One small thing I want in Panther:

[lem0nayde]

This is such a small detail, but it would make my life as a web designer / coder SO MUCH EASIER on a mac.

A little hard to explain....

In Windows save dialogue boxes - you can see all of the files and modify them (delete, change names, etc.). Further more, if you are using a naming convention for a string of files - say:

2003_july_happyphotos_001.jpg
2003_july_happyphotos_002.jpg

Instead of having to retype the name every time you save a new happy photo - you can just click on one of the existing files, and the name field of the current file you are saving is populated with the name of that existing file.

Therefore, if I were saving happy photo #3 all I would have to do is click on happy photo #2 to grab the naming convention and then change the 2 to a 3.

This is a very small detail - but when you work in web design you deal with hundreds of files with similar conventions - and it is a nightmare on the Mac to have to type and retype these names each time you save an image.

Ugh, I would pay the $129 for this feature alone.

Joe

[patrick0brien]

-lem0nayde

I agree, I've been missing that too. Though I like how Jag selects the name while leaving the extension alone. Yeah, small concession, but it's the best I could think of :D

You listening Steve?

[Ambrose Chapel]

Send in the idea to Apple!

http://www.apple.com/macosx/feedback/


Maybe if you stress that this is something a lot of creative pros want/need, Apple will put it in...

[lem0nayde]

Good idea, thanks for the link. I just sent the idea in to them. It would be awesome if they incorporated it.

Now if we can just get Macromedia to port Homesite...

[patrick0brien]

-Ambrose Chapel

Done! Thanks for the link.

[bennetsaysargh]

well, you could just copy and paste it.

[lem0nayde]

believe it or not - the act of going to the finder, copying the name, pasting it and then typing the new number or whatever adds hours to the process.

I will give Jaguar this - it does usually remember a name if you select it in the save dialogue box and copy it. However, if you edit text anywhere else and copy something, then it loses your naming convention and you have to go back to the finder to get it.

So hideous.

I'm particularly on edge about this because I just finished an over 100 page site, coded by hand on my Mac. I just about pulled my eyes out by the time I was done.

Please Apple - don't make me go and buy a crappy used PC to have around just for coding. I don't want one of those ugly things in my house.

[Ambrose Chapel]

Thanks, I hope they add it for you.

I've been using that requst form since 10.1 to ask that the user be able to switch the cursor arrow so that it points towards the right, which is more intuitive for a Lefty..but nothing yet. I could do it via a 3rd party extension in the System 7 days; I'm still holding out home for Panther. Sorry to get OT!

[patrick0brien]

Originally posted by bennetsaysargh
well, you could just copy and paste it.

-bennetsaysargh

True. But what a pain doing so is when one has used the Windows method.

[bennetsaysargh]

i know, but i meant to say that if they don't do that the best you can get id copy and paste.

[michaelrjohnson]

anybody familiar with windows?

Okay-

How about the "Show Desktop" icon in the taskbar. When you click it, it hides everything and you can see/manipulate the desktop. WOW what an ingenious feature! :rolleyes: I want THAT functionality when i click on the "Finder" icon in the dock! Currently it just makes the finder the active app and leaves all the windows from other apps up so YOU have to select "Hide Others"! grrr.... Such a simple thing that would make life easier, but no! :) I have panther ;) and expose will work beautifully for this, however, i would like multiple ways to do the same thing... not EVERYBODY wants to use expose.

{whew!}

what do you think?

Discuss further features...

[bennetsaysargh]

would it be so hard as to put spring loaded folders in the dock? that's all i want.

[maradong]

cmd-c & cmd -v ?!
that should do the job

[Powerbook G5]

I have a third party extention (for OS 9) from Action Utilities that does that "hide all applications/windows" and shows desktop when you either click anywhere on an open space on the desktop or click on the finder, and I must say, it's great to have that function. It would be great to have that, but if not, I hope there is a third party extention for OS X that would do that. And on the topic of the left handed cursor...the funny thing is, I have used mice with my right hand for my whole life of using computers that when I try using my left hand, it just feels unnatural to me anyway. Doesn't it suck being a left handed person? Right handed can openers, right handed scissors, right handed mice, right handed joysticks, etc, etc, etc....I wish there were a Leftorium like in the Simpsons, I'd be a happy man!

