I don't understand Stacks!

[sravana]

Hi all,

This has been a hell of a day. I installed more RAM, VMWFusion, XP, and a couple of PC programs successfully, but I can't figure out how to get XP to see the portable HDD that I'm using to move files back and forth. sigh. But that's a Q for another forum!

I'm in the process of migrating my files to my iMac... and I'm completely confused by the Documents folder.

In Win XP there is a folder called "My Documents", and that folder is full of other folders which have files from school, work, etc. What is confusing me is that when I migrate files to the Documents folder under my username on the Mac, they automatically appear in the documents stack on the dock.

I don't want to be looking at each and every folder every time I click that icon - but I don't know where to put my files so I *don't* see them there. I'm also assuming that if I want to drag them out of the stack to the recycle bin, they will be deleted from the HDD, right?

Do I need to make another documents folder somewhere to keep my files in? I'm sorry, but my head hurts trying to get my mind around the way the Mac is organized (not to mention where in G_d's name my Thunderbird mailboxes actually reside! That Q is posted to the T-Bird forums at Mozilla support already!).

Thanks guys.

Sravana

 

[vandozza]

i don't quite understand your issue -

- do you not want the documents stack in the dock at all? (if not you can drag it off, and it'll be gone.)
- do you want to see a generic icon, instead of the icon of a file within the folder? (if so, opposite/right click on the stack and select "display as folder" instead of "display as stack."
- do you want to hide some of the folders so that they don't all appear in the stack? (i think the solution here is to make subfolders? ie. work, home, personal, mac?)
- have you played around with the different views? (opposite/right click on stack, "view by fan/list/grid/auto"

i have my app folder display as grid (display as folder)
my documents folder display as list (display as folder)
and downloads as display as fan (display as stack)
and it works pretty well.

and yes, if you drag stuff from a stack to the trash, it will be deleted (when you empty trash)

 

[evilspoons]

A stack is just another view of the same folder, in this case, the documents folder.

It sounds like you just want to get rid of the Documents stack. Keep all your documents in your account's Documents folder, and just keep a small selection of stuff in a separate folder (maybe a subfolder of Documents) with what you want visible in a stack, and create a stack for it.

Mac OS X and Windows (in a multi-user environment) both have copied (not in a mean way, there's really no other way to do it) the UNIX convention of having a "users" folder, users have their own folder inside there, and then each user has a set of subfolders with things like application settings, documents, pictures, music, whatever.

 

[vandozza]

and i think your thunderbird user data is stored in

~ = your user name/folder

~/Library/Thunderbird/Profiles/random-string.default/

 

[vandozza]

i think you need to try setting the documents stack to "display as list", this seems to work pretty well for me!

 

[vandlism]

Stacks and other items in your dock act as alias's or shortcuts in Windows terminology. The dock is used as a sort of favorites location for quick and easy access to your most used folders, documents, and applications. If you don't want to see all of your documents or your documents folder in the dock, just drag it off. The files won't be deleted, they will remain in the Documents folder in your user folder.

 

[SnowLeopard2008]

Drag the stack out. You'll hear a poof and a flash of smoke.

 

[sravana]

i don't quite understand your issue -

- do you not want the documents stack in the dock at all? (if not you can drag it off, and it'll be gone.)
- do you want to see a generic icon, instead of the icon of a file within the folder? (if so, opposite/right click on the stack and select "display as folder" instead of "display as stack."

Thanks for this tip - it is an improvement, IMO.

- do you want to hide some of the folders so that they don't all appear in the stack? (i think the solution here is to make subfolders? ie. work, home, personal, mac?)

Yes, That could be the solution... I do have many folders already - it just seems to be awfully labor intensive at this time (when I'm trying to get the whole computer up to speed.)

- have you played around with the different views? (opposite/right click on stack, "view by fan/list/grid/auto"

I'm working with that now. It is an improvement, because with the number of folders I would already have in the documents folder (not to mention all the files that aren't in folders yet) that stack would launch off the desktop, out of the computer, and out the front door!

i have my app folder display as grid (display as folder)
my documents folder display as list (display as folder)
and downloads as display as fan (display as stack)
and it works pretty well.

and yes, if you drag stuff from a stack to the trash, it will be deleted (when you empty trash)

I suppose it's a different thread, but how do you make an app folder on the dock? I've been going to Macintosh HD, and clicking through, while a folder on the dock would be much simpler.

and i think your thunderbird user data is stored in

~ = your user name/folder

~/Library/Thunderbird/Profiles/random-string.default/

Yes, I found that. It's just that the mailbox files don't appear to actually have much in them, when in fact I have **lots** of emails downloaded there! I'm going to the Mozilla forums for the answers to those questions.

i think you need to try setting the documents stack to "display as list", this seems to work pretty well for me!

I'm messing around with the various display modes, and that does appear to hold the key. I figured out just now how to create a new folder and put it on the dock, so just messing with it is teaching me a lot.

A stack is just another view of the same folder, in this case, the documents folder.

It sounds like you just want to get rid of the Documents stack. Keep all your documents in your account's Documents folder, and just keep a small selection of stuff in a separate folder (maybe a subfolder of Documents) with what you want visible in a stack, and create a stack for it.

Yes, I think that's what I want to do. Or perhaps a second folder that is only the documents that I'm working with currently. I could keep the original docs folder for when I want to look at the whole docs folder.

Mac OS X and Windows (in a multi-user environment) both have copied (not in a mean way, there's really no other way to do it) the UNIX convention of having a "users" folder, users have their own folder inside there, and then each user has a set of subfolders with things like application settings, documents, pictures, music, whatever.

Thanks for that, evilspoons. There is a similar thing in XP (which I never really got, but I'm figuring it out now), and when I saw "sravana" under users, I figured out what it was.

Stacks and other items in your dock act as alias's or shortcuts in Windows terminology. The dock is used as a sort of favorites location for quick and easy access to your most used folders, documents, and applications. If you don't want to see all of your documents or your documents folder in the dock, just drag it off. The files won't be deleted, they will remain in the Documents folder in your user folder.

Thanks, Vandlism. I'm used to just having a shortcut on the desktop, so your explanation is perfect. I didn't realize that the Documents stack was a shortcut to the documents folder! Ah HA. Now it all makes sense. And I do need to simply display it differently - and add a second folder marked "current"

Thanks, everybody. This forum is awesome (not to mention Macs - they rock!)

Drag the stack out. You'll hear a poof and a flash of smoke.

That animation kills me!

 

[JG271]

Go onto macintosh HD and simply drag the applications folder to the right hand side of the dock, near the trash. But not in the trash!!
You can't make a folder on the dock...

I have a downloads (ordered by most recently added) applications and utilities stacks. Very useful!

 

[sravana]

Go onto macintosh HD and simply drag the applications folder to the right hand side of the dock, near the trash. But not in the trash!!
You can't make a folder on the dock...

I have a downloads (ordered by most recently added) applications and utilities stacks. Very useful!

COOL!!
Thanks, I just did it, it worked wooooooo.

 

[sickmacdoc]

Go onto macintosh HD and simply drag the applications folder to the right hand side of the dock, near the trash. But not in the trash!!
You can't make a folder on the dock...

I have a downloads (ordered by most recently added) applications and utilities stacks. Very useful!

While it technically is still a stack you still can get them to display as a folder rather than a multi-layered stack by selecting "Folder" in the cleverly named "Display as:" item in a stack's pop up options list. I am sure am glad Apple added that option in the 10.5.2 update or I wouldn't be able to use my home made icons on them without having random stuff sticking out of the top of them!