Briefly: Snow Leopard Finder icons support QuickLook

[AppleInsider]

Apple's upcoming Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard operating system will reportedly see support for the company's QuickLook technology extended from specialized preview windows to Finder icons themselves.

One person familiar with the pre-release software notes that hovering the mouse pointer over an audio file in Snow Leopard's Finder will trigger a triangular 'play' button to appear on the icon itself.

Clicking the button will allow the audio file to play within the Finder, but without opening a specialized preview window. The audio file will continue to play uninterrupted even if the user brings an application to the forefront, but will halt when another file or window selection is made from within the Finder.

As the audio file is playing, a ring will form around the play button and slowly fill to indicate the length of the track that remains. A similar technique works for video files, displaying the video within the icon itself.

For both audio and video files, Snow Leopard testers users can currently press the spacebar to alternate between the icon preview and the traditional Quick Look view as it exists in 10.5 Leopard without any playback hiccups.

For other files, such as Pages, Keynote and Number documents (and their Microsoft equivalents), similar buttons appear on Snow Leopard icons to let users flick between pages or slides in icon view.



The latter features don't appear to be much use, people familiar with the software say, unless the user has their Finder's icon size cranked all the way up.

Separately, it's reported that another change in Snow Leopard will require users to enter their administrative password twice as part of any software install process: once when the installer application launches, and again right before the actual install process begins.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[SpamSandwich]

Multi-touch UI for everything. I'm over it already.

[probably]

What's the justifiable rationale for two password prompts?

[ltcommander.data]

I'm not quite sure how useful these new features are. When I'm previewing things I generally want a separate window with a controller so I can scrub through it, since the beginning few seconds aren't always enough to identify it. I guess there is nothing wrong with adding new features if older features aren't taken away, but they could probably spend time on more useful things though. But perhaps these features fit other people's usage patterns more.

And the double authentication, I hope it doesn't turn into Vista's UAC that Apple is always making fun of.

[Ringo]

The icon previews might actually work fairly well with higher-dpi displays. The image won't be large, but the resolution could be high enough.

[-cj-]

we've been able to preview audio and video files without opening anything for years now if you are viewing your finder in column view. i have too many files to use icon view so i will probably never use this feature.

[gastroboy]

There are downsides to all this interactivity as I am already finding in Leopard.

I have a lot of previewable graphics and when they appear in a folder, even in list view, the Finder spends a lot of time previewing them in the icons. This interferes with and cuts out mouse selections as well as typing and can be quite irritating, as is the slowed down scrolling.

Also the support seems intermittent, with some icons not previewing, or appearing hashed out just like I remember damaged icons appeared in the Classic OS.

My machines is not slow either, it is a brand new 24" iMac 2.8GHz with 2Gb of RAM.

Despite these shortcomings, the one thing I really appreciate in Leopard is these previews and coverflow. I have comparatively little need for cataloging software now. It is still needed to zero me on a collection but once I can see the files I can then make my selection directly in the Finder.

[minderbinder]

This doesn't sound useful.

Earlier versions of OSX had better audio preview, in column view you actually got a mini transport including a timeline bar you could drag. Now you need to open quicklook for that, it's a bit of a step back.

It's also annoying to not have a way to play and pause files in quicklook - obviously spacebar is taken, but some way to control playback from the keyboard would be nice. As would a preference to have audio and video files keep playing when you switch away from the finder to another app.

[mdriftmeyer]

Originally Posted by probably

What's the justifiable rationale for two password prompts?

Think about security, applescript, regular expressions, stored shadow passwords, sudo and bots.

[guinness]

Why two passwords? That's likely directly out of Microsoft's playbook of annoying users with UAC...will it stil also ask then, that before launching said newly installed app for the first time, are you really sure you want to?

[mstone]

I'm starting to really dislike icon previews. I prefer the old application icons because I find that I am constantly looking around the desktop to find a file I just saved, be it a PDF or JPG - they all start to look the same after awhile and are mostly too small to be useful in identifying the content anyway.

[macFanDave]

From the example given, it seems that Snow Leopard won't include a Taste Filter.

My Sharona?!? What, couldn't find your MP3 of Billy, Don't Be a Hero?

[iVlad]

Originally Posted by mstone

I'm starting to really dislike icon previews. I prefer the old application icons because I find that I am constantly looking around the desktop to find a file I just saved, be it a PDF or JPG - they all start to look the same after awhile and are mostly too small to be useful in identifying the content anyway.

Perhaps organizing files into folders will help.

