I just started using space with dual monitors this morning before work. I can see why it can be confusing at first. While at work I started thinking about ways I could use it and I think spaces will be one of may favorite features.

1st space I could have Transmit (ftp client) in one screen and files on another.

2nd space could have dreamweaver with dual monitor layout

3rd space with photoshop dual layout

4th with Safari browser and email on other monitor

Might even assign the apps to open up automatically in those spaces. Gonna try it out tonight.

gstylez

I wouldn't say that Spaces is a replacement for Expose, definitely not. But when you start having 10-12 windows, Expose begins to loose it's effectiveness. Besides, when programs are in a certain space, I rarely have to use Expose anyway.

dagamer34

Spaces is THE power-user power-toy. I have nine setup currently, and find it's a great way to group related projects and tasks, and also to handle screen-hogging applications like Dreamweaver and Photoshop and Aperture. I've totally gone from using Expose constantly to using Spaces. In fact, both bottom hot-corners formerly reserved for Expose now trigger Spaces.

Forget Time Machine. In my book Spaces is the signature application for Leopard.

ghmlco

i use it, yes!
one for safari , one for VMware fusion, one might be for word documents, so cool~~

kittenman

Yes, Spaces so far is the most useful new feature of Leopard. Especially for my MacBook.

ikelleigh

@newgalactic: @fastm3driver:

It's not theoretically any different than multiple desktops on UNIX. In fact, this is exactly what it is. Leopard is the first OS that people actually use (aka consumer level OS) to implement it standard. And the implementation is pretty well done. This is par for the Apple course (take a useful idea and polish the hell out of the interface) so I don't see what you are getting at other than trying to be that hardcore-nerd cool guy who hates Apple.

Padriac

*meant to say printer setup utility, not assistant

discounteggroll

imo space is an exposé multiplier. so useless if u have just say 5 active windows at the same time.

whizmika

I'm with BLam on this one. top left corner fires up expose, top right activates desktop. expose shows all windows open (anywhere from 3 to 10ish). I don't have to worry or waste time looking for certain windows, and the desktop hot corner frees real estate should things get overwhelming.

I also hate the fact that they butchered the printing preferences, and got rid of printer setup assistant altogether.

Oh yeah, the dock thing also gets to me. its so hard to tell what's open and what's not since they changed the black triangles with K-Mart quality blue lights.

\leopard vent.

it's been a few days and I'm almost used to the differences

discounteggroll

I really prefer Exposé over spaces, it's easier, just way easier to navigate. Just upgraded to Leopard 2 days ago and never really used Spaces.

Den-O

for me, spaces is great because on any given time i have open like 50 windows so expose is quite hard to use.
but with moving certain apps to different spaces, expose becomes great since i can use it within a space.
i think it depends on what kind of work you do on your computer

myneid

I don't have Leopard as of yet, but I have a program called Desktop Manager for Tiger. I have three screens that work exactly like spaces that I use religiously. I am a designer so I find it easier to organize the three + projects I typically have going on at once. It's also good for looking at Giz while at work and quickly switching the screen back to my work before the boss sees

whiter3

The other benefit of Spaces, especially for me being a recent Mac convert from Windows, is that I am used not used to having cluttered desktops. For example, in Windows if I run a application like PhotoStop full screen, I don't see any window from other applications distracting my view. Now I can have an app running in its own Space and quickly switch to it with Ctrl+#.

I've used virtual desktops when I was using Unix way back when, but I've always missed them when I switched to Windows. I'm glad I can now use them again. I have to say, Apple did a great job in the implementation.

Thitsa

use Desktop Manager. It's the same thing, but it has icons in the menu bar that you click to change destops. I love it.

jcraig

Spaces is Apples attempt at solving small laptop screen desktop cramping, and I cannot live without it now. I use 6, one for Safari only, one for Adium and torrents, one for Mail, one for Pages, one for iTunes, one for Lightroom.

hudsong

If you wan't to drag a Window to another screen just drag it to the side (or wherever your desired space is) and stay still for a moment!

