1ICEWM(1) User Commands ICEWM(1)
2
6 icewm - lightweight X11 window manager
7
9 icewm [OPTIONS]
10
12 icewm is a lightweight window manager for the X11 window system. It
13 aims to be small, fast and familiar to new users. icewm is called a
14 re-parenting window manager, because it draws small frames around
15 application windows. Windows are manipulated via the mouse by dragging
16 or resizing this frame. It is also called a stacking window manager,
17 because windows can overlap. Many windows may exist, some hidden
18 behind others, while interaction takes place with the currently visible
19 ones. icewm supports a configurable number of virtual desktops. It
20 provides a task bar for monitoring applications and a pager to switch
21 between desktops. icewm is largely compliant with the ICCCM 2.0,
22 WinWM/WMH and NetWM/EWMH window manager specifications.
23 icewm was originally designed to emulate the look of Motif, OS/2 Warp
25 4, OS/2 Warp 3 and Windows 95. Since it has a theme engine other
26 styles are possible. The installation comes with several configured
27 themes. A menu allows to choose between themes.
28 Generally, it tries to make all functions available by both keyboard
30 and mouse. Configuration is very good through various preferences
31 files. However, configuring is not required: it works fine out of the
32 box.
33 PROGRAMS
35 The icewm package includes several programs:
36 icewm(1)
38 The actual window manager. It positions application windows on
39 screen and decorates them with borders. It gives input focus to the
40 current active application. icewm supports different focus modes,
41 which are explained below. It draws a small task bar at the bottom
42 of the screen, which gives easy access to programs, to virtual
43 desktops, to active applications, and to a small set of monitoring
44 applets.
45 icewmbg(1)
47 The background setting application. It can assign plain background
48 color or images in different formats to the X background. Each
49 work space can have its own background. It supports semi-
50 transparency. Semitransparent background image and colour can be
51 configured. When the background image has changed then icewmbg(1)
52 can be notified to update the background. Multi-head monitor
53 setups are fully supported. This program should be started before
54 icewm. See the icewmbg(1) man page for details.
55 icewm-session(1)
57 icewm-session(1) is the preferred program to start the IceWM
58 system. It first loads additional environment variables from the
59 optional env file. Then it starts icewmbg(1) and icewm. It also
60 runs the startup script and implements basic session management.
61 On termination the shutdown script will be run first, then
62 icewm-session(1) will terminate icewm and icewmbg(1).
63 icewm-session(1) will also start the optional icesound(1) if you
64 give it the --sound option. See icewm-session(1).
65 icesh(1)
67 A powerful tool to control window properties and to interact with
68 the window manager. It is typically used in shell scripts. See
69 icesh(1).
70 icehelp(1)
72 A small document browser, which is used by icewm to display the
73 'IceWM manual' and some man pages.
74 icewmhint(1)
76 A utility for passing IceWM-specific window options to icewm. The
77 options are used to configure the first application which is
78 started subsequently. See icewmhint(1).
79 icesound(1)
81 Plays audio files on GUI events which are raised by icewm. It
82 supports ALSA, AO and OSS. See the icesound(1) man page.
83 icewm-menu-fdo(1)
85 Generate an icewm menu with executable desktop applications
86 according to XDG specifications. See the icewm-menu-fdo(1) man
87 page.
88 icewm-set-gnomewm(1)
90 Configures GNOME to start IceWM instead of its own WM.
91
93 COMMON OPTIONS
94 Each of the IceWM executables supports the following options:
95 -c, --config=FILE
97 Use FILE as the source of configuration options. By default icewm
98 looks for a file named preferences. Typically this file is stored
99 as one of $ICEWM_PRIVCFG/preferences,
100 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm/preferences, or $HOME/.icewm/preferences, or
101 in one of the configuration directories explained below. It
102 contains a long list of options which allow the user to tweak the
103 behaviour of icewm to ones taste. A default preferences file
104 contains comments about the purpose of each option, the range of
105 useful values and the current or default value. A preferences file
106 is a readable text file which can be modified with the help of a
107 text editor. If this option is given to icewm-session(1) then it
108 is passed on to icewm. If icewm is started independently then this
109 option can be given to icewm directly. However, usually one will
110 want to use a preferences file from a default location.
