Baslinux mailing list

[sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>]

On Sun, 13 Mar 2005 3aoo-cvfd AT dea.spamcon.org wrote:

> sindi keesan wrote:
> > I have this one laptop where Xconfig set to 4 colors
> > does not work
>
> Xconfig is not the issue.  Xconfig simply holds the
> parameters that are given to Xvesa.  Putting 640x480x2
> into Xconfig is exactly the same as executing Xvesa
> with -screen 640x480x2

Unfortunately it does not work that way - I tried putting the parameters 
in Xconfig and it won't boot into X - impossible color pallette or some 
such message.  Xvesa -screen 640x480x2 does work, in contrast (in 4 
colors).  Odd computer, I am going to give up using it with X except for 
copying between xterms with the mouse, side by side.  Clicking on the 
computer icon at the bottom makes two small xterms with small fonts that 
can be dragged to full-height half-width windows.

Opera and Links2-X are not going to work.  Links2 from delilinux is 
working fine with svgalib.  Xvesa is crazy.

> > so I have to get into X some other way than startx.
>
> No you don't.

I could rename my alias startx instead of X, I suppose.  Your startx with 
Xconfig won't work on this oddball computer for some reason known only to 
Xvesa.

> > Xvesa -screen 640x480x2 -2button &rxvt -e icewm
>
> You are starting two processes with that:
> ----------------------------------
> Xvesa -screen 640x480x2 -2button &
> rxvt -e icewm
> ----------------------------------
> The first (Xvesa) is run in the background.  The
> second is rxvt, which is completely unnecessary.
> The purpose of  rxvt -e  is to run non-X binaries.
> icewm runs quite happily without rxvt.
>
> > To load opera I had to add another &rxvt -e opera
>
> No you didn't.

Opera of course won't run in 2-bit color, so let's say I am on the desktop 
and 640x480x16.

How would you, on one line, set up an alias to go into Xvesa and load 
icewm and opera?  I have something that works even if it is not correct.
I could not find any way to get past the grey screen with X until I used 
two rxvts.  I will be happy to try any suggestions but please spell out 
the entire line for me to try.    IF you can end me up with an rxvt with 
cursor that would be nice too.

> > I set up my own Xvesa with icewm and left out the menu
> > (minimalist).
>
> What?  The icewm menu is only a few lines.  How does
> leaving them out make icewm minimalist?

I was trying to see how small I could make X in BL2.  I will figure out 
how to extract the rest of your icewm package from bl2-x.tgz and put that 
in too (minus most of the themes).  You have to expect odd behavior from 
users of a minimalist linux.

I could not figure out how to extract single files with tar despite 
following your instructions - could you explain again?  Tar help file does 
not mention this.

> > I don't want to go into opera every time I use X
>
> Then put opera in the icewm menu and start it only
> when you want.

But I also want to be able to go directly from CLI to opera since that is 
usually what I use X for.  It will save me three keystrokes.  I could then 
do the same with xpdf (instead of opera) and $1 for the filename, I think.

> > I can install the icewm menu
>
> There's no menu to install.  It's just a short file.
> The ability to use that file is already built into
> icewm.

I will figure out which file this is and where to put it soon.

> > In order to understand things better.
>
> In order to understand things better, you should start
> X with startx (or xinit) and do your configuration in
> ~/.xinitrc

I don't understand how .initrc works so I have avoided it.
Also it is not minimalist, though I did put xinit on the computer.
And I want to go directly into some X program, not the icewm screen, and 
not always the same program.  I don't know any way to do that with xinit.
Maybe other people plan to use more than one X program at a time.

> > I don't have the menu on my BL2 desktop with Xvesa.
>
> Do you have icewm on that desktop?  Don't confuse the
> BL3 menu utility with the icewm built-in menu.
I have a bare-bones icewm without icons or menu, just enough so that I can 
change focus in opera with Alt-tab instead of needing a mouse.  I tried 
Ratpoison but could not change focus with it (though it works nicely to 
change screens with and I can use two X programs on one screen).

> > to start Xvesa and icewm and Opera and have a usable
> > rxvt onscreen in X when you exit opera.
>
> You are confused about what is going on.  The & does
> not mean "and".  It means "run the preceeding process
> in the background".  The reason rxvt does not stay
> open is because your use of the -e parameter starts
> rxvt as a wrapper for the subsequent executable --
> when that executable terminates, the wrapper terminates.

What does it mean to 'run in the background'?  How can I get an rxvt to 
be open after I exit opera, put it at the end of my alias without the &?
Can you suggest some line with Xvesa -screen 640x480x16 icewm opera and 
rxvt that will do this?  (And try it out yourself).  Thanks.

Is -e the same as exec?  I see exec in .xinitrc.  As root (not various 
users) can I set up several .xinitrc's and choose between them?

Xvesa combined with resizecons and mdacon has killed the cursors on my vga 
terminals so I cannot try things out right now.

We have two video cards that won't work with gpm.  Video is screwy.

> Cheers,
> Steven
>
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keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org
SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org