Quick Look · DockDuck Docs

Preview a file without opening its app — press Space and DockDuck shows the content full-size using macOS Quick Look.

What it is. Quick Look gives you a full-size look at a file without launching the app that owns it. When to use it. Skimming a folder of PDFs, checking which screenshot is the right one, or reading a text file you don’t want to edit — glance, then move on.

Previewing a file

Select an item in any view.

Press Space to open the preview. Press Space again — or esc — to close it.

Add image — The macOS Quick Look panel showing a file full-size, centered over the DockDuck window

public/docs/img/quick-look-1.png

You can also trigger Quick Look from the context menu, the Columns view’s preview column, and the preview panel.

What it can preview

Quick Look uses the same engine as Finder, so it previews everything the system knows how to render:

Images, PDFs, and rich documents
Plain text, source code, and Markdown
Audio and video, with playback controls
Many app-specific formats, via their Quick Look extensions

If a file type has no previewer installed, Quick Look shows the file’s icon and basic information instead.

Note

Quick Look opens on the same display as the DockDuck window that triggered it, so the preview never jumps to another monitor.

Quick Look vs. the preview panel

Quick Look is a momentary, full-size glance. The preview panel is a persistent sidebar that stays open as you move through a folder, showing a preview plus metadata for whatever is selected. Use Quick Look for a quick check; keep the preview panel open when you’re comparing many files in a row.

Where to go next

Selecting & opening — choose what to preview.
The preview panel — a persistent preview with metadata.
Keyboard shortcuts — every binding in one place.