This serious, but fun, down-and-dirty book will let you make Tiger purr, ensuring that your Mac's appearance, speed, usability, and security settings are what you want. The author Scott Knaster: shows you how to speed it up, lock it down, or pull back the curtains; dives into default system settings, unlocks hidden gems, and includes original Mac OS X programs with full source listings and explanations; also shows heavyweight hackers the tricks and modes of OS X booting, tweaks for login screens, and how to customize or even kill the Dock; offers the inside scoop on Dashboard and Spotlight, including two sample widgets and one Spotlight importer, all with fully annotated source listings; and, demonstrates how to install and use Unix and X11 applications, take advantage of command line tools, and create system services and active Dock badges.