5 ms·

Since you mention the touchpad being too small, are you trying to drag and drop with one finger or multiple? What I always just do is click with my thumb and m

Since you mention the touchpad being too small, are you trying to drag and drop with one finger or multiple? What I always just do is click with my thumb and move around with my other fingers. As long as my thumb stays down it stays selected. Then just a few quick swipes with my finger gets whatever it is I am selecting where I want to go. Same works for windows and anything you click and drag. Admittedly there is a quirk here that I have noticed, if for some reason I click and try to drag with the same finger, I then can't switch to dragging around with a different finger. But personally I treat my thumb just resting no the track pad as my click finger and move/gesture with my other fingers.

TonyTrapp 3y ago
Thanks for the hint, I will give that a try.
prewett 3y ago
I find it easier to rest my second finger and drag with the third finger as I don't have to twist my hand that way.
FergusArgyll 3y ago
Someone I know who's been using apple forever does the same and it always confuses me. Now I know why!
- al_borland 3y ago
  This is also a holdover from how older trackpads with physical buttons worked. The buttons were at the bottom, so click with the thumb and move with the finger(s). This is how I first used a trackpad 20+ years ago and I never felt the need to change. I tried some of the newer ways to click and drag and they all seemed worse. Tap to click is the first thing I disable on any laptop, that’s what my thumb is for.
macintux 3y ago
One configuration I always immediately make is enabling three-finger dragging, along with tap-to-click. Significantly reduces the friction (both literal and figurative).
- vmirnv 3y ago
  I've found that many Mac users aren't aware of the three-finger drag and select feature, and it seems Apple has somewhat hidden this setting for some reason: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/102341 https://support.apple.com/en-gb/102341 With tap-to-click, my touchpad is completely silent.
  - c-hendricks 3y ago
    I've used it since before it was shunted to Accessibility settings. Nowadays, sometimes Finder gets confused when you use 3-finger drag, and it doesn't work with sliders in the newer control center released years ago.
    - Toutouxc 3y ago
      FWIW, 3-finger drag works perfectly for me. I've never used anything else. Currently on M1 Air with Sonoma.
- lhamil64 3y ago
  I don't have a MacBook but I looked up a video and this seems interesting. But how does it solve the problem of hitting the edge of the trackpad? If anything, it seems like it makes the problem worse because now you have three fingers on the trackpad so you will hit the edge quicker.
  - macintux 3y ago
    The gesture is "sticky" when moving objects: you can lift your fingers long enough to move them to the other side of the trackpad to continue dragging. For selecting text, the trackpad is large enough for nearly any selection.
pico303 3y ago
This is 100% the way to do it. It just came so naturally because I’ve used Macs for years. But I’ve noticed on Linux and Windows laptops (even Windows on an Intel MacBook) this approach doesn’t work. I find it so frustrating when I have to use a trackpad with any other OS, I completely understand all those users carrying around a mouse to use with their laptop, and why they look at us like we’re nuts!
- nerdjon 3y ago
  You know I never really thought about where that habit came from. It’s been so long that it’s just second nature at this point, I dont think about it anymore than I think about typing or using a game controller. That presents an interesting problem. The older physical click trackpads had a physical thing to encourage a specific use of it. Now that the device doesn’t care where you click, there is no longer something there to naturally find using it in this way.
fernmyth 3y ago
This works on my system76 lemur pro 10 with pop!_os: - click and hold on the touchpad with thumb - swipe with another finger to drag around. Multiple, disjoint strokes work, so there's nothing special about switching fingers It would be a bit uncomfortable to do for long periods, since my thumb has to hold down with clicking force.
- Sakos 3y ago
  On that note, why is this possible on iOS but not Android? It's even possible to pick up several icons on the homescreen and then move them to a different screen with your other fingers. Android is a nightmare by comparison.

TonyTrapp 3y ago

Thanks for the hint, I will give that a try.

prewett 3y ago

I find it easier to rest my second finger and drag with the third finger as I don't have to twist my hand that way.

FergusArgyll 3y ago

Someone I know who's been using apple forever does the same and it always confuses me. Now I know why!

al_borland 3y ago
This is also a holdover from how older trackpads with physical buttons worked. The buttons were at the bottom, so click with the thumb and move with the finger(s). This is how I first used a trackpad 20+ years ago and I never felt the need to change. I tried some of the newer ways to click and drag and they all seemed worse. Tap to click is the first thing I disable on any laptop, that’s what my thumb is for.

macintux 3y ago

One configuration I always immediately make is enabling three-finger dragging, along with tap-to-click. Significantly reduces the friction (both literal and figurative).

vmirnv 3y ago
I've found that many Mac users aren't aware of the three-finger drag and select feature, and it seems Apple has somewhat hidden this setting for some reason: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/102341 https://support.apple.com/en-gb/102341 With tap-to-click, my touchpad is completely silent.
- c-hendricks 3y ago
  I've used it since before it was shunted to Accessibility settings. Nowadays, sometimes Finder gets confused when you use 3-finger drag, and it doesn't work with sliders in the newer control center released years ago.
  - Toutouxc 3y ago
    FWIW, 3-finger drag works perfectly for me. I've never used anything else. Currently on M1 Air with Sonoma.
lhamil64 3y ago
I don't have a MacBook but I looked up a video and this seems interesting. But how does it solve the problem of hitting the edge of the trackpad? If anything, it seems like it makes the problem worse because now you have three fingers on the trackpad so you will hit the edge quicker.
- macintux 3y ago
  The gesture is "sticky" when moving objects: you can lift your fingers long enough to move them to the other side of the trackpad to continue dragging. For selecting text, the trackpad is large enough for nearly any selection.

pico303 3y ago

This is 100% the way to do it. It just came so naturally because I’ve used Macs for years. But I’ve noticed on Linux and Windows laptops (even Windows on an Intel MacBook) this approach doesn’t work. I find it so frustrating when I have to use a trackpad with any other OS, I completely understand all those users carrying around a mouse to use with their laptop, and why they look at us like we’re nuts!

nerdjon 3y ago
You know I never really thought about where that habit came from. It’s been so long that it’s just second nature at this point, I dont think about it anymore than I think about typing or using a game controller. That presents an interesting problem. The older physical click trackpads had a physical thing to encourage a specific use of it. Now that the device doesn’t care where you click, there is no longer something there to naturally find using it in this way.

fernmyth 3y ago

This works on my system76 lemur pro 10 with pop!_os: - click and hold on the touchpad with thumb - swipe with another finger to drag around. Multiple, disjoint strokes work, so there's nothing special about switching fingers It would be a bit uncomfortable to do for long periods, since my thumb has to hold down with clicking force.

Sakos 3y ago
On that note, why is this possible on iOS but not Android? It's even possible to pick up several icons on the homescreen and then move them to a different screen with your other fingers. Android is a nightmare by comparison.