EntROOMpreneur Mac OS
Browse the newest, top selling and discounted macOS supported games. Note: The headings on this list indicate the Macintosh System bundle names; the bullet points indicate the version of the System File included in that bundle. This is to make it clearer for people searching for specific bundle versions as opposed to System File versions. Finder File versions are not indicated. 1 Classic Mac OS 1.1 Macintosh System Software (0 - 0.3) 1.1.1 System File 1 1.1.2.
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Apple® Mac devices are growing in corporate popularity by the day. It’s up to IT departments to make sure that these devices utilize all resources in the environment, as well as ensure they’re visible and managed.
This can be a challenge, as Mac and Windows are very different, and Mac devices remain a minority in Windows-dominant environments. Determining how to incorporate Mac into a Windows infrastructure includes a number of factors, such as: the number of devices that need support; what type of access they require; and what tools and systems an organization already has. IT departments also need to figure out how to integrate Mac with existing Windows and Active Directory domains.
In Windows-centric organizations, managing Mac is not the highest priority on the IT project list for a variety of reasons. Few IT teams have expertise in managing Mac. Familiar techniques for managing PCs don’t help, and the best practices for dealing with Mac in a complex enterprise infrastructure can be convoluted and are not widely known.
IT teams take four main approaches when trying to accommodate Mac devices:
- Incorporate Mac devices into the Active Directory (AD) domain using existing tools meant for Windows computers.
- Use special third-party tools to manage Mac devices in the AD domain.
- Manage Mac like mobile devices.
- Manage both Mac and PC computers in Microsoft SCCM.
Some teams decide to have unmanaged macOS® devices in the environment, but this is a big security risk. You won’t necessarily lose a job if a Mac gets hacked and your infrastructure becomes vulnerable, but this can be destructive in many other ways.
Let’s take an in-depth look at these four approaches to managing Mac devices in a Windows environment.
1.Incorporate Mac devices into the Active Directory domain using existing tools.
This is the preference of many IT administrators. It’s possible to a certain degree; Mac desktops and laptops include the client component necessary to join AD and other standards-based directory services. Binding a Mac to the domain is relatively simple. Windows Server automatically creates the computer object in AD (unless it already exists), just like it would with a Windows desktop.
Recent macOS releases make it even easier to integrate Apple products, as the OS can work with Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) and Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync.
The fact remains, however, that Mac computers are not Windows desktops, and most management products are built for Windows. Native SCCM capabilities for Mac devices are limited and insufficient for full macOS lifecycle management. Compatibility issues inevitably come up. One way to smooth these issues is to extend the AD schema to better accommodate Mac computers. However, that requires development resources and technical expertise beyond what many companies can commit, especially if Mac devices are in the minority.
2. Use special third-party tools to manage Mac devices in the AD domain.
AD and command support in macOS make integrating Mac devices easier, but many administrators still like to use other tools to help with management. For example, IT admins can join Mac devices to AD domains and then use Apple Remote Desktop™ to push commands out to Mac clients.
An alternative is to implement Mac OS X® Server on its own system; Apple Profile Manager can then be used to set Mac policies based on AD groups. This entails setting up an Apple Open Directory domain alongside the AD service, which can make management easier in the long term. The Mac devices are still bound to AD, so there is seamless communication between the two environments, as well as shared file and printer services.
If this sounds too complicated, there is Centrify User Suite (Mac Edition), which can administer Mac devices and centrally manage authentication, policy enforcement, and single sign-on. Another option is Jamf Pro, a comprehensive endpoint management product.
3. Manage Mac like mobile devices.
Apple is moving toward a mobile device management (MDM) model, rather than a traditional directory services model. This means that IT admins can use the same management tools on Mac computers, iOS, and Android devices.
The new Apple MDM framework allows administrators to initiate AirPlay® sessions on managed devices and push enterprise applications to Mac computers. Improved OS X Server and platform capabilities also make it more MDM-friendly. Users can register Mac devices, and vendors can make use of a greater number of application programming interfaces available to third-party security and management solutions.
Many MDM vendors have quickly embraced new Mac features, such as VMware AirWatch. AirWatch allows admins to manage Mac computers alongside smartphones and tablets and perform a wide variety of tasks.
Organizations can also implement a separate tool, such as MobileIron or an Apple server not bound to AD. This allows IT admins to implement user access through virtual private networks without having to join the devices to the domain. This is useful when incorporating users’ personal Mac laptops.
4. Manage both Mac and PC computers in Microsoft SCCM.
This approach works best for organizations that already use Microsoft SCCM to manage PC. However, Microsoft SCCM alone has only a few features for managing Mac devices—not enough for managing Mac in enterprise. SCCM allows for the following:
- Setting up support and enrolling macOS clients.
- Deploying settings to macOS clients.
- Performing hardware inventory of macOS clients.
- Deploying applications to macOS clients.
While SCCM is capable of managing these devices, additional items need to be installed and configured to support Mac. You’ll need to implement a public key infrastructure for Active Directory Certificate Services. These certificates are used to communicate with SCCM through SSL communications. Each Mac with a SCCM client installed acts like an Internet-based client.
Since the Mac devices are acting like Internet-based clients, you’ll need to have a Configuration Manager Site server with a fully qualified domain name, as well as a minimum of one HTTPS-enabled management point and one HTTPS-enabled distribution point.
You’ll also need to configure the enrollment point and enrollment proxy point features in SCCM. This will allow your macOS clients to be enrolled in the SCCM environment after the client is installed. In order to enable the management of these macOS clients, you’ll need to configure custom client settings.
SCCM’s built-in support for Mac OS does work great, but there are certain limitations to the features and functionality of this support. To manage Max OS X clients, you must have PKI infrastructure and additional SCCM site systems. If you’re not planning on enabling HTTPS communications for your entire corporate environment, you’ll need to have multiple management points and distribution points. One management point will be configured for HTTP communications, and one will be configured for HTTPS communications, as is the same for the multiple distribution points.
Extend SCCM for Enterprise-Level Mac Management
What if you could add the same right-click management that Windows devices receive in SCCM to Mac devices? What if you could do it with a short learning curve, no silos, and the same system administrators?
There is a solution that can do all of this and more: Parallels® Mac Management for Microsoft® SCCM. Parallels Mac Management gives SCCM all the missing tools for Mac management, including FileVault® 2 encryption, macOS deployment, application delivery, Apple Device Enrollment Program, and compliance via SCCM configuration items and baselines.
With Parallels Mac Management, you simply add full macOS lifecycle management to Microsoft SCCM and manage PC and Mac computers in a single pane of glass. There’s a minimum learning curve and no additional infrastructure required. The solution leverages your Microsoft SCCM investments and enables Windows admins to manage Mac computers.
For further information on Parallels Mac Management, please feel free to contact our sales team to request a free trial.
When choosing which laptop to buy, it makes sense to know what comes with it. And the most significant part of the decision is to know what software you get with the computer.
First, I want to mention that whether you buy Macbook Pro or Air the software bundle that comes with them is absolutely the same. You don’t get more programs if you spend more on the Apple laptop.
So, what software comes with a Macbook?
Any Macbook comes with macOS Big Sur (operating system) and built-in (free) software such as Time Machine, FaceTime, Safari, and Apple Music and TV. Macs do not come with games, antivirus, MS Office, or Final Cut Pro.
Here is a full list of built-in apps that come with every Mac:
How about MS Office and programs such as Word and Excel? I will touch on this topic after I give an overview of all the built-in apps first.
Software That Comes With Every MacBook Air/Pro
macOS Big Sur
Every computer needs an operating system. The operating system performs basic operations such as starting programs, reading data from the disks, controlling the display and sound, etc.
All apps that run on any computer use operating system in order to interact with the user or various computer components.
Is it OSX or macOS? For a long time, the operating system on Mac was called OSX. You can still hear some people use this term. However, in 2016, Apple renamed it to macOS, so we will use this term going forward.
Each year Apple releases a new version of macOS. They used to be backward compatible, i.e., they supported all Mac models produced in earlier days.
Mojave was the first macOS which could not be installed on some of the oldest Macs. I expect every next release will have similar restrictions. So, if you have an older Mac, check you can upgrade it to the latest OS.
