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@iMikeT:

I agree with you on the Launchpad feature. However, its only a matter of time until Launchpad replaces the Dock. I think :apple: implemented Launchpad to get users encouraged to start using Launchpad in a desktop environment, aka preparing users for the merge.

Be nice to know if this is the future direction, then I can consider my future as a mac user

I would hate my desktop machine to only run like this
 
Be nice to know if this is the future direction, then I can consider my future as a mac user

I would hate my desktop machine to only run like this

Well thanks to Apple and Microsoft the UI are moving to tablet computers and touch screan .

Look at windows 8 very much for tablet computers and touch screan . And I think the next OS X Lion 2 will be like that too.

Even some Linux distro are moving to ipad like look and feel.


But my opinion is tablet computers will not die but never replace main computer like Apple and Microsoft think.And tablet UI touch screan will never catch on for in home use or business.May be in public but not business like in office.

The tablet UI touch screan is not good for spending along time in front of a your computer or doing things like MS office ,graphics ,animation,video editing,music or playing alot of games.

But some how Apple and Microsoft think is.

If you are on the go alot and all you do is casual e-mail ,internet use ,iCal and address book and iTunes than by all mean Apple and Microsoft are 100% right.


I agree with you on the Launchpad feature. However, its only a matter of time until Launchpad replaces the Dock. I think implemented Launchpad to get users encouraged to start using Launchpad in a desktop environment, aka preparing users for the merge.

No way .That was one things that saved apple from close to bankruptcy.

Not to say it is catching on faster in the Linux distro world than the taskbar and start menu.
 
There is no way you need to upgrade to 8GB of RAM to use Safari .Where are you getting those numbers from?

I said: "That you need upgrade to 8GB of RAM because of how Safari manages memory."

You might want to take a closer look at the screenshot I attached. That 2GB of RAM usage didn't occur with the prior Safari with SL. Now, however, many people are experiencing memory leakage issues. If I take that 2GB and add Lion and a couple of other basic programs, my entire 4GB is used up and my MBP is running very sluggish. This memory leakage problem with Safari is well documented in various threads here. It doesn't happen to everyone - but it does happen to many.
 
@iMikeT:

I agree with you on the Launchpad feature. However, its only a matter of time until Launchpad replaces the Dock. I think :apple: implemented Launchpad to get users encouraged to start using Launchpad in a desktop environment, aka preparing users for the merge.


Sadly, I have to agree that Apple is headed into the direction of truly unifying Mac OS X and iOS at some point in the future. However, in the present, the features that Apple decided to port over from a mobile device (iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch) to the desktop environment don't exactly translate well in terms of use when the primary method of input is with a keyboard and a mouse. It's one thing if the primary input method was to touch the screen as you have on an iPad or iPhone or if you had a trackpad like you do on a MacBook Pro but for a desktop user like myself (I'm a proud 2011 iMac owner by the way), it doesn't translate well. Believe me, I have a Magic Trackpad that I have attempted to use with Lion and after 10 minutes, I stopped using it and went right back to my mouse. In short, it's a great convenience to have gestures and scrolling but if you have a 27" display, forget about using it as a cursor. And I'm sure that Apple knows this but doesn't care as I'm sure that have a plan that they are sticking to despite how it affects long-time users (exactly what they did when they updated iMovie a couple of years ago and most recently Final Cut).

With that said, I think that we who decide to upgrade to and use Lion and the features included in it are beta testing these features in real world use for Apple.
 
"Why go into this interface when I can simply bring my cursor down to the Dock and launch the same apps from there?"

At this point you have to ask yourself if Apple is slowly merging the 2 OSs to make just one OS to rule them all?
Making the dock only on the desktop and having launchpad built in to the desktop, making the gesture for launchpad more of a straight to desktop kind of feature, like in iOS 5.

If not maybe it is just for personal preference, like in iOS 5 with having the 5 finger pinch to home screen when there is a one finger button right there.
 
The 2-finger contextual menu is a horrible idea. The 1-finger contextual menu worked great and now Apple wants me to put down a second finger in order to do the same thing that required only one in OS 10.4. Having used Lion since July 21st, I'm getting better at it but still, at least 50% of the time, the contextual menu won't show for me. Why has Apple made it considerably more difficult to enact the contextual menu?

