Getting a new MacBook is always an enjoyable experience. To make interaction with the new device as pleasant and comfortable as possible, we have prepared the top 5 settings to change on your new Mac!
Buying a new MacBook and setting it up is always exciting, especially if this is your first computer from Apple. One of the most important advantages of MacBooks is that each user can customize his device in accordance to his personal preferences.
Experienced owners of devices from Apple know that it is not enough just to create Apple ID and synchronize devices. An IOS-based computer needs careful tuning to make the user-computer interaction convenient and pleasant.
Therefore, we have compiled our top 5 settings to change on your new Mac. After reading our article, you will learn more about 5 useful tricks and necessary settings, which will make your computer safe and pleasant to use.
1. Set up the security configurations
First, you should set up your personal password for the device, which should be hard to guess and hack. You need to go to the “Basic Settings” section, confirm your identity by entering the administrator’s name and password.
After that, a special menu will appear, which allows you to set your own password or change the existing one, and also you can set the parameters for protecting your computer from access by other people. On the same page, it is recommended to allow installation of applications only from the App Store and from reliable developers.
Using this menu, you can also turn on firewall, file encryption with FileVault, and set up geolocation access. If you are concerned about the security of your device, we also advise you to install a reliable antivirus program that will help prevent your computer from being hacked and getting a virus. You can choose any available antivirus, or all-in-one security and cleaning tool like MacKeeper. It offers you to quickly scan your Mac for malware and viruses, and help to optimize storage space.
2. Customize backup settings for your MacBook
Time Machine is a great backup tool built into macOS. It will help restore the system to a working state in case it will be damaged, or return the last copy of a document in case it was accidentally deleted.
We sincerely recommended you not to neglect backups and enable Time Machine. To do this, you need an external hard drive of at least the same capacity as your Mac drive, though a bigger external hard drive would definitely be better.
First, you need to connect the drive and click System Preferences → Time Machine. Click “Select a backup drive” and select your external media. It will be formatted and used by Time Machine. Then activate the option “Create backups automatically” and your files will be safe.
Time Machine can be used with more than just a separate external hard drive. There are functions for creating a partition on an existing medium or connecting the program to a network drive.
3. Set up Mission Control
When you restart your MacBook, it restores all previously open windows. Gradually, confusion arises on the desktop due to the many open programs. Using Mission Control, you can scatter all windows across different virtual desktops, thus putting things in order.
Press the F3 key and a bar with virtual desktops will appear at the top. You can create a new one by clicking on the button with the plus sign on the right side, and place windows on it by simply dragging and dropping. It will turn out to create separate desktops for entertainment, business, games, and so on.
4. Customize your mouse or trackpad
If you have switched to an IOS-based computer from Windows, then you will certainly have a couple of questions regarding mouse and trackpad functionality. The first question is, why are web pages and documents moving in the wrong direction when scrolling them with the mouse or trackpad? The second question is: how to make a right click?
In general, macOS has such an option called Natural Scrolling. It reverses the scrolling direction. But if this option does not seem convenient to you, then you can disable it. To do this, click “System Preferences” → “Mouse” (or “Trackpad”, whichever you are using) and uncheck the “Scroll Direction: Natural”. The content will now scroll in a more familiar way.
Using this menu, you can also turn on the “Simulate Right Button” if you prefer a Magic Mouse, and change the speed of the cursor.
5. Customize items from the Dock
By default, the macOS dock is located on the bottom, but on a widescreen MacBook display, you might find it more convenient to place it on the side. If you decide to do this, you need to open System Preferences → Dock and select the desired location in the Screen Layout section.
You can also set up automatic hiding to save screen space by activating the “Automatically show or hide Dock” option.
Finally, you can remove unnecessary icons from the Dock and add the necessary ones. If you want to remove some of them, you need to drag the icons from the panel, then release, and they will disappear. And if you would like to add some other icons, just drag the needed icon from the Applications folder to the panel.
Conclusion
In our article, we have mentioned only 5 of the most basic and necessary things which should be configured on a new Apple computer. In such a simple way, you can significantly facilitate interaction with your new MacBook and configure basic security settings.
MacBooks are fairly “flexible” computers, which contain more than enough settings to ensure comfortable use and compliance with all the wishes and peculiarities of every user. Therefore, we advise you to configure your new computer now, so that in the future you can nicely interact with your MacBook and not bother yourself with setting it up.
