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That's actually pretty cool. I'll use some variation of that using hjkl :)

+1 for Virtual Desktops and key mappings for each.

I do 3x3, mapped to <ctr>+<alt>+[1-9] on the keypad.

Fair enough. It sounds like you use a more specific named mental model, rather than a visual one. When I used a 2x2 virtual desktop grid (I don't use virtual desktops at all anymore), I has loosely defined roles for each desktop, but it was fairly dynamic. I used the visual model, as in "Where did I throw that terminal window? I think it's right below me."