InformIT: Mac OS X Unleashed > Using Tenon XTools

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Using Tenon XTools

Tenon's XTools is a commercial X Window System server version for OS X, with one very significant feature difference that makes it well worth the cost for some users. XTools can operate both in a rooted fashion like the current implementation of XonX/XFree86, as well as in a rootless environment. In the rootless environment, it does away with the traditional X11 root window, and allows the X server to display windows directly into the Aqua GUI environment. Additionally, it allows the Aqua window manager to provide window manager functions for the X11 applications, creating an almost seamless integration between the two environments.

Note

It's not entirely clear what Tenon's done with the root window, or what the implications of the choice will be for all X Window System applications. The root window is an integral part of the X Window System philosophy, and it is a testimonial to both the creativity of the Tenon programmers, and the power of Unix-like abstraction models that XTools works so well without it. There's a good chance that Tenon has done something like implemented its X Window System server so that it displays the root window somewhere else. Somewhere else is likely into an invisible and unused buffer in memory, and Tenon has fooled the applications into thinking that they are working in a normal X11 environment. We know, it's geeky—but we think that the ability to do things like that with Unix applications is pretty cool.

XTools is a lot easier to start and work with than the XFree86 implementation currently is—just click the application icon, and away it goes. Because XTools doesn't display a root window, though, it's a lot harder to tell that it's running. And if there are no X11 applications running in it, XTools just looks like another application in your Dock.

Advantages

The big advantage of XTools comes when you start running X Window System applications. Figure 19.12 shows a screenshot with some X11 applications running beside some Aqua applications—can you tell which are which?

Figure 19.12 The Tenon XTools X Window System server displaying X11 applications in the Aqua interface.

Another significant advantage is the fact that it's a commercial application. Open source software is great, and the rapidity with which bugs are addressed in open source code is simply amazing. However, if a bug isn't being addressed, it's much nicer if it is in a commercial application so that it's somebody's fault that the problem isn't fixed. If you rely on X11 software for some business purpose, you might want to consider the benefits of paying for software, and being able to hold another company liable for bugs in its software.

Installation

XTools installs like most other OS X applications: Download the installer from Tenon's Web site (http://www.tenon.com/products/xtools/) or buy it on CD, run the installer, and follow the directions. Pay special attention to the note that says that XTools uses the same X11 libraries as XFree86. If you decide to delete XTools from your system using the uninstaller, it will delete the libraries that XFree86 needs as well. Tenon provides instructions on how to uninstall the software without deleting the libraries, and we suggest that you follow those instructions if you need to remove XTools. The instructions with the install we examined said to remove it by dragging the XTools application to the trash if you have XFree86 installed, but we expect that this might change because the software is still under development.

Using XTools

Using XTools is trivially easy—start it up, and you're using it. After XTools is started, any X11 applications that you execute will display into the XTools server, and will appear alongside the applications in your Aqua environment. If you don't like having to start a terminal and execute X11 applications from the command line, you can always use what you know about shell scripts to write scripts that will start them all up for you.

XTools will allow you to manage your X11 applications with a window manager other than the Aqua manager if you choose. Current options are twm and mwm. If you choose to use one of these, be aware that Tenon cautions that OpenGL might not function properly in windows managed by non-Aqua managers. Still, the alternatives give a few benefits of their own, so you might be inclined to experiment and see what works best for you. Figures 19.13 through 19.15 show XTools with X11 applications integrated among Aqua applications, running each of the windows managers currently supported.

Figure 19.13 Tenon XTools using Aqua to manage its windows. Note that there are X Window System applications running here, as well as Aqua-only applications.

Figure 19.14 Tenon XTools using twm to manage its windows. Now the difference between Aqua applications and X Window System applications is clearer.

Figure 19.15 Tenon XTools using mwm to manage its windows.

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