Howto set the background

From Fluxbox-wiki

Setting the background so that transparency works

Contents 1 Setting the background so that transparency works 1.1 What is fbsetbg and why do I need it 1.2 Checking for the proper tools 1.3 Setting the background in a style 1.4 Transparency does not work. What do I do? 1.5 Useful Tips and Tricks 2 How to have nautilus set the background 3 Backgrounds on Multiple Displays

What is fbsetbg and why do I need it

fbsetbg is a wrapper that tries to find a suitable background-setting app and then tries to set the wallpaper using that app. You don't have to configure fbsetbg, it just uses the first app it can find.

It aims to provide clear error messages in a window that make debugging problems easy.

Checking for the proper tools

First we need to make sure fbsetbg has a suitable app to use, to do this open up a terminal and run the following command as a user:

   fbsetbg -i

If you have one of the supported apps installed you will get a message like this:

   Esetroot is a nice wallpapersetter. You won't have any problems.

If you do not have a suitable app installed you will recieve an error message like this:

   display doesn't set the wallpaper properly. Transparency for fluxbox
   and apps like aterm and xchat won't work right with it. Consider 
   installing feh, wmsetbg (from windowmaker) or Esetroot (from Eterm) and
   I'll use them instead.

Setting the background in a style

In Fluxbox 0.9.15, rootCommand was removed from styles; however, it still functions properly in the init file. To set a background from a style, you should now use the following settings in your theme file:

  background: centered|aspect|tiled|fullscreen|random|solid|gradient <texture>|mod|none
  background.pixmap: <file or directory>
  background.color: <color>
  background.colorTo: <color>
  background.modX: <integer>
  background.modY: <integer>

When using centered, aspect, tiled, or fullscreen, `background.pixmap' should give the full path of an image to use. When using random, `background.pixmap' gives the location of a directory containing several images, one of which is chosen at random. To set a solid background, you should specify `background.color'. The gradient textures (described more fully in `man fbsetroot') require both `background.color' and `background.colorTo'. `background.modX' and `background.modY' are specific to the `mod' background type (described more fully in `man fbsetroot'), which also requires `background.color' and `background.colorTo'.

Transparency does not work. What do I do?

Fbsetbg can use following wallpapersetters of which ONLY feh, esetroot and wmsetbg support pseudo transparency:

• Esetroot
• wmsetbg
• feh
• hsetroot
• chbg
• display
• qiv
• xv
• xsri
• xli
• xsetbg

The order is best first, worst last. So to make everything work fine, you should install something from the top of the list. Most people on #fluxbox would suggest you to install Feh as it is small and very efficient, but Esetroot (comes with Eterm) is also a good choice.

Useful Tips and Tricks

1. Setting the Wallpaper on Startup

Since fluxbox 0.9.15 a new feature was introduced: Overlay.

To use it you just need a file to which ~/.fluxbox/init points to. We use the standard file ~/.fluxbox/overlay for it. make sure the line

  session.styleOverlay: ~/.fluxbox/overlay

is in your init-file.

The overlay file can be used to set any style attributes, such as the 'background' setting described above. Setting the background in this way will override any backgrounds in styles you use.

2. Setting the Wallpaper on Startup another way

As already mentioned the rootCommand in the init file is still capable. This will provide an initial background, but any styles with their own wallpapers will override it. To use it, simply complete the line to this:

session.screen0.rootCommand:    fbsetbg -l

Then set the background once manually with fbsetbg. This last used wallpaper will be saved in the file ~/.fluxbox/lastwallpaper. It is later used for the -l option which is in your init file now.

With new versions this way is deprecated, fluxbox calls fbsetbg internally everytime it starts.

If you want to achieve the same behaviour put (or remove the comment if it's there already):

 background: none

in ~/.fluxbox/overlay

3. Tips on working with fbsetbg

 fbsetbg -p

this will give you some very useful tips; read them slowly.

How to have nautilus set the background

If you are using nautilus as your file manager and have fbsetbg working, you can add a nautilus script that will give you a context menu item to set the background when you right-click on a graphic file. Here's how to do that.

Open your favorite text editor, create a new file and add the below text to the new file:

 #!/bin/sh
 fbsetbg $@

Save the file in ~/.gnome2/nautilus-scripts with a filename of "Set Background". Make the file executable with "chmod +x filename". Now, right-click on a .png, .gif or .jpg file in nautilus, choose Scripts -> Set Background from the context menu and fbsetbg will set the background to that graphic.

Backgrounds on Multiple Displays

See above.

Using fluxbox with multiple displays is very easy yet for a noobie setting the backgrounds on them can cause a little frustration.

You can achieve different backgrounds by using the ~/.fluxbox/lastwallpaper and setting them manually the first time.
Once you have the background set you then can add

session.screen0.rootCommand:    fbsetbg -l
session.screen1.rootCommand:    fbsetbg -l

To your ~/.fluxbox/init file to load them on startup.