A good window manager for Mac will allow moving, resizing and rearranging application windows quickly. It will allow customizing how windows are handled, have keyboard shortcuts for performing window manipulations quickly and allow snapping windows to various locations on the desktop with the mouse. Mac Tools Too l Trucks – Own Your Own Automotive Tool Franchise and Be Your Own Boss™ In addition to manufacturing a wide variety of outstanding automotive tools, Mac Tools provides one of the best franchise opportunities available to qualified candidates with a passion for the automotive industry. Whether it's the productivity-boosting Aero Snap or the ability to fully maximize windows with the click of a button, here's how to get some of our favorite Windows features on OS X. This feature was first popularized by Microsoft’s Aero Snap on Windows. Even though Apple doesn’t natively support it, window snapping is available on the Mac via a variety of third-party apps.
No matter if you have a small 11″ MacBook AirWhich Is Best, A MacBook Air Or MacBook Pro? Both Models Compared Side-By-SideWhich Is Best, A MacBook Air Or MacBook Pro? Both Models Compared Side-By-SideYou might think Apple’s relatively small laptop selection would make choosing a model easy. For some people, that’s true, but for others the tight range of options and prices makes for a difficult choice. A..Read More or a 27″ iMac, you typically are going to wrestle with managing windows on your desktop screen. Even though I use two monitors2 Main Positioning Approaches To Make Use Of A Dual Monitor Configuration2 Main Positioning Approaches To Make Use Of A Dual Monitor ConfigurationRead More, I used to find myself constantly moving windows around and readjusting their size.
I’ve written before about applications that help Mac users manage wide screen Apple displayHow To Take Advantage Of Your Widescreen Apple Display [Mac OSX]How To Take Advantage Of Your Widescreen Apple Display [Mac OSX]I didn't realize until I unpacked my 27' iMac just how much screen real estate I had to work with. Sure, it looked large in the store, but opening numerous applications and windows on it,..Read More, but in this article I want to highlight two applications, BetterSnapTool and Houdini, that help me better manage windows on Mac and screen real estate on both of my desktop and laptop Macs.
BetterSnapTool
BetterSnapTool ($1.99) is a feature rich tool for managing windows on your Mac desktop, but usingthe program may not be as intuitive for some users as it could be. BetterSnapTool provides users several ways to quickly resize and reposition application windows without having to constantly drag the corners of a window or move it with your cursor.
After you download the app, you can immediately start using the preset arrangements. BetterSnapTool will expand and reposition any expandable window that you drag to one of the designated areas of your monitor—top left, top, top right and so on. Jailbreak.pangu ios 10 jailbreak tool for mac.
A graphic frame will appear when you move to snap a window to one of the pre-assigned positions. This feature is enough, but you will probably want to customize the positions and sizes based on how you normally work.
Customizing Snap Areas
BetterSnapTool includes a sophisticated feature that allows you to set areas on your screen for where you want a dragged window to resize and reposition. For example, when I’m working on a MUO article, I basically have my favorite text editor, MarsEdit positioned on the left side of my 27″ iMac, and a Safari window to the right of MarsEdit (seen in the screenshot below).
However, in the process of researching and writing an article, windows easily get moved around. So I use the Snap Areas feature of BetterSnapTool to designate where and how I typically want windows repositioned. When I move a window into one of thearea frames (see above screen shot), it will be resized and positioned based on the template size a selected frame represents.
The following video shows you how to create a custom area:
In case you can’t see that, position and size a window of an application you work in a lot and click on BetterSnapTool in your menu bar, and select +Create New Snap Area.
BetterSnapTool will highlight your designated window with a red dotted line, as shown below.
A template frame will also pop up which will represent the size and position of the selected window. You can change the color and size of the frame, and you can move itto where you like on your screen, but you will probably want to move it to the area of the screen that it represents. When the frame is set up, press Command+W or click the grey edit mode box to exit out.
Now when you move a window with your cursor, the frame will appear, and if you drag the window into the frame, it will resize and reposition based on the template dimensions you set. You can set up as many frames and positions asyou like. You willprobably need to edit your setup a few times until you get precise settings you’re most comfortable with.
If you find that the frames pop up too quickly when you’re moving a window, you can open up the Customization panel of BetterSnapTool Preferences, and enable the Delay before snapping feature. I find that setting it to 1.4 seconds allows me to move a window without the frames popping up so quickly.
