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You are here: MacNN Forums > Software - Troubleshooting and Discussion > macOS > The Option-Command Dock-Icon trick (and diff spinning mouse cursurs)

The Option-Command Dock-Icon trick (and diff spinning mouse cursurs)
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benschilke
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May 22, 2002, 08:16 PM
 
If you haven't discovered the short-cut, you can make all applications but one hide by pressing the Command-Option and then the one application's icon on the dock. This seems like it would be a great way to get an unobstructed view of the desktop, except when you Command-Option the Finder's dock icon, you get a Finder window if there wasn't one open already (in my case there usually isn't). Anyone know how to click on the Finder Dock Icon without a window open (specifically with Command-Option)?

Also, anyone know the difference between the spinning rainbow-cd mouse cursur and the black-and-white spinning cursor? Is one associated with waiting for hardware and the other for software?

[ 05-22-2002: Message edited by: benschilke ]
     
kent m
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May 22, 2002, 08:22 PM
 
Is there a difference between 'command - option' clicking and 'option' clicking?

kent m is not a member of any public groups
     
CheesePuff
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May 22, 2002, 08:52 PM
 
Originally posted by kent m:
<STRONG>Is there a difference between 'command - option' clicking and 'option' clicking?</STRONG>
Doesn't look like it.

If you just press command on any app it goes to the Finder and selects the apps icon.

Nifty.
     
sterfry
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May 22, 2002, 08:57 PM
 
Er, in OS X 10.1.4
Option just hides enough Apps to view your specific app.
Command + Option hides all the apps, above and below it.
     
Xeo
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May 22, 2002, 09:07 PM
 
Learn them all

Oddly enough, Option-click is not listed even though it does do something different. That seems like a mistake in their tech doc to me.
     
Rickster
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May 22, 2002, 09:33 PM
 
Also, anyone know the difference between the spinning rainbow-cd mouse cursor and the black-and-white spinning cursor?
The rainbow-cd cursor means the frontmost application process is not responding to system events -- the window server is trying to talk to it, but it's not listening.

The black-and-white spinning disk or the black-and-white wristwatch cursor is provided by the application itself, not the window server. So when you see it, the system can still talk to the application, but the app has decided to tell you that it's busy processing -- you may or may not be able to interact with its interface.
Rick Roe
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Guy Incognito
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May 22, 2002, 10:07 PM
 
Another neat OS X trick:

If you hold cmd-option-shift-ctrl-R-G-Y-M-A-W-Q-W, rapidly and repeatedly hit the CD-eject key, smash the keypad with your fist while simultaneously vigorously shaking your computer you *might* get a kernel panic.
     
unregistered
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May 23, 2002, 12:15 AM
 
Originally posted by Guy Incognito:
<STRONG>Another neat OS X trick:

If you hold cmd-option-shift-ctrl-R-G-Y-M-A-W-Q-W, rapidly and repeatedly hit the CD-eject key, smash the keypad with your fist while simultaneously vigorously shaking your computer you *might* get a kernel panic.</STRONG>
Sorry, I just tried this and it doesn't seem to work for me.
BTW, I suggest everyone try this. It isn't easy.
     
Xeo
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May 23, 2002, 01:18 AM
 
Originally posted by unregistered:
<STRONG>Sorry, I just tried this and it doesn't seem to work for me.
BTW, I suggest everyone try this. It isn't easy.</STRONG>
I'm having problems trying to hold down "W" twice. It's really hard.
     
Kristoff
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May 23, 2002, 01:35 AM
 
Originally posted by Xeo:
<STRONG>I'm having problems trying to hold down "W" twice. It's really hard.</STRONG>
Your keyboard doen't have two "W" keys??? Very odd
signatures are a waste of bandwidth
especially ones with political tripe in them.
     
talisker
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May 23, 2002, 02:47 AM
 
Originally posted by Guy Incognito:
<STRONG>Another neat OS X trick:

If you hold cmd-option-shift-ctrl-R-G-Y-M-A-W-Q-W....</STRONG>
Sounds like what you used to have to do on a Sinclair ZX Spectrum (or ZX81 for that matter) to input 'PRINT'. (For those of you not old enough to remember, to 'compensate' for the small rubber keyboard on this machine, you couldnt type commands directly, but instead used a combination of shift and control keys to input predefined commands. Nice)
     
TC
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May 23, 2002, 10:00 AM
 
Originally posted by sterfry:
<STRONG>Er, in OS X 10.1.4
Option just hides enough Apps to view your specific app.
Command + Option hides all the apps, above and below it.</STRONG>
Option hides just the current App, so if you have word, explorer and OmniWeb running and OniWeb is the current app then option clicking on the explorer icon in the dock brings explorer to the front + hides omniweb but has no effect on word. Command + option clicking would hide word as well.

There is a way of hiding all apps to see the desktop by clicking on the clock icon in the dock. But since we have the clock in the menu bar i don�t have this in my dock any more. Not sure if it would work by command clicking on the dividers which people place in the dock? And this should work for all dock apps which don�t have windows.
Nothing to see, move along.
     
benschilke  (op)
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May 23, 2002, 05:00 PM
 
TC - that's the great short-term solution. Thank you. I never need to hide my CPU monitor, so I can option-command-click on that app's dock icon. Nice.
     
benschilke  (op)
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May 23, 2002, 05:05 PM
 
[double-post]

[ 05-23-2002: Message edited by: benschilke ]
     
benschilke  (op)
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May 23, 2002, 05:12 PM
 
TC - that's the great short-term solution. Thank you. I never need to hide my CPU monitor, so I can option-command-click on that app's dock icon. Nice.
     
OverclockedHomoSapien
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May 23, 2002, 09:12 PM
 
Check out the utility Show Desktop, on versiontracker:
http://www.macfixitforums.com/php/do...s=Show+Desktop

It puts an icon in the dock that acts as a finder icon, when clicked it shows the finder but doesn't open a finder window.

A very nice little app.
[FONT="book antiqua"]"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."
- Thomas Jefferson, 1816.[/FONT]
     
11011001
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May 23, 2002, 09:35 PM
 
Originally posted by talisker:
<STRONG>

Sounds like what you used to have to do on a Sinclair ZX Spectrum (or ZX81 for that matter) to input 'PRINT'. (For those of you not old enough to remember, to 'compensate' for the small rubber keyboard on this machine, you couldnt type commands directly, but instead used a combination of shift and control keys to input predefined commands. Nice)</STRONG>
OMG!!!

I have told many people about this thing, and none of them have ever heard of it.

You have a sinclair too!!!! Wow!!! That stupid keyboard blew, you could do nothing useful with it! But wow, was it ever fast... I mean it could refresh a screen in under a second... wow!!!

Er, I tried that keyboard combination and my computer won't respond to commands anymore... err... it is permanetely stuck on this black screen?? Any help??? No sad mac face, running mac, evil mac twins, jut blackness and silence. Mysterious...
     
ls -al
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May 23, 2002, 11:36 PM
 
Originally posted by Guy Incognito:
<STRONG>Another neat OS X trick:

If you hold cmd-option-shift-ctrl-R-G-Y-M-A-W-Q-W, rapidly and repeatedly hit the CD-eject key, smash the keypad with your fist while simultaneously vigorously shaking your computer you *might* get a kernel panic.</STRONG>
OMG!! That worked. Actually no kernel panic but gave me a really cool easter egg -- the details of Bill Gates bank account!
     
   
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