Siri on Mac
Siri is a great virtual assistant tool which can increase your productivity if used properly.
What can Siri do? Most people use Siri to search for something on the internet. All you do is ask Siri a question, and it will transform the voice command to a text which will be sent to a search engine. Once Siri gets results, it will tell what it had found.
Another use is to find anything on the Mac. For instance, Siri is great when you need to find a document you worked on last week.
In my opinion, the most powerful feature of Siri is controlling Mac and connected devices. For instance, you can ask Siri turn off Wifi and Bluetooth, raise or lower the sound volume, send a message, set the alarm, take a selfie, etc.
And finally, people use Siri when they are bored. Siri can tell jokes, find the music you want to listen or read the news.
Safari
Safari is an internet browser that gets pre-installed on almost all Apple products.
Is it the best browser? Definitely, not, but it does the work. The advantage of Safari is that Apple wrote it specifically for Apple computers. So, it supposed to have some edge over other browsers in terms of energy usage and speed.
If you don’t like Safari, you can always download your favorite internet browsers, such as Chrome or Firefox.
Mail is fairly simple built-in email client. You can do things that any email client does: write and read emails, send attachments, sort and find messages, organize messages in folders. If you a regular email user then Mail client will be enough. Power users will find features limiting and will most likely invest in better solutions.
I use Mail to combine various secondary emails accounts in one place. I don’t use any desktop clients for my primary email, because I don’t want my messages to be stored on the computer in case if it ever gets stolen or lost.
FaceTime on Mac
If you have an iPhone you probably already know what FaceTime is. With FaceTime, you can make a video call to anyone who has FaceTime installed on his/her Mac or iPhone/iPad. You can also make a group call. In both cases, FaceTime uses Wifi as transport.
Additionally, FaceTime on Mac can connect to your iPhone and make a regular phone call.
Messages on Mac
If you have an iPhone, you probably noticed that messages sent to someone who has an iPhone have blue color while non-iPhone users get green messages. It’s because Apple uses proprietary messaging protocol when sending messages between Apple products using Wifi instead of the cellular network.
What does this mean for you? It means that you can send messages to iPhone or Mac users from your Mac without having a cellular connection. Also, it means that these messages do not count to your SMS limit (if you have one in your mobile plan).
Unfortunately, to send messages to Android friends, you still have to have an iPhone which Mac can use SMS.
News app
With the News app on Mac, you can follow a channel or even a specific topic of interest. Apple will aggregate the news and send them to you periodically. You can read them in the app and then like or even share.
Entroompreneur Mac Os Catalina
In 2019 Apple launched a subscription service called News+. It’s a paid service. With this service, you can get stories from premium newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal or Time.
Books app
If you frequently purchase books from the Book Store, they will appear in the Books app. You can see books in all (or almost all) Apple devices, including MacBook Pro. If you don’t buy books or prefer to use Amazon, then you don’t need the app.
Stocks app
Besides following news, you can also follow stock prices. With the Stocks app, you can add ticker symbols to your watchlist. You can also view stocks in the Notification center on Mac. Stocks app also allows seeing price charts with multiple ranges.
Overall, it’s a very basic app for an average investor — nothing to write home about. Serious investors may find the app lacking functionality.
Home app
The Home app is a program that may become very big in the future when we all going to have smart homes. If you have a device that can be controlled over the network you can add it as an accessory to the Home app.
Once installed, you can then control lighting, temperature, home security, TV, and speakers. The list is endless. Besides issues commands and changing things in real-time you can set schedule.
For instance, you can set up the thermostat to start heating the house right before you arrive home. And all of this can be controlled thru Siri which will manage the Home app and its accessories.
Voice Memos
My personal favorite. Whether you are recording the lecture in class or just recording your notes for the next blog, Voice Memos can capture your recordings. You can then replay or even edit recordings, although editing capabilities are not too impressive. You can later transcribe voice memos to a text.
Notes app
Apple has a rudimentary note-taking app. Whether you need to save a recipe or make a to-do list, you can use Notes. This is not the best app by all means, but it comes with some neat features. You can attach different media such as pictures, videos, and even locations on the Maps.
