Hi there!
I recently bought a 27" 5k iMac after having used 13" MacBooks for 12 years. I love the screen. But at the same time, the screen size overwhelms me. I was used to using apps either in full screen mode or with the window at full or half size (using the app “Magnet”) on the MacBooks. Now that I have the huge screen, I am interested in knowing how people with 5k iMacs arrange their windows.
I own Magnet and Bettertouchtool. I am interested in knowing how Mac Power Users arrange their windows rather than the software they use.
Thanks
I use Magnet on my iMac 5k, simple and reliable.
I had a similar dilemma at work - I have a 34" ultra wide screen! I often put two apps on the same full screen as this gives me plenty of room to work, but not too much dead space. Spaces are definitely very useful to me.
I really like ‘Spectacle’, and when I’m plugged into a big screen still often full screen! (Otherwise 1/2 and 1/2).
Not 5K but I’ve been using a 27" Apple Cinema display for 8 years now.
I use Moom for window management. I hear Spectacle and Magnet are good too. Is there any difference between them, other than pricing?
Most of the time - like right now - I run one app at a time, maximized to the full screen. But not in actual fullscreen mode, because I like to be able to see the menu bar, with the clock and iStat Menus and various menu bar icons showing.
When I’m writing, I have my text editor occupying half the screen. The other half the screen is occupied by a source document - notes, PDF, or a browser window. I use Moom to handle window management.
I have Moom (an app like Magnet ) set up Safari on the right half of the screen, Mail on the top half of the left side, and iTunes or 1Password below Mail, depending on what I’m doing.
I use BetterSnapTool, which is like Moom and the others. The 27" 5K display wasn’t enough for me as I have an old 20" Dell monitor attached for even more space. Ideally I should get a 27" monitor to match!
I was using Magnet for this, but I downloaded Mosaic to try (it’s a part of my SetApp subscription). So far, I really love it. It allows for multiple configurations that you can set ahead of time, or you can build a custom configuration on the fly.
i want to organise multiple spaces (3 to be exact), each space with two apps.
how can I do this using keyboard shortcuts ?
I use Moom on my iMac 27” with attached 27” external display. I keep Omnifocus in full screen in its own space and use Moom to keep other apps half-screen. Evernote and Reeder go on the second display. Airmail, Safari, and Ulysses are most often on the main display, and I flip them left and right side of the screen. When I’m recording podcasts, Audio Hijack and Evernote are on the second display and Skype and Safari on the main display. When I’m editing Audition takes up the main display.
I make liberal use of keyboard shortcuts to move windows around as well as the Mission Control trackpad gestures.
I try to only have two main windows on a given workspace at a given time. (There are exceptions like Messages and PiP videos and iTunes which hang out in the background) For the most part even with the large screen, having more than two windows to look at is too distracting.
I do a lot of data entry and organizing tasks. I use Magnet to arrange windows on 27" Thunderbolt Display. Most of the day, I have two Chrome windows split screen. Underneath the two chrome windows, I have Preview with a PDF in half screen on the left and on the right side is Busy Cal and Wunderlist in quarter screens. I have my 13" MBP to the side with display up and that has Spark email maximized and instant messaging apps underneath Spark.
I was never able to grok how Spaces and other virtual desktops work, so I just don’t use them. Maybe I should give them another try?