[probably]

Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer

Think about security, applescript, regular expressions, stored shadow passwords, sudo and bots.

That doesn't answer anything. None of those things - if touched in any given installer - are visible. The OP describes it as if it asks twice always now, whether it's a pointless installer moving a *.app to /Applications for you or something more extensive.

[Lafe]

Originally Posted by -cj-

we've been able to preview audio and video files without opening anything for years now if you are viewing your finder in column view. i have too many files to use icon view so i will probably never use this feature.

I'm like you -- I vastly prefer column view. But I can still see this being useful for icons that I have out on my desktop.

I've always wondered why on video files, though, the icon takes the appearance of some random frame towards the beginning of the file. Many times it's a blank screen (black rectangle icon! Oooh!). I'd like to click the play symbol, find a scene that means something, and make that the "key frame" that sticks with the icon. That would be pretty cool. Like making a photo in an event its key photo in iPhoto.

[JoeDRC]

I can see someone making a big deal out of entering the password twice...

[noirdesir]

Originally Posted by minderbinder

Earlier versions of OSX had better audio preview, in column view you actually got a mini transport including a timeline bar you could drag. Now you need to open quicklook for that, it's a bit of a step back.

Well, hitting the space bar is not really more complicated then clicking on a play button. And having to start playing something before you can drag the timeline is a really minor inconvenience, not at least given that the timeline in Quickview is much larger, making a precise positioning rather easier.

It's also annoying to not have a way to play and pause files in quicklook - obviously spacebar is taken, but some way to control playback from the keyboard would be nice.

Except that spacebar still does exactly this, it pauses and resumes playing the audio.

If you want to keep audio and video playing after switching to another application, simply double-click the file instead of using the spacebar (you can set iTunes to not copy files into its library you open (play) with it).

[mstone]

Originally Posted by iVlad

Perhaps organizing files into folders will help.

Thanks for the tip. Perhaps you didn't realize that the desktop is a folder.

[bobmarleypeople]

Originally Posted by macFanDave

My Sharona?!? What, couldn't find your MP3 of Billy, Don't Be a Hero?

That's the Polysics version of My Sharona just so you know. Anyways, keep your music tastes to yourself :P

By the way, I'm the person who reported this little feature.

I'm a little miffed they didn't put my name down anywhere in the article ¬_¬ but ah well. I haven't found any more features except for a couple more items in right click menus to make changing view options easier. Nothing exciting. When I get the next developer release, I'll let you all know if I find anything (perhaps a preview of QuickTime X is in the cards....). I can't see Apple not bothering with any new features. I'm betting they're telling people that it won't have any new features, then announce some really big ones nearer release. I can see the Stevenote now....

Originally Posted by Steve Jobs in the future

Now, you'll remember earlier this year we announced Mac OS X 10.6: Snow Leopard and how it would simply be a huge performance increase as we incorporate 64-bit and multiple core processors. However, we may have a lied a bit there....

How will that Stevenote end? Only time will tell......

<cue x-files music>

EDIT: Oh, another thing I noticed is that they fixed the folder opening animation when you open a folder or a drive from the desktop. When you first do this after booting into OS X Leopard, the window appears, half animates and jutters a bit. Snow Leopard opens the window with a smooth animation straight off without a problem. I'm glad they've fixed this as it's been annoying me in Leopard.

[minderbinder]

Originally Posted by noirdesir

Well, hitting the space bar is not really more complicated then clicking on a play button. And having to start playing something before you can drag the timeline is a really minor inconvenience, not at least given that the timeline in Quickview is much larger, making a precise positioning rather easier.

I'm not complaining about quickview. I just don't get why they had to make the preview in column view a little bit worse - is there any reason they couldn't just add quickview and leave the column view preview alone?

Also, why don't finder previews of audio and video files show durations?

Originally Posted by noirdesir

Except that spacebar still does exactly this, it pauses and resumes playing the audio.

Spacebar doesn't just stop it, it closes the preview window. Not a big deal for audio, but kind of annoying if you want to stop on a frame of video. A way to easily go frame by frame like in QT apps would be nice as well.

Originally Posted by noirdesir

If you want to keep audio and video playing after switching to another application, simply double-click the file instead of using the spacebar (you can set iTunes to not copy files into its library you open (play) with it).

Sure, that works. But it would still be easier to let it keep playing in the finder - I wish they'd add that as an option.

Quickview also doesn't let you start an audio file playing and continue working in other finder windows while it plays - another step back from what was a pretty cool preview feature in 10.4 and earlier.