I have spaces in the lower left corner, expose in the upper right. I just love to have a clear space for everything with nothing in the background.

One Screen is for browsing, one for E-mail, one for IM and one for everything else (itunes or whatever i need)!
It's great to have a space were your movie is running full screen and be able to jump around to an IM Message without having to exit from fullscreen!

Blacknight

I have my most-used apps set to open in the following space, so I always know where they will be.

1. Mail, iCal
2. Safari, NewsFire RSS
3. iLife '08 apps, iWork '08 apps
4. iTunes

Galley

Not sold. Expose does what you really need just fine and its fast and easy. As THITSA said running virtual machines is the only useful thing spaces is for, which was possible prior to 10.5 and the existence of "spaces." Multiple desktops is not a new concept just like 90 % of the 300+ "new" features in 10.5.

kingbob337

I didn't like spaces until I set it up with a mouse button to show all spaces... now i can't get enough :)

cloudnine

Expose IS insanely great when you have it set up with a mouse. But more and more this week I've been wishing that I had spaces when as I'm thumbing through my multiple finder windows, my multiple safari windows, photoshop, iChat and Entourage...unfortunetly this is all on my work computer and there is no upgrade in sight.

mcjake

If you don't like this debate, go read the rest of what Giz has been writing. I'm so sick of people targetting certain posts simply to insult them, especially when this is an enhancement in addition to the news that has already been posted.

Anyway, I tried using Spaces when I first upgraded, but I found it tiresome. On my Mighty Mouse I just have to squeeze the sides and suddenly there goes Exposé. What do I need several screens for when everything displays itself individually anyway? It seems redundant.

Exposé for me.

Epershand

I did use it to try it out but stopped using it after a few minutes, mainly annoyed by a few of the problems already stated.
I don't really see a use for it yet for me at least. While it does wonders for other people, I still don't see any benefit.

ortuno2k

@newgalactic: Um, that and I was doing this on UNIX over 10 years ago. OS10 is UNIX, surprise. Actually now that I think about it the common desk top I was using had a "dock" exactly like the OS10 one. And for the newbies UNIX is almost 40 years old, not that there is anything wrong with that.
Lord, forgive me for posting twice on this blog.

fastm3driver

The best use I have of Spaces so far is with Parallels where I have full-screen virtual machine with Windows XP running in one Space. That way, I don't have to see the XP windows, but if I need them, I can quickly switch to the whole XP desktop easily.

Thitsa

@newgalactic: I don't think they saying it is diff.

I am starting to really like spaces. I do like to have a clear screen. I generally use the corner to active - pretty easy.

smac1

Borrring, isn't there anything else out there?

Wegmans

"Blam: I despise how it will switch Spaces automatically when I click on an icon for an app on the dock, but don't know how to fix it."

I couldn't agree more with this. Spaces would be dead useful if it allowed me to open a new iteration of a program (specifically, one already open in another space), say Firefox, in the new space.

Theoretically, I could open a new window in Firefox and drag it to the new space, but what's the point.

So that I don't have to bother with CTRL + x, I set one of my corners to activate spaces. It's much quicker that way for me.

Generally, the most use I've gotten out of spaces involves doing different categories of tasks, like schoolwork, or purchases, or creating a track in garage band, or ripping a cd in itunes.

For those of us who have 200 windows open at the same time, it relieves some of the clutter in expose.

All in all it's a nice feature to have (even if you have to force yourself to use it productively at first), but it certainly shouldn't make or break your decision to acquire Leopard.

Gilbert

How is this any different then the multiple desktops offered in every Linux variety? Seriously, not trying to be a troll, I just haven't used 10.5 yet.

newgalactic

please, gizmodo, don't turn into a engadget apple fanboy. More real art/tech please.

fastm3driver

@firesign:

How did you have multiple desktops set up for DOS? Wish i had a magical leprochaun bring me technology from the future too! Lucky guy!

