My New Mac, Lion Edition: Simple Projects to Get You Started

1) Love a new program so much you want to store it in your Dock for easy access? While the program is running, right click its icon in the Dock, then choose Options > Keep in Dock. Voila! Learn all about the Dock in Chapters 4 and 5.

2) If you've got a disorganized mess of files, you have lots of options for finding what you need. Click on All My Files in the left pane of the Finder to show everything you've ever saved. You can also create a Smart Folder that gathers together all files of a particular type or that include a particular term. Just click File > New Smart Folder in the Finder, then enter a search term like Taxes, MP3, or Word. Learn all about wrangling your files in Part 2.

3) Annoyed by the ⌘ key or just miss your old Windows shortcuts? Make the ⌘ key and Control key switch places in System Preferences > Keyboard > Modifier Keys. Learn time-saving shortcuts in Chapter 16.

4) Start learning how to use your Mac's Trackpad one trick at a time. Pressing down with two fingers is equivalent to a right-click on a mouse. Glide on the surface with two fingers and you can quickly scroll long documents up-and-down (and left-to-right, too). You can also turn off the gestures you don't use: System Preferences > Trackpad. You'll learn all about your Trackpad's shortcuts in Chapter 2.