New Spaces Behaviour in 10.5.3

[mckyvlle]

Has anyone else noticed the new Spaces behaviour in 10.5.3?

From http://daringfireball.net/2008/05/spaces:

...describe new behavior which only kicks in if you turn off a new-to-10.5.3 checkbox in the Spaces panel in System Preferences: “When switching to an application, switch to a space with open windows for the application”.
...
If you turn this new checkbox off, however, activating an app, even one that has no windows in the current space, will not jump you to another space. Once you’re in a space, you stay there until you explicitly switch spaces, not just switch apps. This makes all the difference in the world for the way I, and others, want to use Spaces.
...
One non-obvious detail is that you can switch to another space by clicking an app’s Dock icon multiple times. If you click a running app’s Dock icon once, that app will activate in the current space. If it doesn’t have any open windows in the current space, it will activate without creating a new untitled window. But if you click that same app’s Dock icon again, you’ll jump to the next space in which that app does have an open window.

*Emphasis mine.

This must be a godsend for those who really wants Spaces to be task-oriented rather than app-oriented!

Simply put, there is a lot less being automatically swooshed around now. It is easier to open a new window of an app in the current Space, without having to drag a window from another Space.

Too bad this still does not address auto-swooshing when apps call for attention. You are still swooshed to the Space where the app is calling for attention. (Thunderbird, I'm looking at you! 😡)

Still, I love this new Spaces improvement! It is miles better than relying on the "no autoswoosh" hack!

Gotta love Apple for listening to feedback and making improvements! 🙂

 

[PeteB]

Funny how the Spaces updates didn't make the high level Fixes & Updates list for 10.5.3, but this post makes sense of the differences I've seen.

I happen to like working in "app orientated" mode (since I work with 4 key apps most of the time, which suits four spaces). It's a shame that this new functionality has seemed to have broken how I work with Lightroom and CS3.

Until I figure out how to work with the new functionality, that is.

 

[Quillz]

Right now, I have this option checked. Does this mean if I uncheck it and launch Adium, it won't automatically take me to space #3, where I see Adium launching the buddy list and other windows?

 

[mckyvlle]

Right now, I have this option checked. Does this mean if I uncheck it and launch Adium, it won't automatically take me to space #3, where I see Adium launching the buddy list and other windows?

If you set Adium to launch in Space #3, the first time you launch Adium, you will be automatically switched to that space. Now, say if you moved off to another space and you click Adium's Dock icon once, you will make Adium the active app (Adium takes over the menubar), but you will not switch to Space #3. You have to click Adium's Dock icon again to switch to its space.