Seriously, what did you mean?

Wegmans

i've been using multiple desktops in linux for years. comes in very handy. even did it back in the day with dos/windows when i was beta testing for central point software. dont have 10.5 yet (it's on the way), but i'm sure it'll come in handy on the mac too.

firesign

I think the winner is he who uses BOTH!!

carrvin8

@jcraig:

There's an option under the Spaces menu to choose to put the different desktops in the menu bar, as well. Spaces is a bit better than Desktop manager, though, since the transitions don't take so long...

:)

cloudnine

@Padriac: Spot on.

What kind of argument is this? Comparing Spaces to Expose makes no sense. They have completely different utility. I divide my spaces between development (2) and the non productive stuff like email, IM and web. Another for data analysis or porn or whatever (easy to scoot away from that when the boss arrives....as if). This with multiple monitors. It is too simple. Like my old X based systems.

If I used Expose exclusively, I would end up with a screen filled with a screen full of rot (like my apartment). The rot would keep piling as it became harder to find that one thing among the 90 or 100 windows scattered across 2 monitors.

generalisimo tom

@fastm3driver:

stfukthxbye

dead_red_eyes

The best thing that I've had with spaces is that during class I can run Halo in a window almost maxed, have another space with any school stuff so that I can switch for notes, have Safari running in another space, and my Mail and iChat open in the 4th. It works out perfectly.

pete_at_brandeis

I feel that spaces is crippled, and far less useless than linux variants of the multiple desktops. I tried to use it since friday, but got so fed up with it this morning, that I had to disable it. I agree, I use expose, I have it set up for mouse and kbd, and it does it all for me.

xipher

@Thitsa:
I'm with you, I just have 2 spaces, one that VMWare Fusion runs in all the time.

werk

i use it...

Masaya

@Wegmans: ahh, found a wikipedia entry about central point here : [en.wikipedia.org]
central point desktop is what i'm referring to, although theres not an entry for it.

firesign

Windows XP has memory-hungry and video-card intensive Virtual Desktop Windows XP Powertoys.

It very similar to the Virtual Window Managers for UNIX (eg. fvwm, Enlightenment ), except that fvwm is actually usable :P

In fvwm, and other X-windows managers, there is a pager that shows a thumbnail of all desktops, and allows you to drag apps from one desktop to another in the thumbnail... and this was 10 years ago!!!

avlxyz

@Wegmans: many years ago, a company called central point software (they were later eaten by symantec) had a suite of software (most of it was never released if i remember right) for dos/windows that offered things like multiple desktops, system state snapshotting, and some other stuff. i cant't remember the name of the suite, but i was a beta tester for it. they were bought by symantec before it was released. the old windows defrag, which was credited to symantec, was actually a crippled central point product that they got in the buy out.

firesign

I use Virtuedesktops in 10.4, in terms of functionality its essentially spaces. The spaces function was one of the reasons I am eager to up-gray-edd (with two Ds for a double dose of this desktop..).

Multiple desktops are great to organize your workflow while running multiple apps e.g. Photoshop in one desktop, Dreamweaver in another, the third one has the web page I'm working on full-screen in Safari so I can tweak some CSS, save changes, and click refresh to preview the change. I'm sure others who multitask on a job using several apps at once can find a similar way to use Spaces.

You can accomplish much the same thing with Expose but for me its easier to leave a desktop space containing a "fixed" set of windows pertaining to one app.

Expose gets a bit messy at times if you have too many things open at once, and even on a fast machine it can bog a bit if you've got a lot of windows open in an app like Photoshop.

And it can be convenient to have a "gizmodo" desktop that hides my web surfing at work with just one keystroke.

honozooloo

I use it all the time and I love it.

CarbonatedWater

Spaces works for me.

The only problem is that I now feel the need to leave applications running in all the virtual desktops I have available.

