+1 I have very little to add: well thought out and well explained.
I personally would prefer the ring switcher over the application switcher, but as a default setting the application switcher is probably less scary :) Cheers, Evan On Fri, Sep 30, 2011 at 8:00 PM, Justyn Butler <justynbut...@gmail.com> wrote: > Hi, > > I originally opened a bug report but Jason Smith suggested that this > would be better to discuss here. > > Summary: > The new Unity switcher is not designed for changing focus between > windows on a particular workspace. I propose a solution of adding a > new default keybinding that activates a feature similar to the compiz > "application switcher" plugin. > > Scenario: > The user has grouped windows into workspaces according to function. > When they wish to work on a task they use ctrl-alt-[arrow] to move to > that workspace. They wish to stay on that workspace and move between > windows - for example some open pdfs and a document in a word > processor. > > Currently: > The new alt-tab switcher provides a high-level overview of all open > windows on all workspaces, grouped by application and each group > represented by an icon. > > Problem: > The user's approach of intentionally grouping windows on a particular > workspace is defeated because all windows are listed, not just the > ones on that workspace. > The user can see the window they want to type in, but to change focus > they must think about how that window is represented in the switcher. > The spacial layout of the windows is also ignored when switching, > because they are all represented by icons in the central switcher > carousel. > > The issue as I see it is that there are two distinct use cases: > 1) Generally finding an open application > 2) Trying to change window focus, having grouped multiple windows on > your workspace, when you have selected the workspace you want. > > Right now with the new switcher the applications are abstracted as > icons. This is good for the first case, a "high-level" overview of all > applications, as you say. > > But for the second case what you need is something more like the > compiz "application switcher" plugin, which highlights the each window > itself as you tab through them. The point is that you look at a > window, and then you tab until it is highlighted, then you can type in > it. This is fast and intuitive, and does not require you to mentally > link the window to whatever it is represented by in the switcher (be > it icon or preview). > > I think that a new default key combination should be created to > activate this feature. The most elegant keybinding for this would be > ctrl-alt-tab, because this links well with the keys for moving between > workspaces, enabling a smooth flow for selecting a workspace and then > a window on it. > > Proposed ctrl-alt-tab workflow: > User moves to relevant workspace with ctrl-alt-[arrow]. Continuing to > hold ctrl-alt down, they may use tab to select the desired window on > that workspace. > Moving between windows intentionally grouped onto a workspace is fast, > visual and removes the distraction of what's happening on other > workspaces. > > What do you think? > If the response is that we are not interested in supporting a > workspace-driven workflow then I guess the next question is what is > the rationale behind keeping multiple workspaces at all? > > Justyn > > Original bug report: http://bugs.launchpad.net/unity/+bug/863399 > > _______________________________________________ > Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~ayatana > Post to : ayatana@lists.launchpad.net > Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~ayatana > More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp > _______________________________________________ Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~ayatana Post to : ayatana@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~ayatana More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
