Using a trackpad equipped Mac? Do yourself a huge favor and apply this tip now. That is, Apple chose to build a frustrating lag into its multitouch routines and you can make it go away right now.

In the default configuration of OS X Lion, tapping once with two fingers brings up a contextual menu, just like right clicking (Control + click) does with a mouse. However, if you double tap with two fingers, in Safari for example, Lion zooms in (Smart Zoom).

How does Lion know the difference between a single and double tap? It waits.

That is, if you single tap with two fingers, expecting a contextual menu to pop immediately, it won’t. Lion will wait a half second (don’t know the exact period) to see if you will tap again — I didn’t know this was driving me crazy, but Mac OS X Hints posted the tip and I immediately got it (doh!).

To remove the delay, you need to disable Smart Zoom:

— System Preferences > Trackpad > Scroll & Zoom tab > uncheck Smart zoom

Can you still zoom compatible apps, like Safari, when Smart Zoom is disabled? Of course, there are three other readily available methods, including Pinch to Zoom — see also OS X Lion gestures: Zoom any webpage in Safari 5.1.

Know a neato OS X Lion tip or trick? Share it and a link in the comments below…