ch22.htm

linux-unix130.linux.and.unix.ebooks130 linux and unix ebookslinuxLearning Linux - Collection of 12 E

while logged in as root.</P>

<P>Alternatively, you can use the initial <TT>/etc/rc.d</TT> scripts to run xdm for

you. You usually only have to remove comment signs at the beginning of a line that

calls xdm. If no such line is present, you probably have a system that has no preconfigured

xdm. In any event, xdm by default runs your <TT>.xinitrc</TT> file for you.

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading29<FONT COLOR="#000077">Configuration of the Window Manager</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<P>Window managers are a user- and site-specific issue. Several window managers are

available for Linux. The configuration of one window manager is quite different from

that of another. The window manager used in the configuration is usually explained

in your <TT>.xinitrc</TT> file, so look there. These are the most commonly used window

managers for Linux:



<UL>

	<LI>olwm or olvwm for the OPEN LOOK window manager. (It is on the CD-ROM at the back

	of this book.)

	<P>

	<LI>mwm for the Motif window manager, possibly the most common commercial window

	manager. You have to buy it along with Motif.

	<P>

	<LI>twm. (It is part of the XFree86 distribution on the CD-ROM at the back of this

	book.)

	<P>

	<LI>fvwm, which seems to be the most popular shareware window manager. (It is on

	the CD-ROM at the back of this book.) There is a Windows 95 look and feel for fvwm

	called fvwm95.

</UL>



<P>I discuss some window managers in greater detail in the next couple of chapters

on OPEN LOOK and Motif.

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading30<FONT COLOR="#000077">Compiling Programs That Use X</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<P>Before compiling any programs for X, read the <TT>GCC-FAQ</TT> file. This file

can be found in the <TT>docs</TT> directories of <TT>sunsite</TT> and <TT>tsx-11</TT>

before any programs are compiled. Many questions on compiling programs with Linux

are answered in this FAQ. Many Linux distributions include the most relevant FAQs

in the directory <TT>/usr/doc</TT>, so you might look there first.</P>

<P>If you have the source code for a program that uses X11, it is usually shipped

with an imakefile rather than a makefile.</P>

<P>imakefiles are files that create makefiles for your system. Discussing imakefiles

is beyond the scope of this book; however, you will have to work with imakefiles

if you work at all with <TT>X</TT> sources. Just remember the shell script <TT>xmkmf</TT>,

and you should be OK.



<DL>

	<DT></DT>

</DL>





<DL>

	<DD>

<HR>

<A NAME="Heading31<FONT COLOR="#000077"><B>TIP:</B> </FONT><TT>xmkmf</TT> is

	a abbreviation for X make makefile. 

<HR>



</DL>





<DL>

	<DT></DT>

</DL>





<DL>

	<DD>

<HR>

<A NAME="Heading32<FONT COLOR="#000077"><B>CAUTION:</B> </FONT>The <TT>xmkmf</TT>

	shell script actually runs the <TT>imake</TT> command with a set of arguments. The

	most common argument is the <TT>-DUseInstalled</TT> argument. If you examine <TT>xmkmf</TT>

	(look in <TT>/usr/X11/bin/</TT>), you will see that the <TT>xmkmf</TT> script is

	a basic wrapper around a call to <TT>imake</TT>. It's very tempting to use <TT>imake</TT>

	on a command line by itself. Do not do so. Run the <TT>imake</TT> command with the

	<TT>-DUseInstalled</TT> argument if you must run <TT>imake</TT> on the command line.

	If you don't use this argument, <TT>imake</TT> behaves as if it were re-creating

	the X Window system on your current directory. 

<HR>



</DL>



<P>Of course, before ever running <TT>xmkmf</TT>, you should read the documentation

that usually comes with such packages.</P>

<P>Run <TT>xmkmf</TT> in the directory that contains the imakefiles. If there is

a hierarchy of directories with imakefiles, you usually only have to run <TT>xmkmf</TT>

in the root directory of that hierarchy.</P>

<P>The <TT>xmkmf</TT> command builds the makefiles in all directories in the hierarchy.</P>

<P>You next should run the <TT>make</TT> command with an argument to let <TT>make</TT>

resolve its dependencies, using the following command:</P>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">$ make depend

</FONT></PRE>



<DL>

	<DT><FONT COLOR="#0066FF"></FONT></DT>

</DL>





<DL>

	<DD>

<HR>

<A NAME="Heading33<FONT COLOR="#000077"><B>TIP:</B> </FONT>Don't be afraid

	if <TT>include</TT> files, such as <TT>stddef.h</TT> and <TT>varargs.h</TT>, are

	not found. They are <TT>gcc</TT> proprietary header files and therefore are not in

	the standard <TT>include</TT> directories. 

