Windows, workspaces, and essential keys
Build a little muscle memory with a short desktop exercise.
Based on public documentation; not hardware-tested. Match the instructions to your version and hardware.
Think in tasks
Section titled “Think in tasks”Try one workspace for reading and another for writing. Workspaces help separate activities; you do not need to fill all of them.
A five-minute exercise
Section titled “A five-minute exercise”- Open two disposable application windows.
- Use Super + Arrow to focus a different window.
- Use Super + Shift + 2 to move the focused window to workspace 2.
- Use Super + 1 to return to workspace 1, then Super + 2 to find the moved window.
- Save anything important before closing a window.
If a binding behaves differently, check your local keybindings. Customized setups and older releases may differ.
Learn what the terminal is asking
Section titled “Learn what the terminal is asking”A command prompt is ready for a command; a running program might be waiting for input. Read the last line before pressing more keys. In many terminal tools, Ctrl + C interrupts the foreground operation; avoid using it during a system update.
If you accidentally open Neovim, press Esc, type :q, then Enter to leave an unchanged file. If it reports unsaved changes, decide whether to save with :wq or discard with :q!.
Build habits gradually
Section titled “Build habits gradually”Use a small set of shortcuts for a few days. Add another only when it solves something you do repeatedly. Keep the shortcut reference nearby.
Develop your working setup
Section titled “Develop your working setup”Once the basic moves feel familiar, compare tiling, scrolling, groups and scratchpad. For docking and undocking, follow multi-monitor workspace planning. These guides distinguish moving one window from moving its whole task workspace, and explain how to recover windows outside the current view.