# What is X11?



## BIGDOGquake3 (Jan 16, 2003)

I have no clue, and I'm to lazy to look, lol


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## JetwingX (Jan 16, 2003)

i think it lets you run X86 (PC) baised unix programs???

whaat i want to know is how to use it to work with gimp


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## symphonix (Jan 18, 2003)

Nooooo! It does not emulate X86 or any other type of hardware architecture.

What it DOES do is implement the X-Window system, aka X11, aka XFree86, which is the common graphical environment on most Unix, Linux, Debian, BSD and Sun operating systems.

By running Apple's X11 client, you can run software designed to run on these systems.


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## adambyte (Jan 18, 2003)

yay! Finally, we're clearing this up!...

Would these apps that run under X11 also have a Coacoa interface, or at least, be kind of Aqua-esque?


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## lurk (Jan 18, 2003)

Nope they will look just like the would on any other unix box.  Well I guess if they looked Aquaesque there they would but that is not really relevent.

Now the cool thing is that X11 works over a network so that I can run the program on another machine and have the display on my mac.  I used to do this with my Linux box before the blue smoke escaped   That way I could put that noisy x86 box in another room and just interact with my nice (mostly) quite TiBook.

-Eric


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## seann (Jan 18, 2003)

and the even cooler thing is it uses hardware acceleration to do the rendering of the windows/blah.

Now thats cool.


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## symphonix (Jan 18, 2003)

Apple's implementation of X11 puts the Aqua window frames and buttons on the apps, so they do get a sort-of Aqua-ish appearance around the edges ... but the traditional Unix apperance in the middle.

It is very handy for accessing programs remotely, as Lurk has said. I can run apps on the Sun Solaris servers at uni and access them directly on my iBook desktop.

Apple have done a very good job on their implementation of X11. It is fast and neat. I just wish they hadn't advertised it in a way that lured people to download it and try it without even knowing what it is ;-)


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## adambyte (Jan 19, 2003)

Huh.... so, basically unix apps in an Aqua window... that's okay.... but does that also mean that instead of using the menubar, they make their own menus IN the window? I HATE that.

Also... basically, this opens up us Mac users to a lot more software, eh? Including AbiWord, or OpenOffice, or stuff like that?


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## symphonix (Jan 19, 2003)

AbiWord, yep.
OpenOffice, yah.
There is plenty of software made specifically for X11.


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## 96.9 (Jan 19, 2003)

X 11 is a tricky topic for apple users .

With basic unix or bsd you just have command prompt . The X 11 software modules were created to let you setup a GUI environment to use with unix or bsd . OS X is darwin bsd at the core and you can add the X 11 software and setup a gui interface for your apple , there are different window managers to use with the X 11 software like KDE or Gnome . 

Aqua was the GUI interface designed for darwin bsd by apple , but you can also add the unix X 11 software and run it along with Aqua .

There is lots of reading in the library or online about X 11 .


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## 96.9 (Jan 20, 2003)

http://www.defcon1.org/html/XWindows_Articles/xwindows_articles.html

This should keep ya busy all week reading in your spare time .


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## nr7 (Jan 21, 2003)

If Ive got both XDarwin and X11 installed at the moment. Is there some reason to keep XDarwin?


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## lurk (Jan 21, 2003)

> _Originally posted by nr7 _
> *If Ive got both XDarwin and X11 installed at the moment. Is there some reason to keep XDarwin? *



In general no they do the same thing so nuke XDarwin.  That said there are a couple of differences which might matter to you  

Apple's X11 can't do full screen stuff.
Apple's X11 can't do of screen open GL rendering.
They handle XAuth authentication differently so some times one will work and the other wont for remote display.
There have some different bugs so it may be nice to see if something is broken in both.

Most of those things will not even be noticed by a vanilla user though so I'd nuke it. It is just if you need one of those things above then it would be a deal killer.

-Eric


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## Vard (Jan 21, 2003)

Dude, I finally have an office app that I can use and enjoy...

After many patient months of waiting for OpenOffice to make it to some
form that I would be able to use, I have to say that I am very happy
to be using OpenOffice for OSX w/Apples X11. Between Apples timely
release of it's own X11, and OpenOffice going final beta, it was just
too much to pass up. I spent most of the summer and winter regretting
the $50 US that I spent on ThinkFree Office...thankfully I wont be
needing it anymore. OpenOffice just plain works for me...and better
yet, it's free, and betterer yet, it remembers the formatting I apply
to different docs and spreadsheets...imagine that! That was always
something that torked me about ThinkFree, it had constant amnesia.

So here's my next issue...I installed X11 and OpenOffice in the system
Applications folder, not my user Applications folder. Everything is
working great with my login. So last night I was going through the
process of making all my office docs open with OO instead of TFO.
Worked as planned...killer.

HOWEVER, I then went into my wifes login to so the same for her, and
ran into problems. X11 will start perfectly for her, but OpenOffice
never does. I know it's slow and you have to be patient, but I think
it was really just not working. Have I run into some Unix permissions
thing? Any help with why this isn't working would be great.

Thanks,

Eddie


I copied this text from a post I left on a Yahoo group....and now I have a new problem, so here it is.

Last night, I couldn't get X11 to start, which, needless to say, wont let OpenOffice get anywhere.  The X11 icon bounces once in the dock, and then is gone?

...one final note, yes, we are both Admin users on this computer.


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