RCDefaultApp is a Mac OS X 10.2 or higher preference pane that allows you to set the default application used for various file extensions, file types etc. OS X uses the extension and file type settings to choose the application when opening a file in Finder. In other words, it makes associating file types and the programs used to launch them, much, much easier.
- To install RCDefaultApp, simply drag the RCDefaultApp.prefPane file from the .dmg into your /Library/PrefrencePanes or ~/Library/PreferencePanes folder (the latter you may have to create).
- After that’s done, open your System Preferences and you should see Default Apps in the Other category.
- On the Internet tab you can change your default browser, Email client, News client, FTP client and RSS client. Simply select the appropriate application from the drop-down list, or choose Other… and navigate to the program you wish to use.
- The Media tab allows you to change certain behaviors when actions take place. For example, if you don’t want the DVD Player to open automatically when you insert a DVD, change the setting to Ignore.
- Select the Apps tab and then choose an application to see what file types are associated with it. In the example below, I use Cog to open .ape, .flac and .mpc files - but not mp3 files (which I use iTunes for).
- Select the Extensions tab to see which programs are associated with a given file type. In the example below, .shn files (a form of lossless audio) are opened with xAct. Since that’s not the program I want to open when I double-click an .shn file, select the drop-down list and choose Other….
- The program I want to use to open .shn files is Cog, but I can’t select it as it’s been ‘greyed out’. Change the Enable: entry from Recommended Applications to All Applications.
- And then select the program you want to open .shn files with - in this case Cog.
- Now OS X knows that I want Cog to open when I double-click an shn.
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Hi - I am running an old compaq deskpo as a second computer, running w98se - I have something screwed up can only read the content of dvds and cds when I first load, after that it tells me that they are blank, even though I know they are not. I would also like to get a list of file extensions and the default files used to open them (I think this may have something to do with the problem). As I am pretty much at wits end and about to junk the old beast, which has been a wonderful workhorse, can you possibly help please. Many Thanks
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