[AWR]

Over the weekend, I was getting my Mac back up to speed after having a new HD installed. This required downloading applications, etc. I am interested in finding out the best way to deal with these programs once they are on the desktop.

My present practice - and it smells so n00by that it pains me to share - is all over the place, but I tend to drag everything to a self-created folder in Applications after it is installed (and dragging an icon to the Dock if it is something that I want there).

- In short, what do I need to keep (.dmg, etc.) and what can/should I Trash.

- Also, whenever I have one of these apps open, a White Disk appears on the desktop. Does this have to happen? Is there a way not to have these icons appear?

Any information with respect to the easiest or best way to deal with this is appreciated.

AWR

[Brad]

That white disk acts as a "virtual drive" of sorts. Double-clicking a disk image file (DMG) mounts its contents just like connecting another hard drive. Once you have copied the contents out from the disk image's drive, you can "eject" that drive and trash the DMG file that created it.

Developers use disk images because they guarantee that the contents will be displayed to the user in the exact same way regardless of other factors. If they simply zipped the files, some attributes may be immediately lost upon decompression depending on the host filesystem or the decompression program.

You can put applications wherever you like; organize them however fits your style.

[Mac+]

Once you drag those "expanded" apps into your Application folder (for the record, I keep mine located at ~/"my initials apps" where ~ is your home directory and "my initials apps" is a new folder that you can name whatever you'd like. This way only the apps that shipped with the computer stay in the default folder) you can eject the white disk image and/or delete the .dmg icon off your desktop.

Unless, of course, you want to archive them someplace else (for your next clean install perhaps) and save yourself the trouble of downloading them all again. I think Luca does something like that.

Hope that helps.

[AWR]

Excellent. Thanks Brad. So I can chuck the RadioLover (for example) .dmg because the whole app is included in the RadioLover icon, as I understand you.

Related question, if I may be as BOLD: I have setup an external HD, which was represented upon FireWire connection with a colorful FireWire disk icon on the desktop. THEN, I ejected it for shits and giggles and now I don't know how to get the icon BACK on the desktop. HOW CAN, I ask in my best Chinese?

[Maciej]

Just unplug and re-plug-in the drive. Simplest way to do it.

[AWR]

Thanks Mac+. (Aren't you overdue for a picture in the Cycling thread? )


Everything on this site helps. Cheers.

[AWR]

Originally Posted by Maciej Just unplug and re-plug-in the drive. Simplest way to do it.

Thanks. Should I turn off the power on the external HD first? And what is the proper way to turn off the external anyway? AND, when should one turn it off if its only use is a once a week backup of the internal?



Sorry for all of the minor league, can-you-open-an-umbrella, stuff.

[Brad]

You can power it off, but you don't have to. The "hot swappable" nature of FireWire means you can connect and disconnect it whenever you like. However, to maintain the filesystem's integrity (in case files remain opened or saving), you should always unmount ("eject") the drive before physically disconnecting it.

Alternatively, you can open /Applications/Utilities/Disk Utility and re-mount the drive there without having to physically disconnect and reconnect it. I think that works, at least. I haven't worked with external FW drives for a while.

If you only use it once a week for backup, you can just plug it in, do your backup thing, and unmount/eject the drive icon. Then you can either just power it off or you can disconnect it and power it off. Once it's no longer mounted, it doesn't really matter.

[curiousuburb]

Originally Posted by Brad You can put applications wherever you like; organize them however fits your style.

Can and should are different beasts.

The /Applications folder is formally only supposed to include stuff from Apple.
This is designed to assist in maintaining a known clean state for stability.

The ~/Applications folder (on a multi-user machine) holds your user-specific apps, but is similar to the above.

There are a handful of utilities and codecs that want or need to be dropped into the /Applications and /Applications/Utilities level folders to provide functionality to all users, but many offer the option of making those functions available to a single user in the ~/Applications versions of same. Where they don't it is often due to lazy installer writers failing to give the option.

If you want to load 3rd party s/w, IIRC the general advice from Apple has always been to create a new folder other than the "known clean applications folders (noted above)" so that if the folder gets pooched or permissions get corrupted or some installer overwrites a filename it shouldn't, the system doesn't crash.

