Samurai Coder

I have been using a bunch of non-document-based apps. One confusion for me is the inconsistency of the shortcuts for the main windows across applications. Here is a list from apps in my Applications folder.

• Activity Monitor — Command-1
• Audio Hijack Pro — Shift-Command-A
• Billable — Command-1
• iTunes — Option-Command-1
• MacTracker — Option-Command-1
• Mail (by Apple) — Option-Command-N for New Viewer Window ¹
• MarsEdit — Command-0
• NetNewsWire — Shift-Command-N
• VisualHub — Command-1
• WebnoteHappy — Command-1
• Yojimbo — Command-1

My definition for Main Window isn’t rigid. It should also be noted that each application is totally different in its own. Some are used more often than others. The choice of a shortcut for Main Window is somewhat related to whether the app has another window. For instance, Billable uses a Command-2 for Client Editor window. Looking at “Window” in menubar in AudioHijack Pro and VisualHub leads me to general understanding of why these shortcuts are used. As you can see, not all of the apps have the same shortcut for Main Window.

I use Command-Tab to switch between applications. I may close Main Window of iTunes before moving to Yojimbo. When I come back to iTunes by pressing Command-Tab, I don’t see any window open. The easiest way to bring up a Main Window is to click the Dock icon, however; for those who prefer to use their keyboard, this is a pain.

The solution is simple: you don’t close the window. Instead, you hide it by pressing Command-H. Command-W is something we all use, but the power of Hide isn’t as common. In this way, when I come back to the app I hided by pressing Command-Tab, the app brings up the Main Window.

Update: Added Activity Monitor. I will have a more in-depth analysis on this and propose a general guide for apps to (try to) be consistent with other third-party and Apple apps.