Whoa. How Did He Do This???

(un)?fortunately, they don't. it's just an animation showing the 1st screen, and then the second screen. the os doens't actually look like that.
 
Lt Major Burns said:
(un)?fortunately, they don't. it's just an animation showing the 1st screen, and then the second screen. the os doens't actually look like that.
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Ohhh ... I see. Well, darn, I was all excited. I thought I could download a theme that did that. I thought it was way cool. :)
 
it's kinda tacky don't you think? I still have the original OS X wallpaper on my desktop! I also like vanilla ice cream, so i guess it's my boring personality ;)
 
Lt Major Burns said:
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/12682
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.....Whoah. How is it I never knew about this? It's like tabbed browsing, only for your entire screen. Awesome. I was under the impression that all the "virtual desktop" solutions for OS X sucked, but this seems to work really well. Thanks for the link!

And that is some pretty neat eye candy, although if I keep using it, I'll probably use one of the more modest effects. I'd like to see a real cross-fade, but the "cross-fade" effect they have is....not a cross-fade. :( I wonder if that's a bug, or if it's supposed to get insanely bright like that. Hmm. Oh well. "Reveal" and "None" suit me just fine.
 
it uses the standard openGL effects made available to developers in macos x. see handbrake's picture quality screen to see the checkbox for 'useless openGL effects'.

virtual desktops are a bit more hassle then they're worth when you have exposé.
 
Thank The Cheese said:
it's kinda tacky don't you think? I still have the original OS X wallpaper on my desktop! I also like vanilla ice cream, so i guess it's my boring personality ;)
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That would explain why you think it's tacky. ;)
 
Lt Major Burns said:
Amie, you appear to love the pointless eye candy in life ;)

http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/12682

have fun with that, dear!
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You know me so well. ;)

This *might* be something that I would enjoy ... *if* I understood it and knew how to use it. I just came from the link and read the description (didn't download it yet), and I'm not sure exactly what it is. Could you please explain to me (preferably in English) and list a couple examples/scenarios of what it's used for? I'm not sure why I would need a "pager" in my menu bar or what "switching between desktops" means exactly. To me, a "desktop" is the background that you put your desktop image (wallpaper) on and you see your HD icon on. Why would I want to have more than one of these?

I'm confuzzled. :confused:
 
P.S. Also, if I decide I don't like the desktop manager, can I just uninstall/trash it with no left-over side effects? How invasive is this app? I don't want it messing with my OS X system settings or forking anything up.
 
It is not what you think.

Multiple Desktops can be explained as multiple window arrangments. The wallpaper and the icons on the desktop remain the same.

I use VirtualDesktop and attach a screenshot from the pager (i.e. the overview of the different desktops). The windows are marked with the icon of the corresponding application.

So a desktop manager can be thought of as a kind of workspace management tool…

hope this helps.
 

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virius said:
It is not what you think.

Multiple Desktops can be explained as multiple window arrangments. The wallpaper and the icons on the desktop remain the same.

I use VirtualDesktop and attach a screenshot from the pager (i.e. the overview of the different desktops). The windows are marked with the icon of the corresponding application.

So a desktop manager can be thought of as a kind of workspace management tool…

hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I've been doing a little research since my previous post. That, combined with your reply and snapshot, really helped. I think I understand the concept of "desktop manager" better now. I guess the only two questions I have left are:

1. I'm not sure what the point of a desktop manager is. I know it's to "maximize/manage work space," but HOW does it do that? I don't see how it would be any different if you just had a regular desktop and toggled between apps by clicking on them in the Dock. Instead, you're just toggling between them by clicking on the pager in the menu bar, right? What's the difference?

2. If I install this thing and decide that I don't like it, can just uninstall/trash the app with no consequences? It won't mess with my OS X system settings, will it?
 
I often asked me what it is I like about Virtual Desktops. One can arrange windows side by side, a window with HTML and a Preview of this for instance.

But I think Virtual Desktops just offer a kind of sense for order, a feeling like: "Here is this and there is that. When I'm done with this, I switch over to that. It's true, you _seem_ to get the same by switching applications. But somehow it is _not_ the same. You can switch through 'sets of windows'; and these make the environment you are 'in'. Hard to explain better.

But yes, you can try it without doing something irreversible. As I said, I use Virtual Desktop from CodeTek, but I also tried Desktop Manager (which is also a really great product, including more EyeCandy). But I preferred Virtual Desktop for its interface and (to answer your question) I got rid of Desktop Manager easily and without any hassle.

So just enjoy giving it a try…
 
Thanks, Virius. I'm gonna head over to the Web site and download Desktop Manager now... And if it messes anything up, I'm comin' after YOU. ;)
 
Lt. Major Burns, thank you much for telling me about Desktop Manager. You know me and eye candy. :D
 
Lt Major Burns said:
virtual desktops are a bit more hassle then they're worth when you have exposé.
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For the most part, yeah. The only time I imagine I'll use this a lot is when I'm working in Xcode. Try telling the difference between three or four project windows when they're shrunken down! Sheesh!

There are two big problems with Exposé that make it a pain in the rear when you need it most (i.e., when there are LOTS of windows open): It doesn't show the titles until you mouse over, and every time you activate it, your windows will zoom to different places, so if you switch a lot, you can't get into a groove.

Virtue has that strange pseudo-fade, too. I've seen real cross-fades before (like in Handbrake, I think). Odd. Anyway, transitions in this case are more trouble than they're worth, since it takes half a second just to prepare the transition.
 
Amie said:
1. I'm not sure what the point of a desktop manager is. I know it's to "maximize/manage work space," but HOW does it do that? I don't see how it would be any different if you just had a regular desktop and toggled between apps by clicking on them in the Dock. Instead, you're just toggling between them by clicking on the pager in the menu bar, right? What's the difference?
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You don't need to have apps all on one space. You could have one Safari browser window in one space, and a second in another. If you ever deal with a large number of documents in a single app, you'll appreciate this.

2. If I install this thing and decide that I don't like it, can just uninstall/trash the app with no consequences? It won't mess with my OS X system settings, will it?
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It's harmless. As soon as you quit, all your windows are gathered back to your "main" space.
 
NOW we're getting' somewhere! Thanks, guys, for all the explanatory and helpful replies. I've download Desktop Manager and have been using it and playing around with the preferences for the past hour. I'm getting used to it now. I like the hot keys (rather than moving the cursor to toggle back and forth between apps), and I LOVE the "Cube" effect of switching between desktops--talk about eye candy! BUT ... I'm wondering if I really NEED a desktop manager, since I usually only use one browser (at a time), two chat apps, and iTunes. That's really all I usually have running when I'm on my laptop. What do you think? Do I not run enough apps to reap the benefits of Desktop Manager? I have a feeling most people who use it are extreme multitaskers who have a tremendous amount of apps running simultaneously. Your thoughts?...
 
I'm wondering the same thing myself. I'm going to keep it around, and I think sooner or later I'll find good uses for it.

One idea I have is to make one set that's sort of like Dashboard, only for normal apps. Put in Calculator, Activity Monitor, Dictionary, etc. Maybe even a few Safari windows. It'll be almost like what Dashboard should have been! ;) (I am not a fan of Dashboard, in case you can't tell.)
 
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