Increase the File Name Displayed Character Limit in Mac OS X
The displayed character limit can be increased to virtually any number, for the purpose of this tip we’ll increase the file names character limit from 20 to 50.
Launch the Terminal from /Applications/Utilities/ and enter the following command.
defaults write com.apple.finder FXDesktopLayoutGridCharCount 50; killall Finder
Entering this command will change the count and immediately restart the Finder so changes take place. If you want fewer or more characters, adjust the number on the end accordingly. The screenshot at the top of this post shows a 100 character limit, but too large a number can look strange, making 50 a good compromise for showing long file names and not making a disaster of the desktop.
Restore the Default File Name Character Limit
defaults write com.apple.finder FXDesktopLayoutGridCharCount 20; killall Finder
Using the above command, the Finder will also restart and the desktops file name limit will be restored to the default setting of 20 characters.
