2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
i3 User’s Guide
|
|
|
|
|
===============
|
|
|
|
|
Michael Stapelberg <michael+i3@stapelberg.de>
|
2011-08-07 12:03:29 -04:00
|
|
|
|
August 2011
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This document contains all the information you need to configure and use the i3
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
window manager. If it does not, please contact us on IRC (preferred) or post your
|
|
|
|
|
question(s) on the mailing list.
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
== Default keybindings
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
For the "too long; didn’t read" people, here is an overview of the default
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
keybindings (click to see the full size image):
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Keys to use with mod (alt):*
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
image:keyboard-layer1.png["Keys to use with mod (alt)",width=600,link="keyboard-layer1.png"]
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Keys to use with Shift+mod:*
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
image:keyboard-layer2.png["Keys to use with Shift+mod",width=600,link="keyboard-layer2.png"]
|
2010-03-07 15:12:59 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The red keys are the modifiers you need to press (by default), the blue keys
|
|
|
|
|
are your homerow.
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
== Using i3
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Throughout this guide, the keyword +mod+ will be used to refer to the
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
configured modifier. This is the alt key (Mod1) by default, with windows (Mod4)
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
being a popular alternative.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Opening terminals and moving around
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
One very basic operation is opening a new terminal. By default, the keybinding
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
for this is mod+Enter, that is Alt+Enter in the default configuration. By
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
pressing mod+Enter, a new terminal will be opened. It will fill the whole
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
space available on your screen.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image:single_terminal.png[Single terminal]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If you now open another terminal, i3 will place it next to the current one,
|
|
|
|
|
splitting the screen size in half. Depending on your monitor, i3 will put the
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
created window beside the existing window (on wide displays) or below the
|
|
|
|
|
existing window (rotated displays).
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image:two_terminals.png[Two terminals]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To move the focus between the two terminals, you can use the direction keys
|
|
|
|
|
which you may know from the editor +vi+. However, in i3, your homerow is used
|
|
|
|
|
for these keys (in +vi+, the keys are shifted to the left by one for
|
|
|
|
|
compatibility with most keyboard layouts). Therefore, +mod+J+ is left, +mod+K+
|
|
|
|
|
is down, +mod+L+ is up and `mod+;` is right. So, to switch between the
|
|
|
|
|
terminals, use +mod+K+ or +mod+L+. Of course, you can also use the arrow keys.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
At the moment, your workspace is split (it contains two terminals) in a
|
|
|
|
|
specific direction (horizontal by default). Every window can be split
|
|
|
|
|
horizontally or vertically again, just like the workspace. The terminology is
|
|
|
|
|
"window" for a container that actually contains an X11 window (like a terminal
|
|
|
|
|
or browser) and "split container" for containers that consist of one or more
|
|
|
|
|
windows.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
TODO: picture of the tree
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To split a window vertically, press +mod+v+. To split it horizontally, press
|
|
|
|
|
+mod+h+.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Changing the container layout
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
A split container can have one of the following layouts:
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
default::
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Windows are sized so that every window gets an equal amount of space in the
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
container.
|
|
|
|
|
stacking::
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Only the focused window in the container is displayed. You get a list of
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
windows at the top of the container.
|
|
|
|
|
tabbed::
|
|
|
|
|
The same principle as +stacking+, but the list of windows at the top is only
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
a single line which is vertically split.
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-08-27 09:28:11 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To switch modes, press +mod+e+ for default, +mod+s+ for stacking and
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
+mod+w+ for tabbed.
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image:modes.png[Container modes]
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Toggling fullscreen mode for a window
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To display a window in fullscreen mode or to go out of fullscreen mode again,
|
|
|
|
|
press +mod+f+.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
There is also a global fullscreen mode in i3 in which the client will span all
|
2010-05-04 14:27:52 -04:00
|
|
|
|
available outputs.
|
2010-03-07 20:02:35 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Opening other applications
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Aside from opening applications from a terminal, you can also use the handy
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
+dmenu+ which is opened by pressing +mod+d+ by default. Just type the name
|
|
|
|
|
(or a part of it) of the application which you want to open. The corresponding
|
|
|
|
|
application has to be in your +$PATH+ for this to work.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Additionally, if you have applications you open very frequently, you can
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
create a keybinding for starting the application directly. See the section
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
<<configuring>> for details.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Closing windows
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If an application does not provide a mechanism for closing (most applications
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
provide a menu, the escape key or a shortcut like +Control+W+ to close), you
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
can press +mod+Shift+q+ to kill a window. For applications which support
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
the WM_DELETE protocol, this will correctly close the application (saving
|
|
|
|
|
any modifications or doing other cleanup). If the application doesn’t support
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
the WM_DELETE protocol your X server will kill the window and the behaviour
|
|
|
|
|
depends on the application.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Using workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Workspaces are an easy way to group a set of windows. By default, you are on
|
|
|
|
|
the first workspace, as the bar on the bottom left indicates. To switch to
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
another workspace, press +mod+num+ where +num+ is the number of the workspace
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
you want to use. If the workspace does not exist yet, it will be created.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A common paradigm is to put the web browser on one workspace, communication
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
applications (+mutt+, +irssi+, ...) on another one, and the ones with which you
|
|
|
|
|
work, on the third one. Of course, there is no need to follow this approach.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If you have multiple screens, a workspace will be created on each screen at
|
|
|
|
|
startup. If you open a new workspace, it will be bound to the screen you
|
|
|
|
|
created it on. When you switch to a workspace on another screen, i3 will set
|
|
|
|
|
focus to that screen.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Moving windows to workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To move a window to another workspace, simply press +mod+Shift+num+ where
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
+num+ is (like when switching workspaces) the number of the target workspace.
|
|
|
|
|
Similarly to switching workspaces, the target workspace will be created if
|
|
|
|
|
it does not yet exist.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Resizing
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The easiest way to resize a container is by using the mouse: Grab the border
|
|
|
|
|
and move it to the wanted size.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
See <<resizingconfig>> for how to configure i3 to be able to resize
|
|
|
|
|
columns/rows with your keyboard.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Restarting i3 inplace
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To restart i3 inplace (and thus get into a clean state if there is a bug, or
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
to upgrade to a newer version of i3) you can use +mod+Shift+r+.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Exiting i3
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To cleanly exit i3 without killing your X server, you can use +mod+Shift+e+.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Floating
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Floating mode is the opposite of tiling mode. The position and size of a window
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
are not managed by i3, but by you. Using this mode violates the tiling
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
paradigm but can be useful for some corner cases like "Save as" dialog
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
windows, or toolbar windows (GIMP or similar). Those windows usually set the
|
|
|
|
|
appropriate hint and are opened in floating mode by default.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can enable floating mode for a window by pressing +mod+Shift+Space+. By
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
dragging the window’s titlebar with your mouse you can move the window
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
around. By grabbing the borders and moving them you can resize the window. You
|
|
|
|
|
can also do that by using the <<floating_modifier>>.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
For resizing floating windows with your keyboard, see <<resizingconfig>>.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Floating windows are always on top of tiling windows.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
== Tree
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
i3 stores all information about the X11 outputs, workspaces and layout of the
|
|
|
|
|
windows on them in a tree. The root node is the X11 root window, followed by
|
|
|
|
|
the X11 outputs, then dock areas and a content container, then workspaces and
|
|
|
|
|
finally the windows themselve. In previous versions of i3 we had multiple lists
|
|
|
|
|
(of outputs, workspaces) and a table for each workspace. That approach turned
|
|
|
|
|
out to be complicated to use (snapping), understand and implement.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== The tree consists of Containers
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The building blocks of our tree are so called +Containers+. A +Container+ can
|
|
|
|
|
host a window (meaning an X11 window, one that you can actually see and use,
|
|
|
|
|
like a browser). Alternatively, it could contain one or more +Containers+. A
|
|
|
|
|
simple example is the workspace: When you start i3 with a single monitor, a
|
|
|
|
|
single workspace and you open two terminal windows, you will end up with a tree
|
|
|
|
|
like this:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image::tree-layout2.png["layout2",float="right"]
|
|
|
|
|
image::tree-shot4.png["shot4",title="Two terminals on standard workspace"]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Orientation and Split Containers
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[[OrientationSplit]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
It is only natural to use so-called +Split Containers+ in order to build a
|
|
|
|
|
layout when using a tree as data structure. In i3, every +Container+ has an
|
|
|
|
|
orientation (horizontal, vertical or unspecified). So, in our example with the
|
|
|
|
|
workspace, the default orientation of the workspace +Container+ is horizontal
|
|
|
|
|
(most monitors are widescreen nowadays). If you change the orientation to
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
vertical (+mod+v+ in the default config) and *then* open two terminals, i3 will
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
configure your windows like this:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image::tree-shot2.png["shot2",title="Vertical Workspace Orientation"]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
An interesting new feature of the tree branch is the ability to split anything:
|
|
|
|
|
Let’s assume you have two terminals on a workspace (with horizontal
|
|
|
|
|
orientation), focus is on the right terminal. Now you want to open another
|
|
|
|
|
terminal window below the current one. If you would just open a new terminal
|
|
|
|
|
window, it would show up to the right due to the horizontal workspace
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
orientation. Instead, press +mod+v+ to create a +Vertical Split Container+ (to
|
|
|
|
|
open a +Horizontal Split Container+, use +mod+h+). Now you can open a new
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
terminal and it will open below the current one:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image::tree-layout1.png["Layout",float="right"]
|
|
|
|
|
image::tree-shot1.png["shot",title="Vertical Split Container"]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
unfloat::[]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You probably guessed it already: There is no limit on how deep your hierarchy
|
|
|
|
|
of splits can be.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-09 19:36:33 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Focus parent
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Let’s stay with our example from above. We have a terminal on the left and two
|
|
|
|
|
vertically split terminals on the right, focus is on the bottom right one. When
|
|
|
|
|
you open a new terminal, it will open below the current one.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
So, how can you open a new terminal window to the *right* of the current one?
|
2011-06-09 19:36:33 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The solution is to use +focus parent+, which will focus the +Parent Container+ of
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
the current +Container+. In this case, you would focus the +Vertical Split
|
|
|
|
|
Container+ which is *inside* the horizontally oriented workspace. Thus, now new
|
|
|
|
|
windows will be opened to the right of the +Vertical Split Container+:
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-09 19:36:33 -04:00
|
|
|
|
image::tree-shot3.png["shot3",title="Focus parent, then open new terminal"]
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[[configuring]]
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
== Configuring i3
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This is where the real fun begins ;-). Most things are very dependant on your
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
ideal working environment so we can’t make reasonable defaults for them.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
While not using a programming language for the configuration, i3 stays
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
quite flexible in regards to the things you usually want your window manager
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
to do.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For example, you can configure bindings to jump to specific windows,
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
you can set specific applications to start on specific workspaces, you can
|
|
|
|
|
automatically start applications, you can change the colors of i3, and you
|
|
|
|
|
can bind your keys to do useful things.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
To change the configuration of i3, copy +/etc/i3/config+ to +\~/.i3/config+
|
|
|
|
|
(or +~/.config/i3/config+ if you like the XDG directory scheme) and edit it
|
|
|
|
|
with a text editor.
