SGI graphics Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

This is one of the Silicon Graphics FAQ series, which consists of:

    SGI admin FAQ - IRIX system administration
    SGI apps FAQ - Applications and miscellaneous programming
    SGI audio FAQ - Audio applications and programming
    SGI diffs FAQ - Changes to the other FAQs since the last posting
    SGI graphics FAQ - Graphics and user environment customization
    SGI hardware FAQ - Hardware
    SGI impressario FAQ - IRIS Impressario
    SGI inventor FAQ - IRIS Inventor
    SGI misc FAQ - Introduction & miscellaneous information
    SGI movie FAQ - Movies
    SGI performer FAQ - IRIS Performer
    SGI pointer FAQ - Pointer to the other FAQs
    SGI security FAQ - IRIX security

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Topics covered in this FAQ:
---------------------------
   -1- DISPLAYS AND DGL
   -2- How can I run a program on one machine and display it on another?
   -3- Does the DISPLAY environment variable work for GL applications?
   -4- Why doesn't the DISPLAY environment variable seem to work?
   -5- Why do I get DGL errors when I try to run a GL program?
   -6- CUSTOMIZING
   -7- What tools does SGI provide to help with the customization
       process?
   -8- What are the important login and resource files for IRIX 4.0.x?
   -9- What is the sequence of events that occur at login time in IRIX
       4.0.x?
  -10- What is the difference between .xsession and .sgisession in IRIX
       4.0.x?
  -11- Why do 4Dwm, toolchest, Workspace, etc. not recognize an
       environment variable I set in my shell's startup files in IRIX
       4.0.x?
  -12- How can I change desktops without using the mouse and Desks
       Overview?
  -13- How can I turn off the IRIX 5.2 Magic user environment?
  -14- How can I display my own background image under Indigo Magic?
  -15- Where is the default value of PATH set?
  -16- Why can't I log in after copying /usr/lib/X11/xdm/Xsession to
       .xsession?
  -17- How can I find out what fonts are available?
  -18- How can I use the Alt key as a Meta key in an xwsh window?
  -19- How can I configure my keyboard like a VT100?
  -20- Can I put a single large picture in the 'clogin' display?
  -21- How can I change clogin's background to an image?
  -22- RESOURCES
  -23- What are resources?
  -24- How can I set resources?
  -25- How can I use resources to run the same program twice with
       different attributes?
  -26- Does the GL recognize resources?
  -27- How can I know what resources I can set for an application?
  -28- What is a good approach to take in looking for resources?
  -29- What is the precedence for resource files?
  -30- Why do long resources cause X to crash mysteriously in IRIX 5.2?
  -31- 4DWM
  -32- Where can I learn more about the Window Manager?
  -33- What files affect the window manager and what is their
       relationship to each other?
  -34- Do I need my own .4Dwmrc file?
  -35- Can I run a different window manager?
  -36- How can I choose a different window manager as the default?
  -37- How can I recover from a failed window manager customization
       attempt?
  -38- ADMINISTRATION
  -39- How can I log into pandora/clogin without bringing up graphics?
  -40- How can I restart the console?
  -41- How can I start and stop the graphics system?
  -42- How can I restart the X server?
  -43- How can I run 'xinit' manually, rather than automatically from
       'xdm'?
  -44- How can I start X on a remote host with no users logged in?
  -45- IMAGE FILES
  -46- How can I convert images to and from other formats?
  -47- How can I convert models to and from other formats?
  -48- What is the format of SGI's RGB files?
  -49- How can I compress RGB bitmaps?
  -50- How can I make a screen dump?
  -51- Why does the IRIX 5.3 desktop recognize but not deal with JPEG
       files?
  -52- PROGRAMMING
  -53- Can I use 4Dgifts code in my application?
  -54- What does ERR_WMANIPC mean?
  -55- How can I translate screen (x,y) coords into world (x,y,z)
       coords?
  -56- How can I translate world (x,y,z) coords into screen (x,y)
       coords?
  -57- Why does nothing happen when I call mapcolor(index, R, G, B)?
  -58- Why can't 'cc' find some standard Xwindows functions?
  -59- What is a GL widget?
  -60- I'm using the GlxMDraw widget and it doesn't seem that colors are
       being installed correctly.  Overlays in the GlxMDraw widget are
       displayed in red and gray instead of the colors I specify.
       What's wrong?
  -61- Is there a way to switch between single and double buffering
       within a GL widget on the fly?
  -62- Why doesn't my X server use backing store? How can I turn it on?
  -63- What is "/dev/tport" used for?
  -64- Why is OpenGL's glDrawPixels slower than IrisGL's lrectwrite?
  -65- BUGS AND PROBLEMS
  -66- Why do I get a "Broken Pipe" error when I close an X client
       window?
  -67- What do the errors in my 'xdm-errors' file mean?
  -68- Why doesn't SGI's xlock lock my screen?
  -69- Why can't my XView application find its fonts?
  -70- After running a few programs, the colors change as the cursor
       moves. The colors are usually all wrong in other windows.
  -71- How can I make my X Server use a 12-bit PseudoColor, 12-bit
       TrueColor or 24-bit TrueColor visual by default?
  -72- When I try to run UIM/X uxserverd, I get an error message saying,
       "license file has been modified, cannot start the UIM/X license
       server".
  -73- I just upgraded from IRIX 5.2 to 5.3. Why does my PI or VGX say
       "extension GLX missing on display :0.0"?
  -74- Why does my X server (Xsgi) grow inexorably?
  -75- Why does my GL application run slower on newer SGI hardware than
       it did on older SGI hardware?
  -76- MISCELLANEOUS
  -77- What books about the X Window System and OSF/Motif do you
       recommend?
  -78- Does the IRIX 5.2 Magic user environment display on an X
       terminal?
  -79- What about OpenGL?
  -80- Which SGI machines can run OpenGL now? Which will in the future?
  -81- What's this about a copyright dispute over virtual desks in
       Indigo Magic?