111 -t, --theme=NAME
113 Use NAME as the name of the icewm theme to use. A theme defines
114 the look and feel of icewm, like colours, fonts, buttons and button
115 behaviour. Originally a theme defined options to emulate the
116 appearance of other desktop environments, like Motif, OS/2 Warp, or
117 Windows. Over the years many new original themes have been
118 designed with beautiful icons and backgrounds, which advance the
119 state of the art in desktop look and feel. Many of them can be
120 downloaded from the website <https://www.box-look.org/> and stored
121 in one of the directories $ICEWM_PRIVCFG/icewm/themes/,
122 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm/themes/ or in $HOME/.icewm/themes/. You can
123 then activate such a theme via the menu in the lower left corner of
124 the display. A default theme is specified in one of
125 $ICEWM_PRIVCFG/icewm/theme, $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm/theme, or in
126 $HOME/.icewm/theme. When a new theme is selected then this value
127 is overwritten, so that the next time icewm is started this choice
128 is reused.
129 --display=DISPLAY
131 DISPLAY specifies the connection to the X11 server. If this option
132 is missing, as is usually the case, then DISPLAY is read from the
133 environment variable "DISPLAY".
134 --sync
136 This option is sometimes used in software development of icewm. It
137 specifies to use a slower synchronous communication mode with the
138 X11 server. This is irrelevant for normal use of icewm.
139 -h, --help
141 Gives a complete list of all the available command line options
142 with some very brief explanation.
143 -V, --version
145 Shows the software release version for this program.
146 ICEWM OPTIONS
148 The icewm program supports some additional options:
149 -a, --alpha
151 Use a 32-bit visual for translucency. This can also be set in the
152 preferences file as "Alpha=1".
153 --replace
155 Instructs icewm to replace an existing window manager. Provided
156 that the window manager being replaced is ICCCM 2.0 compliant, once
157 it notices that it is to be replaced it will cease operations and
158 typically stop execution. This allows icewm to establish itself as
159 the only active window manager.
160 -r, --restart
162 Tell icewm to restart itself. This reloads the configuration from
163 file.
164 --splash=IMAGE
166 Briefly show IMAGE on startup in the center of the screen. This
167 can also be set in the preferences file as Splash="image.jpg".
168 --configured
170 Shows a list of configuration options which were enabled when icewm
171 was compiled from source code. This can be helpful if one suspects
172 some functionality may be missing.
173 --directories
175 Gives a list of directories where icewm will look for configuration
176 data. This list is printed in the actual order in which icewm uses
177 it to search for configuration files.
178 -l, --list-themes
180 icewm will search all the configuration directories for theme files
181 and print a list of all found themes.
182 --postpreferences
184 This gives a long list of all the internal icewm options with their
185 actual values after icewm has processed all of the configuration
186 and theme files. In some advanced scenarios this can be helpful to
187 inspect which configuration was chosen or whether option formatting
188 was correct.
189 --extensions
191 Give a list of the current X extensions, their versions and status.
192 --trace=conf,icon
194 Enable tracing of the paths which are used to load configuration
195 and/or icons.
196
198 TASKBAR
199 On startup icewm launches the task bar at the bottom of the screen.
200 The task bar consists from left to right of the following components:
201 The Menu button in the lower left corner gives access to the icewm root
203 menu. This menu has sub-menus to start applications, to control icewm
204 settings, and the icewm Logout menu.
205 The Show Desktop button unmaps all application windows to fully uncover
207 the desktop.
208 The Window List Menu button gives access to a menu with a list of
210 active windows for the current work space and a list of work spaces
211 with sub-menus for their active application windows.
212 The Toolbar is a list of icons for applications which are defined in
214 the toolbar configuration file.
215 The Workspace List shows one button for each work space. The current
217 work space is indicated by a pressed button. Pressing another work
218 space button switches to that work space. The work spaces are defined
219 in the preferences file. When "PagerShowPreview" is turned on a small
220 graphical summary for each workspace is shown.
221 The Task Pane consists of a list of wide buttons for each application
223 which is running on the current work space. Each task button shows the
224 application icon and the application title. The active application is
225 indicated by a pressed button. This is the application which has input
226 focus. Pressing another button activates that application: it is
227 brought to the foreground and receives input focus. Other mouse
228 controlled activities on the window buttons are dragging window buttons
229 to (temporarily) rearrange the order (with left mouse button) or
230 closing the application window (with middle button while pressing and
231 holding "Alt").
232 If there are not many application buttons then a stretch of plain task
234 bar is visible. Clicking on it with the right mouse button gives the
235 task bar menu. Even with a full task pane, this menu can be usually
236 accessed by right-clicking the bottom right corner of the taskbar.
237 The Tray Applet shows system tray objects.
239 The APM Applet shows battery power status.
241 The Net Applet shows network activity. Network devices to monitor are
243 given by the "NetworkStatusDevice" option.
