Update: read the comments for a useful tip that makes my rant moot; thanks to Robert for sharing!
First in an occasional series examining the few areas where Windows XP is arguably better than Mac OS X. I think that due to the generally superior Mac experience it’s all the more frustrating when one encounters one of the few unpolished areas of an otherwise excellent user interface.
Today’s subject has to do with the explorer, or finder as it’s known on the Mac. I suspect that many of the annoyances I’ll post are related to the finder. In particular, we’ll discuss the rename function. Let’s see:
Windows:
Rght mouse click item to be renamed, select rename. Title box opens up, in place, with all characters selected. Type new title and press return. Done.
Mac:
Right mouse click the item of interest. Select info (not as obvious as rename), and then drag your mouse half-way across the screen to the newly opened info window. Highlight the filename in the info window and finally, type in the new name. Oh, but don’t hit return, and do close the info window. Now we’re done.
I know which technique is quicker and easier for me to perform.
This is just one small example where Windows XP demonstrates, much as it pains me to say it, a superior user interface. There is an overall lack of polish feeling the finder vs. explorer, and that’s a shame, as we all know Apple is capable of better than this.
When I’m sufficiently annoyed by similiar issues in the future I’ll again take much more time to rant than simply performing the task at hand. Speaking of the task at hand, I guess it’s time to take a look at the photos I took earlier today, in the hills above Stanford.
I’m sure there may be other things that bother you, but as far as the renaming thing goes, why not just click (or otherwise select) the file, hit return, type the new name, and hit return again? Seems as efficient or more so than the XP version.
Indeed. This works quite nicely. I thought about it, and there’s no way I would have stumbled across this tip, as hitting return in Windows opens the file.
I was amused to notice the right-mouse menu in GraphiConverter has a rename command. The “return” trick is only faster after you learn it exists.
Thanks for sharing!
Glad to help! BTW, there’s a spiffy section in Mac Help (in the Finder, go to the Help menu and select Mac Help) called “New to Mac OS X?” with a sub-section for Windows switchers that you (and undoubtedly others) will find quite helpful.