To build on VMS, see README.VMS.
-If you are upgrading, you might want to delete your ~/.xscreensaver file.
-If you don't, you might not see the new graphics modes. If you are upgrading
-from version 2.* to version 3.*, definitely do delete your .xscreensaver file.
+If you are upgrading from version 2.* to version 3.*, be sure to delete
+your ~/.xscreensaver file first, if you have one.
If you think you've found a bug, please let me know! No bug report is too
small. But first, please read the enclosed `README.debugging' file to find
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!
It is trivially easy to add new display modes to xscreensaver: any program
which can be invoked in such a way that it draws on the root window of the
-screen can be used as a screensaver. You just change a resource setting --
+screen can be used as a screensaver. You just change a config file --
there's no need to recompile or reinstall anything.
============
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 80 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.)
+More than 120 such programs are included. For details, see the xscreensaver
+web page, or the enclosed manual pages.
The latest version of xscreensaver is always available on the web at
http://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/.
============
+Changes since 3.31: * The image-manipulating hacks (`slidescreen', etc.) can
+ now operate on randomly chosen image files from disk,
+ or on frames captured from the system's video input,
+ instead of (or in addition to) manipulating images of
+ the desktop.
+ * Rewrote `vidwhacker' to use the new image-grabbing
+ mechanism.
+ * Made fading work on TrueColor XFree86 4.x systems.
+ * Fixed a subtle rendering bug in `atlantis' (the fish
+ were inside out!)
+ * Made `atlantis' have a texture simulating light
+ reflections from the surface of the ocean.
+ * Fixed up label placement in `molecule'.
+ * Better color bars in `xteevee'.
+ * Made `install-strip' not try to strip scripts.
+Changes since 3.30: * Put in more sensible defaults for DPMS, and updated
+ the documentation to reflect the fact that all your
+ DPMS settings are now belong to xscreensaver.
+ * Fixed the `xscreensaver.spec' file so that `--force'
+ is no longer needed.
+ * New versions of `rotzoomer' and `nerverot'.
+ * Fixed an OSF/1 compilation problem in `molecule'.
+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'
+ when available (in addition to `xli' and `xv'.)
+ * Improved memory usage in `petri' and gave it a hard
+ cap on how much memory it can allocate.
+ * Added `-watch' option to `xscreensaver-command'.
+ * Made `xscreensaver-demo' come up with the
+ most-recently-run hack selected by default.
+ * Rewrote the Gtk version of `xscreensaver-demo'.
+ It's a lot easier to use now.
+ * Extended the format of the programs list in the
+ .xscreensaver file, for the benefit of the new
+ capabilities of `xscreensaver-demo'.
+ NOTE: you might want to delete your ~/.xscreensaver
+ file and allow it to be re-created! The old one
+ should still work, but xscreensaver-demo won't be as
+ pretty.
+Changes since 3.18: * Fixed gcc dependencies in `bumps' and `ccurve'.
+ * New hack, `extrusion'.
+ * Some of the web sites that `webcollage' was using as
+ its sources changed formats; tweaked it to understand
+ the current layouts.
+ * Added typeahead in the password dialog: if the screen
+ is locked, and you unlock it by typing a character,
+ that key will be automatically inserted in the
+ password dialog (unless it is Return, Enter, Space,
+ or a non-printing key like Shift.)
+ * Made `xmatrix' take a `-small' option, since some
+ folks with tiny screens prefer a smaller font.
+Changes since 3.17: * New versions of `shadebobs', `lmorph', and `distort'.
+ * Added `ccurve', `blaster', and `bumps' hacks.
+ * Replaced `forest' hack with a rewritten version.
+ * Worked around a Xinerama server bug.
+ * Fixed a bug I introduced in 3.10 that caused some
+ hacks to print out superfluous warnings about not
+ having gotten enough colors.
+ * Made `sproingies' obey the `-delay' option.
+ * Fixed a portability bug in `shadebobs'.
+ * Made `webcollage' and `vidwhacker' use `xli' in
+ preference to `xv', if it is available.
+ * Added a new source of images to `webcollage'.
+ * If running under KDE, xscreensaver will add itself to
+ KDE's list of screensavers (via xscreensaver.kss.)
+ * Improved detection of GL libraries.
+ * Made the password dialog include the date and time.
+Changes since 3.16: * New version of `webcollage' -- deals better with
+ corrupted images, and can use an http proxy.
+ * New hack, `xsublim' (run it in the background,
+ rather than adding it to the programs list.)
+ * The xscreensaver daemon was leaking a file descriptor
+ each time you edited your .xscreensaver file. Fixed.
+Changes since 3.15: * New version of `shadebobs'.
+ * Improved image selection in `webcollage', and sped it
+ up slightly.
+ * Made configure find the right version of perl.
+ * Rewrote the CGI part of `webcollage'.
+ * `make clean' was deleting some things it shouldn't.
+ * Fixed a typo in the default programs list.
