7 ms·

I too have become annoyed recently at really basic stuff not working in macOS, like I can't drag and drop a picture out of Photos app into Pixelmator to edit. I

I too have become annoyed recently at really basic stuff not working in macOS, like I can't drag and drop a picture out of Photos app into Pixelmator to edit. In fact, dragging and dropping a picture out of Photos into any application is completely broken and doesn't work. Its as-if the Apple QA team no longer tests to make sure their applications play nice with each other in a way that has been fundamental to desktop computing since the desktop OS was invented.

toyg 10y ago
Photos overall is a trainwreck. Options are hidden and hard to find, anything beyond "tag this image with your auntie's name" is way harder than it should be... and this without ever mentioning the dreadful "I'll quit when I want to, not when you tell me to" backend process.
euroclydon 10y ago
Is it even possible to chose a photo out of your photo librry from a browser's file upload dialog? I don't think it is, when the photos are in iPhoto. How many steps does it take to get a picture off your camera, into iPhoto, then exported, and finally uploaded to Craigslist?
- rusk 10y ago
  Photos should show up as an icon in the side-bar? Rather than navigating to the actual files I think you're meant to access them this way. It's a good idea and used to work better in my memory - these days it can be a bit finnicky to find the photo you want.
- Angostura 10y ago
  Scroll down to the 'Media' section in the sidebar. Select 'Pictures' There you'll find all your pictures in Photos
- stonewareslord 10y ago
  It is possible and very easy. Just drag the photo from iPhoto to the upload dialog.
to3m 10y ago
You can't copy and paste an image out of Photos, either. It's really quite ridiculous.
- Angostura 10y ago
  Yes you can - I've just done it.
  - tqkxzugoaupvwqr 10y ago
    Instead of being condescending you could have explained how to do it.
    - Angostura 10y ago
      Sorry, it really was a question of selecting a picture and the selecting copy from the menu. I wasn't trying to be an arse.
- threeseed 10y ago
  1. Open Photos. 2. Select Photo. 3. Edit Menu -> Copy. 4. Open TextEdit. 5. Edit Menu -> Paste. It is ridiculous. Ridiculously simple.
  - to3m 10y ago
    After some experimentation, it turns out my problem was that I expected - ridiculous, I know - that it would copy image data in some form that's comprehensible to Gimp, Firefox and Thunderbird. So I now rather suspect that Photos is using some new API, that Gimp/Firefox/Thunderbird aren't, and that this new API is, for no particular reason that I can see, not remotely backwards-compatible. Feels like this forms a data point for the thread - since meanwhile, on Windows, I have a couple of programs in my bin folder that I use fairly regularly that I compiled in 2006.
rgoodwintx 10y ago
I know this isn't the point of the comment, but Yoink works perfectly as an intermediary for this. I use it dozens of times a day for various things but this one in particular is a lifesaver.
fnordsensei 10y ago
I've noticed this as well. I use a "workaround" in the form of Yoink: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yoink/id457622435 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yoink/id457622435 Yoink seems to trigger a file export in Photos. Why that doesn't happen with other programs is anyone's guess. I put "workaround" in quotation marks because this is really how I do all dragging and dropping between programs in macOS, since I tend to run stuff in full screen.
verisimilitude 10y ago
I used and loved iPhoto and then I had a great (first impression) of Photos until I tried to do the thing you describe: DRAG AND DROP. Apple forums provided an answer (I would call it a work-around) with their usual condescending tone: hold Alt while dragging, and you can at least get a copy of the photo/video of interest into a folder in the Finder.
- 5ersi 10y ago
  I just tried it in Photos 2.0 (macOS Sierra 10.12.3) and it works as expected - drag'n'drop from Photos to Finder copies files into selected Finder folder.
jrnichols 10y ago
Is dragging a photo to the Desktop and then into the app really a huge deal? Just curious, because that works fine for me.
- sinatra 10y ago
  And then deleting or moving the photo from the desktop afterwards. So, three steps as opposed to one. For a feature (drag n drop) that's all about convenience.
- DigitalJack 10y ago
  It's not a big deal, but it's a death by a thousand cuts. These little things that used to be part of the refined experience of OSX are turning the "just works" part of their slogan into "damnit, why can't I"
- michaelcampbell 10y ago
  Ah, that Apple mantra. It's not hard because it's hard, it's hard because you don't do it OUR WAY. Do it OUR WAY and everything is easy.
- bradgessler 10y ago
  That's called a work around. Its not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but its not something you'd call a desirable design trait for a desktop app.
ams6110 10y ago
At the same time, Windows 10 on my Dell laptop will heat up, spin the fan noticably and something called "Service Host: Local System" will consistently use 48 - 52% of CPU when the laptop is sitting doing nothing at all, with no applications open. I really can't understand what it's doing but have a hard time taking it seriously as an operating system.
- skookumchuck 10y ago
  > I really can't understand what it's doing Probably backing up your files to government servers :-)
- acdha 10y ago
  Check the resource monitor to see which service that corresponds to: it's likely Windows Update since they changed it to mine Bitcoin or something about a decade ago when it went from being I/O to single-core CPU bound.
  - DougN7 10y ago
    This is very likely it from my experience as well.
  - bagels 10y ago
    Is this a serious statement, that windows update mines Bitcoin?
    - zargon 10y ago
      No.
      - majewsky 10y ago
        Come to think of it, that's actually an interesting monetization scheme. "You can use our software for free, but when your computer idles, we use x% of its computing power for mining cryptocurrency" (or whatever profitable endeavor). It's of course disastrous from an environmental perspective, but still interesting.
skookumchuck 10y ago
> really basic stuff not working Try selecting text in a Windows dialog box, such as the "About" box. It doesn't work, it never did as far as I can tell.
- ryfm 10y ago
  Ctrl-c works though.
- elaus 10y ago
  But isn't it sad if MacOS has to be compared to Windows to relativize its flaws? People were using it because they felt it was BETTER than Windows, not because "both are meeh". Also arguably, selecting text in a dialog box (instead of copying the whole text) is a lot less used feature than drag&drop of photos.
tnone 10y ago
I recently discovered the detailed and amazingly accessible Aqua Human Interface Guidelines from their golden years have been completely gutted and replaced with the macOS guidelines that cover only the basics. They've abandoned years of accumulated wisdom. Luckily the old versions still float around in PDF form, the first few chapters are just good timeless UI design advice.
- Klover 10y ago
  http://interface.free.fr/Archives/AquaHIGuidelines.pdf http://interface.free.fr/Archives/AquaHIGuidelines.pdf In case anyone else is interested.