|
2009-10-11 08:43:56 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
On first start (and on all following starts, unless you have a configuration
|
|
|
|
|
file), i3 will offer you to create a configuration file. You can tell the
|
|
|
|
|
wizard to use either Alt (Mod1) or Windows (Mod4) as modifier in the config
|
|
|
|
|
file. Also, the created config file will use the key symbols of your current
|
|
|
|
|
keyboard layout. To start the wizard, use the command +i3-config-wizard+.
|
|
|
|
|
Please note that you must not have +~/.i3/config+, otherwise the wizard will
|
|
|
|
|
exit.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
=== Comments
|
2009-10-11 08:43:56 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
It is possible and recommended to use comments in your configuration file to
|
|
|
|
|
properly document your setup for later reference. Comments are started with
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
a # and can only be used at the beginning of a line:
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# This is a comment
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Fonts
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
i3 uses X core fonts (not Xft) for rendering window titles. You can use
|
|
|
|
|
+xfontsel(1)+ to generate such a font description. To see special characters
|
|
|
|
|
(Unicode), you need to use a font which supports the ISO-10646 encoding.
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If i3 cannot open the configured font, it will output an error in the logfile
|
|
|
|
|
and fall back to a working font.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-06 18:00:04 -05:00
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
font <X core font description>
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
font -misc-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-120-75-75-C-70-iso10646-1
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------------------------
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[[keybindings]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Keyboard bindings
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
A keyboard binding makes i3 execute a command (see below) upon pressing a
|
|
|
|
|
specific key. i3 allows you to bind either on keycodes or on keysyms (you can
|
|
|
|
|
also mix your bindings, though i3 will not protect you from overlapping ones).
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
* A keysym (key symbol) is a description for a specific symbol, like "a"
|
|
|
|
|
or "b", but also more strange ones like "underscore" instead of "_". These
|
|
|
|
|
are the ones you use in Xmodmap to remap your keys. To get the current
|
|
|
|
|
mapping of your keys, use +xmodmap -pke+.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
* Keycodes do not need to have a symbol assigned (handy for custom vendor
|
|
|
|
|
hotkeys on some notebooks) and they will not change their meaning as you
|
|
|
|
|
switch to a different keyboard layout (when using +xmodmap+).
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
My recommendation is: If you often switch keyboard layouts but you want to keep
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
your bindings in the same physical location on the keyboard, use keycodes.
|
|
|
|
|
If you don’t switch layouts, and want a clean and simple config file, use
|
|
|
|
|
keysyms.
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym [Modifiers+]keysym command
|
2011-04-18 17:06:32 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindcode [Modifiers+]keycode command
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# Fullscreen
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+f f
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Restart
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+r restart
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Notebook-specific hotkeys
|
2011-04-18 17:06:32 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindcode 214 exec /home/michael/toggle_beamer.sh
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-05-26 11:37:56 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Available Modifiers:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mod1-Mod5, Shift, Control::
|
|
|
|
|
Standard modifiers, see +xmodmap(1)+
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mode_switch::
|
|
|
|
|
Unlike other window managers, i3 can use Mode_switch as a modifier. This allows
|
|
|
|
|
you to remap capslock (for example) to Mode_switch and use it for both: typing
|
|
|
|
|
umlauts or special characters 'and' having some comfortably reachable key
|
|
|
|
|
bindings. For example, when typing, capslock+1 or capslock+2 for switching
|
|
|
|
|
workspaces is totally convenient. Try it :-).
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[[floating_modifier]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-24 14:31:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== The floating modifier
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
To move floating windows with your mouse, you can either grab their titlebar
|
|
|
|
|
or configure the so called floating modifier which you can then press and
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
click anywhere in the window itself to move it. The most common setup is to
|
|
|
|
|
use the same key you use for managing windows (Mod1 for example). Then
|
|
|
|
|
you can press Mod1, click into a window using your left mouse button, and drag
|
|
|
|
|
it to the position you want.
|
2009-06-24 14:31:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
When holding the floating modifier, you can resize a floating window by
|
|
|
|
|
pressing the right mouse button on it and moving around while holding it. If
|
|
|
|
|
you hold the shift button as well, the resize will be proportional.
|
2010-03-12 18:59:16 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-24 14:31:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
floating_modifier <Modifiers>
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2009-06-24 14:31:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
floating_modifier Mod1
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 19:12:06 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Orientation for new workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
New workspaces get a reasonable default orientation: Wide-screen monitors
|
|
|
|
|
(anything wider than high) get horizontal orientation, rotated monitors
|
|
|
|
|
(anything higher than wide) get vertical orientation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
With the +default_orientation+ configuration directive, you can override that
|
2011-07-28 19:12:06 -04:00
|
|
|
|
behaviour.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
default_orientation <horizontal|vertical|auto>
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
default_orientation vertical
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Layout mode for new containers
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-10 09:14:42 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This option determines in which mode new containers on workspace level will
|
|
|
|
|
start.
|
|
|
|
|
///////////////////////////////
|
|
|
|
|
See also <<stack-limit>>.
