Jesktop supports different window manager concepts. Windows, Mac and others can be created for a lookalike desktop.

Window managers are implemented using PicoContainer/NanoContainer's component architecture. This means that there are plugable in a configuration file. At some point in the future we will provide a hot plugable facility, at which point the user will be able to chose a new Window Manager inside Jesktop and switch to it.

At this stage what we mean by window manager is the style and placement of the controls for:

• Mechanism of visible containment of running apps
• Choice of available applications to launch
• Display in summary form of applications that are running

The Window Manager developed in Jesktop is a Microsoft Windows look-alike. This means that we have a Frame with internal frames, a start button and menu and a task bar. At the moment these are fixed at the bottom, and require some cosmetic clean up.

We have implemented two variations on the same idea:

• WindozeWindowManager1 This is the Windows style window manager using a JInternalFrame containment mechanism
• WindozeWindowManager2 This is the Windows style window manager using a JFrame containment mechanism. This means that each launched app appears on the host operating system's list of frames (or window in Window's speak).

To switch between them, edit assembly.xml and change the reference from WindozeWindowManager1 to WindozeWindowManager2 (or v.v.). This can be done before vuilding, by editing the composition.js file in <jesktop root> This is really easy to do

We plan to implement remote and switchable window managers.