All my macromedia Adobe stuff and anything non-Apple goes into a folder called Appz.
And yes, I often archive and backup old .dmg files... never know when reverting a version will help.

[AWR]

Thanks everybody; it's all very helpful.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by curiousuburb The /Applications folder is formally only supposed to include stuff from Apple.

Since when? Do you just follow that convention personally or do you have some evidence that Apple really wants only its apps there?

[curiousuburb]

Originally Posted by Brad Since when? Do you just follow that convention personally or do you have some evidence that Apple really wants only its apps there?

I'd have to dig around to see if there were any actual technotes on it, but it seems to me that a few Apple techs I've worked with started recommending this shortly after OS X got out of beta. I've been personally following this convention since OS 7

Perhaps it was derivative of the old extension sets metaphor (disabling all non-Apple stuff), and the file structure of OS X extended that metaphor to have entire directories intended to be 'blessed' apps with other whole directories subject to 'disable on startup'. Not 100% sure, but I seem to recall that crufty OS installs would, upon reinstall, preferentially wipe this folder... ergo, if you wanted to maintain your own apps, you should keep them separate from the 'official' /Applications folder. In part to preserve stability and a 'blessed/safe boot' environment, as well as to preserve your own stuff in the case of an OS reload scrubbing the default folder structure.

YMMV. As I note, actual documentation from the mothership would be more convincing, and I possess none without more thorough searching, but I recall hearing the advice from more than one staff member, and particularly from the techs who repaired bad installs and cleaned haxies and cruft... perhaps it was purely as deterrant to n00bs and chronic tweakers, but it did seem logical then, and still seems logical now.

The additional 'BradApps' folder (or whatever) won't hurt your filing system, and does seem to offer the noted benefits, but it isn't a pure comparison, because as I mentioned, some lazy installers do schlepp their apps into /Applications whether you want it or not.

It mirrors the case of the /Library, ~/Library, and /System/Library folders. Some are exclusively for Apple stuff (particularly /System/Library). Not for meddling kids. /Library gets stuff from lazy installers or all machine users. ~/Library gets stuff for you (including your personal mail, keychains, etc.) It is possible my brain has short-circuited the advice about Library with that about Applications. </scratches head>

Now you've got me wondering... or should that be <~/scratches head>

[Mac+]

Originally Posted by AWR Thanks Mac+. (Aren't you overdue for a picture in the Cycling thread? ) Everything on this site helps. Cheers.

I am indeed! I have not forgotten and do intend to bump that baby when it all happens.

Thing is, my folks came for a visit and my budget went out the window.

I've started to save again, but there is no way I'll have enough before Christmas - and since we are returning to OZ for the Summer - I have decided to blow what I have on a digital camera instead (as you know) and then restart the Mountain bike program in Feb! This way, it should be good bike riding weather when I have the necessary funds together.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by curiousuburb I'd have to dig around to see if there were any actual technotes on it, but it seems to me that a few Apple techs I've worked with started recommending this shortly after OS X got out of beta.

I think perhaps you mixed up the fact that the system's launch services would never find apps if they did not reside in the /Applications or ~/Applications folder. Apple (by way of a bug or poor coding) actually encouraged users to keep their apps in the right place.

[naren]

If you keep applications in ~/Applications they are then not available to all users, no? I've gotten in the habit of installing everything in /Applications for that reason and because I've used several funky, UNIX'ish apps that demanded to be placed there otherwise they would not function properly.

[Brad]

Right. Other users generally cannot access anything in your home folder.

[ast3r3x]

By default there is no ~/Applications…at least in 10.4. Lazy intallers will create and put stuff in there…like Ghost Recon or Raven Shield (Tom Clancy games) not sure which one does that.

Applications go in the /Applications folder…period.

[Mac+]

For the record, there's no ~/Apps folder in 10.3.x either.

However, I have created one (and use it) and I have no problems with my software alerting me of an update or launching correctly at start-up - and this includes services too.

I think it is convenient to keep the Apple apps separate from my personal apps. Also, if you run a family computer (with multiple users) it might help keep things in order if you do it this way.

[Kickaha]

My solution:

/Users/Shared/Applications

symlink that as /Applications/MoreApplications

Done. All apps are findable through /Applications, but all my stuff is separated off into another directory. I never have to back up /Applications that way, just /Users/Shared/Applications.

