About Blackbox
This page is meant to give you an idea of what Blackbox is about and what makes it different from all the other window managers out there.
- 1 What is Blackbox?
- 2 How does it look? I want screenshots!
- 3 Usage and distribution terms
- 4 The Blackbox philosophy
- 5 What's different about Blackbox
- 6 More information
- 2 How does it look? I want screenshots!
1) What is Blackbox?
Blackbox is the fast, lightweight window manager for the X Window System you have been looking for, without all those annoying library dependencies. Blackbox is built with C++ and contains completely original code (even though the graphics implementation is similar to that of WindowMaker).
2) How does it look? I want screenshots!
See BlackboxStyles and follow the links to various style repositories if you want screenshots.
(Since image posting is very prone to abuse and can degenerate easily, it is now one of the WikiDisabledFeatures on this website.)
3) Usage and distribution terms
Blackbox is an open-source project distributed for free under the MIT License*.
4) The Blackbox philosophy
- Do one thing and do it well: manage windows.
- Keep everything small, fast and simple.
- Follow the standards, and work with any tool or application that also follows standards.
- "Perfection is reached not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery
5) What's different about Blackbox
- It's very simplistic; some might even perceive it as ascetical or downright barren. When migrating from an environment filled with images, eye-candy and gadgets, the typical Blackbox desktop can shock a new user due to the sheer amount of empty space. It's called screen estate and some people value it and want as much of it as possible. It doesn't have to be this way - you can add most of the tools and gadgets that you have in other environments.
- Blackbox is very minimalist in its approach as a window manager. It manages windows, period. It doesn't do desktop icons and shortcuts, keyboard handling, flashy menus, tools and gadgets. All of these are available through 3rd-party tools and add-ons, which you can add to your environment as you please. It's just not Blackbox's job to provide them.
- Blackbox is very flexible! By sticking to the basics, but implementing common standards, it allows scores of 3rd-party tools to be used to expand its default functionality. You can use Blackbox as the foundation and create any kind of desktop you can imagine!
- No taskbar. Once you iconify (or minimize) a window, it's completely hidden off the desktop. You can retrieve it from a desktop context menu. Window shading (showing just the window bar) and multiple virtual desktops are provided as alternative ways of clearing up the desktop. (Note: taskbars can also be added, starting with version 0.70, through 3rd-party tools.)
Important: You most definitely need to visit BlackboxAddons if you need to extend the Blackbox desktop beyond its default minimalist approach.
