Section 3. Add an Application to the Dock

3. Add an Application to the Dock

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

1 Install an Application from Disc or Download

SEE ALSO

4 Control an Application from the Dock

5 Minimize and Restore a Window

106 Change the Dock's Position and Behavior

Navigating to the Applications folder every time you want to launch an application can be tiresome. Fortunately, the Dock is there to act as a combination launch bar and task manager. You can add shortcuts to as many applications as you want to the Dock; after an application is on the Dock, your access to that application is just a single click away.

TIP

You can add all kinds of items to the Docknot just applications. Right of the vertical dividing line, you can place documents, folders, aliases, and even whole disks if you like. You just can't put them to the left of the dividing line, and you can't place applications to the right of the line.

1.	Open a Finder Window Click the Finder icon at the left end of the Dock, or press while in the Finder to open a new Finder window.
2.	Locate the Application You Want Navigate to the Applications folder using the shortcut in the lower-left Finder pane, or choose Go, Applications from the menu bar at the top of the Desktop. Scroll to the frequently used application icon you're looking for. TIP It's even simpler to add an application permanently to the Dock if the application is already running. Click the application icon in the Dock and hold; after a moment, the contextual menu appears above the icon. Select Keep In Dock . The application icon will remain in the Dock even after you quit it.
3.	Drag the Application to the Dock Click the application icon in the Finder; holding down the mouse button, drag the icon into the Dock, to any position left of the vertical divider bar. Move the icon between any two icons you like, and they will separate to make room for the new icon. Release the mouse button, and the icon settles into position. After that, a single click on the Docked icon launches the application.

3. Add an Application to the Dock

NOTE

A translucent "question mark" symbol in the Dock signifies an item that had previously been placed in the Dock, but that no longer exists on the disk. If you see one of these question marks, hover your mouse over it to see what it's labeled; if the name is that of an application or document that you know you have on your system and you want to keep in your Dock, locate that item in the Finder and drag it to the Dock again. Then remove the question mark by dragging it off the Dock.

You can place the application anywhere you like on the left side of the Dock; if you don't like where you put it, drag it to a new position in the Dock. You can also remove it altogether by dragging it upward off the Dock so that it disappears in a puff of smoke.

TIP

Try adding the entire Applications folder to the Dock! Open a Finder window, then select your disk from the Sidebar; drag the Applications folder icon from the main Finder window down onto the right side of the Dock. Now you can click and hold, Control +click, or right-click the Applications folder in the Dock and have immediate access through a pop-up menu to all the applications installed on your system.