A modern, customizable Alt+Tab replacement overlay for Windows power users.
WWS is an open-source, keyboard-driven task switcher for Windows, offering a beautiful overlay, flexible hotkeys, and behavior inspired by the built-in Alt+Tab—but with more control.
WWS is built for power users who want a snappy, low-latency way to jump between windows with just the keyboard. The project features a modern overlay interface powered by Dear ImGui, an immediate mode GUI library that enables the fast, responsive, and visually appealing switcher panel. For configuration and settings, WWS uses the excellent nlohmann/json header-only C++ JSON library (json.hpp), allowing user preferences to be easily stored, modified, and reloaded.
- Fast window switching: Overlay appears instantly, lets you quickly select and jump to any open window.
- Customizable hotkeys: Change the initiator (default:
Left Alt) and modifier (Left Shift) via in-app settings. - UI: ImGui-based overlay, dark theme, resizable, and always-on-top.
- Portable and easy to build: Only depends on ImGui and nlohmann/json as external libraries.
- No window state loss: Windows retain maximized/minimized/normal state, just like native Alt+Tab.
Credits:
GUI overlay powered by Dear ImGui
Settings powered by nlohmann/json (json.hpp)
- Switch instantly to the previous window with a tap.
- Overlay mode: Hold the initiator+modifier to pop up the overlay and cycle/select any window.
- Quick-select: Tap the modifier repeatedly for N-th recent window (configurable).
- Settings panel for hotkeys, timeouts, and overlay behavior.
- Runs in the background with minimal resource usage.
| Action | Default Keys |
|---|---|
| Quick switch to previous | Left Alt tap |
| Open overlay | Hold Left Alt + Left Shift |
| Cycle in overlay | Press Left Shift again |
| Confirm selection | Release Left Alt |
| Cancel overlay | Release Left Shift |
You can configure all hotkeys and timeouts in the overlay’s settings ⚙ panel.
- Windows (tested on Windows 10/11)
- Visual Studio 2019+ or MinGW-w64 toolchain
- CMake 3.15+
- Git
git clone --recurse-submodules https://your.repo.url/wws.git
cd wws
mkdir build && cd build
cmake .. -G "Visual Studio 16 2019" # or use MinGW Makefiles if you prefer
cmake --build . --config Release
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| LeftAlt + tap LeftShift | Instantly switch to the previous window (quick tap) |
| LeftAlt + hold LeftShift | Show overlay with list of windows (hold) |
| LeftShift (held while overlay is up) | Cycle through open windows |
| Release LeftAlt | Commit selection and switch to chosen window |
You can change these hotkeys from the in-app settings overlay.
-
Quick Switch:
- Press and release LeftAlt and tap LeftShift (just like double-tapping Alt-Tab).
- Instantly switches to your previously used window—fast!
-
Window List Overlay:
- Hold LeftAlt and then hold LeftShift for a split second.
- The WWS overlay will appear, showing a list of all open windows.
- While holding LeftAlt, tap or hold LeftShift to cycle through the list.
- Release LeftAlt to switch to the highlighted window.
-
Settings Panel:
- In the overlay, click the ⚙️ (gear) icon to open settings.
- Change hotkeys, tap/hold timeouts, or overlay timeout.
- Click Save Settings to persist your preferences to disk.
To exit WWS, simply kill it in Task Manager.
There is currently no tray icon or UI "exit" button.
- Windows state is preserved:
Switching to a maximized window keeps it maximized, just like regular Alt-Tab. - No installation required:
Just runwws.exe—no admin required, no registry modifications. - Runs in background:
WWS uses a global low-level keyboard hook and is lightweight (low CPU).
For advanced hotkey customizations or troubleshooting, see the Settings section.