Reminder: Keep applications in the locations they were originally installed (usually /Applications)

Though it may be tempting to organize your applications into customized directories -- for instance putting all of your Web browsers in a folder named "Browsers" within the /Applications directory -- you should refrain from doing so under Mac OS X.

Applications, especially those installed alongside Mac OS X or developed by Apple, should always be kept in their original locations of installation. This prevents a bevy of potential issues, including an inability to properly apply updates to said application(s).

If you do move applications out of their default installation location, you may run into one of the following problems:

• An individual application updater (e.g. iPhoto 6.0.6) may fail to properly perform installation, presenting an error message stating that no eligible application exists for updating, or simply quitting with a different error message
• A "skeleton" application may be installed at the default location (e.g. /Applications). This incomplete copy of the application will contain only the components installed by the given updater, and generally will not be usable. A prime example of this problem occurred with Font Book and Security Update 2006-007. If Font Book was not located in /Applications at the time of applying Security Update 2006-007 -- where a non-functional, ~400 KB item called Font Book appeared in /Applications -- was the result

So resist the urge to organize your actual applications (especially those from Apple) into subdirectories or move them outside the /Applications or /Applications/Utilities directories if these were their original installation locations.

You can, of course, create aliases of your applications (select the application icon, the press Command-L or select "Make Alias" from the File menu), and organize them however you'd like. Alternatively, you can consider one of the many application launcher utilities.

Feedback? Late-breakers@macfixit.com.

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