Ratpoison

Ratpoison is a cool open-source software that works as a super simple and lightweight window manager for Linux and UNIX-like systems. It runs on top of the X11 Windows System and is a great alternative if you're looking for something minimalist, like awesome, i3, or dwm.

What Makes Ratpoison Unique?

This software is really stripped down—so much so that it doesn't even have any window decorations or fancy graphics. It’s all about speed! The motto of Ratpoison is “Say goodbye to the rodent," which means you won’t need to use your mouse at all. Instead, it takes inspiration from the powerful GNU Screen software.

Keyboard Control Only

When you use Ratpoison as your main graphical environment, you’ll interact with everything using just your keyboard. If you're worried about key conflicts, don't be! There’s a prefix map included by default to help keep things organized.

For Experienced Users

Now, while Ratpoison works well right now, it’s mainly aimed at experienced Linux users like developers and programmers. If you want to make full use of your screen space, Ratpoison lets you split your screen into non-overlapping frames while keeping all your windows maximized inside those frames.

Where to Get Ratpoison

You’re in luck! This software is freely available through the default software repositories of many Linux distributions. Hardcore Linux fans can also download the universal tarball from Softpedia, compile it, and install it on their machines. It supports both 32-bit and 64-bit architectures!

Default Distributions

Right now, there are several GNU/Linux distributions that use Ratpoison as their only desktop environment. One popular choice is Salix OS with Ratpoison, which you can download from Softpedia without spending a dime!