What Does A Dmg File Do Mac Users Is

Ive just downloaded the DeskLickr application, and the DeskLickr1.2.dmg is sitting on my desktop.

Installing software from one of these requires you to mount the image and move its contents to your computers Applications directory.

What Does A Dmg File Do Mac Users Is

One of the most common mistakes I see among new Mac users is fumbling with how to install and open.dmg files or new software.

The process for installing new applications on your Mac can be confusing at first because it differs greatly from Windows software installation process.

Nevertheless, the Mac method of installing software is actually quite simple and intuitive once you are accustomed to it.

If your desktop is littered with DMG files and white drive-looking icons, read on Contents What are.DMG Files How to Install and Open.dmg Files on a Mac Further Explanation House Cleaning Bonus Tip: Add Your New Application to the Dock What are.DMG Files DMG stands for Disk Image, and is a format commonly used to distribute files and applications among Apple computers.

They can be mounted on your Mac in order to work with their contents, or even burned to an actual physical disc.

In order to understand the concept of a DMG disk image, think of a storage volume such as a CD, DVD, hard drive, or external drive.

A DMG file is like one of these devices in that it serves as a means to encapsulate documents, images, software, and other files.

The difference is that with a DMG, there is no physical storage medium.

There is only the DMG file, which can be written to a hard drive, burned to a CD or DVD, or sent over the Internet.

In order to work with the contents of a DMG file, you must mount the the disk image to your system.

This may sound daunting, however mounting a DMG file with Mac OS X is no more complicated than double-clicking it icon.

The operating system will load the load image and place a new icon both on your desktop, and in the sidebar of the Finder.

The icon will have the same name as the DMG, and youll be able to browse through its contents like any other folder.

Once you are done working with the contents of the file, you will want to remove or unmount it from your system.

Or, go to the Desktop, click once on the icon, and press CMDE.

Also Useful: Best Gaming Laptops Under 2000 How to Install and Open.dmg Files on a Mac Software installation with Mac OS X is very different than in the Windows world.

On a Windows PC you run an installer, tick off a few checkboxes, and wait for the progress meter to reach completion.

There usually is no such installation wizard on a Mac emdash; you simply drag and drop the program into your computers Applications directory.

The trick is that most Mac applications are distributed as images called DMG files, and many new Mac users end up running applications directly from the image instead of installing them to the Applications directory.

Enough explanation, heres how to install an OS X app from a DMG file: Find the downloaded file, which usually ends up in your Desktop or Downloads folder.

If the window also contains a shortcut icon to Applications, drag and drop the app onto the shortcut.

If not, double-click the mounted volume on your desktop and drag the app icon from there to the Applications icon in the Finder sidebar.