Layouts

Overview

DWN provides six layout modes that determine how windows are arranged on screen. Each workspace maintains its own layout settings independently.

Press Super+Space to cycle through layouts: Tiling → Floating → Monocle → Centered Master → Columns → Fibonacci → Tiling

Tiling Layout

The default layout. Windows automatically arrange themselves in a master-stack pattern.

How It Works

+------------------+----------+
|                  |  Window  |
|     Master       |    2     |
|     Window       +----------+
|       1          |  Window  |
|                  |    3     |
+------------------+----------+

• The master area (left) contains the primary window(s)
• The stack area (right) contains secondary windows
• Windows are automatically sized to fill the screen
• No manual positioning required

Master Ratio

Controls the width of the master area relative to the screen.

• Super+H - Decrease master ratio (shrink master area)
• Super+L - Increase master ratio (expand master area)
• Range: 10% to 90%
• Default: 55%

Master Count

Controls how many windows occupy the master area.

• Super+I - Increase master count
• Super+D - Decrease master count
• Range: 1 to 10
• Default: 1

With master count of 2:

+--------+---------+----------+
| Master | Master  |  Stack   |
|   1    |    2    |    3     |
|        |         +----------+
|        |         |  Stack   |
|        |         |    4     |
+--------+---------+----------+

Floating Windows in Tiling

Press Super+F9 to toggle floating mode for a window. Floating windows:

• Are exempt from automatic tiling
• Can be freely moved and resized
• Float above tiled windows
• Useful for dialogs, small utilities, reference windows

Floating Layout

Traditional overlapping window management like most desktop environments.

Characteristics

• Windows maintain their own position and size
• No automatic arrangement
• Drag title bars to move windows
• Drag window edges to resize
• Click to raise windows

Window Controls

In floating mode, windows have full manual control:

• Move: Drag the title bar
• Resize: Drag the window border
• Maximize: Alt+F10 or click maximize button
• Minimize: Alt+F9 or click minimize button

Monocle Layout

Each window takes the full screen. Only one window visible at a time.

Use Cases

• Focused work on a single application
• Small screens or high window count
• Reading or writing documents
• Video or media playback

Navigation

• Alt+Tab - Switch to next window
• Alt+Shift+Tab - Switch to previous window
• Taskbar click - Switch to specific window

Centered Master Layout

The master window is centered on screen with stack windows divided on left and right sides.

How It Works

+--------+------------------+--------+
| Stack  |     Master       | Stack  |
|   1    |     Window       |   3    |
+--------+                  +--------+
| Stack  |                  | Stack  |
|   2    |                  |   4    |
+--------+------------------+--------+

• The master window occupies the center of the screen
• Stack windows are divided between left and right sides
• Odd-numbered stack windows go left, even go right
• Excellent for wide monitors and ultrawide displays

Use Cases

• Keeping primary work centered while referencing side content
• Video editing with timeline and tools on sides
• Development with editor centered and documentation on sides

Columns Layout

All windows arranged in equal-width vertical columns spanning the full height.

How It Works

+----------+----------+----------+----------+
|          |          |          |          |
| Window   | Window   | Window   | Window   |
|    1     |    2     |    3     |    4     |
|          |          |          |          |
|          |          |          |          |
+----------+----------+----------+----------+

• Each window gets an equal-width column
• Windows span the full usable height
• Simple and predictable arrangement

Use Cases

• Comparing multiple files side-by-side
• Monitoring multiple log files
• Multi-column text editing
• Concurrent terminal sessions

Fibonacci Layout

Windows arranged in a spiral pattern using recursive splitting, inspired by the Fibonacci sequence.

How It Works

+------------------+----------+
|                  |          |
|     Window 1     | Window 2 |
|                  +----+-----+
|                  | W3 |     |
+------------------+----+ W4  |
|      Window 5         |     |
+-----------------------+-----+

• First window takes half the screen
• Each subsequent window takes half the remaining space
• Alternates between horizontal and vertical splits
• Creates a visually interesting spiral pattern

Use Cases

• Hierarchical window importance (larger = more important)
• Primary workspace with progressively smaller utilities
• Creative workflows with main canvas and tool windows

Grid Layout

Windows are arranged in a grid pattern with automatic row/column calculation.

How It Works

+----------+----------+----------+
|  Window  |  Window  |  Window  |
|    1     |    2     |    3     |
+----------+----------+----------+
|  Window  |  Window  |
|    4     |    5     |
+----------+----------+

• Automatically calculates optimal rows and columns
• Uses square root for balanced grid
• All windows have equal size
• Great for viewing multiple documents simultaneously

Use Cases

• Comparing multiple documents or files
• Monitoring multiple terminals
• Dashboard-style workflows
• Multi-way video calls

Plugin System (v2.0)

DWN v2.0 introduces a layout plugin system that allows custom layout algorithms to be loaded dynamically or built-in.

Built-in Layouts

• tiling - Master-stack tiling (default)
• floating - Traditional floating windows
• monocle - Single maximized window
• centered-master - Master centered with stacks on sides
• columns - Equal-width vertical columns
• fibonacci - Spiral recursive splitting
• grid - Grid arrangement

Custom Layouts

Developers can create custom layout plugins using the Layout Plugin API. See Plugin Development for details.

Per-Workspace Settings

Each workspace maintains independent layout settings:

Example workflow:

• Workspace 1: Tiling layout for coding (editor + terminal)
• Workspace 2: Floating layout for design work
• Workspace 3: Monocle layout for focused writing
• Workspace 4: Centered-master for wide monitor development
• Workspace 5: Columns layout for log monitoring
• Workspace 6: Fibonacci for hierarchical work

Layout Shortcuts

Configuration

Set default layout behavior in ~/.config/dwn/config:

[layout]
# Default layout for new workspaces
# Options: tiling, floating, monocle, centered-master, columns, fibonacci
default = tiling
master_ratio = 0.55      # Default master area ratio (0.1-0.9)
master_count = 1         # Default master window count (1-10)

[appearance]
gap = 5                  # Gap between tiled windows (0-100)