Poll: How many icons are in your Mac OS X Dock?

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: How many icons are in your Mac OS X Dock? (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=339)

[revenuee]

81+ ! i'm curious to see that one

[Sabenth]

19 and growing by the week

[insidedanshead]

i dont think i will ever go above 20... i consider myself a power user and even then... theres not 20 things that i FREQUENTLY access. I'd rather have to go out of my way to open up my apps folder for something that I don't use that often than to have it GLARING right at me all the time everyday.

[SeaFox]

Whoever voted "61-70" needs to post a screen shot.

[AmigoMac]

I had 30 when I read the poll but just saw one of my favorite programs was not there... 31! ;) I don't use all of them everyday but every week...

[backspinner]

23, but I think that is on the limit of usability (dock on the right side, 1152x768 screen)

[gerbilbox]

I got 9, not incluiding the Finder and trash icons. They're the ones that I'll use at least once a day. For everything else, I just hotkey LaunchBar to run my other applications :)

[awulf]

I have 19 Permanent icons, but at the moment there are 25 icons. I mainly use the application called "Drag Thing" it is like the launcher in OS 9 and earlier, but only more featured and better looking, this gives me quick access to all my programs. Apple should bring back the launcher in my opinion.

[SilvorX]

around 7, i would go crazy if i had more than 30, ALWAYS accidently opening the wrong app, like opening vpc when you wanted to open textedit

[gerror]

I got around 15.
You can also put a folder with shortcuts in the dock with the apps you don't use on a regualr base.

[mj_1903]

Depends. On launch my Dock is empty. Gradually as I use it more apps move in. I don't have any fixed apps per se. I prefer DragThing for fixed apps.

[alset]

I can't imagine having so few items in the dock. I have 41, and the last time someone asked about this in a thread, I listed something like 50. I am not counting non-permanent icons, here. Also, 8 of them are folder links to reduce clutter in the dock, so if I went by frequently accessed apps it would be a nightmare.

Dan

[AhmedFaisal]

Everything else is just temporary. I hate Docks with tons of crap on them. I use Unsanity's FruitMenu to organize the Applications I use frequently. My Dock is small and clear btw. I hope Unsanity has Dock Detox ready soon to kill the bouncing of the Apps completely.
Cheers,

Ahmed

[Vonnie]

Originally posted by alset
I can't imagine having so few items in the dock. I have 41, and the last time someone asked about this in a thread, I listed something like 50. I am not counting non-permanent icons, here. Also, 8 of them are folder links to reduce clutter in the dock, so if I went by frequently accessed apps it would be a nightmare.


Screenshot! Screenshot! :D

[Sailfish]

33 and on the right on my 23" Cinema, everywhere else it gets in the way.

Now where do you keep your "Blob" when not in use?

Lower right corner for me.

(Cocktail 3.2 for Panther will turn on the Expose Blob)

[fluidfloyd]

Originally posted by insidedanshead
i dont think i will ever go above 20... i consider myself a power user and even then... theres not 20 things that i FREQUENTLY access. I'd rather have to go out of my way to open up my apps folder for something that I don't use that often than to have it GLARING right at me all the time everyday.


Try Himmel Bar:

http://softbend.free.fr/himmelbar/index.html

To quote the website:

----

What is HimmelBar ?

HimmelBar is a little faceless application that provides an icon in the menu bar to quickly access your installed applications by scanning standard locations such as local, user, network and developer applications. You can also add a custom location such as the Classic Applications folder, or any other folder of your hard disk that contains applications.

----

It's ace, and free too! And allows much clutter to be cleared from untidy docks!

fluidfloyd

[Blaaze]

I honestly think that above 20 hinders usability. Unless..you know where everything is... I keep about 15 apps running all the time, and Launchbar the rest. I don't think I even have 30+ apps to run..

[simX]

I have 53 items in my Dock currently. However, before I installed Panther (clean install), I had well over 80 items in my Dock. :) I just like to have one-click access to everything, instead of having to dig down in the Finder to get to what I want.

It'll probably grow, as I still haven't installed some apps that I "usually" use like Transmit.

[Powerbook G5]

I have 20 even but I am really curious of the 4 people who have voted 81+, I would love to see this.

[KLFloyd]

Originally posted by AhmedFaisal
Everything else is just temporary. I hate Docks with tons of crap on them. I use Unsanity's FruitMenu to organize the Applications I use frequently. My Dock is small and clear btw. I hope Unsanity has Dock Detox ready soon to kill the bouncing of the Apps

Same here, I like a nice clean dock and I he a "toolbox" with all my frequently used Applications as well as my Applications folder up in my FruitMenu.

