Mac Os X Adjust An App's Window Size

Sep 28, 2018  Mac OS X is a popular operating system famous for its smooth user experience. And adjust your window size to your liking by clicking and dragging them with your mouse.

On your Mac, do any of the following in a window: Maximize a window: Press and hold the Option key while you click the green maximize button in the top-left corner of an app window. To return to the previous window size, Option-click the button again. You can also double-click an app’s title bar to maximize the window (as long as the option to do so is set to “zoom” in Dock preferences). Mac OS X Step 1. If you use Mac OS, the procedure is almost exactly the same. I’ll make this a little shorter for time’s sake. I know that some users have never used the command prompt (learn more about the OSX prompt), so here’s how to find it: just search for Terminal app.Step 2.

Sometimes, a Mac OS X Window gets too big on the screen to see the resize control on the bottom right. Worse, with iTunes, the green button doesn’t auto-resize the window; rather it creates a mini player. Here’s how to fix the size of an iTunes (or any other app’s) window when it seems you can’t access that resize control.

One of the so-called UI features of Mac OS X is that windows can only be resized from the diagonally ribbed control at the bottom right of a window. Occasionally, this can cause frustration, especially with iTunes.

The Window resize control

1. Two Monitor Trick. The first thing to try, of course, is if you have a dual monitor set up. If iTunes is on the smaller screen of, say, a MacBook, just drag it to the larger screen. That should reveal the resize control. Then you can resize and move iTunes back to the smaller screen.

But you already knew that. Let’s tackle something tougher.

2. The Option Key Trick. Let’s take a close look at an iTunes Window on a single display that somehow got too big to access the resize control. This can happen under rare circumstances.

Window edge out of bounds

Normally, you would click the green button at the top of iTunes to set the window size equal to the display size. Doing that in iTunes, however, produces the mini player. That’s nice to have sometimes, but of no help to us here in our dilemma.

The mini player

Instead, first get the dock out of the way if you have it wide and at the bottom.* It can get in the way, and you might end up clicking in the dock instead of the size control. Move it, for example, to the side. Then hold down the Option key on the keyboard while you click the green button at the top of iTunes, and you’ll get the desired effect.

Size control revealed!

Now you can resize the iTunes window to your satisfaction. Then move your dock back. However, I’ve occasionally had a poorly behaved app fail to respond to the green button properly. The resize control remained stubbornly hidden. There’s a way out that always works.

3. System Preferences Trick. If you get into that nasty mode I just described and find yourself helpless with a misbehaved app, go to System Preferences -> Displays and set the screen resolution down one setting. Like this:

System Preferences -> Displays. Size control revealed!

That will force the edge of the misbehaved window to be revealed. (Again, you may have to move the dock out of the way.) Resize to a smaller window, then change the Display setting back to its normal setting.

With this bag of tricks, you should never again have to be faced with a window that got too big for your display. Do you have any of your own tricks that you’ve discovered?

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Mac os x adjust an app

Mac Os X Adjust An App's Window Size 3

* Apple Menu -> Dock -> Position on Left

App Icon

Beautiful, compelling icons are a fundamental part of the macOS user experience. Far from being merely decorative, icons play an essential role in communicating with users. To look at home in macOS, an app icon should be meticulously designed, informative, and aesthetically pleasing. It should convey the main purpose of the app and hint at the user experience.

Consider giving your app icon a realistic, unique shape. In macOS, app icons can have the shape of the objects they depict. A unique outline focuses attention on the object and makes it easy to recognize the icon at a glance. If necessary, you can use a circular shape to encapsulate a set of images. Avoid using the rounded rectangle shape that people associate with iOS app icons.

Design a recognizable icon. People shouldn’t have to analyze the icon to figure out what it represents. For example, the Mail app icon uses a stamp, which is universally associated with mail. Take time to design an engaging abstract icon that artistically represents your app’s purpose.

Embrace simplicity. Find a single element that captures the essence of your app and express that element in a simple, unique shape. Add details cautiously. If an icon’s content or shape is overly complex, the details can be hard to discern, especially at smaller sizes.

Mac Os X Adjust An App's Window Size Chart

Provide a single focus point. Design an icon with a single, centered point that immediately captures attention and clearly identifies your app.

iOS icons

macOS icons

If you’re creating a macOS version of an iOS app, design a new version of your app icon. Your macOS app icon should be recognizable, but not an exact copy of your iOS app icon. In particular, the macOS icon shouldn’t use the same rounded rectangle shape that the iOS icon uses. App Store, Maps, Notes, and Reminders provide icons for macOS and iOS that are recognizable, yet distinct from one another. Reexamine the way you use images and metaphors in your iOS app icon. For example, if the iOS app icon shows a tree inside the rectangle, consider using the tree itself for your macOS app icon.

