scooter(6x)

📦
version 6.17 · 10 versions
, in fedora 44

✨ NAME ✨

scooter — bestie, it's literally a whole journey through a space tunnel and stars 💫

this one lives in the XScreenSaver manual, section 6x, so it's a game/demo-ish screensaver situation, iykyk 🎀

🚀 SYNOPSIS 🚀

okay so here's the whole invocation, copied char-for-char so you don't typo it:

scooter [--display host:display.screen] [--mono] [--delay millisecs]
[--cycles cycles] [--count count] [--size size] [--ncolors colors]
[--window] [--root] [--window-id number][--install | --noinstall]
[--visual visual] [--fps | --no-fps] [--pair]
not me pointing out that --mono, --noinstall, --no-fps and --display show up in the synopsis and then the OPTIONS list below does its own thing. I'm just reporting what's there, no cap. 👀

💫 DESCRIPTION 💫

scooter is a screensaver that shows an endless journey through a space tunnel and stars. that's it. that's the vibe. 🌌✨

🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

scooter accepts the following options, and I'm giving you every single one because we don't gatekeep: 🫶

  • --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.
  • --window-id number — Draw on the specified window. You tell it which one.
  • --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. so like, name it or number it, your call bestie 🎨
  • --delay milliseconds — How much of a delay should be introduced between steps of the animation. Default 10, or about 1/100th second. slow it down if you want the drama to linger ✨
  • --cycles cycles — How fast/slow the screensaver is. cycles takes number of cycles. The default is 5 cycles. 🌀
  • --count count — Specifies how many doors in a tunnel can be rendered. Minimum is 4. Default is 24. it's giving infinity corridor 🌈
  • --size size — Specifies how many stars outside the tunnel can be rendered. Default is 100. main character star energy ⭐
  • --ncolors colors — Specifies number of colors. A number that is less than or equals 2 means monochrome. --mono achieves the same thing.
  • --pair — Start screensaver in pairs (Not recommended). okay so the original literally writes "(Not recommended)" in there. I'm not editing that. consider yourself warned 🙈
  • --fps — Display the current frame rate and CPU load. nerd stats on screen, iconic 📊

🌸 ENVIRONMENT 🌸

the environment variables, since apparently screensavers also have ✨~feelings~✨:

  • 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 these too, they're the friend group of this manpage:

Copyright © 2001 by Sven Thoennissen.

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.

fr fr, "as is", no promises, that's the whole legal vibe 🫶

👑 AUTHOR 👑

Sven Thoennissen <posse@gmx.net>

and that's the whole page, bestie 💖 this was X Version 11, version 6.17-1.fc44, dated 13-Oct-2026 — ty for coming to my ted talk, go stare at a space tunnel, periodt 🌌✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from