task bar ordering

[Todd Wilson]

Can anyone tell me the method used to determine the ordering of items
in the task bar (say in a top-edge panel)?  It's clear that windows
from the same application are put next to one another, and usually the
order, for me, is (from left to right):

- OpenOffice windows
- Terminal windows
- Netscape windows
- XEmacs windows
- other stuff (like gv, xpdf, etc.)

but I've seen several different orders, and there don't seem to be any
discernable patterns, including anything to do with the order windows
were opened (for example, as I write this, my Netscape windows are at
the left end, before my terminal windows, although they were opened
afterwards).

More generally, is there any way to exercise control over where
windows appear on the taskbar?

-- 
Todd Wilson                               A smile is not an individual
Computer Science Department               product; it is a co-product.
California State University, Fresno                 -- Thich Nhat Hanh