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Open Files with Finder's App Switcher

Say you're in the Finder looking at a file and you want to open it with an application that's already running but which doesn't own that particular document. How? Switch to that app and choose File > Open? Too many steps. Choose Open With from the file's contextual menu? Takes too long, and the app might not be listed. Drag the file to the Dock and drop it onto the app's icon? The icon might be hard to find; worse, you might miss.

In Leopard there's a new solution: use the Command-Tab switcher. Yes, the Command-Tab switcher accepts drag-and-drop! The gesture required is a bit tricky. Start dragging the file in the Finder: move the file, but don't let up on the mouse button. With your other hand, press Command-Tab to summon the switcher, and don't let up on the Command key. Drag the file onto the application's icon in the switcher and let go of the mouse. (Now you can let go of the Command key too.) Extra tip: If you switch to the app beforehand, its icon in the Command-Tab switcher will be easy to find; it will be first (or second).

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Published in TidBITS 904.
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Inside TidBITS | 11 Nov 2007 | Listen  | Print Printer-Friendly Version of This Article

Stay Up to Date on Leopard Compatibility

by Adam C. Engst Send Email to Author

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We're maintaining an online-only article called "Leopard Compatibility List Updated" to bring together news of products that have been updated for Leopard compatibility. It doesn't make sense to publish this article in the email editions of TidBITS each week, since it changes constantly, so check our Web site for updates, or subscribe to our RSS feed using a program like NetNewsWire that can call out changed articles. We're focusing on products we consider important or interesting, which means things that we've covered in the past or are thinking about writing about in the future - there's no way this list could hope to be comprehensive. That said, if you know of something that's not on the list but has appeared in TidBITS or Take Control in the past, let us know so we can add it!

While you're at our Web site, be sure to notice our new Leopard Information Center in the upper right, with links to all sorts of useful Leopard-related stuff we've done, including the Leopard Compatibility List.

 

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