C.2.3. Window Managers

Window managers are X client programs which are either part of a desktop environment or, in some cases, stand-alone. Their primary purpose is to control the way graphical windows are positioned, resized, or moved. Window managers also control title bars, window focus behavior, and user-specified key and mouse button bindings.
The Red Hat Enterprise Linux repositories provide five different window managers.
metacity
The Metacity window manager is the default window manager for GNOME. It is a simple and efficient window manager which supports custom themes. This window manager is automatically pulled in as a dependency when the GNOME desktop is installed.
kwin
The KWin window manager is the default window manager for KDE. It is an efficient window manager which supports custom themes. This window manager is automatically pulled in as a dependency when the KDE desktop is installed.
compiz
The Compiz compositing window manager is based on OpenGL and can use 3D graphics hardware to create fast compositing desktop effects for window management. Advanced features, such as a cube workspace, are implemented as loadable plug-ins. To run this window manager, you need to install the compiz package.
mwm
The Motif Window Manager (mwm) is a basic, stand-alone window manager. Since it is designed to be stand-alone, it should not be used in conjunction with GNOME or KDE. To run this window manager, you need to install the openmotif package.
twm
The minimalist Tab Window Manager (twm), which provides the most basic tool set among the available window managers, can be used either as a stand-alone or with a desktop environment. To run this window manager, you need to install the xorg-x11-twm package.