... I know how you can go into Darwin completely and not use Aqua or the Terminal. You can then use another X window Manager like GNOME, or KDE etc.
Im just guessing that you can run other Window Managers so dont hold me responsible if things go wrong.
Note: this will only work for Mac OS X 10.2.x users.
Here's what ya do:
1. Log out
2. Purposely type your [Root] password wrong. REMEMBER TO REMEMBER YOUR PASSWORD...
3. The login window will shake, or how I like to call it: wiggle and it will go into complete command prompt mode. You will need to know Unix commands to proceed. To get back into the Aqua GUI simply type exit.
If you have Fink installed, when the one for OS X 10.2 is released I bet you can run WM's like GNOME etc independantly of Aqua and of XDarwin. That would be awesome. Once I have an external hard drive to back up my stuff Im gonna try that.
Once it caches, it isn't so bad...but I don't accept that. I want it faster, and I want the icons turned off...'til then I use Fruit Menu, which not only customizes my Apple Menu, but lets me surf through my home folder & anywhere else i like through contextual menus.
Maybe in 10.3, I'll be 100% on the Dock. It's not bad, it is forward thinking...but for me, the speed is not quite there yet.
[quote]Originally posted by Proud iBook Owner 2k2:
<strong>If you have Fink installed, when the one for OS X 10.2 is released I bet you can run WM's like GNOME etc independantly of Aqua and of XDarwin. That would be awesome.</strong><hr></blockquote>Actually, I've been doing that since 10.0.
It's simple. Just log out, dump into the console, and launch your window manager. Voila -- no more Aqua! Of course, you're limited to the X11 binaries, but it's still a cool trick to impress your friends.
if you ask me...which noone has, the dock at the side of the screen is extremely annoying, and that is why apple placed it at the bottom
the screen is longer then it is tall, so you normally widen information, not make it taller, and when i have the dock on the left, it takes up too much space, plus it just doesnt feel as comfortable. also its easier to go left and right in a strait line then up and down if you have ur wrist resting which most people do
I agree with you, ast3r3x, about the vertical Dock. I've tried it for as long as a week at a time and never liked it. I usually have so many apps running that the icons get too small for comfort.
As for the themes, I would strongly advise you search for some of my old posts about themes. I've posted about how they work and what they do to your system several times here at AppleInsider. I know of several people who have had their system completely hosed because a "theme" wreaked havoc with the system files, damaging them irreparably. Such events often require a full reinstall from the 10.2 Install CDs.
<strong>Actually, I've been doing that since 10.0.
It's simple. Just log out, dump into the console, and launch your window manager. Voila -- no more Aqua! Of course, you're limited to the X11 binaries, but it's still a cool trick to impress your friends.</strong><hr></blockquote>
heh... will GNOME work in pure console mode without Fink installed? Brad what Win Manager do you use when you dont use aqua?
gnome doesn't require fink -- nothing *requires* fink. fink is just an app for downloading and installing other software. That said, I don't use any of that any more. I just don't have any reason to. There's no good software for X11 that I don't already have something similar that's native.
When I did do that kind of stuff, I prefered using the rootless XDarwin rather than dropping to the console. I tinkered a little with windowmaker, icewm, and afterstep a little, but usually just kept sawfish as my default. Though, once I tried OroborOSX, I didn't even bother with the others. OroborOSX is really nice.
<strong>Well, I keep my Dock hidden. So, I never have to worry about the space that it would take away from other content on the screen.</strong><hr></blockquote>
19" at 1280x960. I have the dock set to 64x64 size tiles. I can run at least 13 apps (I have 4 folders in there as well) before the Dock starts strinking. In addition, I pin my dock to the right corner to the trash and my app folders always stay in the same place.
A tip: to set your dock tile size to a standard icon size or an even fraction of one, hold option while dragging the resize bar/menu thing. It'll "snap" between good sizes.
<strong>19" at 1280x960. I have the dock set to 64x64 size tiles. I can run at least 13 apps (I have 4 folders in there as well) before the Dock starts strinking. In addition, I pin my dock to the right corner to the trash and my app folders always stay in the same place.
A tip: to set your dock tile size to a standard icon size or an even fraction of one, hold option while dragging the resize bar/menu thing. It'll "snap" between good sizes.
<strong>is there anyway I can make my own theme, because i'm pretty nimble in photoshop and would love to customize my OS</strong><hr></blockquote>Making a theme can be a long and frustrating process, but with patience it's not so difficult. There are basically four kinds of resources you need to edit. There are others, but I don't recommend modifying them: plist, pxm#, icns, and pdf. A plist file is a simple text file, pxm# is a graphic resource, icns is an icon file or resource, and pdf is, of course, another graphic format.
pxm#s have, until the past year, been a bit difficult to modify (I've privately worked on themes since the Public Beta in 2000). The best tool was Theminator, but Apple fired off a number of angry cease and desist letters to the author and he was forced to stop development and remove it from his site. It's still an excellent app and I believe it's the only one that can handle the clr# resources used for font colors. Then Sprocket came out as an open source, native tool specifically for pxm# resources. It was good. Another few months later, some guy took the code for Sprocket and built ThemePark. Currently, that's the best app, IMO, for editing pmx#s.
icns can be handled by any generic icon editor app. I recommend Iconographer.
