Disable Lion Full Screen Mode

[bleh2947249]

Is it possible to disable Fusion's use of OSX's full screen mode, and go back to the way it was in SL, or am I SoL? (har har)

I absolutly hate full screen mode. That goes double for fusion's use of it.  It definitely makes my life more difficult. :smileysilly:

Thanks!

[Sprengbirne]

Interesting Fact:

On my MBP I have the same "problem". VMWare uses the native Lion Fullscreen-Mode.

On my Mac mini is still the old "SnowLeopard" Fullscreen-Mode.

Both systems with Lion 10.7.3 and VMWare 4.1.1 (Upgrade from VMWare 3). So there IS a way to switch this Lion-Fullscreen off.

Maybe I have to compare the prefs.

[blahteblahblah]

I'm the OP with a new account.

@gguess:  Can you provide the link to the feature request you've created?  I'd love to be able to vote it up or whatever and I'm sure a lot of other people would too.  Thanks!

[gguess]

@blahteblahblah  I posted a request at the link suggested by @dmshaw (below).

http://www.vmware.com/contact/contactus.html?department=prod_request

It doesn't look like user posted suggestions are made public so you'd probably have to post your own. Please go to the link above and post a request for this feature. May I suggest something simple like:

Please add my vote to the request to add a user configurable checkbox in VMWare Fusion which would bring back the old (pre-Lion) full-screen mode which left the VM in the same desktop screen (rather than going to a new Lion Desktop). Such a check box would bring back the fullscreen as seen in older versions of VMWare (up to 4.0.2).  This older full-screen mode enables user to better manage desktop switching keyboard shortcuts, allowing to quickly switch to-and-from the VMWare fusion when in Full screen mode.

To all of you out there asking for this feature, please consider going to the link above and posting either the suggested text of one of your own. The more requests they get, the better our chances are to see this implemented.

Cheers!

[WREA]

I am for this change as well. I made a request also.

Lion's full screen mode is useless IMO.

[GlennyG]

I'll also add my vote here.

The full screen mode is totally useless as you can't have other windows over the top of it.  Try multiple monitors with VMWare using all monitors.

Absolutely awful.  I appreciate it's wholly Apple's fault,  but please VMWare could you give us the option to run in the old mode.  I'm sure even Apple will fix this stupidity one day.

[dmshaw]

I suppose it's unlikely or people would have said something by now, but does the new Fusion 4.1.2 have anything helpful with the full screen problems on Lion?

[milton123]

Smart Full Screen

Full screen mode provides better productivity and consistency with Mac OS X Lion than previous versions.

• The Lion full-screen button is used in virtual machine windows.
• The Lion full-screen keyboard shortcut (Cmd-Control-F) is now supported in addition to Cmd-Control-Return.
• Like  other full screen Lion applications, a VMware Fusion virtual machine  moves to a new full screen space when using a single display.
• If  you are using multiple displays, VMware Fusion intelligently decides  whether to use a full screen space or not. If the virtual machine is  configured to use all displays in full screen, it moves to a full screen  space. If not, full screen takes the whole display in the current  space, which enables you to work in other Mac applications while the  virtual machine makes full use of the secondary display.
• The  VMware Fusion menu bar and toolbar are now accessible from Full Screen  mode. A short delay in showing the menu allows access the top of the  virtual machine screen, particularly when running Mac OS X Lion in a  virtual machine.
• A redesigned, compact minibar that you can drag for quick access to common actions without leaving Full Screen mode.

milton123   

[GlennyG]

Sorry mate,  but Lion's full screen mode DOES NOT provide better productivity.  It is a significant backwards step.

VMWare's implementation may be accurate to Apple's standards,  but it is HORRIBLE to use when compared with VMWare's PREVIOUS implementation.

Reasons:

- Putting any application into full screen prevents you from running other applications in the same screen,  such as finder,  web browsing or anything else.  This is *really* tedious if you're browsing from the Mac whilst developing using,  say,  dot.net.

- The OSX menu bar has a built in delay before it shows,  therefore it slows you down.

- You can't have more than one VM maximised in the same space -- this is sometimes useful when running several concurrently for testing;  <cmd><tab> switches.

- When disconnecting a second monitor,  a VM running in full screen will change to the other monitor;  you have to go out of full-screen,  move the window,  then go back into full screen

- Maximising a window shoves it to the right-most MisControl window;  this messes with my head as I need to know the order of my VMs

Basically it's everything you've said as a benefit (with the exception of <cmd><alt>F) makes life difficult.  As for the "intelligently decides",  does it also have a sense of humour and deliberately chooses the wrong one for a wind-up?  Intelligently decides...  what a joke.