toyg 10y ago

Photos overall is a trainwreck. Options are hidden and hard to find, anything beyond "tag this image with your auntie's name" is way harder than it should be... and this without ever mentioning the dreadful "I'll quit when I want to, not when you tell me to" backend process.

euroclydon 10y ago

Is it even possible to chose a photo out of your photo librry from a browser's file upload dialog? I don't think it is, when the photos are in iPhoto. How many steps does it take to get a picture off your camera, into iPhoto, then exported, and finally uploaded to Craigslist?

rusk 10y ago
Photos should show up as an icon in the side-bar? Rather than navigating to the actual files I think you're meant to access them this way. It's a good idea and used to work better in my memory - these days it can be a bit finnicky to find the photo you want.
Angostura 10y ago
Scroll down to the 'Media' section in the sidebar. Select 'Pictures' There you'll find all your pictures in Photos
stonewareslord 10y ago
It is possible and very easy. Just drag the photo from iPhoto to the upload dialog.

to3m 10y ago

You can't copy and paste an image out of Photos, either. It's really quite ridiculous.

Angostura 10y ago
Yes you can - I've just done it.
- tqkxzugoaupvwqr 10y ago
  Instead of being condescending you could have explained how to do it.
  - Angostura 10y ago
    Sorry, it really was a question of selecting a picture and the selecting copy from the menu. I wasn't trying to be an arse.
threeseed 10y ago
1. Open Photos. 2. Select Photo. 3. Edit Menu -> Copy. 4. Open TextEdit. 5. Edit Menu -> Paste. It is ridiculous. Ridiculously simple.
- to3m 10y ago
  After some experimentation, it turns out my problem was that I expected - ridiculous, I know - that it would copy image data in some form that's comprehensible to Gimp, Firefox and Thunderbird. So I now rather suspect that Photos is using some new API, that Gimp/Firefox/Thunderbird aren't, and that this new API is, for no particular reason that I can see, not remotely backwards-compatible. Feels like this forms a data point for the thread - since meanwhile, on Windows, I have a couple of programs in my bin folder that I use fairly regularly that I compiled in 2006.

