Mac Treat #47: Find Files Without Opening Them (Mac OS 10.4 and OS 10.5)

ByMike Moffit

I use Spotlight all the time to quickly find files on my Mac. Most of the time, I want to open the file so I can examine it or work on it. However, somtimes I only want to find the file, and not actually open it. Instead, I might want to email the file, put it on a flash drive, or burn it to a CD.

Here’s how to easily find a file in Spotlight without actually opening it. First, enter the name or type of the file in the Spotlight search bar. Once the results appear in the menu, hold down the Command key, then click on the file. This will close Spotlight and open a Finder window showing where your file is stored.

Or, if you do want to keep Spotlight open, click on the file in the Spotlight menu, and press Command-R. This will open a Finder window with the file selected, leaving the Spotlight menu open.

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