Starting the Preferences Application

You use the Preferences application to choose a wide range of options for personalizing your workspace, managing your hardware, and controlling access to your computer. The Preferences application normally starts when you start Solaris^(TM) OpenStep^(TM) and is hidden automatically. It is displayed in the dock as an icon that shows the time and date (see Figure 15-1).

* Double-click on the Preferences icon in the dock.

or

* Open the /usr/openstep/Apps folder in the File Viewer and then double-click on Preferences.app.

Figure 15-1

When you start Preferences or unhide it, the window shown in Figure 15-2 opens.

Figure 15-2

You can rearrange the buttons in the Preferences window--hold down the Control key and drag one button at a time.

Some of the settings you choose with Preferences take effect immediately. Others take effect only after you start an application or restart OpenStep.

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Note - If you do not want Preferences to start automatically when you start OpenStep, see "Starting an Application Automatically" on page 4-10.

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Note - Some applications may add their own Preferences buttons to this window. For information about these custom preferences, see the user's guide for the application.

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Hiding Menus

You can hide application menus and use your mouse to display them only when you need them, as shown in Figure 15-3 on page 15-5.

1. Start Preferences.

2. Click on the button for Menu Preferences.

3. Drag the Preferences menu (the one in your workspace) off the lower right corner of the screen.

4. Click on the button for Mouse Preferences.

5. Click on Left or Right to choose the mouse button that will display hidden menus.

6. Log out of OpenStep and restart it.

Figure 15-3

When you restart OpenStep or start a new application, all the menus will be hidden, and you must press the mouse's MENU button (normally the right button) to display them.

Selecting a Standard Location for Menus

You can choose a standard location for all your main menus in two ways. First, you can click on the button for Menu Preferences and drag the Preferences menu to the new location in the workspace. Or you can drag the minimenu in the Menu Preferences.

The next time you start an application, its main menu is displayed in the new standard location--unless you have moved the menus in your application. If you have, the menu is displayed where you left it.

Setting a Password

If you work on a network, you have a user name and a password that you use every time you log in. A system administrator usually assigns both of these names initially, but you should change your password at least once a month, as shown in Figure 15-4 on page 15-7, Figure 15-5 on page 15-8, and Figure 15-6 on page 15-9.

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Note - Setting or changing your password in OpenStep has the same effect as using the UNIX passwd command or yppasswd command. It changes the password associated with your user login name and stored in /etc/passwd. And if you have a network password, it changes the network password associated with your username in the network information service (NIS) database.

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1. Start Preferences and click on the Password button.

2. Type your current password and click on OK.

3. Type your new password and click on OK.

4. Type the new password again to verify it and then click on OK.

5. Click on OK in the confirmation panel.

Figure 15-4

For security, your password is never displayed on the screen as you type it. The pointer follows the progress of your typing, but no characters are displayed. If you make a mistake, press the Back Space key and type the letter again.

Figure 15-5

After you type your new password, the application asks you to type the new password again to make sure that what you typed the first time was what you wanted to type.

Figure 15-6

If you type the same word a second time, a panel confirms that the new password is set. When you click on OK in this panel, the original password field redisplays, ready for the next time you want to change your password. If you make a mistake when you are verifying the password, you must start over.

What Makes a Password Secure

Passwords should be easy to remember but difficult for others to guess. Here are some guidelines:

• Avoid names of your children, pets, or other obvious personal favorites.
• Choose a password with at least eight characters. The shorter a password is, the easier it is for someone to decode.
• Combine lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers, symbols, and spaces in your password.

Here are some examples of good passwords:

*a*l*l*a a#bcd ef W$Bridge bARnEgt!

Setting the Date

OpenStep has an internal clock that displays the date and time in your workspace. It is also used to create a date and time stamp for changes to your files and folders. You can use this internal clock to set the date, as shown in Figure 15-7 on page 15-11.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for the Date & Time Preferences.

2. Click on the month arrows to change the month.

3. Click on the year arrows to change the year.

4. Click on a date in the calendar area.

5. Click on Set.

6. Unless you have previously set the date or time since starting Preferences, a panel asks you for your root password (see Figure 15-8 on page 15-11). After you type the correct root password, the new date value is set.

