afterstep_faq(1)         AfterStep X11 window manager         afterstep_faq(1)



NAME
       afterstep_faq - This document is an ever growing set of questions,
       statements, ideas and complaints about AfterStep version 2.0 1. General
       Information1.1. About this Document.This document is an ever growing
       set of questions, statements, ideas and complaints about AfterStep
       version 2.0.You can get this FAQ at the following locations:The rest of
       this document assumes you are running AfterStep 2.0. If you are running
       a version of AfterStep prior to version 2.0, this document will
       suggests only one thing: upgrade.1.2. What is AfterStep?AfterStep is a
       Window Manager for the X Window System (hereafter referred to as X). It
       was started to emulate the look and feel of NeXTSTEP(tm), but has
       evolved into something that while still being able to emulate NeXT, can
       do much much more. Without using much memory or cpu time, AfterStep
       provides all the features one could want in a Window Manager.1.3. What
       is AfterStep's history?Original AfterStep was a continuation of the
       BowMan Window Manager which was originally put together by Bo Yang.
       BowMan was based on the fvwm Window Manager, written by Robert Nation.
       Fvwm was based on code from twm. And so on....Idea was to emulate some
       of the look and feel of the NEXTSTEP(tm) user interface, but overtime
       it evolved to include other concepts, as dictated by end user needs. It
       is that unholy direction that made Alfredo Kojima abandon project in
       1997 and create a Window Manger of its own - Window Maker, which had a
       goal of strict adherance to NEXTSTEP interface ideas.After releasing
       version 1.8.11 it became aparent for developers that old AfterStep
       codebase had reached its limits and required a substantial redesign.
       Such redesign began with development of radically new image handling
       library libAfterImage, introducing high quality image manipulation,
       blending, TrueType fonts, XML image scripting, and more. Building off
       of libAfterImage and incorporating new developments in X Window
       management, AfterStep 2.0 was born and released in September, 2004. As
       of now AfterStep code base contains none of the original fvwm parts,
       and association to fvwm, twm and BowMan remain only in history.1.4.
       Fine, what if I'm not running AfterStep 2.0? Is there a FAQ for me?Yes.
       There should be a version of the AfterStep FAQ available within your
       specific AfterStep distribution. If you are using a version earlier
       than 2.0, it is strongly suggested you upgrade.1.5. What is X? What are
       these "window managers" ?"X" is shorthand for The X Window System. It
       is a basis for building graphical user interfaces for UNIX (it is
       available for non-UNIX systems, but wasn't designed to be as such). "X"
       is not the interface itself, just a foundation for one. For more
       information, checkwww.x.org.A Window Manager is a program that manages
       your windows during your X session. AfterStep is one of many
       availablewindow managers.1.6. What are AfterStep's main features?The
       WharfSimilar to NeXTSTEP's(tm) Dock, it allows applications to be
       Swallowed, shortcuts with icons, and many other things.The PagerShows a
       miniature view of the Afterstep desktops, you can move between them,
       and move windows around in the Pager as though it were a miniature
       desktop.The WinListA list of all the windows, clicking on the items can
       show that window, destroy it, shade it, or anything you might
       want.ConfigurabilityAlmost anything can be changed.XML image
       scriptingAfterStep allows XML scripts to be used to assemble complex
       images for things like buttons, frame sides, etc, from other, simplier
       images or graphical primitives.TrueType fonts supportAntialised
       TrueType fonts could be used to render window titles and other
       labels.Unicode, UTF8 and other encodings supportMost international
       character encodings are supported as long as fonts provide
       glyphs.ColorSchemesAfterStep can calculate a set of about 34 colors to
       create looks with harmonious color composition.1.7. Is AfterStep 2.0
       GNOME and/or KDE compliant?AfterStep 2.0 supports Extended Window
       Manager Hints, ICCCM protocol and Motif hints, thus making it as
       compatible as possible with both GNOME and KDE, as well as most other X
       applications.1.8. Can I run it in Microsoft Windows(tm)?AfterStep 2.0
       does run under Windows using CYGWIN compatibility layer, while running
       any X server. Some of the X servers available under Windows allow so-
       called root-less mode, where X applications can coincide with native
       applications. Seesample screenshot.1.9. Who develops AfterStep?Sasha
       Vasko <sasha at aftercode.net>coordinator, coder, web designer,
       carpenter, and everything else ( at the moment ).Niklas Lunger <niklas
       at fet dot at>documentation and user testing.Nathan Mahon <as_ml at
       vaevictus net>realease manager1.10. AfterStep is awesome! How can I
       help?Code contributions are welcome. Hardware donations are welcome. If
       you can help write AfterStep, or feel you can help the effort
       elsewhere, do so. Hang out on irc (#afterstep, efnet), participate on
       the mailing lists, suggest ideas, help code, etc etc.1.11. Who writes
       this FAQ?see 1.9. above.  3. Getting and Installing AfterStep 2.03.1.
