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How to fix Apple’s iTunes 10 for Mac’s minimize, maximize, close buttons:
1. Make sure you quit iTunes.
2. Open Terminal (Applications>Utilities>Terminal).
3. Type or Paste the following into Terminal:
defaults write com.apple.iTunes full-window -1
4. Hit enter and quit Terminal.
5. Launch iTunes and enjoy your minimize, maximize, and close buttons restored to their proper places:
@Predrag,
Excellent observation!!!
@rws,
I’ve always thought that the Command-M keyboard shortcut should unminimize a window on the Dock.
@Jubei,
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KingMel et al. who like the new vertical arrangement,
Read Predrag’s post.
@ DLMeyer
“Apple engineers get a little twitchy when faced with an empty band of unusable space, especially if a modest change can recover that space at no cost other than the blown minds of a few of those who Just Don’t DO Change Well”
Right. That’s why the Dock, which by default takes up 2-3x the vertical space as a window’s titlebar, even on a 13″ Macbook screen, is pinned to the bottom of the screen instead of on the side (which makes far more sense with all the widescreens these days), and has empty space to the left and right of it that isn’t recognized as usable screen space when zooming a window.
I don’t really care about the change in iTunes personally because I have a keyboard shortcut tied to the window zoom, but until the Dock is on the left or right by default (mine’s on the left; what else is going to fill a widescreen?) your argument is weak.
The vertical arrangement is the wrong metaphor, or at least a misleading one. Everyone looks at it and thinks “traffic light,” but isn’t one. Clicking on red doesn’t make anything stop, and clicking on green doesn’t make anything go. Also, this traffic light has all three lights on at the same time, which means it’s out of order.
Another minor problem is that it imposes a minimum height on title bars.
Maybe Apple hired a Microsoft UI expert.
Also, look at Safari, Mail message windows, etc. iTunes doesn’t need a titlebar because it has that multipurpose status display, but most other programs use it to show message/document name, etc. Since the titlebar’s already used for that, it just makes sense to keep the horizontal button arrangement for them.
More importantly, the ‘DATE ADDED’ column seems to be missing in all except the Music section.
Grrr…. why fiddle Apple????
iTunes is iTunes. I listen to it. I watch movies from it on a different player. I don’t watch iTunes.
How can the UI police be so anal?
foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,
adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. — R W Emerson
How does one revert back to vertical button orientation once the horizontal, default one has been applied using the Terminal?
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I don’t agree with those who find the vertical arrangement “cleaner”. To each his own.
@Hm:
Interesting quote, but consistency most certainly has its place—especially in the realm of graphic design.
@Dennis
FROM TERMINAL WITH ITUNES CLOSED
TO SET LEFT TO RIGHT
defaults write com.apple.iTunes full-window -boolean YES
TO SET TOP TO BOTTOM
defaults write com.apple.iTunes full-window -boolean NO
@Mac,
Does your Terminal command work the same as the one MDN lists? I’ve only seen the MDN one listed in other articles.
It seems to me that the spacing between the buttons is less in vertical orientation than in horizontal. Or, maybe it’s one of those optical illusions.
Please stop feeding these twits and their obsession with UI elements, an obsession obviously born of undiagnosed autism. It’s simply no kind of deal, and certainly not worth the reams of digital ink being spilt.
I’m keeping them cause I like it. So there.
Count me as anal, I put them back!
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Who
I don’t mind vertical but how do I change the order so red is at the bottom. I’ve closed the window too many damn times by accident.
I love you just the way your are.
I’m in favour of the vertical arrangements. It’s not a new arrangement, as the mini player has always had them vertical.
Nothing to fix here.
Hardly seems worth the trouble.
Yes, please more vertical! I don’t want a horizontal toolbar at all. Is it just me, or isn’t it very practical to but a bar on top of every window? I mean on a widescreen MacBook… Wouldn’t it make more sense to put that vertical anyway? Same with the dock, isn’t it much better on the right or left?
What I feel will or should also change in 10.7, is the menubar on top of the screen. That is a relict of the mouse-aera, they should get rid of it. Very unpractical if you use a big screen, you always have to travel up there. It’s better in Ubuntu or Windows, there every window has its own menubar, but that gets confusing. The mac version was perfect on a classic mac, but that had a tiny screen. I think the new GUI from Apple could be button/toolbar driven (on the sides please), for complex stuff you anyway have an inspector or the double finger click context menu.
I think OS X is somewhat bloated at present state, in OS 9 you could at least get rid of menus so long that you had to scroll. iOS is so clean, I love it, and I hope our Mac can become a little more like that…
Anyone else thinks that way?
Regarding iTunes, I had more problems to find the stuff because the icons aren’t colored…
As a UI design, it’s better to have them vertical than horizontal. In a small screen, you want the top area to be as thin as possible. This allows it to be just like that.
I vote for vertical alignment.