Mac Geek Gab — Apple Tips, Tricks, and Troubleshooting

Mac Geek Gab 1148 hands you a fresh stack of Quick Tips you’ll actually use. You’ll find out how Mark recovered every one of his accidentally deleted iMessages with Control-Command-4 (or the Recently Deleted view), undo a botched Finder rename with a casual Command-Z, and automate Theater Mode on your Apple Watch so it goes dim and quiet at night without Sleep Focus. You’ll pick up several ways to email a Safari webpage or just its link, learn to strip out distracting page clutter before you share, and finally understand why Apple Music can hijack your Mac’s default speaker output. Then you’ll hear why speakers deserve real thought before you buy a Mac mini, how to coax a stubborn Time Machine disk into ejecting cleanly, and a low-tech trick for AirTags too slippery to grip at battery-change time.

When Doug’s M4 Pro MacBook Pro started beach balling and pausing apps from low memory, you’ll get the full playbook for clawing back storage, from spotting the culprits in your menu bar to pruning Downloads and clearing out bloated Messages and Apple media. You’ll walk through Adam’s step-by-step approach to slimming down iMessage storage, learn how to stop copying and pasting invisible white-on-white text that haunts Contacts and email, and speed up a sluggish macOS Contacts app with a clean iCloud re-sync. Keep these moves in your back pocket and don’t get caught with a full drive and a spinning beach ball.

00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1148 for Monday, June 29th, 2026

June 29th: National Bacon Burnt End Day

MGG Monthly Giveaway – Win a license to SaneBox

Quick Tips

00:00:01 Mark-QT-You can recover recently deleted iMessages ^Cmd-4 (not 5)

00:03:45 Scott-QT-Cmd-Z works to undo Finder Renames, too!

00:05:06 Larry-QT-Automate Theater Mode on Apple Watch

00:06:36 Hans-QT-Email a Safari Webpage to Someone

00:08:17 Russ-QT-Apple Music can override the Mac’s default speaker output

Volumio

00:11:42 Adam-QT-More on Cmd-I (and Cmd-Shift-I) in Safari to mail a webpage (or the link)

Likely based upon the web page’s print.css

Also File – Export as PDF

00:17:39 Safari – Hide Distracting Items

The (no-longer-actively-developed) Printliminator

00:21:33 Doug-QT-Think about speakers when buying a Mac mini

Insta360 Link 2 Pro

00:28:02 Bill-QT-Try Jettison, Mole, and more to eject resistant volumes

00:30:36 Dom-QT-Use tape or thimbles for slippery AirTags

Sponsors

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00:35:22 SPONSOR: BBEdit, the power tool for text from Bare Bones Software; now with integrated Notebooks and extended language support.

Your Questions Answered and Tips Shared!

00:36:49 Doug-Beach balling apps made me realize I ran out of storage…what do I do?

iStat Menus to see free disk space in my menubar

How to free up space on your Mac

Run mole…regularly!

Hazel to keep your downloads folder pruned

Run CleanMyMac – Space Lens, especially

Clear out your Apple media

Manage your Email attachments

Clean out Messages

CCleaner

Clean up local snapshots

00:50:51 Adam’s process for cleaning up iMessage storage use

00:56:21 Steven-How can I avoid pasting white text on a white background on my iPhone?

01:02:55 Mark-Speed up macOS Contacts with an iCloud re-sync

~/Library/Application Support/AddressBook/Sources/<UUID>/AddressBook-v22.abcddb

Cool Stuff Found

01:13:18 Adam-CSF-Dungeon Crawler Carl

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Pilot Pete’s Aviation Podcast: So There I Was (for Aviation Enthusiasts)

The Debut Film Podcast – Adam’s new podcast!

Dave’s Business Brain (for Entrepreneurs) and Gig Gab (for Working Musicians) Podcasts

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Ever triggered a hidden Mac feature by accident? This week you’ll find out why a stray backtick fires up the Magnifier in macOS Preview, and how a single screenshot plus built-in OCR can lift text straight out of an image (even if that Wi-Fi password still refuses to cooperate). You’ll grab the trick for sharing your network as a scannable QR code from the Passwords app, learn why YouTube TV blocks video over screen sharing in Chrome while Safari sidesteps it, and untangle guest-mode quirks on Apple Vision Pro. From Touch ID suddenly demanding your password to a backup SSD that swears it’s still In Use, you’ll walk away with the Terminal commands and fixes to set things right.

