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Mac OS X – Brand New or Starting Over – Part One

September 10, 2007 by debbie T | Mac Corner

My good friend is a brand new Mac switcher. I have been planning this article for months, and figured since she was brave enough to leap over to the “good” side, I better get my butt in gear.

These are my notes for new Mac switchers, and old users with new Macs. It is also meant to help me whenever I reinstall Mac OS X in the future.

This first tutorial covers:

The first time you start your new Mac
and System Preference settings – I am writing this tutorial based on my experience on a MacBook Pro, but if you are using a desktop Mac, there might be a few settings that are different, such as trackpad and battery options.

When you boot into Mac OS X for the first time, you are greeted with a warm Welcome video. This always brings a smile to my face when I see it. If you look at this video, you can see the camera is bouncing because my head was bobbing up and down with the music; I am such a nerd, but I was so excited to see it!

Here is a better version of the video.

So, Mac OS X launches.

Choose a photo for your user account. Be prepared, iSight opens and you are staring at your own face!
Security update runs & installs all necessary updates to the OS. It will reboot, and OS X might take a long time to restart. This is normal.

System Preferences

To launch System Preferences, choose Apple menu>System Preferences. Another way is to double click the icon on the Dock. system preferences icon

First, choose the Security icon.

Check the box for “Disable Auto Login” – this will require a password every time you log into the computer. I highly suggest you keep this setting on.
Check the box for “Require Password to unlock each secure system preference. This will activate the little lock at the bottom left corner. You will be required to type in an admin user name and password to make security changes. Highly recommended.
Depending on where I am using my computer, I don’t always check the box for “Require password to wake computer from sleep or screen saver.” It is an optional setting.

Security settings

Appearance settings: these are all user specific settings. Play around with them and choose what is best for you. Below is a screen shot of my settings.

Security settings

BlueTooth settings: It is a user specific preference; since, I don’t use bluetooth, I keep it turned off. It only drains the battery if you aren’t utilizing it.

Display settings: I keep “Auto-adjust Brightness” UN-checked. I found it to be problematic in my older PowerBook; sometimes shadows would trigger an adjustment, and I found my display constantly flickering. Keep the box checked if you would like to test out this feature.

On the Display:Color tab, I click the “Calibrate” button, and choose 2.2 Television Gamma, Native, and then name/save it. I don’t know too much about monitor calibration, so there may be more advanced settings and options.

Energy Saver settings: There are settings for the Power Adapter (when it is plugged in) and Battery (when it is running on battery). You may have different needs, but my settings are:

Power Adapter: Sleep

“Put the computer to sleep” – never
“Put display to sleep” – after 30 minutes

Power Adapter: Options

Checked box for “Wake for Ethernet network admin access”
Checked box for “Auto reduce the brightness before sleep”
Unchecked box for “Restart automatically after power failure”
Checked box for “Show battery status in menu bar” (the menu bar is located at the top right on your display)

Battery: Sleep

“Put the computer to sleep” – after 1 hour
“Put display to sleep” – after 30 minutes

Battery: Options

Unchecked box for “Reduce the brightness of the built-in display when using this power source. (I like keeping my display on the same brightness whether I am using the power adapter or battery. If you need to save battery, then keep this checked. The display brightness will be lowered)
Checked box for “Auto reduce the brightness before sleep”
Checked box for “Show battery status in menu bar” (the menu bar is located at the top right on your display)

There is also a “Schedule” button to set up a schedule to automatically wake up or shut down at a specified time.

Keyboard and Mouse settings: These settings are user specific, but the Trackpad settings are worth a mention.

I still am not 100% happy with the MBP trackpad vs the older PowerBook trackpad. Because the track pad is larger on the MBP, I accidentally touch it a lot; so that is why I keep the box checked next to the setting for “Ignore accidental input” – on the PowerBook I left that unchecked, and it worked very well.

The problem with this setting, is when using I trackpad, the cursor disappears a lot. For example, when I am renaming a file, after I type in the name, it takes a few seconds of swishing the cursor to force it to appear because it thinks it is accidental input. When this setting box is unchecked, the cursor appears immediately when it is moved.

The problem with leaving this UNchecked is when I am typing, because the trackpad is larger, my thumbs sometimes brush against the trackpad, causing the cursor (and my input) to jump to a new spot on the page. So all of a sudden I am typing on another line.

Anyway, here are my settings for the touchpad. Yours may vary.

