Installing Mac Applications
June 13th, 2007 by Mike
Many PC to Mac Switchers struggle at first with the concept of installing Applications on their Mac. Maybe because they expect it be more complicated then it actually is, kinda like what they expect happens when installing an Application on a PC - lots of stuff popping up on the screen asking to confirm this and enter that, a bunch of file names flashing before their eyes and a restart or two.
Most Mac installs are in the form of Disk Images that when double clicked extract and open on the Mac desktop as a volume, very similar to what would happen if you put a CD that contained an Application in your Mac, the CD would mount on your desktop and once mounted you would then be able to double click the CD opening it up to reveal the Application inside ready to run. Applications will run just fine from Disk Images and even CD’s but they need to be copied to the Applications folder for permanent use, this copy to the Applications step is what many first time Mac users fail to do and end up confused because their Application does not seem to be installed once the Disk Image or CD is ejected.
A few Applications will use an “Installer” similar to the way a PC installs Applications. Usually the reason for this is when the Application requires several components that need to be placed in System or Library folders. As mentioned before, most Mac Applications are self contained and have everything they need, so simply dragging the Application to the Applications folder is all that is needed to install them.
When dealing with Internet downloaded Applications you may also encounter Applications that download in the format of either “zip”, “sit” or “bin” compressed files. OS X Tiger has built in “zip” compression software making “zip” files very easy to uncompress, “bin” (BinHex) and “sit” (StuffIt) files will need a decompression Program to uncompress them. A basic free version StiffIt Expander can be downloaded to uncompress “bin”, “sit” and many other compressed files. Once uncompressed most Applications will open as a folder but may sometimes uncompress to a Disk Image that in-turn needs to be double clicked to open and mount.
So when installing Mac Applications remember to keep it simple! Open the Disk Image file and Drag the Application inside to the Application folder, that’s about it! Just remember once the Application is installed in your Application folder you can then remove your mounted Disk Image by dragging it to your Trash (Your Trash will turn into an eject symbol) and then follow that step by trashing the actual compressed Disk Image file, in that order.
Author - Michael Kaye
Posted in Articles, Tips | Send this to a friend
June 13th, 2007 at 1:55 am
Most PC users from waaaayyyy back will remember DOS, and when you could run a program off of a floppy disk. Remember that? There was no need to integrate with the OS, the OS was simply there to run the system. Seems to me, that although the OS’es these days do a lot more than just run the system, to equate the way an application installation works in OSX is okay. Mike, you, explained to me that they are self contained, more or less. Why alot of Mac newcomers accidentally run programs off a mounted disk image, and then can’t find the app later when it’s been unmounted and thrown in the trash. This is especially hard coming from a long time windows environment. It’s simplicity is befuddling!
June 13th, 2007 at 5:35 pm
Thank you for the tip. I think I finally got the hang of putting apps in the folder instead of running it off the disk image. I love learning new stuff about Mac!!!
June 14th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Thank-you for writing this article. I am planning on buying a mac in the near future, and this is the sort of information that is going to very useful in making the transition from Windows.
There are lots of sites to report on the latest mac news, but I really think that your site will be able to carve out a niche for people like me by focusing on these types of articles.
Thanks again, and good luck with your career move.
June 15th, 2007 at 9:26 am
I must admit to finding my first week on Mac (about a month ago) very stressful and I just couldn’t see why it wasn’t a longer process. It really is as simple as copy and paste to install software on Mac, this became clear when I heard that software on Mac is relative and that I can easily move installed software to another location on the drive and find it still works!
I’ve put quite a Applications on my Mac and knowing this has meant I could organise them into folders per software type, such as graphics software and music software and chat software.
Keep up the good work because the more people that use what is clearly and more secure and more innovative operating system, the more software and games there will be for it.
July 11th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
You’ve done well helping people to know more about Mac World! I’ve found out your articles help a lot just about everything all the things I need to know about Mac.
Thanks Mike,
July 11th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
Your very welcome Ronald, glad the site was helpful to you!!
September 4th, 2007 at 6:24 am
The problem with the advice and instructions for non-MAC users is people assume we all know what to do and where to go (steps are jumped). For a MAC user to assume I know which script to run a program is ludicrous.
I have found the MAC help, unhelpful. I asked for help from the store I purchased my MAC. The instructions seemed easy enough but when I got home and tried what I was told, the process was not as discribed. I have found the same problem with the answers to my questions at the MAC site. Much is assumed about the user which leaves me and everyone in my family in the dark. Back to a PC, most likely. We spent $2000 + and cannot even use this computer.
September 4th, 2007 at 6:54 am
John, As with anything new, you will have to put some time into it to learn the idiosyncrasies involved. By going back to a PC I believe you will be short changing yourself without taking the time to be become more comfortable with your new Mac.
I recommend you take your Mac related questions to our Switching to Mac Forum:
http://www.switchingtomac.com/smf/
December 2nd, 2007 at 11:53 pm
Hello, thank you for this forum. It’s been very helpful in dealing with my new Mac.
Is there any way to open up a downloaded program at any time without having to eject the desk image every time I exit the application? It’s a really annoying step I’d like to not do….
December 3rd, 2007 at 9:45 am
AT,
Just drag the Program from the open disk image into your Applications folder, that is how most of the downloaded “Disk Image” type programs are installed.
December 3rd, 2007 at 5:30 pm
YEA! Thank you SO Much Mike!!
January 30th, 2008 at 3:10 am
Hi, I’m a newcomer to the world of Macs and am finding this site VERY useful at getting me up to speed with the basics (and the not-so-basics).
This article has been useful for me, but one thing it doesn’t mention is how to uninstall applications that you’ve finished with. Is it as simple as just dragging them from Applications to Trash?
Cheers,
IanF
January 30th, 2008 at 10:20 am
IanF, Most applications juts need to be put in the trash to remove them. Some of the installer type applications will have an uninstaller to fully remove them.
January 30th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I just switched. This site has been very helpful. I have been learning on my own, but you have filled some of the gaps.
I have been struggling in getting my Creative Zen M 30 to be recognized by the mac- no go after many attemps and net surfing. Any ideas?
Can you get a list of open items and running applications, like the task manager?
Thanks,
January 30th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
yvette, Creative has not always been the most Mac friendly in the past but it looks like they are starting to make their more resent products a bit more Mac friendly.
There’s always an iPod…
February 21st, 2008 at 6:45 am
Sometimes an application uses an installer to install itself when there are more files to be put in different locations - OK, cool. But how do I uninstall an app that did that if I don’t want it anymore? If I drag the app file into the Trash, what about the other files it installed? How do I find out what they are and where they are?
February 21st, 2008 at 10:07 pm
Joel, that type of installation won’t have any supporting files other then maybe a library file with your specific settings, if you are worried about it you could use Spotlight to search it out.