Replacing dock icons

[macstatic]

My mother (a Mac newbie) is confused about the two "Address book" icons in the MacOS 10.5.4 dock (the "Applications" folder in the dock is a blue folder almost fully covered with a brown "Address book" icon), so I thought I'd replace the "Applications" folder icon with something else.

Tough luck! It turns out that this isn't as easy as doing a "Show info" for the "Applications" folder in the Finder, then pasting a new icon in its place. Nope!
First of all, the icon doesn't show up in the dock at all (not even when I click on it in the dock, which is the case with MacOS 10.4), so I trew away (poof!) the Applications folder in the dock, then dragged the Applications folder from a Finder window (which now has a new icon on it) over to the dock.
Bingo!!! New icon. Everything's perfect, life's good and all that I thought to myself.

I spoke too soon, because a second later the dock folder icon changes back to the original icon
Aaaaaaargh!!!!

I would also like to change the "Documents" and "Downloads" folder icons on the dock, and like the "Applications" folder icon in the dock they can't be changed either (although I have no problem changing them in the Finder).
Frustrating!!!!! Any solution to this?

 

[dantherevelator]

Right click on the stack. Choose Display As >> Folder.

 

[macstatic]

Thanks!
Just another proof that there's no need to search in vein for complicated solutions when things are (often) super-simple on the Mac in comparison to another well known computer platform

Now, if I could only find an equally simple solution for changing the tiny icons in Finder windows' sidebars to larger ones I'd be one happy camper