[MartiNZ]

Not to mention that all the work with spotlight and such technologies, even the ones being discussed here, seem heavily aimed at going past the file folder concept. Personally I don't like the way Apple seems to keep changing its mind, 'icon view is dead', 'ooh but now column view is less useful, let's make icon view exciting again, and icons that fill the screen!'

Seriously though, I can't think of much that I'd less rather they were spending time on. If we had stories about say they had finally fixed graphical corruption on recent machines, or the iTunes dashboard widget actually works, or that they sorted out sleep so it's as reliable as before ... Then I'd be cheering .

[internetworld7]

I'm very disappointed to hear this. Snow Leopard is not suppose to have any new features. It's suppose to be a spit'n image of Leopard, just faster and advanced technologies under the hood.

[mstone]

Originally Posted by minderbinder

Also, why don't finder previews of audio and video files show durations?

They do if you check the checkbox 'show item info' in the folder view options, if that's what you meant.

[ouragan]

With quad-core Centrino 2 mobile processors available on October 15, 2008, Apple could have a bonanza of a Christmas season with quad-core iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros. The big question then becomes:

When is Snow Leopard going to be ready?

If Snow Leopard could be ready by MacWorld 2009, then it would be reason enough to postpone buying a brand new Mac until Snow Leopard is launched. But if Snow Leopard is delayed until next June, then the decision becomes more difficult to make.

[ak1808]

Separately, it's reported that another change in Snow Leopard will require users to enter their administrative password twice as part of any software install process: once when the installer application launches, and again right before the actual install process begins.

Isn't it getting time for a "Mac OS X App Store"?
One place to shop, automatic install and automatic updates... the iPhone shows the way.
Could be optional, for developers who dislike the 70% deal.

[elroth]

Originally Posted by bobmarleypeople

I'm Peter Shillito, director of Desu Enterprises and game reviewer, news writer and advertising manager for Visual-Novels.net. I'm also the person who reported this little feature.

I'm a little miffed they didn't put my name down anywhere in the article ¬_¬ but ah well.

I think they were trying to save you from the wrath of Steve - revealing unannounced features is not nice (if you're a developer under the NDA).

[crees!]

Separately, it's reported that another change in Snow Leopard will require users to enter their administrative password twice as part of any software install process: once when the installer application launches, and again right before the actual install process begins.

I had to do just this yesterday when installing the HP Printer Drivers update from Software Update.

[hezekiahb]

Originally Posted by mstone

I'm starting to really dislike icon previews. I prefer the old application icons because I find that I am constantly looking around the desktop to find a file I just saved, be it a PDF or JPG - they all start to look the same after awhile and are mostly too small to be useful in identifying the content anyway.

I really like the idea of icon preview if it also displayed a tiny overlay of the file type icon.

[dagamer34]

Originally Posted by ouragan

With quad-core Centrino 2 mobile processors available on October 15, 2008, Apple could have a bonanza of a Christmas season with quad-core iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros. The big question then becomes:

When is Snow Leopard going to be ready?

If Snow Leopard could be ready by MacWorld 2009, then it would be reason enough to postpone buying a brand new Mac until Snow Leopard is launched. But if Snow Leopard is delayed until next June, then the decision becomes more difficult to make.

Delayed until next June? What made you think it was coming out during MacWorld in the first place? Apple is going to launch Snow Leopard around WWDC 2009. At WWDC 2008, they said that the release would be ready in about a year.

There's no way they're releasing an OS in January if the first developer preview was in June. That's setting yourself up for a Vista, my friend!

[minderbinder]

Originally Posted by mstone

They do if you check the checkbox 'show item info' in the folder view options, if that's what you meant.

Where is that, I can't find it? You don't mean "show view options", do you?

[Ireland]

Originally Posted by probably

what's the justifiable rationale for two password prompts?

rdf..

[bobmarleypeople]

Originally Posted by elroth

I think they were trying to save you from the wrath of Steve - revealing unannounced features is not nice (if you're a developer under the NDA).

I'm a developer who doesn't know how to develop (if that makes sense, give yourself a pat on the back).

It's not particularly that big of a feature, so it's unlikely they'll kick up a fuss about it. They're probably too busy trying to destroy Psystar (http://youtube.com/watch?v=Yu_moia-oVI)

[Mr Squid]

Originally Posted by mstone

Thanks for the tip. Perhaps you didn't realize that the desktop is a folder.

True, but that is a dangerous way to think of the desktop. Each item in the desktop directory is rendered as a window, so it consumes a lot of resources. It is better to use subdirectories to organize rather than just let the clutter build on the desktop.

