OpenBox is a stacking window manager, but in Mabox it is set up to make window tiling little easier.
In this post, we will look at the options available by default that will make working with Mabox more enjoyable and effective.
If you are reading this article, I strongly encourage you to practice while reading. Just press Super + Left (to put the browser on the left half of the screen) and Ctrl + t (to fire up a Terminator for something to practice on).
Have fun!
Keyboard shortcuts
There are several keybinds configured to help you arrange windows in a grid.
Super is windows key.
| Keys | Action |
| Super + [ Up / Down / Left / Right ] | half screen |
| Super + [ Insert / Delete / PageUp / PageDown ] | 1/4 screen |
Try also Super + KeyPad keys.
| Keys | Action |
| Super + Home, Alt + F6 | toggle maximize |
| F11, Super + Enter | toggle fullscreen |
| Super + d | toggle show desktop |
Terminator
Terminator is an advanced terminal emulator with many amazing features.
One of them is the ability to split the window, which allows you to do the same thing that tiling window managers does, but limits it to terminals.
To run terminator hit Super + t.
| Keys | Action |
| Ctrl + Shift + o | split horizontally |
| Ctrl + Shift + e | split vertically |
| Alt + Arrows | move directly between terminals |
| Ctrl + Shift + Tab | |
| Ctrl + Shift + Arrows | change the size of the terminal |
| Ctrl + Shift + X | zoom active terminal (toggle) |
| Super + R Super + Shift + R |
change the mutual position of the panels (terminals) clockwise or counterclockwise |
| Ctrl + Shift + W | close active terminal |
| Ctrl + Shift + Q | close window (with all terminals) |
| CTRL + + | increase font size (also ctrl + mouse wheel) |
| CTRL + - | decrease font size (also ctrl + mouse wheel) |
| CTRL + 0 | restore original font size |
winfuncs script with gui helper
Another option is a simple shell script called winfuncs, which can be used to tile the openbox stacked windows at any time. Winfuncs is based on wmctrl, an old command line tool that provides access for doing many neat things to many modern Linux window managers.
Winfuncs is available by default in Mabox, accompanied by a handy menu that you can call up with Super + Alt + t.
We have eight functions available:
- Tile – will tile all not-minimized windows at current desktop
- Tile two (equal) select windows by clicking inside it
- Tile two (Left wider)
- Tile two (Right wider)
- Tile Three
- Tile Three vertical
- Stack two
- Cascade
Remembering a few keyboard shortcuts may be difficult at first, but they quickly become muscle memory.
It is definitely worth spending some time learning because there is no faster and more effective way to work on a computer than using the keyboard and shortcuts.