[tzs]

A keyboard is sufficient to turn Bluetooth on:

• Hit ⌘-space to open Spotlight.

• Type enough of "bluetooth file exchange" to find the Bluetooth File Exchange app and launch it.

• Bluetooth File Exchange will see that Bluetooth is off and give you a dialog offering to turn it on, with turning it on the default action, so just hit return and Bluetooth will get turned on.

[slowwriter]

Given very careful instruction this might have worked. But I didn’t know this trick myself to begin with. Now I do!

[beAbU]

How do you hit cmd-space when your keyboard is disconnected?

[tzs]

This branch of the thread is about the case where your Bluetooth devices charge by USB, and so you grab your charging cable and connect them to your computer. It was pointed out that Apple's Bluetooth mouse does not work over USB even though it does charge over USB.

My point is that you do not need to get your mouse connected in order to turn on Bluetooth. You just need to get one of {keyboard, mouse, trackpad} connected.

[ydnaclementine]

>"No grandpa, hit the one that looks like it has a pretzel on it"

[tzs]

Or "the key that has the word 'command' printed on it" or "the key one left of the space bar" or "the key one right of the space bar".

Or, if their Mac supports "Hey Siri" and it is enabled, "Hey Siri, Open Bluetooth File Exchange".

[cassianoleal]

Or, you know... just show them in the camera since they're still on Zoom.