation where your Mac's startup tone doesn't sound right.

Read More

Troubleshooting common software issues on Mac

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated June 7, 2019

It happens to the best of us – one day you're using an app that you really enjoy on your Mac, and the next, you start experiencing all kinds of problems with the same app. What's going on? Will it ever end?

Before you go calling support to resolve a problem for you, there are some easy troubleshooting steps you can take in macOS to quickly determine if the problem is going to require help or not.

We'll go through some of those troubleshooting steps with you right here in this tutorial.

Read More

Why and how to stress test your Mac fans and CPU

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated April 11, 2022
How to stress test Mac CPU and fan

As rare as it may be, your processor or CPU cooling fans can fail, and there is a really easy way to test your Mac's hardware with the Terminal app that comes with macOS to ensure everything is working right.

In this tutorial, we'll show you how to stress test your Mac using Terminal so you can ensure all your processor's cores are working up to snuff and your cooling fans aren't grinding or failing to cool your Mac as they should.

Read More

How to reset NVRAM on your Mac

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated July 23, 2018

Macs are nice computers, but they're not without their issues that can spur up at random times. Fortunately, troubleshooting problems on a Mac isn't incredibly difficult and there are tons of simple steps you can take as a Mac user before calling AppleCare for support.

One of the easiest troubleshooting steps is resetting your Mac's NVRAM, a step which can solve an array of problems. In this tutorial, we'll explain what the NVRAM is responsible for and how to reset it to fix common problems.

Read More

Sound issues when connecting your Mac to a TV with HDMI? Try this

Anthony Bouchard ∙ January 26, 2016

On the right side of all modern MacBook Pro models is an HDMI port used for digital video and sound. It's a great way to take in all of your favorite movies on the big screen.

On the other hand, if you wanted to use external speakers or headphones, it can cause issues if your sound settings aren't configured just right because HDMI itself is also an audio out port in addition to video out.

In this piece, we'll walk you through how to make sure your audio out is going to the right place.

Read More

Apple: updating iPad Pro to iOS 9.2 might help fix unresponsiveness

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 19, 2018

If you're an iPad Pro owner, then you've likely run into the situation where the device gets stuck at an unresponsive black screen. This generally happens after fully charging the device, and it requires a force restart to bring the tablet back to life.

Obviously, this is a pretty big annoyance for anyone who picks up their iPad and wants to begin using it immediately. I've run into the issue about half a dozen times since I got my iPad Pro, and and each time is just as annoying as the last.

Fortunately, it looks as if Apple might be making some headway when it comes to fixing the issue. As first spotted by MacRumors, Apple has updated its support document for the issue, and states that updating the iPad Pro to iOS 9.2 or later may remedy the issue.

Read More

How to fix issues connecting to the server during Apple Watch setup

Jeff Benjamin ∙ July 24, 2015

Have you ever received the error message "there was a problem connecting to the server" during the Apple Watch setup process? This error may occur when you try to log in to Messages.

The problem with this error is that there's no way to bypass it from the Apple Watch app. Thankfully, however, there is a way to get past this error so that you can complete the Apple Watch initial setup process.

Read More