Opening a second instance of an application

Hai, first post. Pretty new to my macbookpro but liking it so. My first mac computer.

My question; is it possible to open a second instance of an application to run alongside the original instance or is this something the OS can't do? I've done it multiple times on my previous computer, a linux and I know mac is linux based so I don't see why it wouldn't be possible.

Thanks in advance.

Mac is not Linux based..it's based on a BSD Kernel..so it's more Unix than Linux..but anyway..

Which application are you trying to run multiple instances of? This might be more a limitation of the application than the OS. The application might be telling you that you already have it running so why are you running a second copy, you can try to open a new window or whatever in the application as opposed to running an entire new instance..

Regards

I have had multiple instances of programs open before. Generally that works best if you have the app installed more than once. For instance I have MPEG Streamclip on the boot drive but also have a copy on a clone of my system. it's possible to have both open simultaneously. It works for several other apps as well.

You sure can but it's not exactly straightforward. Open up Terminal and execute the following: Replace <app name.app> with the app name and <bin name> with the name of the binary in that folder. So, for instance, if I wanted to open up two instances of MacVim, I would execute the following command twice: This won't work for all applications for one of two reasons (I can only think of two reasons right now):
1. Not all binaries are named after the application. For instance, the binary for Firefox is called firefox-bin. Most applications are like MacVim above - the bin name is the same as the app bundle.
2. Some applications don't allow multiple instances such as Firefox.

Even though you can do this, you're better doing what Raz0rEdge suggested - open multiple windows instead.

Some applications do have that option, or at least it appears to have separate instances open.

In Finder, go to the menu: File>New Finder Window
In Firefox, File>New Window

etc.

Not all programs have this and you may need the terminal commands provided above.

multiple instances of an application

The following is slightly simpler. Let's say I wanted to open the application Preview.

Open Terminal, type the command



Explanation: The -n option is for "new" or "new instance". The -a option tells your computer you are opening an application, so that the path (usually /Applications/) and the extensions (.app) are no longer needed.