How to Manage iCloud Efficiently on Mac – Guide

Mac users who have been around for a while can attest to the major shift brought about by iCloud’s integration into some of the built-in Mac apps.

Mac OS X’s iCloud feature offers both advantages and disadvantages, but its real-time syncing capabilities can be a major boon.

Discover how to maximize your iCloud experience or opt out of it with these helpful tips.

1. Change the default location to save in iCloud TextEdit for your Mac

TextEdit on Mac is a powerful tool that can do more than many users realize. Before iCloud, it worked like any other app when saving documents. But with iCloud’s arrival, it became the go-to place for saving files created in TextEdit.

For those who prefer to keep their documents on their Mac, all that’s needed is to open the Terminal app and enter a command.

Disable saving new documents to the cloud by setting the NSGlobalDomain and NSDocumentSaveNewDocumentsToCloud parameters to false.

From now on, TextEdit will prompt you to save documents to your Mac as the default option.

To revert TextEdit documents to iCloud as the default save location, use the Terminal command and replace “false” with “true”.

2. Have all your notes synced to iCloud across all your devices

I wasn’t a fan of using notepad on my Mac, as I often needed my notes when I was away from home. But iCloud has made it easy to sync notes between Macs and iOS devices, making it much more convenient.

To sync your Notes app on Mac with iCloud, open the Preferences panel and log in with your Apple ID. Ensure the Notes app is checked (as shown below).

To enable iCloud for Notes on your iPhone, go to Settings and turn on the iCloud feature.

To ensure your iPhone and Mac are synced, make sure the iCloud ID for both devices is the same.

3. Make iCloud a Dropbox

Many find iCloud satisfactory, but its restrictions due to Apple’s policies can be limiting. To make the most of it, users can turn iCloud into a Dropbox-style service with either DIY methods or third-party apps.

Share your experience with iCloud in the comments below. Have the tips above been helpful?

Final note

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