So, what do you do once you get these tools? Well, just look around your System folder for files that contain files related to the appearance display. Most of the stuff you will edit is either in /System/Library/CoreServices and /System/Library/Frameworks/Carbon.framework/Frameworks/HIToolbox.framework. The .rsrc files often contain the pxm# and icns resources I mentioned.
WARNING: before changing ANYTHING in these folders, immediately make a backup or two somewhere on your drive of it that you will remember. Never work from the original files; always work on backups. If you screw something up, your best chance of returning things to normal is to reboot into single-user mode and use the command line to replace the damaged file with a clean backup you had made. Do not go any further if you aren't familiar with single-user mode and the command line.
That said, you should use the command line to replace the files that you are changing. I STRONGLY recommend AGAINST logging in as the root user in the GUI to change these files. There's too great a risk permissions will accidentally be changed, .DS_Store files will be overwritten, etc. I also recommend against changing the folder permissions in the Finder because you might forget to change them all back or accidentally apply the change to more than you meant. The best tool here is to simply use "sudo mv" in the terminal to move your files into the correct location.
That's the basic explanation of it all. For any changes to system icons, you'll have to reboot for it to take the change. For changes to HIToolbox, just log out or relaunch running applications to apply the change. If you want more specific instructions on certain areas, feel free to ask. I know most of the tricks out there. [quote]Originally posted by Whyatt Thrash:
<strong>Hey Brad, where can I download that nifty trashcan-icon you've got there? And which resource should I edit to switch it? Thx.</strong><hr></blockquote>The trash icon I used is from the Snow.E series. I don't have the URL handy. Check xicons.com for it.
do you have any type of directions, because i have no idea how to open the system icons, or anytyhing else like that, and if it is as complicated as changing start up screen (little gray apple) then i dont think i'll be able to do it, because I have no idea how someone figured out that at that point in the hex is where the apple started
Comments
Im just guessing that you can run other Window Managers so dont hold me responsible if things go wrong.
Note: this will only work for Mac OS X 10.2.x users.
Here's what ya do:
1. Log out
2. Purposely type your [Root] password wrong. REMEMBER TO REMEMBER YOUR PASSWORD...
3. The login window will shake, or how I like to call it: wiggle and it will go into complete command prompt mode. You will need to know Unix commands to proceed. To get back into the Aqua GUI simply type exit.
If you have Fink installed, when the one for OS X 10.2 is released I bet you can run WM's like GNOME etc independantly of Aqua and of XDarwin. That would be awesome. Once I have an external hard drive to back up my stuff Im gonna try that.
Once it caches, it isn't so bad...but I don't accept that. I want it faster, and I want the icons turned off...'til then I use Fruit Menu, which not only customizes my Apple Menu, but lets me surf through my home folder & anywhere else i like through contextual menus.
Maybe in 10.3, I'll be 100% on the Dock. It's not bad, it is forward thinking...but for me, the speed is not quite there yet.
<strong>If you have Fink installed, when the one for OS X 10.2 is released I bet you can run WM's like GNOME etc independantly of Aqua and of XDarwin. That would be awesome.</strong><hr></blockquote>Actually, I've been doing that since 10.0.
It's simple. Just log out, dump into the console, and launch your window manager. Voila -- no more Aqua! Of course, you're limited to the X11 binaries, but it's still a cool trick to impress your friends.
the screen is longer then it is tall, so you normally widen information, not make it taller, and when i have the dock on the left, it takes up too much space, plus it just doesnt feel as comfortable. also its easier to go left and right in a strait line then up and down if you have ur wrist resting which most people do
how do i do themes?! and where do i find them\\
for 10.2 of course
As for the themes, I would strongly advise you search for some of my old posts about themes.
If you're comfortable with taking the risk that installing themes will entail, I recommend <a href="http://planeta.terra.com.br/informatica/MacMotiva/"; target="_blank">MacMotiva</a> and <a href="http://www.resexcellence.com/themes/"; target="_blank">ResExcellence</a>.
[ 10-30-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</p>
<strong>Actually, I've been doing that since 10.0.
It's simple. Just log out, dump into the console, and launch your window manager. Voila -- no more Aqua! Of course, you're limited to the X11 binaries, but it's still a cool trick to impress your friends.</strong><hr></blockquote>
heh... will GNOME work in pure console mode without Fink installed? Brad what Win Manager do you use when you dont use aqua?
