Posted by Charlie V.

If you’re like me, when you work at your computer you like to have everything set a certain way. You like windows to open in a certain view, Safari bookmarks to be in place, mail accounts to be synced and your favorite applications placed neatly in the dock. If you’re the only one to use your Mac, you’ll know all of these items above won’t change unless you alter them, but what if multiple people use the same Mac? Does everything have to be mixed together in one convoluted mess? Absolutely not!

Just like in earlier Windows versions many of you are used to, you can enable multiple users on your Mac. In System Preferences, under the System heading, select Accounts. A new windows will open allowing to add and delete user accounts as you please (note: only Administrative users can add/delete accounts). Once you have your desired accounts setup, your Mac automatically creates a User folder for each person to store all of their unique data. I also encourage you to activate Fast User Switching to quickly jump between accounts on the computer. In the Accounts window in System Preferences, select Login Options, and enable Fast User Switching. The current users name will appear on the top right of the toolbar, and when you click on it, you’ll get a list of every user on the Mac. Simply click the desired user and enter their password to go straight to the new account.

Multiple users can also give you a Login screen when you initially startup the computer, which allows users to select their custom account from the beginning, and not interfere with other users settings and documents.

Parents, one more advantage to multiple users is your ability to administer parental controls to your kid’s accounts. You can set computer use times, block websites, monitor their activity, and even pick which applications they have access to! All of these useful features can be found in the Parental Controls window of System Preferences.

-Charlie