Subject: Re: FVWM: Solaris 2.51, fvwm2 2.0.43 and the color shortage

From: [email-masked] (Martin Cartwright)
Date: Wed, 8 Jan 1997 17:26:49 GMT

=> From [email-masked] Wed Jan  8 17:20:22 1997
=> Date: Wed, 08 Jan 1997 08:59:26 -0800
=> From: Stephen Francis <[email-masked]>
=> To: [email-masked]
=> Subject: FVWM: Solaris 2.51, fvwm2 2.0.43 and the color shortage
=> 
=> I recently built and installed 2.0.43 over a much older fvwm 1.x which

<snip>

=> Get the old "Warning: Cannot allocate colormap entry for "#22eeff"".
=> 
=> It seems crazy that this (relatively) expensive Sparc5 with 64mb and
=> a nice 21" monitor is so display-limited when my (relatively) cheap
=> PC (with a 2mb Number9 vidcard) running linux is color-abundant.  What
=> gives?  Is it an inadequate framebuffer (what I call video adapter).
=>
Yep, that's it.. The Sparc doesn't have the video capabilities the PC does 
(no 16-bit color)
 
=> Q: Does fvwm2 "leak" colors, or otherwise somehow waste them?
=> Q: Is there some (relatively) inexpensive way to upgrade the sparc's
=> 	color capabilities?
=> 
=> Been holding onto these questions for awhile now.  Any reply from 
=> someone in-the-know will be greatly appreciated.
=> 

The main problem with fvwm2 is that you have lots of icons and buttons and 
borders etc which use up your color table allocations.  The best way round 
this is to find a set of colours, and use them over and again. For instance 
make your buttons the same color as your windows etc.. I recently made a set 
of icons that use 16 colors so that I have plenty free for using the various 
display programs I use. However, your biggest enemy is Netscape which eats 256
colors at a time if you don't use -install.

[email-masked] - http://star.pst.qub.ac.uk/~imc/vom.htm
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From: Tom Julien <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 08 Jan 1997 13:17:11 -0500

Stephen Francis <[email-masked]> writes:

>I recently built and installed 2.0.43 over a much older fvwm 1.x which
>I've been using for quite some time (I've tried afterstep and fvwm95
>too).  The problem I keep running into with all the wm's, but especially
>with fvwm2, is a color shortage.  I basically just converted my
>old .fvwmrc to my .fvwm2rc, adding a couple mini-icons on the titlebar,
>but going to fewer colors in xterms and desktop (greys).  After I start
>netscape (I don't use -install; the focus-flashing drives me crazy),
>I can't even start one xterm which uses colors (e.g. blue on black).
>Get the old "Warning: Cannot allocate colormap entry for "#22eeff"".

Try running netscape with the -ncols option (e.g. -ncols 100
or -ncols 64) to limit the number of colors it allocates from
the shared map.  Some browser images may appear dithered, but
I prefer this over to the color map flashing.

>It seems crazy that this (relatively) expensive Sparc5 with 64mb and
>a nice 21" monitor is so display-limited when my (relatively) cheap
>PC (with a 2mb Number9 vidcard) running linux is color-abundant.  What
>gives?  Is it an inadequate framebuffer (what I call video adapter).

In short, yes, the framebuffer is your limitation.  With a
cgsix, you have only 8 bits to work with for your visual
and thus only 256 colors.

>Q: Does fvwm2 "leak" colors, or otherwise somehow waste them?

Still run 1.x, so I'm not sure if 2.x has any cms allocation
bugs.

>Q: Is there some (relatively) inexpensive way to upgrade the sparc's
>	color capabilities?

For the Sparc5, in terms of PC pricing, I don't believe so.
>From Sun, the 24-bit S24 board runs around $2200 list, and the
accelerated 24-bit ZX board around $8995 list.  With 40% off of
that price, neither hit the few hundred dollar range.  I do
believe some third party vendors offer some 24-bit alternatives,
but not certain of names or pricing.

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Thomas J. Julien                     E-Mail: [email-masked]
Enterprise Information Systems          Tel: 407-306-2685
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