2nd account?

hey there

i have heard that on a mac it is important to have an account that you use everyday that isnt an administrator account

is this true?

and why is this important?

cheers

ctm

anyone?

Not sure on a Mac, but they use to say it about Windows. I think this was to prevent programs from Installing themselves on your Computer and having access to all the "Admin Stuff".

However I use my Admin Mac Account all the time, and any installation requires me to Enter a Password...So I assume it doesn't matter.

But hopefully some one more experienced might be able to back me up on that.

ok thanks

On any system it is recommended. The reason is that you set the everyday account to not have admin privileges, that way if some bad software or cracker (hacker to the dumbed down media types) tries to take advantage under the use of that account, the result is less likely to affect more than that user account. Basically, your placing another barrier in the way of attackers.

For those who don't know a lot about admin type stuff, it is safer if they stay away from it when they don't need it. Years ago a Unix system administrator where I worked used the rm (remove) command in the wrong way at the wrong directory level and deleted the OS. That is known as a BIG mistake.

I'm new to the Mac, and although having a second account for everyday stuff is not exclusive of Mac OS X, I would like to read more opinions on the subject, if you guys don't mind.

I know that the reason xstep posted is a pretty good one, but are there any other reasons to do so?

It really doesn't make much of a difference. In Mac OS X, root is disabled by default. The only way any real damage is done is if root is enabled and active, which at least in the case of OS X it isn't. :black:

So, it doesn't hurt if I use the admin account for everyday use? Meaning that the admin account is, in fact, the only account on my Mac.

Yes, you will be fine running with only one account.
:black: