explaingit

yougotwill/paperwm

Analysis updated 2026-07-18 · repo last pushed 2026-04-21

Audience · developerComplexity · 2/5MaintainedSetup · easy

TLDR

A GNOME window manager that arranges open windows in a scrollable horizontal row instead of stacking them, so you navigate by scrolling instead of Alt-Tabbing.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((PaperWM))
    What it does
      Scrollable window row
      Auto-tiling windows
      Column grouping
    Features
      Multi-monitor workspace stack
      Keyboard and gesture control
      Customizable keybindings
    Tech stack
      GNOME Shell extension
    Audience
      Developers
      Designers
      Researchers

Code map

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filefunction / class

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Organize many open windows into a scrollable horizontal strip instead of overlapping stacks.

USE CASE 2

Group related windows into a column to view them together.

USE CASE 3

Jump between recent workspaces across multiple monitors using the workspace stack preview.

USE CASE 4

Navigate windows with keyboard shortcuts or trackpad gestures instead of hunting through overlaps.

What is it built with?

GNOME ShellJavaScript

How does it compare?

yougotwill/paperwm0verflowme/alarm-clock0verflowme/seclists
Language—CSS—
Last pushed2026-04-212022-10-032020-05-03
MaintenanceMaintainedDormantDormant
Setup difficultyeasyeasyeasy
Complexity2/52/51/5
Audiencedevelopervibe coderops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 30min

Installs through the official GNOME extensions store, a test VM setup is provided to try it before committing.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Show me how to install PaperWM from the GNOME extensions store and set up basic keyboard navigation.
Prompt 2
Explain how PaperWM's automatic horizontal window tiling works compared to a normal stacking window manager.
Prompt 3
How do I group windows into columns in PaperWM, and how do I customize the keybindings?
Prompt 4
Walk me through testing PaperWM safely in the provided virtual machine setup before installing it on my main system.

Frequently asked questions

What is paperwm?

A GNOME window manager that arranges open windows in a scrollable horizontal row instead of stacking them, so you navigate by scrolling instead of Alt-Tabbing.

Is paperwm actively maintained?

Maintained — commit in last 6 months (last push 2026-04-21).

How hard is paperwm to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is paperwm for?

Mainly developer.

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