>A tear-off menu allows users to move a menu around the screen like a window. Tear-off menus save desktop space because the user can place them on top of a document or move them to a convenient position. If you implement a tear-off menu rather than a fixed palette in a window, you allow the user to have a larger workspace in document windows. Users can also choose to leave the menu in the menu bar, or tear it off and close it when necessary. Tear-off menus give the user more flexibility than fixed palettes do.
Inside Macintosh > Macintosh Human Interface Guidelines > Part 2 - The Interface Elements > Chapter 4 - Menus > Tear-Off Menus and Palettes
http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/doc...
http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/doc...
>A tear-off menu allows users to move a menu around the screen like a window. Tear-off menus save desktop space because the user can place them on top of a document or move them to a convenient position. If you implement a tear-off menu rather than a fixed palette in a window, you allow the user to have a larger workspace in document windows. Users can also choose to leave the menu in the menu bar, or tear it off and close it when necessary. Tear-off menus give the user more flexibility than fixed palettes do.