Apple is known for its supreme aestethics and design, though it's not exactly regarded as the most customizable of platforms. Luckily, there are some Terminal tricks that can be used to do things like disable icons from the Desktop, enable a simpler Finder window, and show X-ray-style folders. Read on to find out how! 

How to run the commands

We will be executing the following commands in Terminal (located in /Applications/Utilities). After typing (or copying and pasting) the command, press the enter key.

After running the command, you will need to restart the Finder by typing the following command into the Terminal, followed by the enter key:

killall Finder

The commands below labeled as "Enable Commands" are the Terminal commands you will enter to enable the hack; to disable the hack, simply run the "Reversal Command" listed for that hack.

The Hacks

1. Disable Icons on the Desktop

At times, you may want to disable the icons that are being stashed on your Desktop in order to show a presentation, perform another task, or work without distractions. To disable your Desktop in the Finder, type the following Enable command. Items stored on your Desktop will still be visible from a Finder window

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder CreateDesktop false

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder CreateDesktop true

2. Prohibit Media Burning

Are your kids burning through CDs at a rate that's unbearable? Well, you could get them a USB drive; or, you can prevent them from burning media on your Mac. To do this, simply run the following command. Whenever they try to burn media from the Finder, they will get the above error. Plus, any created burn folders will have the "Burn" button disabled.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder ProhibitBurn true

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder ProhibitBurn false

3. Enable Simple Finder

You may not necessarily want to create a guest user account whenever someone wants to use your Mac. At the same time, you don't want someone nosing around in your files. Running this command will give you the best of both worlds. The "Simple Finder" hides your Desktop files, and won't let anyone open a new Finder window. Only applications in the Dock can be launched. Note that Spotlight will still work for launching items.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder InterfaceLevel simple

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder InterfaceLevel standard

(or click Finder > Run Full Finder, and then type in your admin password)

4. Show X-ray Folders in QuickLook

QuickLook is great for viewing a file's contents before opening the file in an application, but when you try to QuickLook a folder, the results are pretty boring. By enabling X-ray Folders in QuickLook, the QuickLook preview of a folder will animate the viewing of files that are contained inside the folder. Note that this trick does not seem to be working in Mac OS X Lion.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder QLEnableXRayFolders YES

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder QLEnableXRayFolders NO

5. Display Path in Title Bar

When you dig a few levels deep into the Finder, you may lose your path. Sure, you could enable the Path bar by going to View > Show Path Bar, but you can also enable the Path view in the less-obtrusive title bar.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder _FXShowPosixPathInTitle -bool YES

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder _FXShowPosixPathInTitle -bool NO

6. Enable "Quit Finder" Menu Item

Quitting the Finder application is not something that Apple supports by default, but you can enable it with this simple hack. After enabling, exit the Finder by clicking Finder > Quit Finder.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder QuitMenuItem 1 

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder QuitMenuItem 0

7. Prohibit Disk Eject

Do you find yourself accidentally ejecting disks from your Mac when a file copy is in progress? Well, you can prevent that by enabling this command temporarily. Once enabled, your Mac will not allow you to eject the disk through the Finder. Note that this command does not appear to work in Mac OS X Lion.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder ProhibitEject true

Reversal Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder ProhibitEject false

8. Show Hidden Files

Hidden files (or filenames beginning with a dot ".") are files or folders that have been hidden from plain sight by the OS. If you want to see all of the files that Apple and the OS has hidden from you, enable this command.

Enable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles true

Disable Command:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles false

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