Comment by 🚀 lars_the_bear
Re: "Inspired by the spatial file manager behavior of Haiku OS,…"
@stack : "But dozens of windows cluttering the screen is a personal nightmare."
I guess that's a matter of taste, and there's no solution that will suit everyone. Personally, I simply hate the 'tabbed' approach that every piece of software now adopts. I far prefer to have a bunch of windows open and, if there are too many, I just close some. But I guess I'm in a minority in this respect.
Apr 09 · 4 weeks ago
9 Later Comments ↓
What about new windows but in an MDI interface?
I hate tabs unless there is a way to split the screen...
I think it would be better for the window manager to handle grouping windows, split screen, etc rather than relying on application programs (such as a web browser) to do it.
Just explained my thought a bit (Uk)
— Просторова концепція браузеру для протоколів сімейства Gemini
After decades of staring at the screen ...
I want basically dwm. No baroque ornamentation. Bare split screen for copying and full screen for working. Often an extra side pane for documentation.
🚀 lars_the_bear · Apr 10 at 13:46:
@bluesman : "What about new windows but in an MDI interface?"
I like to be able to select what I'm focusing on just using window manager controls. Window managers are already pretty good at this. The problem I have with the current emphasis on tabs is that first I have to find the browser using WM controls, and then I have to remember what gesture switches between tabs.
The MDI layout doesn't really solve this problem, but I still prefer it to tabs, because at least you get an idea documents are open.
I'm confused (which isn't necessarily surprising). Doesn't "Open In New Window" solve these complaints?
🚀 lars_the_bear · Apr 10 at 16:40:
@bluesman : "Doesn't "Open In New Window" solve these complaints?"
Sure. That's what I mean about giving the user a choice.
On recent versions of FireFox, I need plug-ins to re-enable the ability to open certain kinds of content in a new window. The use of tabs is so entrenched that the maintainers seem to find it hard to believe that not everybody likes them.
There was an Ars Technica editor at the time, who was obsessed with spatial user interfaces, that wrote many in-depth articles on the subject. But for a Gemini (or other line-oriented protocol) browser, I think a columnar interface would be more natural. IIRC, the first browsers too, by using arrow keys for navigation, were built on that intuition.
Original Post
Inspired by the spatial file manager behavior of Haiku OS, I think it would be convenient to apply this to the Gemini browser as well. It would be a much better solution than the tabs typical of web browsers.