Launchpad is dumb but, at least there are alternatives, unlike how it is with the contextual menu.
 
The 2-finger contextual menu is a horrible idea. The 1-finger contextual menu worked great and now Apple wants me to put down a second finger in order to do the same thing that required only one in OS 10.4. Having used Lion since July 21st, I'm getting better at it but still, at least 50% of the time, the contextual menu won't show for me. Why has Apple made it considerably more difficult to enact the contextual menu?

Funny, it works for me and it seems to me it's always been a two finger click to get the contextual menu.

1-finger click = left (or single) mouse button click.
2-finger click = right mouse button click, or control-click single button mouse

Unless this is some sort of "tap" rather than click. I disable taps because of hand tremors.

Anyway, get BetterTouchTool and you can probably configure it to whatever you want.
 
I have slowly got to the point of HATING Launchpad. Man, it's just frustrating. First, it adds another layer to everything that's not needed. For instance, everything installs into Launchpad and not onto the dock, which means I have to go to the Launchpad, find it, then move to the dock. Secondly, you have to go into Launchpad to uninstall stuff. Why??? I just want to drag and drop into trash like I used to. Thirdly, it replicates folder shortcuts I have on my dock, only in an uglier format.
 
so the problem is....OH NO!!! Apple advanced their product!! And you are stuck in the past....don't worry, when the next version comes out I'm sure you will be complaining how its nothing like Lion and you hate it.

Oh no, someone doesn't like the changes to an operating system I like and think was made better. Better be a troll and make an assumption that offers nothing to the argument.
 
Tootles said:
The 2-finger contextual menu is a horrible idea. The 1-finger contextual menu worked great and now Apple wants me to put down a second finger in order to do the same thing that required only one in OS 10.4. Having used Lion since July 21st, I'm getting better at it but still, at least 50% of the time, the contextual menu won't show for me. Why has Apple made it considerably more difficult to enact the contextual menu?
Funny, it works for me and it seems to me it's always been a two finger click to get the contextual menu.

1-finger click = left (or single) mouse button click.
2-finger click = right mouse button click, or control-click single button mouse

Unless this is some sort of "tap" rather than click. I disable taps because of hand tremors.

Anyway, get BetterTouchTool and you can probably configure it to whatever you want.

That's great and I'm happy for you, but for someone who has for ages been using the 1-finger contextual menu action, the introduction of requiring a second finger to do the same thing that previously required only one is infuriating. If the only Macs you use are desktops, you probably wouldn't understand. On a laptop, the trackpad is not in front of your hand so, the 2-finger gesture has to be done at an angle. On the 11" Macbook Air, the trackpad seems too small for the 2-finger contextual menu action. If the link, image or whatever, is near the top of the screen, your pointer finger will probably be at the top edge of the trackpad, where there's no space left to put a second finger.
 
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That's great and I'm happy for you, but for someone who has for ages been using the 1-finger contextual menu action

I think I've finally figured this out -- are you referring to click and hold? After a delay the context menu used to pop up. I'd forgotten all about that. For me, when multitouch trackpads came along I switched to two finger click because it's much faster. Also click and hold is a problem if you intend to drag and delay too long before starting.

So I supposed I did do a 1-finger context menu back in Tiger days.
 
Right! Was Tiger the last time that worked? I can't recall. I remember there were weird ones, the view option prefs in open/save dialogs only worked with click and hold Tiger/Leopard and Leopard screwed with click and hold on the Dock when stacks came in (and there was massive complaining). But OT at least in Leopard stacks worked with nested sorting *mourn*.
 
I think I've finally figured this out -- are you referring to click and hold? After a delay the context menu used to pop up. I'd forgotten all about that. For me, when multitouch trackpads came along I switched to two finger click because it's much faster. Also click and hold is a problem if you intend to drag and delay too long before starting.

So I supposed I did do a 1-finger context menu back in Tiger days.

