dymaxionmap(6)

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

💫 dymaxionmap(6) — the XScreenSaver manual, but make it cute

okay so bestie, you found the dymaxionmap page in the XScreenSaver manual and honestly? it's giving geography girlboss. let's get into it 🗺️✨

🌍 NAME

dymaxionmap — an animation of Buckminster Fuller's unwrapped icosahedral globe. yes, that Buckminster Fuller. no cap, it's iconic.

🎀 SYNOPSIS

dymaxionmap [--display host:display.screen] [--visual visual] [--window]
[--root] [--window-id number] [--delay number] [--speed ratio] [--no-
wander] [--no-roll] [--no-stars] [--no-grid] [--flat] [--satellite]
[--image file] [--image2 file] [--frames number] [--wireframe] [--fps]

🦋 DESCRIPTION

so basically: it's Buckminster Fuller's map of the Earth, projected onto the surface of an unfolded icosahedron. the whole vibe is that the continents show up as one island — or like, nearly contiguous land masses. one landmass, main character energy 💅

this screen saver animates the progression of the dusk terminator sweeping across the flattened globe. it ships with both satellite and flat-colored map imagery, and it can load and convert other Equirectangular-projected maps too. lowkey a whole cartography moment.

✨ 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. pick your fighter 🫶
  • --window — draw on a newly-created window. this is the default, so like, you're already doing it.
  • --root — draw on the root window. go big or go home.
  • --window-id number — draw on the specified window. very "I know exactly which window I want" of you.
  • --delay number — per-frame delay, in microseconds. default: 20000 (0.02 seconds). tiny numbers, big impact.
  • --speed ratio — speed of the animation. 0.5 means half as fast, 2 means twice as fast. go off, choose your tempo 🔥
  • --wander | --no-wander — whether the object should wander around the screen. default yes. it roams, it's free 🌈
  • --roll | --no-roll — whether the object should roll randomly. default yes. chaotic little globe, we love her.
  • --stars | --no-stars — whether to display a star field. default yes. space aesthetic unlocked ⭐
  • --grid | --no-grid — whether to overlay a latitude/longitude grid over the map. default yes. grid girls stay winning.
  • --flat — display a flat-colored map of the Earth. this is the default. flat but make it fashion 💅
  • --satellite — display a day-time satellite map of the Earth. hi-res queen 👑
  • --image file — an image to use for the day-time map.
  • --image2 file — an image to use for the night-time map. the two images can be the same: the night-time one will be darkened. spooky little glow-up 🌙
  • --frames number — the number of frames in the day/night animation. default 720. larger numbers are smoother, but use more memory. the day/night animation happens if image2 is set, or if frames is greater than 1. smooth brain? no. smooth frames. 🍓
  • --wireframe | --no-wireframe — render in wireframe instead of solid. see-through, kind of a look ngl.
  • --fps | --no-fps — whether to show a frames-per-second display at the bottom of the screen. numbers on screen = serotonin 📈

🌸 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), xscreensaver(1) glplanet(6)

copyright © 2016-2018 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.

💀 real talk bestie: "Dymaxion Map" and "The Fuller Projection Map" are trademarks of The Buckminster Fuller Institute.

the original Dymaxion Map image is copyright © 1982 by The Buckminster Fuller Institute. (this program does not use their imagery, only similar trigonometry.) so like, legally chill 🫶

the Dymaxion Map was covered by now-expired US Patent 2,393,676 (Richard Buckminster Fuller, 1946). expired = vintage = iconic, periodt.

👑 AUTHOR

Jamie Zawinski.

and that's the whole page, bestie! this one's from X Version 11, version 6.15, dated 30-Mar-2026 — screenshot it, save it, send it to the group chat 🎀✨💜

📦 where this page comes from