macOS Mojave first impressions

Updating to macOS Mojave

The update process was easy – just started it off and left my Mac to it – and I haven’t (yet) noticed any problems caused due to the upgrade, unlike some earlier upgrades where lots of knock-on effects were seen in general use and in things like the Mail app and Finder app.

New features, options and utilities in macOS Mojave

In contrast to some of the previous macOS version updates, Mojave brings quite a few new visible features, options and utilities, which I’ve mentioned below.

New Screenshot utility (use Shift + Cmd + 5) is good – take screenshot, then can go straight into editing it and sharing it by clicking on the preview of it, or you can swipe it away to get rid of it – so if you’ve got a screenshot you want to then do something with, its all one process, works very smoothly. This works for both screenshot images and screen captures.
Finder – Gallery View might be useful, extra metadata info it shows is useful, Quick Actions are a bit limited at moment but could be very useful if expanded
Dynamic Desktop – have turned it on, waiting to see what happens
Stacks – have it turned on, but not many files on Desktop, will have to see in future if I get a messy desktop
Continuity Camera – looks useful, just need a situation where need it to see how useful it is
Apple News – good to have this option for reading through the News
Stocks – integrates well with Apple News stories shown – can see all Business News or click each stock you have setup and see the details of that stock and then any related news stories
Voice Memos – seems good, though don’t really have a use for it at the moment
Safari – has better privacy controls to prevent tracking by advertisers and websites
Mac App Store – re-designed – looks a bit amateurish in places but will see

Overall thoughts

This has been the smoothest update process so far and there also seems to be a performance improvement in general. so this update is well worth taking some time for.

Pat Walsh fixed my site within hours of my contacting him – his WordPress website fix service clearly works!

Douglas Green, Douglas Software

Pat came to Composed to respond to our (increasingly urgent) need of QA on mobile and web and I can testify he more than fulfilled the task. On the Android side, his very structured approach (first exploratory testing, then focus on defining test plans for a variety of scopes) and his clear knowledge of the latest mobile technologies have quickly paid off. He was involved directly with the developers (including myself) and this very dynamic relationship enabled us to annihilate bugs swiftly and efficiently.

David Ferrand, Android Developer, Composed

Pat performs comprehensive website testing for us, across all the main browsers and platforms, including mobile devices. His flexible approach to testing and clear feedback enable us to have confidence that the business end of our website is still working smoothly after system updates and changes.

Steve Liu, Manager, Wicked Lasers

Couldn’t recommend Pat highly enough. He goes beyond what you’d expect of a QA tester, commenting more broadly on user experience and even design. He’s quick, efficient and thorough – couldn’t ask for any more.

Rob Calvert, Director, Click

Pat Walsh provided Kingston Valdes with a professional and personable service that was excellent value. The site was built and tested quickly, we are delighted with the results, and we have already had positive feedback from some of our clients. If you’re thinking of building a new site or adapting an existing one, I’d certainly recommend speaking with Pat about it.

Kathy Valdes, Kingston Valdes

Pat is an excellent one-stop-shop for testing Apps and Websites. He is a self-starter who just knows what needs to be done and gets on with it, and is responsive to requests for any specific testing requirements. He provides test plans and reports as a matter of course and was a pleasure to work with. I will definitely be working with Pat again if the opportunity arises.

Andrew Birley, PM, Storythings

Pat has been absolutely incredible at testing each of our projects he works on. He’s very professional, organised and diligent. I look forward to using him again in the future.

Oliver Thurtle, Director of Technology, Drum

We’ve worked with Pat Walsh on a number of very different projects, from interactive video projects to mobile apps. His work is very thorough and has quickly become an essential and important phase of all the production work we do at Storythings. He’s thorough, diligent, and a pleasure to work with.

Matt Locke, Director, Storythings

We hired Pat to help with QA of a music streaming app. We needed someone with that magic “6th sense” of where the bugs are lurking; the ones which developers tend to miss. Pat more than fulfilled this need, with highly methodical approach and a great eye for detail.

Subsequently Pat has provided QA services for a personal app project of mine, finding a significant issue which had been lurking for some time.

Pat is a real asset to any team – highly competent technically but also easy going and a great guy to work with. Highly recommended!

Andrew Ebling, Head of App Development, Composed

macOS Mojave first impressions