How do change deafult window manager?

little_ball · 12-24-2003, 12:17 PM

Hi, I have install slackware 9.1 whit your help i learn how to configure X window, but i have select in the installation proceed to run as default window manager Blackbox. I don,t like blackbox, i want to configure my startx as fluxbox or windowmaker or other. because i don,t have KDE or Gnome I thought they are in the second CD installation that I still haven,t download. My questions are

How do i change my default window manager, i tried --config x-window-manager and say that the command doesn,t exist. so please tell me where i can change this.

Regards...

wapcaplet · 12-24-2003, 12:32 PM

If you are running X by typing 'startx' from the command-line, then you should be able to set the window manager by editing your ~/.xinitrc file (in your home directory). For example, if you want it to start fluxbox, make this the last line of .xinitrc:

exec fluxbox

If you're logging in using KDM or GDM or something, it's a little trickier, but I assume you're not doing that since you don't have KDE or Gnome installed

fang0654 · 12-24-2003, 12:35 PM

You can change it globally (for all users) by going into the /etc/X11/xinit directory and renaming one of the templates to xinitrc

example:
# mv xinitrc xinitrc.backup
# mv xinitrc.wmaker xinitrc

you need to be root to do this

gnashley · 12-24-2003, 12:36 PM

Easiest way in Slackware is to run: xwmconfig, make your choice then: startx

little_ball · 12-24-2003, 12:46 PM

I don,t have any xinitrc archive in mi directory /home. I think i will install slackware again, when i finished downloading the second CD, and i will put KDE as default window manager, then i will came back and thank you all

poison · 12-24-2003, 01:54 PM

no need to reinstall slack ^^
just cd into the kde directory of cd 2 and do a
installpkg *.tgz
if you only installed cd 1 so far ^^

itsjustme · 12-24-2003, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by gnashley
Easiest way in Slackware is to run: xwmconfig, make your choice then: startx

little_ball,

gnashley has given you the answer you seek.

little_ball · 12-26-2003, 09:39 AM

Hello, I have done what poison tell me. it was a little lost time, because i have to mount cdrom driver, i seem that slack doesn,t have supermount issues like redhat or suse or mdk. but, i think it interesting, i,m learning in 1 week what i haven,t in 10 months using suse or mdk.

Thank you all for helping me. I,m feeling like a very newbie right now i maybe know how to manage redhat or mdk, or suse, but its because they have all cute graphical helper stuff, Slackware not, its all command lines. and that,s part of the good of it. Because if i learn i will learn how Linux really work.

Thanks again, Slack is beginning to be the best for me.

Yes i tried xwmconfig, it was a blast, very good choice.

CletusJones · 12-26-2003, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by wapcaplet
If you are running X by typing 'startx' from the command-line, then you should be able to set the window manager by editing your ~/.xinitrc file (in your home directory).

Pardon my question (and lack of use of the forum search feature) but is there a way to have it load the GUI interface after you login without having to type "startx" each time?

DaOne · 12-26-2003, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by CletusJones
Pardon my question (and lack of use of the forum search feature) but is there a way to have it load the GUI interface after you login without having to type "startx" each time?

Yes...edit /etc/inittab and change the default runlevel from 3 to 4.

CletusJones · 12-27-2003, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DaOne
Yes...edit /etc/inittab and change the default runlevel from 3 to 4.

Thanks, and sorry for the

question.

elluva · 12-27-2003, 10:20 AM

no prob, I went from mdk to slack I felt ashamed. I really was convinced I knew more about linux

Leper_Messiah · 12-27-2003, 11:27 AM

remember you can always use the default xinitrc sym link found in /etc/X11/xinit, if you don't have a /home/.xinitrc entry. that xinitrc sym link points to the default window manager, represented by a file of the type "xinitrc.fluxbox" found in the same directory.

itsjustme · 12-27-2003, 11:43 AM

I did not know that. (...a Johnny Carson reminiscence

)
That's a good tidbit of info.

Code:

[bslack]/etc/X11/xinit$ ls -l
total 37
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root          321 Sep 16 17:16 README.Xmodmap
lrwxrwxrwx    1 root     root           14 Dec 14 11:49 xinitrc -> xinitrc.wmaker
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          556 Mar 16  2003 xinitrc.blackbox
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          555 Mar 16  2003 xinitrc.fluxbox
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          559 Jun  5  2003 xinitrc.fvwm2
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          539 Feb 21  2002 xinitrc.fvwm95
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          630 Sep 10 16:27 xinitrc.gnome
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          536 Sep 14 22:29 xinitrc.kde
-r--r--r--    1 root     root          664 Sep 16 17:15 xinitrc.twm
-rwxr-xr-x    1 root     root          788 Feb 11  2003 xinitrc.wmaker
lrwxrwxrwx    1 root     root           16 Dec 14 11:30 xinitrc.xfce -> ../xfce4/xinitrc

CletusJones · 12-27-2003, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by elluva
no prob, I went from mdk to slack I felt ashamed. I really was convinced I knew more about linux

I migrated from RH and slack makes me feel really ashamed that i didn't learn more. it seems that until you are "stuck" with only the command line, you don't really learn anything about how linux really works. It's been pretty informative so far... The linux reference i've got has sure gotten a workout the past few days.