BetterSnapTool also includes another set of window presets that you access when clicking one of the three buttons that appear on the top-left corner of Mac windows. You can assign what you want BetterSnapTool to do when you click or right-click on one of those buttons. For example, you might set the yellow button to reposition a window to the right side of your screen. There’s lots of choices for the feature, so just play around with ituntil you discover what works best for your workflow.
I’ve only presented the main features of BetterSnapTool. It may not be the most intuitive application to use, but it is a powerful tool with lots of features and adjustments for Mac users who work at their computer throughout the day.
Houdini for Auto Hiding Windows
Houdini (Free) is another useful tool for managing windows. If you often find that you’re constantly hiding opened windows to gain back more space, Houdini, a menu bar utility, will hide designated applications for you.
It will recognize all ofyour open applications, and when any of those backgroundapplications are not being used for 90 seconds, Houdini will automatically hide those applications. Of course, a smart developer knows that you will want to customize the times. So you can set custom times for each application, from Never to 5 minutes. For example, I’ve set Safari to never hide because I’m constantly using it.
Staying Organized
With tools like BetterSnapTool and Houdini, you can save time readjusting windows and remaining focused on the projects you’re working on. These applications do require some time to be spent on their setup, and you may have to edit the settings a few times, but eventually they will work their magic and automatically perform redundant tasks for you.
Let us know what you think of BetterSnapTool and Houdini, and other similar applications in the comments, below this post.
- A better and free solution is BetterTouchTool. My elder brother uses this in his MacBook Pro. Works like a charm.BetterTouchTool Homepage: http://www.boastr.de/
Whether you've just switched to Mac or you're secretly a little jealous of Windows 7 features, there are some things Mac OS X just doesn't do that Windows handles beautifully. Here's how to get Windows' best features on your Mac.
People talk about 'Mac Envy' a lot, but you hear a lot less about Windows jealousy—even though Windows has some pretty drool-worthy features. Whether it's the productivity-boosting Aero Snap or the ability to fully maximize windows with the click of a button, here's how to get some of our favorite Windows features on OS X. (If you're a Windows user, too, be sure to check out how to get Mac OS X's best features on your Windows PC, too).
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How to Get Mac OS X's Best Features on Windows
Whether you're a die-hard Windows fan or simply a Mac user required to occasionally use…
Read more ReadA lot of the apps mentioned in this post are, unfortunately, shareware. I looked for free options and found a few where noted, but almost everything here is a pay app. As such, you may not want to rush off and buy all of these, but check out their free trials and see which ones actually make your life easier. And remember: $7 may seem like a lot for an app, but if it's something you'll use every day and makes your life easier, it might not be so bad.
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True Window Maximization
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One of Mac OS X's most annoying features is the lack of true window maximization. That is, when you click the maximization button—the little green one in the corner of your windows—only some applications actually maximize to fill up your monitor. Instead, many just stretch to fit the contents of the window. This can be nice, but if you want to focus on just one thing, or if you just need more space for whatever you're working on, you have to resize the window manually.
Windows Snap Tool For Mac
Previously mentionedRightZoom is a simple tool that changes the behavior of the green button, causing it to always maximize the window. It isn't perfect (since it then gets rid of the old behavior, which is sometimes good), but it's the best free option we've found. You can alternatively grab Flexiglass, will maximize only when you right-click on the button, but it's $10. It also has a few other window management features though, which we'll talk about in a moment. Of course, most of the Aero Snap programs detailed below will also maximize windows, but using a keyboard shortcut or dragging motion rather than the green plus sign.
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RightZoom Makes the OS X Maximize Button More Like Windows
Mac OS X only: System utility RightZoom runs in the background and modifies the OS X maximize…
Read more ReadWindow Previews
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When you hover over a taskbar icon in Windows 7, it shows a tiny preview of all the windows open in that program, which is great for quickly bringing one into focus (or un-minimizing it). In OS X, you can right click on a dock icon to see the open windows, but the lack of thumbnails makes it hard to distinguish between them. (You can also click and hold on an app to get an Exposé of its windows, but that isn't quite the same). If you'd prefer a more Windows-like behavior, the previously mentioned $10 Hyperdock will give it to you. You can hover over dock icons, close windows right from there, and get a ton of other window management features (which we'll talk about in a moment) right from its preference pane. This is one of my favorite OS X enhancers—easily some of the best $10 I've spent in the Mac App Store.
