Google Tests Desktop Windowing For Android Tablets (theverge.com)
(Friday September 13, 2024 @03:00AM (BeauHD)
from the would-you-look-at-that dept.)
- Reference: 0174986213
- News link: https://developers.slashdot.org/story/24/09/13/0130247/google-tests-desktop-windowing-for-android-tablets
- Source link: https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/12/24243230/google-android-desktop-window-resize-multitasking-tablets
Google is testing a "desktop windowing" feature for Android tablets that "will [1]let you resize apps freely and arrange them on your screen at will ," reports The Verge. It's currently available as a developer preview. From the report:
> Currently, apps on Android tablets open in full-screen by default. When the new mode is enabled, each app will appear in a window with controls that allow you to reposition, maximize, or close the app. You'll also see a taskbar at the bottom of your screen with your running apps. [...] Once the feature is rolled out to everyone, you can turn it on by pressing and holding the window handle at the top of an app's screen. If you have a keyboard attached, you can also use the shortcut meta key (Windows, Command, or Search) + Ctrl + Down to activate desktop mode. (You can exit the mode by closing all your active apps or by dragging a window and dragging it to the top of your screen.)
>
> Google notes that apps locked to portrait orientation are still resizable, which might make things look a bit weird if certain apps aren't optimized. However, Google plans to address this in a future update by scaling the UI of non-resizable apps while maintaining their aspect ratio.
[1] https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/12/24243230/google-android-desktop-window-resize-multitasking-tablets
> Currently, apps on Android tablets open in full-screen by default. When the new mode is enabled, each app will appear in a window with controls that allow you to reposition, maximize, or close the app. You'll also see a taskbar at the bottom of your screen with your running apps. [...] Once the feature is rolled out to everyone, you can turn it on by pressing and holding the window handle at the top of an app's screen. If you have a keyboard attached, you can also use the shortcut meta key (Windows, Command, or Search) + Ctrl + Down to activate desktop mode. (You can exit the mode by closing all your active apps or by dragging a window and dragging it to the top of your screen.)
>
> Google notes that apps locked to portrait orientation are still resizable, which might make things look a bit weird if certain apps aren't optimized. However, Google plans to address this in a future update by scaling the UI of non-resizable apps while maintaining their aspect ratio.
[1] https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/12/24243230/google-android-desktop-window-resize-multitasking-tablets
This is nothing new (Score:2)
by Viol8 ( 599362 )
I've got this on my samsung android tablet I bought 5 years ago (albeit a developer option). Whether it was a samsung addition or standard Android I don't know, but why this hasn't been standard on tablets at least - probably not much use on a phone sized screen - beats me.
tiling would make me happy (Score:3)
a good tiling window manager
I typically only use 3 "apps"
browser
terminal
video conf
if they can be tiled the way I want and have colour correction for the screen I would switch to that mode in an instant like i3
Re: (Score:2)
Not too many ways you can tile 3 windows tbh and while tiling works on a large monitor/TV, on a tablet sized screen you're not going to get much real estate on any of them. Far better to have them overlapping as per a standard desktop.
Re: (Score:2)
Personally I don't get tiling window managers. Once you split the screen more than twice the window is too small to do anything in anyway, and I can do two side by side windows fine in a non-tiling window manager.
Re: (Score:2)
It looks like it will have tiling from the very start. The current system for tablets and foldable phones is that you can tile windows, and this is an extension of that.