CHAPTER 1 Getting Started with Your Mac mini In just a few minutes, you can set up your Mac mini and begin using it. This chapter shows you how to choose the right Mac mini model and accessories, set them up, use the OS X interface, and connect extra devices to the Mac mini. COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 2 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM Choose the Best Mac mini Model for You . .4 Choose Hardware for Your Mac mini . .6 Connect Your Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, and Speakers. .8 Set Up Your Mac mini and Create Your iCloud Account . 10 Start Your Mac mini and Log In . 14 Connect Your Mac mini to the Internet . 16 Connect Your Mac mini to a Wired Network . 18 Connect Your Mac mini to a Wireless Network . 20 Connect a Printer to Your Mac mini . 22 Connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod to Your Mac mini. 24 Connect a SuperDrive to Your Mac mini . 26 Give Commands Using the Menu Bar and Toolbar. 28 Open and Close Windows . 30 Minimize and Hide Windows . 31 Put Your Mac mini to Sleep . 32 Wake Your Mac mini Up Again . 33 Log Out, Shut Down, and Resume . 34 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 3 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM Choose the Best Mac mini Model for You o get the most out of your Mac mini, choose the model that best suits your needs. Apple sells Tseveral Mac mini models that vary in price and specifications, such as their operating system, processor, memory, and storage space. In this section, you learn how to choose among the different models. If you buy your Mac mini online at the Apple Store, you can customize its configuration to suit your needs. Choose between Mountain Lion and Mountain Lion Server Apple sells the Mac mini configured either for regular use — whether at home or in an office — or for use as a server, a computer that provides services to other computers on its network. The server configuration includes the server version of OS X, Mountain Lion Server. Unless you need a server, choose one of the Mac mini configurations that does not have Mountain Lion Server. Choose the Processor At this writing, the Mac mini models come with an Intel Core i5 processor or an Intel Core i7 processor. The Core i5 processor is plenty powerful enough for most uses, but if you plan to run heavy-duty applications on your Mac mini, you may do well to pay the extra money for the Core i7 processor. 4 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 4 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM CHAPTER Getting Started with Your Mac mini 1 Choose the Amount of RAM At this writing, the Mac mini comes with either 2GB or 4GB of random access memory, or RAM (A). 2GB is a minimal amount for OS X, and your Mac mini will run much better with 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB. A At the Apple Store, you can upgrade to a maximum of 8GB. Alternatively, you can order 16GB of RAM from a third-party vendor and install it yourself. See Chapter 14 for installation instructions. Choose between a Hard Drive and a Solid State Device Standard Mac mini models come with one hard drive, whereas the server model comes with two hard drives. When ordering your Mac mini, you can increase the size of the built-in drive, replace it with a solid state device (SSD) for high performance, or choose both a hard drive and an SSD. Choose the Graphics Capability The Mac mini models offer a choice of graphics capability: either sharing part of the RAM, which gives adequate performance, or using a separate graphics card, which improves performance considerably. The separate graphics card is available only in some Mac mini models. 5 03_9781118374870-ch01.indd 5 8/7/12 11:49 AM Choose Hardware for Your Mac mini pple sells the Mac mini on its own except for a power cable and an HDMI to DVI adapter, so you Aneed to add a monitor, keyboard, and pointing device, such as a mouse or trackpad. You may also want to connect speakers to give greater audio volume. You can buy these peripherals from the Apple Store or other retailer along with your Mac mini, you can buy them separately, or you can reuse your existing hardware. Choose a Monitor Your Mac mini has two ports for connecting a monitor: a Thunderbolt port and an HDMI port. You can connect a monitor to either port or connect two monitors, one to each port. You can also connect some HDTVs to the HDMI port. Thunderbolt and HDMI are the preferred connection types, but you can also connect a DVI monitor or VGA monitor by using a converter cable from HDMI or