How to move windows on the desktop
This one is easy. Click on the title bar at the top of a window and drag it. Holding down the "alt" key, then clicking anywhere in a window and dragging will achieve the same effect. However, this doesn't work if the window has been maximized, that is, made to fill the entire desktop screen (see below).
Maximizing/minimizing/hiding a window
The windows on the Linux systems we use have an area at the upper right corner on the title bar with three buttons, an 'x', a tiny square, actually a window, and a '-' button. Clicking on the button at the farthest right, the 'x', will close the window and usually quit the application as well. Clicking on the tiny square at the left of the 'x' in the middle of the three buttons will maximize the window, in which it will cover the entire screen. When the window is maximized this button changes to look like two overlapping windows and clicking on it will reduce or restore the window to a smaller size where it can be moved around. Maximizing a window is most advantageous on small netbook screens, where on very large screens a smaller movable window may be more desirable. Clicking the '-' button will hide or minimize the window. The window is not really closed and an icon will appear on either a taskbar, dock or shelf. Clicking on that window's icon in the dock or shelf will make it visible where it was before.
To anyone familiar with Microsoft Windows this should sound like old hat. However, once again, Linux is very, very customizable. If you explore Linux enough you may come across a computer where things are done in a different way.
Other window tips and tricks
- Bring a window to the foreground
To bring a window into the foreground, click on its title bar, click or alt-click anywhere in the window, or click on the window's icon in the dock, taskbar, or shelf. - Resizing windows
Move the mouse cursor to any corner of the window and when the cursor changes drag to re-size the window both horizontally and vertically. In a similar manner, move the cursor over the right or left border of the window to re-size horizontally and the upper or lower border to re-size vertically.