244 The Memory Applet monitors memory usage.
246 The CPU Applet monitors processor utilization.
248 The Mailbox Applet monitors mailbox status changes. The location of
250 the mailbox is given by the "MailBoxPath" preferences option or else by
251 the "MAILPATH" or "MAIL" environment variables. It can be the path of
252 a local mail spool file or the specification of a remote POP3 or IMAP
253 location. For example:
254 MailBoxPath="pop3://myname:password@host.com/"
256 The Clock Applet shows the current time and date. It is configured by
258 the "TimeFormat" option.
259 The Task Bar Collapse button collapses the task bar and hides it.
261 Not all icewm applets may show up on the task bar. They must have been
263 enabled during configuration of the icewm software. Their appearance
264 is also controlled by options in the preferences file.
265 INPUT FOCUS
267 Of all visible windows only one can be the active window. This is the
268 window which has input focus. It is the primary receiver of keyboard
269 and mouse events and hence one can interact with the application which
270 created that window. A primary task of a window manager is to allow
271 the user to switch input focus between different windows. The primary
272 means to do this is the mouse pointer. By moving the mouse pointer
273 over the screen to another window, and perhaps also by clicking on a
274 window, input focus can be directed.
275 The "FocusMode" option controls the way icewm gives input focus to
277 applications. It is initialized by the focus_mode configuration file.
278 The focus mode is set via the Focus menu. icewm supports six focus
279 models:
280 1. Click-to-focus
282 The default focus mode. In this mode changing input focus requires
283 to click a window with the left mouse button. The window is raised
284 if needed. When an application requests focus its task pane button
285 flashes. This gives the option to honor this request or to ignore
286 it. When a new application window appears it automatically
287 receives focus. Also when a hidden application raises to the front
288 it receives focus.
289 2. Sloppy-mouse-focus
291 Sets input focus merely by moving the mouse pointer over a window.
292 It is called sloppy, because if the mouse then leaves the window
293 and moves to the desktop background the input focus remains with
294 the last active window. When a window receives focus it is raised.
295 When an application requests focus its task pane button flashes. A
296 new application or an application which raises to the front
297 automatically receives focus.
298 3. Explicit-focus
300 Focus is even more user-controlled than Click-to-focus. When a
301 window receives focus it is not raised by default, unless the frame
302 border is clicked. No flashing occurs when an application requests
303 focus. When a new application window appears it does not receive
304 focus. Only by explicit clicking on a window is focus directed.
305 4. Strict-mouse-focus
307 Like Sloppy but focus remains with the last window. New
308 applications don't receive focus and are mapped behind other
309 windows. When an application raises to the front it still does not
310 get focus.
311 5. Quiet-sloppy-focus
313 Like Sloppy but no disturbing flashing occurs on the task bar when
314 an application requests focus.
315 6. Custom-mode
317 A focus mode which is defined in detail by ten options in the
318 preferences file. These are: "ClickToFocus", "FocusOnAppRaise",
319 "RequestFocusOnAppRaise", "RaiseOnFocus", "RaiseOnClickClient",
320 "FocusChangesWorkspace", "FocusOnMap", "FocusOnMapTransient",
321 "FocusOnMapTransientActive", "MapInactiveOnTop".
322 All non-Custom focus modes override these ten options.
324 Apart from the mouse, icewm supports changing input focus in two other
326 ways. Both involve the keyboard. The first uses the "QuickSwitch"
327 window. It is activated by pressing "Alt+Tab" or "Alt+Shift+Tab". A
328 window pops up in the centre of the screen with a narrow band over the
329 next or previous window which will receive input focus when the "Alt"
330 key is released. By repeatedly pressing "Alt+Tab" or "Alt+Shift+Tab"
331 one can cycle through all windows.
332 The second keyboard method involves pressing "Alt+Esc" or
334 "Alt+Shift+Esc". Input focus is immediately changed to the next or
335 previous window, which will be raised to make it fully visible.
336 And finally, there is another way which is a hybrid of keyboard and
338 mouse control. It involves the "QuickSwitch" popup explained before,
339 after pressing "Alt+Tab" and while still holding "Alt" a left click on
340 one of the list items causes the activation of the related window.
341 WINDOW PLACEMENT
343 A second important task of a window manager is to place new windows on
344 the screen. By default icewm chooses a placement with minimal overlap,
345 but this is determined by the "SmartPlacement" option in the
346 preferences file. If "SmartPlacement" is turned off then windows are
347 placed in sequence from left to right and top to bottom. One can also
348 turn on "ManualPlacement". Then new windows appear initially in the
349 top left corner and the mouse cursor changes into a fist. By moving
350 the fist cursor to a suitable location and clicking the new window will
351 appear at the mouse click location.