[bobmarleypeople]

Originally Posted by Mr Squid

True, but that is a dangerous way to think of the desktop. Each item in the desktop directory is rendered as a window, so it consumes a lot of resources. It is better to use subdirectories to organize rather than just let the clutter build on the desktop.

Indeed. I have my drives (of course) and aliases to Applications, Movies, Music, Pictures and Documents. I rarely have folders on my desktop at all unless it's a temporary place to put something while i move stuff around. I like having my desktop nice and clutter free (unfortunately, the same can't be said with my dock. I've found a program called Dock Spaces that allow multiple Docks, so that might help me unclutter my dock).

[Xian Zhu Xuande]

Originally Posted by probably

That doesn't answer anything. None of those things - if touched in any given installer - are visible. The OP describes it as if it asks twice always now, whether it's a pointless installer moving a *.app to /Applications for you or something more extensive.

This would significantly cut down on the chances of an exploit causing real damage. If an exploit was found to bypass the system installer, for example, it would bypass the first prompt, but would then be caught by the second. At least that is how I interpret it. I'm not too concerned about this as it would be while installing programs and that doesn't happen too often.

I chuckle when people compare it to Vista's UAC and wonder how much experience the people who make these comparisons have with both systems. UAC is ready to frustrate you whenever you breathe funny in its direction (or if you snub it by breathing in another direction). Its annoyance extends well beyond the realm of passwords, too. Microsoft is gradually making it a little more user friendly, though.

I'm not sure what to think of the feature described in this article -- I have actually come to love quicklook but I'd have to experience this to see how it worked out. I don't think it will matter anyway since nearly all of my browsing is done through columns. I just hope the big feature of Snow Leopard is optimization. That's wonderful enough in and of itself, if it happens on a grand scale!

[bobmarleypeople]

Originally Posted by Xian Zhu Xuande

I just hope the big feature of Snow Leopard is optimization. That's wonderful enough in and of itself, if it happens on a grand scale!

To be honest, I'm hoping they do actually put features in unless they're actually willing to distribute it either for free or at a much lower price than Leopard because I don't want to pay the full amount just for essentially a bugfix and performance release.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by bobmarleypeople

To be honest, I'm hoping they do actually put features in unless they're actually willing to distribute it either for free or at a much lower price than Leopard because I don't want to pay the full amount just for essentially a bugfix and performance release.

There are major features being introduced. OpenCL and Grand Central are not simple bug fixes or simple code optimizations, these are complex enhancements to OS X. There is no reason why Apple would give this away for free; just like there is no reason you have to move from Leopard to Snow Leopard.

[Eluard]

Originally Posted by solipsism

There are major features being introduced. OpenCL and Grand Central are not simple bug fixes or simple code optimizations, these are complex enhancements to OS X. There is no reason why Apple would give this away for free; just like there is no reason you have to move from Leopard to Snow Leopard.

Completely agree. I'm a little tired of hearing people whine that "Apple better not charge for this!". This is a major step forward for the operating system. Personally I don't need more superficial bling — I need them to ready OS X for the future. This is what they are doing. Snow Leopard promises to be a bigger step forward than Leopard was over Tiger or Tiger was over Panther.

[mdriftmeyer]

Originally Posted by internetworld7

I'm very disappointed to hear this. Snow Leopard is not suppose to have any new features. It's suppose to be a spit'n image of Leopard, just faster and advanced technologies under the hood.

Advanced technologies under the hood are new features and functionality.

Features aren't predicated on changes to the behavior of the GUI.

[mdriftmeyer]

Originally Posted by probably

That doesn't answer anything. None of those things - if touched in any given installer - are visible. The OP describes it as if it asks twice always now, whether it's a pointless installer moving a *.app to /Applications for you or something more extensive.

Firstly, it's "reported' to exhibit this behavior from AI's original post which shows poor journalism skills--get a copy of Leopard and test it out.

Secondly, stop thinking with your single dektop/laptop/workstation end-to-end view. The Installer is evolving to be more Network ready and be capable of having to work around exported Applications network folders that require different layers of security and more.

Thirdly, this is NDA software that is going through improvements, under-the-hood to be ready for not just Joe Six Pack or Susie Cosmo to Phil Metro, but to Will of Wall Street and Ward of the DoD, etc.

You have software that should have been evolved long before Snow Leopard finally getting the workover it so richly deserves.

If you want to know more about Leopard I suggest you get an ADC Premiere account, respect the NDA and build software.