If I click on a .txt file, what exactly happens in order for Mac OS X to open my txt file with the Default Program (TextEdit in my case). In other words where does Mac OS look/what exact steps are involved to determine what my default program is and to open that file ? Where can this look up /process potentially/most likely be broken and how can I troubleshoot if Mac won't open the default program. Not for all programs but for one specific program ?
2 Answers
Rebuilding Launch Service Database did the trick:
/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Frameworks/LaunchServices.framework/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user
More details here:
http://www.maclife.com/article/howtos/how_rebuild_launchservices_remove_duplicates_open_menu
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Sorry. Basically TextEdit did not open files with double click anymore (But if launched via Spotlight yes). This seemed such a random error and I wanted to understand the underlying logic of the launch process better. Therefore this question.– digitCommented Jul 7, 2014 at 15:16
Here are the steps to configure application association in Mac OSX:
- Find the file type(s) that you want to change the application to open with
- Get Info about a file that is of that file type, say a .mov
- Click the ‘Open With’ arrow to expand an application list
- Choose the application you want all files of this type to open with
- Click “Change All” and then “Continue” when the confirmation dialog appears
For a visual representation of the above steps, check out:
Change File Associations in Mac OS X
Information source: osxdaily.com