352 WINDOW LAYERS
354 Windows can overlap. Which window appears on top is determined by
355 three features. Newer windows appear over older windows. By clicking
356 on a window it is raised to the top. But both are overruled by the
357 window layer. Windows can be placed in different layers via the Layers
358 menu. Click with the right mouse button on the window frame and select
359 Layer. From there choose one of seven window layers. These are
360 ordered from higher to lower. Windows in higher layers appear over
361 windows in lower layers.
362 WORKSPACES
364 icewm supports multiple virtual desktops called work spaces. A work
365 space is like a screen where a subset of all application windows are
366 mapped. Thanks to multiple work spaces we can more easily manage a
367 large number of applications. The number of work spaces and their
368 names are configurable in the preferences file through the
369 "WorkspaceNames" option. By default four workspaces are created with
370 the names 1, 2, 3 and 4 thus:
371 WorkspaceNames=" 1 ", " 2 ", " 3 ", " 4 "
373 This syntax is typical for icewm options which receive multiple values.
375 It is a list of comma separated values each of which can be quoted.
376 The work spaces are visible on the toolbar. One can switch to a
378 different work space by pressing the work space button in the toolbar,
379 but after becoming familiar with the 'keyboard shortcuts' below one
380 will want to use a hotkey to choose a work space. If the "EdgeSwitch"
381 options is enabled in the preferences file (with sub-options
382 "HorizontalEdgeSwitch" and "VerticalEdgeSwitch") then one can move to
383 the next or previous workspace by moving the mouse to the edge of the
384 screen. The "ContinuousEdgeSwitch" option enables continuous movement
385 to subsequent workspaces. The "EdgeSwitchDelay" option says how long
386 to wait before a change of workspace occurs.
387 To move an application window to a different work space one can use a
389 keyboard shortcut. Another option is to select the Move To submenu in
390 the window menu of the window frame.
391 ADDRESS BAR
393 If EnableAddressBar=1 then KeySysAddressBar="Alt+Ctrl+Space" activates
394 the address bar in the task bar. If ShowAddressBar=1 it is always
395 shown. This is a command line in the task bar where a shell command can
396 be typed. Pressing "Enter" will execute the command.
397 AddressBarCommand="/bin/sh" will be used to execute the command. On
398 "Control+Enter" the command is executed in a terminal as given by
399 TerminalCommand. The address bar maintains a history which is
400 navigable by the Up and Down keys. It supports file completion using
401 "Tab" or "Ctrl+I". A rich set of editing operations is supported,
402 including cut-/copy-/paste-operations.
403 KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
405 icewm supports a large number of hotkeys to activate some behaviour
406 with a single key combination. These are all configurable in the
407 preferences file. Here we give their default values, followed by their
408 preferences names and short descriptions of their effect:
409 "Alt+F1"
411 "KeyWinRaise" raises the window which currently has input focus.
412 "Alt+F2"
414 "KeyWinOccupyAll" makes the active window occupy all work spaces.
415 "Alt+F3"
417 "KeyWinLower" lowers the window which currently has input focus.
418 "Alt+F4"
420 "KeyWinClose" closes the active window.
421 "Alt+F5"
423 "KeyWinRestore" restores the active window to its visible state.
424 "Alt+F6"
426 "KeyWinNext" switches focus to the next window.
427 "Alt+Shift+F6"
429 "KeyWinPrev" switches focus to the previous window.
430 "Alt+F7"
432 "KeyWinMove" starts movement of the active window.
433 "Alt+F8"
435 "KeyWinSize" starts resizing of the active window.
436 "Alt+F9"
438 "KeyWinMinimize" iconifies the active window.
439 "Alt+F10"
441 "KeyWinMaximize" maximizes the active window with borders.
442 "Alt+Shift+F10"
444 "KeyWinMaximizeVert" maximizes the active window vertically.
445 "undefined"
447 "KeyWinMaximizeHoriz" maximizes the active window horizontally.
448 "Alt+F11"
450 "KeyWinFullscreen" maximizes the active window without borders.
451 "Alt+F12"
453 "KeyWinRollup" rolls up the active window.
454 "Alt+Shift+F12"
456 "KeyWinHide" hides the active window.
457 "Alt+Space"
459 "KeyWinMenu" posts the window menu.
460 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_7"
462 "KeyWinArrangeNW" moves the active window to the top left corner of
463 the screen.
464 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_8"
466 "KeyWinArrangeN" moves the active window to the top middle of the
467 screen.
468 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_9"
470 "KeyWinArrangeNE" moves the active window to the top right of the
471 screen.
472 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_6"
474 "KeyWinArrangeE" moves the active window to the middle right of the
475 screen.
