3.1 Introducing System Preferences

     You should start by becoming familiar with System Preferences, which appears on the Apple (•) menu and in the Dock.
     The following steps explain how to move around the System Preferences window, no matter what you’re trying to tweak:

1. Open the System Preferences window, shown in Figure 3-1.

     You can do so in at least four ways: Choose •➪System Preferences, double-click the System Preferences icon in your Applications folder, click the System Preferences icon in Launchpad, or click the System Preferences icon on your Dock.

2. Click any of the icons in the System Preferences window.
     The bottom part of the window changes to reflect the options for whichever icon you click. When this happens, I call the bottom part of the window a pane. So, for example, when you click the General icon in the System Preferences window, the bottom part of the window becomes the General Preference pane.
     When you finish working with System Preferences panes, you should (of course) quit by choosing System Preferences➪Quit System Preferences (shortcut: ⌘+Q).

3. To work with a different Preference pane, click the Show All button in the toolbar, choose View➪Show All Preferences, or press ⌘+L to return to the window with icons for all available System Preferences panes.
     Alternatively, you can choose a different Preference pane right from the View menu or the Dock icon menu, both shown in Figure 3-2.
     If you press the System Preferences icon in the Dock (don’t click; just press and keep pressing for a couple of seconds), a menu pops up listing all available Preference panes. The cool part is that this works even if the System Preferences window isn’t open. When you know which pane you need, this shortcut is often the fastest way to get to it.

     Last but not least, notice that you can navigate to the next or previous pane you’ve viewed with the Back and Forward buttons below the red and yellow gumdrops (shortcuts ⌘+[ and ⌘+], respectively). Back and Forward commands also appear on the View menu.

     One last general tip before you work with an actual Preference pane: You can get rid of the categories altogether and display the icons in alphabetical order. As a bonus, it makes the System Preferences window roughly 25 percent smaller onscreen. To switch to alphabetical view, choose View➪Organize Alphabetically. The categories disappear, the window shrinks, and the icons are alphabetized, as shown in Figure 3-2. To switch from alphabetical view back to category view, choose View➪Organize by Categories.
     Mavericks lets you hide little-used System Preferences pane icons. To manage icons, choose View➪Customize, and a little check box appears next to each icon. Uncheck the box if you want to hide the icon; recheck the box to make the icon reappear.
     Click Done when you’re finished checking and unchecking.
     System Preferences is actually an application; you can find it in the Applications folder. The • menu item and Dock icon are merely shortcuts that open the System Preferences application. The actual files for preference panes are stored in the Preference Panes folder, inside the Library folder in the System folder. If you choose to install third-party preference panes, they should go either in the Preference Panes folder in the Library folder at the top level of your startup disk (if you want them to be available to all users) or in the Preference Panes folder in the (hidden) Library inside your Home folder (if you want to keep them to yourself). Don’t sweat this technical stuff too much; most third-party preference panes come with an installer that puts them in the proper folder for you. (You discover the thrills and chills of that hidden Home/Library folder in Chapter 6.)