Mac OS X 10.4: Deleting .plist files for individual application problems

Many problems with individual applications that occur after a major Mac OS X update can be solved by deleting corrupt .plist files. It appears that this is the case for several apps that are not functioning properly under Mac OS X 10.4 (see AbiWord, Extensis Suitcase, CodeTek Virtual Desktop below, specifically).

Such .plist files will generally be located in the ~/Library/Preferences folder, and labeled as follows:

• com.(name of developer).(name of product).plist [For instance, com.adobe.Reader7.0.plist for Adobe Reader 7.0].

Simply drag the potentially offending .plist file to the trash, re-launch the hampered application, and check for continuation of problems. In some cases, applications will have several .plist files, so make sure you check for any that contain the product name. Also, note that you may lose some settings or other personal data used by specific applications when these files are deleted.

Alternatively, if you're not sure which application is slowing down your Mac or you'd like to check for any existing, but unnoticeable issues, there is a freeware utility called "Preferential Treatment" that will check for some elements of .plist file corruption.

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