I earlier mentioned a difference between the two ways of starting ctwm:
-- boot to run level 3 (or switch to level 3 from level 5 by 'init 3'),
or
-- invoke ctwm as window manager option in level 5, choosing at login time
between the options specified in
/usr/share/xsessions/*.desktop
This functionality is provided by the xfce version of fedora, which I have
been using for several years, though I assume the options would be similar
in other versions of linux with graphical interfaces.
Is there any shared wisdom about which is preferable (start in level 3 or
level 5) -- e.g. does one option have some desirable consequence not
available in the other?
Starting in runlevel 3 on my laptop requires setting up a command to launch
wifi and select the desired IP address, via NetworkManager, which is done
automatically using the default (level 5) xfce login mechanism.
In level 3 I also have to ensure that pulseaudio is launched before I run
anything that produces audio (e.g. firefox). For that I have a start-pulse
command, which does:
pulseaudio --kill
sleep 2 ## is this needed?
pulseaudio --start
(It is invoked in .xinitrc. For unknown reasons, pulse occasionally stops
working, and has to be restarted, e.g. to get sound in videos or news
web pages.)
Until recently, I had always opted to start in level3 on the assumption
that that would require less computer power as I would not be running
unused level 5 mechanisms. I temporarily lost that option on my laptop
after having to reinstall windows and linux following a failed
reconfiguration attempt! But I can now start in run-level 3.
If I skip level 5 and go to level 3 and start NetworkManager and pulse, and
then ctwm, could I be missing out on anything or potentially causing
trouble?
One benefit of starting in Level 3 that surprised me is that firefox now
detects the difference and adds useful extra buttons at the top right,
mentioned in a previous message:
underscore -> minimise (remove from screen, but not from iconmanager)
box -> toggle maximise on or off.
(Symbol changes when window is maximised,)
cross -> delete window
This (new??) feature of firefox is a minor benefit of starting Ctwm in level 3.
Are there any other advantages or disadvantages that should be taken into
account?
Apologies if I am repeating a question for which a good answer has already
been provided somewhere.
(This question would also apply to other alternatives to Ctwm, e.g.
openbox, which I tried for a while, then decided Ctwm was much easier to
configure.)
Thanks
Aaron
http://www.cs.bham.ac.uk/~axs
