qix(6)

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

💅 qix(6) — the XScreenSaver manual, but make it cute ✨

okay bestie, buckle up, because we're about to talk about qix, a program from the XScreenSaver manual, and it's genuinely iconic. like, this is the manual page, rewritten so you actually get it. no cap.

🌈 NAME 🌈

qix — it bounces colored lines around a window. that's it. that's the whole vibe. 🎀

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

qix [--display host:display.screen] [--foreground color] [--background
color] [--window] [--root] [--window-id number][--mono] [--install]
[--visual visual] [--segments int] [--spread pixels] [--size pixels]
[--count int] [--color-shift degrees] [--delay usecs] [--random]
[--linear] [--solid] [--hollow] [--xor] [--no-xor] [--transparent]
[--non-transparent] [--additive] [--subtractive] [--poly int]
[--gravity] [--no-gravity] [--fps]

💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

okay so the qix program bounces a series of line segments around its window. that's the whole thing. and honestly? it's truly the swiss army chainsaw of qix programs. the author literally says so. and if you know of one with more display modes, he wants to know about it. he's serious. 👑

🧚 OPTIONS 🧚

qix accepts the following options, and there are a lot of them, so grab a snack:

  • --window — draw on a newly-created window. this is the default, so if you do nothing, congrats, you already did this one. 💅
  • --root — draw on the root window.
  • --window-id number — draw on the specified window. you pick the window, it draws on it. slay.
  • --mono — if you're on a color display, pretend we're on a monochrome display. delusion, but make it aesthetic. 🎀
  • --install — install a private colormap for the window.
  • --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.
  • --segments integer — how many line segments should be drawn. default 50. that's a whole lotta segments.
  • --spread integer — how far apart the endpoints of one segment should be from the next. default 8.
  • --size integer — the maximum distance one endpoint of a segment is allowed to be from the opposite end of that segment. default 0, meaning unlimited. no cap, literally unlimited.
  • --count integer — how many qixes to draw. default 1. yes, "qixes" is the plural. we love an irregular plural. 🦋
  • --color-shift degrees — if you're on a color display, the color of the line segments will cycle through the spectrum. this specifies how far the hue of each segment should be from the next, in degrees on the HSV wheel. default 3. rainbow moment 🌈
  • --delay microseconds — how much of a delay should be introduced between steps of the animation. default 10000, or about 0.01 seconds.
  • --random — the qix will wander around the screen semi-randomly. this is the default. main character energy: no plan, just vibes. ✨
  • --linear — the opposite of --random: the qix will travel in straight lines until it reaches a wall, and then it will bounce. very structured. very demure.
  • --solid — if this is specified, then the area between the line segments will be filled in with the appropriate color, instead of the qix simply being composed of one-pixel-wide line segments. this option looks really good in color. highkey obsessed. 💖
  • --hollow — the opposite of --solid; this is the default.
  • --xor — if this is specified, then qix segments will be drawn and erased with xor, instead of being drawn in some color and erased in the background color. this implies --mono, in that only two colors can be used. two colors only, so choose wisely bestie.
  • --transparent — if this is specified, and --count is greater than 1, then each qix will be drawn in one color, and when they overlap, the colors will be mixed. this looks best in conjunction with --solid. 🫶
  • --non-transparent — turns off --transparent.
  • --additive — if --transparent is specified, then this option means that the colors will be mixed using an additive color model, as if the qixes were projected light. this is the default. beams of light, bestie. 🔥
  • --subtractive — if --transparent is specified, then this option means that the colors will be mixed using a subtractive color model, as if the qixes were translucent filters.
  • --poly int — how many vertices each qix-line should have: the default is 2, meaning the traditional qix line shape. 3 will yield triangles, and so on. geometry class but fun. 📐
  • --gravity / --no-gravity — whether there should be downward attraction. for example, the options --gravity --linear will make everything move in nice smooth parabolas. gravity is off by default. physics but make it cute 🍓
  • --fps — display the current frame rate and CPU load. numbers! so you can see how hard your computer is working. 👀

🌸 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)

Copyright © 1992 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. (that last bit is the important part, bestie — no promises, no take-backs. 😭)

👑 AUTHOR 👑

Jamie Zawinski <jwz@jwz.org>, 13-aug-92.

thanks to Ariel Scolnicov for the --poly and --gravity options. giving credit where credit is due, periodt. 🫶

🌟 this has been the qix(6) manual page from X Version 11, version 6.15, dated 30-Mar-2026. go forth and bounce some lines, bestie. 💅✨
📦 where this page comes from