Mac Kung Fu, 2nd Edition

Tip 150

Create One-Click Shortcuts

With the title bar of any program that’s able to edit files (that is, an app like TextEdit rather than one like iTunes), you’ll see the name of the file currently being worked on—assuming you’ve saved it, of course!

To the left of this will be an icon representing the file. This is known as the proxy icon. Click and hold it for a few seconds without moving the mouse, and then drag the icon to the desktop or to a Finder window to instantly create an alias to that file. Aliases are essentially shortcuts pointing to a particular file that, when double-clicked, open the file. By holding down Option before releasing the mouse button, you’ll create a copy of the file instead.

If the file has been modified and not ...