FYI in macOS you can do this using ⌘ + ` I'm assuming most of you know this but just in case
Does not work in all keyboard layouts though. One more reason to use US layout.
Surely you can re-map it though.
Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
11–20 of 51 posts
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
I use https://alt-tab-macos.netlify.app/ Without it alt-tabbing is near useless for me on macOS.
How is alt-tabbing near useless? I find it quite easy/simple. The fact that I often have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the mouse makes it even easier with a quick cmd-tab while leaving the cmd key pressed so that I can mouse click the app icon I want directly without mulitple cmd-tab clicks to cycle to what I want very convenient.
> How is alt-tabbing near useless?
I think the parent refers to MacOS/Gnome treating alt-tab as a "switch program" shortcut, not a "switch window" shortcut. I find it very convenient to press "alt-tab" to go to the previously-focused window, or "alt-tab-tab" to the even-previously focused window.
It's much easier for me to think in terms of context switches (go back to my N-previous activity) than have to consciously evaluate whether i want to switch window of the same app or switch app.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#13FYI in macOS you can do this using ⌘ + ` I'm assuming most of you know this but just in case
FYI, this is configurable via System Preferences → Keyboard → Shortcuts → Keyboard → Move focus to active or next window.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#14I do not understand. What does this add, that my desktop environment does not already provide? Why should I download and use this instead? Most desktop environments I know already allow me to set a key binding for this task.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#15FYI in macOS you can do this using ⌘ + ` I'm assuming most of you know this but just in case
I’ve been using a third party piece of software called witch from many tricks to do window switching!
Wasn’t aware this is natively supported in OSX, and doesn’t seem to be working.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#16The first time I remember something like this on linux was on Ubuntu's Unity in 2012. It is also the default on Ubuntu 20.04, so I think it was enabled the whole time for the last 10 years. Anyone knows if KDE also does that and, if yes, since when?
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#17Earlier quoted context omitted.
I use https://alt-tab-macos.netlify.app/ Without it alt-tabbing is near useless for me on macOS.
How is alt-tabbing near useless? I find it quite easy/simple. The fact that I often have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the mouse makes it even easier with a quick cmd-tab while leaving the cmd key pressed so that I can mouse click the app icon I want directly without mulitple cmd-tab clicks to cycle to what I want very convenient.
Let's say you have three browser windows, three terminal windows, and three file manager windows. Also, each window corresponds to a project/task, such that the logical groups are really (browser1, terminal1, files1), etc. Make sense?
Next, you want to show all of the windows from a single task, each one at the highest focus relative to all other windows of the same application.
Only being able to switch applications, rather than individual windows, makes this a tedious, manual process.
I hear you say, "just use..."
- Multiple workspaces: does not play well with changing multi-monitor setups. Does not persist across restarts. (Last time I tried anyway)
- Expose: this is not a keyboard-shortcut friendly interface. Windows-style alt-tab lists are predictable and linear, Expose window arrangements are not.
I just want the interface I already know, that works perfectly for this situation.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#18Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#19I do not understand. What does this add, that my desktop environment does not already provide? Why should I download and use this instead? Most desktop environments I know already allow me to set a key binding for this task.
This is for Windows, I don't use Windows often but last I checked this wasn't built into the OS.
Re: Show HN: Switch windows of same app with hotkey (alt + `)
#20Earlier quoted context omitted.
I use https://alt-tab-macos.netlify.app/ Without it alt-tabbing is near useless for me on macOS.
How is alt-tabbing near useless? I find it quite easy/simple. The fact that I often have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the mouse makes it even easier with a quick cmd-tab while leaving the cmd key pressed so that I can mouse click the app icon I want directly without mulitple cmd-tab clicks to cycle to what I want very convenient.
As the other comments mentioned it's due to application instead of window switching. I find it frustrating to alt-tab to some application with no windows (because I closed it but on macOS that doesn't close the app), which only makes the top bar change and is not my intention 99.9% of the time.
AltTab instead has sane defaults and allows a lot of customization including multiple shortcuts for different purposes.