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Springy Dock Tricks

If you drag a file and hover over Dock icons, various useful things happen which are similar to Finder springing. If it's a window, the window un-minimizes from the Dock. If it's a stack, the corresponding folder in the Finder opens. If it's the Finder, it brings the Finder to the foreground and opens a window if one doesn't exist already. But the coolest (and most hidden) springing trick is if you hover over an application and press the Space bar, the application comes to the foreground. This is great for things like grabbing a file from somewhere to drop into a Mail composition window that's otherwise hidden. Grab the file you want, hover over the Mail icon, press the Space bar, and Mail comes to the front for you to drop the file into the compose window. Be sure that Spring-Loaded Folders and Windows is enabled in the Finder Preferences window.

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Published in TidBITS 260.
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23 Jan 1995 | Print Printer-Friendly Version of This Article

GIF Gaffe

by Geoff Duncan Send Email to Author

GIF Gaffe -- Our article on the recent Unisys/CompuServe GIF fiasco (see TidBITS-259) contained a few misstatements. First, Unisys's patent on the LZW compression method was effective in 1985, not 1993 as stated in the article. Second, the TIFF file format is not itself licensed from Unisys, but the LZW method used in the TIFF format is licensed from Unisys.

Notwithstanding, the LZW compression format was first published in June of 1984, calling into question Unisys's subsequent application for a patent on the method. Also, while CompuServe can be accused of many things, making a secret of LZW's use in the GIF format is not one of them. It remains astounding that Unisys overlooked the (increasingly widespread) GIF file format for seven years.

CompuServe announced last week plans to serve as the coordinator of a new "free and open" GIF24 standard. GIF24 will support 24-bit, lossless compression and will presumably be free of proprietary technology. [GD]

 

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