Subject: FVWM: fvwm enhancements

From: [email-masked]
Date: 14 Nov 1997 16:49:26 +0100

Question about FVWM capabilities on Unix station :

-I have the following requirement from a customer :

-My application displays a large window on the top of the screen. This 
window haves its width equal to the screen width and the height corresponding 
to 20% of the screen height. It gives in real time operational information 
on system to the user, so this window cannot be moved by him, and no windows 
from other applications can overlap it or can be overlapped by it.

-In other words, the screen must have two zones, the first zone is
reserved 
for the large window of my application, this window cannot be moved and the 
second zone is reserved for the other application windows which can be moved 
but not into the first zone.

-I intend to use the FVWM window manager (version 2.0.41) but I think 
this functionnality does not exist in this version, so I have to implement
modifications to satisfy this requirement. 

-I would be grateful if you can give me some indication on how introduce
this functionnality in the code of Fvwm or is there any further version which 
implement it.

                       Thanks a lot for anybody who can help me.

-----   Didier BECU - THOMSON AIRSYS ATM,
France
-----   Address:
[email-masked]

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---

From: Bruce Stephens <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 14 Nov 1997 16:10:28 +0000

[email-masked] said:
>  window haves its width equal to the screen width and the height
> corresponding  to 20% of the screen height. It gives in real time
> operational information  on system to the user, so this window cannot
> be moved by him, and no windows  from other applications can overlap
> it or can be overlapped by it.

> reserved  for the large window of my application, this window cannot
> be moved and the  second zone is reserved for the other application
> windows which can be moved  but not into the first zone. 

This would be quite handy in other contexts too.  For example, I can make 
FvwmButtons stay on top, and things, but it would be quite cool to have other 
windows refuse to pop up over it, and to have maximising other windows take 
account of it, and that kind of thing.  Similarly for FvwmTaskBar, once it 
works properly.

---

From: Michael Tiefenback <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 14 Nov 1997 11:58:36 -0500 (EST)

> account of it, and that kind of thing.  Similarly for FvwmTaskBar, once it 

I will be guilty of interpretation and speculation in the following, but I
suspect that Monsieur Magneron's NEEDS could be provided by a modification
to SmartPlacement.  This would allow a prohibition of a window being
placed over his protected windows, although the user would still be able
to move a window over this area.  This could be mediated by style settings
like "SmartPlacementNeverCovers", perhaps coupled with a
"StaysOnTopAbsolutely" flag or degree options to the current StaysOnTop. 
Of course, how to implement this last part is a problem. What would one do
with two conflicting windows but to give priority to the earlier created
one?  And then at restarts, which would end up with the priority? 

Michael Tiefenback

---

From: "Patrick K." <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 14 Nov 1997 19:46:15 -0800 (PST)

Howdy ...

Sometime in the late 1900s it was said:

BBM> > > -My application displays a large window on the top of the screen. This
BBM> > >  window haves its width equal to the screen width and the height
BBM> > > corresponding  to 20% of the screen height. It gives in real time
BBM> > > operational information  on system to the user, so this window cannot
BBM> > > be moved by him, and no windows  from other applications can overlap
BBM> > > it or can be overlapped by it.

BBM> > > -In other words, the screen must have two zones, the first zone is
BBM> > > reserved  for the large window of my application, this window cannot
BBM> > > be moved and the  second zone is reserved for the other application
BBM> > > windows which can be moved  but not into the first zone. 

MT> I will be guilty of interpretation and speculation in the following, but I
MT> suspect that Monsieur Magneron's NEEDS could be provided by a modification
MT> to SmartPlacement.  This would allow a prohibition of a window being
MT> placed over his protected windows, although the user would still be able
MT> to move a window over this area.  This could be mediated by style settings
MT> like "SmartPlacementNeverCovers", perhaps coupled with a
MT> "StaysOnTopAbsolutely" flag or degree options to the current StaysOnTop. 
MT> Of course, how to implement this last part is a problem. What would one do
MT> with two conflicting windows but to give priority to the earlier created
MT> one?  And then at restarts, which would end up with the priority? 

   How about this:

      A new module by which you can indicate an area on your screen
      by dragging your mouse pointer (the area being indicated by a
      rubber.band of course) and that area could be considered a "Zone".
      The first window put in that zone will not be overlapped
      or be interfered with until the "Zone" is inactivated using the
      same module (different mouse button click on the "Zone" maybe?)

      Also one could use the module to pick/choose an already existing
      window to be considered as being in a "Zone"

      Do I make sense? :)  Prolly not... but maybe.

      I'm thinking this procedure:

         1.  Invoke module.
         2.  a. Use mouse button one (1) to rubber.band a "Zone".
                Next open new window/drag existing window in "Zone".
             b. Use mouse button two (2) to choose/select an existing
                window to be in a "Zone" (area which it occupies).
         3.  Use mouse button three (3) to inactivate an already
             existing "Zone".

Patrick ...

P.S.  Shall it be called the ZoneModule? ;)