[AWR]

Funny thing happened when I closed a third party program, ejected the white disk on the desktop and trashed the .dmg - the icon for the program kept in the Dock pulled on a big question mark shirt and would not launch.

Hmmm. Have I installed the application in the wrong manner in the first place?

Also, I was never able to get the white disk to NOT mount on the desktop when opening the application. I'm not sure how to stop this, or does it have to happen?

I suppose I am not doing this correctly: 'Once you have copied the contents out from the disk image's drive, you can "eject" that drive and trash the DMG file that created it.' Is it as simple as double clicking the .dmg or are there other steps?

AWR

[Brad]

Originally Posted by AWR Hmmm. Have I installed the application in the wrong manner in the first place?

Probably, but I'll get to that in a moment.

Originally Posted by AWR I suppose I am not doing this correctly: 'Once you have copied the contents out from the disk image's drive, you can "eject" that drive and trash the DMG file that created it.' Is it as simple as double clicking the .dmg or are there other steps?

I suspect you did something wrong at Step One. How exactly do you typically copy the contents to your hard drive?

You should drag-and-drop it to somewhere like, say, the Applications folder. Then, drag the new copy (the one in the Applications folder) onto the Dock.

You probably dragged the application from the disk image onto the Dock, thereby creating an alias (or in Windows terms a "shortcut") to the file on the disk image instead of the file on your hard drive. When you click the Dock alias for that app, it re-mounts the disk image if the DMG file still exists. If it can't find it, the Dock replaces it with the missing "?" icon.

Make sense?

[AWR]

Yes, Brad, it makes perfect sense, but.... when I drag and drop into the apps folder, do I (1) make a copy of the app and drag it back out, (2) create an alias and drag it back out or (3) just drag it back out.

Thanks a lot. And NOW I know what an alias is, too.

[Brad]

Brb... I'll make a foolproof video demonstration.

[AWR]

I can't wait. *Twiddles thumbs* Foolproof, even - my favorite.

Thinking out loud, perhaps this topic might make a decent entry in the Sticky 'FAQ: Check this thread *first* if you have problems or questions!' for us Switchers. And, with a video ... HS, that would be nice.

Another appropriate topic for the FAQ might be the external HD issues of mounting, formatting, and ways to backup, e.g., cloning, incremental....

OK, I'll STFU already.

[Brad]

Yeah, sorry about that. I got distracted by a lovely lady for a few minutes.

Foolproof Drag-and-drop Installing from a Disk Image

Did you notice that even the disk image's background has pictographic instructions? A number of good developers have implemented the same thing. Pay attention if you download a quality app like, say, OmniWeb or Delicious Library.

Begin tangent.

Perhaps you'll also notice my minimalist philosophy regarding the Dock. Some users put nearly every application in the Dock, but do they really benefit? I've seen too many screenshots from users who "pimp their Dock" just to show off whatever trendy new application they downloaded or to showcase all sorts of spectacular warez that they don't even use.

I only keep in the Dock the applications that I know I'll use practically every day. Sometimes I'll add or subtract an app depending on recent tasks, but there you see essentially all that I keep. Getting to all my other lesser-used applications is only a few quick keystrokes away. Command-shift-A for the Applications folder, type the first couple characters of an app or folder, and command-o or command-down arrow to open (or as in most cases with me, usually command-option-o or command-option-down arrow to open the app and close the window that contained it).

I also hide the Dock normally, but I kept it visible for the sake of demonstration.

My 2 cents.

End tangent.

[AWR]

OMG, I'm at work and I can't play it on this shite PC. I'll be leaving promptly today.

Thanks for the effort and the tangential notes.

[Brad]

You don't have QuickTime on your PC?



(click it)

[AWR]

Originally Posted by Brad You don't have QuickTime on your PC? (click it)

No can do. No 'outside' allowed (although that didn't stop me from trying ). The installation stalled at the last bloody moment and a popup
told me that I don't have the rights.

Thanks for the tip anyway.

[AWR]

Thanks Brad - I get it now.

And here's chance to tell us how you made that little gem...

[AWR]

Follow up.

OK, I've got that process down.

Now where does one keep the .pkg file (for example, the desktop icon from the 10.4.3 Combo install).