Thunderbolt. Choose a Keyboard You can connect a keyboard to your Mac esc f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6 f7 f8 f9 f10 f11 f12 mini via either USB or ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ + Bluetooth. Most USB ` 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 - - delete { } | keyboards and Bluetooth QWE R T Y U I O P tab [ ] \ keyboards will work with : “ enter ASDFGHJKL your Mac mini, but some caps lock ; ‘ return exceptions apply. < > ? ZXCVBNM shift , . / shift Mac-specific keyboards alt alt include the Mac fn cntrl opt cmd cmd opt Command key, ⌘. You can buy Apple-brand keyboards from the Apple Store, http://store.apple.com, or third-party keyboards from other vendors. To use a keyboard that does not have a Command key, you can remap the modifier keys by working in Keyboard preferences. 6 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 6 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM CHAPTER Getting Started with Your Mac mini 1 Choose a Mouse or Trackpad You can connect a mouse or trackpad via USB or via Bluetooth. Apple’s Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad both connect via Bluetooth and are popular choices and offer extra features such as gestures, but many standard mouses, trackpads, trackballs, and graphics tablets also work well with OS X. Choose Speakers Your Mac mini has a tiny speaker that produces a small volume of sound, but you will normally want to connect external speakers so that you can listen to music, enjoy videos, or make video calls. You can connect speakers via the Audio Out port, via a USB port, or via Bluetooth. The Audio Out port includes both digital and analog connectors, so you can connect most types of speakers that have a 3.5mm jack or 1/8" jack. Choose Other Devices for Your Mac mini To get the most out of your Mac mini, you may need to connect other devices, such as a webcam that you can use for video calls, a printer for creating hard copies of documents, or a scanner for creating digital files from physical documents. Most other devices connect to your Mac mini via USB. Your Mac mini has four USB ports, so you can easily connect devices. If you need more USB ports than this, buy a USB hub and connect it to one of the ports. 7 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 7 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM Connect Your Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, and Speakers fter getting the monitor, keyboard, mouse or trackpad, and other peripherals, you connect them Ato your Mac mini. Peripherals with cables connect to the ports on the back of your Mac mini, whereas Bluetooth peripherals connect wirelessly after you start the computer. Before starting your Mac mini, you also need to connect the computer’s power cord and the monitor’s power cord. Connect Your Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, and Speakers 1 Connect the power cord HDMI to the Mac mini and to 1 A a power source or B power outlet. 2 Connect the monitor to the appropriate port: 4 A Connect a Thunderbolt monitor or monitor HDMI using a Mini DisplayPort connector to the Thunderbolt/ Mini DisplayPort port. B Connect an HDMI monitor or monitor esc f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6 f7 f8 f9 f10 f11 f12 ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ + using an HDMI ` 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 - - delete { } | connector to the Q W E R T Y U I O P tab [ ] \ HDMI port. : “ enter A S D F G H J K L 3 caps lock ; ‘ return Connect the monitor’s < > ? Z X C V B N M power cord to a power shift , . / shift alt alt outlet. fn cntrl opt cmd cmd opt 4 If the keyboard connects via USB, plug the USB connector into one of the USB ports on the back of the Mac mini. 8 003_9781118374870-ch01.indd3_9781118374870-ch01.indd 8 88/7/12/7/12 110:460:46 AMAM CHAPTER Getting Started with Your Mac mini 1 5 If the mouse or trackpad 5 connects via USB, plug HDMI the USB connector into one of the USB ports on the back of the Mac mini. Note: If the keyboard includes one or more USB ports, another option is to connect a USB mouse or trackpad to the keyboard. You can also connect a USB hub and plug devices into it. D 6 Connect the speakers to HDMI the appropriate port: C If the speakers connect C via a 3.5mm jack, plug it into the Audio Out port. D If the speakers connect via USB, plug the USB connector into one of the USB ports. TIP Should I use a surge-suppressor strip for my Mac mini? A surge-suppressor strip is a good idea for protecting your Mac mini from electric spikes.