Opening a Finder Window
Open a Finder window by one of several methods:
Click the Finder icon in the Dock.Use the keyboard shortcut Command + N.Select File > New Finder Window from the menu bar after clicking on the desktop.
The icons in the View section at the top of the Finder window control the format of the window. You can choose to view files from left to right as icons, a list, in column view, or (beginning with macOS Mojave) a gallery.
Column View Customization Options
When you view a file or folder in the Finder in Column view, you have a few options for customizing it. To control how Column view looks and behaves, open a Finder window and click the Column view icon at the top of the screen. Right-click in any blank area of the window and select Show View Options from the popup menu. If you prefer, you can bring up the same view options by selecting View > Show View Options from the Finder menu bar. The options screen includes these choices:
Always open in column view: Place a check mark next to this option to cause the Finder window to always use Column view when you first open it. You can, of course, use the Finder view buttons to change the view type after you open a folder in the Finder.Group By: You have the option to group by None, Name, Date Last Opened, Date Added, Date Modified, Date Created, Size, and Tags.Sort By: The Sort By default is Name, but you can choose other options, including Date Last Opened, Date Added, Date Modified, Date Created, Size, and Tags.Text size: Use this drop-down menu to specify the text size used for an item’s name and the attributes that display in each column.Show icons: This option enables or disables the display of icons in Column view. When this option is checked, a small icon displays to the left of an item’s name.Show icon preview: This option enables or disables the ability of icons to show a thumbnail preview of their contents. With a check mark in place, the icons show a preview. With the check mark removed, the file’s default icon displays.Show preview column: Column view can dedicate the last column in its display to showing detailed information about a selected file. This information is similar to the data you see when you use the Get Info command in the Finder. The preview column only displays when a file is selected. It does not appear when a folder is the only item selected.
In addition to these options, you can resize Finder windows and use the familiar red, yellow, and green buttons to close, minimize, and maximize the window. Any settings you change for the Finder window apply until you change them again.
