5 ms·

People state consistent shortcut mapping is an advantage of using Mac but after 2 years of being required to use a Macbook Pro I'm not really sure about that -

by akra 6y ago

People state consistent shortcut mapping is an advantage of using Mac but after 2 years of being required to use a Macbook Pro I'm not really sure about that - often they are more complicated IMO. I still miss built in Linux and Windows key mappings. For example Windows + Left to move the window on the left side of screen for side by side apps on the same screen. Great for remote demo's and coding sessions. Ctrl + Shift + F4 to take a screen shot vs Linux PrtSc feels backwards at least to me. On the mouse pointer side with scroll direction most people I know also get a plugin to swap the scroll direction when they use their mouse and switch back to track pad. Another example - on VS Code very often the key bindings don't work on my Mac whereas on my Linux machine they work every time. My point is while I'm probably don't know all the tricks to learn since its not my platform of choice YMMV. I think the impression of "better key bindings" comes down to familiarity more than anything. Getting used to something else seems uncertain (it may never be as good despite learning investment) when you know on the other platform you can just "get things done fast".

totesraunch 6y ago
There is a great app for your window move/resize issue called Moom. You can bind keys and mouse to window move/resize actions.
- smoldesu 6y ago
  There's also great apps for rebinding window movement/resizing on Windows and Linux, but that's besides the point.
Fire-Dragon-DoL 6y ago
I used a macbook for 2 years and the key binding is definitely less consistent than windows or linux. If nothing something as important as word navigation and word selection (ctrl+arrows and ctrl+shift+ arrows on linux and windows), is located in different modifiers (can't remember which), something along the lines of: move with command+arrow and select with option+shift+arrows. Drives me crazy every time, given that command + backspace deletes a word (and command +del deletes a word in the other direction).
- dmitriid 6y ago
  Option + arrows: move by word Option + Shift + arrows: select by word Cmd + arrows: move to the end of the line Cmd + Shift + arrows: select to the end of the line Additionally you can still use the decades old Ctrl+A/Ctrl+E shortcuts almost everywhere (some custom text input reimplementations ignore this).
  - akra 6y ago
    But of course on a Win/Linux system you rarely need to use three fingers at once. On mac this is all too common for even the basic tasks you state. Shift + End: Select to the end of the line Home + End: Select to the beginning of the line Home or End: Move to beginning or end of line respectively. What's worse is when I plug in a keyboard with Home and End buttons on a recent Macbook Pro they still don't work. Do I need another plugin for that? Even if I do personally I don't find the Mac keyboard shortcuts better than Linux/Windows. Tbh after using Mac for 2 years running now every day at work I still don't quite get how people find it easier - I still wish personally for a Linux or even Windows machine to speed up my productivity. And that's because people prefer what they are familiar with them - the mental leap to jump to another way of working for most people isn't pleasant and isn't really worth the investment. Mac still feels like a "second language" to me just as Linux must feel to mac users - I'm always translating it back to "how do I do this Linux/Windows thing" in Mac. In the end Linux, Windows, and Mac are perfectly capable OS'es and the differences is marginal between them which makes switching difficult. But I do prefer my Linux machine these days - more just comes out of the box.
    - dmitriid 6y ago
      > But of course on a Win/Linux system you rarely need to use three fingers at once. On Windows the Window key is essentially removed from keyboard. On Linux you can use the Meta key, but I don't know how common that is. I find myself using a much wider range of shortcuts on Mac than on Windows or on Linux (though I rarely use Linux these days). It's a personal feeling, not real data :)
  - Fire-Dragon-DoL 6y ago
jek0 6y ago
On a mac I can't live without "Magnet" [1]. It lets you do organize your windows in half/thirds of screens with simple keystrokes. That should be part of the OS. [1] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/magnet/id441258766?mt=12 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/magnet/id441258766?mt=12
- anaganisk 6y ago
  Ah the next stop would be outrage by Magnet folks, writing a blogpost on how Apple stole their app features and sent them out of business.
  - Veen 6y ago
    It’s a risk every Mac and iOS developer takes and is aware of. Sherlocking has been a thing for decades.
    - Hamuko 6y ago
      It's not even a software development exclusive problem. You might create a product, sell it on Amazon and then notice Amazon sell its own AmazonBasics version of it after a while.
- theshrike79 6y ago
  I use Rectangle [0] for the same purpose, it has a few more bells and whistles and is open source. It does have a bit of a debounce problem on multiple screens though (one tap might move the window two positions). [0] https://rectangleapp.com https://rectangleapp.com
- maxwelldone 6y ago
  I've been using Magnet forever and believe I bought it on sale for a dollar or very cheap. One of my best purchases.
- fit2rule 6y ago
  I use a hammerspoon script called "MiroWindowsManager", which works very well: local hyper = {"ctrl", "alt", "cmd"} hs.loadSpoon("MiroWindowsManager") hs.window.animationDuration = 0.3 spoon.MiroWindowsManager:bindHotkeys({ up = {hyper, "up"}, right = {hyper, "right"}, down = {hyper, "down"}, left = {hyper, "left"}, fullscreen = {hyper, "f"} }) https://www.hammerspoon.org/Spoons/MiroWindowsManager.html https://www.hammerspoon.org/Spoons/MiroWindowsManager.html
piyiotisk 6y ago
I think the best mac app for managing windows using key bindings is https://rectangleapp.com/ https://rectangleapp.com/ . Also, is free and open source
- b0afc375b5 6y ago
  Very nice. This is the only thing I miss from windows/linux. Thanks!

