Mac App: Show/Hide Hidden Files

Ah, the ability to choose whether to show or hide hidden files… A feature missing on Apple computers. It pains me to admit this, but Windows got it right by including the option to show or hide hidden files.

The fact is this: computers have hidden files all over the place. Why? There are countless reasons hidden folders and files are be on your computer. It can be anything from sensitive system files, to application data. Whatever they may be, your computer is riddled with hidden files.

For whatever reason, sometimes you need to see these hidden files. Doing this on a Windows machine is quite simply. A simple google search will give you that answer. But for a Mac, it’s a little more tricky…

There is no option to show or hide hidden files on your Mac like on a Windows computer. The only way to do so is through use of the terminal application.

After opening Terminal (Applications->Terminal), simply type the following scirpts:

Show Hidden Files:

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defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE
killall Finder

Hide Hidden Files:

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defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE
killall Finder

Simple enough right? But you don’t want to have to google search this code everytime you want to see your hidden files, do you?

Luckily, thanks to Automator and Flash, I’ve created a simple application that will show and hide hidden files on your Mac.

Simply open the application, and click on the button to show or hide hidden files. When clicked, the above scripts will run, hiding/showing your hidden files.