HotFrameFx - a system tray utility for hot corners and edges

[pragmalin]

On my dual boot machine, I regularly switch between Linux and Windows. On Linux I got used to a workflow where I rely on so-called hot corners and edges for application window management. For example, I move my mouse cursor to the bottom of my screen and an overview with all currently opened applications pops up. Allowing me to quickly and conveniently switch between applications.

Similar functionality is unfortunately missing in Windows. A few utilities exist for hot corners. I did not find one that also supports hot edges. So I decided to scratch my own itch and develop a little tool for this. The result: HotFrameFx. Since others might benefit from such a tool as well, I made it free and open source.

You can find the source code and download the installer from here: https://github.com/kruizer23/hotframefx

It was a joy to code this up in Lazarus. I've worked with C++ (Qt, wxWidgets), Java, Python and C#. But none of these languages gives me that same feeling of being productive, compared to Object Pascal and working in Lazarus. The community effort of consistently improving Lazarus and FPC is wonderful. A big thanks to everyone involved.

[Thaddy]

What makes you think Windows is missing that feature? It is called alt-tab
OK, so it is not mouse controlled, but just as convenient.

[pragmalin]

Yep, alt-tab works fine if that's what you prefer.

If you have many applications open, you end up doing a lot of alt-tab-tab-tab-tab, etc. In that case alt-ctrl-tab might be preferred, as it shows an overview of all windows. But then you still need to use the arrow keys to select the application you want or grab your mouse and click the right one.

With HotFrameFx you can configure alt-ctrl-tab for a corner or edge. That way you just move your mouse to the corner or edge to get an overview of all windows. Since you're already mousing, clicking the application you want is quick and convenient.

Different workflows to do the same thing. Some prefer the keyboard approach, some prefer the mouse approach. Both are now possible. Give it a try though. You might get a kick out of it. It's always fun to try new things.

[El Salvador]

Is it also usable on os other than windows? And dual monitors support?

[pragmalin]

I did give it a try on Linux just for the fun of it. In foundation it works. The only challenge is that not all Linux desktop environments have a system tray. Nor do you need it on Gnome or KDE, because they already include this functionality. But if you're on XFCE, you can definitely use it. I don't know about macOS.

The hot corners and edges are currently detected on the primary monitor. That's what most other hot corner tools support too and what I personally only use. That said, multiple monitor support is definitely an option for a future version, if that's what users prefer.

[KodeZwerg]

Tested on Windows 10 64bit, works like expected, no errors found so far, great job @pragmalin and thank you for posting/sharing 

[pragmalin]

Thank you for testing it out, the feedback and the kind words. Much appreciated.