rgoodwintx 10y ago

I know this isn't the point of the comment, but Yoink works perfectly as an intermediary for this. I use it dozens of times a day for various things but this one in particular is a lifesaver.

fnordsensei 10y ago

I've noticed this as well. I use a "workaround" in the form of Yoink: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yoink/id457622435 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yoink/id457622435 Yoink seems to trigger a file export in Photos. Why that doesn't happen with other programs is anyone's guess. I put "workaround" in quotation marks because this is really how I do all dragging and dropping between programs in macOS, since I tend to run stuff in full screen.

verisimilitude 10y ago

I used and loved iPhoto and then I had a great (first impression) of Photos until I tried to do the thing you describe: DRAG AND DROP. Apple forums provided an answer (I would call it a work-around) with their usual condescending tone: hold Alt while dragging, and you can at least get a copy of the photo/video of interest into a folder in the Finder.

5ersi 10y ago
I just tried it in Photos 2.0 (macOS Sierra 10.12.3) and it works as expected - drag'n'drop from Photos to Finder copies files into selected Finder folder.

jrnichols 10y ago

Is dragging a photo to the Desktop and then into the app really a huge deal? Just curious, because that works fine for me.

sinatra 10y ago
And then deleting or moving the photo from the desktop afterwards. So, three steps as opposed to one. For a feature (drag n drop) that's all about convenience.
DigitalJack 10y ago
It's not a big deal, but it's a death by a thousand cuts. These little things that used to be part of the refined experience of OSX are turning the "just works" part of their slogan into "damnit, why can't I"
michaelcampbell 10y ago
Ah, that Apple mantra. It's not hard because it's hard, it's hard because you don't do it OUR WAY. Do it OUR WAY and everything is easy.
bradgessler 10y ago
That's called a work around. Its not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but its not something you'd call a desirable design trait for a desktop app.

ams6110 10y ago

At the same time, Windows 10 on my Dell laptop will heat up, spin the fan noticably and something called "Service Host: Local System" will consistently use 48 - 52% of CPU when the laptop is sitting doing nothing at all, with no applications open. I really can't understand what it's doing but have a hard time taking it seriously as an operating system.

skookumchuck 10y ago
> I really can't understand what it's doing Probably backing up your files to government servers :-)
acdha 10y ago
Check the resource monitor to see which service that corresponds to: it's likely Windows Update since they changed it to mine Bitcoin or something about a decade ago when it went from being I/O to single-core CPU bound.
- DougN7 10y ago
  This is very likely it from my experience as well.
- bagels 10y ago
  Is this a serious statement, that windows update mines Bitcoin?
  - zargon 10y ago
    No.
    - majewsky 10y ago
      Come to think of it, that's actually an interesting monetization scheme. "You can use our software for free, but when your computer idles, we use x% of its computing power for mining cryptocurrency" (or whatever profitable endeavor). It's of course disastrous from an environmental perspective, but still interesting.

skookumchuck 10y ago

> really basic stuff not working Try selecting text in a Windows dialog box, such as the "About" box. It doesn't work, it never did as far as I can tell.

ryfm 10y ago
Ctrl-c works though.
elaus 10y ago
But isn't it sad if MacOS has to be compared to Windows to relativize its flaws? People were using it because they felt it was BETTER than Windows, not because "both are meeh". Also arguably, selecting text in a dialog box (instead of copying the whole text) is a lot less used feature than drag&drop of photos.

tnone 10y ago

I recently discovered the detailed and amazingly accessible Aqua Human Interface Guidelines from their golden years have been completely gutted and replaced with the macOS guidelines that cover only the basics. They've abandoned years of accumulated wisdom. Luckily the old versions still float around in PDF form, the first few chapters are just good timeless UI design advice.

Klover 10y ago
http://interface.free.fr/Archives/AquaHIGuidelines.pdf http://interface.free.fr/Archives/AquaHIGuidelines.pdf In case anyone else is interested.