There's been a long-standing request to add config includes to niri. They're useful for config organization, but also for custom desktop shells to be able to change colors without having to edit the main user's config.

Today I finished the first step towards this: a many-days-long refactor that makes the main config part, layout, mergeable, i.e., able to be combined from multiple parts. And building on this, per-output/workspace overrides.

https://github.com/YaLTeR/niri/pull/2449

Testing wanted here!

#niri

Our config system is declarative, rather than command-like, which means that we parse the config into a tree of data types instead of reading lines and applying them one-by-one. This design requires a lot of work to properly support includes, but in turn we get atomic and selective reloading (if output part of the config didn't change, we don't override your transient output adjustments), better error messages and no problems with things like "spawn-at-startup" that should only work once.

#niri

After several more days of work, I fully finished config includes. All config sections merge together, live-reloading watches all included files (even if they fail to parse), error messages work across files, documentation is written.

https://github.com/YaLTeR/niri/pull/2482

Once again, this needs testing! There must be NO breakage to existing configs, so if something breaks, I want to know about it to fix it.

#niri

I merged config includes, along with per-output and per-workspace layout config overrides. Play around with them at your nearest niri-git package.

- https://yalter.github.io/niri/Configuration%3A-Include.html
- https://yalter.github.io/niri/Configuration%3A-Outputs.html#layout-config-overrides
- https://yalter.github.io/niri/Configuration%3A-Named-Workspaces.html#layout-config-overrides

Also merged ignore-drm-device which should let you passthrough a GPU to VMs: https://yalter.github.io/niri/Configuration%3A-Debug-Options.html#ignore-drm-device

#niri

After a detour to config includes and, again, several days/weeks of work implementing all edge cases and expected behaviors, true window maximize is ready and merged to main. Tricky cases like: windows requesting fullscreen and maximize after opening; windows failing to match the full maximized size; transparent windows with the niri border behind them.

https://yalter.github.io/niri/Fullscreen-and-Maximize.html

Give it a try! Ngl I mostly switched to maximize just because I'm too lazy to reach the keyboard for Mod+F.

#niri

One cool thing I noticed about true maximize is that apps like GIMP or Inkscape or Blender, that really want all available space, maximize themselves at startup, so you don't have to window-rule them manually in your config

#niri

microsoft niri

#niri

Small change on niri-git for people using the foot terminal with CSD, or other apps that constrain their sizes to a grid: niri will now match the default column width to a preset width when a window opens. So opening foot sized "proportion 0.5" and then pressing Mod+R will switch you to the next preset width, even if foot actually opened slightly smaller to match its terminal grid. Before the change, the first Mod+R would pick the same "proportion 0.5" in this case and "do nothing".

#niri

Also, experimenting with this interaction tweak on a branch: what if dragging tiled windows horizontally scrolled the view instead of dragging them "out"? This makes it possible to scroll the view mouse-only without going through the Overview (the zooming gets quite tiring when it's frequent), and makes it possible to scroll the view touch-only. To drag the window out of the layout, you can still drag it downward.

#niri

Added a small "Quick Start" to the niri docs that gets you going with niri + DMS in three commands:

https://yalter.github.io/niri/Getting-Started.html#quick-start

Tested the Fedora ones on a fresh VM, worked out nicely, getting me into a session with a very functional desktop shell.

#niri

Currently in the middle of finishing up the Alt-Tab PR for niri: https://github.com/YaLTeR/niri/pull/1704

Got most things working as I'd like, though still plenty of fixes and clean-ups left. Fully live window previews with block-out-from support and fading title labels.

There's some interesting design differences compared to other desktops: on niri I expect it's common to have multiple terminals open, so Alt-Tab must go by windows (not by apps) and must show previews big enough to pick the right one.

#niri

We've hit 15k stars on the niri repo!!

#niri

Just merged Alt-Tab to main, shortly arriving at your nearest niri-git. Comes with plenty of ways to tweak it if you want [1], and a focus timestamp in the IPC [2] that lets shell devs make their own recent windows switchers.

[1]: https://yalter.github.io/niri/Configuration%3A-Recent-Windows.html
[2]: https://yalter.github.io/niri/niri_ipc/struct.Window.html#structfield.focus_timestamp

#niri

Did some work on the TTY backend in niri over the past few days. Merged PR for DisplayLink dock support, added "panel orientation" property read, and, based on cosmic-comp code, implemented the necessary logic to avoid screen blanking. Finally, both at niri startup and when switching TTYs, your screen won't flicker, as long as resolution/refresh rate stay the same.

Even when the screen does blank, it'll go faster, as there's now just one modeset instead of two (clear then draw frame).

#niri

Took some fighting but I think I've managed to teach the new Alt-Tab to speak to the screen reader

#niri

I finished and merged the horizontal drag interaction tweak from a previous post. It's very handy but can also be annoying when you want to move windows across monitors, so on mouse I restricted it to headerbar dragging (so, not Mod+LMB and not in the overview).

On touch however, it works for both headerbar dragging, and for Mod+Touch, so you can now easily scroll the view around.

I also added the thing where you can touch with another finger to switch between floating and tiling.

#niri

DankMaterialShell folks set up builds for Debian, Ubuntu and OpenSUSE, so now it's super easy to try niri & DMS on those systems.

I added Ubuntu commands to the niri quick start guide: https://yalter.github.io/niri/Getting-Started.html

Debian and OpenSUSE here: https://build.opensuse.org/project/show/home:AvengeMedia:danklinux

#niri