10.5: Change the Finder's default Find window

Mar 07, '08 07:30:00AM

Contributed by: baltwo

Want to tailor the Finder's Find (Command-F) window? Copy the following into TextEdit, make it plain text, and save it to the Desktop as default_smart.plist:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
  <key>CompatibleVersion</key>
  <integer>1</integer>
  <key>RawQuery</key>
  <string>((_kMDItemGroupId > 6))</string>
  <key>SearchCriteria</key>
  <dict>
    <key>CurrentFolderPath</key>
    <string>/</string>
    <key>FXCriteriaSlices</key>
    <array>
      <dict>
        <key>criteria</key>
        <array>
          <string>com_apple_SearchSystemFilesAttribute</string>
          <integer>1220</integer>
        </array>
        <key>displayValues</key>
        <array>
          <string>SEARCH_SYSTEM_FILES</string>
          <string>YES</string>
        </array>
        <key>rowType</key>
        <integer>0</integer>
        <key>subrows</key>
        <array/>
      </dict>
    </array>
    <key>FXScope</key>
    <integer>0</integer>
    <key>FXScopeArrayOfPaths</key>
    <array>
      <string>kMDQueryScopeComputer</string>
    </array>
  </dict>
  <key>ViewOptions</key>
  <dict>
    <key>SidebarWidth</key>
    <integer>135</integer>
    <key>ToolbarVisible</key>
    <true/>
    <key>ViewHeight</key>
    <integer>582</integer>
    <key>ViewStyle</key>
    <string>icnv</string>
    <key>WindowBounds</key>
    <dict>
      <key>bottom</key>
      <integer>850</integer>
      <key>left</key>
      <integer>457</integer>
      <key>right</key>
      <integer>1207</integer>
      <key>top</key>
      <integer>268</integer>
    </dict>
  </dict>
  <key>Version</key>
  <string>10.5.3</string>
</dict>
</plist>
This version of Finder's search box shows the user's home folder as a place to search, includes all system files, is taller than the original window, and the cursor displays in the search box. Note that the ViewHeight field is the difference between bottom and top. So you can adjust it, and the window's width, to suit your needs.

To change the default Find window, run these commands in Terminal (don't type the $), pressing Return after each:
$ cd /System/Library/CoreServices/Finder.app/Contents/Resources 
$ sudo cp default_smart.plist default_smart.plist.bak
The first command changes to the proper directory, and the second one saves the original default search file, so you can restore the current behavior. Enter your admin password at the Password prompt when asked. To activate your modified search box, use this command:
$ sudo cp /Users/username/Desktop/default_smart.plist default_smart.plist
Replace username with your user's short username. To return to the original file, cd to that same directory in Terminal, then use this command:
$ sudo cp default_smart.plist.bak default_smart.plist
[robg adds: You'll need to kill the Finder for this change to take effect. We've covered this sort of edit before (1, 2), but this one adds the 10.5-specific ability to search system files.]

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