Learn Hardcore German: Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld fast am Bildschirmrand, wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind. - Sometimes the note field almost disappears at the edge of the screen when too many windows are open.

In German main clauses, the finite verb must be in the second position (the famous Verbzweitsatz rule). But "second position" means second element, not second word.

You can put different elements in the first position for emphasis or style: the subject, an adverb, a time expression, etc. Here, Manchmal ("sometimes") is in the first position to emphasize the time/frequency, so the verb verschwindet must immediately follow as the second element:

Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld …
Das Notizfeld verschwindet manchmal …
Am Bildschirmrand verschwindet das Notizfeld manchmal …

All are correct, but the focus changes. The original sentence highlights that this only happens sometimes.

Why is it verschwindet and not something like ist verschwunden?

Verschwinden is an intransitive verb (it doesn’t take a direct object) and in the present tense you normally use its simple form:

es verschwindet = it disappears / is disappearing

You would use ist verschwunden (present perfect) to describe a completed event in the past:

Das Notizfeld ist gestern vom Bildschirm verschwunden.
"The note field disappeared from the screen yesterday."

In your sentence, this is a general statement about what sometimes happens in the present, so verschwindet (simple present) is correct.

What exactly does fast mean here, and why is it placed before am Bildschirmrand?

Fast means "almost" / "nearly". It modifies the extent to which the note field disappears.

In the sentence:

Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld fast am Bildschirmrand …

the natural reading is:

The note field almost disappears (i.e. to the point where it's only just visible) at the edge of the screen.

Position-wise:

fast usually stands right before what it modifies.
Here, you can think of it as modifying the whole phrase am Bildschirmrand verschwinden ("disappear at the edge of the screen").

Other possible positions and nuances:

Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld fast.
It almost disappears (no mention of the screen edge).
Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld am Bildschirmrand fast.
Also possible; here fast is clearly tied to the disappearing at the edge. This is maybe the clearest version stylistically.

The original is acceptable and idiomatic, but … am Bildschirmrand fast is slightly more common in careful written style.

Why is it das Notizfeld and not some other article or case?

Notizfeld is a neuter noun (das Notizfeld). In this sentence, it is the subject, so it’s in the nominative case:

Das Notizfeld verschwindet …

Articles by case for a neuter noun:

Nominative: das Notizfeld
Accusative: das Notizfeld
Dative: dem Notizfeld
Genitive: des Notizfeldes / des Notizfelds

Because the note field is the thing doing the disappearing (grammatical subject), nominative das is correct.

What is the meaning and grammar of am Bildschirmrand?

Am is the contraction of an dem:

an (preposition) + dem (dative article, masculine/neuter singular) → am

Bildschirmrand is a compound noun:

der Bildschirm = the screen
der Rand = the edge
der Bildschirmrand = the edge of the screen

The preposition an here means "at" (location) and it governs the dative case when there is no movement:

Wo ist es? → Es ist am Bildschirmrand. (location → dative)

So grammatically:

an (preposition + dative)
dem Bildschirmrand (dative masculine singular)
→ contracted to am Bildschirmrand

Why is it am Bildschirmrand and not an den Bildschirmrand?

German "two-way" prepositions like an can take either dative (location) or accusative (movement towards).

Dative (wo? where?) – location:
am Bildschirmrand = at the edge of the screen
Accusative (wohin? where to?) – movement towards a place:
an den Bildschirmrand = to the edge of the screen

In your sentence, the meaning is "it almost disappears (while being) at the edge of the screen" – a static location – so am (dative) is used.

If you wanted to emphasize the movement to that edge, you might say:

Das Notizfeld verschiebt sich an den Bildschirmrand.
"The note field moves to the edge of the screen."

Why is Bildschirmrand written as one word?

