SwiftRing enables mouse gestures for any Mac / OS X application.
SwiftRing was conceived in 2009, and available commercially in 2011/12. It was an interesting experiment in UI that coupled highly configurable gestures with a simple, unobtrustive, and rapid way to learn and recall them.
The 2011 Mac app store launch and subsequent lockdown of apps that automated user input, along with native gesture support with the Magic Mouse signalled the end of SwiftRing's useful life. It has been made fully open source for anyone to use or modify at will.
The tutorial video is the best way to get familiar with SwiftRing.
A brief summary of SwiftRing's capabilities is below. Also see the media links for in-depth reviews.
The Basics
Once SwiftRing is installed, using it is very simple:
- Hold down the option key to bring up the ring.
- Touch a ring segment to perform the labeled action, no clicking is required.
The extra action labels stacked on the top and bottom segments are activated using the mouse scroll wheel.
Customizing
Actions can be customized for any application - simply assign as many keystrokes and/or shortcuts as desired to a ring segment using the preferences panel. The ring activation key (option by default) can also be changed.
SwiftRing comes with built in support for Safari and iTunes. A generic ring is also supported to provide common actions for unrecognized applications.
Speed Demons
Power users can hold the option key, quickly touch a segment, and release option without the ring ever popping up for maximum efficiency. The scroll wheel can also be used to perform highly repetitive actions.
- http://lifehacker.com/5846408/swiftring-adds-mouse-gestures-to-os-x
- http://mac.appstorm.net/reviews/utilities/swiftring-a-unique-mouse-gesture-app-for-os-x/
- http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/control-any-mac-app-with-custom-mouse-gestures-using-switftring/
- http://www.macstories.net/reviews/swiftring-for-mac-combines-gestures-and-keyboard-shortcuts/