476 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_3"
478 "KeyWinArrangeSE" moves the active window to the bottom right of
479 the screen.
480 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_2"
482 "KeyWinArrangeS" moves the active window to the bottom middle of
483 the screen.
484 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_1"
486 "KeyWinArrangeSW" moves the active window to the bottom left of the
487 screen.
488 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_4"
490 "KeyWinArrangeW" moves the active window to the middle left of the
491 screen.
492 "Ctrl+Alt+KP_5"
494 "KeyWinArrangeC" moves the active window to the center of the
495 screen.
496 "Shift+Esc"
498 "KeySysWinMenu" posts the system window menu.
499 "Alt+Esc"
501 "KeySysWinNext" give focus to the next window and raise it.
502 "Alt+Shift+Esc"
504 "KeySysWinPrev" give focus to the previous window and raise it.
505 "Alt+Ctrl+Del"
507 "KeySysDialog" opens the IceWM system dialog in the center of the
508 screen.
509 "Ctrl+Esc"
511 "KeySysMenu" activates the IceWM root menu in the lower left
512 corner.
513 "Alt+Ctrl+Esc"
515 "KeySysWindowList" opens the IceWM system window list in the center
516 of the screen.
517 "Alt+Ctrl+Space"
519 "KeySysAddressBar" opens the address bar in the task bar where a
520 command can be typed.
521 "Alt+Ctrl+Left"
523 "KeySysWorkspacePrev" goes one workspace to the left.
524 "Alt+Ctrl+Right"
526 "KeySysWorkspaceNext" goes one workspace to the right.
527 "Alt+Ctrl+Down"
529 "KeySysWorkspaceLast" goes to the previous workspace.
530 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+Left"
532 "KeySysWorkspacePrevTakeWin" takes the active window one workspace
533 to the left.
534 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+Right"
536 "KeySysWorkspaceNextTakeWin" takes the active window one workspace
537 to the right.
538 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+Down"
540 "KeySysWorkspaceLastTakeWin" takes the active window to the
541 previous workspace.
542 "Alt+Ctrl+1"
544 "KeySysWorkspace1" goes to workspace 1.
545 "Alt+Ctrl+2"
547 "KeySysWorkspace2" goes to workspace 2.
548 "Alt+Ctrl+3"
550 "KeySysWorkspace3" goes to workspace 3.
551 "Alt+Ctrl+4"
553 "KeySysWorkspace4" goes to workspace 4.
554 "Alt+Ctrl+5"
556 "KeySysWorkspace5" goes to workspace 5.
557 "Alt+Ctrl+6"
559 "KeySysWorkspace6" goes to workspace 6.
560 "Alt+Ctrl+7"
562 "KeySysWorkspace7" goes to workspace 7.
563 "Alt+Ctrl+8"
565 "KeySysWorkspace8" goes to workspace 8.
566 "Alt+Ctrl+9"
568 "KeySysWorkspace9" goes to workspace 9.
569 "Alt+Ctrl+0"
571 "KeySysWorkspace10" goes to workspace 10.
572 "Alt+Ctrl+bracketleft"
574 "KeySysWorkspace11" goes to workspace 11.
575 "Alt+Ctrl+bracketright"
577 "KeySysWorkspace12" goes to workspace 12.
578 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+1"
580 "KeySysWorkspace1TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 1.
581 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+2"
583 "KeySysWorkspace2TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 2.
584 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+3"
586 "KeySysWorkspace3TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 3.
587 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+4"
589 "KeySysWorkspace4TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 4.
590 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+5"
592 "KeySysWorkspace5TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 5.
593 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+6"
595 "KeySysWorkspace6TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 6.
596 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+7"
598 "KeySysWorkspace7TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 7.
599 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+8"
601 "KeySysWorkspace8TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 8.
602 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+9"
604 "KeySysWorkspace9TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 9.
605 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+0"
607 "KeySysWorkspace10TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 10.
608 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+bracketleft"
610 "KeySysWorkspace11TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 11.
611 "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+bracketright"
613 "KeySysWorkspace12TakeWin" takes the active window to workspace 12.
614 "Alt+Shift+F2"
616 "KeySysTileVertical" tiles all windows from left to right maximized
617 vertically.
618 "Alt+Shift+F3"
620 "KeySysTileHorizontal" tiles all windows from top to bottom
621 maximized horizontally.
622 "Alt+Shift+F4"
624 "KeySysCascade" makes a horizontal cascade of all windows which are
625 maximized vertically.
626 "Alt+Shift+F5"
628 "KeySysArrange" rearranges the windows.
629 "Alt+Shift+F7"
631 "KeySysUndoArrange" undoes arrangement.
