Today I installed Ubuntu Dapper Drake, basically to see compiz / xgl working on my own laptop. Xgl is an X server architecture layered on top of OpenGL via glitz. Compiz combines together a window manager and a composite manager using OpenGL for rendering. There are a couple of realy nice display effects in compiz like rotating your desktop in 3d, wobbly windows which auto-snap to other windows and stuff like expose on OSX (zooming out + tiling of all active windows).
The following video shows a nice demonstration of all features:
I can’t wait to have this functionality in a stable environment!!
Whaw, unbelievable how many things can still be improved beyond the conventional windowing concept.
I like the features that make it much easier to quickly reconfigure multiple related windows. Today, moving multiple windows next to each other requires many mouse moves and clicks, and than still things often don’t line out properly, and certainly an optimized window layout is forgotten next time.
Software industry has failed to do more than scratching the surface. Very few application really exploit more advanced capabilities of the windowing system.
Another proof that MS monopoly is really blocking innovation. Please keep pointing at such innovations!