We all like to think we’re IT masters, but a MacBook is a little box of magic if you just know how to use it and we’re still learning things each and every day that blow our minds.

Here are 5 Apple Mac Hacks you will love that we picked up along the way that will unleash the power of your Mac.

1. The emoji keyboard

If you’re stuck using the old-fashioned emojis, or even typing them out in long-form, then you’re stuck firmly in the 90s. You can unlock a keyboard full of cutting edge emojis by simply pressing: Control, Command and Space Bar together. Note: This trick only works on the OS X Mavericks and OS X Yosemite systems.

2. The quick calculator

Spotlight Calculator

When you need to do a calculation, just call up Spotlight with Command and Space Bar and put your calculation in there. The answer pops up right in front of your face.

3. Sign things without printing them out

Annotate

We’ve all been through that tortuous printing and scanning process just to sign a document and you just don’t have to. In Preview, go to Tools, select Annotate, Signatures, Manage Signatures and then you can just sign with a pen on the trackpad. This is an ingenious hack that will save you serious time. Alternatively, photograph your signature with the inbuilt camera and then paste it in using Preview.

4. Instant dictionary

Instant Dictionary OSX

If you’ve ever copied a word, opened a new browser window and pasted it into Google to get the meaning, there’s a better way. Simply hover the cursor over the word and press Command, Control and D together. A dictionary window will pop up and fill in your knowledge gap.

5. Run Windows apps

Crossover Mac

We’ve all been left frustrated by the lack of a specific program for the Mac, but CrossOver Mac allows you to run Windows applications without the whole Parallels set-up. You’ll have to pay for the privilege, at £38, but it saves so much time and so many messed up systems that it’s worth the investment in our opinion.

We provide Apple Mac repairs and computer support every day to smart people that simply want to understand their computer better. The more you know, the faster you can get things done, so you can get back to the fun stuff.