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Give Launchpad a chance, it does make sense!
- Thread starter jonathanc
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You dont have a lot of space in the dock unless you make it smaller to the point that you cant see your dock anymore.
My biggest issue with Launchpad is that it feels cheap and unprofessional. The animations are poor (yes, I know this is only GM). You can't resize the icons. The iOS style folders look awkward on a Mac. Dock icons show up in Launchpad (why do I want to see Safari twice?). This is all my opinion. Personally, I think that Launchpad has been poorly implemented. I use the old Applications folder in my dock.
How we managed to survive all these iterations of OSX without Launch Pad is beyond me.
Ok... I'm kidding.
Sorry folks. Launchpad is as useless as a one-armed trapeze artist with an itchy arse.
Ok... I'm kidding.
Sorry folks. Launchpad is as useless as a one-armed trapeze artist with an itchy arse.
I wonder if you can just get rid of the dock altogether. It sure would increase screen space. Auto-hide has always been a terrible idea since you have to wait a second for the dock to appear, or the dock appears too fast and accidentally. I could see Launchpad as a viable way to move past the dock.
However, I'm not so sure what to do with the documents and downloads folders...
However, I'm not so sure what to do with the documents and downloads folders...
It's already a winner because it's so familiar and comfortable to the hundreds of millions of iOS users out there - especially those who own iOS devices but not Macs. If Apple ever wanted a more comfortable and easy way to tap into that massive market this is the way to do it. Very indicative that Apple understands the market.
It's easy, it works, it's familiar. If you're a person that relies heavily on visual cues (and there are very, very many) it's right up your alley.
For the rest of us there are a myriad ways to launch apps, including Spotlight.
It's easy, it works, it's familiar. If you're a person that relies heavily on visual cues (and there are very, very many) it's right up your alley.
For the rest of us there are a myriad ways to launch apps, including Spotlight.
I relied on Quicksilver for years. Very recently realized Spotlight does 98% of what I use Quicksilver for without all the bugs and overhead, so have switched to that.
I don't see much point in mousing around to launch apps on a system with a keyboard (i.e. all current Macs). Launchpad would make a lot of sense on a touch-screen.
I don't see much point in mousing around to launch apps on a system with a keyboard (i.e. all current Macs). Launchpad would make a lot of sense on a touch-screen.
Launchpad would have more utility for me if you could remove apps from it without deleting them from your system. For instance, it's a little ridiculous the number of apps installed for Starcraft II to run, or all the WoW patches (though you can safely delete those).
I use Alfred 99% of the time, but every once in a while I'll use Launchpad. It's faster than having the Applications directory in the dock, because you don't need to navigate down to it, and if you have the locations of your icons memorized, you can be ridiculously fast with it.
I still do have the Applications directory in my dock, though, because it's a convenient way to copy apps from .dmg files without opening a Finder window (for those disk images that neglect to include a /Applications alias).
I use Alfred 99% of the time, but every once in a while I'll use Launchpad. It's faster than having the Applications directory in the dock, because you don't need to navigate down to it, and if you have the locations of your icons memorized, you can be ridiculously fast with it.
I still do have the Applications directory in my dock, though, because it's a convenient way to copy apps from .dmg files without opening a Finder window (for those disk images that neglect to include a /Applications alias).
I feel liking or disliking is on the Users preference. It is a wonderful addition, but people find it useless because its not of their preference.
Eg. If you want to get down from a 10 story building, the fastest way is to put a safety harness and jump from the roof, (a.k.a Spotlight) but to some thats not an option, You can get down an Elevator, (a.k.a Dock), but again some fear the elevator. Then Apple gave a new option, The Stairs, (a.k.a Launchpad). Slower for some who Jump, but faster for some who are healthy and fast.
Someone like Mr Adrian Monk will definitely find the Launchpad very very useful.
I know i will!
Eg. If you want to get down from a 10 story building, the fastest way is to put a safety harness and jump from the roof, (a.k.a Spotlight) but to some thats not an option, You can get down an Elevator, (a.k.a Dock), but again some fear the elevator. Then Apple gave a new option, The Stairs, (a.k.a Launchpad). Slower for some who Jump, but faster for some who are healthy and fast.
Someone like Mr Adrian Monk will definitely find the Launchpad very very useful.
I know i will!
I personally like the launch pad but one thing that could be improved is multiple monitor support for it. When I click on Launch Pad, I have several screen of programs but only one screens worth shows at a time and I have to swipe to change pages. Why not take advantage of the multiple monitors instead of dimming all my other monitors except the main?
It is not very good analogy since Launchpad is much faster than the dock and for some apps can be faster even than spotlight, of course if it is set correctly. If you make reasonable grids with your apps, preferably by usage, very soon you will get to know your grid. That means that after doing a gesture, if you know what you are looking for, your mouse point will already be on the app (or very close to it).
For dock on the anther hand, you have to navigate for, which is slow, specially if it is hidden (because it is taking a lot of space on the screen). In some situations even the spotlight is not so fast, for example if i type in Adobe (lets say i am looking for PS), i will get more than 5 results from which i have to choose from, and that slows me down. But i know exactly where the PS is in my lunch pad, just click and a half away. I could go on with this too much so i will just leave it here...
Cheers
It seems to me that launchpad will come into good use at times. I haven't tried Lion yet, but I envision that if my hands are on the keyboard I will launch apps with Spotlight. If my fingers are on the trackpad (or if there is an app that I can't remember the name of), I will simply gesture-call Launchpad and go from there.
This will be especially good for me because I don't keep any unopened apps on the Dock. Sadly I find them too tempting to open and I end up wasting too much time comparing browsers or creating spreadsheets that have no real purpose.
This will be especially good for me because I don't keep any unopened apps on the Dock. Sadly I find them too tempting to open and I end up wasting too much time comparing browsers or creating spreadsheets that have no real purpose.
What Launchpad will do, is catch the eye of Windows users Who have iPhones and iPads. The familiar looking desktop will probably make the more willing to switch to Mac.
It sucking is just your opinion, and you have the right to ignore it. I personally won't use it when I upgrade because I have been using Quicksilver for so long.
Jagardn my friend... Launchpad is such a waste of drive space I actually deleted the file after copying it to a CD and taking a ball peen hammer to it. Then I sprinkled the CD shards all over my neighbor's lawn (whom I dislike very much), for him to discover when he mows his precious Kentucky blue grass to "putting green" perfection.
Ok... exaggerating a bit.
I fully agree with your assessment that Launch pad is merely flag waving to the "other side" to get them to "this side". I'm just amazed at all the folks who don't see that as well.
I use a Magic Mouse AND a Trackpad, and thus find Launchpad a great idea. I have my trackpad on the left of my keyboard, and use it for gestures, scrolling, etc. I use my Magic Mouse in my right hand for more precision control of the cursor. What Launchpad means to me is that I don't have to take my hands away from the trackpad/mouse to open an app. If I do happen to be using the keyboard instead, I use Alfred to do whatever it is I want.
So for me, Launchpad is a winner.
Now, I just wish Apple would make it a lot easier to customise the damn thing.
So for me, Launchpad is a winner.
Now, I just wish Apple would make it a lot easier to customise the damn thing.
I don't understand all the MBA comments about Launchpad replacing the dock. How many applications do you really need in your dock that you don't have the real-estate? How may applications are you really running on a MBA that require one-click access?
One of my few complaints about Lion is that Apple seems to have put very little thought into secondary monitors (which is a bit ironic considering that they sell a very pricey one).
I hope secondary monitor support gets better in future updates.