|
|
|
|
|
//////////////////////////////
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------------
|
2011-06-10 09:14:42 -04:00
|
|
|
|
workspace_layout <default|stacking|tabbed>
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------------
|
2011-06-10 09:14:42 -04:00
|
|
|
|
/////////////////////////////////////////////
|
|
|
|
|
new_container stack-limit <cols|rows> <value>
|
|
|
|
|
/////////////////////////////////////////////
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------
|
2011-06-10 09:14:42 -04:00
|
|
|
|
workspace_layout tabbed
|
2009-11-08 06:45:05 -05:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Border style for new windows
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This option determines which border style new windows will have.
|
2009-11-08 06:45:05 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------------
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
new_window <normal|1pixel|borderless>
|
2009-11-08 06:45:05 -05:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2009-11-08 06:45:05 -05:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
new_window 1pixel
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------
|
2009-06-24 14:31:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-31 17:38:08 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Arbitrary commands for specific windows (for_window)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
With the +for_window+ command, you can let i3 execute any command when it
|
|
|
|
|
encounters a specific window. This can be used to set windows to floating or to
|
|
|
|
|
change their border style, for example.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
for_window [criteria] command
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# enable floating mode for all XTerm windows
|
2011-08-03 14:47:29 -04:00
|
|
|
|
for_window [class="XTerm"] floating enable
|
2011-07-31 17:38:08 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Make all urxvts use a 1-pixel border:
|
|
|
|
|
for_window [class="urxvt"] border 1pixel
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# A less useful, but rather funny example:
|
|
|
|
|
# makes the window floating as soon as I change
|
|
|
|
|
# directory to ~/work
|
2011-08-03 14:47:29 -04:00
|
|
|
|
for_window [title="x200: ~/work"] floating enable
|
2011-07-31 17:38:08 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Variables
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
As you learned in the section about keyboard bindings, you will have
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
to configure lots of bindings containing modifier keys. If you want to save
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
yourself some typing and be able to change the modifier you use later,
|
|
|
|
|
variables can be handy.
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------
|
2010-04-13 15:05:04 -04:00
|
|
|
|
set $name value
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
--------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
set $m Mod1
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym $m+Shift+r restart
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Variables are directly replaced in the file when parsing. There is no fancy
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
handling and there are absolutely no plans to change this. If you need a more
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
dynamic configuration you should create a little script which generates a
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
configuration file and run it before starting i3 (for example in your
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
+~/.xsession+ file).
|
2009-06-13 14:10:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Automatically putting clients on specific workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
[[assign_workspace]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Specific windows can be matched by window class and/or window title. It is
|
|
|
|
|
recommended that you match on window classes instead of window titles whenever
|
|
|
|
|
possible because some applications first create their window, and then worry
|
|
|
|
|
about setting the correct title. Firefox with Vimperator comes to mind. The
|
|
|
|
|
window starts up being named Firefox, and only when Vimperator is loaded does
|
|
|
|
|
the title change. As i3 will get the title as soon as the application maps the
|
|
|
|
|
window (mapping means actually displaying it on the screen), you’d need to have
|
|
|
|
|
to match on 'Firefox' in this case.
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can prefix or suffix workspaces with a `~` to specify that matching clients
|
|
|
|
|
should be put into floating mode. If you specify only a `~`, the client will
|
2009-07-21 10:43:20 -04:00
|
|
|
|
not be put onto any workspace, but will be set floating on the current one.
|
2009-06-19 14:20:00 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
2009-07-21 10:43:20 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------------------
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
assign ["]window class[/window title]["] [→] [workspace]
|
2009-07-21 10:43:20 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------------------
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
assign urxvt 2
|
|
|
|
|
assign urxvt → 2
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
assign urxvt → work
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
assign "urxvt" → 2
|
|
|
|
|
assign "urxvt/VIM" → 3
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
assign "gecko" → 4
|
2009-05-16 11:32:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Note that the arrow is not required, it just looks good :-). If you decide to
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
use it, it has to be a UTF-8 encoded arrow, not `->` or something like that.
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Automatically starting applications on i3 startup
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-12 06:24:01 -04:00
|
|
|
|
By using the +exec+ keyword outside a keybinding, you can configure
|
|
|
|
|
which commands will be performed by i3 on initial startup. +exec+
|
|
|
|
|
commands will not run when restarting i3, if you need a command to run
|
|
|
|
|
also when restarting i3 you should use the +exec_always+
|
|
|
|
|
keyword. These commands will be run in order.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
2011-07-12 06:24:01 -04:00
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
exec command
|
2011-07-12 06:24:01 -04:00
|
|
|
|
exec_always command
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
2011-08-01 08:40:01 -04:00
|
|
|
|
exec i3status | i3bar -d
|
2011-07-12 06:24:01 -04:00
|
|
|
|
exec_always ~/my_script.sh
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
[[workspace_screen]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Automatically putting workspaces on specific screens
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If you assign clients to workspaces, it might be handy to put the
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
workspaces on specific screens. Also, the assignment of workspaces to screens
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
will determine which workspace i3 uses for a new screen when adding screens
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
or when starting (e.g., by default it will use 1 for the first screen, 2 for
|
|
|
|
|
the second screen and so on).
