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I can use command tab to switch between apps, and command tilde to switch between windows of the same app (for example, a regular window and an incognito window of Chrome).

However, when I full screen a window of Chrome, I lose the ability to switch between windows of the same app with command tilde. I also cannot switch back to it with command tab.

What I want is to be able to full screen all windows in all apps, and still be able to switch between apps and windows with the keyboard. How can I do this?

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    It drives me bananas that they broke cmd-tilde for fullscreen mode then pushed fullscreen functionality so hard. I'm currently: making everything fullscreen and using 3-finger lateral swiping to switch. This is not ideal as I don't want everything fullscreen, but at least it treats all windows equally, same app or different app. The one thing I miss from Windows (pre Win8) was their equal treatment of all windows when alt-tabbing. That's just simpler.
    – peteorpeter
    Mar 2, 2015 at 15:37

4 Answers 4

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A bonus method if you want to do this entirely with trackpad instead: I forgot to mention that HyperSwitch also adds this functionality into the mac's built in CMD+Tab app switcher.

enter image description here

You need to enable the setting in HyperSwitch to display window previews on the app switcher.

enter image description here

Again, using BetterTouchTool, I used a trackpad gesture to trigger the application switcher. This BetterTouchTool gesture makes the switcher stay open until you click on something, so you can switch windows entirely with trackpad.

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you would need to create a new instance of the application via terminal:

In general it is simply :

open -a 'application' -n

But for Google Chrome it is:

/Applications/Google\ Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google\ Chrome --user-data-dir=my-profile-dir

that gives you the ability to switch between two windows in full screen mode that are completely seperate from each other. But i requires some sort of new user, also discussed here on SuperUser : https://superuser.com/questions/415531/how-can-i-have-multiple-browsing-sessions-in-google-chrome

And regarding the ability to switch the full screen-Apps: You know that you can switch between them with CTRL+Arrows (Left+Right = Switching Application) (Up + Down = Overview) ?

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  • This doesn't work. This command just puts one of my open sessions in focus. Also, this is not always a solution since individual windows of an app are not always separate instances (I edited/simplified my question)
    – clocksmith
    Apr 17, 2014 at 20:29
  • I edited the answer, is it now working ?
    – rwenz3l
    Apr 17, 2014 at 20:34
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    It might work, but I do not know what to put for --user-data-dir=my-profile-dir. Also, this is not a scalable solution. I use several programs that I use with different windows (Sketch, Android Studio, Terminal, etc). It will not always be possible to launch new windows in this way, nor would I ever want to. Thanks for the input though.
    – clocksmith
    Apr 17, 2014 at 20:46
  • I also edited the answer regarding keyboard shortcuts, I thought you might be aware of it, but if not, try the CTRL+Arrows Solution).. That is all I know.. Switching Apps in general with CMD+TAB+Arrows | Switching the windows with CTRL+TAB | Switching in FUll Screen with CTRL+Arrows.
    – rwenz3l
    Apr 17, 2014 at 20:49
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    Also, be careful with multiple instances. Apps can generally assume they only have one instance open at a time, especially when preferences are involved—one instance might overwrite the preferences of another instance.
    – SilverWolf
    Nov 16, 2017 at 14:46
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I know this post is old, but I came across it in Google when I was looking for a solution myself. Maybe someone else will look here too. I have found an answer by using the free app Hyperswitch

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This engages a window switcher (fullscreen instances included) using cmd+`

It operates the same way as the normal mac cmd+tab app switcher. I also went to System Preferences--Keyboard and redefined the Mac OS "move focus to next window" command to Cmd + Shift + `

Then I tied that Cmd + Shift + ` keystroke to a trackpad gesture using BetterTouchTool. This allows me to also retain that "move focus to next window" functionality.

Here is Hyperswitch: bahoom.com/hyperswitch

Here is BetterTouchTool: www.boastr.net/downloads/

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System Preferences > Trackpad > More gestures Tick App Expose Swipe down with three fingersenter image description here

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  • It doesn't work in Full screen mode. I mean, if an app is in full screen mode, this gesture will not reveal app expose.
    – anki
    Sep 5, 2019 at 11:47

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