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Way to work like Spaces in Lion?

G

gusmahler

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 17, 2011
73
0
One reason I haven't bothered to upgrade from 10.6.8 to Lion was because Spaces was eliminated. Another was that I had heard that full screen apps was basically broken for dual monitor systems (blanking one of the monitors). Now that Lion has had a chance to mature, I'm wondering if it is time for me to upgrade.

I'll give an example of how I typically work. I'm a big fan of Spaces and I use it for my every day work. I'll keep one space for iTunes. Another space for personal stuff. Basically my non-work related browser and non-work related apps. Then I use another space for work, where I use a different browser. In this work space, I typically I also have at least one Word window open and usually several Preview windows open. (Part of my work involves me analyzing multiple PDFs and writing about them.)

Can I work like this in Lion?
 
gusmahler said:
One reason I haven't bothered to upgrade from 10.6.8 to Lion was because Spaces was eliminated. Another was that I had heard that full screen apps was basically broken for dual monitor systems (blanking one of the monitors). Now that Lion has had a chance to mature, I'm wondering if it is time for me to upgrade.

I'll give an example of how I typically work. I'm a big fan of Spaces and I use it for my every day work. I'll keep one space for iTunes. Another space for personal stuff. Basically my non-work related browser and non-work related apps. Then I use another space for work, where I use a different browser. In this work space, I typically I also have at least one Word window open and usually several Preview windows open. (Part of my work involves me analyzing multiple PDFs and writing about them.)

Can I work like this in Lion?
Click to expand...

Lion lets you have separate desktops, have you not seen a demo of mission control?

youtube it and you can decide if it will work for you
 
Space was NOT eliminated in Lion, it was combined with Expose into what is now called Mission Control. You can still have multiple desktops (spaces), and your workflow would work exactly the same in Lion as it does in Snow Leopard. The only difference to Spaces was that the are no longer arranged in a grid, but rather in a horizontal line.
 
tyrell456 said:
Space was NOT eliminated in Lion, it was combined with Expose into what is now called Mission Control. You can still have multiple desktops (spaces), and your workflow would work exactly the same in Lion as it does in Snow Leopard. The only difference to Spaces was that the are no longer arranged in a grid, but rather in a horizontal line.
Click to expand...

Depending on the number of Spaces, it is not the same.
I had 12 Spaces, now I have 16 Spaces to accommodate my workflow.
I couldn't do that in Lion, as the Spaces would be too ****ing small to even see, what was in there.

Imagine going from Spaces in Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, looking like this
2012_02_05_pA2_Spaces.png
to Mission Control in Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, looking like this
2012_02_05_pA1_MC_in_Lion.png
Of course, not everyone uses that many Spaces, but Mission Control seriously hampers the usefulness of more than four virtual desktops.
 
I would just like to Personally Thank simsaladimbamba For pointing out that fact.

Finally some one who knows what they are talking about. I agree 100%. The ability to move apps and windows around with in expose/spaces is a huge advantage. Plus rearranging the spaces around also. I Strong believe that the grid system works far better then the mission controls horizontal version.

Further more I enjoy being able to navigate up and down freely. not sideways. I stack alike programs on top and beside one another so I can monitor, makes changes and drag over stuff. It is really easy in programs like CS5, when there are multiple apps that one could use all at the same time.

I really hope some one could make a mod or an app that could bring back these features. I sure those who truly understand the old expose would support who brings back theses lovely features.

simsaladimbamba said:
Depending on the number of Spaces, it is not the same.
I had 12 Spaces, now I have 16 Spaces to accommodate my workflow.
I couldn't do that in Lion, as the Spaces would be too ****ing small to even see, what was in there.

Imagine going from Spaces in Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, looking like this
to Mission Control in Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, looking like this
Of course, not everyone uses that many Spaces, but Mission Control seriously hampers the usefulness of more than four virtual desktops.
Click to expand...
 
I just wanted to share what I found

http://switchstep.com/ReSpaceApp

It is about half way there in terms of replacing or replicating spaces from expose, but it is a major start. I really glade some is treating this as a real problem unlike apple.

Hope others can enjoy this. Support this guy if you can, so we can all watch as it grows closer as a real solution !



thearmlesswonde said:
I would just like to Personally Thank simsaladimbamba For pointing out that fact.

Finally some one who knows what they are talking about. I agree 100%. The ability to move apps and windows around with in expose/spaces is a huge advantage. Plus rearranging the spaces around also. I Strong believe that the grid system works far better then the mission controls horizontal version.

Further more I enjoy being able to navigate up and down freely. not sideways. I stack alike programs on top and beside one another so I can monitor, makes changes and drag over stuff. It is really easy in programs like CS5, when there are multiple apps that one could use all at the same time.

I really hope some one could make a mod or an app that could bring back these features. I sure those who truly understand the old expose would support who brings back theses lovely features.
Click to expand...
 
I don't particularly care for Mission Control. It's not the same as Spaces and I've had a lot of trouble with it. I just posted this today: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1354512/

And the response was not useful because I had already done that and it's still all wonky. If I didn't have to upgrade to Lion for work, I would have stayed with Snow Leopard.
 
SamEB said:
I don't particularly care for Mission Control. It's not the same as Spaces and I've had a lot of trouble with it. I just posted this today: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1354512/

And the response was not useful because I had already done that and it's still all wonky. If I didn't have to upgrade to Lion for work, I would have stayed with Snow Leopard.
Click to expand...

