Filed under: OS, Software, Productivity, TUAW Tips
TUAW Tip: Stationery Pad option makes a template of any file
The Finder's Get Info window (View > Get Info or cmd-i) is one of those unsung heroes of Mac OS X computing. It houses a lot of great options, and Stationery Pad is one of them. If you have any kind of workflow where you need to repeatedly modify some sort of a file template, checking this option in any file's Get Info window will tell its parent application to open a copy of it by default, ensuring that the original file remains unedited. While some applications that manage files for you can offer similar functionality, this is a great option for anyone who, for example, use Word docs as contract templates, or begins with a basic pre-built file for various Photoshop or hand-coding CSS/PHP freelance work. You can simply build the file any way you like, save it and check this box in Get Info to tell any app you open it with to open a copy instead of the original. Easy breezy file templates, with no AppleScripts or plugins required.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mat Lu said 1:11PM on 4-11-2007
Hey that's cool! I've always wondered what that option was for.
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Karl Childers said 1:43PM on 4-11-2007
That's sweet! More reason to love OS X!
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Mark Potts said 1:43PM on 4-11-2007
If memory serves, this is a feature that's been in the finder since System 1.0 back in 1984.
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Troy McClure SF said 1:53PM on 4-11-2007
I can't cite System 1.0, but this has been there since 6.0.7 on the Mac Classic.
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Uros D. said 3:26PM on 4-11-2007
Wait... this really reminds me of the way the Lisa worked. There were stationery pads on the desktop, and you would tear them off to make new documents instead of running the app first.
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Clair said 3:37PM on 4-11-2007
Oh, how I wish Windows had that option. Don't hate me. I am forced to use a company provided Windows laptop @ work.
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Graham said 3:38PM on 4-11-2007
BRILLIANT!!!!! i never knew what that was for.... but i will carry that little tid-bit of knowlege for ever, and it will make my life easier than it already is.
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ben said 5:05PM on 4-11-2007
NO WAY. This is one truly awesome tip!!
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jt said 5:30PM on 4-11-2007
I discovered this a couple of weeks ago and it reminds me of OS/2. Word documents actually change their icon when this option is checked.
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Eric M. said 6:11PM on 4-11-2007
I noticed that if you open the file through Quicksilver (with cmd+esc, then "Open"), you edit the original and not a copy. This is an easy way to override the "Stationary Pad" setting to edit the template.
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andrew harrison said 7:17PM on 4-11-2007
a lot of icons will change to a yellower hue when made into a stationary pad.
this feature is a fine example of what sets os x apart from the rest.
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Andrew Scott said 8:54PM on 4-12-2007
I wish this worked with Keynote files. I tried it when I first got Keynote and it's never worked. I guess Apple wants you to use the themes interface but that's not good for every purpose. :(
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