Apple Mac OS X Mavericks - Beyond The Basics

Learn how to install OS X Mavericks, configure language and keyboard options, create an admin account, decide on data transfer, and set up iCloud and Apple ID basics.

Install OS X Yosemite 10.10 by using the setup wizard, configure region and keyboard, decide data transfer from another Mac, or Windows PC, and set up an admin account.

Learn to navigate the macOS Mavericks desktop by mastering the top menu bar, application menus, and status icons, including Finder, Dock, Spotlight, and Notification Center.

Explore Finder windows to navigate the desktop, view folders like desktop pictures, use tabs and full-screen mode, and switch between icon, list, columns, and cover flow views.

Learn to navigate the Mac OS X Mavericks desktop with the dock: launch apps, minimize windows, and customize left or right placement with magnification and hiding.

Master Mac OS X Yosemite navigation by exploring the menu bar, Finder, the Dock, Spotlight, and the updated Notification Center with widgets as you switch apps.

Navigate Finder in OS X Yosemite with multiple views, toolbars, and control buttons. Use the Go menu, Quick Look, search, tags, sharing, and the sidebar to organize and access files.

Navigate the macOS Mavericks dock by resizing, dragging apps to the left or right, and keeping running items; adjust magnification and position in system preferences.

Master the mac desktop by using primary and secondary clicks, keyboard shortcuts, spotlight, and drag-and-drop; navigate mission control, spaces, and the dock to launch apps and manage documents.

Learn to configure your macOS Mavericks desktop by using system preferences to customize wallpaper, desktop, scrolling behavior, and finder options for a personalized, efficient workspace.

Configure the desktop for os x v10.10 yosemite by adjusting wallpaper, system preferences, and finder preferences; learn to manage mouse options, scrolling behavior, autosave, dark menu bar, and tags.

Access system information with about this Mac and system information, view processor and memory details, and export reports; also learn to inspect file info with get info in Finder.

Discover how to access OS X 10.10 Yosemite system information via About This Mac and the System Information app, and explore hardware, displays, storage, memory, and the serial number.

Explore disk utility to learn disk systems, partition maps (master boot records, GUID, Apple partition map), create a blank disk image, and perform first aid and permission repairs.

Explore the top level of the macOS file system, including startup volume and the applications, library, system, and users folders, and learn to access hidden volumes and /private configurations safely.

Learn how to use the home folder template in mac os x mavericks, reveal the hidden library, and manage desktop and public folders with Dropbox sharing and permissions.

Explore the multiple libraries in Mac OS X, compare the system and user fonts folders, and learn how permissions and paths determine which users can access fonts.

Explore macOS file system permissions and POSIX-style rules, including owner, group, and everyone, with read, write, and read-only access; plus how Finder and collaborators manage privileges in folders and Dropbox.

Explore how the lock permission differs from read access, showing that locking prevents deletion even when a folder grants rights, with admin and user interactions in a shared folder.

Examine how external volumes handle ownership and permissions, showing how the owner can shift from Hugh to Penny, and how ignore ownership on this volume simplifies cross-Mac use.

Learn how to create aliases in macOS in three easy ways, link them to original files on external drives, and repair or delete broken aliases when originals move or disappear.

Discover how Mac OS X Mavericks file system metadata uses tags, Spotlight comments, and custom icons to organize files, preview them, and search by metadata.

Master the macOS terminal by exploring the terminal app, learning basic commands like who am I, hostname, uname, and ls, and using man pages.

Navigate the file system from the terminal using ls and ls -l, pwd, and cd; create directories with mkdir, and use tab completion, tilde shortcuts, and absolute paths.

Learn to manipulate files on the command line: create with touch, copy with cp, delete with rm -r, and identify types with file, using cd and tilde for navigation.

Inspect and edit text files from the terminal using cat, wc, and less; create and edit with nano or vi, and learn navigation, search, sorting, and consulting the man pages.

Learn to use command-line change commands to manage permissions, ownership, and file system flags on macOS, including chmod, chown, and ACLs.

Learn to create and manage symbolic and hard links on macOS, using ln, ls, and inode concepts, and understand cross-volume limitations and link behavior.

Learn how to view and edit file metadata on macOS Mavericks using the terminal, including finder metadata, tags, and quarantine status with xattr and ls.

Learn how OS X v10.10 stores and reveals file metadata in the terminal with ls -l and xattr, including finder info, bundle IDs, resource forks, tags, and quarantine.

