System Preferences

First thing you need to do, on any OS actually, is update the system! For that: Apple Icon > Software Update. Also upgrade your OS incase you want to work on the latest OS. Yosemite is a free upgrade so please check that.

If this is a new computer, there are a couple tweaks you would like to make to the System Preferences. Feel free to follow these, or to ignore them, depending on your personal preferences.

Users and Groups

• Login Options-> Change fast switching user menu to Icon
• Set up Password, Apple id, Picture , etc.

Trackpad

• Point & Click
  • Unable Tap to Click with one finger
  • Change secondary click to right corner
  • Uncheck three finger drag
• Scroll and Zoom
  • Uncheck all apart from Zoom in and out

Dock

• Change position to left and make the size of Icons small

Finder

• Toolbar
  • Update to add path, new folder and delete
• Sidebar
  • Add home and code directory
  • Remove shared and tags
  • New finder window to open in the home directory

Menubar

• Remove the display and bluetooth icons
• Change battery to show percentage symbols

Spotlight

• Uncheck fonts, images, files etc.
• Uncheck the keyboard shortcuts as we'll be replacing them with Alfred.

Accounts

• Add an iCloud account and sync Calendar, Find my mac, Contacts etc.