How to delete programs?

[jtmx29]

Hey guys, I am a potential Mac user and was wondering how deletion of programs and applications work? I understand that most of the files are contained within the installation folder because there is basically no registry for the most part. However, some applications will be tied to the OS right? What is the best way to delete applications completely?

Thanks,
JTMX29

 

[CylonGlitch]

Most apps, you just drag to the trash.. done. But if you want to be sure to get all the plist files; use something like "AppCleaner", it will get those for you as well. Leaving the plists around doesn't hurt anything, not like the trash that gets left in the registry.

 

[robj]

I love this feature of Macs. Most of the applications you download from internet doesn't need any kind of installation or uninstallation. Just Drag the app to wherever you like and done, you can run the application. As stated before this is the same for removing them, drag them to the Trash and done.

However There are some applications that doesn't work this way, and it comes with an installer, and you need an uninstaller to remove them.

 

[jtmx29]

So the left behind plists don't mess with boot times or other things inside the OS? Thanks.

 

[The Man]

No, preference files plists may be left behind, that won't hurt performance. Those files are usually only a few KBytes, and can be manually removed to the trash if you wish (they are recognizable by name). Some apps leave some files behind in your ~/Library/Application Support/. Leaving them untouched will not hurt performance either. Usually it's application data, and the folder can be recognized by app name. These can also be manually removed to the trash.

Some people like to see uninstallers for these files, but they are not rooted into the system and won't affect system performance when left behind. I usually don't worry about a few KBytes or MB of data, and remove them manually every couple of months if left behind.

 

[jtmx29]

No, preference files plists may be left behind, that won't hurt performance. Those files are usually only a few KBytes, and can be manually removed to the trash if you wish (they are recognizable by name). Some apps leave some files behind in your ~/Library/Application Support/. Leaving them untouched will not hurt performance either. Usually it's application data, and the folder can be recognized by app name. These can also be manually removed to the trash.

Some people like to see uninstallers for these files, but they are not rooted into the system and won't affect system performance when left behind. I usually don't worry about a few KBytes or MB of data, and remove them manually every couple of months if left behind.

Thanks for the information!

 

[GGJstudios]

So the left behind plists don't mess with boot times or other things inside the OS? Thanks.

Unlike the Registry, which Windows reads every time it boots (more trash in the Registry = longer boot times), a .plist is only read when the application that owns it is launched. So if you delete the app, the .plist is just a very small text file that never gets read. Even if you leave them, they're completely harmless and have zero affect on your Mac's performance.

 

[ericshu]

I really love my mac!!!!!!!

 

[Cameront9]

The nice thing about .plist files is should you decide to reinstall the program, your old preferences and everything will still be there.