Apple has always been known for its special features. The ones that make work much easier for users. One of them is hot corners. They allow you to define certain actions that can be done when you move the cursor to one of the screen’s four corners. Using Mac hot corners can substantially boost your efficiency and ease when working on your computer. We’ll look closer at what hot corners are. Also, how to set them up, and what they offer to help you integrate them into your daily workflow.
What Are They? How Do You Use Them?
As previously discussed, hot corners are a unique feature of macOS. They allow users to conduct specific activities by merely dragging the cursor to one of the screen’s four corners. This feature helps to:
- lock the screen,
- launch apps quickly,
- turn on screen savers,
- activate other important commands without unnecessary clicks and switches.
This feature makes interacting with your computer even faster.
To set up Mac hot corners, you need to follow a few simple steps.
- Open System Preferences
- Select the Desktop & Screen Saver section
- Click the Hot Corners button in the lower right corner
- A grid with four corners will appear in a new window
- By clicking on each corner, you can select the action that the system will perform when the cursor reaches that corner.
This way you can easily customize the actions you use most often. It can be a Mac lock screen shortcut or launchpad shortcut activation.
But in addition to setting up hot corners, Mac offers another convenient feature for users who are comfortable working with multiple monitors or specific graphic tasks. This is the ability to rotate the screen. It will be especially useful for programmers or designers. That is, those professionals who work with vertical screen layouts. So, knowing how to rotate Mac screen, you do your best to ensure that nothing interferes with your ability to perform complex tasks, but rather helps and improves the process. With the knowledge of how to flip screen on Mac, you can easily perform various types of work. Whether you need to rotate the screen 180 degrees for specific tasks or 90 degrees for portrait mode, the screen rotate feature will help you customize your workspace to suit your needs.
Practical Application of Hot Corners
Screen saver
This is convenient both for personal use and for creating security for your work computer. That is, if you need to temporarily step away from your computer but don’t want to turn it off, set one of the corners to activate the screen saver.
Launchpad callout
If you often use different programs at the same time, set one of the hot corners to call the launchpad shortcut. This way, you can instantly open the screen with the list of programs and quickly launch the software you need.
Lock the screen
With the Mac lock screen shortcut, you can quickly lock the screen when you leave your computer unattended. This comes in handy in an office environment and when working with sensitive data.
Windows and desktop
If you frequently work with multiple programs at the same time and seek ways to speed up your workflow, you can create hot corners to flip between open windows or quickly examine your desktop.
Customizing Your Screen Saver
Customizing a screen saver is more than just an aesthetic choice. It is also an excellent data protection measure. If you don’t know how to change the screen saver on a Mac, simply follow the steps below.
- Open System Settings
- Select Desktop & Screen Saver
- Click on the Screen Saver tab
- In the drop-down list, you will find several options for screensavers
- Choose the one you like best
You can also set up one of the hot corners to activate the screen saver instantly. This will allow you to quickly call it up at any time.
Interaction with Interface Elements
If you know how to click and drag on Mac, you’re familiar with one of the basic mechanics of interacting with UI elements. You can:
- move files around,
- resize windows,
- perform other actions.
To use this feature on Mac, you have the following options.
Mouse
If you’re using a mouse, you drag by pressing and holding the left mouse button while moving an object.
Trackpad
Click on an object with two fingers. Without releasing it, move it to the desired location.
This feature is the basis for many actions on the Mac. It significantly improves work efficiency.
Summary
Using Mac hot corners, you can quickly perform actions that are critical to you. These include locking the screen, calling Launchpad, and launching a screen saver. Also, knowing how to rotate the Mac screen and how to change the screen saver on Mac gives you additional opportunities to optimize your workflow. The advantages of using the functions described are obvious. They include improved convenience and time savings. By incorporating these practical solutions into your everyday workflow, then you’ll be able to fully utilize macOS and make the most of your Mac.
