How to Delete Applications

If you are new to Macintosh, you may wonder how to delete programs from your computer. Deleting programs in Windows XP required you to go to the Control Panel. Then you found your application and deleted it. Pretty simple once you got the hang of it. Some users made the mistake of throwing the application into the Recycle Bin. They then discovered that this was a bad move. In some cases, remnants of the program would remain and in other cases XP started to act up. Windows programs often copy important files to several different parts of the operating system. If you just delete the program folder, there could be many files and settings that are left behind. OSX does not work this way. When you install a program, most of the time, you just drag it to the Applications folder. To delete a file, you can grab that same icon and drag it to the trash to remove it from your system. You can do this, but there will be files left behind. These files will not harm the function of your computer, but they will add up over time. There are applications available that will give you a clean sweep. I have been using AppZapper since the beginning. Using AppZapper is very simple. You grab that icon and drag it to the AppZapper window. You will then see all of the application files. When you click on Zap! all of the program will be sent to the trash can. AppZapper is not free. For $12.95, I think it is a good investment. There is a FREE program available that works in much the same way as AppZapper.
AppDelete is a free alternative. AppDelete is started by dropping an application onto the AppDelete icon. You can drop either the application or the folder that the application is in onto the icon. Once you do this you will get a confirmation window displaying the name of the application you dropped.