Window's title

Window's title is the most underrated aspect of a desktop when in fact it's very useful:

• It show information about the running programs in a standard way.
• It displays the titles of multiple windows which help us identify similar open applications (like when you open a bunch of text file and they're all look similar).
• It's easier for mouse user to interact with the window itself (not the application inside).

But what is the best way to display window's title, let's take a look at some method.

# Key terms

• Busy workspace: Workspace that have split layout container as it's first child.
• Tabs workspace: Workspace that have tabs layout container as it's first child. Because I turn smart_gaps on so a tabs workspace will not have gaps.
• The bar: (Usually called taskbar) will be refer as information bar.

# Legacy

This is the method that being used in Windows OS and most Linux's DE, it's display window's title both attach to the window itself and then show a list of windows on the information bar.

Busy workspace	Tabs workspace

# Pro

• This is a legacy design that most people get used to.

# Con

• The design is too old, it's look outdated:
  • Display windows title in two place is redundant.
  • And make the desktop cramped.

# Fix

• Just used other method...

# Detach

Only show a list of windows on the information bar.

Busy workspace	Tabs workspace

# Pro

• This method give you the biggest screen real estate.
• And still shows you all the information: This is better than the Attach method in tabs workspace because it can even show additional information (workspaces and clock).

# Con

• The problem is the way the information is presented, a list of title can show you how many windows and their name but not their location, so you end up confusing not knowing which title is correspond to which window... This defeat the whole purpose of display title for each window.
• You can't even tell if the container have tabs or not.
• It's hard for mouse user to interact with a window (drag and move window around).
• Those titles can take a lot of space in the information bar, space that can be used to display CPU, MEM, DISK, TEMP, PLAYING...

# Fix

• "you can't even tell if the container have tabs or not": You can make a container show title bar if it's has tabs but this is redundant to show title in two place.

# Attach

Show window's title attach to the window itself.

Busy workspace	Tabs workspace

# Pro

• Everything is simple and clear, you know exactly which title is correspond to which window.
• It's easy for mouse user to interact with a window (drag and move window around).
• If you have an information bar, this method leave more space to the information bar than Detach method.

# Con

• This method take a bit more screen real estate than Detach method in specific conditions e.g: In the busy workspace, you can see most window's title bar just sit on the top of the screen but win4's title bar (on image) take more space in the middle of the screen unlike Detach method.
• If you have an information bar, this method will take as much screen real estate as legacy method although that space is used more efficiently.

# Fix

• About the screen real estate issue:
  • You can hide the information bar and only show it when holding the Super key like this.
  • Or only show it when user switch workspace.
  • Make a hot corner for mouse user...
• Auto hide the information bar can give user a clean and focus desktop but for some this is inconvenient. All of these problems can be solved through the last method.

# Dynamic

Show window's title attach to the window itself but with a twist:

• In tabs workspace, the tab show additional information on the left and right side of the tabs bar make the tabs workspace look like one in the Detach method.
• In busy workspace, additional information will keep being display on the same position on a bar.
  • The bar can automatically be transparent like how Elementary OS's bar work.
  • If the desktop have gaps equal or bigger than the bar, information bar can be blended into the gap-part.

Busy workspace	Tabs workspace

# Pro

• This solved the information bar problem, additional information (workspaces and clock) will always be visible and still make the tabs workspace compact like the Detach method.
• In a busy workspace, "if the desktop have gaps equal or bigger than the bar, information bar can be blended into the gap-part" which make the busy workspace as compact as in the Attach method.

# Con

Busy workspace	Tabs workspace

• The title bar and information bar must be in the same direction to the window, if not (e.g: title bar attach to the top of the window but the information bar is on the bottom of the screen) the title will jump around when transition between busy workspace and tabs workspace. This will break the consistency of the desktop.
• If the desktop doesn't have gaps equal or bigger than the bar, the bar will be render fully in a busy workspace, and other than workspaces and clock, it display nothing... This bar took space on the desktop and used it inefficiency.

# Fix

• Just use that empty space on the information bar to display more stuffs (CPU, MEM, DISK, TEMP, PLAYING...), then collapsed most of it to an arrow icon when switch to a tabs workspace.

# Conclusion