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Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

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Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#251

Post by neuronic »

ask_b123 wrote: post #83
ralfd wrote: post #41

My go to example to explain the One True Mac Way of Window management is the “The many windows of John Siracusa” podcast from ATP a few years ago. The relevant discussion starts at 1:33:00 https://atp.fm/episodes/96 Siracusa, who grew up as a (classic) Mac user, explains his tiling and overlapping habits to Arment and Liss, who grew up as Microsoft Windows users and later switched, and they gasp in utter horror, shoc…

I have 14 terminal and 25 browser windows open (>5000 tabs among all of them — a slightly embarrassing number). :D Edit: only 1 13' monitor too

Is this why people complain about performance issues with browsers?

I have some perpetual habit to "clean" my desktop - I get annoyed if I have >15 tabs across 2 windows which easily happens.

> >5000 tabs among all of them

Not to be antagonistic but ... just why? There is no chance you are actively managing and keeping track of these? Is this because it doesnt matter if they are open or not? I am genuinely baffled and confused.

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#252

Post by activiation »

sgt wrote: post #140
goosedragons wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. What people want is a clone of the "Windows Snap" feature Microsoft introduced with Windows 7 where you drag a window right or left take up half the screen.

Oh okay. Personally I wouldn't want that. I would like to organize my computer's desktop the way I would organize physical stuff on my desk, just freeform style.

Probably because you never tried it... Personally I like it when it can snap to 1/4 or 1/2 of the screen... On a 30in monitor

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#253

Post by mixmastamyk »

ShadowBanThis01 wrote: post #217
alehlopeh wrote: post #170

Can an Ask HN self-post be clickbait? Apple isn’t refusing to do anything. They just haven’t done some minor thing that you personally would like. The fact that you’re “shocked” by something as banal as “lack of window snapping” is kind of funny actually.

Apple refuses to do things all the time. Aside from the aforementioned window-management gaffes, here's what I think is the most ridiculous design defect of the iPhone, which I reported first as an engineer there and repeatedly as an independent dev: It does not provide audible notifications of MISSED CALLS. I mean... WTF? A 1990s StarTAC (and probably most other phones) provided this obvious feature. So did 1980s an…

“Apple” is too broad. Likely some mid-level manager made the decision to do nothing and never revisited.

I remember a bug I wrote 15? years ago for gtk/gnome file manager. The left pane tree widget doesn’t support the arrow keys we used extensively in WinXP. Also doesn’t support the full context menu. Why? No reason, some mid-level person decided the left pane should be gimped.

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#254

Post by rchaud »

delfinom wrote: post #232
rhaway84773 wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So an expired patent which was previously owned by IBM is why Apple cannot have windows tiling but Windows and Linux have had for decades?

It's assumed Microsoft paid the troll toll (probably 2 decades ago). Linux is a complicated field to litigate anyone over a patent. It does happen just not easily compared to suing a big corp. But o god I found more cancer: https://patents.google.com/patent/US20110099512 Splitting one monitor into two virtual monitors is patented. Fuck you LG.

Samsung DeX (Android desktop environment) has window snapping via click and drag as well

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#255

Post by rchaud »

vosper wrote: post #174
alehlopeh wrote: post #170

Can an Ask HN self-post be clickbait? Apple isn’t refusing to do anything. They just haven’t done some minor thing that you personally would like. The fact that you’re “shocked” by something as banal as “lack of window snapping” is kind of funny actually.

Ask / Tell HNs definitely can be click/engagement bait, and this probably is.

Engagement bait doesn't serve any purpose on HN. On other social media it's necessary to send a relevance signal to the algorithm. You don't win any prizes for posting a lot on HN.

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#256

Post by SebastianKra »

I always feel like Apple must have some grand 1000IQ concept for window management and I just don't get it. Stage Manager, Spaces, Mission Control, Expose, Window Zooming, Hiding, Minimizing (which is different from Hiding), Fullscreen/Splitscreen... yet the first thing I do is install a third-party window manager.

I tried for months to go vanilla and get my head around the features. But why, why do fullscreen windows create their own space when I want them to exist within a space? Why can't I briefly bring up Finder on top of my fullscreen window? Why are there lengthy animations to switch between spaces? Why do CMD+Tab and CMD+` have a million special rules for which windows they select? Why is there no way perfectly position more than two apps next to each other? Why are apps in splitscreen married to each other? Why can't I easily swap one of them? Why are some window operations keyboard-exclusive, while others can only be performed with the mouse?

There has got to be a perfect workflow where all this makes sense. Otherwise, they wouldn't build it like that? Right?

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#258

Post by jonnycomputer »

alehlopeh wrote: post #170

Can an Ask HN self-post be clickbait? Apple isn’t refusing to do anything. They just haven’t done some minor thing that you personally would like. The fact that you’re “shocked” by something as banal as “lack of window snapping” is kind of funny actually.

Almost everyone I know immediately installs a third-party app to handle windows when they get their Mac. That includes me.

Re: Ask HN: Why does Apple refuse to add window snapping to macOS?

#260

Post by throwawayadvsec »

lloeki wrote: post #141

Well, because it has? Hover over the green stoplight, you get a popover with fullscreen options. Press Option and the fullscreen options mutate into snap left/snap right/zoom. These can also be found in the Window menu. Again, press option to mutate the fullscreen ones to snap. And since these are menu options, one can set any keyboard shortcut of their choosing through the keyboard shortcut prefpane+. So it is not "…

it's still incomplete unity/gnome or mint have better window system
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