UsingMac.com
Mac Tricks and Tips, Wallpapers and Applications for Mac Users
Amusing Space-Saving Dock Stacks
Advertisements
With its elegance Grid View and comprehensive List View, putting things on the right side of the Dock giving much more advantages than adding more clutters to Dock organization. Some stuffs of my interest to be kept on Dock are Preferences Stack, Menu Extras Stack and Groups of Applications.
Let me share with you how to make those stacks.
Preferences Stack
Shown Above. Preferences Stack Configured to Grid View
James from Mac Tricks and Tips compiled an interesting article to guide us in moving every shadowy areas of Mac System Preferences Pane to Dock stack (and he humbly claimed that this is the idea of his friend). From widely used Desktop & Screen Saver Preferences to less noticed Startup Disk Preferences, you will be shocked…
Source. Add a Preferences Stack [Mac Tricks and Tips]
Menubar Items or Menu Extras Stack
Shown Above. Menu Extras Stack with List View
All things stuck into extreme right of menubar - Battery Indicator, AirPort Status, Sound Volume, etc - are often called Menu Extras. They're really useful; you can't live without them (a bit of exaggeration here). To put them together as one stack, following steps can be applied:
- Create a new folder called Menu Extras Stack (or whatever else fit your hungry eyes) on Home Folder
- Go inside Macintosh HD → System → Library → CoreServices → Menu Extras and select all items
- Make alias from all of them by simply Drag-n-Drop them into Menu Extras Stack with modifier Command-Option pressed
- Drag Menu Extras Stack onto Dock, Control-Click on it and change view content to List View
- Q.E.D. (Quite Easily Done)
Group of Applications Stack
Shown Above. Stack of Microsoft Office 2008
Applications varied by usage yet created by the same company often prefixed with their brand names. Separately hanging them around Dock launcher is a waste of space. It's so much Dock-friendly to stack them together.
It's no much of difference with above :
- Create new stack folder
- Spot and select all applications belong to same group
- Drop aliases of them to that new folder (remember the command-option drag trick)
- Drag folder to Dock (if application icons are ugly as hell, forget about Grid View, stick to List View)
- Q.E.D.
I have no more amusing space-saving stacks to show you. But I believe you have your very own favorite stacks that haven't been mentioned here and I'd, by any chance, have missed the interesting part of those.
You can always drop your opinion on comment box or fire me an email. Thanks for reading, commenting and messaging UsingMac.
Categories:
Tips and Tricks
Tags:
Dock,
Stack
Related Entries
Some articles taken from our resource base, tightly related to current article, to empower you with more knowledge on tweaking the most out of your Mac.
11 Comments
k0ev
Very usefull! thanx I want to translate this article to russian for sharing!
Wendy
I am glad you like it. And you're free to share this with others :)
SS
How do you take Menu Extras off of the menu once you're done with them?
SS
Nevermind—I just figured out that all you have to do is hold and drag them off.
NaVi
Thanks for these usefull tips!!! I really like these =)
Jim
I find it easier just to hit Command + Space and type the first letters of an app I want to launch - lots less Dock clutter too.
Leandro
Awesome. How can I change the icon of the folder? Like your example of Menu Extras.
Sander
I Cant find the option to make the alias!? Where do i find this option? Great Website and Tips BTW I love them.
Wendy
Before trying to make alias, you need to check your working folder. As in system folders, they're usually read-only. Maybe this is why you can't find the option make alias.
However, by using the drag trick, the alias will be made in another folder that isn't read-only.
Nick DaCosta
Forgive me if I am retarded, when looking for core services I come up short and cannot seem to find it. Any others with this difficulty?
Xero
Wonderful! Out of curiosity, where'd you get that desktop? heh. Thanks again
Leave a Comment