Stupid Simple Mac Tip #90–Apple Slices
All Apple products have beautiful screens, but they’renot always quite large enough. Retina displays and high-resolution mean little if you’resquinting to work.
Then again, dazzling displays can be too distracting, with multiple windows dividing attention.
Luckily, your Mac has settings to help in either situation: Full-Screen or Split-Screen mode.
Full Screen
Whether you’re working with small print, trying to concentrate on a task, or hiding clutter from curious eyes, full-screen mode is a handy Mac tool.
Entering full-screen stretches your application from border to border, dismissing the top menu bar and bottom dock (either can be recalled by hovering over their standard locations).
You can enter full-screen in any of three ways:
- Click the green button in the app’s upper left corner;
- Press Command-Control-F, or;
- Choose View > Enter Full Screen.
The sudden zoom feels like giant invisible fingers spreading your Mac screen like it was an iPhone! This expanded workspace supplies greater clarity, more immersion, and less temptation to check messages/social media (or fascinating Mac blogs!).
You can switch between open apps without exiting full-screen by using the Command-Tab carousel, pressing Control + right/left arrow, calling upF3 Mission Control, orswiping the touchpad with four fingers (if you have dainty digits more nimble than mine).
Exiting full-screen is as easy as entering: just repeat any of the three methods mentioned above.
Split-Screen
Split-screen mode is even sweeter for multitaskers like me — it similarly expands the display for better viewing and focus while supplying separate panes for two different apps.
This mode is helpful for writing in one window while referencing another when cutting and pasting between apps or juggling two projects without interrupting your flow. (Not to mention seizing opportunities to balance work and play 😉)
Like full-screen mode, split-screen is accessed (and exited) via the window’s green button — you can hold it down until the frame temporarily shrinks, then drag it to one side, or hover above to reveal tiling options. Then click on the screen’s other half to open your second program.
Moving the screen divider left/right will adjust frame proportions, dragging apps back-and-forth will switch up their side, or you can replace either one using F3 Mission Control.
Actual shot of entire Mac display with split-screen active :
Note that some applications can’t be used in these modes (their windows will lack a green button)…and users really into sensory overload can further divide their screen with third-party programs (like Magnet).
There you have it – two easy solutions to accommodate your work style, whether you have ADD or split personalities. I’m not here to diagnose or to judge, simply to serve up solutions. 👍