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------
|
2010-03-02 07:35:43 -05:00
|
|
|
|
workspace <number> output <output>
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The 'output' is the name of the RandR output you attach your screen to. On a
|
2010-03-02 07:35:43 -05:00
|
|
|
|
laptop, you might have VGA1 and LVDS1 as output names. You can see the
|
|
|
|
|
available outputs by running +xrandr --current+.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------
|
2010-03-02 07:35:43 -05:00
|
|
|
|
workspace 1 output LVDS1
|
|
|
|
|
workspace 5 output VGA1
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Changing colors
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can change all colors which i3 uses to draw the window decorations.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
colorclass border background text
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Where colorclass can be one of:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
client.focused::
|
|
|
|
|
A client which currently has the focus.
|
|
|
|
|
client.focused_inactive::
|
|
|
|
|
A client which is the focused one of its container, but it does not have
|
|
|
|
|
the focus at the moment.
|
|
|
|
|
client.unfocused::
|
|
|
|
|
A client which is not the focused one of its container.
|
2009-09-06 16:40:11 -04:00
|
|
|
|
client.urgent::
|
|
|
|
|
A client which has its urgency hint activated.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-09-24 21:01:56 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can also specify the color to be used to paint the background of the client
|
|
|
|
|
windows. This color will be used to paint the window on top of which the client
|
|
|
|
|
will be rendered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
client.background color
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Only clients that do not cover the whole area of this window expose the color
|
|
|
|
|
used to paint it. If you use a color other than black for your terminals, you
|
|
|
|
|
most likely want to set the client background color to the same color as your
|
|
|
|
|
terminal program's background color to avoid black gaps between the rendered
|
|
|
|
|
area of the termianal and the i3 border.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Colors are in HTML hex format (#rrggbb), see the following example:
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# class border backgr. text
|
|
|
|
|
client.focused #2F343A #900000 #FFFFFF
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Note that for the window decorations, the color around the child window is the
|
|
|
|
|
background color, and the border color is only the two thin lines at the top of
|
2009-12-15 13:11:01 -05:00
|
|
|
|
the window.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Interprocess communication
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
i3 uses unix sockets to provide an IPC interface. This allows third-party
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
programs to get information from i3, such as the current workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
(to display a workspace bar), and to control i3.
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The IPC socket is enabled by default and will be created in
|
|
|
|
|
+/tmp/i3-%u/ipc-socket.%p+ where +%u+ is your UNIX username and +%p+ is the PID
|
|
|
|
|
of i3.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can override the default path through the environment-variable +I3SOCK+ or
|
2011-08-25 08:11:31 -04:00
|
|
|
|
by specifying the +ipc-socket+ directive. This is discouraged, though, since i3
|
|
|
|
|
does the right thing by default.
|
2011-01-10 22:39:48 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
ipc-socket /tmp/i3-ipc.sock
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can then use the +i3-msg+ application to perform any command listed in
|
|
|
|
|
the next section.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 18:26:30 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Focus follows mouse
|
2010-01-29 15:58:28 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you have a setup where your mouse usually is in your way (like a touchpad
|
|
|
|
|
on your laptop which you do not want to disable completely), you might want
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
to disable 'focus follows mouse' and control focus only by using your keyboard.
|
2010-01-29 15:58:28 -05:00
|
|
|
|
The mouse will still be useful inside the currently active window (for example
|
|
|
|
|
to click on links in your browser window).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
focus_follows_mouse <yes|no>
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 18:26:30 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2010-01-29 15:58:28 -05:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
focus_follows_mouse no
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 18:26:30 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Popups during fullscreen mode
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When you are in fullscreen mode, some applications still open popup windows
|
|
|
|
|
(take Xpdf for example). This is because these applications may not be aware
|
|
|
|
|
that they are in fullscreen mode (they do not check the corresponding hint).
|
|
|
|
|
There are two things which are possible to do in this situation:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1. Just ignore the popup (don’t map it). This won’t interrupt you while you are
|
|
|
|
|
in fullscreen. However, some apps might react badly to this (deadlock until
|
|
|
|
|
you go out of fullscreen).
|
|
|
|
|
2. Leave fullscreen mode. This is the default.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
popup_during_fullscreen <ignore|leave_fullscreen>
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
popup_during_fullscreen ignore
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
== List of commands
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 19:12:19 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Splitting containers
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The split command makes the current window a split container. Split containers
|
|
|
|
|
can contain multiple windows. Every split container has an orientation, it is
|
|
|
|
|
either split horizontally (a new window gets placed to the right of the current
|
|
|
|
|
one) or vertically (a new window gets placed below the current one).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you apply this command to a split container with the same orientation,
|
|
|
|
|
nothing will happen. If you use a different orientation, the split container’s
|
|
|
|
|
orientation will be changed (if it does not have more than one window).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
split <vertical|horizontal>
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
2011-08-07 12:03:29 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+v split vertical
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+h split horizontal
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
2011-07-28 19:12:19 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Manipulating layout
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-29 07:31:37 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Use +layout default+, +layout stacking+ or +layout tabbed+ to change the
|
|
|
|
|
current container layout to default, stacking or tabbed layout, respectively.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
To make the current window (!) fullscreen, use +fullscreen+, to make
|
2011-06-09 20:06:47 -04:00
|
|
|
|
it floating (or tiling again) use +floating enable+ respectively +floating disable+
|
|
|
|
|
(or +floating toggle+):
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+s layout stacking
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+l layout default
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+w layout tabbed
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Toggle fullscreen
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+f fullscreen
|
2010-03-07 20:02:35 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
# Toggle floating/tiling
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+t floating toggle
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
--------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Focusing/Moving containers
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-08 14:49:49 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To change the focus, use the focus command: +focus left+, +focus right+, +focus down+ and +focus up+.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-04 11:09:52 -04:00
|
|
|
|
There are a few special parameters you can use for the focus command:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
parent::
|
|
|
|
|
Sets focus to the +Parent Container+ of the current +Container+.
