Featured · macOS

macOS Tahoe, one month in: the little things that matter

Big releases get the headlines, but it's the small refinements you notice every day. After a month of daily use, here's what actually changed how I work — and the two settings I'd turn on first.

Frank van Doorn·6 min read

Latest posts

macOS

Five Tahoe settings to change on day one

A short tour of the new System Settings: the toggles that cut the noise, tighten privacy, and make a fresh Mac feel like yours again.

Frank van Doorn·5 min read

How-To

Back up your Mac like you mean it: a simple 3-2-1 setup

Three copies, two kinds of media, one off-site. A plain-English backup routine using Time Machine and one external drive — no cloud subscription required.

Frank van Doorn·7 min read

Explainer

What is a passkey, and why does everyone want you to use one?

Passwords are on their way out. Here's how passkeys work on your Apple devices, why they're harder to phish, and how to try one today.

Frank van Doorn·5 min read

Editorials & Essays

All editorials

Editorial

In praise of boring technology

The most reliable system I ever ran was also the least exciting — no launch thread, no keynote, just years of quietly doing its job. After thirty-five years in Unix, I've come to think boring is the highest compliment technology can earn.

Frank van Doorn·8 min read

Opinion

Your next phone should be a tool, not a slot machine

Infinite feeds are designed to keep you scrolling. A few deliberate choices — and a homescreen with almost nothing on it — give you the tool back.

Frank van Doorn·5 min read

Essay

Thirty-five years of Unix, and the terminal still feels like home

Shells changed, vendors merged, and everything moved to the cloud. The prompt stayed. Notes on what three and a half decades at the command line teaches you.

Frank van Doorn·9 min read

Hi, I'm Frank van Doorn.

Thirty-five years of Unix systems administration, now retired and writing about Apple gear, macOS, and security — plainly, and from experience. This is where the notes live.