Before FrunitMenu came out I had a little folder called Toolbox on my Doc that had Aliases to all my most-used apps in there. That worked well too.

[WinterMute]

I have around 40 generally, they are the ones that get used all the time, I took the games out when I set up a different user for gaming that didn't have folding running.

I have about 10 games I think, so I guess I'd have had 50-odd at one point.

[pivo6]

I only have 10 on the dock. Any more for me and it gets too cluttered. Then you might as well leave "shortcuts" on your desktop.

[Centris 650]

I've got 22 on my iBook 466. I use most of the apps on a daily if not weekly basis. The apps are... Mail, Safari, all iApps, Font Book, Backup 2, MS Office Apps, Freehand, Konfabulator (Which will be moving off soon), System Prefs & iSync.

I don't put many apps in my menu bar except sound, Konfabulator & Airport. I just don't have a lot of menu space to spare.

[Lord Bodak]

I can't remember exactly, but it's only stuff I use often.

Finder, Mail, AIM, Fire, Firebird, NetNewsWire Lite, Sherlock, Watson, Address Book, iCal, Palm Desktop, iPhoto, iTunes, Terminal, Stickies, X11. Then I have Applications and Home plus the trash.

[Ambrose Chapel]

Originally posted by gerror
You can also put a folder with shortcuts in the dock with the apps you don't use on a regualr base.

i do this too..it's very helpful for access to things like my iTunes music folder, utilities/apps folder, etc. plus the folder has for its icon a TiBook :)

[macMaestro]

32, not including Finder and Trash. I find the icons perfectly usable, though it probably helps that I have them on the bottom of my 1600x1200 screen.

[Mudbug]

53. and yup, I use pretty much everything in it regularly.

[Awimoway]

I keep mine under a manageable 25 by putting several folders in my dock with aliases linking to just about anything and anywhere on my computer that I might open. I can click-hold on them for popup menus or just click on them for Finder windows with the alises organized nicely.

There are a lot of apps that will do this for you (like Dock Extender), but most of them waste resources, so I stopped using them and started creating the folders myself.

[Bunzi2k4]

i've got 19...

[pbooktebo]

I do the same thing. I have 8 regular app icons (10 w/Finder and Trash), but I keep three folders on the dock: Applications, Music Apps, and Games. I also use custom icons for these and other folders, usually from osxicons.com. It helps to zero in on frequently used stuff.

Good poll!

[bousozoku]

I have 58 items in my dock when no applications are running, but if I eliminated things I use once a month, but not once a week, it would be around 53.

The dock keeps me from digging through all the layers of folders, as I did with Mac OS 9.x and earlier.

[mrsebastian]

i think i need to go to dockaholics anonymous :D

[wdlove]

I'm with the 2.54%, not using Mac OS X, so don't have a Dock. Agree with others, wonder how those with 50 plus icons in the Dock manage.

My wife has 21 icons in her Dock on a PowerBook G4.

I currently have 21 icons on my Mac OS 9 desktop. Keep procrastinating about moving some of them.

[Mudbug]

Originally posted by wdlove
I'm with the 2.54%, not using Mac OS X, so don't have a Dock. - Mac OS 9 desktop.

Why are you hesitant to move to X?

[wdlove]

Originally posted by Mudbug
Why are you hesitant to move to X?

That is a good question Mudbug. I don't have a real good answer. Tend to be a creature of habit. My Mac OS 9 is finally pretty stable. Not real sure if my 3 year old G4 would tolerate the change. Although a Mac Genuis told me that if I could have them install the Panther. Then if the hard drive was damaged, they would be responsible. To you knowledge is this true. Then there is also the cost involved to upgrade software. It will definitley be >$600.00.

[wrldwzrd89]

Originally posted by wdlove
That is a good question Mudbug. I don't have a real good answer. Tend to be a creature of habit. My Mac OS 9 is finally pretty stable. Not real sure if my 3 year old G4 would tolerate the change. Although a Mac Genuis told me that if I could have them install the Panther. Then if the hard drive was damaged, they would be responsible. To you knowledge is this true. Then there is also the cost involved to upgrade software. It will definitley be >$600.00.

wdlove, don't forget that you can use the Classic environment to run applications that have no Mac OS X equivalent (for now) or are due for replacement but haven't been replaced or upgraded yet. However, some applications (such as Virtual PC and scanner software) do not work in the Classic environment. You will either need to boot into OS 9 to run those or replace them with Mac OS X native versions.

[macfreek57]

i think it depends on monitor resolution/size ( i'm talking about dock icons)

that being said....

