Re: WM hints interface

[Marko Macek <Marko Macek snet fri uni-lj si>]

Owen Taylor wrote:

> This isn't a satisfactory solution until colormap/depth issues
> are addressed. Matching the root window may be OK (the current
> defacto standard for ICCCM-incompliant pixmaps), but it is
> incompatible with the way gdk-imlib works now.

Why is it incompatible? How do you plan to address colormap/depth 
issues?

> Another function can be added once something worked out.
> (gdk_window_set_icons ?), but I wanted to get something in place right

Something like that would be nice.

> now. A gdk_window_set_icons could even check WM_ICON_SIZES and
> pick one out to use for the ICCCM icon.

This makes sense.

> > Modal windows are missing (inputMode from motif). Or you could say
> > that modal windows are banned from gtk (and I would agree ;-)
> 
> Modal windows aren't banned from GTK, but they are pretty much
> supported without any WM functionality. The only real benefit
> of WM support would being keeping the modal dialog on top
> of the rest of the applications window.

Keeping them on top is not called modal, it is called transient (and
is already supported). Modal windows would prevent input focus from
being given to the parent frame.

One thing that is not supported is keeping a window on top of all
windows in the same application. AcroRead seems to to this
by making a WM_CLIENT_LEADER window and then having WM_TRANSIENT set 
to that window. It's not supported by any wm I have seen (I will support 
it  in icewm unless I find something is wrong with this).
 
> I am quite against supporting the SYSTEM_MODAL feature of of MWM - the
> user should be able to choose which application they want to
> interact with. Modal dialog hints could be added later, but I
> didn't feel that they were either needed enough or standard enough
> to put in now.

I agree about not using system modal. I also thing that a wm and toolkit
should provide the capability, but it should be discouraged from use.

> > Icewm does. It sets it to 16x16 to 32x32 using 16x16 steps.
> 
> Tiny little icons.... Do most applications actually pay attention
> and provide an icon that small?

No. Most application provide an icon of some random size ;-)
Actually what is need is small/large icon size that depends on display
size. OS/2 does things this way (16/32 or 20/40).

Mark
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