Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Several OS X Mountain Lion apps take advantage of a feature called
notifications,
which enables them to send
messages to OS X about events and alerts that are happening on your Mac. For example, the App Store uses the
Notification Center to let you know when there are OS X updates available.
There are actually four kinds of notifications:
Sound.
This is a sound effect that plays when some app-related event occurs.
Alert.
This is a message that pops up on your MacBook Air screen, as shown in Figure 4.18. You must then
click a button to dismiss the message before you can continue working with your current app.
4.18
An example of an alert notification.
Banner.
This is a message that appears in the top-right corner of the screen, as shown in Figure 4.19. Unlike
an alert, a banner allows you to keep using your current app and disappears automatically after a few seconds.
4.19
An example of a banner notification.
Badge.
This is a small red icon that appears in the upper-right corner of an app icon. The icon usually dis-
plays a number, which might be the number of messages you have waiting for you on the server.
You can also open the Notification Center to view your recent notifications, as shown in Figure 4.20. You open
the Notification Center either by clicking the Notification Center icon in the upper-right corner of the screen or
by using two fingers to swipe left from the right edge of the trackpad.