Of course it's "click and hold", same as it is now, only with just one finger instead of two. As I said, with a laptop, your fingers approach the trackpad from the side, making the 2-finger contextual menu action much more difficult than the 1-finger equivalent was, especially on a laptop with a short trackpad such as what the 11" Macbook air has. The delay was only a half-second or such, not too long for use but not so short that it interefered with click-and-dragging.
 
Weakest link?

Every thing in Lion except the security enhancements, FileVault 2 and resizing windows from any side or corner (like Windows!).

No, I really mean it. Other than those items mentioned above there is nothing in Lion for my use. Every other Lion change is either a tablet-toy iOS item, an uglier graphic or a feature that destroyed a better version of a feature in Snow Leopard.
 
This has been a very informative discussion (for the most part). Lion has certainly generated a lot of passion, and, it seems to me, almost more than other OSX version.

For me, Apple has steadily been making steps backward in terms of their UI. I've been using Macs since my first 512K mac (I was twenty-four).

I find the lack of colour in the Finder and in Mail really make the programs harder to use. For the life of me, I can't figure out why Apple thinks oversimplified monochromatic icons that make me work harder to find things is a step forward. Utterly and completely baffling. At least PathFinder still shows me colours and my custom icons in the toolbar and sidebar.

And of course, I'll add that for me, LaunchPad is 100% useless. Again, how someone thinks is a good thing for users with a ton of apps, in it's current form, is not clear to me.

More flexibility in how one arranges spaces and how to navigate to them needs improvement.

And, for crying out loud, make FullScreen mode play nice with multiple monitors!
 
For me, the weakest feature is the skins on iCal and Address Book -- yuck!

I don't understand why people dislike Launchpad. It's so easy to ignore if you don't find it useful, not in your face like the iCal/Address Book skins.
 
Weakest link?

Every thing in Lion except the security enhancements, FileVault 2 and resizing windows from any side or corner (like Windows!).

No, I really mean it. Other than those items mentioned above there is nothing in Lion for my use. Every other Lion change is either a tablet-toy iOS item, an uglier graphic or a feature that destroyed a better version of a feature in Snow Leopard.

I thought resize from anywhere was pretty major also, but recently I've been finding it a pain. Since 10.1.2 I have had iTunes miniplayer set up in the top left corner of the screen, and it has always been very easy to reach it with a click at the edge of the screen. Now with all sides resize, the threshold on window edges means you need more pixels' grace before you can actually click on a window in the background!

It is like Lion is OS X's second coming. 10 years ago they totally screwed with well established workflows from classic Mac OS days, and it took long time for people to embrace the new fledgling methodologies.

The difference with Lion is that I don't think the new methodologies are desirable, so I don't think we should be adapting. I'm down to only the new scrollbars in the list of actual advances, and that is -only- because it gets rid of the inconsistency in scrollbar styles we've had since iTunes 8, really no other reason. Goodness knows where scrollbars do still exist, they are dog ugly :(.
 
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I think Launchpad needs some usability improvements when it comes to arranging things the way you want it, but once everything is in its place I find it pretty useful on both my iMac and Macbook Air.
 
Launchpad and Mission Control are pointless for me. I haven't used either one except to test them out. Why would I use Launchpad and take those extra steps to open an application when I could just put the app in my Dock?
 
Launchpad provides slightly quicker access to more apps, as there is really a limit to how many you want to have in the Dock. Having said that, Stacks can perform such a job just as well as, if not better than, Launchpad, so that one is moot ... although you could -possibly- argue that it takes less setup as they go in Launchpad automagically, even if you then have to put up with its UI to organise things as you want them, and then do it again when they shuffle around on restart.

Mission Control is okay but, as has been said, it is not quite as good as exposé was before.
 
I'm surprised at how many people hate Launchpad :p. When I was using Snow Leopard, I would always use stacks in list view to open applications, now I use Launchpad most of the time, I admit it did take getting used to..

For me the feature that I never use is Full Screen Apps, I just don't see any use for it on a desktop, maybe people with a trackpad can make more use of it.. But running an application at fullscreen on a desktop without trackpad means you loose real multi-tasking, you have to use mission control to switch to a different desktops (Space)..
 
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