632 "Alt+Shift+F8"
634 "KeySysArrangeIcons" rearranges icons.
635 "Alt+Shift+F9"
637 "KeySysMinimizeAll" minimizes all windows.
638 "Alt+Shift+F11"
640 "KeySysHideAll" hides all windows.
641 "Alt+Ctrl+d"
643 "KeySysShowDesktop" unmaps all windows to show the desktop.
644 "Alt+Ctrl+h"
646 "KeySysCollapseTaskBar" hides the task bar.
647 "undefined"
649 "KeyTaskBarSwitchNext" switches to the next window in the task bar.
650 "undefined"
652 "KeyTaskBarSwitchPrev" switches to the previous window in the task
653 bar.
654 "undefined"
656 "KeyTaskBarMoveNext" moves the task bar button of the current
657 window right.
658 "undefined"
660 "KeyTaskBarMovePrev" moves the task bar button of the current
661 window left.
662 "undefined"
664 "KeySysWinListMenu" shows the window list menu.
665 "Alt+Tab"
667 "KeySysSwitchNext" opens the "QuickSwitch" popup (see "INPUT
668 FOCUS") and/or moves the selector in the "QuickSwitch" popup.
669 "Alt+Shift+Tab"
671 "KeySysSwitchLast" works like "KeySysSwitchNext" but moving in the
672 opposite direction.
673 "Alt+grave"
675 "KeySysSwitchClass" is like "KeySysSwitchNext" but only for windows
676 with the same WM_CLASS property as the currently focused window.
677 MOUSE BINDINGS
679 You can control windows by a modified mouse button press:
680 "Alt+Pointer_Button1"
682 "MouseWinMove" moves the window under the mouse over the screen.
683 "Alt+Pointer_Button3"
685 "MouseWinSize" resizes the window. Keep the key and button
686 pressed. To enlarge the window move the mouse button away from the
687 center. To shrink it move towards the centre.
688 "Ctrl+Alt+Pointer_Button1"
690 "MouseWinRaise" raises the window under the mouse.
691 "Ctrl+Alt+Pointer_Button1"
693 "MouseWinLower" lowers the window under the mouse. If this is
694 equal to "MouseWinRaise" and the window can be raised then
695 "MouseWinRaise" takes preference over "MouseWinLower".
696 Clicking on the desktop activates a menu. The middle button shows the
698 window list ("DesktopWinListButton=2"). The right button shows the
699 root menu ("DesktopMenuButton=3").
700 The title frame of a window also listens for mouse clicks. Left double
702 clicking maximizes the window ("TitleBarMaximizeButton=1"). Middle
703 double clicking rolls up the window ("TitleBarRollupButton=2").
704 Pressing a mouse button and moving it will move the window. "Alt+left"
705 button lowers the window.
706 When the mouse is on the window frame then a left click raises the
708 window. Dragging with the left button down resizes the window.
709 Clicking the right button pops up the context menu. Dragging with the
710 right button moves the window.
711
713 icewm supports the following signals:
714 SIGHUP
716 icewm will restart itself. It is a way to reload the configuration.
717 SIGINT, SIGTERM
719 icewm will cease to manage application windows and terminate.
720 SIGQUIT
722 icewm will initiate the logout procedure. If a "LogoutCommand"
723 preferences option was configured it will be executed.
724
726 ICEWM_PRIVCFG
727 The directory for user private configuration files. When this
728 environment variable is not specified, the default directory is
729 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm when that directory exists, otherwise the
730 default value is $HOME/.icewm.
731 DISPLAY
733 The name of the X11 server. See Xorg(1) or Xserver(1). This value
734 can be overridden by the --display option.
735 MAILPATH, MAIL
737 Gives the location of your mailbox. If the schema is omitted the
738 local "file" schema is assumed. This is used by the mailbox applet
739 in the task bar to show the status of your mailbox. If the
740 "MailBoxPath" option in the preferences file is set, then that one
741 takes precedence.
742
744 icewm looks for configuration files in the following directories, in
745 the given order, until it finds one:
746 $ICEWM_PRIVCFG/
748 Contains user-specific configurations. When ICEWM_PRIVCFG is
749 specified, this directory takes precedence over
750 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm and $HOME/.icewm.
751 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/icewm/
753 Contains user-specific configurations. When this directory exists
754 it take precedence over $HOME/.icewm.
755 $HOME/.icewm/
757 Contains user-specific configurations. This is the historical
758 default directory.
759 /etc/icewm/
761 Contains system-wide customized defaults. Please note that your
762 local installation may have been configured to use a different
763 system location. The output of "icewm --directories" will show
764 this location.
