I installed Snow Leopard shortly after its release, and overall I have really liked it. The one thing that has been driving me absolutely bonkers was the fact that now under Snow Leopard, Finder automatically resets its columns back to a narrow width. If I had hair, I would have been pulling it out over this quirk, but luckily I have finally found a fix.
Let me explain the "problem" and then I’ll show the simple solution. When using Finder, my preferred view is the "multiple columns." I’m not sure there’s any specific reason why, but that’s just how I like to navigate. Prior to Snow Leopard, the columns would resize themselves in such a way that you could see the names of the files listed in each column. Times were good, people were happy.
The "problem" is that when I installed Snow Leopard, Finder began making all columns extremely narrow by default, with no apparent option to change this setting. Yes, it was nice to be able to see more columns, but it actually caused more problems than it solved. My office uses a standardized naming method I use our client files (YYMMDD File Name), which results in everything being listed in chronological order. Therefore, all I could typically see as part of the date with little to no file name. The image below shows how my "Applications" folder looks using the default column width. Again, this can drive one mad in a very short period of time. (Note: I realize that many would argue that it’s a very short trip for me, but I digress…)
Since I am male, I am hesitant to ask for directions, so I tried every trick I could think of to attempt to change the default size of the colums, short of voodoo or black magic – though those options were becoming more appealing as time passed. Finally, I gave in and conducted a Google search, and voila – found a solution. To set a new default column size, you simply hold down the Option (Alt) key while sizing the columns in Finder. Then, when you open a new Finder window, the default size is changed going forward. The image below shows the same "Applications" folder from above after the columns have been resized.
Thanks to Geert Vanderkelen of the Some Abstract Type! for his post on this topic.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!! This was driving me crazy!
Hello…
Sorry for my bad English.
I have the same problem, but with the Cover Flow view.
How can I solve this?
This was driving me crazy too.
Thanks
Awesome! It works like a charm. I never even imagined that I could set this.
Dear Ben,
Thanks for discovering the trick. The narrow columns have bugged me too, but there seemed no way to set them. Oh, for the old days when a real manual came with software.
Thanks for promoting the Mac in Law. I think many more lawyers would flock to the Mac if the software makers of specialized legal software made OSX versions or if Mac developers realized there’s a huge untapped market for legal software on Macs.
I’m hoping this will change as more and more younger lawyers who cut their teeth and went through law schools with Mac enter the legal workforce.
Enjoy your blog.
Thanks,
Al
didn’t realize the option-drag triggered the memory. great tip!
Oh wow–THANK YOU! This was driving me nuts too! And of course, googling this brought me to your quick solution–amazing!
Cool. Thanks much. Awesome tip.
This has been subtly nagging at me for months and months… Thanks for the fast and accurate fix!
This post caught my attention – I tried your trick and it put an immediate smile on my face. Thank you!
THANK YOU for this post! I was going nuts every search came up with some stupid ad from Apple or a Comparison to Windows. Thank you!
I rarely leave comments on a website but thank you for this easy solution! Like yourself I tried everything before googling and finding your gem of a tutorial. I really appreciate you taking the time to write this up for the rest of us who hate asking for help! Take care.
Thanks man. I been trying to figure this out for ages. I hated the fact the longer folder names in the app folder cause the bottom scrollbar to appear, but that is no longer the case. Thank You.
The same issue was driving me crazy since I bought my MBP. Thanks sooo much! A solution can be soo easy if you know.. 😉
i just want to say that you saved me at least 150 clicks per day and many hairs on my head. thank you!