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How To

Mac Tips: Organize your Desktop with Exposé and Space

Jonathan Riggall

Jonathan Riggall

  • Updated:

Apple OS X has two great ways to organize your desktop space – Exposé and Spaces. You can configure up to 16 desktops, each with different apps assigned to them, making your Mac feel much more spacious  and it’s a breeze to use. Here’s how to get started:

1: Open System Preferences, then click Exposé and Spaces. Click the Spaces tab, and you’ll see the menu below:

2: First, check the Enable Spaces box. Let’s stick with four spaces for now (by clicking the rows and columns buttons you can add more). Below, there’s an empty space for applications. Click the + button, and add all the applications you regularly use. They will then appear in this window, and you can now click on each under space to assign them. I started with four applications, Chrome, iTunes, Minecraft and VLC. Each is assigned to a different space, so I have a space for Internet, Audio, Games and Video.

Next, choose a configuration from ‘To switch directly between spaces‘. I find Alt + Arrow keys most comfortable. Open the applications you assigned to spaces, and you’ll see the desktop slide around as they open. Try using Alt + Arrow keys to move between them.


3: Move back to Exposé and Spaces settings, and click the Exposé tab. Exposé allows you to assign certain actions to each corner of the desktop. Try setting the top left corner to ‘All Windows’, and the top right to ‘Spaces’. Then move your cursor to one of the corners. Moving to that corner again will undo the effect! In this way you’ll be able to quickly see either all the open windows in a Space, or view all the spaces at once.

Jonathan Riggall

Jonathan Riggall

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