Obsessive compulsive behavior has its drawbacks.

NotMe

Spaces is good for keeping work related windows open in one space, and uhm, not "so" work related material in another. One switch, and "BAM" no one has to know a thing :D

25mL

Expose all the way!!!!! who needs more windows to manage

nubloom

Some have mentioned how the Apple version of multiple desktops is more "polished" than linux... But I disagree - window managers that exist for linux such as Beryl or Compiz-Fusion (which comes with the newest version of ubuntu) work extremely smoothly. I just think that it's interesting that everyone is making such a big fuss about it when the technology has existed for ages (for free, even).

However, Apple did bring it to the masses.

But they should have had it when OS X came out, like HDC said.

s1pacrat

Spaces is a natural for Parallels as well as for screen sharing. I'd really love to be able to auto assign a Space to a Parallels VM's or remote machine, and have it integrated, so it would pause when I left, etc.

I'd also like to have different docks in some Spaces, one for XCode an related apps, another for web dev stuff, etc.

The feature worked better in shareware package VirtueDesktops because it supported different background pictures, it made the Space easier to identify, I began to associate coding with seeing a certain picture, etc.

Spaces has NO features! I can't even name the Spaces, and the menu just says 1,2,3,4,5,6??? Can't be changed? Whats next, hard drives named C?

stwf

Only improvement to spaces is that they need to allow you to put a different pic on the desktop in each space so you know where you are at more readily. Yeah the space number is in the toolbar icon, but not everyone may set that to display. Yet another xwin feature they need to adopt.

HDC

@newgalactic and @firesign: It's the same durn thing. And it works terrifically well. Fantastically good.

When I saw the first preview Jobs did some time back, my hubby and I both said 'Virtual desktops! About damn time!'. I have to say that I'm impressed so far with how smooth and seamless it is. It makes working on the limited screen real estate of a laptop so much easier as to be expected. They should have had this feature when OS X first came out.

I've never used Expose and probably never will. Spaces all the way.

HDC

Maybe I'm just used to Expose, but Spaces confuses me. I always feel like I lost something, even though I know it's right there. I'd probably get used to it.
Now just don't get me started on Stacks.

lucky_you

i dont understand why macs dont get a right click button already. its 2007.

not like you hold the mouse differently when you use a mac.

guiscard

Exposé isn't easier to access than Spaces. You can also assign a corner to Spaces, and do the same kinds of drag and drop manipulation on the fly.

Exposé and Spaces serve two different purposes. Exposé is the no-brainer way to manage windows for everyone, while Spaces is for power users who have myriads of windows opened at all times because they are working on multiple projects in multiple applications. Spaces takes over where Exposé does not scale. They are complementary.

jmdecombe

I use Spaces and Exposé. I like to keep my desktops organized by browsing, communication, media, and workspace.
Therefore I'll have Mail, iChat and Yahoo (no, I don't like Adium) in my communication space and Exposé allows me to switch between them. However, I more frequently just click on the apps icon to bring it to the foreground.
Therefore, I would say that I find Spaces more helpful than Exposé, even though its still a useful tool (as demonstrated by B.Lam).

jawzxy

@s1pacrat:

amen; every fanbois swears that their creator says-and therefore it exists. Why is there so much friction between productivity and credibility. We are all potentially Humpty Dumpty, but in layman's terms, [Unix, Linux and Windows] users are at a civil war from the beginning, and its really sad if looked at from an unbiased perspective.

The question at hand doesn't answer the real problem. The question I feel is: what can help solve ALL our problems even easier, and therefore even better?

discounteggroll

I'm using spaces on a minute-to-minute basis. It's AWESOME for school where I'm currently using one space for taking notes, one space for web browsing, and one space for Vienna (my RSS reader). I'm fucking unstoppable.

maxwaver

Well, I would be much more inclined to use Spaces if my display had 8 corners - see, I've just become too dependent on Exposé/Dashboard hot corners to give any of them up.

itchytooth

Love Spaces, avoid the mouse as much as I can. If I had a 24" iMac instead of 20", I'd ditch the second screen attached to it in favor of Spaces. Would love to reclaim some of my desktop. Currently I only have two spaces cause I can fit most of my stuff on the aforementioned two screens with no overlapping.

