Re: [wmii] Re: layout per tag.

On Fri, 11 Aug 2006 14:38:52 +0200
Kai Grossjohann <kai.grossjohann_AT_verizonbusiness.com> wrote:

> I do think, however, that it is useful to have some things
> pre-populated. For example, if I always read mail, then I'd like a
> "mail" view that is always visible (present?), even when I haven't
> started my mail reader yet.

What do you want there, if it's empty? ;)
No, seriously. If you REALLY REALLY REALLY want them, you still could
hard-code a button on the bar that switches to the »mail« view, and
edit the M-1/2/3 shortcuts accordingly. Maybe three lines in wmiirc, and
exactly the behaviour you want.

> >>> Rather, the applications should provide for
> >>> enough hints (and the wm should listen to them, of course, while
> >>> placing them into their views) to dynamically create usable
> >>> layouts. Fixed layouts are a totally wrong approach to this
> >>> problem.
> >> It is impossible for the application to provide those hints because
> >> different people have different preferences. For example, I have
> >> Thunderbird fully maximized in a single column. And when I create
> >> a compose window, I want to open a second column with that compose
> >> window.
> >>
> >> Perhaps others prefer a single column with two windows in it.
> >> Some of those people want default layout, some want stacked layout.
> >>
> >
> > You firstly have to realise what you really want. Of course you
> > could make something one hundred percent customizable, but how
> > would that really help? It would make things much, much more
> > complicated, and in the end, you spend more time with customizing
> > than with using your application.
> >

> But others, like me, could say: if a Thunderbird message composition
> window appears, then ensure that the current view has (at least?) two
> columns and put the composition window into the second column.
>
> This is not a hypothetical example: if such configuration was
> possible, I'd use it.

That's exactly what I was saying. This should not need to be
configured, but should happen automatically anyway. These are two
solutions to the same problem:
a) configure by hand that this window behaves like that and stuff
b) add some hints to the window so that the wm can arrange this
   automatically in a sane way for you
Which option would you prefer?

> >> I think what's needed is a program similar in spirit to kstart.
> >> One would say "wmiistart $OPTIONS $APPLICATION" and the $OPTIONS
> >> would say how to tag the application, and what the column layout
> >> should be and stuff.
> >>
> >> And then one would want to have hooks in the wmiirc event loop that
> >> allows one to do different things for different applications: open
> >> a new view for them, open a new colum for them, re-use an existing
> >> column, change the column layout, ...
> >>
> >
> > Talking of complexity ...
> > You didn't mean all of this seriously, did you? oO
> >
> What makes you think I don't? There are window managers which do
> this, and I've used them.

That's exactly why you are now using wmii, and /not/ those other window
managers.

Greetings
Denis