prdesktop

Specialised types of window managers
Several specialised types of window manager exist.

Virtual window managers
A virtual window manager is a window manager that uses virtual screens, whose resolution can be higher than the resolution of one's monitor/display adaptor. This environment is very useful when one wishes to have a large number of windows open at the same time. A number of virtual window managers have been made, including FVWM, Tvtwm, HaZe and others.

Tiling window managers
A tiling window manager is a window manager with an organization of the screen into mutually non-overlapping frames (hence the name tiling), as opposed to the traditional approach of coordinate-based stacking of objects (windows) that tries to emulate the desk paradigm.

How X window managers work
When a window manager is running, some kinds of interaction between the X server and its clients are redirected through the window manager. In particular, whenever an attempt to show a new window is made, this request is redirected to the window manager, which decides the initial position of the window. Additionally, most modern window managers are reparenting, which usually leads to a banner being placed at the top of the window and a decorative frame being drawn around the window. These two elements are controlled by the window manager rather than the program. Therefore, when the user clicks or drags these elements, it is the window manager that takes the appropriate actions (such as moving or resizing the window).

Vista and Leopard features compared

September 19, 2006

The relative merits of the latest operating system releases from both Microsoft and Apple Computer have been debated at great length. PC Advisor got down and dirty with both packages to uncover the killer differences, and find out how they'll affect you, the end user.

This article appears in the November 06 issue of PC Advisor, onsale now in all good newsagents.

Vista vs Leopard
Backup and Restore Center vs Time Machine
Vista and Leopard have very similar approaches to backing up and restoring a system – Microsoft and Apple have both kept all the functions in a single location. Microsoft has concentrated on making the interface easier to understand and navigate, although Time Machine is arguably easier to use. But Time Machine’s space-themed interface won’t appeal to everyone.