pacman(6x)

📦
version 6.17 · 10 versions
, in fedora 44

✨ pacman(6x) ✨

okay bestie, so this is a page from the XScreenSaver manual, and it's all about pacman(6x) 🍓 like, the actual little demo, not the game you're thinking of.

💖 NAME 💖

pacman — bestie it simulates a game of Pac-Man on a randomly-created level. no cap. every single run is a brand new level, randomly made, icon behaviour only 🌈

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

pacman [--display host:display.screen] [--window] [--root] [--window-id
number] [--mono] [--install] [--visual visual] [--ncolors integer]
[--delay microseconds] [--size pixels] [--fps]

like literally that's the whole thing 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

Simulates a game of Pac-Man on a randomly-created level. that's it, that's the description, and honestly? it ate. it's giving main character energy on your X display and it's obsessed with generating a fresh random level every time 🧚

👑 OPTIONS 👑

pacman accepts the following options, and yes, we're going through all of them because you deserve the full lore:

  • --window — Draw on a newly-created window. This is the default, so if you don't say anything, this is what you get 💖
  • --root — Draw on the root window. yes, straight onto your desktop backdrop, go off ✨
  • --window-id number — Draw on the specified window. you pick the exact window id, you're in charge here 🎀
  • --mono — If you're on a color display, pretend we're on a monochrome display. delulu? maybe. but it's what you asked for 💀
  • --install — Install a private colormap for the window. private colormap? very exclusive, very VIP 🫶
  • --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 class name or an id number in decimal or hex, both slay 🌸
  • --ncolors integer — How many colors should be used (if possible). Default is 6. that's the default, remember it 📌
  • --delay microseconds — (appears in the synopsis above, bestie — same flag name, same spelling, don't come for me) ✨
  • --size integer — How big to make Pac-Man and the ghosts. 0 means "default." so 0 = "idk you decide," and honestly same 🙈
  • --fps — Display the current frame rate and CPU load. numbers on screen, we love to see it 🔥

🌈 ENVIRONMENT 🌈

the environment variables are lowkey important, so:

  • 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.

that last one is the combo move: XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW + --root 🤝

💜 SEE ALSO 💜

X(1), xscreensaver(1).

go read those too, iykyk 📚

Copyright © 2000 Edwin de Jong.

Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute this software and its documentation for any purpose and without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation.

⚠️ okay so the legal bit is important and we do not skip it: free to use, copy, modify and distribute, for any purpose, no fee — but that copyright notice has to appear in all copies, and both the copyright notice and this permission notice have to show up in supporting documentation. periodt. 💅

🧚 AUTHOR 🧚

Edwin de Jong <mauddib@gmx.net>.

aaaaand that's the whole page, bestie 🎀

X Version 11, this one's 6.17-1.fc44, dated 13-Oct-2026 — thanks for coming to my ted talk, drink water, and go watch Pac-Man get randomly spawned on your root window 💖✨🦋

📦 where this page comes from