Although I already use Quicksilver, this article does absolutely nothing to convince me I should use Quicksilver instead of Spotlight. The one benefit it mentions — quicker access to applications — is something that Spotlight does very well.
A friend recently switched to the mac, and I recommended QS to her after years of being happy with it. The discussion then ensued about why QS is better than Spotlight, and the best I could come up with is that I like the fact that QS can be configured to show up in the center of the screen. The configurability and wealth of plugins is nice, but to be honest I don't use many of them, so it's not a huge deciding factor.
I've been a Quicksilver user for a couple of years, but after upgrading to Snow Leopard I've been trying out Launchbar. I must say that I like it much, much better. It is far more stable and responsive. Also, it is much easier to configure than QS.
Same here. Quicksilver will always have a special place in my heart, but it's become somewhat buggy, and the development has slowed to a crawl. LaunchBar doesn't have as much cool factor, but it Just Works.
I thought QS had a calculator plugin. At least I think I remember using a QS-based caluclator… in any case, I definitely have to agree that LaunchBar is a superior product at this time.
Quicksilver is basically a dead project. The lead developer now works on Google Quick Search Box. Open source contributors periodically write patches to keep the thing alive, but most of the plugins and such haven't been updated in ages.
I can't stand Quicksilver. I've found it to be a giant memory leak (routinely using 500mb - 1gig of ram!), and will randomly freak out and try to re-index my whole disk causing it to thrash and slow everything down.
Spotlight seems to do all I need and I haven't even noticed it's indexing since upgrading to Snow Leopard.
Also, if you spend most of your day in Terminal and a code editor, what bonus do you get from Quicksilver? I don't really launch that many programs.
Quicksilver's object-action approach and the huge pile of plug-ins make it a pain to set up, but they also make it both powerful and flexible. So, where the article suggests that it provides a way of getting rid of the mouse, others can use Quicksilver without a keyboard. See: http://modbookish.ning.com/profiles/blogs/pen-gestures-on-th....
So, to open iTunes, all I type is ctrl-space, and then the letter I, and then enter. Since iTunes is my most used application starting with the letter I, it doesn't need much typing at all. Similarly, Aquamacs and Firefox are also just one letter away from being opened.
Or just make them triggers. That way you get a global key combo to launch stuff. I have Cmd+Shift+W to open my home folder in Finder. Cmd+Shift+S to open my Web browser. And so on. It works everywhere. I've switched from Quicksilver to Butler for doing this, but it's the same deal in both.
With Snow Leopard I'd say just use Spotlight. Its just as fast as QS, Lunchbar, or Google QSB for me. Since its built in and already running why bother using anything else? Of course I use it just to search and launch apps and files.
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[ 2.6 ms ] story [ 56.0 ms ] threadQuicksilver responds instantly, every time.
Use Spotlight or LaunchBar or Google QSB.
Spotlight seems to do all I need and I haven't even noticed it's indexing since upgrading to Snow Leopard.
Also, if you spend most of your day in Terminal and a code editor, what bonus do you get from Quicksilver? I don't really launch that many programs.
If alternatives are demanded, have a look at Butler, as well: http://manytricks.com/butler/ (freeware).
Or just make them triggers. That way you get a global key combo to launch stuff. I have Cmd+Shift+W to open my home folder in Finder. Cmd+Shift+S to open my Web browser. And so on. It works everywhere. I've switched from Quicksilver to Butler for doing this, but it's the same deal in both.