Figure 15-7

Figure 15-8

If the Preferences panel is displayed without the date and time options, your system administrator has probably disabled the date and time preferences. If you have questions, see your system administrator.

Setting the Time

OpenStep has an internal clock that displays the date and time in your workspace. It is also used to create a date and time stamp for changes to your files and folders. You can use this internal clock to set the date, as shown in Figure 15-9.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Date & Time Preferences.

2. Click on the arrows to change the time. Or type a new time.

3. Click in the map to select a time zone.

4. Select the hours, minutes, or seconds in the time field.

5. Click on Set.

6. Unless you have previously set the date or time since starting Preferences, the User Authentication panel asks you for your root password (see Figure 15-8 on page 15-11). After you type the correct root password, the new time value is set.

Figure 15-9

When you select a time zone, the button above the map shows the difference, in hours, between your time zone and Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). When you press this button, a pop-up list shows regional variations within your time zone. You can select the one that applies to you. Select the time zone before you set the date and time. Otherwise, your settings are lost.

If the Preferences panel appears without the date and time options, your system administrator has probably disabled the date and time preferences. If you have questions, see your system administrator.

Choosing an Application Locale

Some applications can display the text in their windows, menus, and panels in the languages of more than one locale. You can specify the locale you want to use in these applications, as shown in Figure 15-10 on page 15-14.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Localization Preferences.

2. Drag your preferred locale to the top of the Locale list.

3. Drag the remaining locales into the order you want.

4. Restart your applications.

Figure 15-10

When you start an application, it checks your order of preference and displays text in the language of the first locale it has available. The C locale is the default Solaris locale, which displays text in English.

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Note - You may also need to specify a different keyboard arrangement for the locale you are using. See "Choosing a Keyboard Arrangement" on page 16-6.

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Changing Units of Measurement

In some applications, you can specify the size of objects or pages. For example, in Edit and Mail, you can specify the width of the page. With Preferences, you can set a standard unit of measurement for all your applications that specify sizes, as shown in Figure 15-11 on page 15-15.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Localization Preferences.

2. Choose the unit of measurement you want from the Measurement Units pop-up list.

3. Restart your applications.

Figure 15-11

The new unit of measurement takes effect for an application the next time you start it.

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Note - You can change the units of measurement in some applications independently. For example, you might choose inches in Preferences but then work with picas and points in your page layout program. For details, see the user's guide for your application.

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Choosing a Paper Size

You can use the Localization Preferences to set a standard paper size you prefer to work with in all your applications, as shown in Figure 15-12 on page 15-16.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Localization Preferences.

2. Choose the paper size you want from the Paper Size pop-up list.

3. Restart your applications.

Figure 15-12

The paper size you set in your individual application may override the paper size you set here.

The new paper size takes effect for an application the next time you start it.

Customizing the Services Menu

When you are working in applications, you can request some of the services of other applications from the Services menu, as shown in Figure 15-13 on page 15-17. If you have many services, you may choose to display some of these services and not others.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Services Preferences.

2. Select the service you want to enable or disable.

3. Click on the Enable or Disable button.

Figure 15-13

The next time you use an application, its Services menu lists only the services that are enabled.

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Note - For information about using services, see "Requesting Services From Other Applications" on page 4-11. See also the list of OpenStep application services in "Standard Commands" on page A-1.

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Creating Keyboard Alternatives

Most applications include keyboard alternatives for some or all of the commands in their menus. A keyboard alternative is a combination of the Command key and other keys that you can use instead of choosing a command from a menu. If a command has no alternative, you can create your own, as shown in Figure 15-14. You can also change existing keyboard alternatives.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Menu Preferences.

2. Click in the Command field and type the name of the command.

3. Click in the Key Alternative field and type a character.

4. Click on Add.

5. Restart your applications.

Figure 15-14

When you type the command name, be sure to match the capitalization, spaces, and ellipses in the menu. The keyboard alternative can be any character except a space. Case makes a difference. For example, if you type a lowercase c, the keyboard alternative is Command-c. If you type an uppercase C, the keyboard alternative is Command-Shift-C.

