Mac OS X Configuration

Yet another Mac OS X page on this wiki... This time I try to write down my personal preferences how to configure a new user on a Mac OS X system. I only include details about the main elements of the system (e.g. the Finder and some System Preferences) and the most important applications (e.g. Firefox).

Finder

Preferences

• Do not display any symbols (e.g. hard drives) on Desktop
• Display "Computer" in sidebar, do not display "iDisk" in sidebar
• Display all suffixes
• Do not confirm suffix change

Desktop

• Symbol size = 128
• Nach Raster ausrichten

Default Finder window

• Size
• Column view

System Preferences

Dock

• Icon size = Large
• Position = Right

Exposé & Spaces

• Spaces
  • Activate Spaces
  • Display Spaces in menubar = yes

Desktop & Screen saver

• Desktop
  • Set picture
  • Transparent Menubar = no

Bluetooth

• Enable = false
• Display Bluetooth status in menubar = no

CDs & DVDs

• Music CD = do nothing
• Picture CD = do nothing
• Video DVD = do nothing

Printing & Fax

• Add printers

Keyboard & Mouse

• Keyboard
  • Repeat rate = maximum
  • Delay = minimum
  • Use F1, F2 etc. as standard function keys = yes

Trackpad

• Two fingers on trackpad + trackpad key executes a secondary mouse click = yes

Sharing

• Set device name

Users

• Create users
• Login options
  • Automatic logon = deactivated
  • Enable quick user change = yes
  • Display type of Quick user change in menubar = short name

Time Machine

• Disable TM
• Display TM in menubar = no

TinkerTool

• Enable the "Quit" menu item of the Finder = yes
• Use transparent Dock icons to show hidden applications = yes
• Highlight the current selection when using stacks in grid view = yes
• Dock position = bottom
• Scrollbar arrows = together on both ends
• Enable the diagnostic menu of the Address Book = yes
• Enable extended options for conversion of disk images = yes
• Disable the quarantine security warning when opening downloaded objects = yes
• Allow the Help Viewer window not to be always in the foreground = yes (only available in 10.5)
• Play titles when importing or converting in iTunes = yes

Firefox

• When Firefox starts = Restore previous windows and tabs
• Close Download window when all downloads are finished = yes
• Languages = en-gb, en, de-ch, de
• Remember passwords for sites = no
• Search for text when I start typing = yes
• Check my spelling as I type = no
• Automatically check for updates = all no
• Install CAcert level 1 and 3 root certificates (because Firefox unfortunately does not use the system's keychain)

TextWrangler

• Editor Defaults
  • Soft wrap text = yes
  • Wrap to = Window width
• Menus
  • View
    • Next Document = Command + <
    • Previous Document = Command + Shift + <
• Text Encodings
  • Default text encoding for new documents = Unicode (UTF-8)
  • Note: "If file's encoding can't be guessed, use ..." does not include any of the UTF-8 variants because the guessing algorithm already has eliminated these encodings as a possibility
• Prevent TextWrangler from adding Type/Creator attributes to the files it writes: defaults write com.barebones.textwrangler Filing:WriteExtendedAttributes Never