Quicksilver: “Application Launcher on Steriods”

Quicksilver is one of those apps that I’m sure those of us in the Mac community hear about all the time, but for some reason or another, we never give it a chance and try it out. Well, I strongly suggest that you try out Quicksilver. If you learn how to use it correctly, it will quickly become part of your daily tasks, and you won’t be able to live without it.

Quicksilver app

Quicksilver does have somewhat of a learning curve, but as with most apps with a learning curve, once you do “learn” the program, you can’t be without it. Quicksilver is accessed by a quick key stroke (default is Ctrl + Space) and from there you are greeted with the main window (named Primer). From here is where the “magic” happens. Quicksilver has a plethora of built in features, but one of its strong points would have to be the massive array of plugins, enhancements, other UI’s, etc. that can be installed and make Quicksilver even more powerful.

Quicksilver at the basic core is considered an application launcher, but there are so many things you can do after you type in the application’s name, that it is sometimes amazing. It has a search features, and you can look up documents, pictures, etc. and move them somewhere else, you can rename them, you can make them invisible…there is just so much you can do with Quicksilver.

I strongly suggest anyone who hasn’t yet tried Quicksilver out, to click the link above, download it, and I’m sure your future Mac computing will forever be altered (in a good way, of course…!). Please check out Quicksilver.

Comments

24 Responses to “Quicksilver: “Application Launcher on Steriods””

  1. shadownight on February 16th, 2007 12:59 pm

    One thing nice to point out for new QS users is how to get the interface we always see in screenshots, called Bezel. To use that interface, go to the Appearance section of the Prefs (Press Command-, with the QS interface to the front). You’ll see a pop-up menu that lets you select Bezel instead of Primer.

  2. John Baker on February 16th, 2007 4:16 pm

    I would’ve called this “Quicksilver: Can You Live Without It For More Than Five Seconds?”

    It’s so funny… the other day I had to quit Quicksilver to install a script, and I tried to relaunch Quicksilver with Quicksilver even though it was closed because I was so used to hitting Command-Space to launch apps.

  3. Andre on February 16th, 2007 3:34 pm

    Meh, I tried it but didn’t like it.

  4. Yohannes Wijaya on February 16th, 2007 3:53 pm

    @shadownight : try even the cube interface. it’s really wicked.
    @ Andre: is it because you’re overwhelmed @ what you can do w/ it?
    Anyway, Qs is an extremely powerful application. what it can do, is up to your imagination; from adding contact/reminder to your ical to resizing images. The potential is infinite. there is a definite learning curve here. one should not expect to be proficient @ it in a few minutes. it takes me a day or two to get a hang of it by consulting the manual, tutorials out there, or what have you. Even after using it for 2 years, I am still learning it. This is THE single app that I use most at any given time. I cant imagine living w/o it. There are countless of guides on how to use Qs. One starting place: http://mysite.verizon.net/hmelman/Quicksilver.pdf

    and for those who has used Qs before, here is a tip on how to use QS w/o using the “enter” key: http://blacktree.cocoaforge.com/forums//viewtopic.php?p=23273#23273

  5. Indraneel on February 16th, 2007 4:07 pm

    I like the fact that it adapts to what you do.

  6. alej744 on February 19th, 2007 7:13 pm

    The flashlight (?) interface is my fave.
    Btw, typo: Steroids

  7. MacApper » Blog Archive » Namely: The Simple Way to Launch Apps on March 13th, 2007 10:58 am

    [...] and launch apps quickly without going to the Applications folder. Many Mac users will recommend Quicksilver. However, Quicksilver has lots of features, maybe too many. I got scared off just reading the web [...]

  8. emma on April 9th, 2007 5:51 am

    cool blog!

  9. Overflow: Review and Giveaway! | MacApper on July 25th, 2007 10:13 pm

    [...] an application launcher by the name Overflow from Stunt Software. Like many people, I already used Quicksilver for my application launching and more. Nonetheless, I decided I would give Overflow the chance it [...]

  10. Is the Dock’s Quality Degrading? (Customize it!) | MacApper on November 11th, 2007 7:30 am

    [...] dock, which completely defeats the purpose for me. I don't use the dock as an app launcher, I use Quicksilver for that. The dock is only used for switching to different applications that are currently [...]

  11. Apple Blog » Blog Archive » Is the Dock's Quality Degrading? (Customize it!) on November 11th, 2007 7:35 am

    [...] dock, which completely defeats the purpose for me. I don't use the dock as an app launcher, I use Quicksilver for that. The dock is only used for switching to different applications that are currently [...]

  12. The Great Mac OS X Freeware List | MacApper on January 10th, 2008 12:30 pm

    [...] other apps help’s you search them, and even send quick e-mails without even opening Mail. Our Review | [...]

  13. Secrets: Another Way to Manage Secret Prefs in your Mac | MacApper on March 5th, 2008 6:01 am

    [...] the makers of Quicksilver, the indispensible launcher for Mac OS X, comes Secrets. This preference pane add-on allows you to [...]

  14. Mac Is King » Blog Archive » Secrets: Another Way to Manage Secret Prefs in your Mac on March 24th, 2008 2:21 pm

    [...] the makers of Quicksilver, the indispensible launcher for Mac OS X, comes Secrets. This preference pane add-on allows you to [...]

  15. Spruce Up Quicksilver With New Interfaces | MacApper on May 17th, 2008 10:26 am

    [...] oft mentioned Quicksilver from the awesome folks at Blacktree Software is arguably one of my favorite apps on my entire [...]

  16. Firefox 3: The Browser War Just Got a Lot Hotter | MacApper on June 25th, 2008 6:00 am

    [...] Bar.” Firefox’s Smart Location Bar, as it’s also referred to, is like QuickSilver for your browser. Simply navigate to the location field, type a few letters, and matching results [...]

  17. Will Ayers on February 2nd, 2009 10:58 pm

    I have herd of a couple other “Quicksilver” like apps that work faster without any bugs but I have never had a problem with Quicksilver. Never had it crash, mess anything up or freeze my mac. This is always one of the top 5 apps I download or install on a os reinstall or new computer.

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    It seems like something is missing, no?

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