When I did do that kind of stuff, I prefered using the rootless XDarwin rather than dropping to the console. I tinkered a little with windowmaker, icewm, and afterstep a little, but usually just kept sawfish as my default. Though, once I tried OroborOSX, I didn't even bother with the others. OroborOSX is really nice.
<strong>Well, I keep my Dock hidden. So, I never have to worry about the space that it would take away from other content on the screen.</strong><hr></blockquote>
How big is your screen?
A tip: to set your dock tile size to a standard icon size or an even fraction of one, hold option while dragging the resize bar/menu thing. It'll "snap" between good sizes.
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</p>
<strong>19" at 1280x960. I have the dock set to 64x64 size tiles. I can run at least 13 apps (I have 4 folders in there as well) before the Dock starts strinking. In addition, I pin my dock to the right corner to the trash and my app folders always stay in the same place.
A tip: to set your dock tile size to a standard icon size or an even fraction of one, hold option while dragging the resize bar/menu thing. It'll "snap" between good sizes.
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</strong><hr></blockquote>
cool tip thanx...
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Proud iBook Owner 2k2 ]</p>
Click eet!!
edit: hmmm... strange... I thought that displayed the e-mail address. In fact, it SHOULD. Bah, something is wrong with my profile I guess.
My e-mail is [email protected]
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</p>
<strong><a href="http://forums.appleinsider.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_profile&u=00000064"; target="_blank">
Click eet!!
edit: hmmm... strange... I thought that displayed the e-mail address. In fact, it SHOULD. Bah, something is wrong with my profile I guess.
My e-mail is [email protected]
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</strong><hr></blockquote>
Are you on iChat at the moment?
<strong>
</strong><hr></blockquote>
Hey Brad, where can I download that nifty trashcan-icon you've got there? And which resource should I edit to switch it? Thx.
<strong>is there anyway I can make my own theme, because i'm pretty nimble in photoshop and would love to customize my OS</strong><hr></blockquote>Making a theme can be a long and frustrating process, but with patience it's not so difficult. There are basically four kinds of resources you need to edit. There are others, but I don't recommend modifying them: plist, pxm#, icns, and pdf. A plist file is a simple text file, pxm# is a graphic resource, icns is an icon file or resource, and pdf is, of course, another graphic format.
pxm#s have, until the past year, been a bit difficult to modify (I've privately worked on themes since the Public Beta in 2000). The best tool was Theminator, but Apple fired off a number of angry cease and desist letters to the author and he was forced to stop development and remove it from his site. It's still an excellent app and I believe it's the only one that can handle the clr# resources used for font colors. Then Sprocket came out as an open source, native tool specifically for pxm# resources. It was good. Another few months later, some guy took the code for Sprocket and built ThemePark. Currently, that's the best app, IMO, for editing pmx#s.
icns can be handled by any generic icon editor app. I recommend Iconographer.
So, what do you do once you get these tools? Well, just look around your System folder for files that contain files related to the appearance display. Most of the stuff you will edit is either in /System/Library/CoreServices and /System/Library/Frameworks/Carbon.framework/Frameworks/HIToolbox.framework. The .rsrc files often contain the pxm# and icns resources I mentioned.
WARNING: before changing ANYTHING in these folders, immediately make a backup or two somewhere on your drive of it that you will remember. Never work from the original files; always work on backups. If you screw something up, your best chance of returning things to normal is to reboot into single-user mode and use the command line to replace the damaged file with a clean backup you had made. Do not go any further if you aren't familiar with single-user mode and the command line.
That said, you should use the command line to replace the files that you are changing. I STRONGLY recommend AGAINST logging in as the root user in the GUI to change these files. There's too great a risk permissions will accidentally be changed, .DS_Store files will be overwritten, etc. I also recommend against changing the folder permissions in the Finder because you might forget to change them all back or accidentally apply the change to more than you meant. The best tool here is to simply use "sudo mv" in the terminal to move your files into the correct location.
That's the basic explanation of it all. For any changes to system icons, you'll have to reboot for it to take the change. For changes to HIToolbox, just log out or relaunch running applications to apply the change. If you want more specific instructions on certain areas, feel free to ask. I know most of the tricks out there. [quote]Originally posted by Whyatt Thrash:
<strong>Hey Brad, where can I download that nifty trashcan-icon you've got there? And which resource should I edit to switch it? Thx.</strong><hr></blockquote>The trash icon I used is from the Snow.E series. I don't have the URL handy. Check xicons.com for it.
[ 10-31-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</p>
<a href="http://homepage.mac.com/max_08/index.htm"; target="_blank">Max Themes</a>
were very well constructed and do not give me any permissions trouble. Naturally, YMMV.
do you happen to have link to information?