I got KeyCue for the sole purpose of bringing up (double press of ⌘) a list of webpages from which I can click on one to go to it. I do not use it for its main feature - that of getting a list of keyboard shortcuts in apps. Adding links is super easy - just edit a text file.
What about you? Any apps that you use a particular feature more than its primary feature?
I can’t think of anything right off the bat but I do try to use all of an app’s features when it can keep me from using some other app. While 1Password is primarily a password manager, ⅓ of my items stored are not passwords. Things like driver’s licenses, membership information, and bank accounts. I think a lot of people get really good with spreadsheets and use them as a massive hammer for anything remotely resembling a nail.
I use Noteplan as a text editor that works natively across Apple platforms and supports links and backlinks. Don’t use the task management or calendar integrations, barely use the daily note.
I use DEVONthink as a file system that syncs cross-platform with good search. Very little use of any of its other features.
On several occasions I have used Excel or Sheets to create webpages. Stay with me, it’s not as ridiculous as it sounds.
Let’s say you want to create a website that has a page for each of the birds of Thailand, so that’s nearly 1000 pages.
They all have the same layout, so, by writing the code for one page across a single row, concatenating it all at the end of the row, then copying the formula down to 1000 rows, it’s possible to create a fully working site quite easily.
Total respect for that!
I’ve used Excel to make and play games. What a bored intern on a restricted PC can accomplish.
I use MS Excel for databases and project planning. Just need to figure out how to use it for page layout, presentations, and email/calendar and I can simplify to just the one office app!
This is very interesting. Do you have a shareable example?
Some people use excel like scripts, others use scripts like spreadsheets.
I use Keynote as a design & mind map tool, works great.
Spreadsheet for knitting!
I use Numbers or Excel to create a grid in 2x3 ratio (that’s the ratio of a one stockinette knit stitch.)
I can the fill the grid with colors or symbols to develop a knitting pattern
Just need to figure out how to use it for page layout, presentations, and email/calendar and I can simplify to just the one office app!
I think with some minor tweaking and conversion to an Excel formula, this should do the trick. 
No, sorry, I had a good look around and couldn’t find the bird one. This is a similar one though.
Here’s an example of my trying to do my autolayouts when making an app in Xcode using a spreadsheet. It worked out fine and gave me a decent starting point.
So, to use it I wrote out my plans for the different views on columns A to C and the Constraints tab, then I just needed to select all of column D and paste it as text into Xcode at the right place, then col E, then col F.
i use Notes as a sync device [even though its a sync app].
when i want to quickly access or move something from one mac to another, or to a perephery like iphone or ipad, i drop the files in Notes.
and I love this ability. its super easy and fits my groove. i’m a lawyer and when getting ready for a hearing, i’ll drop the files into a Note, and i’m good to go on any device.
I budget in Soulver and use it as an all-things finance notepad incl. written reminders. Gloss over it regularly and update the available balances to not get carried away.
Me too! (20 characters)
I was going to answer that, but modern day spreadsheet programs really have become massive hammers. If you look back at Visicalc, all it could do was spreadsheets. Then Lotus 1-2-3 came along and added database and charting. And Lotus Symphony added word processing. So while I’ve rarely used Excel or Numbers for spreadsheets like my father (who was an accountant) would have, I can’t think of a time I haven’t used it for one of calculations, database, or charting. Although I shudder at the thought of writing a document in one.
I use Figma every day for its intended purpose (web design). But I just used it to design a new media stand for our basement and mock up what a few different TV sizes might look like on our wall. (I treated each pixel as 1/8”.)
I use Illustrator (now Affinity Designer) to write formal letter instead of Words or Pages. I like having full control on margins, spacing, character adjustments and paragraph style.
Speaking of Adobe Illustrator, I have used it heavily to create 2d diagrams / charts to visualise scientific results & methods. Illustrator has only a very simple chart / graph tool but that was usually enough to get the data in, and then you’ve got full control to customise this graph.
(the early versions of Illustrator and BBEdit got me to love the Mac)
Second on the design tool. Sometimes we use it as an animation tool for animatics or even for making gif. I use it for simple Information Architecture chart.
