Step 1: Open the Terminal Window
The first step in opening an application on a Mac using the Terminal Window is to open the Terminal Window. This can be done by going to the Applications folder, selecting the Utilities folder, and then clicking on Terminal. Alternatively, users can also use the Spotlight search bar located at the top right of the screen to search for Terminal.
Step 2: Identify the Application You Want to Open
Once the Terminal Window is open, users need to identify the name of the application they want to open. It is important to know the exact name of the application in order to open it using the Terminal Window. Users can find the name of the application by going to the Applications folder and looking for the application’s name in the list of installed applications.
Step 3: Determine the Application’s Path
In order to open an application using the Terminal Window, users must also know the path to the application’s executable file. The path is the location on the computer’s hard drive where the application is installed. Users can find the path by right-clicking on the application’s icon and selecting the option to Show Package Contents. The path to the application’s executable file will be listed in the application’s Contents folder, under the MacOS subfolder.
Step 4: Open the Application Using the Terminal Window
Once the path to the application’s executable file is known, users can open the application using the Terminal Window. To do this, users need to type in the following command:
open /path/to/application
In the command above, users need to replace “/path/to/application” with the actual path to the application’s executable file. For example, if the application’s name is “Google Chrome” and the path to the executable file is “/Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome”, users would type in the following command:
open /Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome
Once the command is typed in, users need to hit Enter to open the application using the Terminal Window.
Conclusion
Opening an application on a Mac using the Terminal Window is a useful skill that can save time and increase productivity. By following the steps outlined in this article, users can easily open any application on their Mac using the command line interface. While the Terminal Window can seem daunting at first, it is a powerful tool that can be harnessed to perform a wide range of functions on a computer.