new to Mac- lots of questions....

patti2907 wrote:

1) Can I somehow ??? download The Weather Network app onto a Macbook Air M1?

I do not believe that The Weather Network has apps for computers – their site only mentions apps for Android, iOS, smart TVs, and streaming devices. If you're on a computer running macOS, Windows, or Linux, they expect you to use their Web site.

If, by. any chance you meant The Weather Channel, it's a similar deal there. If you're on a computer, there is no app – only a Web site.

2) I hate the Calendar and weather thing that I can't get rid of on my screen. Ive tried removing them from the Dock and every other way I can think of. HOW can I get rid of them?

It sounds like perhaps you have widgets on your screen that you don't want. See this article for directions on how to add and remove widgets.

Add and customize widgets on Mac - Apple Support

I want to install the calendar and weather apps THAT I WANT. Is that NOT possible on Macs???

You cannot remove most of the pre-installed applications that are included with macOS. This is due to the way in which Apple has hardened parts of the operating system against malware attack. The only ones that live outside the protected area are the really big ones: Pages, Numbers, Keynote, iMovie, and GarageBand. Unlike the other applications, they are available from the App Store (at no charge), and they live in a part of the system where you could actually delete them (if you were really pressed for storage space).

That does not mean that you are forced to use them, or that you cannot install other similar ones.

If you go to the App Store and search for "weather", you will find many weather apps – including some that display weather information using widgets or in the menu bar. You may want to look both at "Mac apps" and at "iPhone & Pad Apps" ((Macs with M-series chips can run iPhone and Pad apps if the developers allow it.)

But there's no Weather Network app there. You can't download an app if the developer hasn't provided one. That is true both for macOS and for Windows.

Covering the basics of Mac and macOS use:

Mac User Guide - Apple Support

Finder on your Mac - Apple Support

Use the Finder on Mac - Apple Support

To learn more about using the Mac App Store:

App Store User Guide for Mac - Apple Support

Re: apps that are running and you don't know how to "get rid of them":

To Quit (shut down) an application, click on the app's name in the Menu bar and select "Quit app name". For the Safari app you would select "Quit Safari". Or, to quit the app named at the left end of the Menu bar, you can press the keys Command Q (⌘Q) to quit it.

Quit apps on Mac - Apple Support

“[…]I have SO many questions right now that I can't even remember them all, but rest assured...I will be asking because Ive spent hours online trying to search for answers myself, to no avail.[…]”

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Searching for Online Items:

If looking for items from certain web sites and on certain topics, then make your search query end with site:[domain].

See my User Tip:

Search through certain sites, such as these forums, through Google: Find Older Posts: [username] site:discussions.apple.com - Apple Support