Annoying Expose

Question

Level 4

1,154 points

Annoying Expose

Wow. The update to Expose is annoying. Now there is no way to avoid it! Previously when you click and hold on an App in the Dock, or Option-Clicked, you got a simple pop-up menu for certain things to do. Especially useful for Option-Clicking to Force Quit a non-responding App.

Now every time you click-hold or option click-hold, it triggers Expose and the pop-up menu is not directly above the icon. It is horizontally across. So if you want to quit or force quit, you have to move the mouse off to the side to select the quit/force quit option.

It was more convenient before if you had no interest in Expose. Now it is kind of forced on you with no way to go back to the previous method.

iMac (Early 2008) Intel 24" 2.8 GHz, PowerBook G4 15" Titanium 867 MHz, Mac OS X (10.6), iMac G5 (iSight) 20" 2.1 GHz, Power Mac LC 575, PowerBook 540c, Duo 230, 2300c

Posted on Aug 31, 2009 9:09 PM

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Answer 1

solsun

Level 3

534 points

Aug 31, 2009 9:19 PM in response to Peter Hillman

On my system, a single click brings up Expose as you mention, while a 2 finger click (option-click) brings up the old "force-quit" menu.

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Answer 2

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Aug 31, 2009 9:25 PM in response to solsun

solsun wrote:
On my system, a single click brings up Expose as you mention, while a 2 finger click (option-click) brings up the old "force-quit" menu.

Correct, but it still brings up Expose, brings all the windows forward if the app was hidden, and the menu is horizontal instead of straight-up vertical. It was just more convenient to move slightly upwards and select Quit or Force Quit instead of now having to navigate the mouse to select the much smaller option to quit. The size of the menu item is considerably smaller than before. It is now only the length of the word Quit, instead of a standard menu sized item.

If the app is not open, you get the previous menu as before with a wider menu for selecting an item.

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Answer 3

Aug 31, 2009 9:29 PM in response to Peter Hillman

You must not be doing it correctly. The previous poster is right, though. Control-click/two-finger tap on an icon brings up the menu you are wanting that's vertical and does not trigger Expose. When you use two single left-clicks, though, it activates Expose and shows the horizontal menu.

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Answer 4

Aug 31, 2009 9:33 PM in response to Peter Hillman

HI Peter...

Try deleting this file.

com.apple.Dock.plist

/Users/YourName/Library/Preferences. Drag that file from the Preferences folder to the Trash, empty the Trash and restart your Mac.

Do you have Expose turned on in System Preferences?

I can see where that would be irritating.

Carolyn 🙂

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Answer 5

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Aug 31, 2009 10:00 PM in response to Ryan Cain

Ryan Cain wrote:
You must not be doing it correctly. The previous poster is right, though. Control-click/two-finger tap on an icon brings up the menu you are wanting that's vertical and does not trigger Expose. When you use two single left-clicks, though, it activates Expose and shows the horizontal menu.

The method has now changed. Previously, you could left-click and hold and bring up the contextual menu for different menu options. If you held Option while doing the same thing, you got the selection to Force Quit. Now if you left-click on an open app, you trigger Expose and the horizontal menu. If you hold Option, you still get Expose with the option to Force Quit on the horizontal menu.

The solution now is to RIGHT-click on the open app for the contextual menu without Expose, and Option-Right Click to trigger the Force Quit without Expose. You can also hold Control and left click to avoid Expose, or Option-Control Click to bring up the contextual with Force Quit without Expose.

I wasn't doing it wrong, Apple just changed the keystroke commands.

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Answer 6

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Aug 31, 2009 10:05 PM in response to Carolyn Samit

Carolyn Samit wrote:
HI Peter...

Try deleting this file.

com.apple.Dock.plist

/Users/YourName/Library/Preferences. Drag that file from the Preferences folder to the Trash, empty the Trash and restart your Mac.

Do you have Expose turned on in System Preferences?

I can see where that would be irritating.

Carolyn 🙂

Carolyn, you give wrong advice in most of your posts. There isn't an option in System Preferences to turn on or off Expose. There has never been an option. Under Leopard, the only way to avoid Expose was to disable the keyboard commands with the individual pop-up menus, which was already done, and carried over into Snow Leopard after installation.

Read my prior post. Apparently, Apple changed the keystroke commands with the dock menus to trigger Expose more often. Now it is Control-Option left click to get a standard contextual menu with the force quit option without triggering Expose.

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Answer 7

Aug 31, 2009 11:00 PM in response to Peter Hillman

Yes, you are right Peter, you're weren't doing it wrong, you just didn't know what to do. 🙂

The Control-click for a contextual menu has pretty much always been around. I'd suggest you try that elsewhere in other apps, too. It certainly worked on the Dock in previous versions of Mac OS X. And yes, it does not activate Exposé.

And yes, the two-finger tap (which is not double-click) is the equivalent of secondary click (aka right-click), which is what Control-click does. You tap only once and you do it with two finger tips. There's an option in the Mouse preferences. I find it much simpler than having to hold a key at the same time.

