4 ms·

Can you explain why this is such an important feature? How often are you writing code where you're not at your desk with a real keyboard and mouse?

scott_w 6y ago
100% of the time for me. I prefer the trackpad over the mouse.
- ooobit2 6y ago
  100% of the time for me, I wouldn't wipe my butt with a trackpad, let alone use one for work. It's always fun for me to meet people who do things the complete opposite I do them. It's oddly satisfying, like, I'm glad someone is my polar opposite on an issue or activity.
  - jmnicolas 6y ago
    Tabs or spaces ?
    - am391 6y ago
      That made me smile....thanks @jmnicolas :)
    - ooobit2 6y ago
      It depends. For lists, I do spaces. Allows for more levels than a tab would. But for everything else, tabs. I've also grown to loathe that first-line tab beginning the second paragraph. It makes left-aligned text look wonky. I loathe centered text too. I'm not a rounded rectangle person. I think the colored block UI that's all over Android, sites like HN, etc. looks tacky. We went from semi-transparent glass UI to flat colored blocks, and somehow interfaces got slower and more processor intensive. Now, that's a horse of a different color.
  - imwillofficial 6y ago
    It’s like we all have an evil doppelgänger out there’re of us who is religiously fervent about trackpads
    - ooobit2 6y ago
      Honestly, I think of any number of issues in the world that we have to navigate, and I am truly grateful that so few of them require a trackpad.
- seventhtiger 6y ago
  Trackpads are really un-ergonomic when they're attached to the laptop. Both your wrist and neck are bent because the trackpad and screen are attached that way. Consider getting a separate USB trackpad and putting it in a "mouse like" position so your wrist is straight and you can raise the laptop to just under eye level.
  - ClikeX 6y ago
    I position my MacBook where I'd place my standalone trackpad. I could probably get a Magic Trackpad from work. But that would mean I need to carry another accessory with me. So I'll have a proper monitor and a standalone keyboard in front of me. And the MacBook screen on the side is being used to display secondary information (chat windows and logs I don't need to actively look at). Having the fingerprint sensor and the TouchBar lock button within reach are also nice (yes, I actually like the touchbar)
Klonoar 6y ago
All the time. But more to the point: Apple has proven it _can_ be that good, so I want a control that _is_ that good. Why would I ever go backwards?
- tripzilch 6y ago
  Because like they just pointed out, you can only use this magical touchpad on a Mac running MacOS. It's not like Apple benevolently gave this touchpad to the world, for our betterment and happiness, but for the singular, exclusive purpose of luring you into their ecosystem. But you don't benefit when they profit, you were the prize. You should demand they give it away for free, because you should not give a shit about their profit because they (it) do not give a shit about your life or freedom or the economy of the social strata you live in. It's an alien machine that will eat you or it will fight you but it won't know the difference. For me it's this, it's been proven I can get an OS that is open and free, doesn't mean I have to support and buy into some terrible multinational corporation whose goals I do not agree with, and that I get to have control over my own OS in a sense that is utterly freeing compared to MacOS or Windows. So why would I ever go backwards?
  - Klonoar 6y ago
    ...what? I pay Apple for hardware and software. I get good value in exchange. I don't particularly care beyond that. You're trying to change this into an argument about freedom and open source. It's not. I want a trackpad that feels premium, the same reason I buy a nice car. I do not care how it's done and I do not care about the price. tl;dr If the Linux ecosystem could provide it, good - I'd consider it. Put up or shut up.
ngrilly 6y ago
MacBook’s touchpad is so good that I was not using the mouse anymore just a few weeks after having my first Mac. It happened naturally and at some point I just stopped connecting the mouse.
sumedh 6y ago
The Mac's trackpad is so good that you dont really need a mouse when writing code. I use the trackpad more at my office desk.
ClikeX 6y ago
I use a dedicated keyboard, but I put the MacBook on side and use the trackpad as my mouse. It's smooth to use, has great gesture support for switching between applications. And the most important feature for me. I can work a full day on it without any RSI related symptons. No other mouse can do that for me. I use a normal mouse on my gaming rig, though. Because trackpads are awful for gaming.
- threentaway 6y ago
  > has great gesture support for switching between applications. There are keyboard shortcuts for those, which are even nicer imo. Reduces the amount of times you need to take your hands off the keyboard.
  - ClikeX 6y ago
    I used those before I got a MacBook. But then I found the hand gestures to be more intuitive.

