MacOS 8 is one of the most configurable operating systems on any platform. Configuration of your Mac's appearance is no exception. From the fonts you see to the sizes of icons, it is all user configurable. There are many extensions that will further enhance your ability to give your Mac a face lift, but for optimal system performance, it is best to use what is built into the operating system.
Part 1 - The View Menu
The "View" menu is available at any time while in the Finder. Under this menu you will find many options concerned with the basic appearance of your Mac.
As Icons, As Buttons, As List
Only one of these options may be selected at any given time, per window including the desktop. While on the desktop, you may only choose the Icons or Buttons options. The Icons option will always display the files in the current directory or window as a full size color icon, with the file name beneath.
To open either a file or a folder while under the as icon option, a double-click on the icon is required. A single click on the file name will, after a pause, select the file name so you may rename it if you wish.
When Buttons is selected, all files and folders become 3 dimensional buttons, requiring only a single click to open. If you wish to move buttons you must drag the name of the file since a click on the file itself will open it. Besides the single click and having to drag the files by the filename, this option will function identically to the Icon option.
The List option provides the most information about the file, and therefore requires the most space on screen for a complete file listing. To open a file/folder in the list view a double click is required. The file name will always be to the right of the file icon, and you may still edit the file name by clicking once on the name, and then pausing for a view seconds.
A shortcut to renaming files is to single click and icon and then press the Return key. This eliminates having to pause to wait for the icon's name to become highlighted.
As Window/As Pop-Up Window
When the Window option is chosen, a window will act normally, (this is the default setting). When Pop-Up Window is selected, the window will appear as a tab at the bottom of the screen. It is convenient to have commonly accessed windows as Pop-Up, since you can have them as tabs at the bottom of your screen. These tabs can be dragged out and become normal windows when you need them. A normal window can also be made Pop-Up just by dragging it by the title bar to the bottom of the screen.
Clean Up/Arrange (sub menu)
The clean up option will organize your files in the current window or the desktop in coordination with a grid. This will evenly space all files in the area. The arrange sub menu will present you with a list of organization choices. They range from alphabetical to last modification date. Choosing one of these options will automatically sort the current window or desktop.
View Options...
Selecting this will present you with a dialog box. These are basic organization options that can be unique to each window.
 
 
View options for the Desktop and View options for windows, relative to the folder name.
For the desktop, you can alter the settings for how the auto-grid is, if it is on at all, and select from two possible icon sizes. For the windows, there are three possible icon sizes, and many clickable options. The columns options will show less info about each file, but will make more room available for other windows to be on screen (you CAN tile windows, but it can get bit messy..)
Desktop Pictures/Patterns
Aesthetic configuration on a larger, system-wide scale is possible by using the control panel called "Desktop Pictures." Formerly known as "Desktop Patterns," this utility has been expanded to accomodate both patterns and pictures.
A pattern is usually a small, repeated picture, normally only a few pixels wide, that, when repeated across the desktop, forms a simple picture that extends across the expanse of the desktop.
A desktop picture, on the other hand, is a complete picture which is made to extend across the entire desktop without repeating. These pictures are almost always much more complex, whether they be a nature scene or a man-made picture you get off the internet.
 
Select between having a pattern or picture.
 
Alignment settings for a desktop picture.
Having a complicated pattern or picture makes your Mac unique and much more interesting, and the only time it may effect performance is when you are in a graphics editing application when the screen needs to refresh often.
