Bug 506720

Summary: Overview effect should allow rearranging windows in the preview BeOS-style + rearrangement of VDs
Product: [Plasma] kwin Reporter: Maximilian Böhm <mabo>
Component: effects-overviewAssignee: KWin default assignee <kwin-bugs-null>
Status: RESOLVED INTENTIONAL    
Severity: wishlist CC: kde, mabo
Priority: NOR    
Version First Reported In: 6.4.2   
Target Milestone: ---   
Platform: Other   
OS: Linux   
Latest Commit: Version Fixed/Implemented In:
Sentry Crash Report:

Description Maximilian Böhm 2025-07-07 13:22:21 UTC 
Overview effect should allow rearranging windows in the preview BeOS-style + rearrangement of VDs

So I’m not personally using this effect (I do prefer Present Windows & Grid) but each time I’m testing it I’m irritated by not being able to rearrange windows in the preview stripe.
There already is the workspace switching plasmoid, which is implementing what I’m asking here. You can drag and drop windows not even to different VDs but also on different *positions*.
BeOS has introduced this mighty concept in the 90s: https://youtu.be/BsVydyC8ZGQ&t=409

When you want to sort windows from your current VD to another VD, you have to drag them from beneath the preview into the preview. This is intuitively. If you then want to drag a window from a different VD to your current VD, you first have to switch in the preview to this VD and then drop them – again – from beneath into the preview stripe onto another VD. The expectation would be: When it’s possible to drag them into the preview, it should also be possible to drag them *out* of the preview and in between the preview.

There is also lacking a possibility to rearrange VDs.

As mentioned, it should also be possible to move window positions like with the BeOS-resembling plasmoid. That love to detail makes both implementations feel nifty.
Comment 1 David Edmundson 2025-07-07 13:30:58 UTC 
Rather than using the overview effect, try the Desktop Grid effect. It's designed with window management across workspaces in mind.
Comment 2 Maximilian Böhm 2025-07-07 14:16:27 UTC 
Hey, I find "resolved intentional" rather rude after I was seriously thinking the usability of this effect through.
Just doing what Gnome and Windows implement when the UX shortcomings are obvious is cheap.
I was hoping to start a conversation about how to best implementing details like reordering of whole VDs in the preview stripe.

I also wrote that I’m already using the Grid effect. I get the feeling you haven’t even read my text. Makes me actually sad. ;(
The Grid effect doesn’t allow moving the positions of windows on your current VD either.