Perhaps I misunderstood your issue. (I answered in the other thread.) Do you want to assign an app to a particular window? You now do that by right-clicking it in the dock instead of having to use System Preferences. You can't use Mission Control to position app windows within a space, which includes not being able to reposition to an alternate display like one could do with Expose. Other than that I hardly find positioning working different in Lion than it did in Snow Leopard.

I've found that Mission Control and the new Spaces (as well as full screen) work great on a small notebook screen. IMHO better than before. However on my big screen iMac with a second monitor it's a disaster! I can understand optimizing for the highest volume (which are 13" MBPs and MBAs) but it would have been nice to support the old scheme as a option, even if it would eliminate full screen mode from most apps.
 
Spaces hobbled

I'm amazed that Apple thinks Mission Control is a better version of Spaces. They destroyed so much of the functionality of Spaces. I completely agree with the grid over horizontal layout - and there are additional changes that reduce it's effectiveness.

1) You can only move windows from the main desktop you're on - you can't move any window to any desktop as you could before

2) Not only that, you can't move a window from one monitor's desktop to another - which is ridiculous.

3) With the current desktop given so much prominence the others are much smaller (as opposed as equally sized with the grid), so it's much more difficult to make out which desktop is which. I'm constantly clicking on the wrong one because they all look so similar now.

I'm just so amazed that Apple, that supposed paragon of useability (and I've been a mac user for years), would so quickly ruin a good feature like this. Who there really thought this was better this way?

Edit: Ah, I see that Talmy basically said the same thing.
 
thearmlesswonde said:
I just wanted to share what I found

http://switchstep.com/ReSpaceApp

It is about half way there in terms of replacing or replicating spaces from expose, but it is a major start. I really glade some is treating this as a real problem unlike apple.

Hope others can enjoy this. Support this guy if you can, so we can all watch as it grows closer as a real solution !
Click to expand...

+1 Stephen (the developer) has been working hard. BinaryAge bought his ReSpaceApp, same company as TotalFinder, and renamed it TotalSpaces.

It's on version 0.9.9. I've been using it on Lion and Mountain Lion. It's fantastic, still in beta so it's free (will be $12 for license once v1.0 and can be used on as many Mac's as you own). It has about everything 10.5/6 Spaces offered:

- Assign apps to desktops in preferences (no need for M.C. to move to the desktop you want, right click on app in dock, assign it, then repeat for every app)

- Support for full screen apps

- Easily move windows around from desktop to desktop w/o leaving Spaces unlike M.C. (a mistakenly moved window requires leaving M.C., reentering to the window desktop, then dragging it to the correct desktop)

- Windows can be moved as before by "pushing" them to the edge of your desktop to the next one

- Moving windows circulates to the next row of desktops (desktop 4 from desktop 3 unlike horizontal spaces in 10.7)

- Hot corner assignment(s)

Coming Soon:

- Support for multiple displays

- "All Windows" Exposé (planned but as 10.8 now allows ungrouping windows in "Mission Control" for an "All Windows" Exposé may be passed on.

- More multi-gesture support

- Improved grid
 

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gentlefury said:
I read somewhere that ML is going to let you choose the MC style or old Spaces style.
Click to expand...

Wow, really? I haven't read anything on ADC forums, but that would be great. If true, I feel badly for Stephen as he's worked so hard on this project. At least it'll be good for Lion users. :)

(I'm stoked M.C. can now ungroup app windows, loving "All Windows" Exposé and am surprised Apple engineers are listening to developers and consumers as choice isn't a major priority with them :p )
 
Sorry to bring bad tidings.

Since the new Lion Full Screen operation creates a new Desktop (or "Space" in the old jargon) for each full screen app, it would not be possible to do that and maintain the grid system. Example: you are set for 2x2 spaces and now bring an app to full screen. Where does it go? Does the grid expand to 3x2 (with one blank)? In any case spaces navigation in the grid would be different.

That's why they went to the linear arrangement and why as much as one pleads it's not coming back in Mountain Lion or any future cat. Full screen mode is considered too important.
 
talmy said:
Sorry to bring bad tidings.

Since the new Lion Full Screen operation creates a new Desktop (or "Space" in the old jargon) for each full screen app, it would not be possible to do that and maintain the grid system. Example: you are set for 2x2 spaces and now bring an app to full screen. Where does it go? Does the grid expand to 3x2 (with one blank)? In any case spaces navigation in the grid would be different.

That's why they went to the linear arrangement and why as much as one pleads it's not coming back in Mountain Lion or any future cat. Full screen mode is considered too important.
Click to expand...

Full screen is great for one display systems, which is how Apple has been marketing it. Unfortunately, for multi-display setups such as mine it defeats the purpose. Someone asked why I could want to use it, simply put full-screen mode takes up more display real estate as opposed to maximizing the window and would allow for better use of my system. As for "TotalSpaces" and full-screen apps, it isn't fully fleshed out and for the reasons you gave. From the preferences settings it seems it does add a secondary window (example I have 3x3 grid, so somehow the full screen app is another desktop as you suggested, see one of my pics in my post #10). Stephen is also working on enlarging the grid like "Snow Leopard" and multiple display support. He's almost done with version 1.0, looking forward to it :)

(and thanks for the input, good points, although I prefer the old "Spaces" as it was much quicker and easier to navigate) :)
 
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