The Need for "Single Window Mode" 3244

The physical world often isn't 3D in any practical sense either, for the kind of tasks we're talking about. Work surfaces are basically 2D. Sure, there's a third dimension, but it's a little hard to position a piece of paper 12" above the surface of your desk and have it stay there, or do anything useful with it while you're holding it there.

Well, you can, if you don't mind lifting the top sheet.

Why can't you do this? Just slide the top window out of the way, or use something like ExposZ.

I think we'd still be arranging them in physical space, yes. Rather than, for instance, only looking at one sheet at a time and using some abstract method to switch to other sheets. Spacial organization is rooted in some extremely basic and probably actually instinctive capabilities of the brain.

Ahh. If what you're saying is just that both physical desktops and the virtual desktops that are modeled on them are inferior to some hypothetical system which allows more flexible special organization (say, making full use of 3D space), you could very well be right. Until the price of large 3D displays and force-feedback glove (or at least motion tracking gloves) comes down a lot in price though, we'll have to make do.

-- "Those who enter the country illegally violate the law." -- George W. Bush in Tucson, Ariz., Nov. 28, 2005