![]() If you’ve used Spotlight before and wish it could do a little bit more, then a third-party launcher is just what you need. It gives you a great jumping off point for controlling your Mac from your keyboard. You can even trigger spotlight on your iPad with the same Command + Space shortcut on an external keyboard.Īnd honestly, if you’ve never used a launcher on your Mac before, then Spotlight is the place to start. In addition to applications, Spotlight can also help you find files and give you suggestions, and it’s built-in to every single Mac out-of-the-box. Spotlight uses autocomplete to help you find the right application fast, then just hit the Enter key to launch it without having to navigate to the Applications folder. Just hit Command + Space on any Mac and start typing the name of the app you want to run. You many not realize it, but your Mac already has a built-in launcher with Spotlight in macOS. What is a Keyboard AppLauncher Anyway?Ī keyboard launcher is an application that helps you open, find, and organize files and apps on your computer - usually using your keyboard. ![]() In our testing, two serious contenders emerged ( Alfred and LaunchBar) and both are great applications that can seriously improve your Mac productivity.Īlfred is our favorite because of a couple of design choices we prefer, a more consistent update schedule, and the the ability to extend functionality (without needing to know a scripting language) using custom workflows. A small thing perhaps, but I could never get used to it and was always distracted when all I wanted was to start a playlist and turn to work.There are really only a couple of serious contenders to consider when selecting a macOS launcher, but that doesn’t mean the decision is any easier. I just need to press the standard Search shortcut ( ^␣), then start typing the name of any Playlist, Artist, Album, Song or Genre from my iTunes library and press ↩ to play whatever I want.Īlthough Alfred 2 can also play music, one first needs to launch iTunes (or rather a special Alfred player linked to iTunes) and only then select music. LaunchBar’s ability to play music was a decisive factor for me. Somehow it just does not work for me – I would like to see my answer after I clearly indicated that the equation is finished (of course, LaunchBar allows to copy it to the Clipboard and do some other operations). Now, Alfred 2 has a similar behavior, but the difference is that in LaunchBar pressing ↩ displays the answer in large type, whereas Alfred immediately (without ↩ being pressed) displays the answer in small type just beneath the equation. It is invaluable for simple quick calculations. When you activate LaunchBar and start typing numbers it works as a calculator. I know that something like Instant Send should be available in Alfred 2, but I could never find this function and was increasingly irritated by the sudden clumsiness of emailing files. FOLDER (or a first few letters) enables you to Move, Copy or Alias the selection to a particular folder.NAME (or a few first letters) followed by ↩ does exactly the same, but the email of your given contact would be inserted as the recipient of the message (these two options are invaluable for sending files from Finder without using your mouse).MAIL followed by ↩ opens a new Mail message with blank recipient field and your selection as the body of the message (or selected files as attachments to the message).The subsequent action depends on what command you type. a file in Finder or text on a web page) and press the Instant Send shortcut (by default – holding down the ^␣ key combination or double-pressing the ⌘ button), the Instant Send function is activated. However, after a couple of months I am back to LaunchBar. Both utilities allow fast launching of applications, with Alfred 2 offering a nicer UI and ability to develop more complex workflows. Nevertheless, earlier this year I switched from LaunchBar to Alfred 2 after the latter was covered in MacPowerUsers Episode 133. I have been using LaunchBar for over 3 years and it has become so natural that I feel literally paralyzed when I approach a Mac without LaunchBar. LaunchBar is one of the ten light automation utilities ( Macademic Ninja Kit), which make academic work on a Mac fast, smooth and enjoyable.
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