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

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261–270 of 573 posts

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

#262

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.

And nobody I know does that. Neither of our and data is particularly useful.

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

#264
This appears every now and then on HN.

Window management in macOS is superficially similar but profoundly different from Windows or most Linux DEs. It's got a fixed menu bar which windows are independent from. That alone already changes a lot and has deep implications.

My advice is to learn how and why it's different instead of trying to make it behave as something it's not. Waiting for Apple to turn it into a chimera would be even worse, IMO.

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

#265

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 window…

The alternative explanation seems to be that they know it’s far from perfect, but lack the appetite to rethink from first principles. So they come up with some feature that will help some specific scenario, and just pile that onto the stack of shit.

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

#266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 an…

People use them as bookmarks.

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

#267
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 "…

I've used a mac for 10 years now, and TIL The Windows snapping UI is much more intuitive, though.

This is totally undiscoverable, I also only just realised.

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

#268
post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only Apple device I use is the laptop I was given for work, and I've always disliked that the button that would "maximize" the window on other OS instead makes the window "fullscreen" (getting rid of the menu and everything else that entails). I recently discovered that I am actually able to "maximize" by double-clicking the top bar of the window, but I have no idea if this is something that works by default or i…

If you move the mouse up to the top of the screen in fullscreen mode the menu bar will reappear, so things work about like normal (although that certainly wasn't obvious the first time I pressed the green button). The double-click on the title bar is "Zoom" mode, which you can activate with Window >> Zoom. But I agree, it's not obvious, nor is it obvious what "Zoom" means.

Unfortunately my main use of the menu bar is to have information at a glance (like the date and time), so having to move my mouse to see it kind of defeats the purpose. I definitely would not have guessed what "Zoom" mode meant though!

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

#269
post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only Apple device I use is the laptop I was given for work, and I've always disliked that the button that would "maximize" the window on other OS instead makes the window "fullscreen" (getting rid of the menu and everything else that entails). I recently discovered that I am actually able to "maximize" by double-clicking the top bar of the window, but I have no idea if this is something that works by default or i…

If you move the mouse up to the top of the screen in fullscreen mode the menu bar will reappear, so things work about like normal (although that certainly wasn't obvious the first time I pressed the green button). The double-click on the title bar is "Zoom" mode, which you can activate with Window >> Zoom. But I agree, it's not obvious, nor is it obvious what "Zoom" means.

This is a bit annoying when an app has its own menu near the top of the screen. The only app I use in full screen is a media player. Every time I try to interact with the in-app hamburger menu, the whole wind shifts and the system window bay animates out.

I really don’t like the full screen behaviour in macOS.

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

#270

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've used a mac for 10 years now, and TIL The Windows snapping UI is much more intuitive, though.

But also annoying when you're trying to tile some (of a bunch) of windows at full height. Yes, there are ways to do it without unintentionally maximizing, but it takes more attention to detail.

Is there any way to static tile in Windows without an external application?

I.e. pre-configure a tiling layout of application windows, that will be restored as specified (or at least on boot)

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