I would not be able to live without my dock being pinned to the bottom left corner of my screen. I have a 15" screen and I definitely use the extra space on the right hand side of the screen. if the dock is left in the middle of the screen, you have effectively cut the screen down to only being able to use that amount above the dock. the way i have mine set up, I can always resize windows and I have a perfect place to put the iTunes controller.

[iGav]

74 including the Trash.

Yes I use everything here, no it's not a problem, and no it's not full. :eek:

I still need to add Final Cut Pro 4 (I've not bothered installing 3), After Effects 6 (only have 5.5 in my dock, as I've not installed 5 (Classic) with all my plug-ins yet), and Shake 3.

Once everything is set up, it'll be in the 80-85 ish region.

[Ja Di ksw]

honestly, who really needs that many apps in their doc? 80 something? It'd be easier just to open a folder

[nagromme]

Tip: hold Option while dragging the Dock's resize line. It will snap to the "sharp" sizes that look best. (Although the largest size it snaps to won't be sharp--it will be limited by screen size.)

Also, hold Shift when dragging there to move the Dock to any screen edge.

PS... Folders, people!

[bidge]

I don't like having stuff cluttered up, here's my dock, I don't have things in like photoshop because the new Creative Suite icons are confusing when they are all together...

[iGav]

Originally posted by Ja Di ksw
honestly, who really needs that many apps in their doc? 80 something? It'd be easier just to open a folder

I do... it's about efficency, when you're working with other peoples content etc etc, the files don't always retain their links to their software, so if you double click, they might not always launch, or for example I have a .mov that I want to open in After Effects, if I double click on the .mov it'll open QuickTime, now fair enough I could go into my Applications folder and open After Effects and then import the footage, or I can just drag and drop the file into the AE icon in the dock and hey presto.

Every piece of software in my Dock sees regular use, and as a freelance cross-media designer I need to have every piece of software, + thousands of fonts installed to reduce configuration and set up time when I work client side.

I can't say having lots of icons in my Dock causes me any problems at all.

[-hh]

Originally posted by Ja Di ksw
honestly, who really needs that many apps in their doc? 80 something? It'd be easier just to open a folder


I consider it to be a workflow configuration preferences issue.

Under OS 9, one of the things I did was to have a set of higherarchical folders at the top of the Apple Menu that contained all of my applications.

What was great about this is that it was *ALL* my Apps, and was most beneficial in quickly locating the obscure stuff that I didn't use every day.

I saw the tip to try Himmel Bar, as well as putting a folder in the Dock with Aliases within...I'm going to try both out.

I probably have ~25 items permanently in the dock at present, but with only a 17" monitor, they're small...I'd like to reduce it to around a dozen, but I because want to be able to have quick/easy access to around ~50 items, that's why I've been looking for hierarchical solutions.

Of course, I'll then be coy and say that I'm really just mimicing how I had my system set up before under OS 7/8/9. :D

-hh

[MacFan25]

I have 16 icons in my dock, which I use regularly. I recently re-discovered stickies and have been using them quite a bit. :)

[e2chris]

Originally posted by iGAV
I do... it's about efficency, when you're working with other peoples content etc etc, the files don't always retain their links to their software, so if you double click, they might not always launch, or for example I have a .mov that I want to open in After Effects, if I double click on the .mov it'll open QuickTime, now fair enough I could go into my Applications folder and open After Effects and then import the footage, or I can just drag and drop the file into the AE icon in the dock and hey presto.

Every piece of software in my Dock sees regular use, and as a freelance cross-media designer I need to have every piece of software, + thousands of fonts installed to reduce configuration and set up time when I work client side.

I can't say having lots of icons in my Dock causes me any problems at all.

Dam... I dont blame you for maybe not knowing this... I blame Steve Jobs for continuing the stupid one buttom mouse crap... anyway... if you do have a 2 button mouse right click on the file you want to open and use the "open with" menu. 9 times out of 10 the other app you want to use will be in there. You can also set that one file to a certain application instead of the default for example the .mov which default opens in QUicktime. Anyway hope this helps and I want to see a 2 button bluetooth mouse very bad. Anyone think the G5 Powerbooks will have 2 buttons and not one? And to the people who like there one button mouse... whatever... this isnt a one vs two debate. Why the hell would osx support two buttons... doesnt make any sense.

[e2chris]

Oh and for the people with 20+ icons. Whatever again... To each his own. I would rather see them in your dock than a messy frigging desktop... god I hate that when you go to a friends and you 500 folders/apps/files on there desktop. Very gay.