765 /usr/share/icewm/
767 Default local installation settings.
768 CONFIGURATION FILES
770 env icewm-session(1) loads additional environment variables from the
771 file env. Each line is subjected to POSIX shell expansion by
772 wordexp(3). Comment lines starting by a hash-sign ("#") are
773 ignored. icewm-session(1) will load those expanded lines which
774 contain a name, followed by an equals sign, followed by the value
775 (which may be empty).
776 See icewm-env(5).
778 focus_mode
780 Defines the initial value for "FocusMode". Its default value is
781 "FocusMode=1" (Click-to-focus). This can be changed via the menu.
782 icewm will save the Focus menu choice in this file.
783 See icewm-focus_mode(5).
785 keys
787 Global keybindings to launch applications, which need not be window
788 manager related. Each non-empty line starts with the word "key".
789 After one or more spaces follows a double-quoted string of the
790 bound X11 key combination like "Alt+Ctrl+Shift+X". Then after at
791 least one space follows a shell command line which will be executed
792 by icewm whenever this key combination is pressed. For example,
793 the following line creates a hotkey to reload the icewm
794 configuration:
795 key "Ctrl+Shift+r" icesh restart
797 See icewm-keys(5).
799 menu
801 A menu of applications; usually customized by the user. icewm
802 provides the icewm-menu-fdo(1) program to generate a default menu.
803 Similar programs are xdg_menu(1), mmaker(1) (MenuMaker),
804 xde-menu(1), xdgmenumaker(1).
805 See icewm-menu(5).
807 preferences
809 Contains general settings like paths, colors and fonts, but also
810 options to control the icewm focus behaviour and the applets which
811 are started in the task bar. The icewm installation will provide a
812 default preferences file, which can be copied to the icewm user
813 configuration directory and modified.
814 See icewm-preferences(5).
816 prefoverride
818 Settings which override the settings from a theme. Some of the
819 icewm configuration options from the preferences file which control
820 the look-and-feel may be overridden by the theme, if the theme
821 designer thinks this is desirable. However, this prefoverride file
822 will again override this for a few specific options of your
823 choosing. It is safe to leave this file empty initially.
824 See icewm-prefoverride(5).
826 programs
828 An automatically generated menu of applications. This could be
829 used by wmconfig(1), menu or similar programs to give easy access
830 to all the desktop applications which are installed on the system.
831 See icewm-programs(5).
833 theme
835 This file contains the name of the default theme. On startup icewm
836 reads this file to obtain the theme name, unless icewm was started
837 with the --theme option. Whenever a different theme is selected
838 from the icewm Menu then the theme file is overwritten with the
839 name of the selected theme. This theme file contains the keyword
840 "Theme", followed by an equals sign, followed by a double-quoted
841 string with the theme name. The theme name is the name of the
842 theme directory, followed by a slash, followed by the theme file.
843 Usually the theme file is just default.theme, but a theme may have
844 alternatives. Alternatives are small tweaks of a theme. These are
845 specified in their own .theme file, which replaces default.theme.
846 If no theme file exists then icewm will use the default setting of
847 "Theme="default/default.theme"".
848 See icewm-theme(5).
850 toolbar
852 Contains names of quick to launch applications with icons for the
853 task bar. Each non-empty non-comment line starts with the keyword
854 prog. After one or more spaces follows a name, which is displayed
855 in a tool tip whenever the mouse cursor hovers over the toolbar
856 icon. This name may be a double quoted string. Then follows the
857 bare name of the icon to use without extensions. This icon will be
858 shown in the toolbar. The last component is a shell command line
859 which will be executed whenever the user presses the icon in the
860 toolbar. For example, the following line in toolbar will create a
861 button with tool tip "Mozilla Firefox" with the firefox icon which
862 launches firefox(1) when clicked:
863 prog "Mozilla Firefox" firefox /usr/bin/firefox --private-window
865 See icewm-toolbar(5).
867 winoptions
869 Contains settings to control window appearance and behaviour which
870 are specific to applications or groups of applications. Options
871 can control the border, whether it appears on the task bar, the
872 window list, the system tray and the work spaces. Also its layer,
873 geometry, whether it can be moved, resized and closed.
874 See icewm-winoptions(5).
876 startup
878 Contains commands to be executed on icewm startup. This is an
879 executable script with commands to tweak X11 settings and launch
880 some applications which need to be active whenever icewm is
881 started. It is run by icewm-session(1) when icewm starts.
882 See icewm-startup(5).
884 shutdown
886 Contains commands to be executed on icewm shutdown. This is an
887 executable script with commands to be executed in the last stage of
888 icewm termination. Typically they may undo some of the effects of
889 the startup script. It is run by icewm-session(1) when icewm
890 terminates.
891 See icewm-shutdown(5).
893 CONFIGURATION SUBDIRECTORIES
895 icons
896 Contains icons which are used to identify applications. Usually
897 these files are in the XPM format, but the PNG and SVG image
898 formats are also supported. The names of icon files may follow a
899 specific naming pattern, like app_32x32.xpm. They start with a
900 base name, usually this is just a single word. Then follows an
901 underscore, followed by a size specification in the format
902 "SIZExSIZE". This is followed by a dot and the file extension,
903 where the extension denotes the icon image format. Common sizes
904 are 16, 32 and 48 for small, large and huge icons. This depends on
905 the respective "IconSize" preferences options.
906 ledclock
908 Pictures of digits for the LED clock which is displayed in the
909 bottom-right corner of the task bar. These can be seen when the
910 "TaskBarShowClock" and "TaskBarClockLeds" options are both set to
911 1.
912 mailbox
914 Icons which are used to display different states of the mailbox
915 applet in the task bar. There are five states and each has its own
916 icon: mail.xpm, newmail.xpm, unreadmail.xpm, nomail.xpm,
917 errmail.xpm.
918 sounds
920 Audio files which are played by icesound(1) on GUI events. These
921 are: startup.wav, shutdown.wav, restart.wav, launchApp.wav,
922 workspaceChange.wav, windowOpen.wav, windowClose.wav,
923 dialogOpen.wav, dialogClose.wav, windowMax.wav, windowRestore.wav,
924 windowMin.wav, windowHide.wav, windowRollup.wav, windowMoved.wav,
925 windowSized.wav, windowLower.wav.
926 taskbar
928 Pictures to customize the look of the task bar. These include:
929 taskbarbg.xpm, taskbuttonactive.xpm, taskbuttonbg.xpm,
930 taskbuttonminimized.xpm, toolbuttonbg.xpm,
931 workspacebuttonactive.xpm, workspacebuttonbg.xpm.
932 themes
934 A directory to store themes. Each theme is stored in its own sub-
935 directory in the themes directory. A theme contains at least a
936 default.theme file, and optionally theme alternatives which are
937 additional files which have a .theme file name extension and which
938 contain tweaks of the default.theme file. How to create a theme is
939 explained in the IceWM Theme Creation Howto.
940 OPACITY
942 IceWM supports window opacity and transparency in connection with an
943 external compositor like compton(1). If a client window sets the
944 "_NET_WM_WINDOW_OPACITY" property on its window then icewm will copy
945 this to the outer frame window where compton will read it to adjust the
946 opacity of the client window. The opacity can also be controlled by
947 icewm when this is configured in the icewm-winoptions(5) file. Another
948 way is to use icewmhint(1) to preset the opacity level immediately
949 before starting the application. The opacity level of running
950 applications can always be queried or modified by icesh(1).
951 The _NET_WM_WINDOW_TYPE properties which icewm sets on its windows are
953 DIALOG, NOTIFICATION, POPUP_MENU and TOOLTIP. The output of "icesh
954 windows" shows their WM_CLASS values. These can be helpful to configure
955 compton.
956
958 Examples of the above configuration files can be found in the default
959 installation path or in the system-wide defaults. See the output of
960 "icewm --directories" for their locations.
961
963 ICCCM 2.0: partial. NetWM/EWMH: extensive. See the file COMPLIANCE in
964 the distribution for full details.
965
967 icehelp(1), icesh(1), icesound(1), icewm-env(5), icewm-focus_mode(5),
968 icewm-keys(5), icewm-menu(5), icewm-menu-fdo(1), icewm-menu-xrandr(1),
969 icewm-preferences(5), icewm-prefoverride(5), icewm-programs(5),
970 icewm-session(1), icewm-set-gnomewm(1), icewm-shutdown(5),
971 icewm-startup(5), icewm-theme(5), icewm-toolbar(5),
972 icewm-winoptions(5), icewmbg(1), icewmhint(1), Xorg(1), Xserver(1),
973 xinit(1), xprop(1), xwininfo(1), wmctrl(1).
974
976 icewm had no known bugs at the time of release. Please report bugs for
977 current versions to the source code repository at
978 <https://github.com/bbidulock/icewm/issues>.
979
981 Brian Bidulock <mailto:bidulock@openss7.org>.
982 See --copying for full copyright notice and copying permissions.
984
986 IceWM is licensed under the GNU Library General Public License. See
987 the COPYING file in the distribution or use the --copying flag to
988 display copying permissions.
989icewm 1.6.1 2019-11-25 ICEWM(1)