For me,  I'd love to see VMWare have a simple checkbox in the VMWare preferences which says use Lion's full-screen model,  or the old VMWare full-screen implementation.

[GlennyG]

dmshaw wrote:

I suppose it's unlikely or people would have said something by now, but does the new Fusion 4.1.2 have anything helpful with the full screen problems on Lion?

Unfortunately nothing's changed in my experience with 4.1.2 over the last week.

[mhist]

Full screen mode may well be more _consistent_ with Lion than previous releases.

However it is not more productive.

In particular, the fact that it moves to a new space when going to full screen is a major step backwards.

General consumer feeling is that Lion full-screen mode is inspired by small and touch-screen devices and is useful on the iPad and iPhone.

But it is less useful on computers with large screens and keyboards.

(The first Google result for "Lion fullscreen" is

"Lion's full screen apps - Some hits, a lot of misses"

http://www.tuaw.com/2011/07/20/lions-full-screen-apps-some-hits-a-lot-of-misses/

)

The principal disadvantage of the Lion full-screen mode is the inability to set a keyboard shortcut to select the Fusion desktop.

Other issues involve its poor interaction with multi-monitor setups and slow fullscreen zoom as well as no keyboard shortcut to invoke it that is uniform across apps.

The rest of the features listed above are not contingent on the Lion full-screen mode - they would work just as well in the full screen mode used on prior releases.

* The full-screen keyboard shortcut could easily be the same in both versions

* The bug where Fusion does not successfully use both monitors in full-screen existed in prior versions and was fixed just before Lion mode.  Which reintroduced this bug in some cases.  Billing this as a 'feature' is merely PR.

* The small menubar which is draggable in full-screen is a nice feature; it is not dependent on Lion mode, however.

And this is not specific to Fusion - Parallels has a similar bug report about fullscreen mode:

http://kb.parallels.com/112176

Best

[dmshaw]

mhist wrote:

And this is not specific to Fusion - Parallels has a similar bug report about fullscreen mode:

http://kb.parallels.com/112176

Interesting.  I didn't know people were complaining about this in Parallels as well.  As it happens, the Parallels developers fixed it in the exact way that the various posters here have suggested for Fusion: by giving users the option to pick whether they want a Lion-style or SL-style full screen.

[GlennyG]

dmshaw wrote:

Interesting.  I didn't know people were complaining about this in Parallels as well.  As it happens, the Parallels developers fixed it in the exact way that the various posters here have suggested for Fusion: by giving users the option to pick whether they want a Lion-style or SL-style full screen.

Then,  in this respect,  Parallels IS BETTER than VMWare.

Please VMWare,  just fix this.  It's not hard,  just revert to the old code and it's all sorted.  We'll all be happy developers and think VMWare's wonderful.

[GlennyG]

An observation:  when running VMWare in full-screen mode with multiple monitors but with "Use all displays in Full Screen" = FALSE

Results in the window running "properly",  i.e. doesn't go sculking off into a desktop window all on it's own like some sulky teenager.  Of course this isn't the "Apple" way,  which demands that it shows a blank second window and total solitude from other Mac applications.  So I suppose this is a small mercy from the VMWare developers.

[seani]

One more serious issue for me (and likely it belongs elsewhere):

On occasion, the top pull-down toolbar doesn't auto-hide and becomes unresponsive. After 20 seconds or so, a menu will popup, and the toolbar disappears.

At this point, the toolbar will no longer pull down; the only way I can switch away from the VM is to use the minibar to un-maximise the VM and switch away on the Mac desktop. It's a royal pain in the arse.

[mhist]

Here is an example of why the current full-screen Fusion behavior is buggy:

Take your Mac laptop.  Put Fusion in full-screen.  Then plug in a larger external monitor.

Fusion is now mirrored on both displays in full-screen.  Click the Lion "exit full screen button".  Now Fusion is only on the small laptop monitor as a single window.

However, both the top and bottom of the window are not on the display.

Thus it is impossible to resize it.

One way to fix it is to exit Fusion and restart.  60 seconds later, I'm now able to run Fusion normally.

(Cmd-H to hide and Cmd-M to minimize both restore to the exact same position.  As does dragging to another desktop in Mission Control).