Mac Os X Adjust An App

Use color judiciously. Don’t add color just to make the icon brighter. Also, smooth gradients typically work better than sharp delineations of color.

Mac Os X Adjust An App's Window Size Calculator

Avoid mixing actual text, fake text, and wavy lines that suggest text. If you want text in your icon but you don’t want to draw attention to the words, start with actual text and make it hard to read by shrinking it. This technique also results in sharper details on high-resolution displays. If your app is localized, prefer fake text or wavy lines over actual text in a specific language.

Avoid including photos, screenshots, or interface elements. Photographic details can be very hard to see at small sizes. Screenshots are too complex for an app icon and don’t generally help communicate your app’s purpose. Interface elements in an icon are misleading and confusing. If you want to base your icon on photos, screenshots, or interface elements, design idealized versions that emphasize specific details you want people to notice.

Don’t use replicas of Apple hardware products. Apple products are copyrighted and can’t be reproduced in your icons or images. In general, avoid displaying replicas of devices, because hardware designs tend to change frequently and can make your icon look dated.

Perspective and Textures

Design an icon with appropriate perspective and a realistic drop shadow. In general, an app icon should depict an object as if viewed through an imaginary camera that’s facing the object, positioned just below center, and tilted slightly upward. This camera should be positioned far enough away that the icon is nearly isometric, without appearing distorted. To achieve a realistic drop shadow, imagine a light source that’s also facing the object, but is positioned just above center and tilted slightly downward.

Rotation

Consider tilting your icon after rendering it. A small amount of rotation can help people distinguish your app icon from documents and folders. A rotation of 9 degrees tends to work well.

Use only black in your icon’s drop shadow. In some contexts, such as Cover Flow view mode in Finder, app icons are displayed against a dark background. If an icon’s drop shadow uses colors other than black, the drop shadow can appear more like a glow.

Portray real objects accurately. Icons that represent real objects should look like they’re made of real materials and have real mass. Realistic icons should accurately replicate the characteristics of substances like fabric, glass, paper, and metal in order to convey an object’s weight and feel. For example, the Preview app icon incorporates glass effectively in its magnification tool.

Consider adding a slight glow just inside the edges of your icon. If your app icon includes a dark reflective surface, such as glass or metal, add an inner glow to make the icon stand out and prevent it from appearing to dissolve into dark backgrounds.

App Icon Attributes

All app icons should adhere to the following specifications.

Mac Os X Adjust An App's Window Sizes

AttributeValue
FormatPNG
Color spacesRGB
LayersFlattened with transparency as appropriate
Resolution@1x and @2x (see Image Size and Resolution)
ShapeSquare canvas; allow transparency to define the icon shape

Don't provide app icons in ICNS or JPEG format. Add de-interlaced PNG files in the app icon fields of your Xcode project's asset catalog.

App Icon Sizes

Mac os x adjust an app

Your app icon is displayed in many places, including in Finder, the Dock, Launchpad, and the App Store. To ensure that your app icon looks great everywhere people see it, provide it in the following sizes.

Icon size (@1x)Icon size (@2x)
512px × 512px (512pt × 512pt @1x)1024px × 1024px (512pt × 512pt @2x)
256px × 256px (256pt × 256pt @1x)512px × 512px (256pt × 256pt @2x)
128px × 128px (128pt × 128pt @1x)256px × 256px (128pt × 128pt @2x)
32px × 32px (32pt × 32pt @1x)64px × 64px (32pt × 32pt @2x)
16px × 16px (16pt × 16pt @1x)32px × 32px (16pt × 16pt @2x)

Simplify your icon at smaller sizes. There are fewer pixels to draw as icon size decreases. In your smaller icons, remove unnecessary features and exaggerate primary features so they remain clear. Even when a high-resolution size matches the pixel dimensions of a standard size, you should still consider simplifying the smaller rendered image. For example, the 128pt × 128pt @2x icon appears smaller onscreen than the 256pt × 256pt @1x icon, even though both icons have the same number of pixels. Visually smaller icons shouldn't appear drastically different from their larger counterparts, however. Any variation should be subtle so the icon remains visually consistent when displayed in different environments.

Keep high-resolution and standard-resolution artwork consistent. For example, the 256pt × 256pt @1x and 256pt × 256pt @2x images should look the same. Some people use multiple displays with different resolutions. When they drag your icon between their displays, the icon's appearance shouldn’t suddenly change.