I agree with the first comment about not turning Gizmodo into another fanboy site, but I also sure like using Mac OS a lot more with Leopard.

apstewart

@itchytooth: My personal configuration is one corner for Dashboard (top left), one corner for Spaces (top right), one corner for Exposé/Desktop (bottom left), and one corner for Exposé/All Windows (bottom right). I find the other Exposé choices to be less valuable.

jmdecombe

I have been using virtual desktops for about a year now (10.4 and VirtueDesktops not developer builds of Leopard) and I find them great, I don't think Spaces replaces exposé, rather complements it. I use exposé as an App switcher and virtual desktops to keep my desktop free of window clutter.

I too agree that Gizmodo should not turn into a fanboy site, I love my MacBook and consider myself somewhat of a fanboy, but I need more than just Apple stuff.

hagablog

Used virtual desktops for years back at the day when I used dual-head setup too, so, about 4x3200x1200 of desktop space then. Now that I actually do something creative I manage to live with a single 1600x1200 desktop. Virtual desktops have their merits, but I don't know how much they count in on actual productiveness but what Apple has done is far better than the implementations I've seen before, it might actually prove itself useful for power users.

arashi

I have a five button mouse and I have a button assigned to opening spaces, just like expose. This works out great, allowing me to quickly open and switch between spaces

Vegabondsx

I mouse trigger spaces just like expose, works fantastic for me!

philoking

@guiscard

Right click is in Macs. What makes you think it isn't?

NotMe

Spaces is welcome in my world as I have used virtual desktops before in Linux for years. But I am having a tough time with Apples implementation as of right now. I keep having programs disappear... they are still active but the screen app isn't there, and there is no way to get to come back up on any space unless I restart the program. Very frustrating, happens the most when I click a link on the mail app and it sends to me to another space with Safari, then mail gets send to the void space somewhere in the neitherworld. Suck

- T

Tylas

As a person suffering from OCD, I was quite excited to welcome virtual desktops as the second coming but have found that life with "VD" is not quite as pleasant as I first imagined. Unless you are a real power user with more programs open at one time than there are hairs on your balls head it is not worth the trouble. Expose already has your back.

Meursault

Expose makes you hunt for windows, which I CANNOT stand. Furthermore I always trigger the hot corners at the wrong time and the assigned keys are in a place my hands never venture (who the hell uses fkeys anymore? It has to be a command-(blank) or nothing)

I use spirited away right now to hide inactive applications that I'm not using, which cleans things up a bit. Then just command-tab my way through apps to find which I want at that moment.

I don't have leopard yet, but I used to use virtual desktop apps until I found they were too slow/buggy for my tastes. I'll definitely be using spaces once I pick up a copy.

krylonultraflat

@dead_red_eyes: nice, I will assume you are a person who has only use one operating system and you and it are a fruit.@Padriac: Your comments are mostly spot on too. My comments are usually designed to be impartial, but I'm just getting tired of all this apple dribble. Seriously apple is a small number of gadget users so maybe there should be a separate set of posting just for apple.
I am not a fanboy of anything or am I a flamer. I just call things as I see them. Unix has always been a friend to me and personally that is the best part of apple computers today. A while a go we switched to windows at work so I've off it for a while. The programs I work with also only work in windows or unix (why not mac's? you got me) so I live in a widows world like 90% of the world.

fastm3driver

i didn't read it all, but i don't really see the point of spaces. if i want to see my desktop, i go to the corner and there it is. if i want to get to a specific window quickly, i do to another corner and pick the one i want. expose all the way...that was supposed to rhyme.

MobileMilitia

Ok, I love spaces. My macbook totally need spaces. I will admit that I am new to the whole mac OS. I used tiger for a few days before getting my Leopard DVD. The whole desktop is cluttered with windows and makes me have to use expose every time to find the window I am looking for. Now with spaces I can just put a different program on a different desktop. I know I sound like one of those apple fan boy but I normally use windows (and still do from remote desktop connection.) Without spaces I just have to minimize or hide stuff but now I don't.
PS.Oh BTW remote desktop is the only thing that crashes on my mac. Maybe that's cause it's in beta.

ky22

I like spaces. I think it will be much more useful when Apple makes it work more like the 3d Flip on Vista or the Cube on Linux.

To me the combination of Expose and Spaces is a huge boost to useability with a small boost to productivity.

We have all had some tunes, movie/web/flash/work type of app, email, couple of documents loaded and a spreadsheet or two, a few web browsers and tabs up the wazoo. Since using the Cube and Beryl's Expose like feature on Linux I have been waiting with baited breath for Apple to one up it. They didn't one up it but the functionality is certainly welcome anyway.

LiveWickedly

Spaces is nice in the sense that you can orginize the locations of app's in a space and keep it that way, for example. I have my iChat buddy list on the left side of the screen and my mail and ichat buddy chat windows on the other. and then i can have safari in another window and not have to worry about moving around things. And i can keep them in nice plain view. And even when you do need to move things you just drag them to your new space :)

id3379

@Thitsa:

That's the best use of Spaces I've heard. I haven't run out and bought it yet but now I realize that's perfect for a few family members who rely on some Windows. Brilliant idea on something that should have occured to me.

JoshK

Spaces is very cool. I squeeze my Wireless Mighty Mouse and files are on space 1, Safari on 2 eMail on 3 and Seahaven towers on 4 . It couldn't be easier. It is much harder to explain than to play with and learn. It couldn't be easier. So much better than expose witch I used to use all the time.

pepethedog

Desktop Manager (an old shareware virtual desktop) was what let me get from dual monitors to a notebook. Unfortunately, it's never been stable on the Intel machines.

I've been running Leopard since Friday, and I use Spaces to death. Each Space either has programs that I use together (code editors, FTP programs) or stuff that I want to have running but ignore unless I need to pay attention to them (mail, iTunes). I also keep one or two open Spaces for scratch space, digging around through finder, etc.

I have 8 spaces configured, and have stuff on 5 - 6 of them at any time. Most of my major apps are configured in Spaces prefs as to what Space they are to go in. One or two apps (iChat, etc.) runs in "Every Space".

Navigation is actually pretty good. Click the dock icon for a running program, and that space comes up. Control keys bring up any space directly. I have a button on my mouse (Logitech) configured to mimic the Spaces key, so I can flick in and out of the Spaces display and move windows if I need to, but dragging off the edge of the screen to an adjacent space is often faster.

I never cared about Exposé, but having Spaces built in was worth the upgrade, for me.

nonliteral

I have four 1200x1600 monitors, and Spaces is fantastic for managing groups of related applications. Here's how I lay out my windows groups (each monitor generally gets its own application):

Space 1 [Fun]: Mon 1 = iTunes, Adium, Skype, Mon 2 = Firefox, Mon 3 = Firefox, Mon 4 = DVD Player

Space 2 [Dev]: M1 = Terminal shells, M2 = NetBeans, M3 = Firefox for my NetBean projects, M4 = Firefox for programming manuals and APIs

Space 3 [VMware]: M1 = Solaris 10, M2 = RedHat Enterprise 4, M3 = RedHat Enterprise 5, M4 = OpenSolaris

Space 4 [VMware]: Lots more VMware (I run at least eight 1gb instances)

Space 5 [Work]: M2 = VMware Windows XP with RDP into work

Easy to use Ctrl-Arrow to move between these groups, as I'm usually either playing around, working, for eperimentating with other operating systems

Amanibhavam