Howm
Dev tools
window manager
SHOW HN2014
How HN took it
3 positive, 6 neutral or asking, 2 mixed, 2 critical, out of 13 comments about the project. Thread score +0.08.
Design: 1 for, 2 againstExecution: 2 for, 0 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Clean, readable code with good comments and a small two-file codebase.
From 2 comments
I like that the whole WM is implemented in two files, a .h for configuration and a .c. The code looks clean and has embedded ascii-art. This looks like a project made with love.
zimbatm on HNHarvey, your code looks very nice and expressive with appropriate comments. There is some space for improvements on this matter (well, there always is) but I found it very good…
cessor on HN
Interesting tiling approach with keyboard-driven operators and motions.
From 2 comments
Interesting, but you really need to do some showcases.
maikklein on HNHow does this differ from e.g. xmonad, which uses vi-like keybindings? It's specifically the bulk operators based on movement?
dons on HN
Objections
Configuration compiled into the code requires recompiling for every change.
From 2 comments
Really dislike software with configuration baked into the code, every key binding and experiment requires recompilation which prevents managing it sanely through a package…
joaomsa on HNI think we can all agree that once a good setup is found, you don't change it that much; recompiling is ok as long as it's fast. The point of GP is that since config.h is part of…
rakoo on HN
Modal design and modifier-key bindings may add friction for window switching.
From 2 comments
I really love vim keybindings and I use them wherever I can (firefox with vimperator, the shell etc), however I'm not sure that modes make sense on a window manager. In my…
Rampoina on HNIt's a cool project but again I'm not sure what I would gain from the modes, counts and motions. Right now I use Awesome WM which is really similar to howm without changing…
Rampoina on HN
Documentation did not make required modifier keys clear.
From 1 comment
I really love vim keybindings and I use them wherever I can (firefox with vimperator, the shell etc), however I'm not sure that modes make sense on a window manager. In my…
Rampoina on HN
Requests
Add screenshots or showcases.
From 2 comments
Interesting, but you really need to do some showcases.
maikklein on HNI agree, please post some screenshots.
TimGremalm on HN
Make modifier keys clearer in documentation.
From 2 comments
I really love vim keybindings and I use them wherever I can (firefox with vimperator, the shell etc), however I'm not sure that modes make sense on a window manager. In my…
Rampoina on HNI have some more ideas for operations to add, this is the first release I have done and so it is lacking some features. I agree that some people might not find certain commands…
hunt on HN
Move configuration out of source code.
From 1 comment
Really dislike software with configuration baked into the code, every key binding and experiment requires recompilation which prevents managing it sanely through a package…
joaomsa on HN
Questions
How does it differ from xmonad, dwm or i3?
From 2 comments
How does this differ from e.g. xmonad, which uses vi-like keybindings? It's specifically the bulk operators based on movement?
dons on HNThis is obviously inspired by dwm, which is cool, but how is it different from dwm?
gpo on HN
Whether modes should be avoided and key entry done with one modifier.
From 2 comments
I think they shouldn't use modifiers at all, ideally you would enter the mode with MODIFIER+modekey and then press the normal keys: q2c. I don't know if that's possible with your…
Rampoina on HNThat is an idea I was considering, I just wasn't sure if people would find it to get in the way of normal program usage. It would require more data to be sent backwards and…
hunt on HN
Alternatives named
dwm
From 2 comments
This is obviously inspired by dwm, which is cool, but how is it different from dwm?
gpo on HNReally dislike software with configuration baked into the code, every key binding and experiment requires recompilation which prevents managing it sanely through a package…
joaomsa on HN
i3
From 2 comments
Hum... Are we talking about the same Windows ? Have you tried other tiling window managers ? i3 [0] comes to mind, but XMonad [1] and Awesome WM [2] are 2 other popular choices…
rakoo on HNxmonad isn't modal. This apparently has three modes: 'normal', 'floating' and 'focus'. i3 also has modes: 'normal' and 'resize'.
deweerdt on HN
xmonad
From 2 comments
Hum... Are we talking about the same Windows ? Have you tried other tiling window managers ? i3 [0] comes to mind, but XMonad [1] and Awesome WM [2] are 2 other popular choices…
rakoo on HNHow does this differ from e.g. xmonad, which uses vi-like keybindings? It's specifically the bulk operators based on movement?
dons on HN
Awesome WM
From 2 comments
I have used the awesome window manager (http://awesome.naquadah.org) for a long time. I think most of the big tiling window managers (DWM, xmonad) are similar. The only things I…
rkowalick on HNIt's a cool project but again I'm not sure what I would gain from the modes, counts and motions. Right now I use Awesome WM which is really similar to howm without changing…
Rampoina on HN
ratpoison
From 2 comments
I would like Windows' management better if it had more options than just full-screen and half-screen. Have you tried mapping the Windows key as ratpoison's escape key? e.g.…
sp332 on HN"I tried ratpoison in linux but found it to interfere with application keyboard shortcuts." Huh? Rat poison is the only window manager I've used that interferes (meaningfully)…
dllthomas on HN
Ion3
From 2 comments
I always liked Ion3 a lot despite the conflicts the author had with distros. http://notion.sourceforge.net/ is a fork of it that is maintained.
mcginleyr1 on HNAnother vote for Ion3, I tried dozens tiling wm-s, none of them come even close to ion3.
mateuszf on HN