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Jay wrote in to ask:
Do you know of a way to “Unminimize” apps when you select them from the app switcher? (Cmnd + tab) You can select apps just fine but if it’s minimized, they just stay in the dock. Sooo frustrating.
Jay’s right. If you’ve ever used the Application Switcher by holding down the Command key and then cycling through your applications with the Tab key, you know it can be a huge time saver when you need to frequently move back and forth between a couple of applications. If you’ve never tried this technique, I highly suggest it. Apple also has a description of this neat function.
One of the things you may notice is that when you switch to an application via the Command-Tab App Switcher, that application’s front-most window will have the focus when you switch. But what happens when all of the application’s windows are minimized in the Dock? Nothing! You’re able to switch to the application, but you still have to drag your mouse down to the Dock and click the window you wish to open. Of course, the entire reason to use the App Switcher is to avoid having to use your mouse to switch applications.
Is there a solution? Yes! Here’s the deal: When you want to switch to an application, you hold down the Command key, and each time you hit Tab (or hold it down), the next application (from left to right) is highlighted until you get to the application you want. Once you stop hitting (or holding down) Tab, the App Switcher stops scrolling through the applications in the list. But you don’t actually switch to the new application until you let go of the Command key.
So, once you have highlighted the application you want to switch to, let go of the Tab key and then hold down the Option key BEFORE you let go of the Command key. This will cause the top-most window of the new application to “unminimize” if it was previously minimized. This way, you do not have to use the mouse at all to get a working window!
If you have multiple windows minimized in an application, I have not yet figured out how to unminimize all of the windows while using the App Switcher. If you have an answer, be sure to tell others in the comments!
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