Alan Mackenzie wrote: >> Hi, Iain, >> >> On Tue, Feb 09, 2010 at 09:09:14AM +0930, Iain Buchanan wrote: >> > On Mon, 2010-02-08 at 22:20 +0000, Alan Mackenzie wrote: >> > [snip to the crux:] >> > > Can this new-style fragmented XML configuration do anything that a >> > > good old-fashioned, human-readable and compact xorg.conf can't? If >> > > so, what? What am I missing here? >> >> > presumably you're missing the previous conversation on this topic: >> > http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.gentoo.user/225223/focus=225223 >> >> Yes, indeed. I've read up about half of it now. Have I understood >> correctly, that if I carry on with this HAL, I need to use a heavyweight >> window manager (such as Gnome) to be able to configure things with? >> >> I "use" Gnome at the moment with an old Debian system, but that "use" is >> basically confined to starting Firefox and sometimes xpdf, and >> occasionally gimp, and switching between windows. So I'm looking to use >> a less bloated WM now. I haven't decided which, yet, either xfce or >> ratpoison, or maybe something in between. Sometime I'd like to try >> xmonad, because Haskell is such a sweet language. >> >> > > Please, somebody, tell me all this HAL stuff is straightforwardly >> > > explained in an easily accessible Gentoo document, so that I can hang >> > > my head in shame and apologise for the noise! ;-) >> >> > isn't it just done for you? >> >> I don't know. It (i.e. startx) didn't work at all until I emerged xterm. >> Now it starts with 3 working xterms with focus-follows-mouse. I suppose >> that counts as "working". >>
This is the failsafe. I thinks is twm. >> > $ slocate 10-input-policy.fdi >> > /usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/10-input-policy.fdi >> >> > i...@orpheus ~ $ equery belongs >> > /usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/10-input-policy.fdi >> > * Searching for /usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/10-input-policy.fdi >> > ... >> > sys-apps/hal-0.5.14-r2 >> > (/usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/10-input-policy.fdi) >> >> > so why are you copying these files by hand? >> >> Because the fine manual "The X Server Configuration HOWTO" encouraged me >> to do so: "Just find a few that suit your needs most closely and copy >> them ...."; "Just copy the ones you need, and edit them once they're >> placed in the proper /etc location.". >> >> Actually I hadn't got around to copying them. I was fuming at the >> vagueness of the instructions, and the vagueness of everything else to do >> with HAL. I've a lot of sympathy with David Bowman. ;-) >> >> So, is there any documentation in Gentoo for configuring HAL? >> >> > -- >> > Iain Buchanan <iaindb at netspace dot net dot au> >> >> -- >> Alan Mackenzie (Nuremberg, Germany). >> >> You don't need a heavy wm to use hal with xorg. I use blackbox and my hal works a treat, the only thing I have in my xorg is my video settings because my monitor is a twat and has forgotten it's own mode lines (or it won't tell my gcard). Blackbox is super and lightweight. The fdi files should be copied over to /etc and reconfigured, the ones in /usr should remain. If you have every configured xorg by hand before, the xml syntax in the fdi files are quite easy to get to grips with, like key=lvalue and type is the type of data the lvalue will point to, the part inbetween the tags is the value. <merge key="input.xkb.layout" type="string">gb</merge> So this says insert into my xorg keyboards section the lvalue layout and its value is "GB", easy, huh? -- Regards, Roundyz
