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> Now, guess what OS I'm running? Not OSX that's for sure. I'm actually curious. BSD? Linux? The only things that have kept me on OSX for so long (steep declin

> Now, guess what OS I'm running? Not OSX that's for sure. I'm actually curious. BSD? Linux? The only things that have kept me on OSX for so long (steep decline since Panther) are Finder and Photoshop. Well, those and that I'm hopelessly tied to the  key since I've only used Macs...+Option+O will never cease to please me. But mainly it's Finder. Why won't other desktop environments copy Apple's excellent combination of +Tab and +`, opting for the inefficient, app-flattening Alt+Tab?

GeneralMaximus 17y ago
Don't get me wrong here. I love my Mac, and I'm probably going to buy another one later this year (waiting for SnoLeo). I hate Finder with a passion. Finder and iTunes. It's clear that both these apps were built carefully so that your average PC user wouldn't get confused. Problem is, most Apple users are not what you'd call average. The Finder team still hasn't figured out whether they are building a spatial file manager or a browser-based file manager. The tree view sucks (and that's putting it mildly). Moving files around is a pain because (1) there's no cut-paste and (2) no "Move to ..." or "Copy to ..." context entries. Do Apple seriously expect that I'll open multiple Finder windows and then drag and drop my files between those? I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection). I usually drop into a Terminal when I have to do something like that. Of course, I might be prejudiced. I used Linux for almost all my life before switching to a Mac one year ago. Also, I use Haiku on my PC, where navigating by right-click is not just a feature, but the recommended way of navigating the filesystem (if you've used BeOS or Zeta, you probably call this feature the "Z-Snake").
- Tichy 17y ago
  Which Linux do you use? I bought a MB for iPhone Dev and was hoping to run Linux on it. But I gave up for the time being when the Mousepad was unusable with the Ubuntu Live CD.
  - GeneralMaximus 17y ago
    You're going to have minor problems with all major Linux distros. The trackpad works in Ubuntu, but it requires editing a few configuration files. Sad, yes, but that's how things are.
- erlanger 17y ago
  > I hate Finder with a passion. Finder and iTunes. It's clear that both these apps were built carefully so that your average PC user wouldn't get confused. Problem is, most Apple users are not what you'd call average. The aggressive "switch" campaign is fairly new, Apple-wise. iTunes was available for Mac OS 9 and Finder was designed so that average Mac users would not be confused -- remember, it was a battle to get people to ditch Classic mode...In any case, neither have much of anything to do with Windows. I miss window shading...is Unsanity officially dead? I wouldn't mind buying this if only it worked for Leopard... http://www.unsanity.com/haxies/wsx http://www.unsanity.com/haxies/wsx
- jimbokun 17y ago
  "I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection)." And I think you have stumbled across Apple's strategy for managing user files. Instead of improving the Finder for complex tasks, they create whole new applications for managing specific silos of data. The main examples being iTunes, iPhoto, and Mail, of course. Beyond that, Spotlight seems to be their answer. Not that Spotlight is particularly great, but that is where they are putting their efforts instead of fixing the Finder, it seems. Maybe not a bad strategy, if they can continue improving the Spotlight algorithms and UI.
- godofbiscuitssf 17y ago
  "I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection). I usually drop into a Terminal when I have to do something like that." I think Apple's belief since the Lisa has been that activities like organizing a large photo collection is NOT a file system management tasks. That's what makes a Mac a Mac and not a Linux box. If anything, the Finder is a fallback. This is not to say that the Finder doesn't have a huge number of faults, but copy/paste semantics--or worse, cut/paste semantics--are an abominably bad fit for file system manipulation. And to end the "one mouse button" B.S. once and for all...the Mac OS was designed as a one-button OS. Windows was not. Linux was not. So the comparisons are a #fail. The fact that there are multiple buttons now provides more conveniences, but you'll never find items in a contextual menu that don't already exist somewhere else in a proper app's UI.

GeneralMaximus 17y ago

Don't get me wrong here. I love my Mac, and I'm probably going to buy another one later this year (waiting for SnoLeo). I hate Finder with a passion. Finder and iTunes. It's clear that both these apps were built carefully so that your average PC user wouldn't get confused. Problem is, most Apple users are not what you'd call average. The Finder team still hasn't figured out whether they are building a spatial file manager or a browser-based file manager. The tree view sucks (and that's putting it mildly). Moving files around is a pain because (1) there's no cut-paste and (2) no "Move to ..." or "Copy to ..." context entries. Do Apple seriously expect that I'll open multiple Finder windows and then drag and drop my files between those? I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection). I usually drop into a Terminal when I have to do something like that. Of course, I might be prejudiced. I used Linux for almost all my life before switching to a Mac one year ago. Also, I use Haiku on my PC, where navigating by right-click is not just a feature, but the recommended way of navigating the filesystem (if you've used BeOS or Zeta, you probably call this feature the "Z-Snake").

Tichy 17y ago
Which Linux do you use? I bought a MB for iPhone Dev and was hoping to run Linux on it. But I gave up for the time being when the Mousepad was unusable with the Ubuntu Live CD.
- GeneralMaximus 17y ago
  You're going to have minor problems with all major Linux distros. The trackpad works in Ubuntu, but it requires editing a few configuration files. Sad, yes, but that's how things are.
erlanger 17y ago
> I hate Finder with a passion. Finder and iTunes. It's clear that both these apps were built carefully so that your average PC user wouldn't get confused. Problem is, most Apple users are not what you'd call average. The aggressive "switch" campaign is fairly new, Apple-wise. iTunes was available for Mac OS 9 and Finder was designed so that average Mac users would not be confused -- remember, it was a battle to get people to ditch Classic mode...In any case, neither have much of anything to do with Windows. I miss window shading...is Unsanity officially dead? I wouldn't mind buying this if only it worked for Leopard... http://www.unsanity.com/haxies/wsx http://www.unsanity.com/haxies/wsx
jimbokun 17y ago
"I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection)." And I think you have stumbled across Apple's strategy for managing user files. Instead of improving the Finder for complex tasks, they create whole new applications for managing specific silos of data. The main examples being iTunes, iPhoto, and Mail, of course. Beyond that, Spotlight seems to be their answer. Not that Spotlight is particularly great, but that is where they are putting their efforts instead of fixing the Finder, it seems. Maybe not a bad strategy, if they can continue improving the Spotlight algorithms and UI.
godofbiscuitssf 17y ago
"I'd never even dream of using Finder for complex file management tasks (like reorganizing a photo collection). I usually drop into a Terminal when I have to do something like that." I think Apple's belief since the Lisa has been that activities like organizing a large photo collection is NOT a file system management tasks. That's what makes a Mac a Mac and not a Linux box. If anything, the Finder is a fallback. This is not to say that the Finder doesn't have a huge number of faults, but copy/paste semantics--or worse, cut/paste semantics--are an abominably bad fit for file system manipulation. And to end the "one mouse button" B.S. once and for all...the Mac OS was designed as a one-button OS. Windows was not. Linux was not. So the comparisons are a #fail. The fact that there are multiple buttons now provides more conveniences, but you'll never find items in a contextual menu that don't already exist somewhere else in a proper app's UI.