|
|
|
|
|
child::
|
|
|
|
|
The opposite of +focus parent+, sets the focus to the last focused
|
|
|
|
|
child container.
|
|
|
|
|
floating::
|
|
|
|
|
Sets focus to the last focused floating container.
|
|
|
|
|
tiling::
|
|
|
|
|
Sets focus to the last focused tiling container.
|
|
|
|
|
mode_toggle::
|
|
|
|
|
Toggles between floating/tiling containers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
For moving, use +move left+, +move right+, +move down+ and +move up+.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# Focus clients on the left, bottom, top, right:
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+j focus left
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+k focus down
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+l focus up
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+semicolon focus right
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-04 11:09:52 -04:00
|
|
|
|
# Focus parent container
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+u focus parent
|
2011-07-04 11:09:52 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Focus last floating/tiling container
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+g focus mode_toggle
|
2011-07-04 11:09:52 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
# Move client to the left, bottom, top, right:
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+j move left
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+k move down
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+l move up
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+semicolon move right
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-08-25 08:11:31 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Changing (named) workspaces/moving to workspaces
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To change to a specific workspace, use the +workspace+ command, followed by the
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
number or name of the workspace. To move containers to specific workspaces, use
|
|
|
|
|
+move workspace+.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-10 10:03:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
You can also switch to the next and previous workspace with the commands
|
|
|
|
|
+workspace next+ and +workspace prev+, which is handy, for example, if you have
|
|
|
|
|
workspace 1, 3, 4 and 9 and you want to cycle through them with a single key
|
|
|
|
|
combination.
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+1 workspace 1
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+2 workspace 2
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
...
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+1 move workspace 1
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+2 move workspace 2
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
...
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-08-25 08:11:31 -04:00
|
|
|
|
==== Named workspaces
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Workspaces are identified by their name. So, instead of using numbers in the
|
|
|
|
|
workspace command, you can use an arbitrary name:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+1 workspace mail
|
|
|
|
|
...
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you want the workspace to have a number *and* a name, just prefix the
|
|
|
|
|
number, like this:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Example*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+1 workspace 1: mail
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+2 workspace 2: www
|
|
|
|
|
...
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Note that the workspace will really be named "1: mail". i3 treats workspace
|
|
|
|
|
names beginning with a number in a slightly special way. Normally, named
|
|
|
|
|
workspaces are ordered the way they appeared. When they start with a number, i3
|
|
|
|
|
will order them numerically.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[[resizingconfig]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-10 09:16:05 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Resizing containers/windows
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-06-10 09:16:05 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If you want to resize containers/windows using your keyboard, you can use the
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
+resize+ command, I recommend using it inside a so called +mode+:
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
.Example: Configuration file, defining a mode for resizing
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
mode "resize" {
|
|
|
|
|
# These bindings trigger as soon as you enter the resize mode
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# They resize the border in the direction you pressed, e.g.
|
|
|
|
|
# when pressing left, the window is resized so that it has
|
|
|
|
|
# more space on its left
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym j resize shrink left
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym Shift+j resize grow left
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-08-09 03:46:02 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym k resize grow down
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym Shift+k resize shrink down
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-08-09 03:46:02 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym l resize shrink up
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym Shift+l resize grow up
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym semicolon resize grow right
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym Shift+semicolon resize shrink right
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-04-18 17:06:32 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindcode 36 mode default
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
}
|
2010-01-26 16:48:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Enter resize mode
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+r mode "resize"
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Jumping to specific windows
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Often when in a multi-monitor environment, you want to quickly jump to a
|
|
|
|
|
specific window. For example, while working on workspace 3 you may want to
|
|
|
|
|
jump to your mail client to email your boss that you’ve achieved some
|
|
|
|
|
important goal. Instead of figuring out how to navigate to your mailclient,
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
it would be more convenient to have a shortcut. You can use the +focus+ command
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
with criteria for that.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------------
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[class="class"] focus
|
|
|
|
|
[title="title"] focus
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
# Get me to the next open VIM instance
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+a [class="urxvt" title="VIM"] focus
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== VIM-like marks (mark/goto)
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
[[vim_like_marks]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This feature is like the jump feature: It allows you to directly jump to a
|
|
|
|
|
specific window (this means switching to the appropriate workspace and setting
|
|
|
|
|
focus to the windows). However, you can directly mark a specific window with
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
an arbitrary label and use it afterwards. You do not need to ensure that your
|
|
|
|
|
windows have unique classes or titles, and you do not need to change your
|
|
|
|
|
configuration file.
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
As the command needs to include the label with which you want to mark the
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
window, you cannot simply bind it to a key. +i3-input+ is a tool created
|
|
|
|
|
for this purpose: It lets you input a command and sends the command to i3. It
|
|
|
|
|
can also prefix this command and display a custom prompt for the input dialog.
