cwaves(6x)

📦
version 6.17 · 10 versions
, in fedora 44

✨ cwaves — the manual, but make it cute ✨

okay so this is cwaves(6x) from the XScreenSaver manual, and bestie, it's literally the chillest screensaver in the whole dang pack 💖

🦋 NAME 🦋

cwaves — languid sinusoidal colors 🌊🌈

that's it. that's the whole vibe. languid. sinusoidal. colors. periodt.

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

cwaves [--display host:display.screen] [--foreground color]
[--background color] [--window] [--root] [--window-id number] [--mono]
[--install] [--visual visual] [--delay usecs] [--waves int] [--colors
int] [--fps]

no cap, that's the whole invocation right there 👑

💅 DESCRIPTION 💅

okay so basically cwaves draws a languidly-scrolling vertical field of sinusoidal colors. that's the whole program. it's giving calm. it's giving gradient. it's giving "i'm staring at my screen instead of doing my homework" 😭✨

🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

cwaves accepts the following options, and yes we're going through all of them because that's what besties do:

  • --window — draw on a newly-created window. this is the default, so if you don't pick anything, this is what you get 🫶
  • --root — draw on the root window. main character energy, it's on the desktop itself 💅
  • --window-id number — draw on the specified window. you pick the window, it draws there. very "you have one job" of it 🎯
  • --mono — if you're on a color display, it pretends we're on a monochrome display 🙈 lowkey lying to the computer but it's fine
  • --install — install a private colormap for the window 🎨 your own little palette, your own little world
  • --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 👀
  • --delay microseconds — how much of a delay should be introduced between steps of the animation. default 20000, or about 1/50th second ⏱️
  • --waves int — how many cosines to add together. the more waves, the more complex the apparent motion 🌊 the math is mathing, fr fr
  • --colors int — how many colors to use. default 800. the more colors, the smoother the blending will be 🌈✨
  • --fps — display the current frame rate and CPU load 📊 nerd stats, but make it fashion

🌿 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 ⭐

go read those too, they're iconic in their own right 💜

Copyright © 2007 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.

bestie that's the legal bit, don't skip it, the lawyers are watching 👀 no warranty, no promises, it's exactly what it says on the tin 💀

🧚 AUTHOR 🧚

Jamie Zawinski <jwz@jwz.org>, 2-Jul-2007 🌸

and that's the whole page, bestie!! 🎉 this came from X Version 11, build 6.17-1.fc44, dated 13-Oct-2026 — mwah, slay, go stare at some sinusoidal colors 💖✨🦋

📦 where this page comes from