[Ambrose Chapel]

Originally posted by michaelrjohnson
How about the "Show Desktop" icon in the taskbar. When you click it, it hides everything and you can see/manipulate the desktop. WOW what an ingenious feature! I want THAT functionality when i click on the "Finder" icon in the dock! Currently it just makes the finder the active app and leaves all the windows from other apps up so YOU have to select "Hide Others"! grrr.... Such a simple thing that would make life easier, but no! I have panther and expose will work beautifully for this, however, i would like multiple ways to do the same thing... not EVERYBODY wants to use expose.

If you hold down apple+option and click on the desktop you'll hide all windows and just show the desktop.

[Ambrose Chapel]

Orignally posted by Powerbook G5
And on the topic of the left handed cursor...the funny thing is, I have used mice with my right hand for my whole life of using computers that when I try using my left hand, it just feels unnatural to me anyway. Doesn't suck being a left hander person? Right handed can openers, right handed scissors, right handed mice, right handed joysticks, etc, etc, etc....I wish there were a Leftorium like in the Simpsons, I'd be a happy man!

At work I have to use a M$ mouse that is contoured for right hand use. grrr. discrimination! the left-handed oriented cursor would really come in handy on a trackpad. i'd love to use my left hand there..but yeah on a mouse i generally use my right. i guess that's just b/c i haven't had the lefty arrow since the days of my color classic!

and right on about the leftorium!

[synthetickittie]

If you hold down apple+option and click on the desktop you'll hide all windows and just show the desktop.

wow you learn something new every day, thanks. Anyway to get all the programs to come back up with just one click too, besides the simple of clicking all open apps in the doc again? Even if there isnt thanks again I never new that simple little shortcut.

[kenkooler]

In each application (including the Finder), there's a Show All option above Quit Application.

[Powerbook G5]

Option clicking is nice and all for hiding applications, but it'd be nice to set it to hide inactive windows when an active window is selected as the default because I like having a single window that I am working on visible to keep my desktop clean and accessible, but having to option-click everything gets annoying.

[kenkooler]

Originally posted by Powerbook G5
Option clicking is nice and all for hiding applications, but it'd be nice to set it to hide inactive windows when an active window is selected as the default because I like having a single window that I am working on visible to keep my desktop clean and accessible, but having to option-click everything gets annoying.

apple + option + H does just that.

[irmongoose]

Originally posted by Ambrose Chapel
I've been using that requst form since 10.1 to ask that the user be able to switch the cursor arrow so that it points towards the right, which is more intuitive for a Lefty..but nothing yet. I could do it via a 3rd party extension in the System 7 days; I'm still holding out home for Panther. Sorry to get OT!

If you don't mind another 3rd party software, there's Mighty Mouse (http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/18336).

And then you could apply the "Lefty Cursors" set from this ResExcellence page (http://www.resexcellence.com/cursors/index_04.shtml).

Sorry I got off-topic...



irmongoose

[whawho]

Originally posted by michaelrjohnson
anybody familiar with windows?

Okay-

How about the "Show Desktop" icon in the taskbar. When you click it, it hides everything and you can see/manipulate the desktop. WOW what an ingenious feature! :rolleyes: I want THAT functionality when i click on the "Finder" icon in the dock! Currently it just makes the finder the active app and leaves all the windows from other apps up so YOU have to select "Hide Others"! what do you think?

Discuss further features...

When I first switched I was really annoyed by not having the show desktop function. So I hunted and found a haxie that showed the desktop and tried it but didn't like that either.

What I ended up doing and still do today is put the desktop in the dock. It's always one click away and you never have to close a window or application to get to it and you can also right click the desktop icon in the dock and get to whatever you need without even opening the window. I have been using the dock this way for a long time now and it's become second nature so now when I go use windows, I miss the having the desktop folder in the dock way more than I missed the show desktop feature when I switched. :)

[whawho]

Originally posted by lem0nayde

Instead of having to retype the name every time you save a new happy photo - you can just click on one of the existing files, and the name field of the current file you are saving is populated with the name of that existing file.

