Quickly enter (and exit) “jiggly app mode” in Lion’s LaunchPad

One of Lion’s new features is called LaunchPad, and it is essentially the Springboard home screen from iOS, adapted for organizing and launching apps on the Mac. Similar to iOS, you can click-hold on any app icon to enter app organization mode, also non-technically known as “jiggly mode”.

But to get in and out of this mode even more quickly, you can simply hold the Option key. Icons will jiggle while the key is depressed, so you can move them between pages, drag them onto each other to create folders, and delete them. Let go of Option and your changes are saved.

Also: unlike on iOS, you don’t actually need to enter jiggly mode if all you need to do is move apps or create folders. As far as I can tell, the mode only adds deleting to the equation on a Mac.

Bonus points: To enter jiggly mode on any Mac with a multitouch trackpad, use a four-finger pinch that includes your thumb. In other words: make a gesture with your hand as if it’s a claw in one of those old school stuffed animal machines.