XWD(1)

👑 XWD(1) — bestie edition 💅

okay so this is the XWD(1) page from the General Commands Manual, and we're gonna go through it together, no skimming, no skipping, because every single line here actually matters. grab a snack. 🍓

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✨ NAME ✨

xwintoppm — dump an image of an X window 📸

like, it grabs a picture of a window. that's the whole job. and it ate. periodt.

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

xwintoppm [-debug] [-help] [-nobdrs] [-out file] [-xy] [-frame] [-add
value] [-root | -id id | -name name ] [-icmap] [-screen] [-display
display]

so that's the whole vibe check right there — all the flags, laid out. notice how -root, -id id and -name name are like, mutually exclusive girlies (that's what the | means, iykyk). pick one. 🫶

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

Xwintoppm is an X Window System window dumping utility. lowkey iconic. what it does is let X users store window images in ppm(5) format. ✨

and then?? bestie, then that file can be read by all sorts of other X utilities for redisplay, printing, editing, formatting, archiving, image processing, etc. it's giving versatile. it's giving main character file format. 🌈

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💖 OPTIONS 💖

okay this is the big section, hydrate first. 💧

• -display display — lets you specify the server to connect to; see X(1). 💅
• -help — prints out the Usage: command syntax summary. that's it, that's the flag. a little "here's how u use me" moment. 🎀
• -nobdrs — says the window dump should NOT include the pixels that make up the X window border. super useful when you wanna drop the window contents into a document as an illustration and you don't want the crusty border ruining the aesthetic. ✂️
• -out file — lets you explicitly name the output file right there on the command line. the default is to output to standard out. 🫶
• -xy — color displays only, bestie! it selects XY format dumping instead of the default Z format. no cap.
• -add value — specifies a signed value to be added to every pixel. yes, every pixel. signed, so it can be negative. 💀
• -frame — indicates that the window manager frame should be included when you're manually selecting a window. give the window its little outfit. 👑
• -root — indicates the root window should be selected for the dump, without making the user pick a window with the pointer. zero clicking required, slay.
• -id id — indicates the window with the specified resource id should be selected for the dump, again without making the user select a window with the pointer. precision targeting. 🎯
• -name name — indicates the window with the specified WM_NAME property should be selected for the dump, without requiring the user to select a window with the pointer. find her by name. 🌸
• -icmap — normally the colormap of the chosen window is used to get the RGB values. this option forces the first installed colormap of the screen to be used instead. plot twist. 🔥
• -screen — indicates that the GetImage request used to obtain the image should be done on the root window, rather than directly on the specified window. the way this works is you can obtain pieces of other windows that overlap the specified window, and — more importantly — you can capture menus or other popups that are independent windows but appear over the specified window. this is the one for capturing dropdown menus and it's chef's kiss. 😭
• -silent — operate silently, i.e. don't ring any bells before and after dumping the window. shhh. 🤫

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🌿 ENVIRONMENT 🌿

• DISPLAY — to get default host and display number. 🌍

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⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

xwd(1), xwud(1), xpr(1), X(1), ppm(5).

go read those too, bestie, they're the friend group. 💜

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🎀 ORIGINAL AUTHORS 🎀

• Tony Della Fera, Digital Equipment Corp., MIT Project Athena
• William F. Wyatt, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

and, direct quote vibes: Xwintoppm is an tiny modification to Xwd program which is distributed with X11 kit. (yes, "an tiny". we're keeping it exactly as written, don't come for me, it's iconic. 🙈)

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🧚 MODIFICATIONS 🧚

• Jun-ichiro itojun Itoh, WIDE Project

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ok that's literally the whole page, nothing skipped, every flag accounted for, every name spelled right. you're welcome. 🫶

and for the little sign-off moment: this is X Version 11, Release 6.3 — so like, take that in, date the whole thing, and go dump a window. bye bestie!! 💖✨🎀🦋🌸💅