There is also a collaboration feature. You can share a note with multiple people and work together. I’ve never tried it myself because I believe Google Docs is a much better and simpler tool to use for this purpose.
Calendar
Each computer needs a calendar app, and Macs have a pretty good one. As most applications in macOS, this one integrated with other programs on your laptop. So, if you need to add a location on Maps in your calendar event, you can do it. Other features include sending and receiving invites.
Calendar app obviously connected to your Mail app so you can see all meetings from all Mail accounts in one place. You can also color-code your calendars so you can quickly spot events related to family, work, or others.
Overall, it’s a relatively simple app. I always have it on my Dock because I keep forgetting which date it is 🙂
Contacts
I don’t use the Contacts app at all. With this app, you can aggregate multiple contact lists in one giant collection. But I don’t see any need for that. I prefer to keep contacts on my phone, not a laptop.
Reminders
Another app without a clear purpose. I use Reminders on my iPhone, but on the Mac, I don’t see a need for it when there is a much more powerful Calendar app. And if I need to take notes to collaborate with other people, I can use the Notes app.
Photo Booth
While most of us use MacBooks for work and study sometimes, we want to have some fun, and Photo Booth is super fun to use. With this app, you can quickly snap a selfie of yourself or yourself with friends.
Prefer videos? Not a problem, you can shoot videos with Photo Booth as well. If you need time to set up the scene, there is a default three-second countdown before taking a photo. You can also use various effects to make your photos funny. And finally, you can use any image to create a custom backdrop.
Preview
Preview is a very powerful tool on your Mac. When I switched from Windows to Mac, one thing I was missing was an MSPaint program. It took me some time, but I finally learned how to use Preview to edit images for my blogs. In some case, Preview is even better than my old favorite.
For instance, Preview keeps a history of changes you made to the image even after you close the app. In fact, I don’t know any other standard file editing software other than Preview, which allows you to go back in history after you saved the changes and close the program.
Another area where Preview can be useful is PDF annotations. You can add text, signature, or even shapes to any PDF document. And again, Mac keeps the history of changes so you can always go back in time.
Time Machine
Speaking of going back in time, Time Machine is not a fantasy novel. On the Mac Time Machine is a backup tool. If there is one thing that I would like you to remember from this post is you need a backup strategy for your computer. Things happen (virus, crash, documents accidentally deleted) and often the best and only remedy is to restore the old image of your MacBook from the Time Machine device.
I wrote a very detailed blog post about Time Machine and other possible backup tools, so please check it out: Time Machine on Mac: How it Works, Best Practices and FAQ
Apple Music
For a long time, iTunes was an audio and video player that came standard with any Macbook.
However, it was split into multiple apps with macOS Catalina and the role of iTunes was taken by Apple Music.
There is an Apple Music store where you can purchase music and rent movies. You can join Apple music as a subscriber, and you can manage your subscriptions there.
Apple TV
Another app that spawned from iTunes. You can use Apple TV to watch your favorite shows, movies and Apple TV+ channel.
Apple Podcasts
Apple Podcasts is the last part of iTunes that became a standalone app. You can subscribe to podcasts and listen them with this app.
App Store
While the list of built-in apps in macOS is good enough, you will always need more programs. There are two main ways to get new programs on MacBook: download from the vendor web site or buy from Apple Store.
If you have both options, I suggest you always go through Apple Store route. Apple has very strict requirements for any app they host in their stores. At the minimum, they all free from viruses. And yes, Macs can get viruses. Another advantage of the App Store is the ease of updates. You can configure the app to install updates automatically same way you configure the operating system updates.
And finally, any app you bought from the App Store you can download again if you deleted it. If you downloaded the app from the vendor web site, the process of downloading and finding a license might be quite complicated.
So this was a brief overview of built-in apps that come pre-installed on any new MacBook. There other applications that you can install for free. Specifically, there are two popular software suits: iLife and iWork.
iLife apps
Initially, the iLife software suite consisted of multiple apps, most of which were discontinued. The only two apps left are iMovie and GarageBand.
