Window tiling manager for Ubuntu with MATE DE

Ubuntu
1

I have been using Ubuntu 20.04.6 LTS 64 bit with MATE 1.26.0 Desktop environment for many years. I want to use a Windows tiling manager to be able to help improve my productivity in photo and video processing workflow.

I have read that MATE desktop environment that I am using uses a window manager called ‘marco’ but it either doesn’t have tiling capabilities or has very limited ones.

Which FOSS products are available to operate under this environment?

I am reluctant to use GNOME or other desktop env since I am now quite used to the MATE environment.

2

You can install the i3 tiling window manager on top of most desktop environments. I have done it with Xfce, but I have not done it with Mate.
What happens is , you will get a choice on your Login Manager screen, whether to start i3 or Mate. You have to choose, you can not run both at once.

You seem to be asking whether you can replace Mate’s own Window Manager with some alternative that would run inside of Mate. I doubt if that is possible , but I might be wrong there.

1 Like
3

I’ve been experimenting with tiling on my sandbox hdd. The i3 tiling window manager completely flumoxed me. I finally figured a few things out, but it’s less than intuitive and more trouble than it’s worth. The Tiling Assistant in Gnome does seem to work a little more transparently, but it’s only a little bit more intuitive. I’m still looking for one that allows windows to be fixed or movable and is, as my old calc prof said, ‘obvious to the casual observer.’ Could have murdered him for saying that about calculus.

1 Like
4

It is far from obvious… it took about 17 centuries for someone to invent/discover calculus.

1 Like
5

Think this is what you are trying to achive

6

Well…ok. I finally started moving along the progress bar, looking for the topics I was interested in. He’s friendly, but has a little problem staying on topic. Mint has some really interesting features and this video, verbose as it is, does well to illustrate them. It’s certainly way more understandable than i3.

Thanks for sharing it!

1 Like
7

@nevj - Thanks. yes thats what I am hoping for. I looked at i3 but thought its too complex. I need just basic tiling functionality to program and hold a specific windows config steady etc.

1 Like
8

:100: about calculus… and i3 too…

BTW, I recently came across this interesting explanation though late by about 50 years :grin: - https://open.spotify.com/episode/3qWYlBVzeBmNHx8gVtshHz?si=nkwn28GKSEmTv_ScnkxNUQ –

1 Like