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Hello, I enjoy the configurability of Linux but sometimes settings are a mystery. I would like to set a series of X applications to start upon login for the user ...
  1. 01-04-2012 #1
    Pixel_Outlaw
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    Starting a batch of X utilities upon login.

    Hello,

    I enjoy the configurability of Linux but sometimes settings are a mystery.

    I would like to set a series of X applications to start upon login for the user "ryan". I'm currently using Debian which has a graphical login screen that starts after X11 loads up. My concern is that the X programs will not load after X starts because the user has not logged in yet.

    How can I ensure that the following utilities start for user "ryan" when he logs in?

    xclock
    gmix
    gnome-terminal
    xclipboard
    google-chrome
    xsetroot -bg black -fg green -bitmap /home/ryan/Pictures/back.xbm

    Also it would be nice if they did not all pile up in the corner of the screen when they start but right now I'd be happy just having them all ready to roll when the user logs in.

    Thanks in advance!
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  2. 01-04-2012 #2
    fratermus
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    This may differ based on the window manager.

    Some possibilities off the top of my head. May not be actually correct but may point you in the right direction
    ~/.config/autostart/*.desktop (lxde, xfce, etc)
    ~/.config/openbox/autostart
    ~/.fluxbox/autostart.sh
    etc
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  3. 01-04-2012 #3
    elija
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    What window manager or desktop are you using?
    If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate! (Zapp Brannigan)


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  4. 01-05-2012 #4
    atreyu
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    In theory, you can use .xinitrc (for runlevel 3 / startx) and .xsession (for runlevel 5 / graphical login) to put custom X commands, including launching your desktop manager. I just link the one to the other (ln -s .xinitrc .xsession or vice versa).

    Mine might look like:

    Code:
    #!/bin/bash
xclock&
gmix&
gnome-terminal&
xclipboard&
google-chrome&
xsetroot -bg black -fg green -bitmap /home/ryan/Pictures/back.xbm
exec gnome-session
    make sure it is executable. some newer versions of X or GDM can ignore these files, though I think. YMMV.

    in that last line, i'm assuming GNOME of course...
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  5. 01-05-2012 #5
    Pixel_Outlaw
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    I see, on this system I have multiple window managers. I use twm for low resource computing and Gnome when I need a more visual desktop. I tried creating an .xinitrc file but did not include the shell specification nor did I ensure it was executable. I'll have to try that tonight. Thanks.
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  6. 01-06-2012 #6
    Pixel_Outlaw
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    Ok it looks to be working correctly!

    Thanks everyone.
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