[BUGS] x11 & window managers

[Andrew Reilly]

Hi Jonathan,

On Wed, 12 Dec 2007 08:07:55 +1100
jonathan michaels <jlm at caamora.com.au> wrote:
> On Wed, Dec 12, 2007 at 06:38:29AM +1100, Glenn wrote:
> > How do you start X? Do you get a graphical login panel when you boot, eg xdm
> > or kdm login panel?
> 
> oops, forgot to mention that .. i start using startx/.xinitrc
> script combination.

[1]

> same but different, i use gnome-session to start mine

[2]

> i have done that and as far as i can understand what i have
> read i have done what is required, the forst time i started it
> it used metacity and now it has set that in stone somewhere (i
> cannot find the where) nore any reading of gnome-session alters
> my ability to understand how to 'fix' the situation.
> 
> does anyone know how to fiddle gnome-session to kill off teh
> old window manager and use a different window manager, as far
> as i an understand this is where the issue starts and finishes.

See my other message.  I think that's the approach.  It's not
something that GNOME goes out of its way to help you with.

> i use the "gnome/kde" desktop because for me it is the
> easiest/least painfull way of getting a workable 'desktop'
> that with a little 'mangling' will give me what i want, as
> simple as it is.

Re [1] and [2]: you're already running under gnome-session, so
you use a gnome desktop environment.  Why not go the whole hog
and run gdm and remove another difference between you and the
people who support GNOME, and want to make your life simpler?

People (sometimes) argue that they might not want to go all the
way into an X environment when they boot.  Sometimes I need to
work from a text console myself.  That's all manner of trivial to
arrange.  The VTTYs are still there running seven getty sessions
in the background, to give you a console window if you need it (by
default X starts on VTY8, I think: alt-F9 should get you back to
it from a console window. You need ctl-alt-F1 to get to a VTY
from within X.)  From there, you can /usr/local/etc/rc.d/gdm
stop, if you *really* don't want any X stuff running, and you can
tweak the gdm_enable to "NO" in /etc/rc.d if you predict a
session of yoyo-mode. Alternatively, if you start single-user,
then you'll be in console mode anyway, of course.

> maybe i should just find a fancy .fvwm2rc, somewhere and dump
> this whole desktop idea it is getting too complicated for me to
> navigate, follow the inner machinations ... grrr, computers, making life
> easier, for whom ??

Fancy .fwm2rc files are, by definition, complicated.  Kick the
habit :-)  Go config-file-free.

Cheers,

-- 
Andrew