Editing Alias (Mac OS) (section)

== Function ==

An alias acts as a stand-in for any object in the file system, such as a [[document]], an [[Application software|application]], a [[folder (computing)|folder]], a [[hard disk]], a [[network share]] or removable medium or a [[computer printer|printer]]. When double-clicked, the computer will act the same way as if the original file had been double-clicked. Likewise, choosing an alias file from within a 'File Open' [[dialog box]] would open the original file. The purpose of an alias is to assist the user in managing large numbers of files by providing alternative ways to access them without having to copy the files themselves. While a typical alias under the classic Mac OS was small, between 1 and 5&nbsp;KB, under macOS it can be fairly large, more than 5&nbsp;MB (5000&nbsp;KB) for the alias to a folder.