Window positions being lost?

[NotoriousPyro]

I was wondering if anyone could help me.

Every time I open an app it seems to open wherever it wants, usually in the top left corner or bottom left. It's very frustrating to have to keep moving them around.

Is this behaviour deliberate, if so why? I'm considering going back to MATE because of this annoying problem.

[viking777]

I don't think it is a question of them being 'lost', I don't think they are ever saved. I believe (though I am not 100% sure) that Cinnamon is using what is called 'smart' positioning. IE it positions windows where it thinks they will be most useful - you don't have any say in it. You can overcome some of this 'smartness' with a program called gdevilspie, but it doesn't work for everything.

https://launchpad.net/gdevilspie

[Orbmiser]

Yep been an ongoing battle and no resolution in site.

The WM & Desktop developer's argue that it is the job of the applications developers to build into app the ability to remember size & position. The App developer's argue it is the job of the desktop & Window Manager to take care of remembering window size & position. Neither side is budging and very few app developer's have upgraded their software to do just that.

One of the reasons I moved to KDE as it does have that built in. Right click title bar and have the option For Special actions for Applications & windows with checking of "Remember Size & Position".

I just got tired of wasting time opening 8 programs and spreading them out on 3 virtual workspaces on dual displays.

And gdevilspie is a hack to the issue and not very easy to use or a 100% solution. And course due to inflexible stance of developer's we the users end up trying to make due.

For some not that big of an issue. For me It Is a Big Issue and can't understand why it is acceptable to all the other users out there. To have to manually size and position every time they open an app. And one of the reasons I went to KDE.
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[NotoriousPyro]

I may just consider KDE if the other solution doesn't work then. This is massively disappointing that such a vital feature is missing.

They really ought to program into the DE, a "fallback" so that if the app doesn't have positioning built in, then it would fallback to it's own way of doing it. That way it would be optional for developers to have apps the size they want.

[NotoriousPyro]

Mmkay, KDE is far better looking and more fun to use than Cinnamon.

[gibbs1984]

You used to be able to use Compiz before we had Cinnamon and there was the option in that to position newly opened apps in the centre of the screen (or where ever you wanted them).

Can't Clem implement this feature into Cinnamon like he has done for other features that we had in Compiz?

[mipesom]

Mmkay, KDE is far better looking and more fun to use than Cinnamon.

You must use another KDE that is completely different from the one I used last time (some months ago) and another Cinnamon than I use. Never had a better DE than Cinnamon.

[viking777]

Hey everyone, don't start any desktop wars please

I have got my own strong opinions too - we all have, just enjoy what you enjoy and let everyone else enjoy their choices too.

[coilwinder]

Wow! Amazed / shocked (kinda) that this should be an issue in this day and age and all.

One of the reasons I moved to KDE as it does have that built in. Right click title bar and have the option For Special actions for Applications & windows with checking of "Remember Size & Position".

Thanks for that tip! While it's a rather cumbersome thing to do, at least for the first time or when one want to change that position, at least it is possible! Also, it seems I choose the right WM / DM (?) -manager then I'm a first-time Mint user, but comes from Ubuntu using gnome since a few years.

I have to say that I've only been using Mint for like a couple of days, and already KDE's method seems to grow on me - set a few windows to remember a position, and others automatically finds the best (ish) spot around.