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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?

#441

Post by perilunar »

7znwjshsus wrote: post #377
kitsunesoba wrote: post #370

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, it is simplistic from a certain point of view. If we rewind to the mid-to-late 80s with the Lisa and original Mac, which do you think most users at that point would find more simple and natural: windows that act as analogues of physical papers on a desk, or windows that have no real life equivalent and resize to fill empty space under arbitrary conditions? Granted, that was ~40 years ago and things are differen…

My main issue with this workflow is that if I alt tab to terminal, then it brings all of the terminals to front, rather than the one I wanted. Now one inactive terminal may be blocking the previous app that I want to use as reference for my active terminal. The only workaround is to resize and drag all the terminals around which I usually don't want to do. So I have to make the previous app fullscreen to move it to a…

Mission Control is the quickest way to find the window you want amongst many. It has a dedicated keyboard key (F3), but you can also set it to a hot-corner so it's a quick mouse move away. There's also a "show all application windows" command that has a keyboard shortcut and can also be set to a hot corner.

You absolutely do not need to resize and drag windows around manually to find the one you want!

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

#442

Post by toxicFork »

thiht wrote: post #439
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 "…

> Well, because it has? This is absolutely not the same thing. The full screen feature on macOS is ok because it’s very well integrated with the 3 fingers gestures. But the fact snapping requires to go to full screen mode completely sucks, it’s unintuitive and requires too many steps compared to just « drag the window to an edge ». I agree with OP that Apple stubbornly refuses to implement QoL features for no good re…

Are they paid apps? Perhaps that's why. This way Apple can get a cut from the DLC.

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

#443

Post by lloeki »

thiht wrote: post #439
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 "…

> Well, because it has? This is absolutely not the same thing. The full screen feature on macOS is ok because it’s very well integrated with the 3 fingers gestures. But the fact snapping requires to go to full screen mode completely sucks, it’s unintuitive and requires too many steps compared to just « drag the window to an edge ». I agree with OP that Apple stubbornly refuses to implement QoL features for no good re…

> snapping requires to go to full screen mode

It does not; reread my comment: you're confusing tiling (no Option key) with snapping (Option key).

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

#444

Post by pohuing »

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 "…

But that is completely different. If you have a full screen window/split in full screen, it breaks multi monitor setups. You can not drag a third window over your full screened monitor anymore, because it's in exclusive full screen. Triple monitor setups get broken in their usability if you have something full screened in your center screen.

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

#445

Post by rxhanson »

toxicFork wrote: post #442
thiht wrote: post #439

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Well, because it has? This is absolutely not the same thing. The full screen feature on macOS is ok because it’s very well integrated with the 3 fingers gestures. But the fact snapping requires to go to full screen mode completely sucks, it’s unintuitive and requires too many steps compared to just « drag the window to an edge ». I agree with OP that Apple stubbornly refuses to implement QoL features for no good re…

Are they paid apps? Perhaps that's why. This way Apple can get a cut from the DLC.

Rectangle is FOSS.

https://rectangleapp.com

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

#446

Post by nijave »

nirvdrum wrote: post #382
nijave wrote: post #363

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Once I got used to gestures, I actually like macOS window management more than Linux/Windows for single monitor. It seems a bit clunky if you have multiple monitors Cmd Left/Right to change between fullscreen windows. Cmd Up Arrow to show all of the fullscreen windows. Using the trackpad, 3 finger swipe up to show all the windows. Either 3 finger or 2 finger swipe left/right to switch between them. When 2 windows are…

Is there a way to make Cmd+Tab work with fullscreen windows? If I can't remember if I've made an app fullscreen, I have to three-finger swipe up to see the list of maximized applications and if it's not there, start Cmd-Tabbing to find it. Because I don't use macOS exclusively, what often happens is I try to Cmd+Tab, can't find the window, assume I'm not actually running the software I think I am and then eventually…

I'm not sure but I think if you try to relaunch (through the dock or Cmd+space search) it and it's already open, it'll jump to the open window

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

#447

Post by davisoneee »

ShadowBanThis01 wrote: post #394
SebastianKra wrote: post #256

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…

Apple has, for 20+ years now, wrestled with workarounds to the Mac's central UI blunder: making all applications share a single menu that's glued to the top of the screen. Every other windowing OS recognized that menus belong on their applications' main window frames, which makes the desktop an unlimited workspace. Apple should have made the same transition with OS X, but, in true Apple fashion, petulantly refused to…

I actually disagree strongly with (part of) this. Having a singular target menu I think is a good design decision (I used OSX in the past, but currently use windows+wsl at home, and linux for work).

Having a singular menu position is consistent. It gives you an 'infinite' Y target...you just slam your pointer into the top of the bar and get menu options, and only have to care about X accuracy.

The persistent menu on minimise, I do agree, is daft. But having a consistent location I think is a good decision. Need menus? Look at the top. Need menus? Mash your mouse into the top of the screen.

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

#448

Post by ianai »

dombesz wrote: post #426
dombesz wrote: post #368

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently, this was an existing feature on older macOs-es. I used it a lot, but it has been removed as a default setting like ~8 years ago. But luckily you can still add this shortcut to macOs, this is the first thing I do when I get a fresh install: 1. Go to System Settings -> Keyboard -> Keyboard Shortcuts -> App Shortcuts 2. Click the small (+) button under the shortcuts table. 3. Choose/Type the following values…

Sorry for the bad formatting, apparently I cannot edit my comment on HN anymore. 1. Go to System Settings -> Keyboard -> Keyboard Shortcuts -> App Shortcuts 2. Click the small (+) button under the shortcuts table 3. Choose/Type the following values in the modal: - Application: All Applications - Menu Title: Zoom - Keyboard shortcut: Command + Shift + M (My preferred shortcut) 4. Click Save. 5. Voila, now you are able…

Makes me wish macosxhints was still around. This was precisely what that site was about. I wonder whether there’s a modern day, fastish way to learn all this hidden behavior.

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

#449

Post by ChrisLTD »

ShadowBanThis01 wrote: post #391
SoftTalker wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Steve Jobs hated full screen windows. It’s why “maximize” expands based on content and not screen size. I haven’t used a Mac in years but that might still be part of the reason.

Except he presided over an OS that shunned the evolution that every other OS arrived at: Menus belong on applications' main frames, not glued to the top of the monitor screen. This is why Mac apps have a long history of barfing out an irritating flotilla of windows all over the place. Mac OS turns the entire screen into the client area of ONE application, whereas other GUIs can treat the desktop as an infinite worksp…

Menus at the top of the screen provide consistency between applications. You don't have to wonder if an application's menu items are behind a hamburger menu, or missing entirely (I'm looking at you Obsidian for Windows).

Also, having menus (or anything else really) at the edges of the screen make it easier to move to with a mouse. You can throw your mouse cursor toward the edge without worrying about the distance, because it will stop at the edge. This makes menu items easier to click on.

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

#450

Post by frizlab »

saghm wrote: post #151
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 "…

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…

The double-click on the title bar is customizable; I set it to minimize the window to the Dock.

To maximize the window (w/o going full screen, which I hate too), I’d alt-click the green button (would because I never maximize windows either; I’m passionately anti-snapping, anti-fullscreen, etc.).

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