Moving apps to sub-folders - side effects?

[keaide]

Hi,

I have moved all the iLife apps into a separate iLife folder within the Applications folder. This apparently caused problems with the latest iPhoto update (9.1.2). iPhoto said there's a new update, but Software Update said there isn't. Even after I downloaded the update manually from the Apple website it refused to install it, saying that iPhoto 9.1 is required to install the update. The update did only install after I moved the iPhoto back to the Application folder (out of the sub folder).

Is this a general problem? Does moving apps cause the System Update to fail? I have moved many apps, including iLife and other apps that came with Snow Leopard into other sub-folders. Do they all need to stay in the main Applications folder? If so, then I think the Applications folder becomes overcrowded quite quickly.

Are there other negative side effects of moving apps?

 

[TonyK]

Generally there is not an issue but it looks like Apple has hard coded folder location in to their installers. It would do Apple well to let users navigate to the folder where the app is, if that app is not in the default location. It really is not that hard and would save them from this embarrassment.

 

[Gregg2]

Apple apps are not the only ones that won't update if not directly in the Applications Folder. What's the issue with "overcrowding"? How many are too many?

 

[keaide]

I think as long there are below 40 apps in there, then the Grid view in the Dock works really fine. If more, then the List is the only option, but you need to scroll and search to find the right app (yeah, I know I can use Spotlight to type the name and start it via keyboard). So it would be great to be able to organize apps...

 

[Gregg2]

Hmm. I have a wider monitor I guess. There are 46 icons in my Applications folder, and I would have room for 38 more. I find that setting the label position to the right instead of at the bottom of the icons allows more to fit in a window.

 

[keaide]

I now moved all the iLife apps back to the Applications folder... clearly room for improvement in this department...