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Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

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Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#101

Post by prawn »

roryokane wrote: post #94
prawn wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Only had a MBP for a few days (first Mac), but isn't Safari tab-cycling also via Ctrl-Tab, and Ctrl-Shift-Tab to go in reverse? At least on the laptop keyboard, involving the square brackets would necessitate a fairly long stretch, or using both hands? Being new to the Mac, I'd be happy to hear more shortcuts!

It seems you haven’t noticed that there is a Command key both to the left and to the right of the keyboard, so Command-[ and -] are pretty easy to do one-handed if you use the Command key on the right. I think Ctrl-Tab is just there for compatibility with Windows browsers that use that as their main tab-switching shortcut.

Oops! I use my left hand for keyboard shortcuts while the right hand is occupied with the mouse so didn't even think to look for Command or Option on the right side!

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#102

Post by kjetil »

I always add the following keybindings in System preferences:

Cmd-: switch windows Cmd-': zoom (the green 'maximize' button on windows)

I just use Spotlight for launching (Cmd-space).

Oh, and set caps lock as ctrl. MacOS supports this out of the box, unlike Windows.

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#104

Post by doki_pen »

tvon wrote: post #45
doki_pen wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not trying to besnarky, but why even use a MAC. It seems like Linux is a better fit and less expensive. MAC is really about the UI, and if you don't take advantage of that you are just left with an almost Unix environment.

Not to pile on, but It's "Mac", short for Macintosh. MAC is, as far as I can think, only for Media Access Control (as in MAC address). That said, my first thought for the low barrier to no-mouse would be Linux as well, but as others have said there is more to OSX than just a pretty face.

yeah, sorry. entered from my "auto-correcting" android phone. too lazy to fix.

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#105

Post by coffeejunk »

prawn wrote: post #72
jaxn wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is Cmd-` (~ would require a Shift) And after Cmd-Tab, Cmd-~ takes you backwards in the list of apps. So if you Cmd-Tab too many times, Cmd-~ takes you back instead of having to cycle through. Likewise, in Safari Cmd-} (aka Cmd-Shift-]) and Cmd-{ take you forward and backward through the tabs. This also works in Terminal. Cmd-L puts the focus on the location bar in Safari if you want to type in a URL (or tab over…

Only had a MBP for a few days (first Mac), but isn't Safari tab-cycling also via Ctrl-Tab, and Ctrl-Shift-Tab to go in reverse? At least on the laptop keyboard, involving the square brackets would necessitate a fairly long stretch, or using both hands? Being new to the Mac, I'd be happy to hear more shortcuts!

An interesting thing about osx shortcuts is that you can change almost all of them with system prefs -> keyboard -> keyboard shortcuts. (for programs individually and for the whole system)

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#106

Post by abraham »

Mizage wrote: post #103
abraham wrote: post #77

SizeUp is great to move application windows around with keyboard shortcuts. http://irradiatedsoftware.com/sizeup/

You might also checkout Divvy by Mizage for unique window management on Mac OS X: http://mizage.com/divvy

I checked out Divvy at one point. I recall not needing the extra power so I stuck with SizeUp.

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#107

Post by fdb »

mccutchen wrote: post #38

This might be old news to you, but it took me a while to discover after I started using OS X: Cmd-Tab switches between applications (as I'm sure everyone knows), but it's less useful on OS X than Ctrl-Tab is on Windows or Linux because it doesn't switch between individual windows in those applications. Cmd-Tilde (~) was the missing link for me. It switches between windows in the current application. Those two are pro…

I use Witch (http://manytricks.com/witch/) which can you can setup to use alt/option-tab for window switching. This switches correctly, as in, with the same behavior as Cmd-Tab (LRU list). It is not free, but very handy.

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#108

Post by jon_hendry »

loire280 wrote: post #80
hopeless wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure if trackpads have the same ergonomic properties as a trackball. It's possible but I might wait and see if any research or anecdotal evidence emerges

Chalk me up for anecdotally noticing a huge improvement when switching to the touchpad. It's worth noting that the Apple trackpad is not only way bigger than a laptop's touchpad, it's also angled so you're not resting your hand on its edge. Also, if you've never used an Apple touchpad on a recent Macbook/Pro (the ones that are glass instead of plastic), you'll probably be surprised at how good the accuracy/tracking.…

I find myself supporing my fingers over my Magic Trackpad, which is tiring. At the very least I have to raise all my fingers except the ones I want to use in a gesture.

My other preferred device is a thumb-ball trackball. I have a logitech trackman, and the discontinued one from Microsoft. I find those much more comfortable, if a bit problematic for high precision. I just wish I could get a bluetooth one.

Re: Ask HN: tips for working with Mac OS X without using the mouse? (RSI)

#109

Post by jon_hendry »

alanthonyc wrote: post #84

The Magic Trackpad. After getting my MacBook Pro, I knew I couldn't go back to a regular mouse again unless I could use a multi-touch trackpad on it. I had no plans of buying a desktop Mac at all until the new trackpad was released this summer. I got one a couple of weeks ago and find it works perfectly.

I had to disable pinch-to-scale with mine. All too often I'd be reading something in the Xcode documentation window, and a slight, inadvertent movement of my fingers would cause the text to get really big or really small.
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