Explore how to use special characters in the command line, including wildcards, redirection, piping, and escaping, to handle file names with spaces and search with grep and ls.

Master careful sudo usage to manage permissions and ownership, including password prompts and root privileges. Learn safeguards against destructive commands and how to exit a root shell.

Discover commands unique to Apple in the macOS terminal, using ls, pb pasteboard, sort, and uniq, then open, say, screen capture, and textutil conversions, plus spotlight-like metadata search.

Master diskutil, the command-line companion to disk utility, to list disks and view detailed info. Eject volumes, merge partitions, and script tasks using mount points, device nodes, and disk identifiers.

Use system profiler, the command line version of the system information tool, to list data types, glimpse hardware data like RAM and processor model, and grep the serial number.

Navigate the macOS software update process by applying critical security updates through notification center or the App Store, downloading combo updates from Apple, and reviewing install details before restarting.

Learn how to sign in with an Apple ID, purchase or install apps from the app store, uninstall via launchpad, and manage automatic app updates across macOS.

Learn how to install apps on macOS via drag-and-drop and package installers, compare methods, and security considerations, using Text Wrangler and Xerox printer drivers as examples.

Inspect installed apps via System Information. Track installations from Mac App Store and review logs to verify admin password and Apple ID authentication.

Examine package receipts to identify application components, use lsbom to map file locations and permissions, and run repair packages with Disk Utility to fix ownership.

Create a mirrored RAID set with Disk Utility to boost reliability and redundancy; if one drive fails, the other stays online and automatically rebuilds to protect data.

Manage a degraded RAID set on Mac by safely replacing a missing drive, using Disk Utility to rebuild while continuing to operate and access data.

Create an external recovery volume for macOS by partitioning an external drive with Disk Utility and using the recovery disk assistant, following Apple’s system requirements.

Archive data with Disk Utility by creating a password-protected disk image (128-bit encryption) from a folder, compare compression, and open the image to verify its structure.

Archive data with macOS archive utility by compressing folders into zip archives, then customize preferences for expansion location and post-archive actions during admin authentication.

Learn tar archiving on the Mac command line, create and extract tgz archives of folders, understand path effects, and consult the man pages for options.

Learn to configure Time Machine to back up your Mac, choosing a destination (external drive, server, or Time Capsule), exclude system files, and manage encryption and backup status.

Discover how Time Machine uses hard links to share backup data and avoid extra space. Learn to recover items via the Time Machine interface or with tmutil for command-line insight.

Explore managing Time Machine backups on OS X Yosemite using the command line tool tmutil and the GUI, including disk usage with du -sh and hard links.

Learn how to encrypt an external disk volume in mac os x mavericks, set an encryption password and hint, and monitor encryption progress using disk utility.

Learn to enable file vault 2 on a Mac running OS X 10.9 Mavericks. Configure admin and user access, and securely store the recovery key.

Configure FileVault 2 on Yosemite via setup assistant or System Preferences, enabling encryption with an iCloud unlock option or a recovery key. Record the serial number and note the encryption estimate.

Discover how to securely erase data on macOS by overwriting trash contents, using secure empty trash, and enabling this option in Finder preferences for safer deletion.

Learn to securely erase files using the command line with srm and r.m, applying verbose, simple pass, and seven-pass deletion, including recursive removal of directories.

learn how to securely erase an entire disk volume with Disk Utility by choosing between one pass zeros, three pass, or seven pass security options on an external drive.

learn to securely erase a disk volume from the command line using diskutil, including random data writes, reformatting, and assigning a journaled hfs+ volume named external.

Learn to securely erase free space on a Mac disk volume with Disk Utility, selecting from one-pass, three-pass, or seven-pass options using a temporary file.

Learn how to securely erase free space from the command line using diskutil, understand level options, and verify that an external drive's data areas are erased while folders stay intact.

Create encrypted disk images and manage passwords with the password assistant and keychain, then generate strong passwords with dynamic length and evaluate their quality.

Learn to use password assistant in OS X to generate strong passwords, manage encrypted disk images, and explore iCloud password sync, with password rules and strength indicators.

Explore the key chain access utility on Mac to manage login key chain, unlock with your password, search items, copy entries between key chains, and create a portable key chain.

Learn to troubleshoot Mac keychain and password issues by resetting login and master passwords, managing keychain access, and handling disk image and user account scenarios.

Learn to manage the macOS keychain from the command line with security, lock and unlock keychains, and retrieve disk image passwords using labels and a globally unique identifier.