Wrongly Named By Thai Who Set Up My Mac

[cheeryble]

Yeah

I like the guy at the little black Mac shop in Huay Kaew Rd CM and would go there again, but he read my name written on a scrap of paper and......without going into unnecessary exactitudes.....he wrote it wrongly as I guess the administrator of my mac. It looks ridiculous. I just remembered because I wrote a "note" (of the yellow kind in Mail and iOS) and it gives that name.

I'd like to correct it.

How would that happen?

thanks!

[ianwuk]

Please read the link below to see if that helps.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1428?viewlocale=en_US

[JusMe]

Or, if you haven't done a lot on it yet, you can reformat the disc, reinstall the operating system, and create your own name where you want it.

Remember, though, that doing this erases anything and everything you've put on the computer since you began with that misnaming.

[ianwuk]

Or, if you haven't done a lot on it yet, you can reformat the disc, reinstall the operating system, and create your own name where you want it.

Remember, though, that doing this erases anything and everything you've put on the computer since you began with that misnaming.

That is correct and is what I would most likely do if in the same situation.

[nikster]

You have two user names, a "long name" like your full name, and an "account name" which is the name of your home folder in /Users

If you want to just change the long name, I think its easy. Changing the short name is harder, you can follow the steps above. Or...

How about this idea:

1 - Do a Time machine backup

2 - go to users in system settings, create a new user with the desired long / short name

3 - log in as the new user, use migration assistant to migrate all your data and settings from the time machine backup

4 - go to system settings and delete the old user

Easier than Apples steps above...

Edited September 22, 2012 by nikster

[ianwuk]

You have two user names, a "long name" like your full name, and an "account name" which is the name of your home folder in /Users

If you want to just change the long name, I think its easy. Changing the short name isnt that bad either but it involves logging in as another admin user, changing the folder name, creating a new user etc.

How about this idea:

1 - Do a Time machine backup

2 - go to users in system settings, create a new user with the desired long / short name

3 - log in as the new user, use migration assistant to migrate all your data and settings from the time machine backup

4 - go to system settings and delete the old user

Easier than Apples steps above...

That is another way of doing it Nikster but, if the thread below is anything to go by, the OP is having Time Machine backup issues also

[cheeryble]

Thanks for all efforts.

The method given by Apple I believe only changes the user name, which is the short name.

I now think Ian is right and it needs a re-install.....but would love to be proved wrong.

I still can't work out exactly when it uses the ridiculous name......but it don't look good if I'm sending something.

[nikster]

Thanks for all efforts.

The method given by Apple I believe only changes the user name, which is the short name.

I now think Ian is right and it needs a re-install.....but would love to be proved wrong.

I still can't work out exactly when it uses the ridiculous name......but it don't look good if I'm sending something.

You still did not tell us whether you want to change the short name, or the long name

To change the long name, just go to system settings -> accounts, click the lock to unlock, and change the full name. You dont need to do any re-installing etc...