Re: Window Managers
Hi Osamu,
I recommend one package that detects all installed Window managers, and
allows the user to select which one to start, or click a checkbox that
updates an /etc/wmconfig file to make that window manager the default. And
also it should have a "hot key" so that if you press F12 for example in an
emergency the whole Window system can be brought down and you can login at a
command prompt instead of that annoying wdm login thing. This is awful when
someone gets their X setup wrong and the screen goes mad, the mouse goes
nuts and you can't login because nothing works and you need a command prompt
to get back into XFree86Setup!
PLEASE add the hot-key to kill off the graphical login to get a good ol'
command line back! This feature is missing as far as I know and it should
be showed in big letters on wdm - "To kill wdm and get a shell, hit
F-whatever."
Thanks ! Your email was very helpful. Now I know why .xinitrc didn't work
but .xsession did!
By the way, what does a programmer need to learn to develop a new window
manager, do you know? (Read the source code for a simple WM, because there
is nothing else?)
Kind Regards,
James
----- Original Message -----
From: "Osamu Aoki" <osamu@debian.org>
To: <debian-user@lists.debian.org>
Cc: "James Buchanan" <jamesbuch@iprimus.com.au>
Sent: Sunday, January 26, 2003 8:44 PM
Subject: Re: Window Managers
> On Sat, Jan 25, 2003 at 09:01:42AM +0000, Karsten M. Self wrote:
> > on Sat, Jan 25, 2003 at 04:28:45PM +1100, James Buchanan
(jamesbuch@iprimus.com.au) wrote:
> > > Hi,
> > >
> > > When I run `startx' I would like afterstep to run, and I would like a
> > > menu giving me a list of all the window managers/desktop environments
> > > that I can run. How do I tell startx to run afterstep by default? I
> > > have done `man startx' but it's all incomprehensible gibberish to me!
> > > :-( I did look at xinitrc but again, I can't read shell scripts.
>
> No not there. ~/.xsession :-)
>
> > > None of it looks obvious to me unfortunately. Oh yes, apparently
> > > Gnome is installed, but how do I run it?
> >
> > Systemwide:
> >
> > # update-alternatives --config x-window-manager
>
> I wish it is as simple. Since x-session-manager has priority over
> x-window-manager, nothing really happens for the window manager.
> x-session-manager loads its window manager (sawmill ...).
>
> Anyway, Branden was going to review this mess of window/session manager
> initialization soon. Anyway, it is non-trivial configuration to
> understand. So many random codes by different packages :-( I was and I
> am still confused.
>
> > For your own use, make the following the last line of ~/.xsession
> >
> > exec afterstep
> >
> > ...and take a look at WindowMaker if you like Afterstep.
>
> Yeh, ~/.xsession is the key on Debian.
>
> Also one of the following are interesting.
> exec wmaker # install wmaker, nice and clean
> exec blackbox # install blackbox, very slick and light
> exec fluxbox # install fluxbox, blackbox + nice tab thing
> exec fcwm # install xfce, Mac OS-X like
> exec icewm # install icewm, Light & windows like
>
> --
> ~\^o^/~~~ ~\^.^/~~~ ~\^*^/~~~ ~\^_^/~~~ ~\^+^/~~~ ~\^:^/~~~ ~\^v^/~~~
+++++
> Osamu Aoki <osamu@debian.org> Cupertino CA USA, GPG-key:
A8061F32
> .''`. Debian Reference: post-installation user's guide for
non-developers
> : :' : http://qref.sf.net and http://people.debian.org/~osamu
> `. `' "Our Priorities are Our Users and Free Software" --- Social
Contract
>
>
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