Multiple Finder Windows

By default Mac OS X is configured to have only a single Finder window open at a time.

Let's say you have a Finder window open and you click on the Finder icon in the Dock. By default Mac OS X will show you the current Finder window (even if it's hidden under other windows it will be brought to the front). This behavior is drastically different when compared to Windows. Whenever you click on Windows Explorer or an "My Computer" or a folder in Windows, a new window is opened.

Another default behavior is that Finder will open double-clicked folders in the current Finder window. Suppose you double-clicked on the Macintosh HD on your Desktop, you'd be shown a Finder Window similar to the following:

If you then double-clicked on the Applications folder the Finder window will be updated to show the contents of the Applications folder:

Double-clcking on Flip4Mac would show you the contents of that folder:

This guide will demonstrate how you can open more than one Finder window and alter how Finder behaves when you double click a folder.

Open Additional Finder Windows

Make Finder the active application (note that Finder is the default application in Mac OS X)
Click on File in the Finder Menu
Cick on New Finder Window

You can save clicks by simultaneously pressing on the Command and N keys.

Alter the Finder Double Click Behavior
You can configure Finder to open a window when a folder is double clicked. Just note that this will eventually lead to numerous windows if the item you are attempting to reach is deeply nested. The change is made via the Finder Preferences: