A tidy Desktop can lead to a faster Mac

After a short time using your Mac it can be easy to acquire many files--pictures, videos, songs, e-mail downloads, and more. Because the information most of us receive is now available so quickly, we often do not get the opportunity to sort through and organize these files properly. What inevitably happens is that our Desktop becomes cluttered with all sorts junk--a habit that can slow your Mac?s computing power.

Apple Support Discussions user "marc smith6" describes the issue:

"Ive got a MBP 2.4 with 4gig ram ever since the update to 10.5.7 my memory meter is at 1.7gig active there are no applications open apart from Launch Bar.

Had a look at (Activity Monitor) and the main hogs are:

Finder - 727MB
Firefox - 214MB"

While it is easy to understand why an application like Firefox may be consuming that much active RAM, the number for Finder is awfully high. While typing this article I have Safari 4 beta (208.78 MB of Real Memory), Entourage (100.40 MB of Real Memory), the Twitter client Nambu (79.00 MB of Real Memory), a couple small applications, and then Finder (17.83 MB of Real Memory).

Apple Support Discussions user "Francine Schwieder" agrees:

"Well, those sound a bit high to me. I just started my computer and launched Safari. Activity Monitor shows Used system memory at 747MBs, with Safari using 67MBs, kernel_task is next at 52MBs, then WindowServer and the Dock. Finder wasn't using much at all, so I opened a folder with a batch of graphics files (the window is set to display thumbs in icon view) and selected a file and hit QuickLook, and Finder jumped up to second place, using 55MBs of RAM"

Possible solution
Apple Support Discussions user "BobHarris" offers this suggestion:

"The Finder memory usage may very well depend on the number of folders opened (the desktop counts as one of those folders), and the number of files and (unique) icons the Finder needs to handle in those open folders.

With respect to unique icons, standard document icons that are used as the icon for multiple files would take up less Finder memory, but if each file has its own unique icon, like lots of JPEG files with each file displaying an icon representing the contents of the file."

By creating customized icons for your Desktop, Finder must process each icon separately. When using the standard document icons, as "BobHarris" suggests, Finder can use one icon for each file, making it more efficient. If your icons are displaying content previews:

1. From the Finder menu bar > View > Show View Options (Command J)
2. Uncheck the boxes for "Show item info" and "Show icon preview".

Apple Support Discussions user "Tim Haigh" also offers this tip:

"Many people dont realise this issue. I have dealt with many clients in my work who complain their mac is running slowly and feels sluggish. When I get there I see their desktop has 100's of files and folders on it. I move their entire desktop files into 1 folder called 'desktidy sortme out' then the mac runs fast again."

It is a good idea to use Apple's standard file structure to begin organizing your files. Not only is the structure already provided (making it easy to sort files), but keeping your Desktop clear can free up system memory, better allocated to running your favorite applications.

Resources
Read an Apple Support Discussions thread about the importance of keeping a tidy Desktop on your Mac.

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Resources

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