<HR>



</DL>



<P>After that, you can <TT>make</TT> the program by running <TT>make</TT>, and you

can install your new utility (usually in <TT>/usr/X386/bin</TT>) by running this

line:</P>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">$ make install

</FONT></PRE>

<P>The installation of the man pages is usually done with this command:</P>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">$ make install.man

</FONT></PRE>

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading34<FONT COLOR="#000077">Compiling Sources for XFree86</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<P>You do not typically want to compile sources for XFree86 unless you really want

to make changes to the sources because something is not working. You need a lot of

disk space and CPU time to do a complete build of the XFree86 system. You can find

anything you need to know for compiling XFree86 in the following files (in <TT>/usr/X386/lib/X11/etc</TT>):

<TT>INSTALL</TT>, <TT>README</TT>, and <TT>README.Linux</TT>.</P>

<P>To build a server that includes only those drivers you need, you should use the

<TT>LinkKit</TT> instead of compiling the complete system. This is a little easier

than trying to build XFree86 from scratch. The <TT>LinkKit</TT> package is too specific

and complicated and is therefore beyond the scope of this chapter.</P>

<P>You can find the documentation on how to build servers in the <TT>/usr/X386/lib/Server/VGADriverDoc</TT>

directory after installing the <TT>LinkKit</TT> package. Read <TT>/usr/X386/lib/Server/README</TT>

for a description of how to use <TT>LinkKit</TT>. This file is not included in the

standard XFree86 tar files but is part of the file that includes the <TT>LinkKit</TT>.

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading35<FONT COLOR="#000077">Configuring fvwm</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<P>After you have installed Linux with X Window, chances are that you will want to

use the default window manager, fvwm, that comes with Linux. The fvwm supposedly

stands for either Free Virtual Window Manager or the Frugal Virtual Window Manager.

In the documentation, fvwm is referred to by its initials only and is conveniently

pronounced &quot;F-V-W-M.&quot;</P>

<P>The fvwm is a good window manager that can be used in place of twm (Tom's window

manager), mwm (Motif window manager), and olvwm (OPEN LOOK virtual window manager).

This section will introduce you to the basics of configuring this window manager

for your use. You can get a lot more information specific to your X Window setup

by reading the man pages for fvwm.</P>

<P>Now there is a newer Windows 95 look-alike window manager called fvwm95. This

is included in the CD-ROM at the back of this book. If you miss Windows 95 (from

Microsoft), you can use this &quot;Windows 95 look and feel&quot; hack for Linux

that is available from <TT>sunsite.unc.edu</TT> in the <TT>/pub/Linux/X11/window-managers</TT>

directory. The latest version at the time of writing was <TT>fvwm95-2.0.43.tar.gz</TT>.

The tar archive includes documentation and installation instructions for this new

package. There are also detailed instructions in the package on how to convert from

fvwm to fvwm95. The configurations for your setup after conversion are then kept

in <TT>.fvwm2rc95</TT> in your home directory.</P>

<P>This chapter covers the fvwm manager that is currently used more often.</P>

<P>When it is being initialized, fvwm relies on one of two files. The first file

fvwm looks for is the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file in the home directory of the user. If

this <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file is not found, fvwm looks for the default configuration

file, <TT>/usr/lib/X11/fvwm/system.fvwmrc</TT>. If neither file exists or if the

file being read is not formatted correctly, fvwm stops processing and bails out with

a list of error messages.



<DL>

	<DT></DT>

</DL>





<DL>

	<DD>

<HR>

<A NAME="Heading36<FONT COLOR="#000077"><B>TIP:</B> </FONT>Because fvwm is

	very fickle about formats in its configuration file, always keep a working backup

	copy of your .<TT>fvwmrc</TT> file before making changes. This way, you will have

	something to fall back on if your changes crash fvwm. 

<HR>



</DL>



<P>Changes to customize your desktop can be made to either the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file

in your home directory or the <TT>system.fvwmrc</TT> file. If you make changes to

the system file, you will be affecting all other users on your machine who rely on

it. In general, you should copy the <TT>system.fvwmrc</TT> file to your home directory

as <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> and make changes there. The rest of this section assumes that

you are making changes to the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> in your local directory. When you

are satisfied with your changes, you can elect to copy the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file

to the <TT>system.fvwmrc</TT> file. The <TT>/usr/lib/X11/fvwm</TT> directory requires

root privilege. Making the changes to <TT>system.fvwmrc</TT> is an administrative

task and is not left to individual users.</P>

<P>If you do not already have a <TT>~./.fvwmrc</TT> file, create one with the following

command:</P>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">$ cp /usr/lib/X11/fvwm/system.fvwmrc ~/.fvwmrc

</FONT></PRE>

<P>Now let's look at some basic components of the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file. These are

the basic components:



<UL>

	<LI>Pop-up menu hierarchy

	<P>

	<LI>Actions to take on startup

	<P>

	<LI>Color definitions

	<P>

	<LI>Customization styles

</UL>



<P>These components can be found in many locations in the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file.

