Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Don't tell me I can't do this in OS X !
- Thread starter bogman12
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
You sort of came out swinging from post one. I know it's frustrating when you can't get something to work the way you want it to, but taking out your frustration in an angry post isn't really conducive to getting help - people end up responding more to your tone than to your actual problem.
You should file a feature request with Apple asking them to add a way to copy full file paths from the Finder. I'm actually kind of surprised there isn't a way to do that already. If people bring it to their attention, there's a pretty good chance they'll address it down the road - they've been good lately about accommodating more Unix/Windows minded users.
You're nitpicking.
I doubt that many mac users are aware of the Gecko rendering engine, so it's just easier to reference Firefox.
So full of complaints. Why the hell did you even get a Mac without researching how you could use it productively first? BTW, that was rhetorical. Grab a book, read the basics, then come back if you have any questions.
As everyone has mentioned, simply dragging a file to a command line or text field automatically creates the whole file path. Once you start using it, it is beyond convenient versus copying and pasting a path into a text field.
You can always experiment with it simply by opening a terminal window and dragging a file.
You can always experiment with it simply by opening a terminal window and dragging a file.
Wow, this thread exploded over my lunch hour, and it's all much ado over nothing.
For the record, I'm very surprised that you couldn't select the path displayed in Get Info, that seemed like exactly the sort of thing that Apple should have let you do. It wouldn't have "cost" anyone anything in terms of usability or appearances and it would add useful functionality in an intuitive place to look. Oh well. Perhaps we can submit it to Apple as a feature request.
For the rest of it, we're just going around in circles:
"How do I do X on the Mac? I liked doing that in Windows."
"Well, you can't. But you can do Y, or Z."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't. But if you add on this program, it's similar to X."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't. But Y's actually faster, once you get used to it."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't..."
I agree that complaining here won't get you far other than suggestions for similar actions, workarounds, or third-party enablers. Otherwise, absolutely please suggest it to Apple. I think the OP does have a point about both systems catering to different styles but ultimately doing the same thing. Over time, surely both Windows and OS X will evolve until they have both hit on the one most efficient way to do things (e.g. instead of "thinking different" just for the sake of being different). But it won't go that way unless we tell them what we want.
For the record, I'm very surprised that you couldn't select the path displayed in Get Info, that seemed like exactly the sort of thing that Apple should have let you do. It wouldn't have "cost" anyone anything in terms of usability or appearances and it would add useful functionality in an intuitive place to look. Oh well. Perhaps we can submit it to Apple as a feature request.
For the rest of it, we're just going around in circles:
"How do I do X on the Mac? I liked doing that in Windows."
"Well, you can't. But you can do Y, or Z."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't. But if you add on this program, it's similar to X."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't. But Y's actually faster, once you get used to it."
"But I want to do X."
"Well, you can't..."
I agree that complaining here won't get you far other than suggestions for similar actions, workarounds, or third-party enablers. Otherwise, absolutely please suggest it to Apple. I think the OP does have a point about both systems catering to different styles but ultimately doing the same thing. Over time, surely both Windows and OS X will evolve until they have both hit on the one most efficient way to do things (e.g. instead of "thinking different" just for the sake of being different). But it won't go that way unless we tell them what we want.
I suspect it would be better if Apple tells switchers that they should expect some differences, rather than just tell them "Its easy!"
Update: You can copy a file's full path from the Finder. When you choose Copy on a file in the Finder, it actually puts a bunch of different things on the clipboard - the filename, a link to the file itself, and the file's full path. Which one gets used depends on where you paste it - if you paste it into a path window or Terminal, the whole path gets pasted. I've been using OS X since developer preview 1, and I didn't realize this. Very slick.
Edit: Oops. Spoke too soon. I guess it only works in Terminal windows.
Edit: Oops. Spoke too soon. I guess it only works in Terminal windows.
It also works in Plain-text documents in TextEdit. But it is up to the application developer to decide how this is handled.
It doesn't for me - only the file name gets pasted. The full path only seems to get pasted in Terminal.
There does generally need to be an important point to communicated to switchers: this is Mac OS X, not "Microsoft Windows for the Mac." There are going to be differences in workflow and different ways of achieving the same goals. That's what makes it a different OS!
Whether it's easy or not depends on the individual user. OS X has plenty of advantages, but requires a learning curve, or rather, an unlearning curve where people figure out that the Windows way isn't the only way to do something. If that's a detriment in your eyes, then you have to ask yourself: do the benefits of OS X outweigh the detriments? If the answer is no, well, that's why Apple has a trial period for its computers. And, if you're past that trial period, you can eBay it to some other willing owner, or, you could always just install Windows...
