Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, Panther Edition

Creating an Account

To create a new account, click the + button beneath the list of accounts. The controls shown in Figure 11-2 appear.

Mac OS X offers a long list of options for each account, as described in the following pages. None of it is difficult; some of it, in fact, is kind of fun.

Phase 1: Name the Account

On the first tab of the dialog box, called Password, you fill in certain information about the new account holder.

• Name. If it’s just the family, this could be Chris or Robin. If it’s a corporation or school, you’ll probably want to use both first and last names.

• Short Name. Particularly if your name is, say, Alexandra Stephanopoulos, you’ll quickly discover the value of having a short name—an abbreviation of your actual name. When you sign into your Mac in person, you can use either your long or short name. But when you access this Mac by dialing into it or connecting from across the network (as described in the next chapter), the short variation is all you need.

  As soon as you tab into this field, the Mac proposes a short name for you. You can replace the suggestion with whatever you like. (Technically, it doesn’t even have to be shorter than the “long” name.)

• Password, Verify. Here’s where you’re supposed to type this new account holder’s password (Figure 11-2). In fact, you’re supposed to type it twice, to make sure you didn’t introduce a typo the first time. The Mac displays only dots as you type, to guard against the possibility that somebody is watching over your ...