Back in March I did a tip listing 15 Terminal Commands for Hidden Mac OS X Settings. Since Leopard has been released, there are a whole load of new ones so I thought I'd do another list.

In general, these will only work with Leopard. I have slipped in a few that will work with Tiger, but you should check out the old list for commands that will definitely work.

If you don't already know, here are some quick instructions of how to use them: You'll find Terminal in the Utilities folder within the Applications folder. To carry out any of the following commands you will need to copy/paste or type in the line of text then hit enter. Most of the commands change settings that can't be done through the application or system preferences.

For the most part, applications will need restarting before changes take place. For the Dock and the Finder, it isn't obvious how to do this. The easiest way is to type a second command into the Terminal afterwards. Type "killall Dock" followed by return for all the Spaces, Stacks and Dock commands. "killall Finder" followed by return for all the Finder related ones.

Spaces

defaults write com.apple.dock workspaces-edge-delay -float 0.5

Changes the delay when dragging windows off the edge of the screen to other spaces. Default value is 0.75.

defaults write com.apple.dock workspaces-wrap-arrows -boolean NO

Disables the wrap-around when using Control-Arrow keys to changes Spaces. To enable again, repeat with YES at the end.

Stacks

defaults write com.apple.dock persistent-others -array-add '{ "tile-data" = { "list-type" = 1; }; "tile-type" = "recents-tile"; }’

Creates a Recent Applications stack in your Dock, that you can change to display other recent items. To remove it, use the command defaults delete com.apple.dock persistent-others but be warned, this will remove all your stacks.

defaults write com.apple.dock mouse-over-hilte-stack -boolean YES

Adds a Mouse Over gradient to items in your stacks. To disable, repeat with NO at the end.

Dock

defaults write com.apple.dock no-glass -boolean YES

Change to 2D Dock. To change back to 3D, prepeat with NO at the end.

defaults write com.apple.dock tilesize -int 256

Allows you to increase the size of the Dock past the maximum allowed by the slider in System Preferences. Don't go larger than 256. Use the slider in System Preferences to shrink the Dock down again.

defaults write com.apple.dock largesize -int 512

Allows you to increase the Dock magnification past the maximum allowed by the slider in System Preferences. Don't go larger than 512. Use the slider in System Preferences to shrink the Dock down again.

defaults write com.apple.dock enable-spring-load-actions-on-all-items -boolean YES

Makes all items in the Dock spring loaded. For example, hold a file over an application and it will open or come to the front so you can drop the file onto a specific window. Repeat with NO to reverse.

Finder

defaults write com.apple.finder FXListViewStripes -bool FALSE

Removes the stripes in list view. Repeat the command with TRUE to reverse.

/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Versions/A/Frameworks/LaunchServices.framework/Versions/A/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user

Resets the "Open With" menu, clearing duplicates. The command is different from the one in Tiger.

defaults write com.apple.finder _FXShowPosixPathInTitle -bool YES

Changes the title of a window to its full path. Repeat with NO to reverse.

Spotlight

sudo chmod 0 /System/Library/CoreServices/Spotlight.app

Disables the Spotlight icon. Type "killall Spotlight" for changes to take effect. To re-enable it, type 755 instead of 0.

Time Machine

sudo defaults write /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.backupd-auto StartInterval -int 7200

Changes Time Machine's backup interval. Requires an administrator password. Default value is 3600 (seconds).

iCal

defaults write com.apple.iCal IncludeDebugMenu YES

Enables the Debug menu in iCal, just like the Safari one. Repeat with NO at the end to disable.

Safari

defaults write com.apple.Safari DebugConfirmTossingUnsubmittedFormText NO

Disables the warning given when closing a window with text entered into a form that you haven't submitted. To bring back the warning, repeat the command with YES.

Check out this article for more Safari 3 tips.

Menubar
Changing the menubar will require an administrator password and you will need to restart the Mac for changes to take effect.

sudo defaults write /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.WindowServer 'EnvironmentVariables' -dict 'CI_NO_BACKGROUND_IMAGE' 1

Remove translucency in menubar, turns it white.

sudo defaults write /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.WindowServer 'EnvironmentVariables' -dict 'CI_NO_BACKGROUND_IMAGE' 0

Removes translucency in menubar, turns it grey.

sudo defaults delete /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.WindowServer ‘EnvironmentVariables’

Reverts back to default translucent menubar.

All Applications

defaults write -g PMPrintingExpandedStateForPrint -bool TRUE

Applications use the expanded Print dialog by default. Similar to the expanded Save dialog in earlier OS versions. Repeat with FALSE to reverse.