[Powerbook G5]

It seems to be a philosophical difference that separates PC mentality from Mac mentality. More often than not, all of my friends who have PCs have a messy desktop littered with icons whereas the people I know who have Macs generally have few to none at all. I used to have a desktop cluttered with icons before I switched, too, I am not sure how or why I started to do it, but my desktop ended up becoming less and less cluttered until now the only icon I have is my HD icon in the corner. I know there are exceptions on either side, but it seems to be easy enough to generalize.

[jobberwacky]

How about a poll re how many docks people use?

I use DockSwitcher3 to reduce the clutter in my dock. It's a 5 US$ menu bar app that allows you to maintain several docks, switch between them using the keyboard and alternatively navigate through the dock entries from a menu bar window.

Per dock (I set up 4) I have 10-16 apps.

[Oirectine]

Finder, iChat, AIM, iTunes, Safari, Yahoo! Instant Messenger, System Preferences, Address Book, TextEdit, Terminal, X Chat Aqua, Audacity, MetroGnome, Poisoned, Goban, Fink Commander, Fetch, Reason 2.5...:)

http://s91116975.onlinehome.us/dock.jpg

[pimentoLoaf]

I got 'em grouped:

[list=1]
System
Business
Games
Graphics
Internet
Multimedia
Science
Text
Utility
[/list=1]

Only three games (Ghost Recon, Sims, Stronghold), Reason & FCE amongst the multimedia, ImageReady accompanies Photoshop, and two os9 programs for screenwriting (under Business) fill my 40-50 icon dock.

[JDar]

26 in the dock, and 24 in Rocket Laucher.

[Sheebahawk]

I have itunes, aim, and internet explorer. if I'll be ujsing another program frequently, I'll add it then toss it out when I'm done. yup 4 items, including the finder.

[MrMacMan]

Originally posted by revenuee
81+ ! i'm curious to see that one

ya really... what type of screen even allows you of thinking you can view the icons?

iGAV -- What kind of person needs 3 Browsers in their dock, who are you... and where do you get that $$.

Also... WHAT SCREEN ARE YOU USING?
:eek:


Originally posted by iGAV
I do... it's about efficency, when you're working with other peoples content etc etc, the files don't always retain their links to their software, so if you double click, they might not always launch, or for example I have a .mov that I want to open in After Effects, if I double click on the .mov it'll open QuickTime, now fair enough I could go into my Applications folder and open After Effects and then import the footage, or I can just drag and drop the file into the AE icon in the dock and hey presto.

Every piece of software in my Dock sees regular use, and as a freelance cross-media designer I need to have every piece of software, + thousands of fonts installed to reduce configuration and set up time when I work client side.

I can't say having lots of icons in my Dock causes me any problems at all.
You know what stops me from doing what you do?

I thing called 'right click' I have a 2 button mouse (also control + Click same thing)... if I wanted to open it in ______ then I can go to 'open with' easy... doesn't strain my eyes... and easy.

:scrolls down:
e2chris -- you beat me there.

For me... I have about 174 icons... plus stuff I open...



NOT!

About 28...

[jasonbw]

i've got 15 in the dock, including an 'apps' folder and an 'office folder', each with 9 and 4, respectively.

I noticed at the apple store that they have the applications folder aliased in the dock on all their machines. i might have to try it.

[bousozoku]

Originally posted by e2chris
Dam... I dont blame you for maybe not knowing this... I blame Steve Jobs for continuing the stupid one buttom mouse crap... anyway... if you do have a 2 button mouse right click on the file you want to open and use the "open with" menu. 9 times out of 10 the other app you want to use will be in there. You can also set that one file to a certain application instead of the default for example the .mov which default opens in QUicktime. Anyway hope this helps and I want to see a 2 button bluetooth mouse very bad. Anyone think the G5 Powerbooks will have 2 buttons and not one? And to the people who like there one button mouse... whatever... this isnt a one vs two debate. Why the hell would osx support two buttons... doesnt make any sense.

Mac OS X most likely even supports 3 button mice because that's what's been available on UNIX machines and Mac OS X is derived from a fairly famous desktop UNIX. That doesn't mean that Steve Jobs is going to give up on a single mouse button or a single menu bar.

Open with... is a good option but, if you have several files of that certain type, it's certainly a lot easier and expedient to open the application from the dock and then, use the Open... option from the menu. It also saves accidentally doing silly things in the menu, when you sneeze. ;)

If having a messy desktop or having more than 20 items in the dock is "very gay", I'll take that as a good thing. :D

[ahbe]

Ok, I have at the moment about 18 icons. However, I regularly use way more apps and utilities then that. The solution? LaunchBar. Just hit CMD+Space Bar and type the first few characters of the app you want to launch and hit enter. That simple. I don't know how I could use my Mac now after getting LaunchBar. Check it out, it's definitely worth your time.

