Regular cleaning keeps your keyboard responsive and your screen clear, and helps prevent dust and debris from building up around the vents and hinge. Make it part of your routine:

• Wipe the screen and exterior with a dry or slightly damp microfiber cloth — avoid paper towels, which can scratch the display.
• Turn the laptop off and gently shake or use compressed air to clear crumbs and dust from between the keys.
• Never spray cleaner directly onto the device; apply it to the cloth first.
• Keep food and drinks away from your laptop while it’s open and in use.

Laptops can be lost, damaged, or need repair — and when that happens, anything saved only to the local hard drive can be at risk. Back up your important files to the cloud regularly so your work is always safe and accessible from any device.

• Microsoft OneDrive — included with your KS account. Files saved here sync automatically and can be reached from myapps.microsoft.com on any device.
• Google Drive — a good option if you’re also using Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides for coursework.
• Turn on automatic syncing for your Desktop and Documents folders where possible, so new files back up without you having to remember.
• Before any repair visit, confirm your important files are backed up — devices are sometimes reset as part of service.

A tidy desktop and folder structure makes it much easier to find what you need before an assignment is due. A few built-in macOS tools make this easy:

• Group into folders — select related files on your desktop, then right-click (or Control-click) and choose “New Folder with Selection” to tidy them into one place.
• Use Stacks — right-click the desktop and turn on Stacks to automatically group files by kind, date, or tag, so new files sort themselves as you save them.
• Sort and arrange — use View > Sort By in Finder to order files by name, date, or kind, or View > Clean Up By to line them up neatly.
• Keep it synced — turning on iCloud Desktop and Documents (or saving straight into your OneDrive/Google Drive folder) means your organized files are backed up automatically, not just tidy.

For more detail and screenshots, see Apple’s guide: Ways to organize files on your Mac desktop.

Small daily habits make a real difference in how well your battery holds up over the school year:

• Charge overnight rather than letting the battery run down to empty regularly.
• Avoid leaving the laptop in direct sun or a hot car — heat is harder on battery health than normal daily use.
• It’s fine to use your laptop while it’s charging; there’s no need to unplug it once it reaches 100%.

Keeping macOS current helps security, performance, and compatibility with school software. Check for updates weekly under System Settings > General > Software Update, and watch the Announcements page for notices about required updates for testing or coursework.

A few more habits worth building in:

• Carry your laptop in a protective case or sleeve, especially in a backpack with books or binders.
• Close the lid gently and avoid setting anything on top of a closed laptop.
• Don’t leave your device unattended in shared or public spaces.