Easy Mac OS X Lion - Kate Binder [25]
* * *
Chapter 5: Customizing Your Mac
It’s your Mac—why not have some fun with it? There are myriad ways to make your Mac your own, from changing its desktop picture, its screen saver, and even your own login icon to changing the way the Finder works and responds to you. You can even change the Finder’s language to any of a couple dozen alternatives, including Asian languages, or you can set up your Mac to talk to you—and listen for your responses.
Your custom settings are associated with your login name, so they’re automatically put into effect each time you log in. When other users log in, their own settings are activated. That means a single Mac can offer each user a custom experience. Your custom settings can include useful preferences such as network locations and more fun preferences such as your desktop wallpaper.
In this chapter, you’ll learn how to customize the Finder, the Dock, the desktop, your screen saver, and your security preferences. You’ll also learn how to make your own Dashboard widgets—tiny custom programs that you can build from pieces of your favorite websites. If you move your computer around or switch networks a lot, you’ll benefit from the “Creating Custom Network Locations” task, which shows how to create custom location settings that change all your network preferences with a single click.
Taking Advantage of Custom Settings
Moving the Dock Around
Although the Dock normally lives at the bottom of your screen, it doesn’t have to stay there. If you prefer, you can put it on the left or right side of the screen instead. No matter which edge of the screen it’s on, the Dock works the same way and you can set its preferences to suit your tastes.
Choose Apple menu, Dock, Position on Left to move the Dock to the left edge of the screen.
Choose Apple menu, Dock, Position on Right to move the Dock to the right edge of the screen.
* * *
Tip: Hide and Go Dock
To hide the Dock, choose Apple menu, Dock, Turn Hiding On; now the Dock sinks off the edge of the screen whenever you’re not using it. Move your mouse back to that edge, and the Dock pops back out.
* * *
* * *
Note: Dock Substitutes
The Dock can get pretty crowded. Some users use the Dock strictly as an application switcher, with inactive programs and documents stored in a third-party Dock substitute such as DragThing (www.dragthing.com).
* * *
Changing the Dock’s Size
The more stuff you stash in the Dock, the more room it takes up on your screen. If it gets too full, you can shrink it to give you more room onscreen—or, if you prefer, you can make it larger so it’s easier to see what it contains.
Click the line between the two halves of the Dock and drag upward to enlarge the Dock.
Drag downward to reduce the Dock’s size.
* * *
Tip: There’s Always Another Way
You can also use the Dock Size slider in the Dock preferences (choose Apple menu, Dock, Dock Preferences) if you happen to be going there to change other preferences as well.
* * *
Customizing the Dock’s Behavior
As if moving the Dock around and changing its size weren’t enough, there’s yet more you can do to make the Dock work just the way you want it to. The Dock preferences enable you to control the way the Dock moves—or, more precisely, the way its icons move and change size and the way windows enter the Dock.
Choose Apple menu, Dock, Dock Preferences.
Click and drag the Magnification slider toward Max if you want Dock icons to be enlarged as you pass the mouse cursor over them.
Choose an option from the Minimize windows using pop-up menu.
Click the Animate opening applications check box to make Dock icons bounce as their programs start up.
* * *
Tip: Dock Behavior in Another Context
You can control Dock Preferences by Control-clicking the dividing line between the halves of the Dock. The contextual