companioncube(6)

📦
version 6.15 · 2 versions
, in alpine 3.24, arch rolling, nixpkgs unstable

💖 companioncube(6) — the XScreenSaver manual, bestie edition 💖

okay so real talk, this is companioncube(6), one of the lil screensaver hacks that ships with the XScreenSaver manual. it's a whole vibe. let's get into it 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

companioncube — a vital aparatus. (yes that's how it's spelled in the original, don't come for me, it's iconic 🫶)

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

companioncube [--display host:display.screen] [--visual visual]
[--window] [--root] [--window-id number] [--delay number] [--speed
ratio] [--spin] [--wander] [--count number] [--wireframe] [--fps]

like, that's the whole invocation. copy-paste energy fr fr 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

okay so the Enrichment Center would like you to know that the symptoms most commonly produced by Enrichment Center testing are:

  • superstition
  • perceiving inanimate objects as alive
  • hallucinations

and the Enrichment Center reminds you — very firmly — that the weighted companion cube will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak. no cap.

🚨 but in the event that the Weighted Companion Cube does speak, the Enrichment Center urges you to disregard its advice. 💀 genuinely do not listen to the cube.

💜 OPTIONS 💜

  • --visual visual — specify which visual to use. legal values are the name of a visual class, or the id number (decimal or hex) of a specific visual.
  • --window — draw on a newly-created window. this is the default, so like, you're already slaying.
  • --root — draw on the root window.
  • --window-id number — draw on the specified window.
  • --delay number — per-frame delay, in microseconds. default: 30000 (that's 0.03 seconds, for the math girlies ✨).
  • --speed number — how fast the animation should run. less than 1 for slower, greater than 1 for faster.
  • --count number — how many cubes. default 3.
  • --spin, --no-spin — instead of bouncing, float and spin. 🌀
  • --wander, --no-wander — instead of bouncing, float and drift.
  • --wireframe — render in wireframe instead of solid.
  • --fps — display the current frame rate, CPU load, and polygon count. the little numbers go brrr 📊

🧚 ENVIRONMENT 🧚

  • DISPLAY — to get the default host and display number.
  • XENVIRONMENT — to get the name of a resource file that overrides the global resources stored in the RESOURCE_MANAGER property.
  • XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW — the window ID to use with --root.

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

X(1), tronbit(6), lament(6), dangerball(6), xscreensaver(1)

squad goals, honestly 👑

Copyright © 2011 by Jamie Zawinski.

Permission to use, copy, modify, distribute, and sell this software and its documentation for any purpose is hereby granted without fee, provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation. No representations are made about the suitability of this software for any purpose. It is provided "as is" without express or implied warranty.

(translation: it's free, just keep the notice, and no warranty — as is, periodt 💀)

🍓 AUTHOR 🍓

Jamie Zawinski, with apologies to the fine folks at Valve Software and Aperture Science. 🫶

and that's the whole page bestie!! this masterpiece is from X Version 11, 6.15 (30-Mar-2026) — go forth and cube 💖✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from