How to Use New Expose Features in Snow Leopard

This step-by-step guide explains how to use new expose features in snow leopard. It covers the required setup, the main actions, and the checks that help prevent common problems.

Network Management - In Mac OS X 10. 5, users can combine Expose's App Windows mode and manipulate the Command-Tab app by activating Expose, then pressing Command-Tab . Once you have selected another app and released the Command-Tab combination, the app appears in the foreground in Expose mode, appearing all its Windows. Alternatively, you can release the Command key, and rotate through all your apps (in Expose mode) by pressing the Tab key.

This works very well, but it requires users to activate Expose before pressing Command-Tab . However in Snow Leopard, this process has been greatly improved. In addition to the old method still working as before, you can now activate Expose's App Windows mode after pressing Command-Tab . However, this process should not be done with the Expose key on your keyboard as it will not work.

Instead you need to keep pressing the Command Key, release the Tab Key, then press the Up or Down Arrow. This will switch in Expose's App Windows mode to the currently selected app in the Command-Tab app converter. Here, you can release the Command Key, without pressing any other key.

From here, press Tab (and Shift-Tab ) to rotate in the forward and reverse directions between apps (while still in Expose's App Windows mode). When you see the window you want to activate, press one of the arrow keys to select it - the selected window will be highlighted in blue. To activate the app with the selected window, press Return To exit Expose mode, then the selected window appears in the foreground.

Another Expose tip in 10. 6 - and working in both the above examples and when using Expose's usual App Windows mode - is the ability to Quick Look a window with Expose's activation.

Make sure the window is selected (shown in blue) by pressing an arrow key or hovering over it, then pressing the Space Bar Key. The selected window will be Zoomed in , just like Quick Look in the Finder, but you will still be able to maintain Expose mode.

This combination mode can be very useful if you open multiple Windows at once, or if many of your apps use smaller Windows and are really indistinguishable in Expose mode. (Note, Expose now displays the title of each window; in 10. 5, you only see the titles when you have moved your mouse to one of the Windows).