Other Sites
17 November 2006
In this series, so far, we've covered structured knowledge, process, network and system security, and backups.
Now it's time to move on to literacy concepts involving daily operations. The Mac OS X system preferences, Finder preferences, View Options, and basic operations can seem overwhelming, and so one has to develop a feeling for good practices. This can make your life simpler and improve the reliability of the OS and your data.
Also, Mac OS X is a multi-tasking, multi-user operating system, and you may not be the only user on the system. Good housekeeping, strange as that word may sound, is important. When you first start using a Mac, that's a very good time to get into some good habits, but experienced users are always improving their operational strategy. Accordingly, let's take a look at some good practices handling this wonderful operating system that Apple has built.
OS DesignIn order to respond to what's presented on the screen of a Macintosh, it's helpful to understand Apple's design philosophy. That philosophy is derived from the fact that Mac OS X is a hybrid system: a beautiful and functional user interface "on top" of a UNIX operating system. (FreeBSD for the sake of simplicity here.) When working with an OS as complicated as this, one has to have a philosophy about what complexities to surface to the user and what things to obscure. Apple calls this the tinkerability factor.
Windows and Linux have a high tinkerability. Lots of configuration options and settings are exposed to the user. The user feels that everything is under his control. Linux and Windows have their own historical reasons for allowing the user (or the administrator) to tinker, mostly related to business rules and administrative control. The downside here is that the maze of settings can be overwhelming to a user who just wants to get his work done. The Macintosh has a legacy of being used by people who use their Mac as a tool to get some higher order task done, not to tinker with their OS as an end in itself.
So Apple consciously obscures settings that they don't think most users need to worry about. For some extremely technical people, this makes Mac OS X seem overly simplistic, and they don't like it -- even to the point of ridicule.
The option is still there, however, for users to fully tinker, but they must do it on the UNIX command line. Apple judges that anyone who wants very much to tinker with a UNIX OS ought to know enough to use the UNIX shell commands. This makes a UNIX computer useable by mere mortals but simultaneously very capable in the hands of UNIX experts.That's something that's never been done in the history of computers. Once you understand that philosophy, you'll appreciate Mac OS X more.
Windows users who fiddle a lot with endless configuration GUIs are the most likely to feel that Macs are toys. But I've never, ever known a UNIX expert who also understands Windows to have this unwarranted view.
OS OperationsWith this design philosophy in mind, let's move on to some practical aspects of OS operations.
1. Accounts. There can be many users on Mac OS X, each with their own login name, password and user settings. However, when you are the only user, there are still good reasons to have multiple accounts. In fact, you should probably have four accounts even if you are the only user.
- An everyday administrative account
- An emergency administrative account
- An unprivileged user account
- A test account
I believe that it is acceptable for the average user to log in and work each day as a privileged, administrative user. Mac OS X security is good enough to support this. However, very, very rarely, account settings can become corrupted, and it's important to have a backup administrative account so that you (or an expert friend) can log in and fix things. Also, it's nice to have an unprivileged account in case you want to loan your computer to someone or plan to do some experimenting or research at dangerous Websites. When an unprivileged account is exposed to potential threats, it's much harder for malware to infiltrate the OS. Finally, a test account use useful for installing experimental software to make sure it can't possibly damage or infect your system or your everyday account. A astute user will keep the password for each of these accounts different, and auto-login should be turned off. (System Preferences -> Accounts -> Login Options.)
2. Root User. Mac OS X has the unique feature that it differentiates a user with administrative privileges from the all-powerful UNIX root user. This is so that you can install software and make system settings changes without having the power of a root user to destroy other user's files and even the OS files to the point where the Mac won't even start up.
Even if you are an experienced UNIX user, it's probably better not to rush into enabling the root user unless you're a developer. If you don't don't know what the UNIX root user is, have no fear. This account is turned off be default and your computer is thereby more secure.
