Summary
OS X uses the System Preferences application to provide access to as many as 33 sets of controls for standard Mac functions, depending on your Mac's hardware. Three system preferences—FibreChannel, Ink, and Xsan—appear only if you have the appropriate hardware attached to your Mac. Another—Profiles—appears only if configuration profiles have been installed in OS X.
You can view system preferences sorted alphabetically or by group. Using the View menu, you can switch to any system preference, or you can use the navigation buttons (Show All and the left-facing and right-facing triangles) in the System Preferences application window to move among system preferences. You also can hide individual system preference icons from the System Preferences application window by choosing View⇒Configure and deselecting specific system preferences.
By default, the System Preferences application groups system preferences into four categories: Personal, Hardware, Internet & Wireless, and System. A fifth category, Other, appears for any system preferences installed by non-Apple applications or devices.
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