gleidescope(6)

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

✨ gleidescope(6) ✨

okay so bestie, you're looking at the XScreenSaver manual page for gleidescope, and honestly? it's giving iconic. let's get into it 💅

🌈 NAME 🌈

gleidescope — a tiled OpenGL kaleidescope. yes. tiled. OpenGL. kaleidescope. obsessed already 🦋

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

gleidescope [--display host:display.screen] [--visual visual] [--window]
[--root] [--window-id number] [-delay number] [-move] [-rotate] [-zoom]
[-image file] [-fps] [-size number] [-duration number]

like, copy that exactly, no cap. run it in your terminal and the kaleidescope era begins ✨

🎀 DESCRIPTION 🎀

A tiled kaleidescope using OpenGL. that's literally it. that's the whole vibe. it's pretty, it's tiled, it's OpenGL, and it's about to be your lock screen's main character energy 💖

⭐ OPTIONS ⭐

  • --visual visual — tells it which visual to use. legal values are either the name of a visual class, or the id number of a specific visual (decimal or hex, both slay). pick your fighter 🫶
  • --window — draw on a newly-created window. this is the default, so if you do nothing, congrats, you already did it 💀
  • --root — draw on the root window instead. big "I'm the wallpaper now" energy.
  • --window-id number — draw on the window you specify. iykyk.
  • --delay number — per-frame delay, measured in microseconds. default: 20000 (that's 0.02 seconds, for the record 🙈). slower = chiller, faster = zoomier.
  • --move — move the camera. yes queen, get that motion 🎥
  • --rotate — rotate the camera. spinning. iconic.
  • --zoom — zoom the camera in and out. in and out. both. we love range ✨
  • --image file — the texture map to use at the end of the kaleidescope. your pic, your vibe 🌸
  • --fps — display the current frame rate, CPU load, and polygon count. numbers!! look at them!! 🔥
  • --size number — the size of the hexagons being displayed, 1 (small) through 10 (large). tiny hexies or big hexies, your call 🐝
  • --duration number — the time in seconds before another image is chosen. it'll switch on you, so don't get too attached 😭

🧚 ENVIRONMENT 🧚

  • DISPLAY — to get the default host and display number. the classic.
  • XENVIRONMENT — to get the name of a resource file that overrides the global resources stored in the RESOURCE_MANAGER property. yes that's a mouthful, and yes it's real 💜
  • XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW — the window ID to use with --root. lowkey important, highkey useful 👑

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

X(1), xscreensaver(1)

go read those too, bestie. knowledge is beautiful 🌈

Copyright © 2003 by Andrew Dean

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.

like, it's free to use, but keep the notice, and there's no warranty — fr fr, read it, don't skip it 🫶

💖 AUTHOR 💖

Andrew Dean. king behavior. thank you for the kaleidescope 🙏

quick note bestie: this page ships with X Version 11, version 6.15, dated 30-Mar-2026. that's the whole sign-off — go make something pretty with it 💅✨🎀
📦 where this page comes from