[iGav]

Originally posted by MrMacman
ya really... what type of screen even allows you of thinking you can view the icons?

iGAV -- What kind of person needs 3 Browsers in their dock, who are you... and where do you get that $$.

Also... WHAT SCREEN ARE YOU USING?
:eek:



You know what stops me from doing what you do?

I thing called 'right click' I have a 2 button mouse (also control + Click same thing)... if I wanted to open it in ______ then I can go to 'open with' easy... doesn't strain my eyes... and easy.

:scrolls down:
e2chris -- you beat me there.

For me... I have about 174 icons... plus stuff I open...


I need 3 browsers, I actually need to install a couple more.... I'm a cross-media designer so need to makesure that any web work I do, actually works in the browsers it's supposed to do....

As for the $$ issue, I make good money! all the software installed, is there for a reason.... I use it. simple.

I use a Wacom tab most of the time (better than any mouse on the market) and that comes with a 3 button mouse, not that I use that, cos' it's incredibly inefficent in comparison to the pen... but hey ho, I much prefer icons in the dock method, never had a problem knowing where anything is, and it's still quicker than having folders, well it is when I use it.

As for the dock issue, the icons magnify, so where's the squint issue? but it takes me a day of use to remember where each icon is, so that I drag a file/s to a specific point on the screen, and the correct region of the Dock pops up, simple efficent and most of all quick, much quicker than having folders, and in some circumstances better than the right-click method as well, especially when you get media from clients, that isn't recognised by the right click function.

[-hh]

Originally posted by iGAV
I need 3 browsers, I actually need to install a couple more.... I'm a cross-media designer so need to makesure that any web work I do, actually works in the browsers it's supposed to do....



I'm not a pro...merely a "HHH" (Handcrafted HTML Hobbiest).

But IMO, anyone who cares about their webpages should also care enough to make sure that different browers (and the PC platform) doesn't cause them to display horribly.

If your website provides browser statistics, you'll quickly find that not only do you need to be concerned with various Platforms (PC/Mac) and browsers, but also various browser revisions within the same.

Prior to moving up to X, I had over a half dozen brower types/versions installed, and used them to check page displaying.

Today, I only have two, but I've not had the time to write any pages recently (BTW, I also cross-check my pages with my Windows PC at work). I continue to struggle with the display of images between Mac and PC, due to differences in the platforms' default color temperature and gamma. I'm sure that there are solutions out there, but I've not had the time to find out which ones are brutally simple, and don't require code or storage bloat, because I'm trying to keep it KISS.



-hh

[Powerbook G5]

I was wondering, have you tried making a "PC" colorsync profile with the color temp, gamma, saturations, etc that are more common with PCs so that you could switch to it and see if your images look like they should?

[iGav]

Originally posted by -hh
I'm not a pro...merely a "HHH" (Handcrafted HTML Hobbiest).

But IMO, anyone who cares about their webpages should also care enough to make sure that different browers (and the PC platform) doesn't cause them to display horribly.

If your website provides browser statistics, you'll quickly find that not only do you need to be concerned with various Platforms (PC/Mac) and browsers, but also various browser revisions within the same.

Prior to moving up to X, I had over a half dozen brower types/versions installed, and used them to check page displaying.

Today, I only have two, but I've not had the time to write any pages recently (BTW, I also cross-check my pages with my Windows PC at work). I continue to struggle with the display of images between Mac and PC, due to differences in the platforms' default color temperature and gamma. I'm sure that there are solutions out there, but I've not had the time to find out which ones are brutally simple, and don't require code or storage bloat, because I'm trying to keep it KISS.

-hh

exactly..... ;)

[mms]

12, only the apps I use daily.

Finder icon, Firebird, Mail app, Adium, Terminal, Control Panels, SubEthaEdit, TextEdit, Transmit, Trash, Applications folder alias, Home folder alias.

For everything else I usually use the Home and Apps folder aliases but I'm trying out LaunchBar and I like it so far.

[68k_575]

_

[Freakk123]

23 (25 w/ Finder and Dock). Use all of them.

[mms]

My dock changes all the time

[5300cs]

I had about 40 something, of which only 10 or so I really used. After installing Panther Server, it reset my dock to the original default, so I'm down to like 8 now :mad:

It did however save me the trouble of doing it mtself :D my dock is a lot cleaner now