moebius(6)

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

💫 moebius(6) — XScreenSaver manual 💫

okay so bestie, we're doing the moebius page from the XScreenSaver manual today and honestly? it's giving art history major with a math minor. 🎨🐜

✨ NAME ✨

moebius — Escher's Moebius Strip II, but with ants. yes, ants. 🐜🐜🐜

🌈 SYNOPSIS 🌈

moebius [--display host:display.screen] [--visual visual] [--window]
[--root] [--window-id number] [-delay number] [-solidmoebius]
[-wireframe] [-noants] [-fps]

like, that's the whole vibe check right there 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

Another M. C. Escher hack, this time by Marcelo Vianna — and it draws “Moebius Strip II,” a GL image of ants literally just... walking along the surface of a moebius strip. that's it. that's the whole thing. and it's iconic ✨

ngl the way these little guys just keep going around a surface with only one side and one edge? main character energy fr fr 🐜🔁 no cap, it's mesmerizing.

🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

  • --visual visual — tells it which visual to use. legal values are either the name of a visual class, or the id number (in decimal or hex) of one specific visual. pick your fighter 💖
  • --window — draws on a brand-new window. this is the default, so like, it's already doing this unless you say otherwise 🫶
  • --root — draws on the root window instead. whole-screen moment 👑
  • --window-id number — draws on the window you point at with number. specific queen behavior 💅
  • --delay number — per-frame delay, measured in microseconds. default: 20000 (that's 0.02 seconds, for the record ⏱️)
  • --solidmoebius — solid floor. yep, that's what it says, bestie 🧱
  • --wireframe — renders in wireframe instead of solid. skeleton mode 🦴✨
  • --noants | --no-noants — draws ants. it's a boolean, so you flip it on or off 🐜🔛
  • --fps — shows you the current frame rate, the CPU load, and the polygon count. stats girlies rise 🙌📊

🌸 ENVIRONMENT 🌸

  • DISPLAY — used to get the default host and display number. classic 🖥️
  • XENVIRONMENT — used to get the name of a resource file that overrides the global resources stored in the RESOURCE_MANAGER property. fancy override energy 💜
  • XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW — the window ID to use together with --root. 🔑

⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

X(1), xscreensaver(1) — go read those too, iykyk 📚

Copyright © 2002 by Marcelo Vianna. 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.

okay so real talk: that warranty bit means it comes with no promises whatsoever — no express, no implied. use it, sell it, whatever, just keep the copyright notice and this permission notice in there. periodt. 📜

🧚 AUTHOR 🧚

Marcelo Vianna. 🫶

and that's a wrap, bestie! 💖 this page is from X Version 11, release 6.15, dated 30-Mar-2026 — go forth and enjoy your ants walking on an impossible strip 🐜🌈✨

📦 where this page comes from