Emacs: Fullscreen vs Multiple Windows

By Xah Lee. Date: . Last updated: .

On a laptop, fullscreen workflow is better. On a large screen, multiple windows workflow is better.

Full Screen Emacs Workflow

xah emacs screenshot 2014-03-06
full screen emacs with split panes.

The fullscreen workflow is not efficient because:

There are various packages that help you restore your split-panes config. 〔see Emacs: Save Split Windows Configuration〕 But they just add more work to your fingers.

Multi-Window Emacs Workflow

A much better workflow, is multiple windows. (aka multiple emacs frames)

emacs 2 windows workflow 2018-06-21 j7bjh
emacs 2 windows workflow 2018-06-21

When you start emacs, create 2 windows (aka emacs frames) side-by-side.

In this workflow, you control windows, not split-panes.

It's better because:

2014-05-26 This essay is originally inspired from a blog by Jon Snader (aka jcs) about ace-windows mode, see: http://irreal.org/blog/?p=2699

emacs, split windows