GarageBand
The GarageBand lets you play, record, edit, mix, and share music! You do not have to worry that you do not know a single note. Everything is there. Just open the application, select an instrument, then press the notes that tingle your ears. As easy as that, you can create your music. You can also add your voice by recording it.
iMovie
iMovie, on the other hand, gets you in touch with your video skills. It is the perfect application for neophyte video editors. It provides a user-friendly interface but lets you turn your raw footages into one creatively edited video. Personally, I use iMovie to edit my YouTube videos, and I found it very easy to learn and use.
iWork apps
There is a suite of apps that mimic Microsoft Office functionality, and they are free for anyone using macOS: Numbers, Pages, and Keynote. You can download all three from the App Store.
- Numbers is an alternative for MS Excel. You can save Numbers spreadsheets as Excel documents or import Excel documents in Numbers.
- Pages is an alternative for MS Word. You can save Pages documents as Word files and edit Word documents in Pages.
- And Keynote is an alternative for Powerpoint. As you already understand, it is possible to work with Powerpoint documents in Keynote.
What Apple empathizes is that with iWork, you can work on MS Office documents just in different apps.
Apple provides a way to share the documents built-in iWork apps through the iCloud or Box. Another neat feature you can use Touch ID to lock and unlock the iWork documents.
Software That DOES Not Come With Macs
MS Office on Mac
iWork may be a viable alternative to MS Office, but feature-wise it’s nowhere near to Microsoft suite. Fortunately, Microsoft ported the big trio of apps to macOS. These apps look a little different than Windows counterparts (key combinations are different), but they are very close. If you had experience working with any Office apps on Windows, you would quickly figure out how to edit documents on Mac.
Does MacBook Pro come with Word or Excel? No, Macs do not come with MS Office pre-installed. Although it is free to download, remember that you still have to pay to have an account for the Microsoft office to be activated in your MacBook Pro. The Microsoft Office from the App Store only gives you a 30-day free trial.
How to get Microsoft Word or Excel on MacBook for free?
There are three possible ways to get Word or Excel for free:
- Get Office license at work. For instance, your account may allow you to install up to five copies. So you can install one at the work computer and one at home. But first, ask permission from your manager.
- Get Office license in college. Most colleges in the US provide free Office licenses.
- Download from pirate web sites. I do not recommend doing this for two reasons: it’s illegal and very hacked programs contain viruses. In fact, if you see any link with a promise of a free Word install, know it’s a scam. Don’t click on those links!
There are, however, two ways to get MS Office for less money:
- Get a student edition. In this case, you either need to be a student or know someone who’s a student.
- Some sites may offer to sell Microsoft apps for deep discounts. What they do is they have volume editions, i.e., multiple licenses they paid for. Then they sell those individual licenses. All you need is to download the program and apply for the license. Is this legal? I don’t know. As they say, consult with your attorney.
Photoshop
Does Photoshop come with MacBook Pro/Air? No, it does not. Adobe offers 7-day free trial version after which it is required to subscribe for one of their plans: Photography ($9.99/mo), Photoshop ($20.99/mo) or Creative Cloud Apps ($52.99/mo). Students and teachers can get Creative Cloud Apps for $19.99/mo.
Final Cut Pro X and Logic Pro X
Final Cut Pro X and Logic Pro X are the most popular Apple apps, but unfortunately, they are not free. Moreover, they are very expensive. You can buy Logic Pro X for $199.99 and Final Cut Pro X for $299.99 from the Apple App Store.
Antivirus Apps
Entroompreneur Mac Os 11
I often hear people saying that Macs don’t get viruses, however, I know that this is not true. It is true, however, that macOS has some rudimentary defense against malware, but if you are serious about security you need to either download a free antimalware app or buy a commercial one.
Zoom, Skype and Teams
Most video conferencing tools, such as Zoom and Teams are free for Macs. They have some internal limitations, but there is nothing specific to Apple products.
Entroompreneur Mac Os X
Games
Apple computers do not come with games included. So, if you are a fan of Fortnite or Civilization you have to purchase them. The same applies to Steam games.
There is no even Solitaire or Minesweeper on Mac (my favorites on PCs).