[kde-linux] KDE window resize

[Duncan]

James Tyrer posted on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 11:03:06 -0700 as excerpted:

>   On 08/07/10 04:56, Dag Nygren wrote:
>> Hi,
>>
>> have been looking for some time around the config parameters for a
>> solution to the following:
>>
>> When using ALT-lefttmouse to move a window partly offscreen KDE
>> automatically resizes the window to some thing that fits on the screen.
>> This is most annoying and unwanted and I want to turn it off.
>>
>> Any clues?
>>
> I think that this is a bug in KWin.  This could be X driver related so
> it might be different on various systems.

I just figured out what this thread is about, and it's "NOTABUG", at least 
if the "problem" is the one I think it is.  It was a feature new to kde 
4.4.

Luckily, as with many aspects of kde, if you don't like it, it's 
configurable. =:^)

The behavior is two-fold, each separately configurable:

1) If you drag a window to the top of the screen, it auto-maximizes.

I turned this one off as I have a dual-monitor desktop in "xinerama mode", 
stacked config, and I didn't like dragging a window to the top of the 
bottom monitor to maximize it.  I have the title-bar double-click action 
set to maximize, and that's enough.

2) If you drag a window to the /side/ of the screen, it auto-tiles, 
maximizing vertically, half-width horizontally, so two windows can fit 
side-by-side.

This feature is absolutely wonderful on my big wide-aspect 1920x1080 
monitors, but on something smaller than 1600 horizontal resolution, thus 
smaller than 800 horizontal half-resolution (and 800 is pushing it, even 
my 960 half-width is pushing it on web pages and apps that assume 1024 
width minimum), the windows will be annoyingly small, and users will 
likely want to turn this feature off.

The control for this is in "the app formerly known as kcontrol (now much 
more inaccurately system settings, as it's nearly all kde settings, not 
general system settings, and it's mostly limited to the single user, not 
all users on the system as system settings would be).  4.5, which I'm 
running, reorganizes the kcontrol layout somewhat, so those still on 4.4 
will have to look a bit, but on 4.5, the settings are under Workspace 
Appearance and Behavior, Window Behavior, Screen Edges.

This kcm (kcontrol module, it's still kcontrol in that regard) is split in 
three sections.  The top section has a monitor with eight spots around the 
edge, at each corner and on each of the four edges, for triggering various 
actions when the mouse moves to that edge or corner.

The section below that, titled "Window Management", with two checkboxes, 
is what we're interested in here.  The maximize by dragging to top and 
tile by dragging to side options are independently controlled options, 
here.

(The third section, below the two above, deals with desktop switch on 
screen edge, but that's not what we're interested in ATM.)

So yes, it's screen edge activated.  Simply don't drop the window so close 
to the screen edge, or deactivate the option if you prefer.  You can tell 
if it's triggered or not by the resize rectangle that appears when it 
triggers.  As I said, with dual high-res wide-screens in a stacked config, 
I love the drag-to-side-tiling, but hated the drag-to-top-maximize, so I 
disabled maximize.  But those on single-monitor desktops or multi-monitor 
in side-by-side config will likely find the drag-to-top-maximize more 
useful than I did, while those with more limited horizontal resolution 
will likely find the drag-to-side-tiling undesirable, so it's a very good 
thing that the two options are independently configurable.  =:^)

-- 
Duncan - List replies preferred.   No HTML msgs.
"Every nonfree program has a lord, a master --
and if you use the program, he is your master."  Richard Stallman