Tech

What is the MacOS Reminder Tool and how do you use it?


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MacOS is filled with tools that make your life easier. And the busier we are, the more tools we need. Such is the case with reminders. I don’t know about you, but without the prompts, I’d be lucky to remember half of the things I need to get done.

With the latest iteration of Reminders (found in MacOS), has new features, such as:

  • Sort reminders by time and date
  • pinned list
  • sample
  • Text and list formatting
  • Completed section (when you complete a task)
  • Notification
  • card

I’ve used many reminder tools, and MacOS Reminders is, in fact, one of the most fun to work with. Not only does it fit perfectly into the MacOS user interface, but it’s also very easy to use and includes a widget for a sliding sidebar. You can also use Reminders as a to-do tool. Better yet, you can configure notifications for a specific time or even a location. For example, you might have a shopping list for Target. You can set up reminders that will pop up when you reach Target so you remember to check your shopping list.

Also: Apple’s MacBook Air M2: Product of the Year on ZDNET

Now that I’ve got your attention, let’s see how Reminders works.

Request

The only thing you need is a MacOS computer running MacOS 10.8 (Mountain Lion) or later. (Reminders is also available for iOS, but I don’t use an Apple phone, so I’ll focus on the desktop version of the app.)

How to create a list

You can open Reminders from Launchpad. Click the Launchpad icon, find the Reminders app, and click the launcher.

The list is not a reminder, although you can add reminders to the items on the list. To create your first list, click the + (plus sign) in the bottom-left corner of the Reminders window. In the resulting pop-up, name the list and choose a color. Click OK when you’re done.

List naming popup in MacOS Ventura.

Create a New List in MacOS Reminders.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

Once you’ve created the list, make sure to select it in the left pane. With the list selected, click the + in the upper-right corner of the Reminders window to add your first item to the list. On the new bullet, type the list item and press Enter on your keyboard to add another bullet.

The main MacOS Reminders window showing a new list.

Add an item to the list in MacOS Reminders.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

Let’s say you have an item in a list that must be processed by a specific time. Hover over the item to reveal an i with a circle around it. Click i and a new pop-up will open where you can add a note, set a date or location, and even set the priority of the item.

MacOS reminder pop-ups.

Add a reminder to a list item in MacOS Reminders.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

How to create a reminder

As the name suggests, you can also set reminders. Adding a reminder is very similar to adding a list. Select Reminders in the My List pane and click the + in the top-right corner of the Reminders window. This will add a new bullet where you type your prompt. Once you’ve added a new reminder, you can click the associated i icon and add notes, time- or location-based reminders, and set priority.

As you add more reminders, you’ll see four cards in the upper left corner appear. You can click on any of them to see both the reminder and the list. For example, click Scheduled and you’ll see all the lists and reminders with the associated schedule.

Templates and Smart Lists

When I first started using Prompts on Ventura, I noticed that both the Templates and Smart List entries in the File menu were grayed out. To use those features, I must first enable Reminders in iCloud. To do that, open Settings, go to iCloud, and set the ON/OFF slider for Location Reminders ON. This will enable the Templates and Smart List features in Reminders.

The MacOS Settings app opens for iCloud.

Turn on Reminders for iCloud.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

With Templates enabled, you can create a list, save it as a template, and then create a new list based on the template.

You can now convert a list to a Smart List, which will automatically tag all the items in the list with a tag that resembles the name of the list. Using Smart Lists is the only way to add tags to Reminders, so if that’s the feature you want to use, you’ll have to convert your list to a Smart List. To do this, select the list in question and click File > Convert to Smart List.

Tags make it easier to find items when you have multiple lists and multiple entries in each list.

And that’s the gist of using the MacOS Reminders app. If you’re looking for a simple way to keep a list and get reminders of the things you need to get done, this app should be at the top of your list.

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