virtualbox.org

I have Ubuntu 8.10 amd64 host with Win XP as the guest. I can rotate the workspace cube fine in Ubuntu. What would be ideal is if I could switch between XP and Ubuntu wokspaces by a keyboard command.

Is it possible?

Mr-Biscuit wrote:Compiz is compatible with xorg not with the windows graphical shell.
Any developer or volunteer on here who tells you different is lying.

Yeah, I think I have found that out. I can get the cube to work - sometimes. Then again, it often freezes the XP guest. Any time saved by switching between the 2 workspaces via the keyboard is well and truly lost because of the unstable environment.

So, for the moment I am disabling compiz and all 3D and using only 2 workspaces. By resizing the guest window (Host-A), I get to use most of the screen, and I can move between the workspaces by manually clicking in the bottom right corner.

I am not complaining. I still think it is fantastic that I can run 2 OS's on the one machine using Virtualbox (and you can't beat the price).

I might misunderstand the question, but there is no problem (using Ubuntu 8.04 or 8.10) switching the Compiz cube to a workspace displaying Windows XP. I do it several times a day and have never had a crash. Don't misunderstand; Compiz crashes occasionally, but it has never done so for me when switching between workspaces. (I use four workspaces.)

If you want the key command, rather than clicking on the workspace, hold down "Ctrl" and "Alt". Then use your left and right arrow keys to shift between spaces.

One of the earlier comments was correct in that the Windows system cannot use Compiz. However, it is an easy matter to have Windows on one face of the cube and get to it instantly. In Compiz I have the cube, wobbly windows, four workspaces, and many effects activated. Try again. We can certainly get this working. It should be one of the easier things to do.

Dfinley wrote: If you want the key command, rather than clicking on the workspace, hold down "Ctrl" and "Alt". Then use your left and right arrow keys to shift between spaces.

I can switch from Ubuntu to XP, it's getting back that's the problem. If I have the XP window maximized, and use the crtl-alt-arrow, nothing happens (I assume because XP has taken over and that is not an XP command).

I will try again tomorrow (I am not at work today). Should I have 3D enabled in my Vbox settings?

3D enabled doesn't matter for the Guest. If you want to get out, you have to hit the Host key once, then follow the keyboard shortcut to switch to a different workspace. As you said, it's because Windows takes the initial shortcut, not your Host. Releasing the keyboard from the Guest will avoid this.

Thanks for all the replies. Now working fine with Nvidia 173. It is really spiffy being able to rotate the cube and switch between XP and Ubuntu.

Hi,

actually, there is a much more simple solution, which is really impressive, since you can use it on your normal workspaces and applications in fullscreen, too. (e.g. Firefox)
I use the scrollwheel to rotate the cube on the outlining pixels of the screen (1 pixel left, and right). The best thing is, that this works on all VMs in fullscreen mode. (You can see how the cursor changes from Windows to Linux).
As an addition the the scroll-wheel button is assigned to activate the "rotate cube", so i can spin the cube in 3D with the mouse, which shouldn't be anything new for you.

See the attached screenshot for the settings in the Compiz settings manager, sorry for the german l18n.

Edit: Button4 is in my case "Mousewheel up", Button5 is "Mousewheel down", and Button2 is "Mousewheel button".