And lastly, baiting the forum goers with "OS X sux0rz becuz it doesn't do xyz!" isn't going to change the fact that it "doesn't do xyz." We aren't going to say "Oh, you're right, here, let me re-write the OS for you. Here you go." Nor will we agree with you that OS X "sux0rz." Because, from our perspective it certainly doesn't.
If there are alternatives, we'll point them out to you... if you're halfway civil about asking (and sometimes even you aren't). And again, you have to decide if that alternative is acceptable. If not, then sending in your feedback to Apple (civilly!) will offer the best chance of a feature being added in the future.
I'm not at my Mac at the moment, but what happens if in Finder you have 'Show Path enabled such that the path is visible at the top of the Finder window. Can you drag/copy that text as a clipping to the desktop, or directly into another window?
Just wondering...
Just wondering...
Ah, my mistake. I meant to say that the drag-and-drop method yields the path, not copying and pasting.
Hmm, where does Apple tell them "it's easy!"?
i guess you got me again!
but, honestly, which ads of apple's pc vs. mac really warns switchers of anything? And which one does not imply an impression of "easy"?
Easy != not different.
If anyone switches from Windows to OS X expecting things to work the same, then they're awfully silly. What would be the point of switching?
If anyone switches from Windows to OS X expecting things to work the same, then they're awfully silly. What would be the point of switching?
Good question, ask those who switched under the influence of those ads, ask them how they feel about those ads, before, and after the switch.
There are many things I like about OS X, and I'm seriously considering getting an iMac or Mac Pro..
I'm just frustrated of not being able to do a very basic thing.
I did initially try dragging the file to the HTML input box next to the browse button. As it turned out, only Safari supports this feature. Well I'm not about to abandon an industry dominant browser to use Safari.
My frustration was not that OS X didn't behave like Windows, it was that it didn't perform a basic functionality that SHOULD be on both Windows and OS X. Unless Apple totally revolutionizes their next OS and abandon the tree/folder file management structure, dealing with folder/file paths are a crucial aspect of the usage of the OS.
I'm just frustrated of not being able to do a very basic thing.
I did initially try dragging the file to the HTML input box next to the browse button. As it turned out, only Safari supports this feature. Well I'm not about to abandon an industry dominant browser to use Safari.
My frustration was not that OS X didn't behave like Windows, it was that it didn't perform a basic functionality that SHOULD be on both Windows and OS X. Unless Apple totally revolutionizes their next OS and abandon the tree/folder file management structure, dealing with folder/file paths are a crucial aspect of the usage of the OS.
Except that clearly that basic functionality IS THERE. If Safari does it, the capability is supported. You simply need to file a bug report with the Firefox team.
Not to mention the fact that Firefox, while certainly very competitive, is not an "industry dominant" browser by any stretch of the imagination. That title is still firmly in the grasp of Internet Explorer. You really ought to give Safari a shot anywayit's highly standards compliant and very fast.
On Mac, Safari is the "industry dominant" browser. Secondly, who appointed you namer-of-what-should-and-shouldn't-be? File paths are only crucial in Terminal. OS X already has that "revolutionized file management structure" that doesn't depend on file paths to navigate the filesystem. Haven't you ever found it funny that you're the only person in the world that has a problem with it? Maybe that's because you're the first person to notice OS X's absolutely fatal flaw (the kind of which will devastate the mac community and render OS X an embarrassment the likes of which even Vista has never seen before): that you can't copy a file path in Finder without a small workaround. However did the rest of us get along so long without that functionality?
Right, a dominant browser on platform with 8% of the personal computing market. If you want to stay within the Apple Macintosh Webring, then by all means go ahead. I'll try to accommodate for the majority.
I develop websites, and Safari compatibility is the last thing I'll worry about as of right now. I'm sure that stance will change as Safari adoption increases.
Honestly, if you're developing websites, you should be developing to web standards... Where Safari is one of the most compliant browsers on the marketyes, even better than Firefox. If you code to web standards you will have a site that can only be MORE accessible to MORE people.
If you were going to develop for the majority you wouldn't care about Firefox either, you'd be developing for the notoriously finicky IE7 (or 6). Stop talking out of both sides of your mouth, please.
Theoretically yes, but in the real world, it's all about cost vs reward, the ideal thing is to develop code for all the various browsers and account for all of their little intricacies.. In the real world where there are budget and resource constraints, all websites will be build to IE's interpretation of the web standards, then comes FireFox and so on.. Safari is low in the pecking order, but climbing.
I've yet to have a single problem with any webpage using Safari. But that's beside the point. The point being that you're using an inferior web browser that also happens to not have the one function in an OS that you can't live without because it's more popular on Windows than Safari. Perception, I guess, is everything.