activities overview, take N

[Marco Martin]

On Monday 12 October 2009, Chani wrote:
> > > * in the same panel controller window that we now show the Add Widgets
> > > interface, we could show a Choose Activity interface. it would share a
> > > lot of presentation code with Add Widgets for consistency.
> >
> > so just a list of thumbnails?
> 
> could be. since it's not modal, if you wanted to move a plasmoid to another
> activity you could drag it from your desktop to one of the thumbnails.
> 
> > > * associating a Window with an Activity could happen in one of two
> > > places: a new button in the window title bar (would mean some
> > > adjustment to kwin) that would list activities from nepomuk. the other
> > > place would be the context menu of items in the tasks widget
> >
> > by dragging the thumbnail of an activity over a window? (it would work
> >  better the other way around but since the window is live is not really
> >  feasible) it could support drag and drop from the taskbar tough
> 
> hmm. why not support both? :)
> 
> > > * the tasks widget could have an added "show only windows for the
> > > current activity" feature
> >
> > those windows will be hidden also from the screen, right?
> 
> I assume so.
> I've been working fullscreen so long I didn't even think about that :)
> 
> > > * a "hidden windows" button could be shown in the tasks widget when
> > > there are hidden-by-activity-change windows around; switching to one of
> > > those windows would switch the activity as well?
> >
> > if a window can have more than one activity (and i would like so) where
> > we switch?
> 
> oh, good point. hmm.
> I'd be lazy and just pick the first one. I don't think it's a big deal.
> 
> > > * a "Choose Activity" button would appear in the toolboxes (panel and
> > >  desktop)
> > >
> > > * the kwin desktop grid effect would have remove/add buttons added to
> > > it to fill the virtual desktop management gap a bit more; we should
> > > offer a plasmoid to trigger it and perhaps add it, by default, to the
> > > panel
> >
> > perhaps even in the pager itself, an extra button that disappears on
> >  desktop effects off or if there is not the proper atom set (i.e. compiz)
> 
> hmm. where in the pager? :)

bah, just a button in an horizontal layout with the current pager?

> > > * windows associated with an activity could be listed in the mouse over
> > > pop up in the Choose Activities interface
> >
> > hmm, what about having 2 rows of thumbnails, the bottom one activities
> > the top one windows, cllicking on activities thumbnails will filter the
> > widnows row.. but it would be too tall parhaps, making it kinda modal
> > again...
> 
> eh... you *have* a row of windows, it's your taskbar. ;)

good point, would be too much duplication

> > > * in a-containment-per-virtual-desktop mode (which i'm starting to feel
> > >  small amounts of regret over offering ... but maybe i'm just being
> > >  pessimistic :) the "Choose Activities" would be per-virtual-desktop.
> > > if you wanted to migrate an activity from one desktop to another, you'd
> > > have to store it first. the more i think about per-virtual-desktop
> > > containments the more i cringe, though.
> >
> > it feels like a totally conflicting concept to me, should think about the
> > least painful way to remove it...
> > because it does a really similar things: it binds an activity,
> > containment whatever to a set of windows, but is way too inflexible to be
> > really used in this way. a window can stay only on one desktop/activity
> > and a window has to be associated with one activity.
> > it won't make things more difficult to implement, i think, it just makes
> >  the user interaction and the concept of it rather broken
> >
> > > there's probably more than could be done along this line of thinking.
> > > any ideas?
> > >
> > > the basic change in direction is that instead of making it a full on
> > > mode a person must switch into to get an overview of things, it becomes
> > > part of the overall system that doesn't require you to put away your
> > > windows and other tools in the meantime.
> > >
> > > thoughts?
> >
> > that yes, i do think that having to totally switch away from what you're
> >  doing is bad. however, the screen space is limited, even on a big
> > screen, because the windows often use almost 100% of the available space,
> > even if there were 200 square metrers.
> > this is a problem in plasma in general, the desktop is often exactly that
> > modal thing opposed to every possible window that stays over it, i'm
> > trying hard to think about a possible solution but yet failing (the
> > magnifying glass thing being the best attempt on that)
> 
> yeah... Dashboard is modal too, and I see dashboard far more often than I
>  see the desktop behind windows...
> I kinda just think of dashbordview/desktopview as a special window, though.
>  if I want plasmoids non-modal I put them on my panel... the only thing I'm
>  missing is the ability to have a Notes plasmoid on a panel (the focus
>  issue iirc).

hm, probably should become a popupapplet too, so different window, habemus 
focus..

> oh hey, people are going to start to want to associate secondary *panels*
>  with activities... eh, it's better than wanting them per-v-desktop.

yeah, received some requests in that sense

> > but now i'm badly derailing off track, but this makes a good junction on
> >  the idea i'm tthinking about:
> > the list  of activities in the panelcontroller is good, then there is a
> > way to open one of those thumbnails in a more detailed view: it will open
> > a window (not fullscreen, just a normal window, maybe with even titlebar,
> > resizable and all, maybe plasma themed, i don't know) it will have a
> > thumbnail of the activity (since is only one perhaps if it's a real
> > zoomed out view could still be fast-ish enough) thumbnails of the
> > associated windows,
> > activate/load/save/close buttons, maybe extra data coming from nepomuk,
> >  like an annotation on what that activity is.
> 
> hmm. depending on what extra data there is maaybe it'd be worth some kind
>  of details view... but merely clicking on the activity should switch you
>  to that activity, I think.
> 
> what about clickable tooltips? hte taskbar has shiny clickableness these
>  days, doesn't it? come to think of it, I wish I could click on the pager's
>  tooltips...

yeah, kinda hardcoded in the tooltip, it should be a widget in its own, like 
the widgetexplorer tooltips

> > it would be possible to open more than one of those windows and drag
> >  windows thumbnails around to move and "copy" them, perhaps it could be,
> >  perhaps even plasmoids (we would lose the ability to move a plasmoid
> >  between containments at all without zui)
> > i wonder if with some kwin hook it would be possible to even drag live
> >  windows in it, this would not make it a tool where all other tool must
> > be closed to use it, but a tool among the others that can interact with
> > them.
> 
> ehh... I'm not sure I like this. it sounds shiny, but in practice... I
>  think it'd be less confusing to just drag stuff between the taskbar and
>  activity bar, and switch to an activity when you click it.
> so long as the activity bar, like the add-widgets bar, is reachable from
>  the dashboard, it'll be possible to move plasmoids still.

dragging from taskbar to activity bar is to be done, yes, but what if there is 
the show only windows in the current activity option set? the entry would 
disappear and would be necessary to switch activity to have the window back
not sure if it's actually a bug or a feature, hmm could be both..


-- 
Marco Martin