If there’s one thing that drives me nuts about using a MacBook on the job and in the field it’s screen clutter.
Apple helps to minimize clutter with fullscreen apps, but if you keep a dozen apps running, and bounce back and forth between them, then you know that app windows float all over and create a visual and organizational mess. Why doesn’t Apple put a magnet in the borders of each app window to make it stick to the edge of the screen?
Now you can stick it to app windows yourself.
Stick It Too Me, Baby!
App window organization isn’t really much of a problem for average Mac users who work sequentially; one app at a time. The problem with app windows surfaces the more apps you run.
On my Mac at any one time there are a dozen apps open and running, and often more than that, each app with one or more windows.
Apple’s fullscreen mode in OS X is handy for some apps as it hides the cluttered windows. But even that has flaws.
Dragging and dropping text, graphics, code, snippets or whatever in fullscreen mode is a no-no. Why can’t Apple make app windows stick and stay attached to the Mac’s screen edges?
Until Apple figures out how to do it The Apple Way™ the solution is a window management app like BetterSnap Tool.
As the name implies it snaps app windows into place.
All it takes to clean up the clutter is a drag and drop.
Drag the offending or loose app window by the edges to the right or left side of the Mac’s screen, and release. It sticks.
Those are the basic snap areas where app windows can be sort of docked into place.
However, BetterSnap Tool is better for a reason. Create your own customized snap areas anywhere on the screen.
And, use custom keyboard shortcuts to move and resize app windows without leaving the keyboard. It works on Mac’s with multiple displays, too. And, it’s smart enough to create specific snapping sizes for specific apps (not all app windows are the same size).
At first glance, the BetterSnap Tool Settings, Customizations, Keyboard Shortcuts, and Snap Areas look to be complicated to set up. They’re not because it’s mostly set it once and forget about it.
I recommend that you start with the default settings, move some app windows into place, then fall back to the settings to make adjustments. It doesn’t take long to master window management and in the end you get a Mac screen that’s organized the way you want.



