XOpenIM(3)

💅 XOpenIM(3) — XLIB FUNCTIONS ✨

okay bestie, so this is one of those pages from libX11 (yes, the X Version 11 crew) and it's literally all about input methods — opening them, closing them, getting info about them. XIM stuff. iykyk 🦋

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🎀 NAME 🎀

XOpenIM, XCloseIM, XSetIMValues, XGetIMValues, XDisplayOfIM, XLocaleOfIM, XRegisterIMInstantiateCallback, XUnregisterIMInstantiateCallback — open, close, and obtain input method information. that's the whole vibe 💖

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✨ SYNTAX ✨

here's the lineup, no cap:

XIM XOpenIM(Display *display, XrmDatabase db, char *res_name, char
       *res_class);

Status XCloseIM(XIM im);

char *XSetIMValues(XIM im, ...);

char *XGetIMValues(XIM im, ...);

Display *XDisplayOfIM(XIM im);

char *XLocaleOfIM(XIM im);

Bool XRegisterIMInstantiateCallback(Display *display, XrmDatabase db,
       char *res_name, char *res_class, XIDProc callback, XPointer
       client_data);

Bool XUnregisterIMInstantiateCallback(Display *display, XrmDatabase db,
       char *res_name, char *res_class, XIDProc callback, XPointer
       client_data);

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🌸 ARGUMENTS 🌸

• callback — a pointer to the input method instantiate callback. that's the lil function that gets called, bestie 🫶
• client_data — the additional client data. extra stuff you wanna pass along 💫
• db — a pointer to the resource database. the place where resources live 📚
• display — the connection to the X server. your whole link to the server, iconic 👑
• im — the input method. that's the main character here 💅
• res_class — the full class name of the application 🎀
• res_name — the full resource name of the application 🏷️
• ... — the variable length argument list to set or get XIM values. it just keeps going, and honestly? slay 🌈

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💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

🦋 XOpenIM — the opener 🦋

so XOpenIM opens an input method, matching the current locale and modifiers specification. current locale and modifiers get bound to the input method at opening time — like, they're locked in the second you open it, periodt.

and here's the thing: the locale associated with an input method cannot be changed dynamically. nope, not happening, no cap. this implies (their word, not mine 😭) that the strings returned by XmbLookupString or XwcLookupString, for any input context affiliated with a given input method, will be encoded in the locale current at the time the input method is opened. so whatever locale was vibing when you opened it? that's the encoding forever, bestie.

the specific input method this call gets routed to is identified on the basis of the current locale. XOpenIM will identify a default input method corresponding to the current locale. that default can be modified using XSetLocaleModifiers for the input method modifier — so yeah, you can change the default, just not the locale. 💫

the db argument is the resource database the input method uses for looking up resources that are private to the input method. and lowkey important: it is not intended that this database be used to look up values that can be set as IC values in an input context. if db is NULL, no database is passed to the input method. simple as that 🍓

the res_name and res_class arguments specify the resource name and class of the application. they're intended to be used as prefixes by the input method when looking up resources that are common to all input contexts that may be created for this input method. the characters used for resource names and classes must be in the X Portable Character Set (that's a whole thing, respect it ✨). and the resources looked up are not fully specified if res_name or res_class is NULL. 🙈

⚠️ also important: the res_name and res_class arguments are not assumed to exist beyond the call to XOpenIM. but the specified resource database is assumed to exist for the lifetime of the input method. so like, keep db alive, bestie 💀

XOpenIM returns NULL if no input method could be opened. that's the fail state, and it's giving sad girl hours 😭

🎀 XCloseIM — the closer 🎀

XCloseIM closes the specified input method and frees the memory pointed to by the im argument. bye bestie, memory reclaimed, we love a clean exit 💅

⭐ XSetIMValues — setting things ⭐

XSetIMValues presents a variable argument list programming interface for setting attributes of the specified input method.

it returns NULL if it succeeds — otherwise, it returns the name of the first argument that could not be set. and Xlib does not attempt to set arguments from the supplied list that follow the failed argument; all arguments in the list preceding the failed argument have been set correctly. so like, it stops at the first L and everything before it ate 🔥

🌈 XGetIMValues — getting things 🌈

XGetIMValues presents a variable argument list programming interface for querying properties or features of the specified input method. it returns NULL if it succeeds — otherwise, it returns the name of the first argument that could not be obtained.

and here's the rule for each XIM value argument (the ones that follow a name): it must point to a location where the XIM value is to be stored. that is, if the XIM value is of type T, the argument must be of type T*. and if T itself is a pointer type, then XGetIMValues allocates memory to store the actual data, and the client is responsible for freeing this data by calling XFree with the returned pointer. so you do have to clean up after yourself, no skipping 🙈

👑 XDisplayOfIM — which display? 👑

XDisplayOfIM returns the display associated with the specified input method. easy. iconic. 💖

🧚 XLocaleOfIM — which locale? 🧚

XLocaleOfIM returns the locale associated with the specified input method. also easy, also iconic 🌸

🫶 XRegisterIMInstantiateCallback — the callback hookup 🫶

XRegisterIMInstantiateCallback registers a callback to be invoked whenever a new input method becomes available for the specified display that matches the current locale and modifiers.

the function returns True if it succeeds; otherwise, it returns False. 🎀

💜 XUnregisterIMInstantiateCallback — the callback breakup 💜

XUnregisterIMInstantiateCallback removes an input method instantiation callback previously registered.

the function returns True if it succeeds; otherwise, it returns False. same energy, opposite direction 🦋

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🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

go check these out, they're literally in the same friend group:

• XCreateIC(3)
• XSetICFocus(3)
• XSetICValues(3)
• XmbResetIC(3)
• Xlib - C Language X Interface

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okay that's the whole page bestie, you're officially an XIM expert now, no cap 💅✨

mwah 💖 this has been X Version 11, libX11 1.8.14 — catch you on the next manpage, love u, bye 🎀🦋