Main index > Usage problems > adesklets and composite extension [CLOSED]

By snader (User), on Thu May 26 06:44:35 2005: adesklets and composite extension [CLOSED].

Hi, just installed adesklets 0.4.8, it looks great! There's one issue i'm curious about. I use X.org 6.8.2 and I sometimes like to enable composite for window transparency. When I do so, the "mailer" desklet gets drawn on top of itself, so when updates, you see the previous state "shine through". I don't have that issue with the SystemMonitor desklet. A small screenshot for clarification:

http://www.kitemedia.nl/sander/desklet.png

Does anyone else have this issue?

By Ibex (User), on Thu May 26 10:40:00 2005, last edited on Thu May 26 11:11:52 2005.

I have had about the same problem when modificating de modubar.

The solution was to draw a rectangle, put the text on it, and put this image to the rootimage so the previous text was simply overwritten. But, like I said, I was ,modificating the python file itselfs, so it's not that easy if you don't know anything about the python program language.

I'll try to fix the problem and post the new python file here on the forum. Then you just have to replace the original file with the file I'll post.

----- edit;

Hope this will work:
You have to download this mailer.py and put this one in place of the old one. I advise to backup the original one, so you can put the original back if mine doesn't work.

By snader (User), on Thu May 26 10:46:15 2005.

Wow, that would be awesome. I'm willing to learn python for various reasons so I tried to figure out the differences between the ways various applets draw to the screen, but don't understand it yet. Looking forward to your fix. :)

By Ibex (User), on Thu May 26 11:17:00 2005.

snader wrote:

Wow, that would be awesome. I'm willing to learn python for various reasons so I tried to figure out the differences between the ways various applets draw to the screen, but don't understand it yet. Looking forward to your fix. :)

Hmm, you have to know that, before today, I haven't write any letter of python in my entire life. But, python is not that dificult to understand (the python used in the desklets I mean). And now I understand most of the code used in the desklets.

So, If you like programlanguages in a way, you'll learn it fast.

---- edit;
For my modded mailer.py, see my post up here. If it works, let us know so the auther of mailer.py can maybe use the bugfix in his release.

By syfou (Core Developer & Desklet Author), on Thu May 26 14:57:49 2005.

I investigated this issue, but I cannot reproduce it with XComposite on and a composite manager running on X.org implementation 6.8.2 : this is clearly a composite problem I have no control over: Imlib2 doesn't use Xrender new argb visuals, and it is known to cause this kind of double-buffer glitch: the window gets properly updated; I looked at Ibex code, and I just fail to see how it can change anything: it uses a supplementary buffer to write the text, then put it back onto my buffer (which was already blank, and just created for that), buffer that I later force onto the foreground: the operation performed at the end of the day appears to be exactly the same (I mean: no only for the end result, but also regarding what gets printed onto the drawable)...

By snader (User), on Thu May 26 15:08:56 2005.

Ibex, your modded version does exactly the same, doesn't change anything (as syfou predicts above). Thanks for your effort though ... :) And syfou, do you have any clue why the SystemMonitor does not show this behaviour then?

By syfou (Core Developer & Desklet Author), on Thu May 26 15:20:16 2005.

In fact, I do not. :-(

As I said, I did not experience this behavior at all on my side with mailer neither, regardless of XComposite.

By Ibex (User), on Thu May 26 16:04:36 2005.

Hm, It was a try because in the problem I had with modubar (witch was also text printed over the old text again), I solved is with using an extra buffer.

And about SystemMonitor:
SystemMonitor uses that "_micro_text" as a sort of field for the text. The update function just changes the text. It doesn't redraw the whole image like mailer does (I think). Maybe if mailer uses such a buffer like SystemMonitor? I would like to implement this, but I thing this would be too hard for me.

By syfou (Core Developer & Desklet Author), on Thu May 26 16:38:42 2005.

That's true, but that should not change a thing: that's just an optimisation procedure to avoid redrawing everything at each step because system monitor is more graphic intensive than most desklets, that's all. At the end of the operation, you still get to write the few useful pixels to the drawable using the Interpeter (by the way: system monitor has to flush the rectangle containing the text too, there is no other method). I do not think there is anything wrong with mailer specifically (and certainly not with Image blending, since this is a much, much tested code) but it is possible there are internal issues with adesklets/Imlib2 with xcomposite.

By Ibex (User), on Fri May 27 02:14:32 2005.

Oh.

It's weird anyway because I have that extension also enabled, but I don't have that problem. Matbe the version of imlib2. Anyway, thanks for the expaination of the whole thing. I find the whole project intresting.

By snader (User), on Fri May 27 03:10:18 2005.

Hm, maybe it's the imlib2 version (i'm using 1.1.2 which comes with my distribution, Ubuntu Hoary) ... you guys use 1.2 perhaps? I remember the configure script "urged" me to upgrade. :)

By Ibex (User), on Fri May 27 04:00:48 2005.

snader wrote:

Hm, maybe it's the imlib2 version (i'm using 1.1.2 which comes with my distribution, Ubuntu Hoary) ... you guys use 1.2 perhaps? I remember the configure script "urged" me to upgrade. :)

Indeed, I'm using 1.2.0 :).

By snader (User), on Fri May 27 04:05:53 2005.

All right, i'll try updating after the weekend (i'm not gonna be near my computer for some time). I'll let you guys know if it fixed it.

By syfou (Core Developer & Desklet Author), on Fri May 27 14:54:56 2005.

I went a step further, and I downgraded my Imlib2 implementation from 1.2.0.007 (CVS version) to the packaged 1.1.2 version from sourceforge. Now I do experience the same visual problem than snader with mailer when XComposite is on... I did not look at it further, since it appears it does get solved with later version of the libraries.

So, just for the record, I do not experience this glitch on:

By snader (User), on Mon May 30 08:58:48 2005.

Awesome, thanks a lot syfou! I haven't tested myself yet but this should be the solution then. Thanks again. :)

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