Instantly maximize windows

6 February 2013, 01:00

In Mac Kung Fu 2nd Edition there’s a tip about how to use secret settings to turn off annoying OS X animated effects — things like Mission Control zooming in and out, for example.

One I didn’t include is the following, which will turn off the animated effect of windows resizing when you click the maximize button at the top left of windows (i.e. the green blob).

Open a Terminal window (in the Utilities folder of the Applications list in Finder) then type the following:

defaults write -g NSWindowResizeTime 0.00001

Then log out and back in again. The changes will take effect instantly.

To undo the change, again open a Terminal window and type the following, before logging out and back in again:

defaults delete -g NSWindowResizeTime

This might also deactivate other animated effects in some apps, such as drawers sliding out from program windows, but it’s unlikely because it appears most OS X apps have their own independent animation speed settings that are hard-coded into the app. (If I’m wrong then please let me know.)

Know better? Tell me what you think...

 
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