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Delete image files via Preview Apps
If you have an image or PDF file open in Preview, and you want to delete it, here's the fast way. Just drag the image of the page you want to delete from the drawer into the trash -- Preview moves the file to trash and then the Preview window closes. This is useful when viewing PDFs from the web, or alternatively a group of images and you decide you dont want one you can drag it to the trash.

[robg adds: If you open only one image, the drawer will probably be hidden; just click the Drawer icon in the toolbar to show it. This trick is very handy when you're viewing a number of images; when you drag one of many to the trash, it just vanishes from the drawer (and the hard drive), and you can go back to reviewing the remainder of the pictures.]
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Delete image files via Preview | 15 comments | Create New Account
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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: club60.org on Dec 02, '04 10:50:10AM

Additionally if you want to open this image in another application (like Photoshop) just drag the image from the drawer to target application icon.



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: KingDoom on Dec 02, '04 10:55:27AM

On my laptop, the operation is "cmd" and drag. Simply dragging to the trash does not work.



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: KingDoom on Dec 03, '04 11:55:14AM

My comments that "cmd-drag to trash" were wrong; this sends the entire pdf file to the trash.

Still, dragging from preview drawer to trash does not work for me.

Any suggestions?



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: BarracksSi on Dec 02, '04 07:59:42PM

Drag from Preview's drawer to the Trash... wow, you can do that?

There's a thread on another discussion forum asking, "What is it with Apples?" Likely started by a troll, it rapidly turned into a bunch of stories about why people think the Mac rocks. More than a few people mentioned that if you want to try something new, just try it, and it'll probably work.

Looks like this is another one of those things! I'll have to mention it there...



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: swedentom on Dec 02, '04 11:04:58AM

Well, I don't think you need the drawer, just use the "proxy icon" in the title bar?



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: PCheese on Dec 02, '04 02:45:39PM

Nope, in many apps you can't drag a proxy icon into the trash. I'm not sure why, it works anywhere else...



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: rhowell on Dec 02, '04 03:36:49PM

Which one of the files represented in the drawer does the proxy icon refer to?



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: CrankyMacGuy on Dec 02, '04 08:18:58PM

This doesn't work, as others have pointed out. Nothing is deposited into the trash. Surely you could have tested that out before posting? :p LOL

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~Life...don't talk to me about life.



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: MJCube on Dec 03, '04 01:30:26PM
Cranky: It works for me, and apparently for many others.

rhowell: The "proxy icon" is the one in the title bar at the top of the window.

PCheese: I'd also like to know why this doesn't work. It makes perfect sense, certainly more than the way dragging one page from the drawer trashes the whole file.

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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: tonyinsf on Dec 02, '04 07:20:26PM

I guess this is a normal behaviour for any app with a drawer, as BBEdit does the same thing.

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eating meat is the signature of apathy



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Fantastic Tip!
Authored by: CrankyMacGuy on Dec 02, '04 08:27:24PM

Sometimes tips on this site can be pretty obscure and geeky, but tips like this one remind me why I find this place such a great resource. This is such a time saver! Finally, a way to easily bin all the pdf files that appear in my download folder. Thanks, jsb99!

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~Life...don't talk to me about life.



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: Uncle Asad on Dec 02, '04 10:51:36PM

Drag the drawer image to the desktop or a folder and it copies the file to that location; cmd-opt-drag and it creates an alias in that location.



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: betaInverse on Dec 02, '04 11:50:31PM

I've been wishing for a way to do something like this for downloaded pdfs via Safari, but this is even better!



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Delete image files via Preview
Authored by: kissedsmiley on Dec 04, '04 11:59:21PM

This is really interesting!
I'm curious, I didn't see anything in the hints, is there a way to make preview more powerful? Some things it doesn't seem to know how to preview and others I'd like to expand. I've done a tad of checking on apple.com for preview and haven't found any info.



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Still not as good as OS9
Authored by: jason mark on Dec 05, '04 08:32:10PM

This is cool, but I have to say I'm still missing some of the key drag-and-drop features from OS9. Both of these worked in OS9, but do not work in OSX:

1) open browser
2) drag an image to the photoshop application (i.e. in the dock)

EXPECT: in OS9 that image just opened in Photoshop.

3) open any other image in photoshop
4) leave the photoshop image open in the background, and go to a web browser
5) drag an image onto the the photoshop window

EXPECT: in OS9 that image would show up as a new layer in the Photoshop file.


NOTE: In OSX, you have to dump everything somewhere first (like the desktop) or Right click and "copy image" or something else tricky. Kinda a pain, and even though I've been on OSX for 2 years now, I still find myself accidently trying to make these work, and then having to backtrack.



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