Difference between revisions of "Xfce"
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''Xfce embodies the traditional UNIX philosophy of modularity and re-usability. It consists of a number of components that provide the full functionality one can expect of a modern desktop environment. They are packaged separately and you can pick among the available packages to create the optimal personal working environment. | ''Xfce embodies the traditional UNIX philosophy of modularity and re-usability. It consists of a number of components that provide the full functionality one can expect of a modern desktop environment. They are packaged separately and you can pick among the available packages to create the optimal personal working environment. | ||
| − | ''Another priority of Xfce is adhereance to standards, specifically those defined at [http://freedesktop.org/ freedesktop.org]. | + | ''Another priority of Xfce is adhereance to standards, specifically those defined at [http://freedesktop.org/ freedesktop.org]. <!-- spamblocked xfce link here<ref></ref> --> |
== Installation == | == Installation == | ||
| Line 13: | Line 13: | ||
Before emerging Xfce you need to: | Before emerging Xfce you need to: | ||
| − | * | + | * Check that you have enabled the USE flags necessary for a desktop environment. You can either [[Funtoo_Linux_First_Steps#Changing_profile|set your profile to "desktop"]] or you can edit your <tt>make.conf</tt>: |
| + | <console> | ||
| + | # ##i##nano -w /etc/make.conf | ||
| + | USE="-minimal dbus consolekit jpeg libnotify lock session startup-notification svg thunar udev X" | ||
| + | </console> | ||
| − | * | + | * Verify that you have [[Funtoo_Linux_First_Steps#X.Org|X.Org Server]] configured properly. |
| − | |||
| − | + | We are now ready to install Xfce. Install the meta-package, which pulls in all of the components you need for a minimal Xfce installation: | |
| − | + | <console> | |
| − | + | # ##i## emerge xfce4-meta | |
| − | + | </console> | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | < | + | |
== Running Xfce == | == Running Xfce == | ||
| Line 31: | Line 31: | ||
There are several different ways to start Xfce: | There are several different ways to start Xfce: | ||
| − | * Typing the command | + | * Typing the command <tt>startxfce4</tt> at the console. |
| − | * | + | * Editing the <tt>.xinitrc</tt> file in your user's home directory. |
| − | * Using a display manager (e.g. SLiM, GDM, KDM). | + | * Using a display manager (e.g. SLiM, GDM, and KDM). |
* Configuring your shell profile to automatically start Xfce upon a successful login. | * Configuring your shell profile to automatically start Xfce upon a successful login. | ||
=== .xinitrc === | === .xinitrc === | ||
| − | The most common way to start the environment is to configure ~/.xinitrc to launch an Xfce session. The proper way to launch Xfce from the terminal is by using | + | The most common way to start the environment is to configure <tt>~/.xinitrc</tt> to launch an Xfce session. The proper way to launch Xfce from the terminal is by using <tt>startxfce4</tt>. |
| + | <console> | ||
| + | $ ##i## echo "exec ck-launch-session startxfce4" > ~/.xinitrc | ||
| + | </console> | ||
| − | < | + | Note that <tt>ck-launch-session</tt> (from ConsoleKit) is required by Xfce for important tasks such as shutting down, suspending, and automatically mounting removable storage media. Some applications will not work properly without it. Therefore we need to add ConsoleKit to the <tt>default</tt> runlevel, executing the following command as root: |
| + | <console> | ||
| + | # ##i##rc-update add consolekit default | ||
| + | </console> | ||
| − | + | Finally, to start the graphical environment: | |
| − | < | + | <console> |
| + | $ ##i##startx | ||
| + | </console> | ||
| − | + | <!-- == References == | |
| − | < | + | <references/> |
| + | --> | ||
[[Category:Desktop]] | [[Category:Desktop]] | ||
Revision as of 12:09, 14 February 2012
Contents |
About Xfce
Xfce is a lightweight desktop environment for UNIX-like operating systems. It aims to be fast and low on system resources, while still being visually appealing and user friendly.
Xfce embodies the traditional UNIX philosophy of modularity and re-usability. It consists of a number of components that provide the full functionality one can expect of a modern desktop environment. They are packaged separately and you can pick among the available packages to create the optimal personal working environment.
Another priority of Xfce is adhereance to standards, specifically those defined at freedesktop.org.
Installation
Before emerging Xfce you need to:
- Check that you have enabled the USE flags necessary for a desktop environment. You can either set your profile to "desktop" or you can edit your make.conf:
# nano -w /etc/make.conf
USE="-minimal dbus consolekit jpeg libnotify lock session startup-notification svg thunar udev X"
- Verify that you have X.Org Server configured properly.
We are now ready to install Xfce. Install the meta-package, which pulls in all of the components you need for a minimal Xfce installation:
# emerge xfce4-meta
Running Xfce
There are several different ways to start Xfce:
- Typing the command startxfce4 at the console.
- Editing the .xinitrc file in your user's home directory.
- Using a display manager (e.g. SLiM, GDM, and KDM).
- Configuring your shell profile to automatically start Xfce upon a successful login.
.xinitrc
The most common way to start the environment is to configure ~/.xinitrc to launch an Xfce session. The proper way to launch Xfce from the terminal is by using startxfce4.
$ echo "exec ck-launch-session startxfce4" > ~/.xinitrc
Note that ck-launch-session (from ConsoleKit) is required by Xfce for important tasks such as shutting down, suspending, and automatically mounting removable storage media. Some applications will not work properly without it. Therefore we need to add ConsoleKit to the default runlevel, executing the following command as root:
# rc-update add consolekit default
Finally, to start the graphical environment:
$ startx
