NWI: hollow apps

[Maciej Pilichowski]

On Tuesday 17 March 2009 21:29:53 Matthew Woehlke wrote:

> Sure; my thought was more that it should work /like/ docking, in
> terms of drag-and-drop windows into the container. In which case I
> don't see why you need the empty space.
>
> - Start apps
> - Make tiled container
> - Move second app into container -> container automatically
> re-layouts
>
> Still three steps :-). 

No, actually four (each app is one step -- launching). The last step 
is not very comfortable to do using keyboard. 

Once again -- empty space in my imagination (and ss) it just visual 
indicator. But even without visual ind. the core mechanism would be 
the same, with the most important step -- "suck app in on launch".

> (Especially if the tabs and titlebar blend together, 

No true entirely. With tabbar we would like to add "create new tab" 
button, just like today with Konq.

> in which case 
> I don't expect we'll really have a "don't show tabs" mode.)

We would. Because Konq. can work in postpone UI mode -- "decide later 
if this SDI or TDI". In other words, this option "show tabs", 
translates to:
[ ] start as SDI, user can switch to TDI on fly
[x] from the start work as TDI

And it will make sense in NWI world too.

> > The most important for me is the idea, or mechanism, of sucking
> > application on start to container waiting for it -- so it would
> > be grouping on launch.
>
> Mmm... okay, I think I was missing this part. It should still be
> do-able, though. I think I would say, after creating a container,
> new windows auto-join that container until focus leaves that
> container? But that might confuse some people, I wonder if it
> should be made an option...

Leaving focus -- no. For example you could alt-switch to other 
application and accept "the drop". Or you could switch to KMenu and 
launch app. 

You couldn't switch dekstops, i.e. you could, but this would be drop 
cancel.

> > As we discussed before if you drop app on app there will be some
> > (may be some) ambiguity (phew, no error while typing)  what your
> > intentions are -- are you dropping for making container or you
> > dropping by accident
>
> I am assuming D&D doesn't create containers that don't already
> exist? 

Yes.

> AFAIK you cannot currently D&D titlebars, so I don't think there is
> ambiguity :-).

Ok ;-)

Back to proposed mechanism -- it is still the fastest (imaginary) 
mechanism of grouping. Launch, group mode, launch, done. And its 
doable entirely using keyboard.

Is this possible.

Visual indicator after "group mode" step is another story, but despite 
one day passed I still like my ss ;-) Being highly informative.

Cheers,