Subject: FVWM: treewm

From: Dennis McGregor <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 3 Jan 2003 11:43:29 +1100

Hi all.

While fatigued yesterday, but needing to sync back into "normal time" 
again after the festivities, I checked out another window manager.
Usually this is a complete waste of time: anything any other WM has,
fvwm makes possible and more; sometimes there's a Good Idea to bring back 
to my fvwm config, but more often it just leaves me confused as to
why anyone would live with the limitations implied by Not-Fvwm (as
they're known as around here ;) 
<ahem>, anyway, I went there, "there" being treewm: http://treewm.sourceforge.net/
and, well, wow.
Treewm has a unique feature which I found very appealing (and, for once,
I couldn't simply write it into my fvwm configs): the ability to run
desktops within windows. Initially there's the root window, and from 
there, one launches regular windows (xterms, whatever), or windows that are
desktops, with their own backgrounds, window policy, etc.
These desktops can be treated like any other window (shaded, iconified, 
re-placed...). 
Their child windows may be seen in the master taskbar, or not; moved to other 
desktops/windows, captured en mass by new desktops...
Of course, the first thing I tried out (I was tired ;) was to run fvwm as a 
client to one of these desktops, and.... lo! it "worked", albeit in a
funny sort of completely-unworkable way - nevertheless, I was very
impressed. The problem was that treewm is not configurable enough,
so I couldn't get it to leave a bunch (pardon the puns) of stuff alone
for fvwm to take care of (not really that surprising really). Possibly
it hasn't occured to the programmer that someone might be (stupid|brave|.*) 
enough to try such a thing.
Of course, I could write a config for fvwm that was suited for being
"swallowed" by another WM, and maybe that would be worthwhile, but
probably it would defeat the purpose of having such a powerful WM like
fvwm in the first place.
Treewm also has a very nice vi-like command-line interface (which, of
course, will be in my fvwm config before too long), and the strange,
not-entirely-pointless, feature of being able to slice holes in 
windows/desktops so that what's underneath them is readable/selectable/writable...

For the record - I hit the inevitable walls quite quickly, and reunion
with fvwm was not long in the coming - but for a moment there... well,
I've said enough for now.

Happy 2003 to you all.

Dennis.

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