Michal Ždanský In OS X Lion, Apple introduced Launchpad, which had the potential to replace existing application launchers. But thanks to his clumsiness, he did not gain much popularity. QuickPick takes the best of it and adds a lot of customization options on top.
The application launcher is one of the basic utilities on Mac for me. Of course, there's the Dock, where I keep my most used apps. However, it is not inflatable, and I prefer fewer icons in it. However, for applications that I don't use that often, I need the fastest way so that I don't have to search for them if necessary.
Many users can't stand Spotlight, let alone its handy replacement Alfred. In both cases, however, you cannot do without a keyboard. For me, the ideal launcher is one that I can use only with the trackpad of my MacBook. So far I have used a great one overflow, where I had the applications sorted clearly into groups. However, the application still has errors that the developers have not been able to remove even after a year. In other words, they haven't touched the application in over a year. So I started looking for an alternative.
I tried to give it a chance Launchpad, which looks beautiful and is easy to operate, but not over Launchpad Control I failed to tame the application to my image. It soon ended its activity and is destined to lie only in the applications folder. After a little Internet research, I came across QuickPick, which charmed me with its appearance and options.
The application is based on the concept of Launchpad - it runs in the background and is displayed in full screen after activation. Then just select the application to start from the icon matrix and the launcher will disappear again. By clicking on an empty space, moving the mouse to the active corner or pressing a key I you will also download it again in the background. However, while in Launchpad apps are added automatically, in QuickPick you have to do everything manually. Although it will take a little work at the beginning, it will be worth it, because you will have everything laid out according to your wishes and you will not be bothered by applications that you do not want there.
QuickPick is not limited to applications, you can place any files on its desktops. You add all icons to the desktop using the classic file selection dialog or the drag & drop method. You can select several of them at once, then move them around according to your taste. Moving works a little differently than in Launchpad. Here, the application was again inspired by Mission Control. After pressing the "+" button, a bar with screen thumbnails will appear at the top. The move is then done by dragging the icons to the given screen, which switches the desktop to the one you selected. The advantage is that you can drag and drop multiple icons at once unlike Launchpad.
All icons line up in a grid. However, they are not equal to each other, you can place them arbitrarily two lines lower than the rest of the applications. You can also adjust the spacing of the icons in the settings according to your taste, as well as the size of the icons and inscriptions. QuickPick can also work with colored markers from the Finder. However, what I really miss are folders. You can insert a classic folder into the application, but if you want the one you know from iOS or Launchpad, you're out of luck. Hopefully the developers will include them in the next update.
If you are used to having a lot of applications in the launcher, thanks to the absence of folders, the number of screens will increase a little, especially if you use the option of free distribution of icons and optically separate groups of applications from each other by omitting rows or columns of icons. However, the surfaces are clear thanks to the possibility of naming and displaying the name in the header of the page. There is also the dot indication that we know from iOS.
Touch gestures for moving between screens work the same as Launchpad, but the option to set a gesture to launch QuickPick is missing. You can only choose a keyboard shortcut. However, this shortcoming can be circumvented by using BetterTouchTool, where you assign just that key combination to any gesture.
The application is very nimble and responds quickly, just like the native Launchpad, even with all the animations it took over from Apple's launcher. Moreover, from the graphical side, it is almost indistinguishable from its model (which is probably why Apple also pulled it from the Mac App Store earlier). In terms of functionality, however, it brings a lot of customization options that Launchpad lacks exactly, and if it weren't for the absence of folders, I don't have a single complaint against QuickPick. You can get a 15-day trial version from the developer's site; if it suits you, you can buy it for $10.
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I also like keyboard shortcuts because I type a lot, so Spotlight is perfect for me. But the app looks nifty…
It never occurred to me, Spotlight is simply the fastest choice. Maybe we'll have iMacs with a touch screen... even if, anyway, it won't go very long without a keyboard and just press two keys and then write two or three letters and press enter... a matter of two or three seconds...
I've been fine with the aforementioned Overflow for a few years now, but this one doesn't look bad at all.
I launched the Launchpad once to see what was hidden under the new icon after the update. Spotlight is just Spotlight :-))
mmm, I won't allow it on the dock. and the other applications are simply in the application folder, so no keyboard... but the truth is that I try to have order and a minimum of installed applications. I delete the ones I don't need