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CS 497C – Introduction to UNIX Lecture 37: - X Windows

CS 497C – Introduction to UNIX Lecture 37: - X Windows. Chin-Chih Chang chang@cs.twsu.edu. X Window. The X Window system was developed as part of Project Athena at MIT. In 1987, X Version 11 is released. X is now controlled and maintained by the Open Group.

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CS 497C – Introduction to UNIX Lecture 37: - X Windows

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  1. CS 497C – Introduction to UNIXLecture 37: - X Windows Chin-Chih Changchang@cs.twsu.edu

  2. X Window • The X Window system was developed as part of Project Athena at MIT. In 1987, X Version 11 is released. X is now controlled and maintained by the Open Group. • There are reasons to use X Window System: • You’ll come across situations when it’s easier to do a thing in X. • When it comes to viewing graphics, the command line has no answer. • Applications are quickly moving to X Window platform.

  3. The Graphic User Interface in X • X Window uses a bit-mapped display where each pixel can be manipulated individually. • The entire display is known as the root window, and individual applications are displayed as windows on this root window. • It’s possible to change the appearance of a window instantly by running a separate program after starting X. This program is called the window manager.

  4. Starting and Stopping X • X is started with the startx or xinit commands. • X can also be invoked during system startup with the xdm comand. xdm can otherwise be invoked by the root user only. • Use the menu like Exit Session or Log out on the desktop to quit X. • X splits an application into two components – client and server.

  5. The X Architecture • The server program controls the monitor, keyboard and mouse, while the application itself is the client. • X programs are portable since they don’t bother about the window drawing. • X also runs in a TCP/IP network, it is possible for a client to run on one machine and have its display on another. • The xhost client controls access to the server.

  6. Running X Programs Remotely • xhost + bugs adds bugs to access control list. • xhost + enables display for others. • xhost - disables display for others. • The environment variable DISPLAY determines where the client should display its output. DISPLAY=bugs:0.0; export DISPLAY

  7. X Techniques and Components • The –display option can be used with any X Client to direct program output. rsh bugs xcalc –display sisko:0 • All windows have a title bar comprising a number of buttons. The left button brings up he Window menu. • A window can be moved, resized, minimized, maximized and closed using these buttons.

  8. X Techniques and Components • A window is brought to focus generally by clicking on the window or its title bar. • X windows comprise a number of widgets (components). They can be buttons, scrollbars, checkboxes, radio buttons, tabs and drop-down boxes. • By default, X clients don’t have any window management functions. A special client, the window manager, must be invoked at the start of an X session.

  9. The Window Manager – A Special Client • A window manager makes it possible to move and resize windows. • The standard window manager for UNIX has been Motif (mwm) but is replaced by dtwm of CDE. • fvwm and kwm are two of the many window managers available in Linux. • Nowadays, KDE and GENOM are two widely used window managers in Linux.

  10. CDE: The Command Desktop Environment • The Command Desktop Environment (CDE) provides a standard look for both the desktop and the window manager. • It features a Front Panel from which you can launch many applications. • The File Manager handles the file and directory functions, and the Trash Can stores deleted files. • The Front Panel also offers a Workspace Switch that lets you create virtual desktops.

  11. xterm: The Main Client • You can invoke all UNIX commands and X programs form the UNIX command lien available in an xterm window. • xterm can also be used with a scrollbar (-sb), and the number of lines saved can be specified (-sl). • X programs run with a number of common options.

  12. Command Line Options • You can position and specify the size and position of a window (-geometry) and its foreground and background color (-fg and -bg). • You can start a program as an icon (-icon) and provide a name (-name) or title (-title). • You can copy text from any window by merely selecting it with the mouse button.

  13. Copy and Paste • The copied text is pasted back by clicking the middle button. • Multiple sections of copied text can be stored in the xclipboard client from which it can be pasted anywhere. • There are several clients available in X. X offers a clock (xclock) and a calculator (xcalc). xclock –digital &

  14. Standard X Clients • xbiff is mailbox flag for X. xbiff -rv -title biff -file $MAIL • xload displays the system load, and is often used with remote machines. • xkill kills a window. It can kill all root-level window in one invocation (-all). • X can be easily customized. You can start X clients from the file .xinitrc, the startup file used by xinit.

  15. X Resources. • X resources enable you to change practically any X feature. • These features can be stored in .Xdefaults, and xrdb can used any time to read this file. • These settings can also be overriden with the –xrm option available in every X client.

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