Ever since the advent of Windows, it has been an issue to keep your mind on a single task. All the helpful windows make focusing on task at hand problematic; popups endangered that further, and notifications have blasted our attention span to smithereens.
iPad was a bit of a reactionary revolution in forcing people to work on a single app at a time, but with HazeOver, you can make your active window much more prominent.
So what is this app? Well, simply put, HazeOver is a new Mac Store app that darkens all the background app, leaving your currently selected app in the foreground. It doesn’t meddle with functionality; all the background apps still work, and you can select them (and thus, push them to foreground) as easy as before.
Once it is installed, you need to activate it via System Preferences → Privacy → Accessibility. HazeOver is a menu bar app, meaning that you have to click on its icon to change its settings. There you can kill the app together, or change the intensity of dimming, if you so prefer. Under the Advanced tab, you can even select a shortcut for the dim effect, as well as the animation option that lets you set the duration of the dimming animation.
Is it useful? If you lead a hectic lifestyle, it definitely is; it will focus your attention on what you need to do. The problem arises when you want to multitask, as it will dim the windows and pages that you also need at a present moment but which aren’t selected. A sort of a multitasking option should be enabled in the future instalments.
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The app costs only $2.99, a steal if you need a small nudge in the right direction. Remember to use its shortcut for the best results, otherwise its overuse may make it annoying. Let us know how you use it for full effect.