The order of appearance in the <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file, however, is based on the criterion

that you must define an object first before you can use it.

<CENTER>

<H4><A NAME="Heading37<FONT COLOR="#000077">Pop-Up Menus</FONT></H4>

</CENTER>

<P>While running fvwm, you invoke the pop-up menus by clicking the left mouse button

on the background of the window. The default <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file will come with

several options already set for you.</P>

<P>The best way to start is by example. An excerpt from my <TT>.fvwmrc</TT> file

is shown in Listing 22.7.

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading38<FONT COLOR="#000077">Listing 22.7. An excerpt from an

.fvwmrc file.</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">

Popup &quot;Applications&quot;

        Title   &quot;Applications&quot;

        Exec    &quot;&amp;Netscape&quot;      exec /home/khusain/bin/n30/netscape &amp;

        Exec    &quot;X&amp;V&quot;            exec xv &amp;

        Exec    &quot;X&amp;edit&quot;         exec xedit &amp;

        Exec    &quot;X&amp;fig&quot;          exec xfig &amp;

        Exec    &quot;Xf&amp;m&quot;           exec xfm &amp;

        Exec    &quot;Xfilem&amp;anager&quot;  exec xfilemanager &amp;

        Exec    &quot;X&amp;grab&quot;         exec xgrab &amp;

        Exec    &quot;X&amp;paint&quot;        exec xpaint &amp;

        Exec    &quot;Xsprea&amp;d&quot;       exec xspread &amp;

        # Exec   &quot;Xxgdb&quot;         exec xxgdb &amp;



EndPopup

</FONT></PRE>

<P>This menu shows a pop-up window with options to select commands with. The <TT>Exec</TT>

keyword tells fvwm that it has to execute a command. The string following the <TT>Exec</TT>

keyword will be displayed on the pop-up menu item. The ampersand before a character

creates a shortcut key for that command. For example, <TT>&quot;&amp;Netscape&quot;</TT>

will be displayed with the N underlined. Then when the pop-up menu window is displayed,

a press of the N key (either Shift-N or Shift-n, because case does not matter) will

start Netscape from the directory <TT>/home/khusain/bin/n30</TT>. All commented lines

begin with a hash (<TT>#</TT>; see the line for <TT>xxgdb</TT>) and are ignored by

fvwm.</P>

<P>It's important that all <TT>Exec</TT>-ed applications be started in the background.

This is why there is an ampersand at the end of the Netscape command. The title parameter

sets the string that will be displayed for the pop-up menu selection list. The string

following the <TT>Popup</TT> keyword is the name of this selection. Other pop-up

menus can then refer to this menu selection with the name Applications. Look at the

middle of the code shown in Listing 22.8, in the Utilities pop-up menu, to see where

the Applications pop-up is called out.

<CENTER>

<H3><A NAME="Heading39<FONT COLOR="#000077">Listing 22.8. Calling one pop-up

menu from another.</FONT></H3>

</CENTER>

<PRE><FONT COLOR="#0066FF">

Popup &quot;Utilities&quot;

    Title     &quot;Utilities&quot;

     Exec    &quot;Top&quot; exec rxvt  -font 7x14 -T Top -n Top -e top &amp;

     Exec    &quot;Calculator&quot;    exec xcalc &amp;

     Exec    &quot;Xman&quot;          exec xman &amp;

     Exec    &quot;Xmag&quot;          exec xmag &amp;

     Exec    &quot;Oclock&quot;        exec oclock &amp;

     Nop     &quot;&quot;

     Popup   &quot;Applications&quot;  Applications

     Nop     &quot;&quot;

     Popup   &quot;Shells&quot;        Shells

     Nop     &quot;&quot;

     Popup   &quot;Games&quot;         Games

     Nop     &quot;&quot;

     Popup   &quot;Screensaver (a-h)&quot;   Screensaver1

     Popup   &quot;Screensaver (i-z)&quot;   Screensaver2

     Nop     &quot;&quot;

     Popup   &quot;Lock Screen (a-h)&quot;   Screenlock1

     Popup   &quot;Lock Screen (i-z)&quot;   Screenlock2

    Nop    &quot;&quot;