On Launchpad, you have access to all of your Mac apps, regardless of where they are installed on your computer. While you can expect few problems on Launchpad with apps installed in the Applications folder, the same can't be said for titles downloaded and stored elsewhere. Occasionally, installed apps aren't showing up under Launchpad. To add them to Launchpad, simply drag the app onto the Launchpad icon in the Dock. (Thanks to Eric S for the tip.) Or move the application to your main Applications directory or to your user Applications directory. Or make an alias of it and put the alias inside your Applications directory.
It's free, native os x app, and has a nicer UI than Launchpad control. Well, depending on your taste. Also you can pretty much do all the basic stuff you need to in the free version and if you want to do crazy things like alphabetical ordering you can buy it for 5 bucks. This lightning speed of Launchpad is made possible by the cleaver manner in which the Launchpad is programmed in MacOS. The Launchpad maintains its own dedicated database which includes the App icons, information about where the Apps are located in the file system, where the Apps need to be displayed and other related information. It will then be available to Launchpad and Spotlight, as well as other ways and means to open any other application. You can also change the icon of the app, and there are instructions on the Internet on how to do that. E.g., Create custom icons for files or folders on Mac.
Launchpad is a highly useful feature in macOS. It has been developed to offer an iOS-like approach to managing apps with more convenience on Mac.
At times, you may find some apps missing from the Launchpad interface. Generally, the newly installed third-party apps wouldn’t be showing up. In order to fix the issue or bring back the missing apps, you need to reset the Launchpad.
Apps Not Showing in Launchpad on Mac – How to Bring it Back
Use Default Locations for Applications
Step #1. Starting off, click on the desktop.
Step #2. Next, you need to click on the Go menu located on the menu bar.
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Step #3. Now, press and hold the Option key ⌥. Then, click on Library.
Step #4. Next, you have to double click on the Application Support folder.
Step #5. Double click on the Dock folder.
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Then, you need to drag all files ending in .db into the trash.
Step #6. Click on the Apple icon at the top left the corner of the screen → Finally, you need to click on Restart → Restart button.
Reset Launchpad
Launchpad shows the apps which are in the default Applications folder. In case the program is not there, it won’t show up in Launchpad. In this case, move the app out of the folder, log out and log back in to restart Launchpad. Now, move the program back to the Applications folder.
Rebuild the Launchpad Database
macOS Dock controls the databases which determine the apps to be shown in Launchpad. The databases may have become corrupt. To fix the issue, rebuild the Launchpad databases.
Step #1. Hold the Option key and select Library from the Go menu in the Finder.
Step #2. Open the Application Support → Dock folder and get rid of the files. You should see alphanumeric characters as names.
https://salenew637.weebly.com/blog/how-to-make-mac-app-bar-not-pop-up. Step #3. Now, log out and log back into your account. Now, Dock and Launchpad will reset and scan the Applications folders.
That’s it!
Your Mac will restart. Once it reboots, all of your missing apps would appear in Launchpad. You can use this trick to fix this issue whenever you don’t find some apps in it.
I wish Apple provided a better solution to bring back the disappeared apps in Launchpad in the next version of macOS.
macOS Catalina, in many ways, is a major update. But as they say, nothing is perfect in the world, it can still be improved. As a Mac user, you must have a long list of wish lists that you would want to see in the upcoming version of macOS.
Would you like to share them with us? We would be glad to know them from you in the comments.
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Jignesh Padhiyar is the co-founder of iGeeksBlog.com who has a keen eye for news, rumors and all the unusual stuff that happens around Apple products. During his tight schedule, Jignesh finds some moments of respite to share side-splitting contents on social media. How to delete a mailbox from mail app mac.
Some of you are probably wondering, like I did, why some of your applications aren't available in Launchpad. You launch Launchpad and wonder, 'Why isn't Microsoft Word showing up in Launchpad?' or 'Why isn't Quicken in Launchpad?' or 'Why isn't my favorite app that I keep on my Desktop not in Launchpad?' There are a variety of reasons that an app may not appear in Launchpad.
Apps Outside the Applications Directory
Launchpad automatically grabs all applications in your root /Applications directory and in your /User/username/Applications directory. If you keep some of your apps in other locations, they won't appear in Launchpad automatically. To add them to Launchpad, simply drag the app onto the Launchpad icon in the Dock. (Thanks to Eric S for the tip.) Or move the application to your main Applications directory or to your user Applications directory. Or make an alias of it and put the alias inside your Applications directory.
PowerPC Apps
In Lion, PPC apps have a white 'NO' symbol across the icon
In some cases, it's because the application in question is a PowerPC-only app and won't run on your computer under Lion, which did away with Rosetta. Only apps that are Intel or Universal Binary can run under Lion, and Launchpad only shows applications that can actually run on your computer.
You can tell if this is the case by going into your Applications directory, and looking at the applications icon. PPC-only apps will have a white 'NO' symbol superimposed atop the icon. In the screenshot at right, you can see that my Retrospect 6.1 has the white 'NO' symbol — telling me that I'll have to upgrade Retrospect or find a different backup program, because Retrospect 6.1 won't run under Lion.
Macos How To Make An App In Launchpad App
The solution? Unfortunately, the best solution is to bite the bullet and update your PPC apps to newer versions. You could keep a boot drive handy with Snow Leopard on it, and boot from that to run a PPC app. Or you could hack Snow Leopard to make it run under Parallels, but let's not even go there.
Once you update your PPC apps to a newer, Intel or Universal Binary version, they'll appear in Launchpad just like any other application.
Yeah, I know, when it's big-ticket applications such as Microsoft Word, having to spend the money for a newer version bites, especially if you were happy with the old version. But if you're bleeding-edge enough that you've already updated to Lion, you should be bleeding-edge enough to keep your applications more current. I've found that it's generally a bad idea to get more than one version behind with any of my important applications. I might skip a version, but then when another version comes out, I go ahead and upgrade. Then when I get a new computer or a new big-cat operating system, the upgrade isn't quite so painful.
Windows Apps
In other cases, it's because the app in question is a Windows app that you use under Parallels or VMWare. I couldn't wait to stop Launchpad from showing me the gazillion Windows apps in my 3 Windows installations under Parallels, but you might want the opposite.
The solution is to go into your virtual machine configuration, Options -> Applications, and check the box to 'Share Windows applications with Mac.'
To make Windows applications appear in Launchpad, check the box to 'Share Windows applications with Mac'
Macos How To Make An App In Launchpad MacDrill-Down AppsMacos How To Make An App In Launchpad App
You might find that your application is located in a subdirectory inside a subdirectory inside a subdirectory in your Applications directory. If that's the case, it's probably in some random application 'group' that Launchpad helpfully created for you. If the app is in an application group in Launchpad, you don't have to physically move it around in your Applications directory; you can simply go into Launchpad and drag it out of the group.
Update: Or you can simply drag the app onto the Launchpad icon in the Dock, and it will appear in Launchpad. (Thanks to Eric S. for that tip in the comments below.)
Or you can make an alias of the app and put that in the top level of the Applications directory. Then the alias will appear in Launchpad just like any other application.
Did I Miss Any?
Are you aware of any other instances when an application doesn't show up in Launchpad? If you are, let us know by using the comment box below their website.
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