Hi Donna, John has answered your question about how to eject a disk image, and James has given an even nicer explanation about disk images. However, if you want a general answer -- start to finish -- about the rationale and logistics of downloading and installing applications on the Mac, read this post from the archives that I sent to Simon about installing another application (Flip4Mac) when he first got his MacBook Pro:
http://www.mail-archive.com/discuss%40macvisionaries.com/msg24955.html (Disk images and Application Installation on the Mac [was Re: Skype on Macbook]) In brief, the reason that disk images are popularly used is that they build in necessary permissions that make the installation on the system easier, and allow you to just install the applications that you want. While in most cases there is a single app in the disk image, sometimes there will be multiple apps -- packages that are convenient to have but that you might not want to install. Some disk images will separately contain a user manual as well as the app, in case you want to first read parts of the manual or copy it to a separate location of your choice. Also, although it is true that the majority of apps can be installed by simply moving the .app file to the Applications folder, a few that work with other system apps will require special permissions and the use of an installer that will be packaged with the disk image. This method allows you to get only the files you need or want to install on your Mac, handles the complex permissions (and maintains security by alerting your system that your package might need special administrator privileges, so that your computer will check with you that this is OK), and leaves the temporary disk image file in a separate folder (the downloads directory) that you can eject and send to the trash when you are done. You can also check Safari's downloads folder from the Window menu on the menu bar, or by using the shortcut listed there to show the downloads window: Command-Option-L. If you interact and focus on the current file (last in the list), you'll hear the progress of the download, for example: "file icon show in Finder stop Skype_2.8.0.659.dmg 16.8 of 42.4 MB (383 KB/sec) — 1 minute remaining group". From there you can interact and go to the "Show in Finder" button to open a Finder window focused on the downloaded file. In Leopard, another easy way to check your downloads is to navigate to the Downloads folder in the dock. (I know you don't like using "VO-D", but I use this frequently -- I just move my left hand down so that my three center fingers are over the Control, Option, and Command keys; I press Control and Option, and use the side of my left index finger on the (unpressed) Command key as a stopper for the thumb of my right hand, as it comes over, so the right index finger is over the "d".) It's probably better to change the default settings for this folder, but as it is, you could press "d" or use your arrow keys to navigate to the Downloads folder, VO-Space to press it, up arrow to select the last downloaded item (VoiceOver doesn't speak), then press return to open it. In the case of the Skype .dmg folder you'll hear "Finder has a new window". You have to Command-Tab to Finder to get to the window (and you might need to use window chooser menu with VO-F2 twice). In the Skype or other window for an application I'm installing, I would interact (VO-Shift-Down Arrow), copy the Skype.app (Command-C), then I would use the Finder shortcut to go to the Applications folder (Command-Shift-A) and paste (Command-V). Stop interacting (VO-Shift-Up arrow) and VO-left arrow to the Finder sidebar, where the "Applications" folder will be selected under "Places". VO-Up arrow to the "Skype" or other application you're installing and eject the disk image with Command-E. After you've ejected the disk image, you can send it to the trash. You can always find files that are in your downloads folder by navigating to them in Finder, or by using the contextual window (VO-Shift-M) in the dock and choosing "Open Downloads". If the entries are sorted alphabetically by name, and you want to view them by date modified, VO-Right arrow to the date column and sort with VO-Shift-backslash (on an English language keyboard; other keyboards need to use the commands menu -- VO-H twice -- and select the "Sort Column" command). Applying a sort twice will switch order between ascending and descending. If you want to stick to a simple procedure, just navigate to your Downloads folder in Finder, open the .dmg file with Command-O, copy the app file to the Applications folder, then eject the mounted .dmg file and send it to the trash. You won't be able to eject the mounted file if you are still working in the device -- for example, if you have navigated into a folder in the mounted .dmg file. Finder consider's the "device" to be in use and won't let you eject. Also, I don't usually copy and paste these applications from the .dmg file any more. I use a "Move" Automator plug-in that Greg Kearney wrote, which appears as a Finder contextual menu option. However, the original hosting web site for that workflow is down, now that Greg has recently moved jobs and country. There are a very few disk images I'll keep around -- usually if I think the app is going to disappear, or a free app is going to upgrade to a paid-only version. In the case of Stuffit Expander, I keep the disk image around because I don't want to have to supply my email address to the company that bought the product and receive endless spam if I ever need to reinstall this on another machine. You can wait to check that the application runs correctly before you delete the disk image. Safari will let you change the default download location, but it's useful to have a location other than the Desktop. If you have lots of files on your Desktop you should at least put them into a folder, or eventually you'll see a performance hit. HTH. Sorry, but over the next few days I'm only going to be able to check or respond intermittantly to the list. James & Nash wrote: Hi Donna, You can think of a disc image as a kind of external HD/.zip file. Inside the .dmg file is the application with a .app extention. This is the file that you need to coppy to your Applications folder. You can then return to the dmg which will have appeared on your desktop and eject it. FYI - if you download an application and are not sure if it will work with Voice Over, you can open the .dmg with Command + O and open the application inside the dmg file to see if it is accessible without copying it to the Applications folder. This way, if it is not, you can simply eject the dmg from the desktop and delete it from your downloads folder if it is there without having installed the application to the Mac. Remember that applications are only installed to the Mac when they are copied to the Applications folder. Hope this helps Take care James ----- Original Message ----- From: "Donna Goodin" Hi Mark, At the time that I wrote, I wasn't able to do anything with the file. I did finally get it copied to the applications folder, but it shows up as a disk image, and when I try to open it, I'm getting an error message about opening a file from a disk image. Do I need to extract it somehow? If so, what do I need to do? Thanks for the help. Best, Donna On Aug 21, 2009, at 2:31 PM, Mark Baxter wrote: Donna: You can't delete the downloads folder, as it is a system standard. Anything that's put there==by Mail or Safari or anything else that downloads stuff from the net--follows the same behavioral laws as does any other file or folder on your system. What do you mean by "work with it?" Mark BurningHawk Baxter --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. 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