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I think this is more about the ethos of the Mac. Unix (which is the underpinnings of Mac) was all about lots of small tools that build together to make somethin

I think this is more about the ethos of the Mac. Unix (which is the underpinnings of Mac) was all about lots of small tools that build together to make something great, and if the base OS doesn’t have what you want then that’s a great third party (or DIY) opportunity. This bleeds over to the Mac in my opinion. I don’t want Apple to make everything, I want them to provide hooks and APIs that allow other people to make things to give me more choices as a user. I don’t want big monolith applications (like Outlook), I want small applications that do one thing well. So when people say “why doesn’t Apple do X?” And I see a dozen third party implementations I think “because they don’t need to” and that’s perfect in my mind.

CharlesW 3y ago
As you note, there are many great window management solutions for macOS. I'm also very satisfied that Finder's basic window management features are complemented by a healthy choice of free and paid power-user solutions. Rectangle (rectangleapp.com) is a good choice that also does snapping. I'm happy with Raycast (raycast.com), which offers window management with an extension (https://www.raycast.com/extensions/window-management https://www.raycast.com/extensions/window-management).
seanp2k2 3y ago
MacOS is very far from Unix ideology at this point. It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings. You can’t make new folders in /. iOS has tons of private APIs that only Apple gets to use to make their apps and services the only viable choice, eg iCloud can upload photos in the background but Google Photos times out, even the location sharing hack doesn’t fix this. Apple doesn’t do it because it’s only a small percentage of users who even know what it is to want it, and they’re already well-served by third party tools. Look at how long it took for widgets to come to iOS. Apple isn’t usually the first mover when it comes to software stuff like this, they like to sit back and let other devs solve problems then see how it plays in the market first before launching a better-integrated version themselves (sometimes in a way that only they can do because again private APIs) with only the basic features included.
- foldr 3y ago
  >It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings If you're compiling the code yourself you can do this no problem. Compile it and move the executable to somewhere in your PATH. No scary warnings.
- breakfastduck 3y ago
  > It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings. I see posts like this all the time. It's just not true.
moonchrome 3y ago
Yeah right - just what I need - a bajilion 3rd party apps with window manager access to do basic functionality. Because what could go wrong with this approach. Leftpad philosophy sucks, having a functional batteries included OS is a good thing.
nerdix 3y ago
Do they actually provide hooks and APIs though? My understanding is that a lot of these third party app use accessibility hacks which seems like a work around and not something Apple intended.
linguae 3y ago
The interesting thing is that had OpenDoc took off, the Mac would’ve moved more toward the component-based ecosystem that you describe instead of an ecosystem of monolithic applications: https://youtu.be/oFJdjk2rq4E https://youtu.be/oFJdjk2rq4E Alas, OpenDoc was a product of “interregnum” Apple, a font of innovation but had no singular vision (OpenDoc was one of many visions Apple promoted in the mid-1990s as the future of Mac development) and a track record of failed projects (Pink/Taligent then Copland). When Steve Jobs returned in 1997, he brought and enforced a singular vision for the Mac, one that revolved around NeXT technology. OpenDoc was killed under these circumstances: https://youtu.be/oeqPrUmVz-o https://youtu.be/oeqPrUmVz-o

CharlesW 3y ago

As you note, there are many great window management solutions for macOS. I'm also very satisfied that Finder's basic window management features are complemented by a healthy choice of free and paid power-user solutions. Rectangle (rectangleapp.com) is a good choice that also does snapping. I'm happy with Raycast (raycast.com), which offers window management with an extension (https://www.raycast.com/extensions/window-management https://www.raycast.com/extensions/window-management).

seanp2k2 3y ago

MacOS is very far from Unix ideology at this point. It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings. You can’t make new folders in /. iOS has tons of private APIs that only Apple gets to use to make their apps and services the only viable choice, eg iCloud can upload photos in the background but Google Photos times out, even the location sharing hack doesn’t fix this. Apple doesn’t do it because it’s only a small percentage of users who even know what it is to want it, and they’re already well-served by third party tools. Look at how long it took for widgets to come to iOS. Apple isn’t usually the first mover when it comes to software stuff like this, they like to sit back and let other devs solve problems then see how it plays in the market first before launching a better-integrated version themselves (sometimes in a way that only they can do because again private APIs) with only the basic features included.

foldr 3y ago
>It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings If you're compiling the code yourself you can do this no problem. Compile it and move the executable to somewhere in your PATH. No scary warnings.
breakfastduck 3y ago
> It’s not even possible anymore to install things you compile without a bunch of red tape scary warnings. I see posts like this all the time. It's just not true.

moonchrome 3y ago

Yeah right - just what I need - a bajilion 3rd party apps with window manager access to do basic functionality. Because what could go wrong with this approach. Leftpad philosophy sucks, having a functional batteries included OS is a good thing.

nerdix 3y ago

Do they actually provide hooks and APIs though? My understanding is that a lot of these third party app use accessibility hacks which seems like a work around and not something Apple intended.

linguae 3y ago

The interesting thing is that had OpenDoc took off, the Mac would’ve moved more toward the component-based ecosystem that you describe instead of an ecosystem of monolithic applications: https://youtu.be/oFJdjk2rq4E https://youtu.be/oFJdjk2rq4E Alas, OpenDoc was a product of “interregnum” Apple, a font of innovation but had no singular vision (OpenDoc was one of many visions Apple promoted in the mid-1990s as the future of Mac development) and a track record of failed projects (Pink/Taligent then Copland). When Steve Jobs returned in 1997, he brought and enforced a singular vision for the Mac, one that revolved around NeXT technology. OpenDoc was killed under these circumstances: https://youtu.be/oeqPrUmVz-o https://youtu.be/oeqPrUmVz-o