How to summarize an article on Mac

Ever found yourself staring at a lengthy article or PDF, wishing you could quickly get the key points without spending hours reading? You’re not alone. Summarizing articles can save you precious time, enhance your comprehension, and boost your productivity. Fortunately, Mac users have an array of built-in tools, helpful apps, and handy shortcuts at their fingertips to make text summarization quick and easy.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to summarize an article on Mac using native features, custom shortcuts, and helpful third-party tools. Plus, we’ll introduce you to a powerful tool from Jotform that takes PDF editing and summarization to the next level.

Why summarizing articles on Mac is helpful

Summarizing is more than just reducing text length. It’s about efficiently extracting essential information, enhancing your understanding, and boosting productivity. Here are some common scenarios where summarization can be a lifesaver:

• Students: Quickly digest research papers or lecture notes
• Professionals: Condense lengthy reports, emails, or meeting minutes
• Researchers: Efficiently manage extensive literature reviews and references

Mac devices come with built-in services designed to streamline these tasks, eliminating the need for complicated installations or costly software. Plus, with a few tweaks and shortcuts, you can turn your Mac into a fast and efficient summarization assistant.

How to use built-in Mac tools to summarize articles

macOS has a somewhat hidden gem called the Summarize Service, and it’s surprisingly useful once activated. Here’s how to get started:

Step-by-step guide

1. Activate the summarize service.
   • Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older versions).

• Navigate to Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → Services.

• Scroll down until you find Summarize.

• Check the box to enable it.

2. Summarize your text.
   • Open the article in Safari, Preview, or TextEdit.
   • Highlight the text you want to summarize.

• Right-click the selected text, then choose Services → Summarize.

• A pop-up will appear with a summary, and you can adjust its length using the slider.

This tool uses macOS’s Natural Language Processing (NLP) engine to identify key sentences and remove filler, making it ideal for quick overviews.

Shortcuts and automation for quick summarization on Mac

For frequent users, setting up shortcuts, and automation can streamline summarization even further.

Creating custom keyboard shortcuts

• Go to System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → App Shortcuts.

• Click the + button to add a new shortcut.

• Choose All Applications, enter Summarize as the menu title, and assign a shortcut like Command + Shift + S.

Now, you can highlight text and launch Summarize instantly.

Using Apple shortcuts for automation

The macOS Shortcuts app is a powerful tool for automating tasks. You can create a shortcut that

• Opens a document
• Extracts text
• Summarizes it using a script or action
• Saves the output in Notes or as a new file

This is especially useful if you frequently summarize PDFs or lengthy articles from the same source.

Third-party automation

Apps like Alfred or Raycast can help speed up your workflow. Combine them with clipboard managers and text-processing extensions to build your own summarization pipeline. If you’re working with PDFs, apps like PDF Expert, Skim, or Highlights can also streamline annotations and summaries.

Jotform’s AI PDF Summarizer: Smart summarization made easy

Looking for a more advanced summarization solution? Jotform’s AI PDF Summarizer has you covered. Here’s how effortlessly it works:

1. Upload your PDF: Import from your device, Google Drive, or Dropbox.

2. Generate your summary: Instantly create concise summaries with advanced AI.

3. Modify and share: Regenerate, shorten, or extend your summaries, and easily share them.

It’s ideal for research papers, business reports, or any document where a clean, editable summary can save time.

Additionally, Jotform’s PDF Editor allows you to:

• Automate PDF creation from form responses
• Customize designs effortlessly with a drag-and-drop editor
• Enhance PDFs using interactive widgets
• Seamlessly share your documents

Need even more control over your PDFs? Jotform also offers a suite of PDF tools:

• Split PDF: Divide documents into smaller files
• Merge PDF: Combine multiple documents effortlessly
• Flatten PDF: Secure and simplify your PDF files
• Compress PDF: Reduce file size for easy sharing
• Chat with PDF: Interact with documents conversationally

And if you want to convert a form into a fillable web format? Jotform Smart PDF Forms lets you do just that — perfect for remote teams or mobile users.

In summary…

Summarizing articles on a Mac doesn’t have to be complicated. Whether you’re using the built-in service, setting up handy shortcuts, or leveraging powerful tools like Jotform’s AI PDF Summarizer, you’ve got a range of options to match your workflow.

From quick summaries to advanced PDF handling, macOS and Jotform together make it easy to work smarter, not harder. Try a few of the methods from this post and see which ones best fit your daily routine.