System Preferences

Apple has always been about setting the user first. Why would they not let you be able to customize your computer? That is where the System Preferences come into play. You can configure many options with in the System Preferences Application.



There are two ways you can access System Preferences:

Click on the Apple Menu -> System preferences



or

Click on the System Preferences icon in the Dock.





This will open the System Preferences Application





As you can see, it is broken down into four categories: Personal, hardware, Internet & Network, and System. Sometimes you will have an application that has its own system preference settings and that will be shown in a fifth category of Other.

• Personal preferences enable you to configure options on how the computer looks.
• Hardware preferences enable you to configure how certain hardware devices (CD Rom, keyboard, etc…) work.
• Internet & Network preferences enable you to configure options related to Internet and Network connections.
• System preferences enable you to control your computer’s operation.
• Other preferences are for other applications that are not installed with OS X.

You can customize the toolbar at the top of the window. Simply drag one of the items you wish to the tool bar and it will be added. This is handy for those options that you are always changing.

Before:



After:



To show all preference options again, simply click the Show All button in the toolbar.



As with any application, to quit you will choose the System Preference’s Menu -> Quit.