Then you’ll map your next move off a MacBook Air, weighing an M4 Mac mini against an iMac and stalking the refurb store for the right deal. You’ll set HomeKit lights to fade in with sunrise, audit your Tailscale network for sloppy permissions, breathe easier with a tested air purifier, and give that retired iPad a whole second life. And when something mysteriously stops working, Don’t Get Caught burning two hours blaming software for what turns out to be a cable you quietly swapped out: check your cables first. Hit play, load up on tips, and head into your week a little geekier.

00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1147 for Monday, June 22nd, 2026

00:03:35 June 22nd: National Onion Ring Day

MGG Monthly Giveaway – Win a license to SaneBox

Quick Tips

00:00:01 Susan-QT-macOS Preview has a magnifier in Tools > Show Magnifier

00:03:53 Use the backtick to invoke Magnifier in Preview

00:06:15 Dave-QT-Take a picture or screenshot to OCR text within an image

00:11:32 YouTube TV doesn’t allow video when the screen is being shared…in Chrome

…But Safari might let it (it certainly does with Fubo)

00:13:29 Screen Mirroring vs. Apple Vision Pro

00:15:21 QT-KiwiGraham-Passwords app allows you to show a QR code of current wifi network

00:17:31 Bill-1146-Why not use the Apple TV app’s download abilities?

Sponsors

00:19:41 SPONSOR: Even Realities G2. Use promo code MGG at evenrealities.com to get 10% off Even Ring 1 and/or Even Clip when you add them to your Even G2 order.

00:21:49 SPONSOR: Scribe. Don’t get caught being the only person who knows how something works. For a limited time, book a demo at scribe.how/MGG and mention MGG for your first month of Scribe Capture free.

00:23:52 SPONSOR: NordLayer Browser. The business browser built for how modern work actually happens — giving IT the visibility and control to secure SaaS, stop phishing, and prevent data leaks right at the source.

Your Questions Answered and Tips Shared!

00:24:54 Jim-Moving from a MacBook Air to…what next?

Set alerts for refurbs at RefurbMe

00:38:14 Joe-HomeKit Light That Fades In and Out

Philips Hue Lights

Philips Hue Bridge to use HomeKit

LIFX Bulbs

00:43:00 MACGEEKGAB to save $50 at Macstock

00:46:32 Richard Davis-Why does Touch ID tell me I need to type my password?

If Touch ID isn’t working on your Mac

00:50:00 Todd-?-How to eject an SSD backup drive that’s mysteriously “In Use”

sudo mdutil -i off “/Volumes/[Drive Name]”

lsof | grep “[Drive Name]”

Cool Stuff Found

00:58:52 CSF-Matt from Midlothian-Quip, the clipboard manager, has Capture Text from Screen as a feature

00:59:39 CSF-Winix 5510 Air Purifier

01:02:44 Alexander-CSM-Reevio takes stills and turns them into morphed videos

Examples of Adam, Dave, and Pete

01:07:49 Kent-CSF-DAKBoard–1121-Use for an Old iPad – No Coding Required

01:09:26 Steve-CSF-iFramix – A Frame for your old iPad!

01:11:38 Johannes-CSF-Super Productivity – Free!

01:13:04 Arvy-CSF-Tailsnitch does a security audit on your Tailscale Tailnet

Don’t Get Caught

01:14:20 RollingTux-DGC-Cables are often the Culprit!

01:16:20 MGG 1147 Outtro

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Pilot Pete’s Aviation Podcast: So There I Was (for Aviation Enthusiasts)

The Debut Film Podcast – Adam’s new podcast!

Dave’s Business Brain (for Entrepreneurs) and Gig Gab (for Working Musicians) Podcasts

MGG Merch is Available!

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This week on Mac Geek Gab, you’re stacking up power moves from the jump. You’ll learn how to clean up messy lists in your favorite text editor, discover that any USB-C port on your MacBook can charge it, and find out why you should be charging your power bank from random ports instead of your iPhone or Mac. iPhones can now serve as Tailscale exit nodes — and that leads down a tangent where the guys dig deep into subnet routing so you understand exactly what that unlocks.

You’ll also pick up how to save PDFs on iPhone when all you see is a print icon, how to use Apple Intelligence in Pages to reformat text as recipes, and how to clean up MacWhisper transcripts before anyone sees the raw chaos. Don’t Get Caught running Plex in Low Power Mode, either — there’s a fix for that. Dave also stumbled into a wild Fable moment when the AI found onto an unpublished API and decided to throttle itself back to Opus.

