When saving files to Desktop on Mac OS X (Lion), why are they placed in an erratic order?

This is really bugging me on Mac OS X (Lion):

When I save files to the Desktop (for example downloads from Web browsers, etc. -- which in my workflow happens a lot), they are placed in a seemingly erratic order: sometimes at the bottom left of existing icons, sometimes in between existing icons, etc.

I'm often having a really hard time finding the files I just saved. Seems to be the behavior in Windows is more consistent and predictable.

Is there any way to improve this behavior, more precisely, to specify that the files be placed in e.g. a left-to-right, top-to-bottom order?

Solution 1:

This is normal behavior when the desktop has no particular order or arrangement specified.

Try going to the Finder and setting a "Sort By" option.

1. Go to the Finder and click on the desktop.

2. Click View > Sort By from the menu bar

3. Then try selecting an option other than "None" with in the "Sort By" Menu.

Solution 2:

There are a number of ways to organize the Finder windows. I think Apple leaves the default as "Anarchy".

The first way to organize is by using the dropdown in the Finder window:

. Here, I'm organized by name.

A better option for me though is to use "View > Show View Options".

.

I like this because I can set this as the default. (You can set all folders at once, but you have to set the Desktop separately).

Hope this helps.