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
mark identifier
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[con_mark="identifier"] focus
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Example (in a terminal)*:
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
$ i3-msg mark irssi
|
|
|
|
|
$ i3-msg '[con_mark="irssi"] focus'
|
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
|
|
|
|
|
TODO: make i3-input replace %s
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# Read 1 character and mark the current window with this character
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+m exec i3-input -p 'mark ' -l 1 -P 'Mark: '
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Read 1 character and go to the window with the character
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+g exec i3-input -p 'goto ' -l 1 -P 'Goto: '
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Alternatively, if you do not want to mess with +i3-input+, you could create
|
|
|
|
|
seperate bindings for a specific set of labels and then only use those labels.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Changing border style
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To change the border of the current client, you can use +border normal+ to use the normal
|
|
|
|
|
border (including window title), +border 1pixel+ to use a 1-pixel border (no window title)
|
|
|
|
|
and +border none+ to make the client borderless.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There is also +border toggle+ which will toggle the different border styles.
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+t border normal
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+y border 1pixel
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+u border none
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
[[stack-limit]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
|
|
|
|
|
TODO: not yet implemented
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Changing the stack-limit of a container
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
If you have a single container with a lot of windows inside it (say, more than
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
10), the default layout of a stacking container can get a little unhandy.
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Depending on your screen’s size, you might end up with only half of the title
|
|
|
|
|
lines being actually used, wasting a lot of screen space.
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Using the +stack-limit+ command, you can limit the number of rows or columns
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
in a stacking container. i3 will create columns or rows (depending on what
|
|
|
|
|
you limited) automatically as needed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Syntax*:
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
stack-limit <cols|rows> <value>
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
|
|
|
|
# I always want to have two window titles in one line
|
|
|
|
|
stack-limit cols 2
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# Not more than 5 rows in this stacking container
|
|
|
|
|
stack-limit rows 5
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
image:stacklimit.png[Container limited to two columns]
|
2011-05-28 15:58:58 -04:00
|
|
|
|
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
|
2009-10-23 13:53:36 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
=== Reloading/Restarting/Exiting
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You can make i3 reload its configuration file with +reload+. You can also
|
|
|
|
|
restart i3 inplace with the +restart+ command to get it out of some weird state
|
|
|
|
|
(if that should ever happen) or to perform an upgrade without having to restart
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
your X session. To exit i3 properly, you can use the +exit+ command,
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
however you don’t need to (simply killing your X session is fine as well).
|
2009-06-01 08:59:25 -04:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Examples*:
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
2011-07-28 16:51:34 -04:00
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+r restart
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+w reload
|
|
|
|
|
bindsym mod+Shift+e exit
|
2009-08-19 06:59:13 -04:00
|
|
|
|
----------------------------
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[[multi_monitor]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-24 22:26:59 -04:00
|
|
|
|
== Multiple monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
As you can see in the goal list on the website, i3 was specifically developed
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
with support for multiple monitors in mind. This section will explain how to
|
|
|
|
|
handle multiple monitors.
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
When you have only one monitor, things are simple. You usually start with
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
workspace 1 on your monitor and open new ones as you need them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When you have more than one monitor, each monitor will get an initial
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
workspace. The first monitor gets 1, the second gets 2 and a possible third
|
|
|
|
|
would get 3. When you switch to a workspace on a different monitor, i3 will
|
|
|
|
|
switch to that monitor and then switch to the workspace. This way, you don’t
|
|
|
|
|
need shortcuts to switch to a specific monitor, and you don’t need to remember
|
|
|
|
|
where you put which workspace. New workspaces will be opened on the currently
|
|
|
|
|
active monitor. It is not possible to have a monitor without a workspace.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The idea of making workspaces global is based on the observation that most
|
|
|
|
|
users have a very limited set of workspaces on their additional monitors.
|
|
|
|
|
They are often used for a specific task (browser, shell) or for monitoring
|
|
|
|
|
several things (mail, IRC, syslog, …). Thus, using one workspace on one monitor
|
|
|
|
|
and "the rest" on the other monitors often makes sense. However, as you can
|
|
|
|
|
create an unlimited number of workspaces in i3 and tie them to specific
|
|
|
|
|
screens, you can have the "traditional" approach of having X workspaces per
|
|
|
|
|
screen by changing your configuration (using modes, for example).
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Configuring your monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
To help you get going if you have never used multiple monitors before, here is
|
|
|
|
|
a short overview of the xrandr options which will probably be of interest to
|
|
|
|
|
you. It is always useful to get an overview of the current screen configuration.
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Just run "xrandr" and you will get an output like the following:
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
$ xrandr
|
|
|
|
|
Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 1280 x 800, maximum 8192 x 8192
|
|
|
|
|
VGA1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
|
|
|
|
|
LVDS1 connected 1280x800+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 261mm x 163mm
|
|
|
|
|
1280x800 60.0*+ 50.0
|
|
|
|
|
1024x768 85.0 75.0 70.1 60.0
|
|
|
|
|
832x624 74.6
|
|
|
|
|
800x600 85.1 72.2 75.0 60.3 56.2
|
|
|
|
|
640x480 85.0 72.8 75.0 59.9
|
|
|
|
|
720x400 85.0
|
|
|
|
|
640x400 85.1
|
|
|
|
|
640x350 85.1
|
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Several things are important here: You can see that +LVDS1+ is connected (of
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
course, it is the internal flat panel) but +VGA1+ is not. If you have a monitor
|
|
|
|
|
connected to one of the ports but xrandr still says "disconnected", you should
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
check your cable, monitor or graphics driver.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
The maximum resolution you can see at the end of the first line is the maximum
|
|
|
|
|
combined resolution of your monitors. By default, it is usually too low and has
|
|
|
|
|
to be increased by editing +/etc/X11/xorg.conf+.
