vncserver on my gateway server

[Jordan Share]

At 12:04 PM 2/16/2003, Wayne Throop wrote:
>: Jordan Share
>: I guess that, fundamentally, my problem is that I just don't know of
>: any compelling GUI linux apps.  :)
>
>I find xterm and wish (the windowing shell) to be excellent linux GUI apps.
>Most of my windows are one of the two of those, or vncviewer windows, with
>a mozilla window thrown in.

It's been a while since I used xterm, but it seems like putty is a pretty 
close replacement.  I tend to just open up another ssh session when I want 
another terminal.  With pageant (key agent), this is a 3 keystroke process 
for my most common ssh-targets.

I tried to find some info on wish, but I can't really tell how it would be 
used.  Can you give examples of how you use it?  Is it a shell that 
inherently has the ability to make windows on an xserver (vs. bash which 
doesn't) ?

>In theory, much of what I do with xterm, wish, and vnc could be done
>with screen and J.Random.Scripting.Language, and at least some of what I
>do with mozilla could be done with lynx or links.  Or possibly with
>character-mode emacs.  But I find X packs more info onto the screen more
>flexibly than simpler alternatives.  Then too, I've gotten addicted to
>gestural interactions (ie, point and operate as opposed to fiddle with
>positioning keys or commands and operate), and while the linux terminals
>have minimal mark-and-paste capabilities via gpm, most
>character-cell-oriented apps are mouse-blind.

Ah, yes, I would never suggest using a linux box as your primary desktop 
without X.  That'd be crazy.

>I am especially fond of wish as a method of integrating the unix
>pipe-oriented world with X, by creating X-oriented pipe fittings, and
>allowing selections and text widget content to be used as pipe sources
>and sinks.

OIC.  That does sound interesting.  Can you give me pointers (URLs) to more 
information on this?  Or is that like asking "Can you give me more 
information on C?"

>So basically, Windows just serves me as an overcomplicated
>device driver loader, mostly because device manufacturers don't
>bother with linux drivers, and don't provide reliable specs.
>
>But that's just me.

Yep.  That's basically what it's for.  Well, and that fact that everything 
really almost has to "just work" or it wouldn't be easy enough for people 
to install stuff.  Which makes it easy for me to install stuff. :)

I would have to agree that there aren't any /compelling/ GUI apps for 
windows either.  Possibly some of the high-end video/audio/image processing 
tools.  But I don't use those. :)

What I was trying to get at was that there seem to be a lot of people who 
have windows desktops that want to VNC into their linux boxes just so they 
can have a GUI.  And then what do they do with it?  Open terminals, and/or 
browse the web.  Which they could just do natively on windows, and not have 
to deal with the lag of VNC (even on a 100Mbit lan, it can still be laggy).

I might be projecting tho. :)

Jordan