Then the crew pivots to WWDC 2026 reactions, and there’s a lot to unpack. One big theme is refinement and stability: the new Liquid Glass slider is a visual treat, and Dave’s already running the beta without disaster. Apple Intelligence is getting a serious upgrade, with Siri becoming more contextually aware of what’s on your device, though the guys push back on where it still falls short compared to tools like Claude Cowork. Parental controls got a surprisingly large share of the spotlight for a developer conference, signaling Apple wants to own the conversation around kids and screen time — this leads to the interesting question of whether spouses can choose to hold each other accountable. Apple Vision Pro gets a Siri Orb and custom panoramas, and iOS 27 dev beta now includes a Recovery mode. Adam’s live from Nerdtacular 2026, and if you’re heading to Macstock, the discount code MACGEEKGAB saves you fifty bucks!

00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1146 for Monday, June 15th, 2026

00:03:35 June 15th: Take Your Cat to Work Day

Pete lost his cat and she found her way home!

MGG Monthly Giveaway – Win a license to SaneBox

Quick Tips

00:00:01 Heidi-QT-Clean up messy lists with your favorite text editor

00:07:13 Dan DXZDB-QT-You can use your MacBook’s USB-C Ports to Charge it, too!

AlDente

00:09:23 Chris-QT-1143-Charge your Power bank from random charging ports, not your iPhone or Mac

00:12:34 Dave (accidentally) ran into a Fable overstep!

It had to throttle down to Opus after it found a company’s unpublished API

00:15:03 Adam is at Nerdtacular 2026

Use the Mac Geek Gab app for the calendar

Macstock MGG Discount Coupon: MACGEEKGAB

00:18:43 Phil-QT-Saving Documents as PDFs on iPhone When You Only See a Print Icon

00:20:42 Donald-QT-1145-iPhones can be used as Tailscale exit nodes

00:26:56 Tailscale Subnet Routing

00:29:19 Dom Bettinelli-QT-Clean Up your MacWhisper transcripts

00:30:44 Clif-QT-Use Apple Intelligence in Pages to Reformat as Recipes

00:31:50 QT-Low Power Mode vs. Plex on macOS

Sponsors

00:36:38 SPONSOR: Decagon. Ready to transform your customer support? Decagon helps companies create personalized, concierge-style customer experiences with AI agents across chat, email, voice, and SMS. Go to https://decagon.ai/MGG to get a personalized demo and see what Decagon can do for your team.

00:38:16 SPONSOR: Shopify. In 2026, stop waiting and start selling with Shopify. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial and start selling today at https://Shopify.com/MGG

00:39:57 SPONSOR: CleanMyMac. Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use our code MACGEEK for 20% off at https://clnmy.com/MACGEEK

WWDC Reactions

00:41:32 Operating Systems are focused on refinement

Liquid Glass slider

Dave’s running the beta…successfully!

00:48:29 Apple Intelligence and Siri AI and Gemini and all of that

“Profoundly more capable Assistant”

Siri is aware of what’s on my screen?

01:05:10 Where’s the Siri equivalent of Claude Cowork?

AI is Assistive Intelligence

01:13:11 WWDC Features

Apple Vision Pro Siri Orb and Custom Panoramas

01:13:32 Parental Controls got a LOT of time…for a developer conference

Apple wants to be a market leader here in solving this social problem

Dave’s question: Can my wife and I set up one another as accountability partners for screen time?

01:18:53 Richard-CSF-iOS27 Dev Beta has Recovery mode

01:21:00 MGG 1146 Outtro

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Pilot Pete’s Aviation Podcast: So There I Was (for Aviation Enthusiasts)

The Debut Film Podcast – Adam’s new podcast!

Dave’s Business Brain (for Entrepreneurs) and Gig Gab (for Working Musicians) Podcasts

MGG Merch is Available!