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
So, say you connected VGA1 and want to use it as an additional screen:
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
xrandr --output VGA1 --auto --left-of LVDS1
|
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This command makes xrandr try to find the native resolution of the device
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
connected to +VGA1+ and configures it to the left of your internal flat panel.
|
|
|
|
|
When running "xrandr" again, the output looks like this:
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
$ xrandr
|
|
|
|
|
Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 2560 x 1024, maximum 8192 x 8192
|
|
|
|
|
VGA1 connected 1280x1024+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 338mm x 270mm
|
|
|
|
|
1280x1024 60.0*+ 75.0
|
|
|
|
|
1280x960 60.0
|
|
|
|
|
1152x864 75.0
|
|
|
|
|
1024x768 75.1 70.1 60.0
|
|
|
|
|
832x624 74.6
|
|
|
|
|
800x600 72.2 75.0 60.3 56.2
|
|
|
|
|
640x480 72.8 75.0 66.7 60.0
|
|
|
|
|
720x400 70.1
|
|
|
|
|
LVDS1 connected 1280x800+1280+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 261mm x 163mm
|
|
|
|
|
1280x800 60.0*+ 50.0
|
|
|
|
|
1024x768 85.0 75.0 70.1 60.0
|
|
|
|
|
832x624 74.6
|
|
|
|
|
800x600 85.1 72.2 75.0 60.3 56.2
|
|
|
|
|
640x480 85.0 72.8 75.0 59.9
|
|
|
|
|
720x400 85.0
|
|
|
|
|
640x400 85.1
|
|
|
|
|
640x350 85.1
|
2010-03-20 20:50:10 -04:00
|
|
|
|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
Please note that i3 uses exactly the same API as xrandr does, so it will see
|
|
|
|
|
only what you can see in xrandr.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
See also <<presentations>> for more examples of multi-monitor setups.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Interesting configuration for multi-monitor environments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There are several things to configure in i3 which may be interesting if you
|
|
|
|
|
have more than one monitor:
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
1. You can specify which workspace should be put on which screen. This
|
|
|
|
|
allows you to have a different set of workspaces when starting than just
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
1 for the first monitor, 2 for the second and so on. See
|
|
|
|
|
<<workspace_screen>>.
|
|
|
|
|
2. If you want some applications to generally open on the bigger screen
|
|
|
|
|
(MPlayer, Firefox, …), you can assign them to a specific workspace, see
|
|
|
|
|
<<assign_workspace>>.
|
|
|
|
|
3. If you have many workspaces on many monitors, it might get hard to keep
|
|
|
|
|
track of which window you put where. Thus, you can use vim-like marks to
|
|
|
|
|
quickly switch between windows. See <<vim_like_marks>>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
== i3 and the rest of your software world
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Displaying a status line
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A very common thing amongst users of exotic window managers is a status line at
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
some corner of the screen. It is an often superior replacement to the widget
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
approach you have in the task bar of a traditional desktop environment.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you don’t already have your favorite way of generating such a status line
|
|
|
|
|
(self-written scripts, conky, …), then i3status is the recommended tool for
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
this task. It was written in C with the goal of using as few syscalls as
|
2011-07-31 09:39:18 -04:00
|
|
|
|
possible to reduce the time your CPU is woken up from sleep states. Because
|
|
|
|
|
i3status only spits out text, you need to combine it with some other tool, like
|
|
|
|
|
i3bar. Use a pipe to connect them: +i3status | i3bar -d+.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Regardless of which application you use to display the status line, you
|
|
|
|
|
want to make sure that it registers as a dock window using EWMH hints. i3 will
|
|
|
|
|
position the window either at the top or at the bottom of the screen, depending
|
|
|
|
|
on which hint the application sets. With i3bar, you can use +-d+ or +-dbottom+
|
|
|
|
|
for positioning it at the bottom and +-dtop+ to position it at the top of the
|
|
|
|
|
screen.
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
=== Giving presentations (multi-monitor)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When giving a presentation, you typically want the audience to see what you see
|
|
|
|
|
on your screen and then go through a series of slides (if the presentation is
|
|
|
|
|
simple). For more complex presentations, you might want to have some notes
|
|
|
|
|
which only you can see on your screen, while the audience can only see the
|
|
|
|
|
slides.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[[presentations]]
|
|
|
|
|
==== Case 1: everybody gets the same output
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
This is the simple case. You connect your computer to the video projector,
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
turn on both (computer and video projector) and configure your X server to
|
|
|
|
|
clone the internal flat panel of your computer to the video output:
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1024x768 --same-as LVDS1
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
i3 will then use the lowest common subset of screen resolutions, the rest of
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
your screen will be left untouched (it will show the X background). So, in
|
2009-12-07 04:25:12 -05:00
|
|
|
|
our example, this would be 1024x768 (my notebook has 1280x800).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
==== Case 2: you can see more than your audience
|
|
|
|
|
This case is a bit harder. First of all, you should configure the VGA output
|
|
|
|
|
somewhere near your internal flat panel, say right of it:
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1024x768 --right-of LVDS1
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
Now, i3 will put a new workspace (depending on your settings) on the new screen
|
|
|
|
|
and you are in multi-monitor mode (see <<multi_monitor>>).
|
|
|
|
|
|
2010-03-16 15:28:43 -04:00
|
|
|
|
Because i3 is not a compositing window manager, there is no ability to
|
|
|
|
|
display a window on two screens at the same time. Instead, your presentation
|
2010-03-15 13:23:12 -04:00
|
|
|
|
software needs to do this job (that is, open a window on each screen).
|