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When working on big screens I often use Gnomes "snap window to left/right border" by dragging a window to the left/right side of the screen. This results in a partially maximized window which I find very convenient.

I wonder whether it's possible to either configure this behavior to have more of those areas in which I can maximize a window or do whatever is needed to display a configurable amount of virtual desktops on the same monitor.

Note: I already tried some tiling window managers like xmonad - but unfortunately most of them force all windows to be maximized (which is not always good) and you loose all the nice Gnome convenience.

So what I'm looking for is a way to have multiple 'fullscreen' windows on one display while keeping the default Gnome behavior.

Another note: gTile comes very close to what I'm looking for with only two exceptions: it only resizes windows but leaves the space consuming title/menu bars and window decorators (in contrast to fullscreen mode). And it would be very nice to be able to define static areas which windows can be dragged to easily (which would make them 'fullscreen' in that area).

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    I cannot say that I fully understand your needs. Talking about not wanting maximized windows, but wanting 'fullscreen' windows? Also, you can place windows to left-right by pressing SUPER + left or right arrow. Arrow up to return to maximized. But check out: extensions.gnome.org/extension/39/put-windows if it fits your needs, if you are on a desktop you can place windows in corners etc using the keypad, or if having full size keyboard on a laptop. You can also move windows to the next screen etc.
    – anders
    Commented Aug 26, 2018 at 9:30
  • What I try to achieve is quite simple but not easy to explain. I'd like to send a window in full-screen mode (i.e. no title/menu/decorators) but only in a part (e.g. top left quarter) of the screen. Tiling window managers do this, but they (often) force every window in full-screen mode which is bad in some cases (e.g. Virtualbox seamless mode). And I really like to stick with Gnome. So what would perfectly fit my needs would be an xmonad plugin for Gnome which allows floating windows.
    – frans
    Commented Aug 27, 2018 at 9:32
  • Aah, I see. The closest I can think of is by using extensions.gnome.org/extension/723/pixel-saver + Put Windows mentioned in the previous comment. Hopefully somebody more experienced chimes in.
    – anders
    Commented Aug 27, 2018 at 10:14

2 Answers 2

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I am not using your environment, but below are some possibilities that might apply.

CompizConfig Setting Manager

Set edge settings in grid using the CompizConfig Setting Manager (sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager), using the entry Window Management, plugin Grid to set the corner snap :

CompizConfig Setting Manager

For more info see this answer.

gTile

The gnome extension gTile says in the readme:

Gnome-shell extension that improves window tiling capabilities of stock gnome-shell. gTile is used to moves/resize windows on a configurable grid scheme.

When you click on the gTile icon it will open a dialog that lets you draw a region on an e. g. 1x3 grid. Once you have drawn the region gTile will move and resize the currently active windows to match that region on the real screen.

You can configure a hot key (for instance ctrl+alt+1) to send the current window to a specific field in an NxM grid. In your case it could be the first field in a 1x3 grid. Likewise for the other two windows.

source

Other gnome extensions

These extensions might have enough customization features for your purpose :

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  • I've bveeen using DisplayFusion on Windows. Gtile is the exact opposite of DisplayFusion, in that whenever you touch a window you will have to give it a placement. DisplayFusion allows defining several full screen areas - if you maximize a window in one it will fill that area. Drag it to another slot and it will be resized to the size of that. gTile does nothing like that.
    – Antti Haapala
    Commented Jan 21, 2020 at 5:14
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You ask:

I'm looking for is a way to have multiple 'fullscreen' windows on one display while keeping the default Gnome behaviour. … configure this behavior to have more of those areas in which I can maximize a window … define static areas which windows can be dragged to easily (which would make them 'fullscreen' in that area).

fakexrandr provides exactly this capability and is worth trying. https://github.com/phillipberndt/fakexrandr

nb: something in my ~/.config/ caused me problems. It's worth testing with a clean user if it isn't working properly.

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  • FakeXrandr has worked perfectly for me on Ubuntu 20.10
    – sid-m
    Commented Apr 11, 2021 at 5:52

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