HyperDock Brings Window Previews, Other Dock Enhancements to OS X
Mac only: If you wish you had Windows' Aero Peek-like window previews in OS X's Dock,…
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Aero Snap's Window Snapping (and Then Some)
Windows 7's Aero Snap feature is a godsend for anyone who needs to work in multiple windows at once. By clicking and dragging a window to the edge of the screen, you could 'snap' them to fit half the screen and use them side-by-side. You can also drag a window to the top of the screen to maximize it. There are a number of different tools that do this for OS X, but they all have a different mix of features, so you'll want to pick the one that works best for you. Here are our favorites:
Snap Any Window to Half the Screen Size in Windows 7
Click to view We're on a Windows 7 screencast bender! You've already seen Windows…
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- Hyperdock: This brings window snapping to OS X by both clicking and dragging windows and keyboard shortcuts. In addition, it has the window preview feature mentioned above, as well as the ability to move and resize windows from anywhere—not just the titlebar or window corner (another feature we miss from Windows).
- Flexiglass: Flexiglass is also $10, but has a slightly different feature set than Hyperdock. It too can snap windows, as well as move and resize them from anywhere. However, it also adds the ability to fully maximize windows by right-clicking the green plus button, as well as quit apps by right-clicking the red x button, two features that Windows users on OS X will probably miss. It doesn't, sadly, have the window previews in the dock, so you'll either have to buy both apps or decide which features are more important to you. Again, both should have free trials available.
- Cinch: If you'd rather not buy an app, you can grab Cinch. Cinch is technically $7, but it's nagware, meaning you can run it forever for free as long as you don't mind a request to buy every time you launch it. Cinch adds the drag-and-snap feature to OS X, but doesn't include keyboard shortcuts. For that you'd need..
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- SizeUp: From the same developers as Cinch, SizeUp is a program that lets you snap windows, maximize them, move them to different monitors, and otherwize manage them with keyboard shortcuts. It doesn't include the drag-and-snap features of Cinch and the others, but if you're only going to use keyboard shortcuts anyways, it's perfect. Again, it's $7, but runs free as nagware if you prefer.
- ShiftIt: ShiftIt is a free tool that lets you maximize and snap windows using keyboard shortcuts. It's similar to SizeUp but doesn't have quite as many options. It is, however, completely free (and nag-free).
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Cut and Paste in the Finder
In Windows Explorer, you can cut and paste files all you want, but for some reason Mac OS X's Finder only lets you copy and paste files—no cutting allowed. There's a very easy way to get this functionality on OS X, though: previously mentionedMoveAddict will add keyboard shortcuts for cut and paste to the Finder, and as long as you only want to move one file at a time, you can do it for free. If you want to cut and paste large batches of files, though, you'll need to shell out $8 for the program.
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MoveAddict Adds Cut and Paste to the OS X Finder
Mac users have longed wished that the Finder would implement a very simple feature: cut and paste.…
Read more ReadGet a Better Window Switcher
Cmd+Tab is a fine app switcher for something that's built-in, but if you're more used to how Windows does it, you'll probably get frustrated pretty quickly. It only switches between apps, not windows, and if you have any windows that are minimized or hidden, Cmd+Tab won't open them up unless you learn some hand-cramping new shortcuts. If you'd like a more powerful window switcher, Witch is a pretty good choice—although not exactly cheap at $14. However, it does give you a more Windows-like switcher, with a full list of open windows, thumbnails of each one, and some serious shortcuts (not to mention configurability). If you use Cmd+Tab a lot but aren't satisfied with the built-in offering, you'll probably find Witch is a very powerful program well worth the cash.
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Open and Un-Minimize New Windows From OS X's Application Switcher
/:16 The Command+Tab keyboard shortcut is useful for quickly switching the active window, but…
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Get Windows-Style Keyboard Shortcuts
If you just feel that your hand is too cramped reaching for Command instead of Control, or your Windows muscle memory is too great, you can use previously mentionedDoubleCommand to remap some of your keys in OS X. It can remap a whole host of things, some of the most useful being Ctrl, Cmd, and Alt. So, switching Cmd and Ctrl, for example, means that you'll go back to the Windows-style Ctrl+C shortcut for copy, Ctrl+V for paste, etc. They're small tweaks, but if you're used to Windows (or if you're forced to use Windows at work), it's nice to get back to the keyboard shortcuts that you're used to.
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Remap your keyboard with DoubleCommand
Mac OS X only: Free, open source application DoubleCommand remaps your Mac's modifier keys,…
Read more ReadYou'll never be able to get Mac OS X working exactly like windows, though I don't expect most Mac users would want to. Thankfully, with just a few simple tools and tweaks, you can get the Windows features that do matter on your Mac. Got any of your own favorite features we skipped over? Let us know how you brought them over to OS X in the comments.
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You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at [email protected]. Free data analysis tool pack for mac excel. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.
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