Mac OS X Services need not fail to deliver
How cool is it to select a piece of text in a browser and email it, or skype it off - in one move! Or have the computer read some text to you, or summarize it or....
Well, Mac OS X Services is able to do just that - take any piece of text from one application and put it straight to work in any another application. Unfortunately, it is an under developed aspect of Mac OS X, and needs some work.
I read an article in Daring Fireball and recalled an affair in the past with Services. This isn't a particularly amusing post, but I really need to share my contribution to solving an issue that would make Services rule the world!
As you see from the screen shot, once you have selected some text to perform some magic with Services, activating Services is a bit Windowsesque. Apple haven't got over the traditional menu item structure.
It isn't exactly a stone age solution, far from it, but launching Services in its current format, it is barely faster than drag 'n drop or copy and paste.
Services is an even niftier way to get work done than drag 'n drop, which in itself is a very flexible alternative to copy and paste. Currently on a Mac, neither Services nor Drag 'n Drop are super sharp. For instance, drag is universal, but drop isn't!
You can drag text from Word, or in this case, a notepad, and drop it onto a new email window - as long as both applications are open on the desktop.
You can drag a photo onto the photoshop icon and it opens Photoshop
You can't drag text onto the Mail icon and open a new email. Der. The solution is to drag the text onto the the desktop. It will be saved as a file which you then drag onto the Mail icon. Mail opens and you drop the file straight into a new email. That part of the operation is kind of cool, but overall drag 'n drop is inconsistent. Try the same procedure with Skype - you can't - which is annoying.
Anyway, that kind of drag and drop is soo 2002.
There is a 2005 alternative to conventional drag 'n drop! Press F9 and you see every window open on your desktop. Far from eye candy, the Exposé ´féa´túré is a clever way to move info from application to application.
As an example, to move any text from one open app to another, all you do is select the text from the notepad (or Word or Firefox), drag it an inch or two, and then hold.
Press F9. Spot the the Mail thumbnail on the screen, for instance, and continue dragging the text you have in limbo, until you have it hovering over the mail window. Hold it steady... When the Mail window opens, you drop the text into the email window.
This is a pretty cool way to transfer text from one app to another, but again, only works if the destination app, Mail in this case, is already open.
Services can not only take the text and open an application with it, but it will launch the function you want to perform too - in one single action. So you can copy text from Firefox, launch Services and in one move, Services will open Mail, create a new email and paste the text straight into it. You can use the same text and Services to open Skype and create a Skype message.
This is totally awesome, but as I showed above, it is a bit more klutzy to activate right now than it need be.
In my opinion, this graphic shows the next generation way to make Services a killer easy option! Make Services options an extension of what is already available in OS X dock.
Basically you drag the text from your notepad or Word or whatever and hold it over the Skype icon in the dock. (The top 4 options are current Services options that I borrowed from the Services menu!) Drop the text onto one of the Services options and ... Mwahaha, how totally efficient is that!
Apple, kings of simple, currently have a long way to go to make the Services function as user-friendly as it needs to be, so it can become mainstream and must-have. What do you think to this solution? Is it technically possible? Or more to the point, is it a slicker solution than tear-off menus, or contextual menus like Icecoffee?
Normal service will now be resumed!
Well, Mac OS X Services is able to do just that - take any piece of text from one application and put it straight to work in any another application. Unfortunately, it is an under developed aspect of Mac OS X, and needs some work.
I read an article in Daring Fireball and recalled an affair in the past with Services. This isn't a particularly amusing post, but I really need to share my contribution to solving an issue that would make Services rule the world!
Services is a fantastic option with a long-winded shortcut
As you see from the screen shot, once you have selected some text to perform some magic with Services, activating Services is a bit Windowsesque. Apple haven't got over the traditional menu item structure.
It isn't exactly a stone age solution, far from it, but launching Services in its current format, it is barely faster than drag 'n drop or copy and paste.
Drag 'n drop flop
Services is an even niftier way to get work done than drag 'n drop, which in itself is a very flexible alternative to copy and paste. Currently on a Mac, neither Services nor Drag 'n Drop are super sharp. For instance, drag is universal, but drop isn't!
You can drag text from Word, or in this case, a notepad, and drop it onto a new email window - as long as both applications are open on the desktop.
You can drag a photo onto the photoshop icon and it opens Photoshop
You can't drag text onto the Mail icon and open a new email. Der. The solution is to drag the text onto the the desktop. It will be saved as a file which you then drag onto the Mail icon. Mail opens and you drop the file straight into a new email. That part of the operation is kind of cool, but overall drag 'n drop is inconsistent. Try the same procedure with Skype - you can't - which is annoying.
Anyway, that kind of drag and drop is soo 2002.
Exposé for drag 'n drop
There is a 2005 alternative to conventional drag 'n drop! Press F9 and you see every window open on your desktop. Far from eye candy, the Exposé ´féa´túré is a clever way to move info from application to application.
As an example, to move any text from one open app to another, all you do is select the text from the notepad (or Word or Firefox), drag it an inch or two, and then hold.
Press F9. Spot the the Mail thumbnail on the screen, for instance, and continue dragging the text you have in limbo, until you have it hovering over the mail window. Hold it steady... When the Mail window opens, you drop the text into the email window.
This is a pretty cool way to transfer text from one app to another, but again, only works if the destination app, Mail in this case, is already open.
Services stomps all over drag 'n drop
Services can not only take the text and open an application with it, but it will launch the function you want to perform too - in one single action. So you can copy text from Firefox, launch Services and in one move, Services will open Mail, create a new email and paste the text straight into it. You can use the same text and Services to open Skype and create a Skype message.
This is totally awesome, but as I showed above, it is a bit more klutzy to activate right now than it need be.
Ed's way to sexify services
In my opinion, this graphic shows the next generation way to make Services a killer easy option! Make Services options an extension of what is already available in OS X dock.
Basically you drag the text from your notepad or Word or whatever and hold it over the Skype icon in the dock. (The top 4 options are current Services options that I borrowed from the Services menu!) Drop the text onto one of the Services options and ... Mwahaha, how totally efficient is that!
Apple, kings of simple, currently have a long way to go to make the Services function as user-friendly as it needs to be, so it can become mainstream and must-have. What do you think to this solution? Is it technically possible? Or more to the point, is it a slicker solution than tear-off menus, or contextual menus like Icecoffee?
Normal service will now be resumed!
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