Snappy Window Tiling - Linux Mint Cinnamon Extension

Snappy Window Tiling is a powerful grid-based window management extension for Linux Mint (Cinnamon Desktop). Effortlessly organize your windows with mouse-drag overlay zones or fast keyboard navigation.

Features

• Grid & Split Layouts: Choose from classic half-splits, 3-column layouts, 3x3 grids, 4x4 grids, ultra-wide 5x4 grids, and equal vertical columns.

• Mouse Drag Snap:

  • Hold/drag your window to view visual snap zones dynamically.
  • Multi-Zone Selection: Hold Shift to span windows across multiple adjacent grid cells simultaneously.

• Keyboard:

  • Open with keyboard Win+z / Super+z
  • Use arrow keys or number keys.
  • Multi-Zone Selection: Hold Shift to span windows across multiple adjacent grid cells simultaneously.

• Multi-Monitor Ready: Automatically detects pointer location to display overlay and target grids on the active monitor.

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Usage

🖱️ Mouse-Drag Mode

1. Drag any window titlebar.
2. Overlay zones display on screen. Hover over your desired target zone and release the mouse button to snap.
3. (Optional) Hold Shift while hovering to select multiple zones simultaneously.

⌨️ Keyboard Mode

1. Press your configured hotkey (e.g., Super + z or custom binding).
2. Step 1: Select a Layout Group using digits 1–9 (or 0 for 10th), or navigate with Arrow Keys and press Enter.
3. Step 2: Select a target Zone Tile using digit keys or arrow keys.
4. (Optional) Hold Shift while moving arrow keys to select a region spanning multiple tiles. (Hold Shift down, while you press Enter to complete)
5. Press Enter to snap!

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Installation

Manual Installation

STEP 1: Paste this into your terminal:

curl -L https://github.com/martinandersen3d/LinuxMintWindowSnapZoneTiling/archive/refs/heads/master.zip -o /tmp/ext-swb.zip \
  && unzip /tmp/ext-swb.zip "LinuxMintWindowSnapZoneTiling-master/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d/files/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d/*" -d /tmp/ext-swb \
  && mv "/tmp/ext-swb/LinuxMintWindowSnapZoneTiling-master/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d/files/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d" \
        ~/.local/share/cinnamon/extensions/ \
  && ls ~/.local/share/cinnamon/extensions/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d \
  && echo "[SUCCES] Installation successful!" || echo "[FAILED] Installation failed — files not found." \
  && cinnamon-settings extensions > /dev/null 2>&1 &

STEP 2: Check files is installed at the correct location:

• ~/.local/share/cinnamon/extensions/snappy-window-tiling@martinandersen3d

STEP 3: System Settings → Extensions

1. Open System Settings → Extensions and click Snappy Window Tiling
2. Click the + plus. The ✔️ checkmark should appear.

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⚙️ How to Customize the Hotkey

You can easily change the shortcut key used to trigger the overlay:

1. Open System Settings -> Extensions.
2. Locate Snappy Window Tiling under the Manage tab.
3. Click the Gear icon (⚙️) next to the extension to open its settings window.
4. Click on the Toggle Overlay Shortcut field and press your preferred key combination (e.g., <Super>z).
5. The shortcut updates immediately—no system restart required!

Features

Setting	Default	Description
Enable drag-to-snap	✅ On	Show the zone overlay when dragging a window by its titlebar. Disable this if you only want keyboard-based snapping.
Enable keyboard hotkey	✅ On	Register the global hotkey that opens the overlay for the focused window. Disable this if you only want drag-to-snap.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Setting	Default	Description
Hotkey	Super + Z	The global key combination that triggers the overlay. Click the field and press any key combination to change it. Changes take effect immediately — no restart required.

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Video

Intro:

snappy-window-tiling-drag-window-zone-manager-promo.mp4

Hold SHIFT while you mouse drag to Multi-Select:

snappy-window-tiling-shift-drag.mp4

Hotkey Win+z to Activate and use keyboard Digits to Navigate:

snappy-window-tiling-keybord-numbers.mp4

Hotkey Win+z to Activate and use keyboard Arrows to Navigate:

snappy-window-tiling-keyboard-arrows.mp4

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