Advanced macOS customisation
Master System Preferences to get your Mac working your way.
The System Preferences window is your Mac’s nerve centre: if you want to tweak how something works in macOS Sierra, this is where you’ll usually do so. You’ll find System Preferences in the menu. It’s laid out in rows of easily identifiable icons with a brief name description given underneath. Clicking each icon opens what’s known as a ‘pane’ with the available settings within.
When viewing a pane, clicking the button with a grid of dots at the top will take you back to the main window, or you can use the back and forward buttons at top left, similar to those in Safari. Here, we’ll show you the essential options that every new Mac owner needs to check out, such as security and internet accounts, and others that will simply help you to personalise your Mac.
1 COLOURS
To alter the colour that appears when you highlight text, click General and make your choice from the second drop-down menu, labelled Highlight Color. If you’re not happy with the standard hues, why not choose your own? Simply select the ‘Other...’ option, which will open up a colour picker wheel. The top drop-down menu enables you to switch the standard macOS blue colour to graphite (or grey). This is the colour you see in scroll bars and whenever you click menus.
2 STOP DOZING OFF
To prevent your Mac going to sleep after a short time, open up the Energy Saver pane. This contains sliders where you can set how long your computer must sit idle before it goes to sleep. If you have a Mac laptop, you can set different times depending on whether it is plugged into the mains or running off its battery. The Energy Saver pane is also where you can schedule your Mac to start up or shut down at a specified time. Note that this is separate from the screensaver, which you configure in the ‘Desktop & Screen Saver’ pane.
3 INTERNET ACCOUNTS
macOS Sierra makes it easy to set up accounts for all your favourite email services and social networks, with many settings preconfigured for you. All you have to do is add your login details and Sierra will do the rest. To add an account, click the ‘+’ button on the bottom left of the pane and then choose the service you want to set up. You can also set up accounts manually using the Add Other Account option.
4 EACH TO THEIR OWN
Everyone who uses your Mac can have their own account, enabling them to set their own desktop background and work in their own environment, without having access to your setup. After you set up multiple accounts, your Mac starts up with a login screen, and accounts can be switched at any time within Sierra. It’s best to use a Standard account most of the time and log in as Administrator when needed. To apply Parental Controls, select an account and then tick ‘Enable Parental Controls’. See Step 5 for more details.
5 PARENTAL CONTROLS
Do you want to stop your children opening certain applications or visiting particular websites? Parental Controls is where you can help ensure that they stay safe. It even attempts to block adult content automatically, or you can set a list of banned sites manually. You can also limit how long your children can spend on your Mac, prevent them changing their password and hide profanity in the Dictionary app.
6 NOTIFICATIONS
Mirroring the iOS equivalent, macOS Sierra has a Notification Center. Click the button at the far right of the menu bar and you get two tabs: Today shows widgets you can arrange and install; and Notifications lists alerts from apps, such as missed calls and Facebook messages. In the Notifications pane, you define how and when alerts appear.
7 SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE
Sharing files over your home wireless or wired network is easier than you may think. The Sharing pane contains a list where you can switch the various services on and off, including screen, file and printer sharing. If you’re not sure what a particular option does, click its name and an explanation will appear top right. Below this, you’ll see further settings — usually, who you’d like to give access to. See page 90 for more.
8 SOUND SETTINGS
Most of the time, the volume keys on your Mac’s keyboard are all the audio control you need, but the Sound pane offers that little bit more. You can select input and output devices, which you’ll need to do if you use your speakers during the day but want to switch to headphones in the evening. Another useful setting to note here is the audio input level — tweak this if you use a microphone with Sierra’s speech recognition features, for example.
9 LOCK IT DOWN
Even if you’re the only person who uses your Mac, it’s worth keeping your machine safe. Use the ‘Security & Privacy’ pane to require a password to wake your Mac from its screensaver, to disable automatic login, and to set up the FileVault encryption system. It may also be worth setting up the firewall (but note that it may prevent some apps from working unless you specifically grant them network access). Manage this by clicking the Firewall tab followed by the ‘Firewall Options...’ button.
10 SEARCH BAR
If you’re not sure where a particular option lives, try typing some keywords into this search bar. A drop-down list will show you the named preferences that match, and as you use the up and down arrow keys to move through that list, you’ll see the relevant pane’s icon highlighted. Click it to jump to the correct pane. Note that you can also search System Preferences’ panes using Spotlight. Press command plus the spacebar and type your keywords — the results will appear in the System Preferences category.
11 CHANGING DESKTOP
Bored with the background image on your desktop? Set an alternative in the ‘Desktop & Screen Saver’ pane. In the left column, pick a folder that has images in it, and tick ‘Change picture’ below. Use the drop-down menu to decide how often it changes. Avoid the five-second and one-minute options, as the constant swapping just gets distracting — if you want to look at your photos like this, try a slideshow!