[Ayatana] Full Screen Menus and Scaling

["frederik.nnaji@xxxxxxxxx" <frederik.nnaji@xxxxxxxxx>]

hello list,

perhaps somebody has experience in designing compositing window managers?
I was going through a thought experiment concerning scaling behaviour in compiz or mutter e.g.

Imagine there are 3 ways to scale:

* Superkey + Mousewheel for Desktop Zoom (always)
* Superkey + E   = Exposé of Workspaces (always)
* Superkey + W  = Window(s) per Workspace (always)

now add

* Superkey + Q = show last Fullscreen Menu (always)

a Fullscreen Menu is what we know from all modern gaming consoles or mobile phone apps e.g.
The limited screen size or high comfortable distance to the screen (consoles -> effortless remote-control UI) teaches us simple ways to break down the actual use cases of our device at hand into a selection of Actions:

* operation control (modes/preferences/options/settings)
* management of files
* sharing of media
* viewing of media (playback/display)
* editing of media
* archiving of media
* copying of media
* deleting of media
* calendaring
* calculation
* calling
* messaging 
* physics (OpenGL or equivalents)

E.g. in Ghoul Maps¹ for Symbian UI, the menu for controlling the physical (spacial physics here) navigation (pan, zoom, pin, rotate, flip, hold, release) of the map is always visible to the operator as also to the control input stream.

E.g. Maps as a FullScreenApp should either show up as an obvious menu with either selectable or informative be aware of Up, Down, Left and Right Key Press Events on my device ("visible" as in object-network-transparency).

Did i omit an important use case above?
How many objects per page are useful, if we want to control our consumer desktop computer from our couch, hdmi-connected Television as display.. ?
Would it make sense to take the CTRL + Q interaction metaphor (control instruction quit) to the Super level by adding Super + Q for "return to Menu Mode"?

As stated above, the Superkey actions are all related to scaling, at least Super+Mousewhell, Super+E and Super+W, as well as the proposed Super+Q. Every change of scale through the Super+[E,W,Q]  is at the same time a selective adjustment of focus. We're not only scaling in/out physically i.e. bigger and smaller, we refocus also. That would mean:

1. Three scaling levels
2. Three modes of focus
3. Three+One-finger interface

Question about 3.:
Does anybody know a window manager that makes Space behave like Super whenever no typing cursor is present?

thanks for your interest,

Nnaji



¹fictional name
²http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landscape ;)