Think. Not just a sign on a desk...

...but a way of taming your desktop.

I have to 'fess up. My desktop discipline is appalling. I run two 23" monitors on my main machine (invaluable when laying out books). The trouble with that is that I tend to leave lots of applications visible at a time: NetNewsWire, Mail, iChat and so on all compete for my attention.

So I'm experimenting with Think, a free app for OS X with a simple mission—it hides everything but the application you're using. But, for me, the killer feature is that you can still pop up other application's windows, use them, and then use a simple key chord to hide them again. It seems trivial, but in the two days I've been sing it I've found it fits nicely into my workflow—I want to concentrate on one thing for a length of time, cutting out distractions, but at the same time I need to dip into ancilliary applications every now and then.

Comments

[Eric Hodel]

I use Spirited Away (whose website has disappeared) to similar ends. Spirited Away hides apps after a timeout which keeps the distractions away.

[mathie]

I use virtual desktops (using Virtue Desktops on the Mac) to the same end. Each desktop has all the applications required for one particular task, so I have all my Rails development tools sitting in one desktop (iTerm, TextMate and a browser), email and chat in another, and NetNewsWire (along with another Firefox window) in a third. That way I can have all the applications open that I need for a task, but cuts out the distractions of others.

I also find that using Growl for notifications is enough to let me know that something is happening which might want my attention (new email, somebody talking about me on IRC) but not lose my focus on what I'm currently doing.

[Horea Raducan]

Is there a similar application that works for Windows ? Not that I like Windows that much but it happens to be using it at work.

Thank you.
Horea

[Jose Ortega]

I don't know if I understand correctly, but what it's the advantage over alt+command and click the icon on the dock?.

[Dave Thomas]

Firstly that it hits the desktop. I know, I shouldn't have 400 icons on my desktop, but...

Second, it imposes a different workflow. If you're disciplined in the way you work, Alt-Command is great. I tend to leave lots of stuff lying around.

[Kent Sibilev]

I also tend to clutter my desktop with numerous files. That's why I find Hazel (http://www.noodlesoft.com/hazel.html) invaluable.

[Ryan Davis]

Dave, I agree about desktop clutter. Esp for screencasts and presentations and the like. Do this:

% defaults write com.apple.Finder QuitMenuItem 1
% killall Finder

Now you can quit the finder (and those icons!) when you'd like. Relaunch from the dock.