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[Docs] Unclear API on how to move windows to different screens

   February 24, 2021  1 Comment on [Docs] Unclear API on how to move windows to different screens

NWJS Version : latest (HEAD)
Operating System : Arch Linux / GNOME3

API Question / Unclear API

I figured out that after reading several issues (e.g. #2384 #2178 #2383), stackoverflow posts (e.g. https://stackoverflow.com/questions/22438235/node-webkit-nwjs-how-to-align-window-to-the-right) and the online API docs that there is a GUI API for Screen handling available. However, this API works fine and works as intended; but it is unclear how to actually use it in order to move windows to a different screen.

On my main system, I have 3 different screens:

const GUI = require('nw.gui');
let screens = GUI.Screen.screens;

screens.length; // 3, all working properly with x/y being different and correct width/height properties.

When I want to use the window’s moveTo(x,y)API, the window will stay on the screen where it spawned (the primary screen of the OS, in my case the middle screen).

window.window.moveTo(1920, 0); // void API, window moved to the right corner of the middle screen

window.window.moveTo(1920*2, 0); // void API, window unchanged
window.window.moveBy(200, 0); // void API, window unchanged

I also searched the docs regarding combinations of window and screen, but I did not find any API that uses both in order to make a window appear on a different screen.

The window.window.screen API is a read-API, and does not change the actual screen, so I cannot do something like this: window.window.screen = screens[2].

My questions are now the following:

  • How do I change the screen on which the window is positioned?
  • Is there an alternative manifest position – e.g. like “right” or “left”?

Author: Fantashit

1 thought on “[Docs] Unclear API on how to move windows to different screens”

  1. You just need to find the target screen’s offsets:

    var screens = nw.Screen.screens;
var targetScreen = screens[X]; //get the target screen

var offsetX = targetScreen['work_area'].x;
var offsetY = targetScreen['work_area'].y;
var win  = nw.Window.get()

win.moveTo(x + offsetX,y + offsetY);

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