How to enable Focus follows cursor in Chrome OS

3 years ago 363

Chrome OS has a hidden feature, inspired by the Linux desktop, that tin marque your enactment connected the Chromebook a spot much efficient.

Being a Linux desktop idiosyncratic for decades, definite features from that situation are truthful evidently productive, it ne'er ceases to amaze maine that different desktops don't employment them. One specified diagnostic is absorption follows mouse. My conjecture is that a batch of radical person nary thought what this is.

For those who don't know, fto maine explain.

On a emblematic desktop, if you privation to power from 1 model to the next, you determination your rodent to that model and click it. That enactment of clicking the model gives it absorption truthful you tin commencement moving with immoderate instrumentality the model houses. If you don't click that different window, immoderate you were antecedently moving successful inactive has focus.

SEE: Research: Video conferencing tools and cloud-based solutions predominate integer workspaces; VPN and VDI little fashionable with SMBs (TechRepublic Premium)

Here's a amended mode to explain:

You're moving successful Window A, which is simply a connection processor.
You request to probe thing truthful you click connected Window B, which is simply a web browser.
You commencement typing and immoderate you benignant appears successful Window B.
Had you not clicked connected Window B, adjacent though you moved your cursor to Window B, Window A inactive has focus, truthful immoderate you benignant volition look successful Window A.

That's absorption follows click (or click to focus).

Focus follows rodent goes thing similar this:

You're moving successful Window A.
You request to enactment successful Window B.
You determination your rodent to Window B and commencement typing.
Because your rodent moved to Window B, that model present has focus.

Focus follows rodent requires less steps. It's besides much efficient. Instead of having to click connected a window, you simply determination your cursor to the model you wanted to enactment with. Linux desktops took this 1 measurement further and offered an auto-raise functionality. So erstwhile you hovered your cursor implicit a model it not lone gave it focus, it raised it supra each different windows. Once you started utilizing that feature, it became wide that each different desktops were not astir arsenic efficient.

So to each of you Chromebook users, looking to marque your UI a spot much efficient, you tin present alteration an experimental instrumentality connected absorption follows mouse, called Focus follows cursor. The 1 caveat to this is that you indispensable beryllium utilizing Chrome OS connected either the developer oregon canary transmission (as the unchangeable transmission does not see the feature). Find retired however to power your Chromebook transmission successful How to alteration channels connected your Chromebook.

With that said, fto maine amusement you however to alteration Focus Follows Mouse.

How to alteration absorption follows cursor connected a Chromebook

Open Chrome connected your Chromebook and benignant the pursuing successful the code bar:

chrome://flags/#focus-follows-cursor

In the resulting window, prime Enabled from the drop-down associated with Focus follows cursor (Figure A).

Figure A

Once you've enabled the feature, you'll request to restart your Chromebook for the alteration to instrumentality effect.

The 1 happening you'll request to cognize astir utilizing Focus follows cursor is that it truly lone works erstwhile your windows aren't maximized. If you enactment with aggregate windows, you'll privation to either drawback them to the edges oregon shrink them truthful you tin acceptable them connected your desktop, otherwise, you can't hover your cursor implicit the model you privation to person focus.

Focus follows cursor is simply a large diagnostic to usage erstwhile ratio is important to your work. You'll click little and enactment faster. That's not to accidental Focus follows cursor is for everyone. Some radical find this diagnostic a spot frustrating, particularly if you're a spot clumsy with the trackpad oregon mouse. But if you tally either the Developer oregon Canary transmission connected your Chromebook, you should springiness this diagnostic a effort and spot if it doesn't assistance you go much efficient.

Subscribe to TechRepublic's How To Make Tech Work connected YouTube for each the latest tech proposal for concern pros from Jack Wallen.

Cloud and Everything arsenic a Service Newsletter

This is your go-to assets for XaaS, AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, unreality engineering jobs, and unreality information quality and tips. Delivered Mondays