by akra 6y ago

totesraunch 6y ago

There is a great app for your window move/resize issue called Moom. You can bind keys and mouse to window move/resize actions.

smoldesu 6y ago
There's also great apps for rebinding window movement/resizing on Windows and Linux, but that's besides the point.

Fire-Dragon-DoL 6y ago

I used a macbook for 2 years and the key binding is definitely less consistent than windows or linux. If nothing something as important as word navigation and word selection (ctrl+arrows and ctrl+shift+ arrows on linux and windows), is located in different modifiers (can't remember which), something along the lines of: move with command+arrow and select with option+shift+arrows. Drives me crazy every time, given that command + backspace deletes a word (and command +del deletes a word in the other direction).

dmitriid 6y ago
Option + arrows: move by word Option + Shift + arrows: select by word Cmd + arrows: move to the end of the line Cmd + Shift + arrows: select to the end of the line Additionally you can still use the decades old Ctrl+A/Ctrl+E shortcuts almost everywhere (some custom text input reimplementations ignore this).
- akra 6y ago
  But of course on a Win/Linux system you rarely need to use three fingers at once. On mac this is all too common for even the basic tasks you state. Shift + End: Select to the end of the line Home + End: Select to the beginning of the line Home or End: Move to beginning or end of line respectively. What's worse is when I plug in a keyboard with Home and End buttons on a recent Macbook Pro they still don't work. Do I need another plugin for that? Even if I do personally I don't find the Mac keyboard shortcuts better than Linux/Windows. Tbh after using Mac for 2 years running now every day at work I still don't quite get how people find it easier - I still wish personally for a Linux or even Windows machine to speed up my productivity. And that's because people prefer what they are familiar with them - the mental leap to jump to another way of working for most people isn't pleasant and isn't really worth the investment. Mac still feels like a "second language" to me just as Linux must feel to mac users - I'm always translating it back to "how do I do this Linux/Windows thing" in Mac. In the end Linux, Windows, and Mac are perfectly capable OS'es and the differences is marginal between them which makes switching difficult. But I do prefer my Linux machine these days - more just comes out of the box.
  - dmitriid 6y ago
    > But of course on a Win/Linux system you rarely need to use three fingers at once. On Windows the Window key is essentially removed from keyboard. On Linux you can use the Meta key, but I don't know how common that is. I find myself using a much wider range of shortcuts on Mac than on Windows or on Linux (though I rarely use Linux these days). It's a personal feeling, not real data :)
- Fire-Dragon-DoL 6y ago

jek0 6y ago

On a mac I can't live without "Magnet" [1]. It lets you do organize your windows in half/thirds of screens with simple keystrokes. That should be part of the OS. [1] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/magnet/id441258766?mt=12 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/magnet/id441258766?mt=12

anaganisk 6y ago
Ah the next stop would be outrage by Magnet folks, writing a blogpost on how Apple stole their app features and sent them out of business.
- Veen 6y ago
  It’s a risk every Mac and iOS developer takes and is aware of. Sherlocking has been a thing for decades.
  - Hamuko 6y ago
    It's not even a software development exclusive problem. You might create a product, sell it on Amazon and then notice Amazon sell its own AmazonBasics version of it after a while.
theshrike79 6y ago
I use Rectangle [0] for the same purpose, it has a few more bells and whistles and is open source. It does have a bit of a debounce problem on multiple screens though (one tap might move the window two positions). [0] https://rectangleapp.com https://rectangleapp.com
maxwelldone 6y ago
I've been using Magnet forever and believe I bought it on sale for a dollar or very cheap. One of my best purchases.
fit2rule 6y ago
I use a hammerspoon script called "MiroWindowsManager", which works very well: local hyper = {"ctrl", "alt", "cmd"} hs.loadSpoon("MiroWindowsManager") hs.window.animationDuration = 0.3 spoon.MiroWindowsManager:bindHotkeys({ up = {hyper, "up"}, right = {hyper, "right"}, down = {hyper, "down"}, left = {hyper, "left"}, fullscreen = {hyper, "f"} }) https://www.hammerspoon.org/Spoons/MiroWindowsManager.html https://www.hammerspoon.org/Spoons/MiroWindowsManager.html

piyiotisk 6y ago

I think the best mac app for managing windows using key bindings is https://rectangleapp.com/ https://rectangleapp.com/ . Also, is free and open source

b0afc375b5 6y ago
Very nice. This is the only thing I miss from windows/linux. Thanks!