       Where can I get AfterStep 2.0?You can download AfterStep 2.0 at any of
       the following
       locations:ftp://ftp.afterstep.org/stable/SourceForge.netRPM
       packages3.2. What do I need to compile and install AfterStep?Because
       AfterStep is an X application, you need to have X installed, and the X
       development libraries (note, in this case "development" means libraries
       need to compile things with X, not development level code). It's
       probably a good idea to also have a working C compiler.AfterStep
       includes some image libraries, but it is recommended that you install
       those libraries using your distribution's package management system.
       Note that you will need development libraries in addition to run-time
       libraries. The following are the libraries that AfterStep can take
       advantage of :libJPEG - support for JPEG image formatlibPNG - support
       for PNG image formatlibTIFF - support for TIFF image formatFreetype -
       support for TrueType fontsNote that following image format do not
       require any external libraries : XPM, PPM, BMP, ICO, XCF, GIF.3.3. Can
       I install AfterStep without being root?Yes, before compiling AfterStep,
       do this:mkdir /bin mkdir -p /man/man1 ./configure --prefix /Then follow
       the normal install directions, allowing you tomake installwithout being
       root.3.4. How do I upgrade AfterStep from AfterStep version prior to
       2.0.0?Install AfterStep 2.0 and then run it. It will start with default
       configuration that you may or maynot like. If you wish to try and reuse
       your old configuration files, then copy them over from your old
       /GNUstep/Library/AfterStep/ directory and into /.afterstep/. Restart
       AfterStep to make changes effective. If some of the features do not
       work quite right - feel free to submit bug report along with your
       configuration files.It is recommended though that you start with
       default configuration and try out all of the supplied looks and color
       schemes. Select whichever is close to what you want and then modify it
       to your liking. These approach will allow you to take advantage of many
       new features, available in AfterStep 2.0.3.4. How do I upgrade
       AfterStep from AfterStep version higher then 2.0.0?Make sure that all
       configuration files that you ever changed are in your home directory at
       /.afterstep/, as installing afterstep will replace everything in global
       shared location (/usr/local/share/afterstep). Install afterstep and
       run. You should not have any trouble.3.5. What's up with all these
       compile errors?Most likely, you don't have the X devel package (should
       have come with your operating system, if not,
       checkhttp://www.x.org/).3.6. How the hell does one configure
       AfterStep?Configuration files are usually either in
       /usr(/local)/share/afterstep for system wide configuration and
       ~.afterstep for personal settings.Configuration is handled in multiple
       files: look file (in looks subdirectory) for visual attributes, feel
       file (in feels subdirectory) for the general behaviour; wharf, winlist,
       banner, pager, animate for module specific configuration.Just copy any
       file you want to modify over from /usr(/local)/share/afterstep to
       ~.afterstep to override system wide defaults retaining subdirectory
       layout.  2. Resources2.1. Where can I find AfterStep resources, or
       help?HTML documentationAfterStep 2.0 comes installed with complete set
       of documentation in HTML format, usually installed at
       /usr/local/share/afterstep/doc/html or /usr/share/afterstep/doc/html .
       Same documentation is available online from
       :http://www.afterstep.org/visualdoc.php. If you find that documentation
       incomplete in some areas - please feel free to submit any corrections
       to any of the AfterStep mailing lists.WWW PageThe official AfterStep
       web page is athttp://www.afterstep.org/. This web site is managed by
       whoever has write access to AfterStep CVS, and is kindly hosted by the
       generous people atWeb Conquest.FTP siteThe FTP
       site,ftp://ftp.afterstep.org/, is the best place to get
       AfterStep.AfterStep appletsThe applets (asapps) that go with AfterStep
       are distributed separately. The applet distribution is maintained by
       Albert Dorofeev, (<tigr@tigr.net>). You can find the applets
       athttp://www.tigr.net/afterstep/as-apps/. RPMs for many an applet could
       be found here :http://www.afterstep.org/rpms/Man pages.AfterStep
       installation comes with set of man pages that attempt to cover all
       aspects of AfterStep configuration.Pleaseread the relevent man page
       before asking a question. Also note that the Pager man page is 'man
       Pager' (note the capitalization).IRCThere is also #afterstep on
       freenode.net IRC servers. You can view current activity here
       :http://www.rchitecture.com/~computer/2.2. What are the AfterStep
       mailing lists, and where are their archives?There are three AfterStep
       mailing lists. as-users, as-devel and as-bugs.as-users.as-users is the
       general AfterStep mailing list, open to all AfterStep questions,
       concerns and ideas (NOLiteSTEP, Window Maker, some-x-app questions
       unless it really does pertain to AfterStep, please). Subscribe by
       entering your e-mail at :http://mail.afterstep.org/mailman/listinfo/as-
       users/as-devel.as-devel is the development AfterStep mailing list. It
       is used to send notices about commits to CVS repository. Subscribe by
       entering your e-mail at :http://mail.afterstep.org/mailman/listinfo/as-
       devel/as-bugs.as-bugs is the AfterStep mailing list for submiting bug
       reports. It is geared toward development questions, ideas and
       complaints. Subscribe by entering your e-mail at
       :http://mail.afterstep.org/mailman/listinfo/as-bugs/The mailing list
       archives can be read athttp://www.tigr.net/afterstep/mail/.



3rd Berkeley Distribution      AfterStep v.2.2.9              afterstep_faq(1)
