![]() It’s very important to do this because without Rectangle being checked in this preference pane Rectangle will not work.Īfter this has been done we’ll get a question about shortcuts. Rectangle will prompt us and bring us to the correct screen. The first thing we need to do is to allow Rectangle to control our computer in the “Accessibility” section of the “Privacy” tab in the System Preferences. Now that we’ve installed the application we’re going to launch it for the first time. Once the DMG has been verified and opened it will open a new Finder window so we can drag Rectangle into the Applications directory. Drag application into Application Directory The first step is to download the DMG file from and then open it. Installing Rectangle is a simple process. We’re mentioning Spectacle because there are references to it in Rectangle and we wanted to give some background information on it for when we encounter those references. Spectacle is no longer in active development and Rectangle does everything Spectacle did and more so we’re recommending it now. It was usually the second application installed on any new computer. A Note About Spectacleįor years we’ve used Spectacle to manage our application windows. This post is an adaptation of Using Rectangle to Manage macOS Windows on our YouTube Channel. ![]() This post will discuss Rectangle only but if you want to support Ryan and the future development of Rectangle and Hookshot you can purchase a copy through the website. The big difference between the two appears to be the fact that we have better control over window placement using our mouse in Hookshot. At the time of this writing, there’s a 10-day free trial and then it’s $7.99 USD for a license. Ryan also develops Hookshot which is a utility built on Rectangle with some additional bells and whistles. Rectangle allows us to manage our application windows using keyboard shortcuts and mouse hotspots. Rectangle is a free and open source application built by Ryan Hanson and distributed on. By using Rectangle we can operate more effectively and in turn generate code faster. This can take up a lot of time during our day and can be compounded if we have large or multiple monitors. On top of all that, Rectangle is also open-source.As knowledge workers, we spend a lot of time managing windows on our computers. Since it's based on Spectacle, which is no longer being maintained, Rectangle is obviously a better choice, and most of the other alternatives don't offer as many features without also including a price tag. Window management just becomes much easier, especially once you get accustomed to the snap areas. Almost indispensable window management app for macOSĪfter trying out Rectangle, you'll likely find it hard to use a Mac without the app ever again. You can also use a hotkey to restore it to its original size and position ( ⌃⌥⌫ by default). Once you unsnap the window, it will return to its previous dimensions. It can be difficult to figure out all the snap areas at first, but there is a helpful guide available on the project's GitHub page. With these gestures, you can send a window to one half of the screen, maximize it, move it to a corner of the desktop, or even resize it to cover one or two-thirds of the screen area. Essentially, when you drag a window to a certain part of the screen's edge, it will be moved and resized accordingly. Snap windows to screen edgesĪ similar feature has been available on Windows since Windows 7, and it's simply too useful not to bring to macOS as well. ![]() If you need help at any time, just click the app's menu bar icon to see a list of all the configured hotkeys. Using key combinations, you can move windows to one half, one corner, or even one-third of the screen, resize them freely, move them to a different display, maximize them, and so on.Īll these keyboard shortcuts are fully customizable, so you can define combinations that are easier for you to remember. This part of the app's functionality is pretty straightforward. It adds customizable hotkeys for moving and resizing windows, in addition to a Windows-like snap assist function that works as well as the original. Rectangle can revolutionize macOS window management using both of the above-mentioned methods. If you're looking for maximum efficiency, keyboard shortcuts have always been quicker, and borrowing an established Windows feature can't hurt either. Window management in macOS isn't always the smoothest or most intuitive experience, despite the number of tools Apple has designed to help you out.
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