[philm]

For me, a problem with the Dock is that I don't seem to scan through icons as well as I do through text. If I want to switch to let's say Safari, I think I would be much faster if presented with a list of application titles, in alphabetical order, rather than a buch of randomly placed icons. Where I can, I view by name (e.g. in a finder window, I don't have the icons along the top).

I can workaround this (DragThing) but it does seem a fundamental point - I want the option of getting rid of icons in the Dock.
Phil

[RevEvs]

I think it probably depends on how you use the dock and how many items are in it. I have 15 app icons in my dock and know pretty much straight away where every app is, I also think i can pick out an app quicker by its icon than by its name.

Quick poll: What's faster? Icon or text?

I think its going to be down to the amount of items. For a small amount of items i believe that icons are best - but with many items then text (IF alphabetised) is best.
Obviously if text is not alphabetised then i think it would be a pain to find things as you would have to read on average half the items in the list, whereas with icons, even if not in order it is quite easy to find the CD icon for iTunes or the Stamp icon for Mail...

revs

[Webscreamer]

This brings up a feature I have ben thinking would have been great from the start.

In the Dock Prefs pane I think they should have options for

"Alphabetize: Right to Left, Left to Right"

"New Applications Open: Right, Left"


What do you all think? I think the Alphabetize one is a great idea!

[-Q-]

I find things much more easily in my dock by icon than by text title. But the choice for arranging the dock as you'd like should be there for the more advanced user.

But I can see a new Mac user getting really confused if he changed the settings of his dock without realizing it and went from icons to text. That would direct some phone calls to apple support.

[Mediaman_12]

Originally posted by Webscreamer:
This brings up a feature I have ben thinking would have been great from the start.

In the Dock Prefs pane I think they should have options for

"Alphabetize: Right to Left, Left to Right"

"New Applications Open: Right, Left"


What do you all think? I think the Alphabetize one is a great idea!

And people already complain about things shifting around in the Dock!

[Terri]

See Application switcher from System 9.

1) Could be just a very small drop down in the menu bar

2) Could tear it off and have it float

3) Could be set to display icon or text

I still do not understand why they left out so many useful things in X.

The Apple menu should have worked the same way as the Application menu.

I also really miss tabbed folders.

I use Fruit Menu, Windowshade and ASM, but also use the Dock as well.

In the end I've have turned my Dock into nothing more then an Application switcher with a trash can in it.

Trouble is I want it on the left side of my right monitor, but there is no way to put it there.

I would just kill the dock and use a 3rd party replacement, but then I would not know if an application needed attention or if an application was launching plus one in awhile I do minimize to it.

[MacGorilla]

I only have a few items in my Dock. I use LaunchBar for everything else. Makes life so much easier.

[cpac]

I completely disagree with the original poster - it's must easier to recognize an icon than text. If you set up your dock properly (i.e. with all your *commonly used* applications) you soon develop the ability to find each application very quickly.

A few additional thoughts:

• Third party solutions exist if you prefer the OS 9 way of doing things.

• Alphabetizing *documents* might make more sense since min/maximizing them can change which order they appear in the dock currently

• If text based, the dock would not work very well horizontally (just look at the windows task bar)

• If text based, the dock would loose some of the "badge" functionality built into many applications

[poocat]

i used to use adock on os9.
completely sortable,
completely customizable,
completely excellent.

i always thought when i moved to x that the dock would work just like that.
i was excited.

i was wrong.

poocat.

[Xtraz]

The way commonly used programs can have a permanent placement in the dock is exactly why i think its great.

When i want to use a certain program I know exactly where along the dock it will be, instead of having it shuffling around dynamically due to launch sequence (windows) or alphabetical order.

But hey if you don't like it this way, go give Apple some feedback and tell them to add it as an option. Having options is good.

Adendum: As a response to the original poster, I think that icons are much more descriptive than text because each one is like a heiroglyph which can be recognized instantly. However, I do hope icons are more varied and distinguishable somehow. Too many are too blue heh... that's why I like my Macromedia icons.

[Axo1ot1]

I have more than 30 apps in my dock, all of which I use regularly enough for it to be annoying not having them there. I have the dock organized according to the sort of applications they are. to the left I have my internet apps (safari, mail, ichat ftp stuff etc.), next I have bluetooth stuff (address book, ical, isync), next are apps for multimedia (iTunes, iPhoto, QuickTime) then apps for creating media (iMovie, FCP, PoTools, Reason, Photoshop, etc.), Then just a bunch of various utilities. This makes it very easy to quickly narrow down the location of the icon I'm looking for before I need to do a visual identification of the secific one.

The dock is a fantastic application. It is unfortunate that so many peoplle do not use it well.

[-Q-]

Originally posted by Axo1ot1:
The dock is a fantastic application. It is unfortunate that so many peoplle do not use it well.