Trackpad settings

Network Settings: Airport settings: Every MacBook Pro has built in wireless capability called AirPort Extreme. If you have a wireless router set up, then it is very easy to connect your MBP to the network. In System Preferences, choose the Network icon, then select Airport from the “show” pull down menu, and then click on the Airport tab.

For the first setting, I recommend the default to be “Join Preferred Networks”, NOT “Automatic”. This is especially important if you are on the road. You don’t want to join any old network automatically, as it could be a security risk. This will allow you to join only your preferred networks unless you give permission to do otherwise.

When you first look at the Airport settings, your home network should show in the network name area, along with the network security (ie WPA, WEP). Double-click the network to connect. Type in your security passkey.

If your network setting has SSID broadcast disabled, then you will not see your network on the list, as it is hidden. It might be the easiest solution to temporarily enable SSID broadcast in your router settings, or alternatively use the “+” button to manually type your network name.

Airport settings

Once you have connected to your network, click the “Options” button.

My recommendations are to choose “Ask before joining an open network” – an open network is a network without any security, such as the Library or a coffee shop. It could be a risk to automatically join any insecure network. I like knowing which networks are available, and I like having the choice to join or not.

The other two settings I have chosen are optional, as are the other settings I didn’t set. You can easily restore default by clicking that button.

Airport Options settings

Sharing Settings: Choose the Sharing icon from System Preferences, then the Services tab.

This is the place to enable file sharing, along with a other services. I have all disabled, but in the past, I have set up a testing server and enabled the Personal Web Sharing option.

I would someday like to learn more about all these services, but right now, I am a scared rabbit and leave them all disabled.

Next is the Firewall tab. Click on the Start button to start the firewall. The firewall protects you from other users on the network and beyond. It is not a replacement for a solid hardware firewall (as on a router), but every security option helps!

Each of the firewall options can be checked. This will open up specific ports allowing access through the firewall. Most of these options can only be changed by an administrative user. If you don’t need any of these services, don’t open the ports; it only weakens your security.

I am not really familiar with the tab Internet’s settings, so leave those at default, all unchecked.

User Accounts Settings: Once you get settled into using your new Mac, I highly suggest creating a new user account with admin privileges, and changing your personal account to a standard “limited access” user.

This is recommended because it will add another layer of security to your system; it will require you to type in the admin user name & password for any change outside of your own user directory. That means, anytime a new app is installed, you will be required to type in the admin info.

Why is this a good thing? Because if there is ever a Mac virus or spyware that is programmed to auto-install on your system, you will be alerted (hopefully) to type in your admin. It just gives you LESS power, but allows easy access to the power if you need it.

Anyway, make sure to add your new account first, before changing your access settings.

In the Accounts window, click the little + (plus) button under the left column. Type in the new user information, and make sure to check the box to “allow the user to administer the computer.”

After you have a new admin account and password, keep that information safe. I suggest writing it on a piece of paper and keeping it close by.

Now, click on your account name. UNcheck the box next to “allow the user to administer the computer.” This will remove your admin privileges, and make you a standard limited access user.

It is easy to restore admin status. Just re-check the box and type in the admin user name & password; voila, your powers are restored. I temporarily restore admin power to myself when I run software update, or other times when I know I will be installing a lot of software. I change it back once I am done.

Well, that’s it for now. I will be back soon with Part 2 where I will report on Finder settings, and some software tips.

Permalink | Comments (4)

There are 4 comments

Hey Debbie,

Great job!!!

Chalk on the Q boards
Comment by Kaye Randolph on September 11th, 2007
Me waves to Chalk!! hellooooo!
Comment by debbieT on September 11th, 2007
Do you have any comments on creation of multiple accounts (for a single user machine)? I’ve heard that it’s not advisable to run all the time as the main admin account and similarly the creation of a fresh “ghost” account when starting a new machine can be useful. The thinking being that you can resolve a lot of issues that way then back out and relog as you. It sounded a lot like doing a “Safe Start” but better.
Comment by Jed on July 31st, 2008
Hey Jed,

Yes, if you read over the last part of my article, yes, I highly recommend using a “limited” access account for every day activities.

I don’t really have an opinion on setting up a 3rd “ghost” acct but yes, I have heard it is helpful as well. I am not sure if setting up the ghost acct is necessary at the start of a fresh install, or if it works just as well by creating one when needed.

Thanks for visiting and for commenting Jed!
Comment by debbie T on July 31st, 2008