When you set a keyboard alternative, it is added to all applications that have the command (unless the application overrides Preferences). If you choose an alternative that is already in use, it is removed from the current command and added to the one you specify.

To remove a keyboard alternative that you have created, select it from the list in the Menu Preferences and click on Remove. Or to modify it, type another character in the Key Alternative field and click on Add.

New keyboard alternatives take effect in an application the next time you start it. They take effect in Workspace Manager menus the next time you log in.

To find out your keyboard's Command key, see "Keyboard Basics" on page 9-5.

Changing the Fonts on the Screen

You can change fonts that are displayed in menus, window titles, prompts, and other objects on the screen, as shown in Figure 15-15 on page 15-20.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for General Preferences.

2. Choose the type of font you want to change from the pop-up list under Fonts.

3. Click on the Font Panel button.

4. Select a font family, typeface, and size from the Font Panel.

5. Click on Set.

6. Log out of OpenStep and restart it.

Figure 15-15

When you choose a type of font and click on Font Panel, the Font Panel opens (see Figure 15-16 on page 15-21). You use it to select a font family, typeface, and size.

Figure 15-16

The fonts you choose are displayed on the screen the next time you log in.

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Note - For more information about setting fonts, see "Setting a New Font" on page 9-12.

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Choosing a Font for Applications

You can choose a default font for your applications, as shown in Figure 15-17 on page 15-22. The default font is the one the application uses when you first type text in a new document or anytime you do not specify a font.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for General Preferences.

2. Choose Application Font from the pop-up list under Fonts.

3. Click on Font Panel.

4. Select a font family, typeface, and size from the Font Panel.

5. Click on Set.

Figure 15-17

The Font Panel displays all the available font families, typefaces, and sizes (see Figure 15-16 on page 15-21).

Applications use the new font the next time you start them. However, some applications may not use the font you set. Some have their own options for setting a default font that overrides the font you set here. Also, some applications preset their own default font family, typeface, or size. This preset font overrides your choice.

Setting Global File and Folder Permissions

You can grant others permission to read and change your files and to run programs that you own--or you can deny permission. You can make this choice for individual files and folders with the Inspector, but you can also set global permissions with the Expert Preferences panel, as shown in Figure 15-18 on page 15-23.

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Expert Preferences.

2. Check the permissions you want.

3. Log out of OpenStep and restart it.

Figure 15-18

The permissions you set here take effect the next time you log in. They apply to all new files and folders that you create, unless your application has built-in permission settings that override the global settings. In any case, you can change permissions for individual files and folders with the Inspector.

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Note - For information about using the Inspector to check and set permissions, see "Changing Permissions for a File or Folder" on page 7-9.

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Note - Permissions affect many file operations. For an overview, see "Permissions Granted" on page 6-2.

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Displaying Large File Systems

If you are working with disks and folders that contain several hundred files and folders, you can optimize the File Viewer to display them more quickly, as shown in Figure 15-19 on page 15-24.

1. Start up Preferences and click on the button for Expert Preferences.

2. Check Large File System.

3. Log out of OpenStep and restart it.

Figure 15-19

When you check Large File System, the File Viewer, the Open panel, and the Save panel can all open large folders faster than normal. Scrolling through large folders, however, may take a bit longer than normal.

This option takes effect the next time you log in.

Displaying UNIX Files

Your system uses many files that are not normally displayed in the File Viewer. Some of these are UNIX system files. Some are files called dot files--their names begin with a period. If you are a system administrator or developer, you may want to use these files. Otherwise, it is best to leave them hidden. You can display these files in the File Viewer (see Figure 15-20 on page 15-25).

1. Start Preferences and click on the button for Expert Preferences.

2. Check UNIX Expert.

Figure 15-20

The UNIX and dot files are immediately displayed in the File Viewer, as shown in Figure 15-21 on page 15-26. They are also displayed in Open and Save panels as well as in any other panel that displays the contents of disks and folders.

Figure 15-21

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Note - When naming a file, do not use a name that starts with a period. If you do, the file will be hidden with the other dot files when UNIX Expert is not checked.

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