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<div class="CHAPTER">
<h1><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM" name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM"></a>Chapter 6 X Configuration</h1>
<div class="TOC">
<dl>
<dt><b>Table of Contents</b></dt>
<dt>6.1 <a href="x-window-system.html#X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-XORGCONFIG"><tt
class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt></a></dt>
<dt>6.2 <a href="x-window-system-xorgsetup.html"><tt
class="COMMAND">xorgsetup</tt></a></dt>
<dt>6.3 <a href="x-window-system-xinitrc.html">xinitrc</a></dt>
<dt>6.4 <a href="x-window-system-xwmconfig.html"><tt
class="COMMAND">xwmconfig</tt></a></dt>
<dt>6.5 <a href="x-window-system-xdm.html"><tt class="COMMAND">xdm</tt></a></dt>
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<p>Starting with Slackware-10.0, the X Window environment in Slackware is provided by
Xorg. X is responsible for providing a graphical user interface. It is independent from
the operating system, unlike Windows or the MacOS.</p>
<p>The X Window System is implemented through many programs that run in userland. The two
main components are the server and the window manager. The server provides the lowlevel
functions for interacting with your video hardware, thus it is system specific. The
window manager sits on top of the server and provides the user interface. The advantage
to this is you can have many different graphical interfaces by simply changing the window
manager you use.</p>
<p>Configuring X can be a complex task. The reason for this is the vast numbers of video
cards available for the PC architecture, most of which use different programming
interfaces. Luckily, most cards today support basic video standards known as VESA, and if
your card is among them you'll be able to start X using the <tt
class="COMMAND">startx</tt> command right out of the box.</p>
<p>If this doesn't work with your card, or if you'd like to take advantage of the
high-performance features of your video card such as hardware acceleration or 3-D
hardware rendering, then you'll need to reconfigure X.</p>
<p>To configure X, you'll need to make an <tt class="FILENAME">/etc/X11/xorg.conf</tt>
file. This file contains lots of details about your video hardware, mouse, and monitor.
It's a very complex configuration file, but fortunately there are several programs to
help create one for you. We'll mention a few of them here.</p>
<div class="SECT1">
<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-XORGCONFIG"
name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-XORGCONFIG">6.1 <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt></a></h1>
<p>This is a simple menu driven frontend that's similar in feel to the Slackware
installer. It simply tells the X server to take a look at the card, and then set up the
best initial configuration file it can make based on the information it gathers. The
generated <tt class="FILENAME">/etc/X11/xorg.conf</tt> file should be a good starting
point for most systems (and should work without modification).</p>
<p>This is a text-based X configuration program that's designed for the advanced system
administrator. Here's a sample walkthrough using <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt>.
First, start the program:</p>
<table border="0" bgcolor="#E0E0E0" width="100%">
<tr>
<td>
<pre class="SCREEN">
<samp class="PROMPT">#</samp> <kbd class="USERINPUT">xorgconfig</kbd>
</pre>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>This will present a screenful of information about <tt
class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt>. To continue, press <kbd class="USERINPUT">ENTER</kbd>.
<tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> will ask you to verify you have set your <tt
class="ENVAR">PATH</tt> correctly. It should be fine, so go ahead and hit <kbd
class="USERINPUT">ENTER</kbd>.</p>
<div class="FIGURE"><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-1" name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-1"></a>
<p><b>Figure 6-1. <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> Mouse Configuration</b></p>
<p><img src="x-window-system/xorgconfig1-w.png" /></p>
</div>
<p>Select your mouse from the menu presented. If you don't see your serial mouse listed,
pick the Microsoft protocol -- it's the most common and will probably work. Next <tt
class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> will ask you about using <var
class="OPTION">ChordMiddle</var> and <var class="OPTION">Emulate3Buttons</var>. You'll
see these options described in detail on the screen. Use them if the middle button on
your mouse doesn't work under X, or if your mouse only has two buttons (<var
class="OPTION">Emulate3Buttons</var> lets you simulate the middle button by pressing both
buttons simultaneously). Then, enter the name of your mouse device. The default choice,
<tt class="FILENAME">/dev/mouse</tt>, should work since the link was configured during
Slackware setup. If you're running GPM (the Linux mouse server) in repeater mode, you can
set your mouse type to <tt class="FILENAME">/dev/gpmdata</tt> to have X get information
about the mouse through <tt class="COMMAND">gpm</tt>. In some cases (with busmice
especially) this can work better, but most users shouldn't do this.</p>
<p><tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> will ask you about enabling special key bindings.
If you need this say “<kbd class="USERINPUT">y</kbd>”. Most users can say
“<kbd class="USERINPUT">n</kbd>” -- enter this if you're not sure.</p>
<div class="FIGURE"><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-2" name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-2"></a>
<p><b>Figure 6-2. <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> Horizontal Sync</b></p>
<p><img src="x-window-system/xorgconfig2-w.png" /></p>
</div>
<p>In the next section you enter the sync range for your monitor. To start configuring
your monitor, press <kbd class="USERINPUT">ENTER</kbd>. You will see a list of monitor
types -- choose one of them. Be careful not to exceed the specifications of your monitor.
Doing so could damage your hardware.</p>
<div class="FIGURE"><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-3" name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-3"></a>
<p><b>Figure 6-3. <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> Vertical Sync</b></p>
<p><img src="x-window-system/xorgconfig3-w.png" /></p>
</div>
<p>Specify the vertical sync range for your monitor (you should find this in the manual
for the monitor). xorgconfig will ask you to enter strings to identify the monitor type
in the <tt class="FILENAME">xorg.conf</tt> file. Enter anything you like on these 3 lines
(including nothing at all).</p>
<div class="FIGURE"><a id="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-4" name="X-WINDOW-SYSTEM-4"></a>
<p><b>Figure 6-4. <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> Video Card</b></p>
<p><img src="x-window-system/xorgconfig4-w.png" /></p>
</div>
<p>Now you have the opportunity to look at the database of video card types. You'll want
to do this, so say “<kbd class="USERINPUT">y</kbd>”, and select a card from
the list shown. If you don't see your exact card, try selecting one that uses the same
chipset and it will probably work fine.</p>
<p>Next, tell <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> how much RAM you have on your video
card. <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> will want you to enter some more descriptive
text about your video card. If you like, you can enter descriptions on these three
lines.</p>
<p>You'll then be asked which display resolutions you want to use. Again, going with the
provided defaults should be fine to start with. Later on, you can edit the <tt
class="FILENAME">/etc/X11/xorg.conf</tt> file and rearrange the modes so 1024x768 (or
whatever mode you like) is the default.</p>
<p>At this point, the <tt class="COMMAND">xorgconfig</tt> program will ask if you'd like
to save the current configuration file. Answer yes, and the X configuration file is
saved, completing the setup process. You can start X now with the <tt
class="COMMAND">startx</tt> command.</p>
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