In order to know which installation and configuration steps you need to perform, you must first learn which versions of Mac OS are installed. There are several ways to do this; the easiest is to consult the Startup Disk control panel (on Mac OS 9.2.2 or earlier) or the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences (on Mac OS X or later).
Configuring Mac OS X 10.4" later in this chapter.
A quick way to tell whether your computer is currently running Mac OS 9.2 or earlier or Mac OS X or later is to consult the Apple menu icon on the far left end of the menu bar. A six-color apple appears on Mac OS 9.2 or earlier; a blue apple appears on Mac OS X or later.
1. | Choose Apple > Control Panels > Startup Disk (Figure 1 ) to display the Startup Disk control panel. Figure 1. On Mac OS 9.2 or earlier, choose Startup Disk from the Control Panels submenu under the Apple menu. |
2. | If necessary, click the triangle beside the name of your hard disk to display the System folders installed on your computer (Figures 2 and 3 ). The Version column indicates which versions of Mac OS are installed. Figure 2. Here's what the Startup Disk control panel might look like with Mac OS 9.1 and Mac OS X installed…Figure 3. …and here's what the Startup Disk control panel might look like with Mac OS 9.2.2 and Mac OS X 10.3.8 installed. |
3. | Click the Startup Disk control panel's close box to dismiss it. |
1. | Choose Apple > System Preferences (Figure 4 ) to display the System Preferences window (Figures 5 and 6 ). Figure 4. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu to display System Preferences.Figure 5. The System Preferences window looks like this in Mac OS X 10.0.x…Figure 6. …and like this in Mac OS X 10.2.8. |
2. | Click the Startup Disk icon to display the Startup Disk preferences pane (Figures 7 and 8 ). The installed versions of Mac OS appear beneath each System folder icon. Figure 7. Here's what the Startup Disk pane might look like with Mac OS 9.1 and Mac OS X 10.0 installed…Figure 8. …and here's what it might look like with Mac OS 9.2.2 and Mac OS X 10.3.8 installed. |
3. | Choose System Preferences > Quit System Preferences (Figure 9) , or press Figure 9. Choose Quit System Preferences from the System Preferences menu to dismiss System Preferences. |