two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

gojira · 2012-11-20 03:53:18

Hi, I am new to Xubuntu and Xfce. My question is about automaitc window placement, especially side-by-side placement of two windows.

Is there any way how I can precisely and immediately position two windows side-by-side, similar to the equivalent functionality in Windows 7?

Is there any way how I can tile and cascade windows?

Thanks.

--
Versions used:
Xubuntu with Xfce 4.8 and Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS

Bonster · 2012-11-20 06:08:48

Theres a few ways for tiling

XFCE 4.8 install patch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19X0gng_-qk

XFCE 4.10 Native feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0rTIKM43ug

QuickTile - Works on any linux system
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZF76DELEpjM

gojira · 2012-11-20 06:21:40

Bonster wrote:

Theres a few ways for tiling

Bonster thanks but I was kind of hoping for an answer with text or just a hyperlink, not Youtube videos. I can't watch videos on my workplace and also it is so tedious to watch videos; with text, I can read at my own pace and refer back to individual installation steps etc. I feel Youtube videos are not of much help, and don't see any reason to distribute this kind of information in the form of videos anyway. Text is much more accessible to me.

YJLee · 2012-11-20 10:08:33

Open "Settings > Window Manager" (or just launch xfce4-settings-manager from command line)
Go to the Keyboard tab, look for "Tile window to the <direction>" action.
Assign shortcut of your choice (mine is SUPER+<direction> i.e. Window button + <direction>)
Enjoy tiling...

secipolla · 2012-11-20 15:34:01

It's a limited tile (just half-screen up, down, left & right).
After you tile a window you can Alt+F10 to un-tile it.

Last edited by secipolla (2012-11-20 15:34:22)

gojira · 2012-11-21 07:46:19

YJLee wrote:

Open "Settings > Window Manager" (or just launch xfce4-settings-manager from command line)
Go to the Keyboard tab, look for "Tile window to the <direction>" action.
Assign shortcut of your choice (mine is SUPER+<direction> i.e. Window button + <direction>)
Enjoy tiling...

Thanks YJLee - which version of Xfce are you on? Because I don't seem to have a "Tile window to the <direction>" action!

(I am on the Xfce and Xubuntu versions stated in my original post - they are both fairly recent I think).

secipolla · 2012-11-21 11:06:25

Then try that QuickTile from comment #2

YJLee · 2012-11-21 15:11:14

Hi gojira,

I'm on Xfce version 4.10. Not sure if the feature is available on previous versions though, I'm a fairly recent Xfce convert...

adioe3 · 2012-12-30 22:16:02

It would be great if the tiling feature could be improved a bit, for example what I'd like to have control over:

* Specify which sides of screen activate the tiling and how (for example I prefer when moving to the top the app to be maximized, not 1/2 screen); this could be configured in the settings manager
* Specify a delay before the tiling happens (i.e. 2 sec); this is because sometime you just want to move the window to the side

But these are just wishes - if can do, great! if not it won't stop me using xfce. I use the keyboard shortcuts right now much more.

yuwash · 2013-04-28 10:09:17

Thanks YJLee, I was looking for the same thing as gojira and your solution works perfectly. I assume gojira has upgraded his xfce in the meantime so (s)he can do the same… The second video actuaally demonstrates the same thing and the link in the description leads to the news post at http://www.xfce.org/about/news/?post=1335571200 that sais it's a new feature of Xfce 4.10. Not sure why it doesn't by default enable the shortcut keys W+Up etc. that are at least standard in Lubuntu/Openbox. Openbox 3.5 also enables a bit more customizable tiling (set how much ratio (%) of the display width/height should be filled (until 3.4 you haad to give pixel numbers)) ( http://openbox.org/wiki/Help:Actions#MoveResizeTo ) so this could be a good model for xfce. Though for proposals like those by adioe3, the possibility to combine shell commands with wm-specific commands (like tile_up_key and maximize_window_key used in xfconf) would be desirable: usage like "sleep $(zenity --entry --text="Hide for how long?" --entry-text=3; hide_window_key); hide_window_key" (the second hide_window_key actually makes the window visible again)
Translating this code into something the shell could execute (xfconf replaces "hide_window_key" with commands of some xfwm application) could be difficult or impossible. The point is just that xfconf would become more flexible if shell commands could be integrated this way.

johnywhy · 2015-05-31 05:15:27

hi

hrm, after setting a using the built-in tile feature using CTRL-ALT-L, R, T, and B (for left, right, top, and bottom), i've lost the use of my control key.

if i hit control key, the active window snaps to half-size.

ALT-F10 (to untile, as mentioned in this thread) did not restore normal control key behavior.

ALT-F11 stopped the snapping to half-size on pressing control, but did not restore normal control-key behavior.

Then i noticed that Window Manager did not apply the CTR-ALT shortcuts that i pressed, but instead made the shortcut simply CTRL-L, CTRL-R, etc. Ie., Win Manager removed the ALT from my shortcuts-- without telling me.

I assumed CTRL-ALT prefix would work, because some existing shortcuts use CTRL-ALT prefix.

Removing my shortcuts restored normal Control-key behavior.

Hopefully a future version of Win Manager will let me know if it changes my keystroke.

cheers.

ungutknut · 2015-06-01 15:10:31

adioe3 wrote:

* Specify which sides of screen activate the tiling and how (for example I prefer when moving to the top the app to be maximized, not 1/2 screen); this could be configured in the settings manager

Your prefered behaviour has been added to XFCE 4.12.

There's a PPA for Xubuntu-Users to get 4.12 with trusty:
https://launchpad.net/~xubuntu-dev/+arc … /xfce-4.12

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#1 2012-11-20 03:53:18

two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#2 2012-11-20 06:08:48

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#3 2012-11-20 06:21:40

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#4 2012-11-20 10:08:33

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#5 2012-11-20 15:34:01

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#6 2012-11-21 07:46:19

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#7 2012-11-21 11:06:25

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#8 2012-11-21 15:11:14

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#9 2012-12-30 22:16:02

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#10 2013-04-28 10:09:17

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#11 2015-05-31 05:15:27

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

#12 2015-06-01 15:10:31

Re: two windows side-by-side and tile, cascade: possible in Xfce?

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