Windows
Windows gets the full workbench: inverted L, density, hover, and keyboard. The window around it belongs to Windows. Fluent 2 is the homework for the frame, not a costume for the sheet.
Web counterpart
The web workbench. Same board, same sheet, same inspector.
| On the web | On Windows |
|---|---|
| Browser tab and URL | Window title and in-app address. Deep links open the same place. |
| ⌘K command | Ctrl+K command. The same list, the same verbs. |
| Sidebar | Sidebar pane inside the window. It may collapse to icons at narrow widths. |
| Browser Back | Alt+←, the mouse back button, and a back control in the location bar. |
| Toast | In-app toast for this window. Windows notifications only for work that happens while the window is closed. |
What carries
- The inverted L, the floating sheet, and the resizable inspector.
- Dense rows, hover, and the 40px desktop hit target.
- Every keyboard path from the web, with Ctrl in place of ⌘.
Plus everything on the shared list.
What the host owns
- Minimize, maximize, and close on the right of the title bar.
- Snap layouts on the maximize button. A custom title bar must keep them working.
- Segoe UI Variable on the title bar and system menus.
- Mica on the title bar when the system draws it. Never on the sheet.
- Contrast themes. They map to forced colors and win over our palette.
Rules
- Caption buttons stay on the right. Minimize, maximize, close. System size, system order, system hover. Do not restyle them, move them, or add a fourth.
- Keep snap working. If the app draws its own title bar, it registers a drag region and keeps snap layouts on the maximize button. A window that breaks snap is broken.
- Ctrl, never ⌘. Shortcuts show Ctrl, Alt, and Shift. Ctrl+K opens command. Ctrl+F finds in view. F6 moves between sidebar, sheet, and inspector. Alt shows access keys on the menu.
- The title bar is quiet. App mark, workspace, and the current place. No tabs, no search box, no avatar crowd. The location bar inside the sheet still does the work.
- Mica stays on the frame. The system may tint the title bar and sidebar with Mica. The sheet is solid. A translucent job sheet is a costume.
- Contrast themes win. When a contrast theme is on, use system colors through forced colors. Status keeps its word, so the meaning survives.
- Scale with the display. Test at 100, 150, and 200 percent display scale and with larger text on. Nothing clips. Nothing overlaps. Icons stay crisp.
We refuse
- macOS traffic lights on Windows.
- Acrylic or Mica behind the job sheet.
- A Ribbon. The command surface already exists.
- A web sidebar drawn inside an Electron frame that ignores the host.