does anyone know how to change the blank spaces you add via terminal command to the dock in lion, to a custom image? basically instead of the blank space I would like the same separator that is on the folder/trash side. does anyone know a way to do this? I have read many tutorials and even a post on here, but the information was not what I was looking for and ended up just changing the normal separator, plus it was almost 3 years old. thanks in advance to anyone who has done this.
Hey there,
Let me start by saying that I don't believe there is a way to add a customised image to the blank spaces one adds to the dock via terminal, if only for the reason that these spaces are
well spaces and not dock dividers. I hoped there might be a way to modify their width (shorten the space that is), but if there is one I did not find it. I might be wrong of course, but it's likely that you are not finding the information you seek simply because their appearance cannot be altered.
Having said this, I'd like to suggest is a little trick I used to organise my dock.
It's rather simplistic, but what I did was modify a few applications' icons and added them to the dock.
You can use any application you wish to, but I recommend using apps with disabled Dock icons, such as third-party background applications which, contrarily to Finder's apps, do not display any of the Dock animation when opened. In other words, software that either reside, or appear in Dock once the launched will display a blue dot beneath their icon (if you've selected the 'show indicator light for open application in System Preferences/Dock), as well as bounce, whereas those that are accessed through a status bar, will remain inactive.
These apps can be found in the launchpad or the application folder along with Finder's apps, but they are a few easy ways to identify them. First they do not display their respective icons in the Dock, but appear on the on the right side of the menu bar. Secondly, they do not appear in the Force Quit option of the Apple menu. Finally, even though they currently running, clicking on the app icon in the menu bar does not make it the active application's (its name will not appears in the menu bar to the right of the Apple logo).
As far as icons go I'm sorry to say that, although I've located the artwork for the dock separator, it cannot be made to look the same. Indeed as you can see in the picture bellow it lacks the 3D quality of the original.
Nevertheless, should you wish to use it despite all, you may do so by going to,
/System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app
Right click on the Dock. app (tap with two fingers if you are using a trackpad), and select 'Show Package Contents' from the pop up menu. Then go to
Dock.app/Contents/Resources/separator.png
Double click on separator.png to open it in Preview, then select all (Command key (⌘) + A, or from the menu bar, Edit/Select All), the copy (Command key (⌘) + C, or from the menu bar Edit/Copy).
Finally, determine which application to use (such as caffeine for example, mini usage, app killer, FlashFrozen and the likes) and located it in the application folder. Change the icon by clicking on it once to select it, and then hold the Command key (⌘) + I to display the application info. Click on the small icon on the top left hand corner and paste (Command key (⌘) + V, or from the menu bar, Edit/Paste)
Voilà, all that's left to do is to drag the application and place it on the desired location in the dock.
I hope you will find useful.
