OS X System Tweaks — Alex Jones

As I’m switching to a new machine, this is the ideal time for me to list all of the tweaks and changes I make to OS X and various core apps.

FunctionFlip “individually controls your MacBook or MacBook Pro’s function keys, turning special keys back to regular F-keys, or vice-versa. FunctionFlip is a preference pane; you’ll find it in the “Other” category in System Preferences.”
These are the settings I flip for the newer model MackBook Pro:
- F8 for quick Spaces access
- F9, F10 and F11 – To provide quick access to Expose functionality
- F12 – To PRovide quick access to Dashboard
- Set it to start at login
KeyRemap4MacBook
Growl is a must-have for every Mac.. It provides a platform for programs to notify you of activity.
- Start at login
iStat Menus
- The Blaqua skin with the Fire skin color
- Disable checking for updates at startup, relying instead on checking every 24 hours
- I monitor the CPU, combining multiple CPUs into a single graph
- I monitor Memory
- I disable monitoring of other stats
- I enable Date & Time, using it as a replacement for the system time stamp in the top right because I like the compressed calendar layout
Witch Thanks to Flip for the link ~~(The Developer appears to have disappeared altogether, so there isn’t a site to link to~~)
- Set it to ignore the LastFm.app
- Set it to “Ignore Windows that identify themselves as floating windows (tool bars etc.)”

Overlay Drawers for Dock Stacks are a nice touch, but do not provide anything beyond aesthetic pleasure
SymbolicLinker simplifies the creation of symlinks.

Disable Bluetooth I don’t use any Bluetooth devices, so there’s no need to drain the battery and chew up processing power for it. I also take it out of the menu bar to reduce clutter.
Pair a Remote The Apple remote that used to come free with Macs can be really useful, to the point that I keep mine with the laptop wherever I go. You never know when a presentation will bust out in the street.
Sound Effects – I go with Submarine as I like it a bit better. Exciting huh?
Universal Access – I enable access for assistive devices, which provides hooks for a couple of other 3rd party tools.

Enable Dock Magnification – I like to enable a subtle magnification, so the currently indicated icon has a bit more prominence.
Enable Automatic Hiding and Showing of the Dock – I don’t like the Dock cluttering the screen and using up pixels when I don’t need it.

Enable Spaces – I like to use four spaces to separate different types of activities. Additionally I select the box to show Spaces in the menu bar for easy access via Mouse.
Disable Switching Spaces Shortcuts – I don’t typically switch to a space, more often I switch to an app which happens to be in a space, so the shortcuts aren’t useful for me and occasionally conflict with application short cuts. I leave the activation shortcut (F8) as it is.

I bump up the default key repeat rate a notch
I do not check the “Use all F1, F2 , etc. keys as standard function keys” as I install FunctionFlip which provides the granularity to select which action is taken for each key. See below for detail on my settings.
Check Illuminate Keyboard in low light conditions and set it to turn off after a minute of inactivity.
I change the Full Keyboard Access to “All Controls” as it makes it easier to navigate through some applications without the mouse.

Customize the Tool Bar
- I add the Path button to the left of the display options
- Enable Use Small Size Icons
Enable the display of Hard disks on the desktop
Disable the display of iDisk in the sidebar
Select “Show all filename extensions”
Modify the search behavior so that Search defaults to searching the current folder instead of the entire machine