MAC; The essentials.

So I’m in Starbucks Coffee Co. yet again, this time accompanied by the lovely Deedee Debra Dlaine Vanessa Meredith Eliot Miley, or Deeds, thinking of what I would like to write about.

Apple in Boston

So I’ll keep my simple ole’ life out of this post and make it all about you guys. & by you guys, I mean all of you mac users. Here’s the break down; Mac’s can be intimidating at first, after all most of mainstream America is glued to the classic windows OS. If you know what you are doing, windows OS is one of the most useful and dangerous tools of all time; however, it is problem bound.

Apple OS is what you se is what you get, no clicking “start” to shut down, or browsing through hundreds of files thrown around your system. Anyone with half a brain will be using their Mac effectively within the first few days. With that said; here’s my tips for all new mac users. The essentials.

The shortcuts & Spaces;

Personalize your keyboard shortcuts to your preference and make the most of them. Be sure to set up “Spaces” and make the most of your virtual desktops.

1. Open System Preferences.

2. Expose & Spaces.

3. Enable Spaces.

Choose the shortcut you find most useful.  Most common key shortcuts can be learned here. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1343

Quitting an application;

Unlike windows, Clicking the red circle in the top corner does not end a program process; this is designed to help mac OS run faster, since it doesn’t have to keep reopening programs, but once you open enough it can lug down your computer. To end an application “Right click” or hold command key and click the icon on the dock, and press Quit application. Or you could use that fancy new shortcut you learned. control + Q.

System Profile;

Forget how much RAM your mac has? Want to know how much room you have left on you HDD? No control paneling here, just click the apple logo in the top left hand screen and click “About this Mac” from there you can find out all the “more info” you could ever use.

Applications;

Is just another word for programs. And there are some useful applications out there. I strongly recommend downloading firefox, it’s always nice to have two browsers, just in case. If you’re a fan of twitter; try “twhirl”. TV, nothing like “Joost”. There are millions of applications made to make your life simple. You can find more info and useful applications here.

http://www.mactricksandtips.com/2008/01/top-100-essential-mac-applications.html

Terminal;

Once you get a little more accustomed to the Mac life, you can change up command lines in the application “Terminal”. I do not recommend playing around in terminal, as it can seriously damage your computer, make sure you know what your doing before you get any risky ideas. Some pretty neat tricks can be found here.

http://www.mactricksandtips.com/2008/02/top-50-terminal-commands.html

So; theres my two cents, I hope you found this any bit helpful. Want to add something, or give a suggestion, email me at rustylow@gmail.com