Mac Geek Gab iOS app

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Your iPhone might be running hot and draining fast — and it’s not just you. Dave and Pilot Pete break down the battery chaos introduced by iOS 26.5, which brought overheating, accelerated drain, and even blocked wired charging on iPhone 17 and Air models. The fix that’s working for most people: disable iCloud Keychain first, run Reset All Settings, then carefully re-enable iCloud sync — otherwise you’ll nuke your Wi-Fi passwords across every device. iOS 26.5.1 is out and should help, but until you’ve updated, your electrons deserve better. You’ll also learn why Apple ID passkeys are locked to Apple’s own keychain with no known path to third-party managers like 1Password or Keeper, and why editing a contact on a modern Mac can somehow peg every CPU core — in 2026, no less.

From there, Dave and Pete tackle the full listener mailbag: how to rescue missing contact names from Messages, the right way to boot a MacBook with a broken display into clamshell mode so it actually uses the external monitor, and a deep dive on 5K vs. 4K displays where Dave argues your eyes may not care as much as the pixel-per-inch math suggests. You’ll get smart ideas for repurposing a 2015 iPad Pro that can’t run modern apps — including Dave’s Claude Code-built weather dashboard running off a headless iMac as a web interface. A crashing 2021 MacBook Pro turns out to have been felled by a single bad SD card, and the lesson is golden: feed your crash reports to an LLM and let it do the digging. And Don’t Get Caught with outdated OpenAI macOS apps — update ChatGPT, Codex, Atlas, and Codex CLI before June 12th to stay ahead of a code-signing rotation triggered by a compromised open-source library.

00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1145 for Monday, June 8th, 2026

June 8th: National Best Friends Day

MGG Monthly Giveaway – Win a license to SaneBox

Quick Tips

00:00:01 Dan-QT-Multi-select on iPhone with a quick drag

00:04:31 Tim-QT-Have iOS 26.5 Battery Drain? Reset All Settings, but be careful!

00:13:32 Kent-QT-1144-Collapse stacks by clicking the down-facing carat in the menu

00:14:15 Mark-QT-Match Frame Rate on your Apple TV for smoother experiences

00:17:58 What are the differences between refresh rates and frame rates and…why?

00:21:09 KiwiGraham-QT-Apple Account Passkeys vs. Third Party Password Apps

Sponsors

00:23:09 SPONSOR: Keeper. Right now, Keeper is offering our listeners 60% off personal and family plans at https://Keepersecurity.com/MGG. This offer is only for podcast listeners!

00:24:50 SPONSOR: Helix Sleep makes premium mattresses and bedding that are customized to fit your personal needs, and conveniently shipped to your door. Go to https://helixsleep.com/MGG for 20% Off Sitewide.

00:26:23 SPONSOR: NordLayer Browser. The business browser built for how modern work actually happens — giving IT the visibility and control to secure SaaS, stop phishing, and prevent data leaks right at the source.

Your Questions Answered and Tips Shared!

00:28:09 VaShaun-How can I restore lost Contacts on my Mac?

00:37:36 Si-What to do with an 11-year-old iPad?

Claude Code

00:46:40 Michael-Why do we have to pull-to-refresh for updates?

00:50:04 Blake-1144-Damaged displays, external monitors, and MonitorControl

00:55:48 Joe & Michael-CSF-1144–RetinaDesk.com for reviews of 5K and 6K monitors

BenQ MA270UP 27” 4K Display

Reviews

01:02:50 Hog fan and Cowboy fan-MGG Review–Favorite Tech podcast

Don’t Get Caught

01:04:14 Father John-DGC-Investigate those crash reports before you replace your Mac

01:09:26 Update your ChatGPT Apps

ChatGPT Desktop

Codex App

Codex CLI

Atlas

01:11:06 Andy-DGC-When Troubleshooting, Don’t Get Caught asking the wrong questions or assuming the wrong facts

01:19:36 MGG 1145 Outtro

MGG Monthly Giveaway

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Pilot Pete’s Aviation Podcast: So There I Was (for Aviation Enthusiasts)

The Debut Film Podcast – Adam’s new podcast!

Dave’s Business Brain (for Entrepreneurs) and Gig Gab (for Working Musicians) Podcasts

MGG Merch is Available!

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This week you’ll learn to lean on Apple Intelligence to translate almost any text on the fly, lock down and hide sensitive apps on iOS, and finally tame your Desktop by remembering it’s just part of the Finder: flip on Stacks and/or let Hazel do the sorting for you. You’ll dig into why a 4K monitor looks different on your Mac than it does on Windows or Linux, hear how a BenQ display stacks up against a beloved LG, and grab Mirror Mode and BetterDisplay tricks for when you power down an external screen. Cracked your MacBook screen? Hook up an external display to rescue your data, or give that machine new life as a headless server. You’ll also get Siri reminding you the moment you arrive somewhere, and discover why your robot vacuum deserves an annual reset.

