5 things I miss after switching from Windows laptop to MacBookPro.
And how I tried to substitute missed functionality
A while ago I was employed and what was new for me — I got MacBookPro as a work laptop. It was a new experience for me (since the last 20 years I've been using only Windows 95/../10).
Whilst overall I am quite satisfied with the Mac experience, but I have a few small things that I still miss on Mac that was possible on Windows.
Feel free to advise your favorite Mac apps that may cover these gaps — I would appreciate it.
So let's go 😎
#1. I cannot stretch the application window on two screens.
I often work with Chrome Dev Tools. And on Windows computer I placed DelTools panel to the right and stretched window so panel appeared on another monitor.
Unfortunately, I didn't find the way to do this on Mac. The only solution is to open Chrome Dev Tools as a separate window and then move DevTools window to another monitor screen. But it is not the same experience.
#2. There is no shortcut ‘Minimize all windows’ 😢
There are often many open apps on my screen. Some sometimes I just want to minimize them all and open the one I need. But there is no 'Minimize all windows (Show Desktop)' button like on Windows 7 taskbar. I miss it a lot.
I did find such a button in Windows 10 but:
"In Windows versions prior to Windows 7, there was a button which minimized all opened Windows and showed the desktop. In Windows 10, there is no such button. Instead, to minimize all open windows and show the Desktop, you need to move the mouse pointer to the right edge of the taskbar (or the bottom edge if your taskbar is vertical) and click a tiny invisible button."
I didn't find such a shortcut in macOS. But to archive a bit similar experience you can use:
- Use Mission Control button to see all open windows and switch between them
2. Show Mac Desktop with Command + F3
But it doesn't work the same way as in Windows. Yes, you see the Desktop but once you press any app on a Dec — all the apps windows will return to its screen positions. While in Windows they become minimized and you can maximize the app you want to work with.
#3. Dock only visible on one screen at the moment
In Windows, you see the taskbar on each screen while in MacOS you have to choose on which screen you have it. Maybe for someone, it is a benefit but for me, it is not convenient to make it appear each time I need to maximize other apps.
#4. No 'Delete' button on a keyboard
Actually there is but it works as BackSpace on PC (deleting character before the cursor).
You can achieve this behavior by pressing fn+Delete button but not the same experience.
#5. PuntoSwitcher (keyboard layout input language correction) works for 2 languages only
I am a native speaker for Ukrainian and Russian language (what is quite usually in Ukraine). And also uses the English language quite often too. Sometimes if you forget to switch languages — you get some abracadabra (Jabberwocky) text.
Not to erase it and then input again I used to use PuntoSwitcher. It works quite good and by hotkey press changes language layout for last edited work so you don't have to re-type it again:
If you have 3 languages — then in windows just press twice to convert to a language you need. But not on Mac — you cannot convert to language 1, then 2 and then 3 — just 1 and 2. And you should choose in options (in Punto for Mac) which two languages you will be able to switch between 😭.
Conclusion
Well. All these imperfections are not a disaster for me. And after being fired from my last job I still continue using MacBookPro (I was allowed to buy my work laptop for a good price). But these are things I definitely would like to have:-) Do you have such staff you miss too? Share in comments!
BTW usually I write articles on Angular and RxJS! So if you are interested -let’s keep in touch on Twitter.
Cheers!