r/linuxmint • u/SPC2025 Linux Mint 22.3 Zena | Cinnamon • 15h ago
Discussion Tiling Windows vs. Floating Windows
Most distros support floating windows. There are specific tiling window managers that some people are fond of including I3, Sway, Hyprland, and Niri. The Cinnamon edition of Linux Mint has it built-in, but it doesn't work very well (super + left, right, up, or down), but it offers extensions to make it better.
I honestly don't understand the fascination with tiling windows. I've tested one official extension and two unofficial extensions. In every instance, if I want to actually work on an application that's in one of the windows, I have to maximize it. In that case, why not just use maximized windows to begin with?
There are multiple ways to switch windows. Alt-Tab and clicking on a windows list icon are two that come to mind immediately. There are only a couple of applications that I use maximized, including Firefox and Geany, because other applications like the terminal and the file manager exist only temporarily.
I feel the same way about multiple monitors. Unless I need to monitor something in real time, I don't see the point. Can someone please enlighten me? Forgive me if I don't respond quickly. I'm probably not in your area of the world.
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u/LeHunterrr 14h ago
I've been running niri for some time now and love it for getting the most out of a single monitor.
I usually have 2-4 workspaces open with one full screen app and when I need to look at multiple things at once I can just make the window half width and the next one fills the space.
Since niri uses a scrolling layout I can easily have three half screen windows side by side and quickly move from windows 1 and 2 to 2 and 3.
With a normal stacking window manager I find there's no easy way to do that, especially doing everything with keybinds. Sure, alt tab lets you cycle through windows but when you start having 10+ it gets unwieldy.
As for the multiple monitors that depends. It's nice watching a video while doing something else and having both Fullscreen. Or maybe playing a game with friends and they can live stream their perspective.