3. KISS. You've probably heard the phrase, Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS). When working with today's operating systems, it's wise not to install too much software that adds features or customizes your work space. While no user installed software can change protected system files, it can still tinker with your settings, libraries, and sometimes play tricks to create functionality that Apple may not bless.One way to detect this is when software, instead of just having you drag an application to the Applications folder instead uses an installer and asks for your administrative password during the install. That means that it's probably going to make changes or additions to a folder in your home folder called "Library." This Library folder is right there along with your pictures, movies, and document folders. It's better if software runs as a standalone application: just double click and run. But if you're presented with a ".pkg" file (other than one by Apple) that wants to go though an installation process, be very certain that you want to proceed and you trust the vendor. Supplying the administrative password to an installer is its ticket to make changes to your system that could cause conflicts. The most conscientious developers provide an "uninstall" option which will remove all the files the installer placed. Look for this option in the best software.
When you back up, back up your entire home folder. The Library folder has important information about licenses and preferences for your installed software. If you lose the Library folder because it wasn't backed up, you may end up having to reinstall many of your purchased applications and shareware.
4. The User Folder. All user data and accounts are kept in a major OS folder called "Users". Within that folder, each user has their home folder, and for the user logged on, it actually appears as a small icon of a house. This is the only place on your hard disk that's protected from OS updates. If you place personal data anywhere outside your home folder, it's a candidate to be erased if necessary during OS upgrades. That's just the way UNIX works.
5. The Desktop. The files that reside on your desktop are really just stored in a special folder, called, Ta Da!, Desktop. The Desktop folder in your home folder has the property that it displays its files (and other folders) on your desktop. This is not really a great place to store files for the long term, so it's a really good idea to eventually move your desktop files to a logical place, say, Documents or Pictures or another folder that you can create. I have found that, during the time files are temporarily on my desktop, it's good to have them alphabetized so I can easily find them. Do this by clicking somewhere on the desktop, hitting Command + J, and select "Keep arranged by Name".
6. Applications are Folders. One of the neat features of Mac OS X is that applications are really just special folders that look like a single icon. When you double-click the application icon, the OS knows how to go inside that folder, find the executable, gather resources, and launch the application. This makes it easy to copy applications, and it makes it easy for the developer to keep things simple. Often, all the documentation for the application is inside that folder and accessed from the application's Help menu. However, just because the author puts things in that application folder doesn't mean you should. Keep your application created documents in your, TaDa!, Documents folder.
7. File Name Extensions. Mac OS X keeps track of file extensions, but some people who are long-time Mac users don't like them. If you're coming from a Windows or Linux environment, you'll probably feel more comfortable with the OS displaying the file extensions. Access this with the Apple Menu, Finder -> Preferences -> Advanced. Yes, Apple makes you look for it. Some of us love these file name extensions that designate a file's type, but Mac OS X, by design, doesn't really need them. It's up to you.
8. Screen shots. It's really easy to take screen shots with Mac OS X, and these come in very handy at times for recording transactions in Safari, grabbing photos, and documenting errors. My favorite is Command + Shift + 4 which changes the cursor to a "+". Then you just drag over the area you want to "shoot" and let go. The image is saved to your desktop.
If you don't like the format of the file that's created (the default in Tiger is Portable Network Graphics (.png)), you can change it with a very trustworthy piece of software called TinkerTool. It's merely an application that safely changes some some system settings that Apple chose not to surface to the user. I recommend the jpg/jpeg format for screen shots. It's the most widely used especially when you want to e-mail a screen shot to someone using a different OS. You can learn more about screen shots from the Apple menu Help item. Enter the key words "screen shot" without the quotes.
If you're literate about these Mac OS X essentials, you'll find that you'll stay more organized, your data will be more secure, and the operating system will remain more stable.
This is Warp Core column #84. The Warp Core archives are here:
Year 2006* Your humble author also writes a column for TMO.
John Martellaro is a senior scientist and author. A former U.S. Air Force officer, he has worked for NASA, White Sands Missile Range, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Apple Computer. During his five years at Apple, he worked as a Senior Marketing Manager for science and technology, Federal Account Executive, and High Performance Computing Manager. His interests include alpine skiing, SciFi, astronomy, and Perl. John lives in Colorado. He can be contacted via his Website or the Applelinks Contact link.
Tags: Hot Topics ď News ď Warp Core ď
