How to Build an OS X Portable App

Save the installation disk on to the desktop. The creation of OS X portable applications enable the Mac user to carry his favorite apps from one device to another, on a memory card, a USB flash drive, an iPod or other portable storage unit. Large amounts of data and highly encrypted passwords may not convert easily. Many portable applications are available from free software sites design specifically for Mac users.

Difficulty:Moderately ChallengingUSB flash drive 2.0External FirewireiPodOriginal installation disks1

Create an OS X portable application from a Snow Leopard or new Lion installation disk with the disk utility tool. Place the installation disk into the DVD drive and the USB hard drive into the USB port. Alternatively, an external Firewire can be used as portable storage.

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Use Disk Utility to make a DMG file of the OS X installation disk. Save as the Snow Leopard installation DVD or the new Lion installation DVD. Create a "New Image" to save to the desktop. The "New Image" shortcut will display on the desktop for easy access..

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Verify that the available USB flash drive or external Firewire is completely empty. All stored content will be lost during the rebooting process. Launch Disk Utility to start the transfer process to the selected portable storage unit. Select the preferred hard drive or flash drive to boot during the installation of the OS X portable application.

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Partition the drive under the options menu. Choose 1 "Partition and then hit the "Options." Look for the "GUID Partition Table" option. Hit okay to reformat the drive and clear any stored content. Restore the New Image of the Snow Leopard Installation DVD onto the newly formatted portable storage device.

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Use the Disk Utility tool to transfer other software directly from an installation DVD or create a "New Image" saved to the desktop. Partition, reboot and restore any OS X program application onto a new portable storage unit, to make every favorite application portable.

Use small separate portable storage units or USB flash drives for individual applications.

Label flash drives and external hard drives when new applications are created. Always verify that portable storage units are partitioned properly and that valuable content is transferred out before rebooting.

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