need help trying to find invisible files

[fsa526]

Hi,

I am still a little unfamiliar with navigating my macbook and need some help trying to figure out some inconsistencies.

My Downloads folder (when I "Get Info") shows a size of 47 GB and has 117 files.

When I open the actual folder and display the contents, only 49 files show up and add up to nowhere near 47 GB. How is this possible and how do I figure out where all those files are?

Thanks in advance for the advice.

 

[spinnerlys]

Are there any folders in the Download folder?


Also have a look at the following links, as the information presented there might be helpful in your future endeavours into Mac OS X and could clear up initial confusion and may even prevent harm to your system or your files.

http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/
http://www.apple.com/findouthow/mac/
http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/

PS: To show hidden files open Terminal and type the following and press Enter:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE killall Finder

To hide the files again:
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE killall Finder

 

[mac2x]

In a terminal:

cd ~/Downloads

ls -la

 

[spinnerlys]

In a terminal:

cd ~/Downloads

ls -la

~ stands for the home directory by the way (?), which is already loaded when you open Terminal, so a simple cd downloads will suffice.

 

[mysterytramp]

In case you're unfamiliar with Terminal, you can search for invisible files with Spotlight.

Go to Finder and hit command-F to open a Spotlight window

In the popup menu at the top of the window, select "Other..."

When the dialog appears, select "File Visibility." A second popup will appear and select "Invisible Items"

Unfortunately, you can't include a path in the search (unless someone has some voodoo I've missed) but the window should default to a path bar at the bottom of the screen.

You can hit the little "+" key in the upper right of the window to add a new criteria to include System Files, if you want a peek at the guts of OS X.

One advantage this has over Terminal, you can hit the window's "Save" button and the search will be part of your sidebar, so invisible files are one click away.

mt

 

[mac2x]

~ stands for the home directory by the way (?), which is already loaded when you open Terminal, so a simple cd downloads will suffice.

I know...that just covers the eventuality that a terminal is open and looking at a different directory.

 

[spinnerlys]

I know...that just covers the eventuality that a terminal is open and looking at a different directory.

My post was meant for the OP, as I tried the ~command (had to find the ~first though) and it got me nowhere. So I tried it without and it worked. Just wanted to avoid frustration for the OP, it was not meant against you (therefore the ?).

But nice to know a new command.

 

[mac2x]

My post was meant for the OP, as I tried the ~command (had to find the ~first though) and it got me nowhere. So I tried it without and it worked. Just wanted to avoid frustration for the OP, it was not meant against you (therefore the ?).

But nice to know a new command.

That's fine. Another handy thing to know is that cd by itself will return you to ~ no matter where you are.