[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread] 

List:       kde-devel
Subject:    Re: Accessing Virtual Desktops
From:       Waldo Bastian <bastian () kde ! org>
Date:       2004-01-23 10:05:04
Message-ID: 200401231105.05656.bastian () kde ! org
[Download RAW message or body]

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

On Fri January 23 2004 17:57, Luke Bigum wrote:
> Ok... Considering X can handle multiple connections (on the same and
> seperate computers) would it be at all possible to open mutliple X displays
> and connect one to each virtual desktop? Could the current way KDE
> implements desktops allow for such a thing? Or does a KDE session only ever
> allow 1 desktop to be 'active' or 'on top' at the one time? I suppose i
> need a detailed manual on how KDE does virtual desktops... Hmm, i've just
> been browsing the XLib API... dont suppose KDE maintains a 'window tree'
> for each desktop window that i could get at with XQueryTree()?

Well, they are called "virtual" for a reason ;-) A virtual desktop is just a 
smart way of grouping a bunch of windows and hiding and showing certain 
groups at certain times. So "being on desktop 1" merily means that all the 
windows that belong to group 1 are being shown and all the others are hidden. 
When you switch to desktop 2, all the windows of group 1 are being hidden and 
all the windows of group 2 are shown. As far as the X-server is concerned 
there is only one desktop (screen, or whatever you call it) just with 
different windows shown on it from time to time.

Compare this with "minimize" which also hides a window. From an X point of 
view there is no difference between a window being minimized and a window 
being on another desktop. The differences between the one way of hiding 
windows and the other way of hiding windows is kept track of by the window 
manager (kwin). And the KWin and KWinModule APIs give applications a way to 
tell the window manager about their wishes in terms of "desktops" which the 
window manager then translates to "hide" / "show" requests to the X server at 
appropriate moments.

Hope this clarifies a bit.

Cheers,
Waldo
- -- 
bastian@kde.org -=|[ KDE: K Desktop for the Enterprise ]|=- bastian@suse.com
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v1.2.2 (GNU/Linux)

iD8DBQFAEPHQN4pvrENfboIRAkI+AJoDv7b1DH5/fars1KoIGGCjYhIM6ACgkEiZ
as28CrJFlu7VJWq/ssaWypY=
=RUHJ
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
 
>> Visit http://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde-devel#unsub to unsubscribe <<

[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread]