summaryrefslogtreecommitdiffstats
path: root/README.hacking
diff options
context:
space:
mode:
authorSimon Rettberg2018-10-16 10:08:48 +0200
committerSimon Rettberg2018-10-16 10:08:48 +0200
commitd3a98cf6cbc3bd0b9efc570f58e8812c03931c18 (patch)
treecbddf8e50f35a9c6e878a5bfe3c6d625d99e12ba /README.hacking
downloadxscreensaver-d3a98cf6cbc3bd0b9efc570f58e8812c03931c18.tar.gz
xscreensaver-d3a98cf6cbc3bd0b9efc570f58e8812c03931c18.tar.xz
xscreensaver-d3a98cf6cbc3bd0b9efc570f58e8812c03931c18.zip
Original 5.40
Diffstat (limited to 'README.hacking')
-rw-r--r--README.hacking198
1 files changed, 198 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/README.hacking b/README.hacking
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6fc2fe5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.hacking
@@ -0,0 +1,198 @@
+
+==========================================================================
+
+ Writing new XScreenSaver modules
+
+==========================================================================
+
+Any program that can be made to render on an X window created by another
+process can be used as a screen saver. Just get the window ID out of
+$XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW, draw on that, and you're done.
+
+In theory, you can write a screen saver in any language you like. In
+practice, however, languages other than C or C++ tend not to allow you to
+draw to windows that they did not create themselves. Unfortunately, this
+means that if you want to write a screen saver, you must write it in C.
+
+Given that you're going to be writing in C, you might as well take
+advantage of the various utility functions that I have written to make
+that easier. Writing a new screen saver in C using the frameworks
+included with xscreensaver simplifies things enormously.
+
+Generally, the best way to learn how to do something is to find a similar
+program, and play around with it until you understand it. Another
+approach is to not worry about understanding it, but to just hack it out.
+Either way, your best bet is probably to start with one of the existing
+xscreensaver demos, included in the "hacks/" directory, rename the file,
+and edit it until it does what you want.
+
+The "Greynetic" and "Deluxe" hacks are probably good ones to start with,
+since they are so very simple. For OpenGL programs, "DangerBall" is a
+good example.
+
+
+==========================================================================
+Requirements for inclusion with the XScreenSaver collection
+==========================================================================
+
+ If you come up with anything, send it to me! If it's good, I'd love to
+ include it in the xscreensaver distribution. However, there are a few
+ requirements for me to distribute it:
+
+ - Write in portable ANSI C. No C++. No nonstandard libraries.
+
+ - Write a .man page describing all command-line options.
+
+ - Write an .xml file describing the graphical configuration dialog box.
+
+ - Include a BSD-like copyright/license notice at the top of each source
+ file (preferably, just use the one from "screenhack.h", and include
+ your name and the current year). The GNU GPL is not compatible with
+ the rest of XScreenSaver.
+
+
+==========================================================================
+The XScreenSaver API
+==========================================================================
+
+ - Start with #include "screenhack.h"
+
+ - Define 2 global variables:
+
+ yoursavername_defaults -- Default values for the resources you use.
+ yoursavername_options -- The command-line options you accept.
+
+ - Define 5 functions:
+
+ yoursavername_init -- Return an object holding your global state.
+ yoursavername_draw -- Draw a single frame, quickly.
+ yoursavername_free -- Free everything you've allocated.
+ yoursavername_reshape -- Called when the window is resized.
+ yoursavername_event -- Called when a keyboard or mouse event happens.
+
+ The "event" function will only be called when running in a window
+ (not as a screen saver). The "reshape" event will be called when the
+ window size changes, or (as a screen saver) when the display size
+ changes as a result of a RANDR event (e.g., plugging in a new monitor).
+
+ It's ok for both the "event" and "resize" functions to do nothing.
+
+ - All other functions should be static.
+
+ - The last line of the file should be
+ XSCREENSAVER_MODULE ("YourSaverName", yoursavername)
+
+ - Finally, edit the Makefile to add a rule for your program.
+ Just cut-and-paste one of the existing rules.
+
+ Your "draw" must not run for more than a fraction of a second without
+ returning. This means "don't call usleep()". Everything has to be a
+ state machine.
+
+ You may not store global state in global variables, or in function-local
+ static variables. All of your runtime state must be encapsulted in the
+ "state" object created by your "init" function. If you use global or
+ static variables, your screen saver will not work properly on macOS.
