43 Folders

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Merlin’s weekly podcast with Dan Benjamin. We talk about creativity, independence, and making things you love.

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”What’s 43 Folders?”
43Folders.com is Merlin Mann’s website about finding the time and attention to do your best creative work.

Vox Pop: What's your "Mac Whine?"

We've started a new feature over on MacBreak Weekly that I really hope becomes a regular thing: "_Mac Whines_!"

Yeah, sure, I'm an unapologetic Apple fanboy (I, mean duh), but some stuff about my Mac experience makes me crazy. Have you got a beef with your Mac or OS X you want to shout from the shiny counter of the "Genius" Bar? Yeah, me too.

I'll open with:

  • inexplicable iCal "snooze" options (per MBW 30 -- which, incidentally, may also be my favorite MacBreak Weekly to date)
  • near-hangs whenever a mounted network volume is no longer available
  • no way to (temporarily) enable password-free user switching
  • The Finder. The goddamned Finder.

What's your Mac Whine?

Jason's picture

@Marijane You can turn on the...

@Marijane

You can turn on the ability to use the Tab button to scroll through dialog box options. It's under System Preferences > Keyboard & Mouse > Keyboard Shortcuts, then at the bottom, enable Full Keyboard Access to All Controls. The default is to use Enter to activate the darkened (selected) button, and the spacebar to enable the circled (highlighted) button. It's not instinctive, but it's helped me switch.

As for the drop down boxes, try using space bar instead of tab, then you can use your arrows to scroll to what you need, then space bar again to select. Also try just typing in what you need. I live in Oregon, and when I get to a State drop down box, I hit " O " three times and I'm at Oregon.

Hope this helps. Jason

 
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