Window stacking

[dottomi at gmail.com]

> all the windows displayed by the compositor are in a single list that
> defines their stacking order

Excuse me, I'm just a bystander, but is this list you speak of a list of
all the windows registered by all of the connected clients?

The main problem I have using GIMP is that when I focus a window, I
don't want to focus on a /window/, I want to focus on an /application/.
This means I want all of the application's windows to be moved to the
top. If there is a list with only the windows, it would require to move
all of the windows one by one. You can also have a third-party window
between your application's windows, and I think that's the part that
should be avoided.

> 2. There is a *atomic* api by which a client can map, unmap, and
> change the stacking order of it's own windows.

"Of it's own windows" in an absolute list, or in a client-only list?

Personally, I'd want to have a client request for a "single window
object", and for a "window group object". In the server there would be a
single list containing both single window objects and window group
objects. A window group is an object which is managed by the client
(map, unmap, register, unregister, reordering - i.e. what you're talking
about here) and the client can only operate on windows in its own group
object. It makes things easier in the server to restack windows because
you can move a whole group at once in the server-side list and you avoid
having a client's window positioned between windows of another client,
where the latter client does not want any third-party windows between.
It also makes it impossible for a client to make changes to the absolute
server-side list.

Just sharing my thoughts.

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