X Window System and Beyond

The X logo from A/UX.

If we're going to talk about the fatty foods of Linux, users of the freaking amazing Raspberry Pi microcomputer will tell you the X Window System is one of many greaseballs to avoid.

Except I need X.

Why? I want windows. That's why. Besides, even Apple's distribution of UNIX, A/UX, had X, and that was crazy bananas. Honestly, who creates a UNIX environment that will only run on hardware with a real floating-point unit and paged memory management unit? Stupid Apple Computer. Anyway, I digest... X, that is.

What in the hell is X? It's one of the mysterious piles of goo in Linux that can send you toward a graphical user interface. But, as I can understand, X itself does not produce a graphical interface. Instead, a window manager uses routines in X to generate the interface. Correct me if I'm dumb, but that's how I understand it.

To get X, I needed to access something called the "Debian package repository," and to do this, Linux people use a program called a "package manager." One such package manager, aptitude, automatically downloads all of the modules and installs the software for you.

Of course, you must be a super-user to install software. If the command prompt is a number sign "#", then you're a super-user.

To install the X Window System, we install "xorg"

Type:

aptitude install xorg

Answer "Y" because you actually want to install xorg.

Move on with life.