noseguy(6)

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

💖 noseguy(6) — the XScreenSaver manual, bestie edition 🎀

okay so picture this: a tiny guy with a HUGE nose and a little hat, just running around your screen dropping witty messages like it's his whole job. it is his whole job. slay.

this whole thing — code, bitmaps, the guy himself — got extracted from xnlock. iconic origin story, no cap.

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

noseguy [--display host:display.screen] [--foreground color]
[--background color] [--text-foreground color] [--text-background color]
[--font font] [--window] [--root] [--window-id number] [--install]
[--visual visual] [--mode mode] [--program program] [--filename file]
[--text text] [--fps]

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

A little man. Big nose. A hat. He runs around spewing out messages to the screen. That's it, that's the whole vibe. 🏃‍♂️💨

This code (and its bitmaps, bestie, don't forget the bitmaps) were extracted from the xnlock program. So it's giving legacy. It's giving heritage. We love that for him.

💅 OPTIONS 💅

noseguy accepts the following options, and yes we're going through all of them:

  • --window — Draw on a newly-created window. This is the default, so if you do nothing at all, this is what you get. main character energy 🫶
  • --root — Draw on the root window. like, the whole background. bold.
  • --window-id number — Draw on the specified window. you pick, you choose, you decide. 👑
  • --install — Install a private colormap for the window. fancy private colormap, only for us. 💅
  • --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. so like, a name OR a number, decimal or hex. pick your fighter. ⭐
  • --font font — The font used for the messages. his handwriting, basically. ✍️
  • --program program — This program will be run periodically, and its output will be the text of the messages. Default:
xscreensaver-text --cols 40 | head -n15

You can configure the text printed through the "Advanced" tab of xscreensaver-settings(1), or by editing your ~/.xscreensaver file. iykyk 🧚

  • --filename file — If mode is file, then the contents of this file will be used for all messages. all of them. every single one. 🍓
  • --text string — If mode is string, then this text will be used for all messages. same deal, one string to rule them all. 💜
  • --fps — Display the current frame rate and CPU load. numbers! on your screen! watching them go! 📊🔥

🌈 ENVIRONMENT 🌈

  • DISPLAY — to get the default host and display number. classic.
  • XENVIRONMENT — to get the name of a resource file that overrides the global resources stored in the RESOURCE_MANAGER property. lowkey the deep lore. 🦋
  • XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW — The window ID to use with --root.
💀 heads up bestie: those last two are two separate variables — XENVIRONMENT and XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW — don't be out here merging them in your head, i'm begging.

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

X(1), xscreensaver(1), xscreensaver-text(6), xnlock(1)

(four whole references. we ate. periodt.)

Copyright 1985, 1990 by Dan Heller <argv@danheller.com>.

👑 AUTHOR 👑

Dan Heller <argv@danheller.com>, 1985.

Ability to run standalone or with xscreensaver added by Jamie Zawinski <jwz@jwz.org>, 13-aug-92.

okay that's the whole page, bestie, you're fully caught up 💖 this was X Version 11, page version 6.15 (30-Mar-2026) — go forth and let the little big-nosed guy say his lines 🧚✨🌸

📦 where this page comes from