What happens to a mac program when you x out?

[Germwise]

So in windows the x shuts down the program completely,

In the mac, if I close it, I still see an "active" shiny globe in the dock and it opens up faster the next time. This leads me to believe its more like minimizing. However, if I close a webpage, it doesn't come back.


So whats the meaning behind the x?

 

[robbieduncan]

The (x) is attached to the window. So clicking closes the window. Nothing more, nothing less, it closes that window. If the application only every has one window (like, say, Calculator) then it quits the app. If it's a multi-document app then the app stays running as you have only closed a single document.

 

[stridemat]

The (x) is attached to the window. So clicking closes the window. Nothing more, nothing less, it closes that window. If the application only every has one window (like, say, Calculator) then it quits the app. If it's a multi-document app then the app stays running as you have only closed a single document.

Well said, I knew what the 'x' did, but never thought about it in that way, makes sense now.

 

[XmcbrideXprideX]

To actually quit out the application, you can use (Commnad+Q) while the application is active to quit it out. There are a few other ways, but that is by far the fastest.

 

[GfulDedFan]

For many programs, the x merely closes the window and the program will still be running but a command-Q will always quit an active program. -GDF

 

[Jongewehr]

yup as said before

the x will close just the instance of the application,

but the main application is still running, for instance if i close skype with the x, it just closes that skype window , but someone can call me cause the app is still running

 

[Germwise]

how many things do you keep open?

I mean skype, mail, safari, finder etc... has got to start bogging down the machine.

 

[gnasher729]

how many things do you keep open?

I mean skype, mail, safari, finder etc... has got to start bogging down the machine.

Why would it? Open Activity Monitor, check CPU usage and RAM usage, or just go by how it feels: It takes an awful lot to slow a Macintosh with MacOS X down.

 

[JamesGorman]

I always have itunes, vuze, msn, and safari with anywhere from 3-8 tabs open. And than even with all that open i sometimes fool around in garageband. The machine dosen't really slow down at all..I have never noticed a real slowdown with all that open since I got the macbook.

 

[andalusia]

I rarely close apps until I see a performance decrease... In fact I'm the same with tabs. You can often see me with about 12 tabs, because I forget about certain tabs and usually go back to Facebook or Macrumors and the others just slip my mind... However Firefox, Mail, Adium, uTorrent, iTunes, Photoshop, are just some of the apps which are generally always open on my machine.

 

[gnasher729]

how many things do you keep open?

I mean skype, mail, safari, finder etc... has got to start bogging down the machine.

Why would it? Open Activity Monitor, check CPU usage and RAM usage, or just go by how it feels: It takes an awful lot to slow a Macintosh with MacOS X down.

In addition: I guess when you talk about (x) you mean the red circle at the top of the window. Red = close, yellow = minimize into the dock, green = switch to optimal size. In most applications, Command-W will close the window. In Safari: Command-W = close tab or window, Command-Shift-W = close window with all tabs, Command-Option-W = Close all windows.