Stage Manager: Are you using it?

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

I'd be interested to see how many of you are continuing to - or have dabbled with - Stage Manager.

I gave it a good go for about the first month after Ventura was released, but in all honesty I found it harder work trying to make it fit into my workflow. Plus it lacks some basic quality of life features.

Would love to hear your thoughts as I have a feeling that it will be left to rot, like Launchpad.

 

[Paul Cordingley]

I'm very comfortable with Spaces. Stage Manager just doesn't do it for me, feels forced and cumbersome.

 

[TinyMito]

Personal, it's unwanted feature for macOS especially I am running a 4K 32 monitor. I only heard it's useful for iPadOS.

 

[tranceking26]

Haven't tried it, and probably won't need to. Probably use it if I had an iPad though.

 

[rm5]

I’ve used stage manager once on my m1, and I just couldn’t get used to it—maybe I need to try it again. So I voted “no” here, because I’ve only used it once…

 

[Isamilis]

I was skeptical at first. Now I used it most of the time (iPad 11”), even when just for reading and watch Netflix in portrait position. I like the way I can resize windows on almost any apps. Rather than changing book font size, I can just resize the windows which reflected to the app fonts.

 

[bob_stan]

Spaces fits my workflow much better on a dual screen 2019 MacPro

 

[Marshall73]

Tried it, don’t like it. Also tried it on my iPad, nope, not for me.

 

[Pecka]

Tried it, but it was just a hassle when I wanted more than one window in sight.

 

[webbga]

I use it when I am editing photos and going back and forth between Lightroom and Luminar. It is not a game changer, but it does make things more convenient in some respects. That is about the only time though

 

[GlenK]

I use it for certain things but not everyday. Like when I'm paying bills or doing specific research where I have search engines and multiple spreadsheets open will use it for those projects.

 

[Easttime]

Yes, and loved it from the first minute I turned it on. I really like the focus it provides. I use multiple desktops on two large monitors for different purposes. The combination of that and Stage Manager is just great for me. One of those periodic big leaps forward that made me move to Apple gear years ago.

 

[Ludatyk]

I use it on the Mac because it helps with consistency when I interact with it on the iPad and I echo @Easttime thoughts it provides a sense of focus when enabled.

I get app previews on the side and I can determine how I want my workflow set up. It delivers window manager assistance... I don't see how that can be a bad thing. Now, if Apple can replicate Stage Manager on the Mac and port it over to the iPad... it would make a lot of people happy.

Because one of the main gripes with Stage Manager on the iPad... users have less control over where to place windows.

 

[ondioline]

I tried it. Then I found out if you adjust the window sizes in Stage Manager, it also ruins the size/placing when you turn off Stage Manager. This sole fact makes it unusable for me personally.

 

[Jhonjhon236]

I tried ou it on my Mac but I just couldn’t really get into it. Maybe if I forced myself to use it then I may like it but it just wasn’t for for me. Maybe it would be better/more convenient for som single monitors but it seemed rag strange with multiple monitors.

 

[TinyMito]

I think Stage Manager is great for people who need to focus on documents etc.

 

[owidhh]

ever since the betas.. I've tried to use Stage Manager for about 1 month each time. Maybe 4 times in total. Really trying to put it through its paces and making sure I don't have just a superficial impression of it.

And here's what it comes down to, to me: while I like how it looks, and it's useful on the ipad (mostly to be able to see my dock on the screen and to have multiple apps actually multitasking, not getting killed in the background), on the Mac it just gets in my way. Everything about it is slower, and there's less kb navigation possible compared to the old way of managing windows and apps. As such, it slows down my workflows, plus there's still some lingering bugs that are just annoying.

Eventually I turn it off and instantly am happier and comfortable with managing windows. Yes sure it's how I've always done it so it's more intuitive to me, perhaps, but the new way cannot (yet?) match it.

 

[kastorff]

I use it on the iPad Pro when I'm using it in "laptop" mode (Magic Keyboard Folio). In "tablet" mode I disable it. On the laptop I keep it running, and occasionally find it useful to group a few apps together. It's not doing anything Spaces doesn't do better. I like the eye candy of it, but agree with those who say it feels unfinished.

 

[coffeemilktea]

Apple kept advertising Stage Manager so much, but I genuinely forgot it existed after trying it once. 🙃

 

[Dc2006ster]

I do find it usefull if I am working on something that needs access to multiple apps. A nice feature would be if I could save that specific workspace, as is possible in some photo editing apps, and then with one click have all those apps open at once in the predetermined layout.

 

[adamlbiscuit]

I use it on my MacBook Air a lot. In fact it's been on Permanently since Ventura was released. I like being able to see all my open windows on screen at once. It has sort of become an 'always-on Mission Control' for me.

On my Mac mini where I have a 27-inch studio display and 24-inch portrait monitor, I leave it off. It's just way too cumbersome on a multi-monitor setup with windows flying around everywhere. Besides, I have enough screen real estate I can fit everything I need on screen without having to have windows shrank down to a strip on the side.

 

[jdb8167]

I use Stage Manager only when I’m using my M2 MacBook Air with only the internal display. I find it very helpful when doing development (reactjs targeting a browser on an embedded device) where I’m switching between an editor, terminal, and browser constantly for development and testing.

I don’t find Stage Manager useful when I’m working with a large external display. I have a 4K 24” monitor in my home office and there is plenty of room to have multiple windows open at the same time.

My biggest wish for Stage Manager would for it to have a keyboard shortcut. When I’m using it I frequently find that something doesn’t work quite right and I have to turn it off to fix something and then turn it back on. (For example, how do you minimize a Safari window back to the dock when SM is active? It always minimizes to the stage instead.) This could be sped up with a shortcut.

 

[cfm56d7b]

Anyone having problems with Zoom if Stage Manager is enabled? My Zoom session hangs requiring a reboot.

 

[jdb8167]

Anyone having problems with Zoom if Stage Manager is enabled?

Yes. That is another issue that makes me have to turn off SM.

Waiting for the room in Zoom has this awful, always on top modal. It breaks switching to another window when using SM. If there are other issues I probably don’t see them because I have SM off for the duration of the call.

 

[googull]

Yes I am using it! I just enabled it recently to test for a family member and was stunned at how efficient it made managing Space (0) which usually has numerous windows cluttered as my misc work space. I am bit of UX snob, a dedicated BTT user with a complete custom set of trackpad gestures that make managing spaces and windows across spaces smooth and swift. But my first space, which I call space(0), is always cluttered and as many have noted, Stage Manager really helps me keep an otherwise cluttered workspace organized and efficient to manage. I never ever thought I would even enable this enhancement let alone find it so useful. So I tried it on iPad and have only two words for it there - “GAME CHANGER”. I have no intention of ever turning off on iPad. There are a few elements to be refined, but in general I am surprised and pleased at how far Apple has taken this optional efficiency/productivity enhancement.