AutoRaise VS barrier

I'm not sure they appeal to the same group of users. macOS is IMNHO much worse than GNU/Linux with a proper window manager, much less comfortable to use with multiple desktops, and forces the use of a mouse/trackpad way too much.[1]

The m2 can run Linux - but external display support is probably a long way off.

So for the user wanting to run Linux - m2 isn't really viable - unless you actually work on it with just the built-in screen - for me that doesn't work ergonomically.

I have the m2 - it's not terrible - I suspect I'd prefer one of these.

[1] Rectangle and AutoRaise helps a lot, making the UX livable:

https://github.com/sbmpost/AutoRaise

https://github.com/rxhanson/Rectangle

There used to be third-party tools to enable focus-follows-mouse and universal clickthrough, but I'm not sure any still exist for recent OS versions. Seems like it should be possible though. Maybe AutoRaise can do what you want? Looks like you'd need to compile it yourself with custom flags though. See https://stackoverflow.com/questions/67258537/focus-follows-mouse-on-macos

*PS* I have already tried AutoRaise (https://github.com/sbmpost/AutoRaise). But, basically what it does is: Change FOCUS on mouse hover. That's NOT what I need.

AutoRaise for focus-follow-mouse. I don't want auto raise, so that is disabled https://github.com/sbmpost/AutoRaise

People discussing this a long time ago (stackexchange) mention a project called AutoRaise. No idea if it still works.

My buddy actually got an achievement on github by accepting and merging his own pull request within 5 minutes on his https://github.com/sbmpost/AutoRaise repository...

On the mini, I was running AutoRaise. On the Macbook Air, I was running AutoFocus.

I don’t think there is a setting in built (happy to be corrected). Had stumbled upon this sometime back. Check it out. https://github.com/sbmpost/AutoRaise

Install AutoRaise or something similar that allows you to focus on windows just by moving your cursor over them or hovering over them while holding a modifier key.

For software KVM you can use https://github.com/debauchee/barrier

I use it between a Windows PC & a Macbookpro (Linux version available but I don't have Linux)

libei looks useful. But IDK why libei is necessary to run Barrier with Wayland?

For client systems, couldn't there just be a virtual /dev/inputXYZ that Barrier forwards events through

And for host systems, it looks like xev only logs input events when the window is focused.

Is xeyes still broken on Wayland, and how to fix it so that it would work with Barrier?

With Barrier, when the mouse cursor reaches a screen boundary, the keyboard and mouse input are then passed to a different X session on another box until the cursor again crosses a screen boundary rule.

Barrier is a fork of Synergy's open core: https://github.com/debauchee/barrier

libei:

I have a similar gaming/WFH setup (2 monitors at 1440p 144hz) and I’ve been using Barrier instead of a physical kvm, and it works really well. Not sure if you’re open to a software kvm but if you are, I’m happy to answer any questions about it if you have any.

Have you tried Barrier? I casually used it to swap between my main rig and my MBP. Took a minute to get it setup but once I sorted it all out it worked pretty well. It has some settings and tweaks built in to address some of the layout issues you mentioned...

Barrier appears to handle PC switching only for the keyboard and mouse.

Sorry, probably not entirely on topic and can't answer anything reliable about the multimonitor stuff, but a tip regarding the 2 mice and 2 keyboards for the 2 different computers: use this: https://github.com/debauchee/barrier It's oss multi-os software that lets you use one mouse and keyboard (server) on several PCs (clients) easily over your LAN.

Barrier is a free and open source alternative.