+
+ Do not call XSync() or XFlush(). If you think you need to do that, it
+ probably means that you are you are relying on the speed of the graphics
+ card for timing, which probably means that your "draw" function is
+ taking too long.
+
+
+==========================================================================
+The xlockmore API
+==========================================================================
+
+ Some of the display modes that come with xscreensaver were ported from
+ xlock, and so, for historical reasons, they follow a slightly different
+ programming convention. For newly-written Xlib programs, you'd be
+ better off following the pattern used in hacks like "Deluxe" than in
+ hacks like "Flag". The xlockmore ones are the ones that begin with
+ "#ifdef STANDALONE" and #include "xlockmore.h".
+
+ But, all OpenGL screen savers have to follow the xlockmore API.
+
+ The xlockmore API is similar to the XScreenSaver API, in that you define
+ (roughly) the same set of functions, but the naming conventions are
+ slightly different. Instead of "hackname_init", it's "init_hackname",
+ and it should be preceeded with the pseudo-declaration ENTRYPOINT.
+
+ One annoying mis-feature of the xlockmore API is that it *requires* you
+ to make use of global variables for two things: first, for each of your
+ command line options; and second, for an array that holds your global
+ state objects. These are the only exceptions to the "never use global
+ variables" rule.
+
+ There are a few important differences between the original xlockmore API
+ and XScreenSaver's implementation:
+
+ - XScreenSaver does not use refresh_hackname or change_hackname.
+
+ - XScreenSaver provides two additional hooks not present in xlockmore:
+ reshape_hackname, and hackname_handle_event. These are respectively
+ equivalent to hackname_reshape and hackname_event in the XScreenSaver
+ API.
+
+ - Under Xlib, MI_CLEARWINDOW doesn't clear the window immediately.
+ Instead, due to double buffering on macOS/iOS/Android, it waits until
+ after init_hackname or draw_hackname returns before clearing. Make
+ sure not to issue any Xlib drawing calls immediately after a call to
+ MI_CLEARWINDOW, as these will be erased. To clear the window
+ immediately, just use XClearWindow.
+
+
+==========================================================================
+Programming Tips
+==========================================================================
+
+ - Your screen saver should look reasonable at 20-30 frames per second.
+ That is, do not assume that your "draw" function will be called more
+ than 20 times a second. Even if you return a smaller requested delay
+ than that, you might not get it. Likewise, if your "draw" function
+ takes longer than 1/20th of a second to run, your screen saver may be
+ consuming too much CPU.
+
+ - Don't make assumptions about the depth of the display, or whether it
+ is colormapped. You must allocate all your colors explicitly: do not
+ assume you can construct an RGB value and use that as a pixel value
+ directly. In particular, you can't make assumptions about whether
+ pixels are RGB, RGBA, ARGB, ABGR, or even whether they are 32, 24,
+ 16 or 8 bits. Use the utility routines provided by "utils/colors.h"
+ to simplify color allocation.
+
+ - It is better to eliminate flicker by double-buffering to a Pixmap
+ than by erasing and re-drawing objects. Do not use drawing tricks
+ involving XOR.
+
+ - If you use double-buffering, have a resource to turn it off. (MacOS,
+ iOS and Android have double-buffering built in, so you'd end up
+ triple-buffering.)
+
+ - Understand the differences between Pixmaps and XImages, and keep in
+ mind which operations are happening in client memory and which are in
+ server memory, and which cause latency due to server round-trips.
+ Sometimes using the Shared Memory extension can be helpful, but
+ probably not as often as you might think.
+
+ - On modern machines, OpenGL will always run faster than Xlib. It's
+ also more portable. Consider writing in OpenGL whenever possible.
+
+
+==========================================================================
+macOS, iOS and Android
+==========================================================================
+
+ Though XScreenSaver started its life as an X11 program, it also now runs
+ on macOS, iOS and Android, due to a maniacal collection of compatibility
+ shims. If you do your development on an X11 system, and follow the
+ usual XScreenSaver APIs, you shouldn't need to do anything special for
+ it to also work on macOS and on phones.
+
+ See the READMEs in the OSX/ and android/ directories for instructions on
+ compiling for those platforms.
+
+ To check that an X11 saver will fit well on a mobile device, test it
+ with -geometry 640x1136 and 640x960. That's a good first step, anyway.
+
+==========================================================================