In a previous article (Show Hidden Files in Mac OS X Finder) Craig described how to change your Finder settings to always view all the hidden files on your system. If you would rather not leave them visible, then here’s a simple way to get to hidden directories when you need to.

A few times recently I’ve found myself browsing around in the terminal window for a second, then switching to finder only to realize that the file I wanted to open was in one of the hidden “system” directories that Apple wants to hide from me. Well, most of the time I’m perfectly content having those directories hidden from me. Craig’s trick makes everything permanently visible, until you switch it off, which make me have to do some extra work to switch the hidden folders to visible and then switch them back to hidden again. But here’s a simple way to get to those hidden files without switching anything on and off. And what’s amazing about this trick is that it’s not exactly arcane hackery. All you have to do is select a menu in the Finder! What? Finder has menus? I hardly ever use them since I’ve gotten used to the keyboard shortcut for “New Finder Window” (it’s cmd+N if you’re curious), and I generally right click to get a new folder created in the right spot.

So, lets say you need to access /etc for some reason. Go to Finder and select the go menu. Then select “Go to Folder…”

A dialog box appears:

Type in the hidden directory path you’d like to view, press “Go” and you’re set.

Read more: Productivity, Mac