Mission Control, activated by a trackpad gesture or keyboard shortcut, lets you view all desktops in mini windows on top of the currently active desktop. The Spaces feature sets up multiple desktops (“spaces”), letting you assign specific applications to each one to avoid a cluttered desktop.

Exposé displays thumbnails of all windows, making it easy to navigate to them. The refinements made in Snow Leopard are further polished in Lion with the introduction of Mission Control, which combines the Exposé and Spaces features. However, full-screen apps obscure the menu bar until you hover over it.īetween the iOS-like Launchpad, user-friendly Dock, and full-screen apps, Lion has a more modern and approachable look and feel. Switching between full-screen apps is achieved instantly with a two-finger swipe to the left or right on the touchpad. Lion makes full-screen application viewing possible for its native programs and select third-party software. You can drag an icon from the Launchpad into the Dock to make an app more accessible. Lion also preserves the Dock (known as the taskbar in Windows) from previous OS versions. Apple has seamlessly integrated the Mac App Store with Launchpad when you make a purchase in the App Store, it automatically installs and appears on the Launchpad. You can easily swipe from one screen to the next, and you can drag app icons onto each other to create folders of similarly themed programs. Launchpad basically duplicates the iOS interface on iPhones and iPads.

To access Launchpad, perform a three-finger pinch with your thumb on the trackpad or press the dedicated Launchpad button on the latest MacBook Air. Lion makes that easier than ever with the addition of Launchpad, which displays your system’s app icons.

The look and feel of an OS usually determines how intuitive it is for users to find and interact with apps.

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