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List:       kde-core-devel
Subject:    Re: multi-head
From:       Cristian Tibirna <ctibirna () total ! net>
Date:       1999-07-02 1:36:35
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On Thu, 1 Jul 1999, Dirk A. Mueller wrote:

> Cristian Tibirna <ctibirna@total.net> wrote:
> 
> > I promised a time ago to take care of multi-head development issues in
> > KDE. I was granted the required hardware.
> 
> Is that two screens for _one_ user which he can use simultaneously ?

Two or more. Yes.

> how is that technically done? two X-servers instances running ?

No, X specification is very nice in this respect. Screens are seen as
objects pertaining to the unique desktop represented by your machine
(which runs *one* X server). When you run many X server instances, you get
many displays: machine:0, machine:1 etc. Screens are numbered:
machine:0.0, machine:0.1 etc.

It's like your house. One single room can have many windows :-)

> well, if I understand that correctly only kwm needs that support. I

In a way, yes. But think at kdesktop. It must behave depending on which of
the screens you act in. It's a bit odd to move an icon on one screen and
have it moved identically in the other.


> think mapping the virtual desktops to the "real" multiple screens 
> would be the most intuitive and easiest solution.

This was one idea somebody proposed to me long ago. Anyways, more you
think at it, more it becomes obvious it's not so logical. 

When you have many virtual desktops, if you attempt to change to one of
them (with CTRL+F? or with the panel buttons) you expect that desktop to
appear at the screen you gave the switching command at. If the system
simply jumps the mouse/kbd focus to the other screen, you become mad in a
few minutes :-)

The screens are much more physically perceived than *virtual* desktops.

Cristian
... thanking for the interest. I don't feel like deciding all alone on
this...

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