scott_w 6y ago

100% of the time for me. I prefer the trackpad over the mouse.

ooobit2 6y ago
100% of the time for me, I wouldn't wipe my butt with a trackpad, let alone use one for work. It's always fun for me to meet people who do things the complete opposite I do them. It's oddly satisfying, like, I'm glad someone is my polar opposite on an issue or activity.
- jmnicolas 6y ago
  Tabs or spaces ?
  - am391 6y ago
    That made me smile....thanks @jmnicolas :)
  - ooobit2 6y ago
    It depends. For lists, I do spaces. Allows for more levels than a tab would. But for everything else, tabs. I've also grown to loathe that first-line tab beginning the second paragraph. It makes left-aligned text look wonky. I loathe centered text too. I'm not a rounded rectangle person. I think the colored block UI that's all over Android, sites like HN, etc. looks tacky. We went from semi-transparent glass UI to flat colored blocks, and somehow interfaces got slower and more processor intensive. Now, that's a horse of a different color.
- imwillofficial 6y ago
  It’s like we all have an evil doppelgänger out there’re of us who is religiously fervent about trackpads
  - ooobit2 6y ago
    Honestly, I think of any number of issues in the world that we have to navigate, and I am truly grateful that so few of them require a trackpad.
seventhtiger 6y ago
Trackpads are really un-ergonomic when they're attached to the laptop. Both your wrist and neck are bent because the trackpad and screen are attached that way. Consider getting a separate USB trackpad and putting it in a "mouse like" position so your wrist is straight and you can raise the laptop to just under eye level.
- ClikeX 6y ago
  I position my MacBook where I'd place my standalone trackpad. I could probably get a Magic Trackpad from work. But that would mean I need to carry another accessory with me. So I'll have a proper monitor and a standalone keyboard in front of me. And the MacBook screen on the side is being used to display secondary information (chat windows and logs I don't need to actively look at). Having the fingerprint sensor and the TouchBar lock button within reach are also nice (yes, I actually like the touchbar)

Klonoar 6y ago

All the time. But more to the point: Apple has proven it _can_ be that good, so I want a control that _is_ that good. Why would I ever go backwards?

tripzilch 6y ago
Because like they just pointed out, you can only use this magical touchpad on a Mac running MacOS. It's not like Apple benevolently gave this touchpad to the world, for our betterment and happiness, but for the singular, exclusive purpose of luring you into their ecosystem. But you don't benefit when they profit, you were the prize. You should demand they give it away for free, because you should not give a shit about their profit because they (it) do not give a shit about your life or freedom or the economy of the social strata you live in. It's an alien machine that will eat you or it will fight you but it won't know the difference. For me it's this, it's been proven I can get an OS that is open and free, doesn't mean I have to support and buy into some terrible multinational corporation whose goals I do not agree with, and that I get to have control over my own OS in a sense that is utterly freeing compared to MacOS or Windows. So why would I ever go backwards?
- Klonoar 6y ago
  ...what? I pay Apple for hardware and software. I get good value in exchange. I don't particularly care beyond that. You're trying to change this into an argument about freedom and open source. It's not. I want a trackpad that feels premium, the same reason I buy a nice car. I do not care how it's done and I do not care about the price. tl;dr If the Linux ecosystem could provide it, good - I'd consider it. Put up or shut up.

ngrilly 6y ago

MacBook’s touchpad is so good that I was not using the mouse anymore just a few weeks after having my first Mac. It happened naturally and at some point I just stopped connecting the mouse.

sumedh 6y ago

The Mac's trackpad is so good that you dont really need a mouse when writing code. I use the trackpad more at my office desk.

ClikeX 6y ago

I use a dedicated keyboard, but I put the MacBook on side and use the trackpad as my mouse. It's smooth to use, has great gesture support for switching between applications. And the most important feature for me. I can work a full day on it without any RSI related symptons. No other mouse can do that for me. I use a normal mouse on my gaming rig, though. Because trackpads are awful for gaming.

threentaway 6y ago
> has great gesture support for switching between applications. There are keyboard shortcuts for those, which are even nicer imo. Reduces the amount of times you need to take your hands off the keyboard.
- ClikeX 6y ago
  I used those before I got a MacBook. But then I found the hand gestures to be more intuitive.