Therefore, if I were saving happy photo #3 all I would have to do is click on happy photo #2 to grab the naming convention and then change the 2 to a 3.

This is a very small detail - but when you work in web design you deal with hundreds of files with similar conventions - and it is a nightmare on the Mac to have to type and retype these names each time you save an image.

Ugh, I would pay the $129 for this feature alone.

Joe

I completely agree with you on this one. I miss this feature from windows. It's makes saving images SO much easier.

[F/reW/re]

Originally posted by whawho
When I first switched I was really annoyed by not having the show desktop function. So I hunted and found a haxie that showed the desktop and tried it but didn't like that either.

What I ended up doing and still do today is put the desktop in the dock. It's always one click away and you never have to close a window or application to get to it and you can also right click the desktop icon in the dock and get to whatever you need without even opening the window. I have been using the dock this way for a long time now and it's become second nature so now when I go use windows, I miss the having the desktop folder in the dock way more than I missed the show desktop feature when I switched. :)
Have you heard about the Exposè function in Panther? This is your savior. You can choose any button or button-combination to show your desktop and hide everything else. You can also make a mousebutton do this. Feks on my Logitech mouse I have choosen my 4th mousebutton to shows the desktop.

[whawho]

Originally posted by F/reW/re
Have you heard about the Exposè function in Panther? This is your savior. You can choose any button or button-combination to show your desktop and hide everything else. You can also make a mousebutton do this. Feks on my Logitech mouse I have choosen my 4th mousebutton to shows the desktop.

Heck Yeah! I can't wait for panther and Expose.... When I watched the keynote I was stoked about that feature..

[Ambrose Chapel]

irmongoose - are those haxies relatively safe? thanks!

[Powerbook G5]

You know what's really fun? In Windows, there is/was an option to invert the X an Y axis on the mouse so up is down and left is right. I'd love to go in and switch it and them make the mouse graphic an actual mouse and watch my friends go nuts trying to figure out why their mouse is going psycho on them :D Sorry for the off topic post, but the inverting the mouse pointer thing just brought back the memories of my former "PC user" self, heh.

[aaron128]

Default Folder X (http://www.stclairsoft.com/DefaultFolderX/index.html) just added the click-and-get file name functionality in the latest build. I haven't tried it, as I'm not willing to pay for it. But 35 bucks is better than 129 if you really want it.

[Xero]

Originally posted by Powerbook G5
Option clicking is nice and all for hiding applications, but it'd be nice to set it to hide inactive windows when an active window is selected as the default because I like having a single window that I am working on visible to keep my desktop clean and accessible, but having to option-click everything gets annoying.

you can also do the apple + option + left click on the active window and itll hide all other windows

[Doctor Q]

In addition to posting about what the combinations do, let's tell how to learn these things in general (other than asking at MacRumors, of course).

In Help, is there a particular question new users should type to get a list of these Option- and/or Command- key shortcuts?

[Powerbook G5]

The thing is, I know the shortcuts so the help doesn't help me with them. I just want it to automatically do that without me having to option click all the time. I have a third party extension to do that for me in OS 9 which makes my life quite happy, but searching for the same for OS X hasn't revealed much for me. But, I am interested in Expose, it looks like it may actually give me a good reason not to worry about this issue quite so much.

[jaykk]

I have been using "show desktop" for over a year now, there is no problem, it just does that ..i put it next to finder, and i feel right at home.

http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/10005

[irmongoose]

Originally posted by Ambrose Chapel
irmongoose - are those haxies relatively safe? thanks!

Don't let the 'haxie' name fool you.. they are perfectly safe and the only time I ever heard people having actual problems with it was back in the 10.1 days. Unsanity is a great company... you can trust them :D

Also I've tried the new feature in Default Folder which does the click-and-rename feature just like you would expect it to. Definitely worth a try.




irmongoose