Re: Initial window placement

[Philipp Lohmann <Philipp Lohmann Sun COM>]

Am 16.08.01, 17:24:41, schrieb <Sasha_Vasko osca state mo us> zum Thema Re: 
Initial window placement:

> We could add _NET_WM_ALLIGN_TO , or perhaps _NET_WM_SLAVE_FOR, hint
> with window ID of the master window to align to and relationship
> specification - West, North, East, South.
> Any window that has this property set will have its move requests
> ignored by Window Manager, and instead will be moved according to change
> in position of its master.

That is not the same. There certainly are cases where i want a window 
glued to another, but most times i will simply want a (not so) transient 
window placed out of the way of a document. I wouldn't want to move it 
around just because the document gets resized. Such a feature would have 
to be user configurable (something like the sticky pins, just it would 
attach a window to another instead of the screen).

> The other valid reason why client should know about its frame's position
> is to save it, and be able to restore its position next time it starts.
> But since providing client with raw data will make it prone to errors
> in the way client translates it into actuall position, we better provide
> client with ready to use data - exact position, size and border width
> of the client, that has to be set by application in order to appear in
> exact same place after all the window manager adjustments:

> _NET_WM_SAVE_GEOMETRY <client_x><client_y><client_width><client_height>
> <client_bw><gravity>

> All the client has to do is save this somewhere, and when it restarts,
> supply this exact data to XCreateWindow and WM_NORMAL_HINTS. Window
> Manager will have to update this property each time window is moved.
> Sort of making it as foolproof as possible.

Exactly the same could be done with the frame geometry.

Plus there seems to be a philosophical topic here: "a valid reason why 
client should know about its frame's position" shouldn't it simply be 
"because it wants to" ? Why don't you want the client to give exact hints 
where it wants its windows ? Someone on the list said, the client should 
behave as if no window manager existed at all. Well, without a window 
manager clients would be able to position their windows exactly.

Regards, Philipp