This One Goes To The Eleventh Dimension — Mac Geek Gab 1111

Mac Geek Gab — Apple Tips, Tricks, and Troubleshooting

You’ll come out smarter — and maybe even safer — after this week’s Mac Geek Gab with Pilot Pete, Adam Christianson, Dave Hamilton, and a triumphant return from John F. Braun. From unlocking hidden gems in iOS 26’s Health app and securing your Mint Mobile account with Number Lock to setting up ChatGPT Tasks like it’s your own personal Knowledge Navigator, you’ll pick up tricks to stay ahead. Printer drivers got you down? John’s got fixes. Want to finally make your Apple TV remote work right or unlock secret iOS 18 controls? Done. And yes, migrating to Apple Silicon? Don’t Get Caught without Go64.

For the gearheads, you’ll find Cool Stuff Found like the FIXD car scanner (a modern Automatic replacement), QuickLook folder previews, AirBattery to track your mouse’s juice, and Parachute Backup to wrangle your iCloud data. Got a Brother printer? Scan straight to USB — no computer needed. Oh, and HomePods as stereo TV speakers? Surprisingly great even though you’re skipping the center channel. With AirTags, shortcuts, OBD2 adapters, and even blood oxygen data hacks, this episode’s got something for every geek in your galaxy.

• 00:00:00 Mac Geek Gab 1111 for Wednesday, October 13th, 2025
  • October 13th: National Train Your Brain Day (and also National No Bra Day)
  • MGG Monthly Giveaway – Your license to PowerPhotos!
  • The MGG Merch Store is Live!
• Quick Tips
  • 00:00:01 n-Bryan-QT-Tap Search Magnifying glass in iOS 26 Health to get to the menu of categories
  • 00:04:50 JFB-QT-Check your printer drivers if you have paper selection issues
    • Canon iX6820 Large Paper Printer
  • 00:08:04 Uncle Jamie-QT-Enable Mint Mobile’s Number Lock to prevent SIM-swapping
  • 00:10:42 QT-Setup ChatGPT Tasks to stay on top of your projects
    • It’s like the Knowledge Navigator *could* have been
  • 00:15:41 Tell us how you’re using AI at [email protected]
  • 00:17:48 X/Twitter client will let you summarize with Grok
  • 00:20:37 JFB-QT-If your Apple TV remote is being finicky, try un-pairing and re-pairing it
  • 00:23:17 Ben-QT-1110-iOS 18 added remote control
  • 00:25:45 Robert-QT-Create a Shortcut to Toggle Liquid Glass Effects
• Sponsors
  • 00:27:53 SPONSOR: Zapier – Zapier is the easiest way to automate your tasks. Transform how you work with Zapier and AI. Get started for free today by visiting Zapier.com/macgeekgab
  • 00:29:36 SPONSOR: CleanMyMac. Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use my code MACGEEK for 20% off at clnmy.com/macgeekgab
• On the subject of trade-ins
  • 00:30:59 JFB-2018 i7 Mac mini trade-in with Apple went smoothly
    • “I’m no prevaricator”
  • 00:35:11 If migrating from Intel to Apple Silicon, check Go64
  • 00:39:53 Bill-QT-In-person Apple Trade-Ins are More Reliable
  • 00:40:57 Bill-QT-1109-Apple’s Trade-ins hold value for me
  • 00:42:20 Do you put a case or a screen protector on your watch
• Do HomePods work as TV sound?
  • 00:43:50 Andy-1110-Stereo Speakers can work for TV
  • 00:49:09 n-Blake-1110-I Switched from a Center Channel to 2 HomePods and love it!
• Cool Stuff Found
  • 00:49:49 JFB-CSF-FIXD Car Scanner
    • Kinda like the old Automatic OBD2 adapter
  • 00:54:39 Fist shake for Mercedes!
  • 00:56:23 JFB-QT-Put an AirTag in your car
    • Just don’t let it fall into the suckwich!
  • 00:58:00 Check OBD Fusion for open source OBD-software
  • 00:59:36 Tony-CSF-Folder Quick Look
    • BetterZip’s QuickLook Extension
  • 01:03:17 Avraham-CSF-AirBattery shows your Mouse’s battery level
  • 01:05:27 Another fist shake for Mercedes – No battery warning for FOB
  • 01:08:18 Terry-CSF-O2 Buddy: Blood Oxygen brings Blood Oxygen data back to Apple Watch
  • 01:13:20 Tom-CSF-Parachute Backup for iCloud
  • 01:15:14 JFB-CSF-Brother DCP-L2550GW
    • Brother HL-L2460DW
  • Quick Tip: Scan directly to USB on your printer
• 01:19:40 MGG 1111 Outtro
  • Find JohnFBraun on X!
  • 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 YouTube Page
  • Mac Geek Gab Live Calendar
  • This Week’s MGG Premium Contributors
  • MGG Apple Podcasts Reviews
  • [email protected]
  • 224-888-GEEK
  • Active MGG Sponsors and Coupon Codes List
  • BackBeat Media Podcast Network