[treee]

You can use the sides of the window to change its width (left/right). If you hold the shift key it will resize from the center which means that it will resize top, bottom, left and right simultaneously (it will keep its aspect ratio). This way you can get the window back to a size where you can drag it and resize to a more suitable size. Of course this only works in Lion but since we are discussing Lion fullscreen...

[mhist]

Great suggestion - the shift key works!

[kinless]

Warning for all Fusion v4.0.2 users about to update to Lion 10.7.4!

I was also using the workaround by keeping v4.0.2 on my Lion installation, mostly to keep the keyboard commands for switching spaces between at least 2 VMs at all times. If you have Fusion v4.0.2 and upgrade to the latest Lion 10.7.4, your Virtual Machine environments may stop working (symptoms are reported on this thread; I replied to that one as well).

So unfortunately I had to upgrade to the latest v4.1.2 and they work again, but now my keyboard commands are effed. Thanks Apple.

VMWare please add back Snow-Leopard-type full screen. Pretty please.

~j

[dmshaw]

kinless wrote:

Warning for all Fusion v4.0.2 users about to update to Lion 10.7.4!

I was also using the workaround by keeping v4.0.2 on my Lion installation, mostly to keep the keyboard commands for switching spaces between at least 2 VMs at all times. If you have Fusion v4.0.2 and upgrade to the latest Lion 10.7.4, your Virtual Machine environments may stop working (symptoms are reported on this thread; I replied to that one as well).

One solution, and what I am doing, is to downgrade to Fusion 3.1.4 as it works correctly with Lion 10.7.4.  It doesn't have any of the Fusion 4.x features, of course, but at least it doesn't cause problems with full screen mode.

Also, yes, pretty please, VMware, can we have an option for the old-style full screen?  Parallels has already done it.  I'd really like to upgrade to Fusion 4!

[SleepyJay]

There is Lion full screen mode and there is the original VMWare full screen mode--which I'll call "maximized" to avoid confusion.

I use VMWare at home and Parallels at work (although, we are tending towards VMWare at work now). I have two monitors in both places, and just recently upgraded to Lion in both places. My typical pre-Lion usage was to have an XP VM in "maximized" view on one monitor only.

When I upgraded to Lion at home (VMWare) the change was basically seamless. My XP VM simply opened in Desktop 1, in the correct monitor, as a single maximized screen. I can type this in Mac OS left monitor while viewing my XP VM in the right monitor--a very common thing that I do. Perfect.

So, I am a little confused by this forum thread. Is the single monitor or dual-monitor-both-screen modes experience different? If it weren't for Parallels, I wouldn't have realized Lion FS was a problem at all. (Although, I am staunchly in the angry OMFG-Bring-Back-Spaces Camp.)

Yeah. So my upgrade at work made Parallels go into that FS "space-not-a-desktop-area" and using a single screen is especially pointless since as mentioned, the second monitor gets the USELESS grey screen of nothingness. AFAIK, there is no setting to make this not do this--although I might be a version or so behind. If I press the come-out-of-FS-mode button, I don't get a maximized VM screen--it has the Parallels tool-border around it. Plus, the screen and colors went all funky in the VM on Parallels. Also, the window with the list of Parallel VMs needs to hang out in a separate Desktop now, as the stupid FS mode means that window can't occupy the same "screen". So frustrating--and, honestly, I'm just going to switch to VMWare at work as the final straw for Parallels for me.

So, I really thought this was a win for VMWare. But, what am I missing?

(Just some more general Lion ranting follows...)

On the subject of Lion FS mode, I CANNOT STAND when an app or, now the OS, tries to decide that what I want is a crippled two-screen view. I've seen games do this, too, even disabling my keyboard in the other window!

It should be my choice for how I want to use the second monitor--I may have a clock, an IM window, a web browser, or some other windows open in the other monitor and you hiding them serves no point! GAH! No program should EVER steal focus, move windows, or otherwise tell me how to use my screen real estate. PERIOD. If your design team tells you different, you immediately fire them and get a new team. Simple as that.

And WTF is with keeping my two sets of desktops separate, as if I can see the left-Desktop-1 without the same right-Desktop-1, or that I wouldn't want to put a window from the right-Desktop directly into a left-Desktop. Seriously, how do you screw up so badly, Apple?

Ahh. Thanks for letting me gripe. Standard conclusion here: Lion's Mission Control is a leap backwards of usability IMHO.

jason.