A Dynamic Take on Window Management

Abstract

On modern computers with graphical user interfaces, application windows are managed by a window manager, a core component of the desktop environment. Mainstream operating systems such as Microsoft Windows and Apple's macOS employ window managers, where users rely on a mouse or trackpad to manually resize, reposition, and switch between overlapping windows. This approach can become inefficient, particularly on smaller screens such as laptops, where frequent window adjustments disrupt workflow and increase task completion time. An alternative paradigm, dynamic window management, automatically arranges application windows into non-overlapping layouts. These systems reduce the need for manual manipulation by providing intelligent placement strategies and support for multiple workspaces. Despite their potential usability benefits, dynamic window managers remain niche, primarily available on Linux systems and rarely enabled by default. This study evaluates the usability of dynamic window managers in comparison to conventional floating window systems. We developed a prototype dynamic window manager that incorporates configurable layouts and workspace management, and we conducted both heuristic evaluation and statistical testing to assess its effectiveness. Our findings indicate that dynamic window managers significantly improve task completion time in multi-window workflows by 37.83%. By combining cognitive heuristics with empirical performance measures, this work highlights the potential of dynamic window management as a viable alternative to traditional floating window systems and contributes evidence-based insights to the broader field of human-computer interaction (HCI).