Locking folders in place?
May 30, 2010 8:02 AM Subscribe
Is there a way to lock folders into place on my MacBook Pro desktop so I can't accidentally move or delete them while manipulating surrounding files? Thanks.
That will prevent them from being deleted, but not from being moved. AFAIK there is no way to "freeze" icons in their current position on the desktop.
For big desktop purges you can drag a rectangle to select all the stuff you want to throw away or move, then command-click (apple-click) to deselect particular files you don't want to include in your bulk move.
posted by Aquaman at 8:31 AM on May 30, 2010
For big desktop purges you can drag a rectangle to select all the stuff you want to throw away or move, then command-click (apple-click) to deselect particular files you don't want to include in your bulk move.
posted by Aquaman at 8:31 AM on May 30, 2010
Yeah, besides locking the folder, which is imperfect and probably doesn't give you the exact functionality you want, there's no good alternative I can think of.
It's important to remember that the behavior of the desktop in OS X is virtually no different than any other folder on your hard drive. Moreover, it's really not a great place to keep tons of files or do lots of file manipulation. In fact, a messy desktop may even hurt your machines performance.
If you expect to be doing that sort of thing, rather than keeping a bunch of files you're going to muck around with in the same folder (desktop) as other files and folders that are more permanent, you should be placing the in-progress stuff in a separate folder all its own. Then if you really want rapid access to those files, either place the folder within the desktop folder or place it elsewhere and create a shortcut to it on the desktop.
Long story short: Don't use the desktop for heavy file manipulation, keep active files away from more permanent ones, and do your file manipulation in Finder and not on the desktop itself (or better yet, a superior 3rd party alternative like Path Finder).
posted by drpynchon at 8:46 AM on May 30, 2010
It's important to remember that the behavior of the desktop in OS X is virtually no different than any other folder on your hard drive. Moreover, it's really not a great place to keep tons of files or do lots of file manipulation. In fact, a messy desktop may even hurt your machines performance.
If you expect to be doing that sort of thing, rather than keeping a bunch of files you're going to muck around with in the same folder (desktop) as other files and folders that are more permanent, you should be placing the in-progress stuff in a separate folder all its own. Then if you really want rapid access to those files, either place the folder within the desktop folder or place it elsewhere and create a shortcut to it on the desktop.
Long story short: Don't use the desktop for heavy file manipulation, keep active files away from more permanent ones, and do your file manipulation in Finder and not on the desktop itself (or better yet, a superior 3rd party alternative like Path Finder).
posted by drpynchon at 8:46 AM on May 30, 2010
While this wouldn't help the moving of the icons, you could put those folders you didn't want to delete into your Documents folder, and then just put alias' of them on the Desktop. That way, if you did end up deleting the icons by mistake, it would only be the alias', not the originals (tucked safely away in your Documents folder).
posted by blueberry at 2:12 PM on May 30, 2010
posted by blueberry at 2:12 PM on May 30, 2010
Response by poster: AFAIK there is no way to "freeze" icons in their current position on the desktop.
OK, thanks. I guess the answer to my question is 'no.' Seems like a fairly obvious feature that should exist, though.
posted by dgaicun at 2:16 PM on May 30, 2010
OK, thanks. I guess the answer to my question is 'no.' Seems like a fairly obvious feature that should exist, though.
posted by dgaicun at 2:16 PM on May 30, 2010
In fact, a messy desktop may even hurt your machines performance.
That link is now five years old, you realize. I believe this was fixed in Leopard, but it at least doesn't happen in Snow Leopard. Either way, if you can actually get it to happen, file a bug.
posted by secret about box at 2:39 PM on May 30, 2010
That link is now five years old, you realize. I believe this was fixed in Leopard, but it at least doesn't happen in Snow Leopard. Either way, if you can actually get it to happen, file a bug.
posted by secret about box at 2:39 PM on May 30, 2010
Thread on MacRumors, suggesting that you could lock your desktop .DS_Store file after setting up your desktop. You could still move folders/files, but they would revert to their prior location. I didn't test it. This combined with the standard lock on folders might sorta but not really achieve what you're looking for. :(
It's sorta intriguing to me that this isn't easily achieved. I know some people who could really benefit from this, and/or a built-in kiosk mode in OS X. (I know there's a kiosk API, I mean like a preference panel extra)
posted by Jack Karaoke at 3:17 PM on May 30, 2010
It's sorta intriguing to me that this isn't easily achieved. I know some people who could really benefit from this, and/or a built-in kiosk mode in OS X. (I know there's a kiosk API, I mean like a preference panel extra)
posted by Jack Karaoke at 3:17 PM on May 30, 2010
Oh, and you could also keep the actual folders in your Documents folder, and place alias folders on your desktop. So at least if you delete them, you're not really deleting the folder. That would minimize the risk while not changing how you work.
posted by Jack Karaoke at 3:25 PM on May 30, 2010
posted by Jack Karaoke at 3:25 PM on May 30, 2010
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posted by mpls2 at 8:21 AM on May 30, 2010