I think you got left out of the loop about the Control-click ability, as many people do since the single button can mislead people to think there isn't a way to get a contextual menu system wide. Hopefully this smooths things out for you in other apps, too.

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Answer 8

Aug 31, 2009 11:05 PM in response to Peter Hillman

Actually, you don't have to hold Option while clicking. You can press it after the menu appears and the menu will dynamically change. Let go of the Option key and the menu will change back.

Try the same thing in the Menu bar. When you have menu open, press one of the modifier keys, or a combination. Some of the options in a menu have variations and will be dynamically revealed as you press and release the modifier keys, as well as the shortcuts for the commands, if any.

Explore and have fun. 🙂

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Answer 9

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Aug 31, 2009 11:14 PM in response to Community User

I am aware of all the various options with holding Control and pressing option to get the new menus on the fly. However, I never found it convenient to use the Control key when you get the same result by clicking and holding the mouse on a Dock icon. Why give yourself an extra step? With the Mighty Mouse, control clicking was no longer necessary with the right-mouse button option.

Anyway, problem solved since I figured out the new command key structure to avoid invoking Expose. Of course Apple doesn't bother to release notes on these changes.

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Answer 10

Sep 1, 2009 12:09 AM in response to Peter Hillman

I think you missed the point. It's not new. The Control-click has always been around and has always been option for obtaining the menu on the Dock instantaneously (i.e. without waiting).

And the two-finger tap doesn't even need a key press, and so it's even more convenient than either using the Control key or waiting with a single click. Not to mention, the two-finger tap works the same everywhere, while waiting for menu to appear only works in a few places.

Using some form of secondary click will immediately bring up the contextual menu, even on the Dock, and it always has. Nothing new. Sure, holding and waiting worked, too, and I used to use that a lot before the two-finger tap for the trackpads came about.

I view the holding and waiting to be as unattractive as using the Control key on the keyboard, and so that's probably why I don't relate to your preference for that instead of using the secondary button on a mouse or the two-finger tap on a trackpad which are instantaneous without waiting and only one-click.

Do what you like, but continuing to claim the secondary click and it's variations are new ways to get the menu is erroneous. What did change was the waiting and holding now also activates Exposé. Perhaps you do mean that is the only thing that is new, but the way you are phrasing it is suggesting everything has changed with the modifier keys and mouse-clicks for the Dock. It hasn't. The menu by itself was always available in these other ways.

It's okay if you didn't notice, none of us notice everything. I'm just trying to make sure you understand how it has been, and trying not to contradict your personal experience. Does any of this seem fit with your experiences when look at in this way? Or does it still seem like everything changed?

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Answer 11

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Sep 1, 2009 12:27 AM in response to Community User

I know the Control-Click has always been around, but when Apple released the Mighty Mouse with two button clicking, you no longer had to Control-Click. I also don't need to Control-Click when click and hold did the same thing on a dock icon. If you read my footer, you would realize that I am NOT using a MacBook! So your two-finger tapping is meaningless in my situation.

I didn't miss the point, Apple changed the way the menus work in the Dock to force Expose. I find Expose completely pointless.

Since you never used the Click and hold method on Dock Icons, you find it to be erroneous when it is not. Click and hold in Leopard, you get the standard contextual menu. Click and hold in Snow Leopard, you now get Expose. There is no way to turn it off. Now you have to use Control and Control-Option for the contextual menus and modifier for Force Quit. Or, you can right-click and Option Right-Click for the contextual menus.

My original post stated that the Click and Hold method for a contextual menu on a Dock icon changed, and forced Expose. You didn't read. I don't blame you, because you had no clue that I wasn't using a MacBook either.

Problem is solved, I figured out how to avoid invoking Expose.

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Answer 12

Sep 1, 2009 12:40 AM in response to Peter Hillman

Hmm, I've very likely over explained it and made myself unclear. Getting you to understand what I was saying doesn't really matter in this case. What's important is that you have found something that works for you. Congratulations, and especially so since you worked it out on your own.

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Answer 13

Sep 8, 2009 5:34 PM in response to Peter Hillman

I had to register to reply to this thread. Could you please tell me what you didn't to fix this issue? The Dock Expose is driving me crazy.

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Answer 14

Sep 8, 2009 8:50 PM in response to Peter Hillman

Peter, Carolyn is just trying to help...Give her a break.

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Answer 15

Peter Hillman Author

Level 4

1,154 points

Sep 8, 2009 9:45 PM in response to Mulderscully

Mulderscully wrote:
Peter, Carolyn is just trying to help...Give her a break.

You can't be serious? She has no idea what she is talking about in ALL of her posts! She is a disservice to this forum. Great advice she provides...except there isn't an option in System Prefs to turn off Expose...there never has been. Read more of her posts, you will see that the advice she gives has nothing to do with the question being asked.

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