Filed under: Switchers, Tips and tricks, Odds and ends, Mac 101
Mac 101: Three Dock tips
There's a lot to love about the Mac's user-friendly desktop and one of my favorites is the Dock, otherwise known as "that spot at the bottom of the screen where all the application icons line up." Here are a handful of nifty tricks for the dock that new users might like to know about, and long-time users may have forgotten.
- To quickly add an open application to the dock permanently, left click on its icon within the Dock and hold the mouse button down until the context menu appears. Next, select "Keep in Dock." To add a closed app or folder, simply drag it from the Desktop onto the Dock. If you change your mind about any changes you've made, icons can just be dragged off the Dock. The shortcut will disappear in a poof of smoke, but your application or file will remain intact.
- To move the Dock from the bottom of the screen and pin it to the left or right side, right click on the Dock's vertical separator bar and select "Dock Preferences." Tick the "position on screen" radio button of your choice and the Dock will pop right over to where you want it.
- Is your Dock always getting in your way because it's too big? Are you having trouble identifying the icons because they're too small? Show the Dock who's boss by ordering to be any size you choose. Position your cursor directly over the vertical separator bar and hold down the left mouse button. As you drag the bar, back and forth, the size of the Dock will change from itty-bitty to mega-mondo. When you've got it just the size you want it, release the mouse button and the Dock will stay that size until you change it.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Kryptinite said 9:29AM on 9-19-2007
I like having as many icons on my dock as possible and as big as possible. Then I use the genie effect on it. It's more for looks because I actually use QuickSilver for my application "opening" needs.
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Kryptinite said 9:29AM on 9-19-2007
I like having as many icons on my dock as possible and as big as possible. Then I use the genie effect on it. It's more for looks because I actually use QuickSilver for my application "opening" needs.
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Leclair said 9:31AM on 9-19-2007
for the position of the dock I prefer this to position my cursor directly over the vertical separator bar and hold down shift key and the right mouse button and drag the dock whereever I want
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bifter said 9:56AM on 9-19-2007
i have two things in my dock, the finder and the trash (only cos i cannot remove them) as i am a quicksilver junkie. the only reason i can think of having it is to see if there is anything in the trash.
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wiliamo said 9:59AM on 9-19-2007
nice use of skitch...
such a good program.
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Alias said 10:03AM on 9-19-2007
You can also make a dock icon permanent by moving it to its final position.
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racco said 10:12AM on 9-19-2007
when it comes to my dock, the most important thing is transparent dock (http://www.freerangemac.com/). its a MUST (caps to enthesize just how much of a must it is)
the dock just doesn't look right to me with that boarder around it
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Dave said 10:45AM on 9-19-2007
Why do icons sometimes disappear from the dock when an application is closed?
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(01) said 11:28AM on 9-19-2007
Dave, all apps will have icon in the dock when they are open, but will only remain there after being closed if you have added that item to the dock. For example, if I add Safari to the dock, the icon will remain there all the time. If I don't have Safari in the dock and open it from the Applications folder, the icon will disappear when I close Safari.
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Josh said 11:49AM on 9-19-2007
i think in the third point you should add the if the dock is getting in the way you can have it auto-hide and then only appear when you mouse over the area that it is at. thats how i roll.
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Charles said 12:24PM on 9-19-2007
You can also add various dock dividers, too.
Such as invisible, lined and dotted dividers to space out and group your applications a little.
They work just as though an application resided on your dock but it is invisible. Really comes in handy. Google for them as many types are out there.
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Sabon said 1:14PM on 9-19-2007
I have zero idea why people don't like the Dock. It is a thousand times better than what you get with Windows and OS/2.
1) I rely on muscle memory and I can be sure that everytime I can move right down, find the icon I want, and click on it and the program opens up.
2) It is SUPER easy for me to see what applications are open at a glance.
But you can open them using xyz. BIG Deal. I can do that with or without the Dock being there. Quick silver or others using key strokes to open them works too but only maybe 10 or 15% of the time better than the dock. I still have to remember the key combinations just like I have to have muscle memory.
Viva la Dock. I for one love it and I don't care who knows.
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Luigi193 said 1:18PM on 9-19-2007
I love in tinkertool and coctail (and probably other places) you can set a hidden application to be see through on the dock...I like that.
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Barry Wiseman said 2:46PM on 9-19-2007
I keep a few things on the dock and keep the icons pretty small- but I use Overflow for most of my launch needs, probably my most used ap. Hit F1 and a transparent window opens up and I can click and start (or drag a doc to the icon of the ap I want). Easy to store your most used programs if you don't want the big dock at the bottom. $15 (30 day trial). stuntsoftware.com
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Cowicide said 3:13PM on 9-19-2007
> nice use of skitch...such a good program.
> Posted at 9:59AM on Sep 19th 2007 by wiliamo
I think I like FlySketch's GUI better than Skitch, especially the way FlySketch grabs the imagery compared to Skitch.
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Rafe H. said 3:33PM on 9-19-2007
If you hold down the command key (or is it option?) while dragging to resize the Dock, the icon sizes will jump to only power-of-2 sizes, and they don't need that fuzzy interpolation scheme to render them. That is, hold down this key while resizing and your icons will always look "clean".
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TH said 4:46PM on 9-19-2007
Right clicking any folders added to the Dock will allow you to access their contents. I like to keep system utilities like Terminal or Activity Monitor quickly accessible but don't want to fill the Dock with a thousand occasionally used icons. With the /Applications/Utilities folder in the dock, I can launch any of those apps without having to go through Finder.
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James said 8:22PM on 9-19-2007
I found this tip awhile back, and it has solved pretty much my major dock problem.. some apps I want it away.. but most others I want it there.'
If you edit the info.plist file (google it) and add this (I think it has to be alphabetical, I myself just use pref setter, google it again, it does it all by itself) it will hide the dock just for that app you put it on. When you close it or switch to another it pops right up.
LSUIPresentationMode
1
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David said 12:11AM on 9-20-2007
Good tips. I love the dock. I'm looking forward to the Stacks in Leopard.
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Ed said 12:50AM on 9-20-2007
There is actually an easier way to add an open app icon to the dock. Simply grab the App's icon, and move it an icon over and drop it. This tells the dock you want the app to be there even when closed.
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