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Dual monitors and fullscreen fiasco, is there a work around?

If you have a dual monitor set-up and Lion and you have tried the fullscreen setting, then you know what is wrong.


Might as well not even have the second monitor...Lion completely takes over both monitors and only allows you to have one app up. Pointless, and no way to stop it. (A preference setting in System Preferences under Displays would have been the right thing to do).


I know I don't have to use fullscreen, but it was nice to be able to view a Quicktime movie fullscreen on one monitor while continuing to work on the other. Lion makes that impossible.


Anyone know of a work-around or fix for the fullscreen/dual monitor fiasco?


Thanks for all help.

Posted on Jul 21, 2011 2:07 PM

Reply
816 replies

Jul 23, 2012 3:14 PM in response to Richard Olpin

Ruh Roh!

You posted about Mountain Lion -- there's still 8 hours until the release!

Rooby rooby roo to the rescue to delete your post.

Thank FSM for Apple forum mods 😀


All kidding aside, I wish more tech blogs would cover this issue.

While Apple prob. doesn't listen to the feedback and remarks posted here -- they do pay attention to the tech blogs (esp. ones owned by major news corporations like AOL \ Gawker) -- remember Antennagate?

Jul 23, 2012 4:39 PM in response to NiqueXyZ

Oh, Mountain Lion, I think I'll give it a miss as it appears to be an annual tax that doesn't fix existing problems such as full screen operation.


Given how hideous the experience has been with Lion for proper power users, not the "I don't know one end of a PC from an iPhone" brigade, I can't see how Mountain Lion is going to do anything other than make the whole experience worse.


Once bitten, twice shy.


And I like 17" MBPs. I must really be in a different target market.

Jul 23, 2012 6:54 PM in response to Glennny2Lappies

>> I like 17" MBPs. I must really be in a different target market


I resemble that remark. I have a 17" MBP for work and I love it (I don't travel much). I carry it to the lab and my office and to conferences and home and back. I can do a lot of work on that big screen! In my job I need to have multiple windows open simultaneously. I think there are a lot of power users like me. The sad thing is there is no option to enable other monitors or not.


But it is true about the target market. Computeres when first invented where about improving productivity but now, unfortunately, that has become a small part of the market. The young kids don't understand that. This software feels to me as if developed by a young manager/team who haven't had to use computers much at work to be more cost-effective against rival companies. That will change if Apple keeps going this direction.


I finally bit the bullet and moved over to Lion 100%, I'm using Cinch (App Store, $7) for a "psueudo" full screen mode rather than Mac-OS.


As much as I loath this behavor of the OS, and what feels to me like marching backward technologically I did get a reality check today. I had to boot Windows 7 under Parallels to run a CAD program, and while there are a few things I like about Win7, I was very grateful to be able to go back to the MacOS.

Jul 23, 2012 8:53 PM in response to Jerry Dalton1

Hallo - as far as I can see, it is depending how the application is handling the full screen mode. iPhoto is doing Full Screen on second (attached) screen, MS Office only expands on my primary display of the MBP.

However, some of the complaints I am not understanding. The purpose of Full Screen is to concentrate on ONE application - so, it is only logic to show the Canvas on the second screen. Of course, it should be the primary or secondary display.

Then, for your purpose, there is still the small green button, so you can expand the window over the full screen and the second display is not showing a Canvas. So, what you want ?


In regards the comment to run Parallels - in my believe, Parallels is great if you have to run Windows on the Mac.

It is better than to re-boot the whole machine and then select a different operating system.

So I do not understand that comment either, sorry.


Ronald

Jul 23, 2012 9:33 PM in response to ronaldfromdresden

>However, some of the complaints I am not understanding. The purpose of Full Screen is to concentrate on ONE >application - so, it is only logic to show the Canvas on the second screen.


Sometimes there is a need to concentrate on ONE >application. However efficent use of the computer sometimes requires one application on one monitor and multiple applications on the other monitor. It is logically an OS function to do this, not an application function. This function is not available under the Lion OS. It was available using the Snow Leopard OS.

Jul 23, 2012 11:03 PM in response to Jerry Dalton1

Hallo - I am sorry that I misunderstood, Jerry. Actually, the ability of Parallels to handle Windows as virtual machine was one of the criterias for me to switch to a Mac in 2009 and put the company laptop in a corner. It was never switched on since then :-)


Yes, I understand also the need to have multiple applications especially with two monitors. I use also the different desktops in combination to that: two monitors and six desktops.

So, usually, I push the green/maximize button and the effect is for me the same. I am not using so often the Lion function because the upper command line ( means where FILES EDIT ... is located) is disappearing , which confuses me :-)

Ronald

Jul 23, 2012 11:58 PM in response to ronaldfromdresden

ronaldfromdresden wrote:


The purpose of Full Screen is to concentrate on ONE application - so, it is only logic to show the Canvas on the second screen. Of course, it should be the primary or secondary display.


Hi, Ronald.


For me, full-screen mode is about making best use of available space on a display. If I want to concentrate on only one application, I'll only look at/use one application. I do not need or want the operating system to hide everything else and make it impossible for me to view or work with it.

Jul 24, 2012 2:05 PM in response to geetduggal

After 37 pages, I still can't find the solution for this. The 3 fingers tricks doesn't work on my machine. (Mine is 10.7.4).

Is there any terminal command to completely disable this stupid full screen behavior?


Apple, I don't see the point to make a fullscreen viw a free distraction mode. The fabric texture itself is my huge distraction.

If I need no distraction I can close those windows by myself. You don't have to force people with that.


Please please please fix this feature on the next version or AT LEAST Give an option for this.

Dual monitors and fullscreen fiasco, is there a work around?

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