diff --git a/ANNOUNCE b/ANNOUNCE new file mode 100644 index 00000000..cbfa2025 --- /dev/null +++ b/ANNOUNCE @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +Hi there, + +I'm glad to announce the wmii-3 release aka 'Zur Steglitzer Bratpfanne' [1]. +Compared with earlier versions, wmii-3 is a quite different window manager. +Many design decisions have been revised and simplified. + +You can download the release from: + + http://wmii.net/download/wmii-3.tar.gz + (Fingerprint: http://wmii.net/download/wmii-3.tar.gz.sig) + +The most important changes and new features include: + + * The new window management consists of a column-layout. It splits the + screen into horizontal columns, which arrange clients vertically in either + maximized, default, or stacked modes. The maximized mode maximizes all + clients to the column size, this makes only one client visible at a time. + The default mode arranges all clients with arbitrary heights and makes all + of them visible at a time. The stacked mode displays a title-bar for each + unfocused client, and provides the rest of the available vertical space to + the focused client. The new column-layout replaces the layout approach of + wmii-2.x, which provided different layouts for specific tasks. Thus, it is + intended to generalize all previously existing layouts into one concept. + + * The classic workspace (page) paradigm of previous versions or other window + managers is replaced with a new tagging approach. Each client is tagged with + arbitrary alphanumeric tags. A view is the set of visible clients which are + tagged with a specific tag. Hence, a view can be compared with classic + workspaces, except that the tagging approach enables a more powerful + relation between clients and views. If a client is tagged more than one + tag, it is visible in all views representing these tags. This allows + fine-grain sticky-flag capabilities for clients. Besides this, the new + tagging approach replaces the attach/detach concept found in earlier + versions. Instead of detaching a client from current view, it is tagged + differently. Same appears to attaching. + + * The new virtual file-system can be accessed using a 9P-compliant client. + This enables accessing wmii-3 with existing 9P clients, like the 9p2000.ko + kernel module of Linux 2.6.14+, or the included 9P command line client wmiir + (wmii remote). The new file-system has no coupling with the internal data + structures and performs much better, in contrast to previous versions. + + * The dependency to Plan 9 (9base) tools has been dropped. + wmii-3 uses a sh-based configuration sub-system again, which is similiar to + that one found in wmii-2.5.x. + + * The separation of wmiibar, wmiikeys, and the wmiifs file-service multiplexer + into separate processes in earlier versions has been removed, which + increased the overall performance drastically and reduced a lot of code + overhead. + + +If you're a novice and never used wmii before just read the README file shipped +in the release tarball and follow the instructions to install and start wmii. + +If you're an upgrader from wmii-2.5.x, please note the following: + + - wmii-3 is quite a different window manager compared to wmii-2, thus don't + expect much similarities, except very basic ones. + - You can purge the 9base installation now. You don't need the Plan 9 stuff + for the configuration sub-system anymore. + - The column layout behaves quite different to tiled or grid layout, you'll + need some time to get used to the new layout. Please don't use swapping, + because this is planned to be a temporary feature, which might make it + simplier for you to get the track between wmii-2 and wmii-3. Don't expect + swapping in the upcoming wmii-4 release. + - There are no pages anymore, use the powerful tagging approach instead. + - There is no tabbing, use stacking ($MODKEY-s) instead. + - There is no way to hide the title-bars anymore. + - There is no way to enable/disable increment handling, that is done + internally for you. + +If you're an upgrader from wmii-2, please note the following as well: + + - The configuration has changed totally, you cannot re-use your configuration + without relearning things. However the configuration is much easier now due + the fact of an everything-in-one-file concept. + +To get used to wmii-3, my advice is to read the README, the very-short +welcome message at startup, the beginner's guide [2] by Steffen Liebergeld, +and finally the manual pages wmii(1), wmiiwm(1), wmiir(1), and optionally +wmiimenu(1). + +This release won't have been possible, if there weren't so many people +helping the project in various ways. I want to say thank you all for any help! + +I thank especially following people, which have been involved heavily in wmii-3 +development: + + * Sander van Dijk + * Georg Neis + * Uriel + * Denis Grelich + * Icarus Sparry + * Salvador Peiro + * Steffen Liebergeld + * Anthony Martin + * Stefan Tibus + * Neptun + +I also thank the following donators: + + * Heiko Schlichting + * Al Wong (aka alvin) + * Alexis Hildebrandt + * Alexandre Dulaunoy + +I will spend the money into the awaited multihead-setup and into several boxes +of beer and barbequeue, if the developers and contributors will manage to meet +each other in Berlin at 23C3 congress, to discuss about future projects (like +sami, termi, taggi, ii, etc.). + +[1] The release name 'Zur Steglitzer Bratpfanne' has been choosen because of + the following story. Back in April 'garbeam' received a postal package from + Tobias 'aka tube' Walkowiak. This package contained a secret treasure - a + double-sized Curry Wurst from Western Berlins 'Steglitzer Bratpfanne' + restaurant. 'tube' sent this package with express service and the Curry + Wurst was still quite enjoyable after warming it up in 'garbeam's oven. + 'garbeam' was pretty hungry, and eat those Curry Wurst completely. The + further development of wmii was rescued by the 'Steglitzer Bratpfanne'. + There'll be some photos about this story at the wmii.net site soon. + +[2] http://wmii.net/contrib/guide/wmii-3/guide-en/guide_en/guide_en.html