I agree with the first part of your post, but I have to disagree with the second.

A computer should be able to conform to the way you work overall, not the other way around. I think Apple needs to come up with some more flexible options in regard to the dock so people can adapt it to the way they work. I don't think it should necessarily be customizable to the extent listed above in some posts, but there should be some more options (for example, the aforementioned pinned to the left side of the right monitor) available for those who want to adapt the dock to their workflow.

Fortunately, there are some shareware alternatives out there....

[daydreamer]

I guess it's a matter of what memory works best in your brain. for example, I have a good visual memory, Mostly if I see something I will remember it better, faster, than someone told me the same thing... It's a matter of what your brain recognizes faster.

[Superchicken]

cough feature bloat.
Here's a suggestion, make your own icons with the program's names?
GASP! I know it sounds crazy, but open up photoshop or heck even graphic converter if you don't have Photoshop.
Make a transperant background, and put some text that says finder on it, and iTunes and what not, and then put a lil icon under it if you like icons too, then stick it in your dock. Problem solved

[xdre]

Man, I got all hot and bothered, until I realized I misread the thread name.

[Terri]

Just as any 300 lb. woman will tell you, one size does not fit all.

The problem with the Dock is it does not scale well or have enough options.

Back when I was in System 9 and used the tear off Application switcher a lot I would mostly have it set to icon only, but other times, usually after a long day, I found that I needed the program's names to show, still other times I just used the Application menu and closed the Application switcher pallet.

I need the Dock to work like that. Also I need to be able to put it wherever I want.

I do like being able to keep non running apps in it and I like the way programs like Mail can just add a red dot to it's icon to let you know you have mail.

Why should I have to give up the features that I had for the new features? I want the old AND the new features.

[philm]

You know, after submitting the original comment and reading the replies, I am giving LaunchBar another try. I think it has just changed my life!
Phil

[joelcpa]

Originally posted by philm:
I think I would be much faster if presented with a list of application titles, in alphabetical order, rather than a buch of randomly placed icons.

You've just described FruitMenu

[KidRed]

Originally posted by Webscreamer:
This brings up a feature I have ben thinking would have been great from the start.

In the Dock Prefs pane I think they should have options for

"Alphabetize: Right to Left, Left to Right"

"New Applications Open: Right, Left"


What do you all think? I think the Alphabetize one is a great idea!

The problem with that is, the majority of apps I use I placed in the dock in locations I wanted. If I wanted them in alphabetical order, I'd do it myself. Open apps open to the right, so i know where to go for those rare occurance when I open an app not in my dock. Then I'm done, quit and it;s gone because I don't use it enough to keep in my dock

[Adam Betts]

Originally posted by Terri:
Just as any 300 lb. woman will tell you, one size does not fit all.

Huh? Dock is supposed to be all-in-one, not one-size-fit-all. There are many ways to organize the dock. Use the folder, etc.

Why you compared the Dock to a 300 lb. woman is beyond me. Really bad analogy.

Originally posted by Terri:
The problem with the Dock is it does not scale well or have enough options.

Back when I was in System 9 and used the tear off Application switcher a lot I would mostly have it set to icon only, but other times, usually after a long day, I found that I needed the program's names to show, still other times I just used the Application menu and closed the Application switcher pallet.

Not yet another OS X whiner who want some little useless features in OS 9 to be added in OS X. OS 9 IS DEAD AS WELL AS THEIR FEATURES. Apple is not going to port ALL of the features in OS 9 because they'd rather to focus on other stuffs.

If you really love OS 9 style, go use some third-party softwares. Enough with making Apple looking bad because they *forget* to add some of your little favorite features.

Learn to adapt.

[Toyin]

I used to have a folder in my dock called the launcher. I'd put aliases of all my applications in specific folders (ie internet, utilities, graphics...etc.). My most frequent apps were placed in the dock. This worked pretty well until I got Launchbar. Now I'm 3-4 key strokes away from launching any application on my hard drive. Much much faster than the older method.

[Terri]

Originally posted by Adam Betts:

If you really love OS 9 style, go use some third-party softwares. Enough with making Apple looking bad because they *forget* to add some of your little favorite features.

Learn to adapt.

No Apple needs to listen to it's customers.

Just try telling a print shop that not only do they need to upgrade all their apps and relearn how the OS works, but they need to buy a bunch of utilities for a bunch of computers to get back the functionality of the OS that they are already using. They just look at me and ask if this new OS is so great then why are all these things needed?

I am in Mac OS X full time. I tried using it the way Apple shipped it. I ended up buying a bunch of things to make it work the way I needed and I'm still using work arounds for missing features like the horrendous open/save dialogs.

The Dock is very much part of the OS. In doing this it needs to be more flexible or make it optional.