Advice to OSX Newbies: Don't change the name next to the House icon

[swiftaw]

I must have seen at least three threads this week, and plenty more before that from users who have renamed their House icon and now are panicking because all their files are missing.

The name next to your house icon is the name of your home directory. If you change it, and then log back into your account it notices you no longer have a home directory for that account and creates a new blank one. This is why it seems as though all your files of gone. In fact they are still there, just in the renamed folder in /users/.

To get your files back, use this: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107854

If you really want to rename your home folder name, use this: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106824

By the way, why the heck does OSX allow you to change this name without any warning of what might happen when you do?

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Nice advice... only problem is that the switchers try it first, then comes here to cry for help...

 

[swiftaw]

Nice advice... only problem is that the switchers try it first, then comes here to cry for help...

Yeah, very true. Maybe we should make it a stickie, so they can find it easily.

 

[clevin]

By the way, why the heck does OSX allow you to change this name without any warning of what might happen when you do?

exactly, thought OSX to be "easy to use", lol, this is a weird inconsistency, it allows user to change name, then turns around make user panic for it.

 

[72930]

exactly, thought OSX to be "easy to use", lol, this is a weird inconsistency, it allows user to change name, then turns around make user panic for it.

I hope they'll grey out the option, or provide a warning in Leopard, or even a Tiger update...

 

[mac-convert]

A Get Info on the folder show an unchecked Locked button. Does this lock the item from being renamed/deleted, or does it keep it from being used.

i.e., if I check the Locked option, will I still be able to create files, etc, in my home dir? It's not something that I would care to try just to find out.

 

[copanewbe]

By the way, why the heck does OSX allow you to change this name without any warning of what might happen when you do?

In the manual book that comes with the software it tells you not to change the name. Being the smart guy that I am, I changed it anyway and got all the files sent to the new folder. Luckily, all you have to do is change the name back to its original form and everything is back to normal.

 

[MikeyTree]

Whoops. I did that last night. Only I did it just after partitioning my HD for Boot Camp, which crashed after partitioning, so I assumed that the boot camp installer messed it up. After applecare didn't know how to fix the "problem caused by boot camp," I did a fresh install. Oh well, at least now I have 8 more gigs of HD space.

Actually, I'm relieved that it was only my own numptiness, not some big problem with boot camp or my HD. I have to re-enter my preferences, re-transfer some files, and re-download some shareware, but otherwise nothing was lost.

I'm also annoyed that OSX will let you change the name without even simple popup warning of the consequences.

 

[sushi]

Nice advice... only problem is that the switchers try it first, then comes here to cry for help...

And in the early days of Mac OS X, those coming from System 9 as well.

 

[M@lew]

Don't forget to tell them not to touch the iPhoto library in Finder. That's coming up heaps as well.

 

[MikeyTree]

Don't forget to tell them not to touch the iPhoto library in Finder. That's coming up heaps as well.

Oh? Why not? I'd like to avoid another catastrophe.

 

[janey]

I hope they'll grey out the option, or provide a warning in Leopard, or even a Tiger update...

I don't see why Apple wouldn't have a fix for this issue of sorts. It's not simple, but entirely possible.

 

[sushi]

I don't see why Apple wouldn't have a fix for this issue of sorts.

You would think. Not sure why they don't.

 

[M@lew]

Oh? Why not? I'd like to avoid another catastrophe.

Because iPhoto likes everything the way iPhoto made it. So if you go and name a photo something different in Finder, or say you rename a whole bunch of photo's and folders, iPhoto won't find them.

 

[kwood]

This kind of goes along with "spring cleaning." The whole my computer was getting full so I got rid of some stuff in /System/Library I didn't think I used. Now my computer boots to a grey screen and wont start.