App view slidie out thing

Is there a way to see installed apps in a more conventional (to a Mac user!) way, like a folder with a load of app icons, or a list, or anything other than that odious semi-transparent flip out thing that's difficult to see (cos there's loads of crap showing through it), can't be resized and keeps disappearing when I click something..?

There is a folder with "a load of app icons": /usr/share/applications.

What version of Ubuntu are you using? Ubuntu 16.04 Gnome Software has three tabs at the top of the software center, All installed, Updates if you click on Installed it will give you a list of all the installed programs on your machine