Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Mountain Lion Edition

Launchpad

The Launchpad app presents a dark background with evenly spaced icons that represent all your programs (Figure 4-3). You can open one with a single click.

Why did Apple feel the need to create yet another way to open programs?

First, because Launchpad fits right into the general theme of Mountain Lion: making the Mac look and work more like the iPad. Launchpad is a dead ringer for the Home screens of an iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch.

Second, it’s a much less intimidating place for technophobes to learn to love than, say, the Applications folder.

And third, it’s a lot quicker to get to than the Applications folder. You can summon it instantly, using any of these methods:

• Put four fingers on your trackpad and pinch them together. The Launchpad appears instantly, no matter what program you were in; you don’t have to duck back into the Finder, navigate to the Applications folder, and so on.

  

  Figure 4-3. You can open Launchpad by clicking its Dock icon (it’s the very next one after the Finder icon), or by using a four-finger pinching gesture on your trackpad. Launchpad covers your entire main monitor, hiding everything else. Use the arrow keys to navigate a page; press ⌘-arrow to move between pages; press Option to make the icons ready for deletion.

• Press the Launchpad key. Recent Macs have a special Launchpad icon painted right on the F4 key ().

• Click its icon on the Dock. It’s the second ...