+Changes since 3.14: * Added `webcollage' and `shadebobs' hacks.
+ * Added a `-stdout' arg to `vidwhacker' so that it can
+ be used in a pipeline.
+ * Made `petri' use less memory.
+Changes since 3.13: * Various improvements to the Gtk port.
+ * Turned off PAM by default on Solaris, since PAM seems
+ generally to be misconfigured out-of-the-box.
+ * Made the `--without-gtk' configure option work.
+ * Made configure check the Gtk version number, since it
+ requires 1.2.
+ * Fixed a bug in the code that attempted to prevent
+ changes of screen resolution while the screen is
+ locked.
+ * Fixed a race condition in `xscreensaver-demo' that
+ could cause an X error at startup.
+ * Added `-transparent' option to `deluxe'.
+ * Added `petri' hack.
+Changes since 3.12: * Ported `xscreensaver-demo' to Gtk.
+ * Made it possible to build Motif, Gtk, and Athena
+ versions of `xscreensaver-demo' in the same directory
+ without reconfiguring.
+ * Made `xscreensaver-demo' chase symlinks before writing
+ the .xscreensaver file, so that if .xscreensaver is
+ itself a symlink, the underlying file will be replaced
+ instead.
+ * Some Makefile and configure tweaks for Solaris and
+ FreeBSD.
+ * Made it possible to set the fire color in `xflame'.
+ * Made transparency work in TrueColor (for `goop' and
+ `qix'.)
+ * Fixed a multi-head bug introduced by the virtual
+ viewports stuff.
+Changes since 3.11: * Made it so that you can't scroll the screen while the
+ lock dialog is up (with XFree86 virtual viewports.)
+ * Fixed a bug in `flag' that caused bob's chin to get cut
+ off after a few iterations.
+Changes since 3.10: * Made `xjack' be black-on-white-ish, so that it looks
+ less like a computer screen and more like the
+ typewritten paper it's supposed to be.
+ * New version of `pulsar'.
+ * Fixed Solaris compilation problem in `phosphor'.
+ * Made xscreensaver notice XFree86's virtual root window
+ hack, so that if the X server's root window is larger
+ than the monitor's displayable resolution, the screen
+ saver will limit itself to the area that actually
+ appears on the screen.
+ * Made the xscreensaver daemon do a better job of
+ picking the visual class that should be used for GL
+ programs. Less user intervention should be needed
+ now: you can use the logical visual name `GL' instead
+ of having to figure out by hand which one to use.
+ * Oops, the visual was defaulting to "best" instead of
+ "default", because the .xscreensaver file was not being
+ loaded quite early enough.
+ * Made configure figure out how to build icmp ping
+ support into the `sonar' hack automatically.
+ * Made warnings about not being able to read shadow
+ passwords not be printed if compiled with PAM support.
+ * Improved PAM startup diagnostics.
+ * Worked around the Solaris PAM bug that was causing
+ crashes there, so now PAM is turned on by default.
+ * Made configure detect the number of arguments that
+ pam_strerror() takes, since on Linux, this apparently
+ changed between 2.0 and 2.2, sigh.
+ * Made the /proc/interrupts kludge look for "PS/2 Mouse"
+ as well as "keyboard".
+ * Made xscreensaver notice when there has been a sudden
+ large jump in wall-clock time, and if so, lock right
+ away, instead of waiting for "lockTimeout" to expire
+ first. (Laptops need this for safer recovery from
+ ``hibernation.'')
+ * Added `-throttle' option to `xscreensaver-command'.
+Changes since 3.09: * Added `phosphor', `xmatrix', and `pulsar' hacks.
+ * Fixed a bug in the color allocator that sometimes
+ caused `starfish' to fall back to monochrome.
+ * Reduced the amount of code that runs before root
+ privileges are disavowed: "normal" and "shadow"
+ passwords now do some initialization as root, but the
+ PAM and Kerberos authorization schemes will be
+ initialized while running as "nobody". Supposedly
+ this closes a potential security hole when using
+ Kerberos.
+ * Added some more sanity checking to configure.
+Changes since 3.08: * Added `compass', `squiral', `xflame', `wander',
+ `spotlight', and `critical' hacks.
+ * Added some new modes to `decayscreen'.
+ * Made `deluxe' work in monochrome.
+ * Generalized usage of the Double-Buffer server extension
+ in several hacks (`compass', `deluxe', `interference',
+ `kumppa', and `moire2'.)
+ * Fixed another visual-depth problem in `rd-bomb'.
+ * The screen saver will now defer blanking if neither
+ the keyboard nor the mouse could be grabbed. Instead,
+ it will just try again in a few minutes. This fixes
+ a bad interaction between xscreensaver and programs
+ like VMware that hold the mouse and keyboard grabbed
+ for a long time.
+ * Added a new erase mode (expanding spiral.)
Changes since 3.07: * Fixed some bugs in my port of `t3d'.
* Added `penetrate' and `deluxe' hacks.
* When linking against Motif 2.x, also link against XPM.