German very frequently forms compound nouns by joining two (or more) nouns:

Bildschirm + Rand → Bildschirmrand

This is standard spelling in German: compounds are written as one single word, not separated or hyphenated in normal cases. The rightmost part (Rand) is the "head" and determines the gender:

der Rand → der Bildschirmrand (still masculine)

What is the exact function of wenn here, and how is it different from als?

In this sentence:

wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind

wenn introduces a subordinate clause and here means "when(ever)" in a general, repeatable sense:

"whenever too many windows are open"

Main differences:

wenn
- for repeated or general events in the past, present, or future
- also used as "if" (conditional)
als
- for one specific event in the past only

So:

Wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind, verschwindet das Notizfeld fast …
= whenever that condition is true (general rule)
You would not use als here; that would suggest a single event in the past, which doesn’t fit a general description of software behavior.

Why is the verb at the end in wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind?

Because wenn introduces a subordinate clause (Nebensatz). In German subordinate clauses with a subordinating conjunction (like wenn, weil, dass, obwohl), the finite verb goes to the very end of the clause.

Structure:

Conjunction (wenn)
Other elements (subject, objects, adjectives, etc.)
Finite verb in final position

So:

wenn – conjunction
zu viele Fenster – subject phrase
geöffnet – predicative adjective/participle
sind – finite verb → goes to the end

Full clause: wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind

Why is it zu viele Fenster without any article, and what does zu add?

Fenster is plural here, and zu viele is a quantifier phrase:

viele Fenster = many windows
zu viele Fenster = too many windows (more than is good/desired)

With quantity words like viele, wenige, einige, zu viele, German often omits an article:

viele Fenster
einige Bücher
zu viele Leute

So zu adds the meaning of "too (many/much)", and because this is an indefinite quantity, you don’t use die or die vielen here. You could say zu viele der Fenster, but that would mean "too many of the windows" (a specific group already known from context).

Why geöffnet sind and not sind geöffnet or offen sind?

In the subordinate clause, geöffnet is a predicative adjective/participle describing the state of the windows ("open"), and sind is the finite verb:

Fenster sind geöffnet = windows are open

Word order:

In a main clause, you can say:
Die Fenster sind geöffnet.
In a subordinate clause with wenn, the finite verb goes to the end:
… wenn die Fenster geöffnet sind.

So geöffnet sind is just the subordinate-clause version of sind geöffnet.

About geöffnet vs offen:

geöffnet is more neutral/formal and often used for things like windows, doors, shops.
offen is also correct; it’s a bit more colloquial and can be slightly more general ("open" in many senses).

You could say:

wenn zu viele Fenster offen sind – perfectly acceptable and common.

Does the verb verschwindet agree with das Notizfeld or with zu viele Fenster?

It agrees with das Notizfeld, because that is the subject of the main clause:

Main clause: Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld fast am Bildschirmrand
- Subject: das Notizfeld (singular)
- Verb: verschwindet → 3rd person singular
Subordinate clause: wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind
- Subject: zu viele Fenster (plural)
- Verb: sind → 3rd person plural

Each clause has its own subject–verb agreement. The many windows are just a condition; they do not control verschwindet.

Could you rephrase the sentence by moving the wenn-clause to the front, and does anything change grammatically?

Yes, you can move the wenn-clause to the front. This is very common in German and does not change the meaning, only the emphasis and rhythm.

Rephrased:

Wenn zu viele Fenster geöffnet sind, verschwindet das Notizfeld manchmal fast am Bildschirmrand.

Points to notice:

The subordinate clause (wenn … geöffnet sind) comes first and ends with sind.
The main clause follows and must still obey verb-second rules:
- First element of the main clause: the entire wenn-clause (counted as one element)
- Second element: verschwindet (the finite verb)
- Then: das Notizfeld manchmal fast am Bildschirmrand

Both versions are correct:

Manchmal verschwindet das Notizfeld …, wenn …
Wenn …, verschwindet das Notizfeld manchmal …

The second version puts slightly more emphasis on the condition.