Linux+ Guide to Linux Certification Chapter Ten The X Window System

Objectives Explain the purpose of the major Linux GUI components: X Windows, windows manager, and desktop environment List common windows managers and desktop environments used in Linux Gather the hardware information necessary to configure X Windows Configure X Windows settings using various Linux utilities

Linux GUI Components Figure 10-1: Components of the Linux GUI

X Windows –The component of the Linux GUI that displays graphics to windows on the terminal screen X clients –Component of X Windows that requests graphics to be drawn from the X server and displays them on the terminal screen

X Windows X server –The component of X Windows that draws graphics to windows on the terminal screen XFree86 –The Open source licensed version of X Windows version 11 –Originally intended for the Intelx86 platform

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Window manager –The GUI component that is responsible for determining the appearance of the windows drawn on the screen by X Windows Desktop environment –Software that works with a window manager to provide a standard GUI environment that uses standard programs and development tools

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments KDE is the traditional desktop environment used on Linux systems K Windows Manager (kwm) –The window manager that works under the KDE Desktop Environment Qt toolkit –Software toolkit used with the KDE Desktop environment

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments GNOME Desktop Environment –Default desktop environment in Red Hat Linux –Typically uses the Sawfish Window Manager and the GTK+ toolkit for the C programming language The GTK+ toolkit was originally developed for the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP)

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-2: The KDE Desktop Environment

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-3: The GNOME Desktop Environment

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Table 10-1: Common windows managers

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-4: The Enlightenment Window Manager

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-5: The Feeble Virtual Window Manager

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-6: The Tab Window Manager

Windows Managers and Desktop Environments Figure 10-7: The Window Maker Window Manager

Starting and Stopping X Windows Figure 10-8: The GNOME Display Manager

Starting and Stopping X Windows GDM Configurator –Graphical tool used to configure the appearance and behavior of the GNOME Display Manager /etc/X11/gdm/gdm.conf –The file that contains the configuration of the GNOME Desktop Manager

Starting and Stopping X Windows X Display Manager (xdm) –Present a graphical login screen to users KDE Display Manager (kdm) –Graphical login screen for users that resembles the KDE desktop

Starting and Stopping X Windows startx –Command used to start X Windows and the associated window manager and desktop environment Desktop Switching Tool –Graphical tool that allows Red Hat Linux users to set the default desktop environment or window manager

Starting and Stopping X Windows Figure 10-9: The Desktop Switching Tool

Configuring X Windows X Windows is the component of the GUI that interfaces with the video hardware in the computer In order for X Windows to perform its function, it needs information regarding the keyboard, mouse, monitor, and video adapter card For the video adapter card, X Windows requires: –The video adapter card model –The amount of RAM on the video adapter card –The chipset on the video adapter card

Configuring X Windows RAM Digital Analog Converter (RAMDAC) chip –Used to convert the digital video images used by the computer to the analog format needed for the monitor Clockchip –Computer chip that coordinates the flow of information on a peripheral component such as a video adapter card

Configuring X Windows X Windows also requires the following information about the computer monitor that is attached to the video card: –The maximum resolution supported –The horizontal sync (hsync) range –The vertical sync (vsync) range

Configuring X Windows SuperProbe –Program used to determine the computer’s video adapter card properties /etc/X11/XF86Config –Configuration file used by X Windows

Configuring X Windows Mouseconfig –Command used to configure a mouse for use by X Windows Xconfigurator –A program that is used to configure video adapter card and monitor information for use by X Windows

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-10: Mouse configuration using mouseconfig

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-11: Updating the XF86Config file using mouseconfig

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-12: Starting the Xconfigurator utility

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-13: Detecting the video adapter card model using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-14: Choosing the monitor model using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-15: Choosing custom monitor settings using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-16: Choosing the hsync range using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-17: Choosing the vsync range using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-18: Probing for video adapter card information using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-19: Manually selecting the video adapter card memory using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-20: Manually choosing a clockchip setting using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-21: Probing for clockships and RAMDACs using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-22: Choosing resolutions and color depths using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-23: Starting X Windows to test configuration using Xconfigurator

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-24: Completing the Xconfigurator utility

Configuring X Windows Xf86config –Text-based X Windows configuration program that ships with X Windows –It allows the configuration of keyboard, mouse, video adapter card, and monitor information for use by X Windows /dev/mouse –symbolic link to the device file used for the mouse configured at installation

Configuring X Windows Although most monitors today support a wide range of hsync and vsync values, choosing too high a value for either may damage the monitor Xvidtune –Program used to fine-tune the vsync and hsync video card settings for use in X Windows

Configuring X Windows Figure 10-25: The xvidtune utility

Chapter Summary The Linux GUI has several interchangeable components X Windows is the core component of the Linux GUI that draws graphics to the terminal screen and uses a text configuration file Window managers modify the look and feel of X Windows Desktop environments include a window manager as well as a set of standard programs and development libraries

Chapter Summary You may start the Linux GUI from runlevel 3 by typing startx at a command prompt, or from runlevel 3 or 5 by using gdm Configuring X Windows requires a thorough knowledge of the video hardware used by the computer The Xconfigurator, mouseconfig, xf86config, and xvidtune utilities may be used to configure the hardware settings of X Windows for such things as the mouse, keyboard, and video adapter card