Windows are the foundation that your app is built on. They provide a sort of canvas with basic actions built in such as closing an app, resizing it, etc. Although users may see all windows as being the same, there are several distinct types of windows in elementary OS. It's important to understand the types of windows available to you, window behavior in general, and behavior that is specific to a certain window type.

Window Types

This section will cover the different types of windows available in elementary OS. Although each type of window is a bit different, think of them all as a subclass of a window. Unless otherwise stated, they all behave as an average window.

• View Windows are the most literal kind of "Window" available. They show content such as presentations, web pages, documents, etc. These Windows act as a sort of frame around the specific content they display. They typically allow multiple instances of an application to be shown and may utilize tabs to help keep content organized without displaying too many windows.
• App Windows are the main windows of apps that are not document-based. These windows typically only allow one instance of an application to be shown.
• Dialogs and Alerts are temporary windows that require a response from a user. Dialogs and Alerts are especially unique types of windows with much stricter guidelines for their use and visual style. They typically belong to App or View windows and are often modal. We'll discuss what modality means in a bit.