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Is there any way to just change the icon in the dock while still keeping it the same everywhere else? It's probably not going to be possible without tweaks, so are there any programs for that?

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A workaround is to make an alias of the app, drag the alias to Dock and then change the icon for the alias ie. not for the actual app. Downside is that you get a small alias–arrow added to the lower–left corner to the icon.

  1. Make an alias
  2. Drag the alias to the Dock

  3. Change the icon like you would for any Finder item.

    In the following screenshot we have copied the icon of Chess app and pasted it to the newly–made alias of Automator. (NB, make sure you first copy the icon and then paste it; the screenshot accidentally is showing the opposite way.)

    How to change an icon of an alias in the Dock

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Okay, why don't you outline the process for the guy instead of just trying to cram it all in a screenshot? – cksum Dec 6 '11 at 14:48
Either because a picture worth 1000 words or because I don't have time to describe every bit. Everybody welcome to do that. – iskra Dec 6 '11 at 15:01
alternatively, create an AppleScript that just opens the desired app, change the AppleScript's icon, and then put that in the dock. The AppleScript could be as simple as "tell application "Firefox" to activate". – David Rouse Dec 7 '11 at 18:38
@DavidRouse And after application launched you've got two icons in the dock — one being AppleScript one and second for the launched app. – iskra Dec 27 '11 at 15:58
The problem with an apple script is that there are two icons and that the real application is always on the right. – Joel Wanner Dec 27 '11 at 18:10
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