--- 
layout: post
title: "TrevorJ: Annoying Password Prompts in OS X"
created: 1052222460
categories: 
- Mac
---
Trevor sent me a short note with some questions/rants about Mac OS X's multi-user system. If you want to install an application which ties into the system, you need to give the root password, so the installer can authenticate itself with the system:<blockquote>Okay - an annoying Mac problem. When installing an application, I'm always prompted to type in my password. Or sometimes the installation will stall, there will be a little lock icon at the bottom of the installation screen, I will click it, it will prompt me to enter my password, and installation will proceed.
<snip>
Any thoughts? I hate this multiple user/password thing. It's the only geeky feature that actually gets in the way of casual computer users.</blockquote>There is no way around this. OS X is now inherently a multi-user system. You can choose an option, in System Preferences -> Login, that by default always logs in a particular user, but you'll still need to enter the password of an account with admin privileges to install some applications.

The "snip" part describes Trevor's efforts to install a freeware version of <a href="http://www.pgp.com">PGP</a>. I'll give it a shot myself and report back.