Then it’s your questions: whether you actually need a Plex Pass, and how to not get caught off guard when the lifetime price leaps to $749.99 on July 1st! Plus how to wrangle your @mac.com, @me.com, and @icloud.com addresses and confirm a cable is truly PD-qualified before you trust it.

Cool Stuff Found rounds things out with a color-screen USB cable tester, single-purpose apps that nail one job, agentic coding adventures, a Logitech Combo Touch case for your iPad Pro, and Mole’s brand-new macOS app. And when your Mac finally screams that it’s out of space? You’ll know exactly what to do. Don’t Get Caught missing it.

00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1144 for Monday, June 1st, 2026

June 1st: Flip a Coin Day

MGG Monthly Giveaway – Win a license to SaneBox

Quick Tips

00:00:01 Clif-QT-Use Apple Intelligence to translate (almost) any text

00:03:33 Pilot Pete-QT-iOS Secure Apps & Hide Apps iOS

Mac Geek Gab YouTube Channel Shorts

00:05:41 Ben-QT-Reminder that the Desktop is part of the Finder

00:06:33 Using Stacks on the Desktop

Finder, move to Desktop, then View > Use Stacks

Use Hazel to keep your Desktop, Downloads, and more organized

00:12:39 Albert-QT-Why a 4K Monitor is Different on Mac vs. Windows/Linux

00:16:01 BenQ MA270UP 27” 4K Display looks (to Dave) as good as his former LG Display

00:20:04 Drewski-QT-Mirror Mode helps when powering off a connected external monitor

BetterDisplay

LG 27UP850K-W 27-inch Ultrafine 4K UHD that Adam uses

00:23:55 What to do when your MacBook screen is broken?

PrismCast

00:27:11 Pilot Pete-QT-Ask Siri to Remind you to do something when you arrive at a location

00:29:31 Dave-WWDC week vs. a Red Barchetta

Nerdtacular

00:32:34 Dave-QT-Reset all your robot vacuum once a year

Sponsors

00:35:02 SPONSOR: CarGurus. Buy or sell your next car today with CarGurus. Check it out at https://cargurus.com/

00:36:44 SPONSOR: NordLayer Browser. The business browser built for how modern work actually happens — giving IT the visibility and control to secure SaaS, stop phishing, and prevent data leaks right at the source.

00:38:06 MGG’s Longest Continually-Running Sponsor: Bare Bones released BBEdit 16!

MGG Reviews

00:39:11 Jeff Murphy-MGG Review-Favorite podcast for when I’m mowing the lawn

00:39:45 NYCSteph18-MGG Review-True! At least five new things learned every week

Your Questions Answered and Tips Shared!

00:40:56 Brian-Do I need a Plex Pass?

00:42:34 Lifetime Plex Pass jumping to $749.99 on July 1st

00:46:19 Kirit-How best to manage @mac.com @me.com and @icloud.com addresses?

00:53:32 Brian-How can I tell if my cable is PD Qualified?

Search UL Database

Search USB.org certified database

Describe what you have and ask your favorite LLM to do the legwork

Cool Stuff Found

00:57:57 Tom-CSF-1143-Treedix USB Cable Tester with Color Screen – $49

01:00:27 Dave-CSF-MacPaw one-use-case apps

01:05:33 Agentic Coding with Claude Code and more

01:08:15 Pilot Pete-CSF-Logitech Combo Touch Keyboard Case for iPad Pro 13-inch (M4, M5)

01:11:49 Dave-CSF-Mole now has a macOS GUI App

01:13:34 I ran out of space on my Mac!

01:14:43 MGG 1144 Outtro

MGG Monthly Giveaway

Bandwidth Provided by CacheFly

Pilot Pete’s Aviation Podcast: So There I Was (for Aviation Enthusiasts)

The Debut Film Podcast – Adam’s new podcast!

Dave’s Business Brain (for Entrepreneurs) and Gig Gab (for Working Musicians) Podcasts

MGG Merch is Available!

Mac Geek Gab iOS app

Mac Geek Gab YouTube Page

Mac Geek Gab Live Calendar

This Week’s MGG Premium Contributors

MGG Apple Podcasts Reviews

feedback@macgeekgab.com

224-888-GEEK

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