You can try out xscreensaver like so:
xscreensaver &
- xscreensaver-command -demo
-
-After a few seconds, the screen should go black, and a dialog box should
-appear in the upper right corner. This is "Demo Mode".
+ xscreensaver-demo
Note: unlike `xlock', xscreensaver has a client-server model: the
`xscreensaver' process is a daemon that runs in the background; it is
-controlled by the foreground `xscreensaver-command' program.
+controlled by the foreground `xscreensaver-demo' program.
xscreensaver has an extensive manual -- please read it!
numerous graphics hacks for use as screensavers. There is nothing magic
about these: they are just programs that draw on the root window.
-More than 100 such programs are included. For details, see the xscreensaver
+More than 120 such programs are included. For details, see the xscreensaver
web page, or the enclosed manual pages. There are also some helpful hints
on customization in the xscreensaver app-defaults file (normally installed
in /usr/lib/X11/app-defaults/XScreenSaver.)
============
-Changes since 3.19: * Added new hack `ripples' and `sierpinski3d'.
+Changes since 3.29: * New hacks, `molecule' `dangerball', and `rotzoomer'.
+ * New version of `gflux'.
+ * Made `gltext' able to display the current time.
+ * Fixed a floating-point-precision problem in `gltext'
+ that sometimes caused horizontal lines to vanish.
+ * Removed the `-window-id' option from the hacks:
+ it never worked right, and was unnecessary.
+ * Made the `starwars' hack use thicker lines, antialias
+ the text, and fade out at the far edge instead of just
+ dropping off.
+ * Fixed an SHM segment leak in `moire'.
+Changes since 3.28: * Better rendering of the new logo.
+ * New hack, `gltext'.
+ * Added `-planetary' option to `gears', to draw a
+ different kind of gear system.
+ * Made motion and rotation be smoother in `gears',
+ `glplanet', `moebius', `rubik', and `sierpinski3d'.
+ * Improved coloration in `sierpinski3d'.
+ * Made the GL hacks react to window size changes.
+ * Made most of the GL hacks take a -fps option (like
+ `pulsar' did), so you can use them to benchmark your
+ 3D hardware.
+ * Fixed the previous fix to `sonar'.
+ * Minor fix to `nerverot'.
+ Made sonar able to ping hosts on DEC OSF1.
+ * Eliminated a bogus "didn't get enough colors" warning
+ in some of the hacks.
+Changes since 3.27: * New logo for xscreensaver!
+ * New hacks, `starwars' and `stonerview'.
+ * Made the motion of the bouncing ball in `stairs' be a
+ little less jerky.
+ * Made newly-added screenhacks be added to .xscreensaver
+ automatically: if there are hacks in the app-defaults
+ file that are not also in ~/.xscreensaver, they will
+ be added to the end of the list.
+ * Redid the `Screensaver Options' part of the control
+ panel; xscreensaver now lets you configure your DPMS
+ settings.
+ * Fixed some Makefile problems with non-GL builds.
+ * Fixed detection of MesaGL for version 3.3.
+ * Better workaround to Red Hat 7.0's broken gcc.
+ * Added Sparc Solaris kernel panic to `bsod'.
+Changes since 3.26: * New hacks: `zoom' and `whirlwindwarp'.
+ * Fixed a free-memory-reference bug in `sonar'.
+ * Better error handling when there are no suitable GL
+ visuals.
+ * Added diagnostic dialog when xscreensaver-demo is
+ unable to launch xscreensaver (e.g., when running as
+ root.)
+ * Fixed a bug that caused screenhack argument changes
+ to be ignored when xscreensaver-demo was running as
+ root (if "root" and "nobody" have different home
+ directories.)
+ * Made the programs default to ":0" if $DISPLAY is unset.
+ * Made the `-verbose' output include information about
+ which server extensions were supported at compile time.
+ * Worked around Red Hat 7.0's broken gcc 2.96.
+ * Updated default delays on the GL hacks to look better
+ on machines with super-fast 3D hardware.
+ * Install `screensaver-properties-capplet' to work around
+ the usual egregious GNOME lossage.
+Changes since 3.25: * Added "enabled" checkboxes in the list of hacks in
+ xscreensaver-demo (Gtk version only.)
+ * New hacks `hyperball', `xrayswarm', and `gflux'.
+ * New versions of `nerverot', `galaxy', and `hypercube'.
+ * Small fixes to `phosphor', `shadebobs', `xflame',
+ and `sonar'.
+ * Added external helper program `xscreensaver-gl-helper'
+ to figure out which X visual to use for OpenGL
+ programs.
+ * Configure updates for XFree86 4.0, and for BSD.
+ * Made it be more tolerant of bogus /etc/group files.
+ * When installing the PAM config file, first try to just
+ copy an existing "xdm" or "login" config file, so that
+ xscreensaver does authentication in the same way as the
+ rest of the system.
+Changes since 3.24: * New hack, `nerverot'.
+ * Added BSD kernel panic to `bsod'.
+ * New version of `shadebobs'.
+ * New version of `petri'.
+ * Updated `webcollage' to handle recent Altavista URL
+ format changes; made it search the AP photo gallery.
+ * Revamped command-line options of `sonar' and made it
+ properly handle subnets.
+ * The `bubbles' hack can now trickle up or down the
+ screen.
+ * The `xsublim' hack can now read its text from programs.
+ * Support for GLE version 3 in `extrusion'.
+ * Fixed compilation problems in `maze'.
+ * Fixed a rare crash in `flow'.
+ * Fixes for minor installation problems.
+Changes since 3.23: * Added `-ignorant' option to `maze' hack.
+ * Updates to `critical', `bsod', `xflame', and `flow'.
+ * Added support for Kerberos 5 (via its Kerberos 4
+ compatibility layer.)
+ * Fixed a bad leak in `xteevee'.
+ * Updated `webcollage' to handle recent Altavista URL
+ format changes.
+ * Removed xscreensaver-demo's `Ok' and `Cancel' buttons,
+ since they were confusing people: all changes are now
+ instantanious.
+ * Made xscreensaver-demo install itself into the Gnome
+ Control Center.
+Changes since 3.22: * Fixed some misplaced text fields in the Motif version
+ of xscreensaver-demo; fixed a crash in the Gtk version
+ that would happen if the programs list was empty.
+ * Fixed a recently-introduced bug in `pulsar'.
+ * Made `sierpinski3d' use solid tetrahedrons instead of
+ points.
+ * Added `-trace' option to `xmatrix'.
+ * Added new hacks `xteevee' and `xspirograph'.
+Changes since 3.21: * Fixed some bugs in xscreensaver-demo.
+ * Rewrote the Motif version of xscreensaver-demo to
+ match the new Gtk version.
+ * The Athena toolkit is no longer supported.
+Changes since 3.20: * Tweaked the xscreensaver-demo UI (Gtk only.)
+ * Fixed a few visual selection bugs. I think the proper
+ GL visual should be used with nVidia systems now.
+ * Made the Makefiles obey $install_prefix.
+ * Made the `xscreensaver.spec' file able to generate both
+ GL and non-GL packages simultaneously.
+Changes since 3.19: * Added new hacks `ripples' and `sierpinski3d'.
* Made `xscreensaver-command -exit' be silent when no
screen saver was running (instead of complaining.)
* Made `webcollage' and `vidwhacker' use `xloadimage'
projects / xscreensaver / blobdiff