Usage of multiple workspaces

[halfvolle melk]

Hi,
Here's a silly question: How do you use your workspaces?

Do you have one for browsing and playing tunes and maybe keep another with teminal and file edit stuff handy? I find myself using only one with random stuff strewn all over the desktop, (and at times) running too many apps. How does a prudent user use these environments?

[midwinter]

Usually I just start using a second one when my first has more than 3 or 4 apps on it, which isn't too often as I run several in a terminal.

Gimp always gets its own workspace though, for obvious reasons (try and save as a jpeg.... christ).

[halfvolle melk]

I can see why you'd want a seperate one for Gimp :)

[ComplexNumber]

i don't use workspaces at all. i don't see any need for them.

[Master Shake]

I'll be browsing 'family oriented' websites in my main workspace, and view pr0n in a different one (so the wife can't see it easily)

[Gustav]

I use one for thunderbird, one for firefox and the two others for everything else (right now there is a emacs and a terminal at one and nothing at the other).

[maruchan]

I definitely keep one for the GIMP only :) and one for music, one for work-related web browsing and mail, and another for maybe another web browser with leisure stuff, like Stumbleupon.

BTW, it's kind of a pain to shut down a bunch of apps from different workspaces all at once - is there a way to get a "global view" of them and terminate apps from there? Kinda like expose(ay) for the virtual desktop?

[mcduck]

Terminals and music on the first workspace, firefox on the second, 3rd is for whatever I need to do, and fourth is for irc, Nicotine and skype.

I couldn't even live without virtual desktops. When I need to fix peoples Windows machines I always have troubles finding room for all windows.. Even before Ubuntu I used litestep with my win2000, and always had at least 4 virtual desktops :)

[Wolki]

I use nine. One for Evolution, one for a feed reader, one for gnome-xchat, one for forums, the rest are usually similarly task-focussed for whatever I'm doing at the moment. I set <ctrl>-<alt>-<keypad 1-9> to acess them directly (+ <shift> to move windows there), works quite well and helps keeping the numbar of applications per workspace low for easier navigation.

edit

BTW, it's kind of a pain to shut down a bunch of apps from different workspaces all at once - is there a way to get a "global view" of them and terminate apps from there? Kinda like expose(ay) for the virtual desktop?

Window selector gives you a list of all open windows and a way to access them easily, no closing though. For more power, try superswitcher ( http://gnomefiles.org/app.php?soft_id=1231 )

[Kvark]

I put all programs that are related to the same task on the same workspace.

For example one to write code, read the language's documentation and test my app on. One to draw artwork with Inkscape or Gimp on. One to read my notes and ideas plus write stuff on. And one to take breaks and surf on. I usually leave the programs open when I'm done with a task since they are not in the way of anything else and just switch back to that workspace when it's time to use them again. When I need to do something else like install something or copy some files then I switch to an empty workspace to avoid cluttering my tasks. I use the last workspace for music player, chat programs and other things that I always leave open in the background.

[halfvolle melk]

I use nine.
:eek: I'd get lost in a second and start to cry!


I put all programs that are related to the same task on the same workspace.
+ explanation
That makes sense. I will try to use that, thanks.

[erikpiper]

I use 5. First is firefox, then GAIM, then music, then terminals/system stuff, then file browser, then homework. Anything else goes anywhere. (Above is not always all at once...)

[briancurtin]

i use three at the moment

1. firefox and gaim - its my main one
2. music player (usually rhythmbox, listen sometimes)
3. miscellaneous - my away messages in gaim, terminals doing stuff, etc.

i used to have a workspace dedicated to my email application, but sylpheed and sylpheed-claws decided to not show my new emails in bold. if new emails dont show up in bold, how the hell am i supposed to know they are new? i think thats completely asinine and i stopped using the two sylpheed programs because of that.

[BoyOfDestiny]

i don't use workspaces at all. i don't see any need for them.

I see how useful it is, it's just hard breaking old habits. I'm trying to use it more and more. :)

It's really something to not have to keep minimizing and maximizing apps.

You can leave firefox in one space, terminal and audacious in another, gimp in one, and abiword in another.

Basically, switch workspaces, and you won't have to fiddle with sizing windows and finding what you need (don't tell me I'm the only person who has a taskbar with like 11 apps/windows running).

I'll add it's a nice feature to select certain windows for all workspaces (for tvtime in my case)

P.S.

ctrl + alt + left/right to move workspaces

ctrl + alt + shift + left/right moves the selected app to that workspace

[freedomforme]

I dont see that they are that useful... Yes, I have a lot of apps open and the taskbar lets me pull one to the front. If I ever have four monitors along with four hands to click on four things at once along with all the eyes needed to see them at once THEN I will certainly use multiple workspaces. :)

[BoyOfDestiny]

I dont see that they are that useful... Yes, I have a lot of apps open and the taskbar lets me pull one to the front. If I ever have four monitors along with four hands to click on four things at once along with all the eyes needed to see them at once THEN I will certainly use multiple workspaces. :)

To each his own :) Easy enough to disable.

[angkor]

I use 6. Usually 5 or 6 have open windows in em. Now on dapper with xgl I only get 4 (or one really big one really) :(

[freedomforme]

To each his own :)
Exactly...Wow a voice of reason around here! :) Now I will have to try them out again to see if I like doing it that way better... ;)

[psychicdragon]

I put all programs that are related to the same task on the same workspace.
Ditto. Vim and some terminals on one desktop, Firefox to read docs or waste time on another, Glade on another etc.

I never minimize apps, I have 8 virtual desktops which is plenty of space to store all my open windows.

[curtis]

I use 6. Usually 5 or 6 have open windows in em. Now on dapper with xgl I only get 4 (or one really big one really) :(
You can modify how much sides the cube has in Gconf.

[pitkali]

I have chaos. Multiple apps on one workspace. I move them around when I decide there's too much of it :)

Regards,

[AndyCooll]

I wonder how I ever managed without multiple desktops!

Like some others here I usually place similar types of apps on different desktops.
My general desktop is usually the first and it will usually have Firefox on it for instance. My second one is for any specific project I'm working on at the time, the third for background apps such as music, Apollon, Gaim and such, and my fourth is where I always keep my connections to other pc's on my network (e.g. SSH, Freenx)

:cool: