desklet · v1.3.1 · GPL-2.0+

Workspace Grid

The workspace map, pinned to your desktop.

Version
1.3.1
Kind
desklet
License
GPL-2.0-or-later
Workspace Grid desklet screenshot
Workspace Grid on the desktop

Why this exists

Why this exists

Keyboard shortcuts switch workspaces blind. You press, you land, you look around to work out where you are. Workspace Grid puts the map where you already look: one tile per workspace, named, clickable, and the tile you are on carries the highlight.

Names or previews. Click to switch. That is the whole interface.

Tiles come in two flavors. Name tiles show the word, big and mono. Desktop previews shrink every connected monitor into the tile with its visible windows and app icons, and they stay honest: window, focus, monitor, and name changes all land live, no reload needed.

Layout runs auto, which lands near a square, or fixed rows by columns. Fixed layouts would rather grow a row than hide a workspace, so nothing falls off the edge. The wheel can switch too, by row or by column, filtered and throttled so one flick is one switch instead of five.

Editing happens right on the grid. An optional trailing + tile adds a workspace, the per-tile menu renames or removes one, and a named workspace asks for confirmation before it goes. Tiles take keyboard focus, carry tooltips, and expose accessible names to screen readers.

desklet v1.3.1 GPL-2.0+

Features

What it does

  1. One clickable tile per workspace
  2. Name tiles or desktop previews per monitor
  3. Live window, focus, monitor, and name updates
  4. Auto near-square or fixed rows by columns
  5. Fixed layouts grow rows; no workspace hides
  6. Optional add tile with per-tile rename and remove
  7. Filtered, throttled scroll switching
  8. Keyboard focus, tooltips, and accessible names
Workspace Grid settings window

The tile grammar

Tiles, exactly as Cinnamon draws them

  • WEB
  • CODE
  • CHAT mid-rename
  • ADMIN
  • MAIL
  • Add workspace tile

Two interactions, one grid: the outlined tile is the workspace you are on, and the caret tile is mid-rename, its field open for a new name. Preview tiles shrink each monitor with its visible windows and app dots, and the trailing + tile adds a workspace.

Workspace Grid

Layout

Grid layout mode
Rows (fixed layout) Fixed layout only
Columns (fixed layout) Fixed layout only
Workspace representation

Labels

Prefix names with index (1-based)

Workspace management

Allow adding, removing and renaming workspaces
Show a "+" tile to add a workspace Needs workspace editing
Confirm before removing a named workspace Needs workspace editing

Behavior

Scroll wheel switches workspaces

Fragment of the real settings window. Labels and defaults come from settings-schema.json.

Install

Add it to Cinnamon

No root needed. Everything lands in your home directory. The rm -rf before each copy is the upgrade path; your settings live elsewhere and survive.

curl -fLO https://github.com/RobertAlexanderH/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet/releases/latest/download/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet.zip
unzip cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet.zip
rm -rf ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware
cp -r cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware/files/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware
git clone https://github.com/RobertAlexanderH/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet.git
cd cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet
rm -rf ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware
cp -r files/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/cinnamon-workspace-grid-desklet@curbsoftware

Restart Cinnamon (Alt-F2, type r, Enter), then add the desklet from Cinnamon Settings.