Bug 116937 - Real transparent background (Xcomposite)
Summary: Real transparent background (Xcomposite)
Status: RESOLVED FIXED
Alias: None
Product: konsole
Classification: Applications
Component: general (show other bugs)
Version: 1.6
Platform: unspecified Linux
: NOR wishlist
Target Milestone: ---
Assignee: Konsole Developer
URL:
Keywords:
: 142128 (view as bug list)
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2005-11-23 11:57 UTC by Jaakko Holster
Modified: 2007-06-02 16:54 UTC (History)
1 user (show)

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Description Jaakko Holster 2005-11-23 11:57:35 UTC
Version:           1.6 (using KDE 3.5 (RC1), Kubuntu Package 4:3.5-rc1-0ubuntu0breezy1 )
Compiler:          Target: i486-linux-gnu
OS:                Linux (i686) release 2.6.12-9-686

Is it (yet) possible to make konsole have real transparent background using Xcomposite instead of current pseudo-transparency? (i.e. grabbed desktop background)

Quite few graphics cards currently support Xcomposite properly, but it's always possible to fall-back to pseudo-transparency if Xcomposite is not enabled.
Comment 1 Stephan Binner 2005-11-23 15:14:00 UTC
You can get it to work by removing some comments from #defines iirc but it has side-effects.
Comment 2 Caleb O'Connell 2006-08-16 22:45:51 UTC
*** This bug has been confirmed by popular vote. ***
Comment 3 meldroc 2006-12-11 22:20:57 UTC
Maybe it's time to uncomment those #defines and ship Konsole with real XComposite transparency.  With Beryl and Compiz out and about, people want this functionality.
Comment 4 Robert Knight 2006-12-12 20:15:34 UTC
> Maybe it's time to uncomment those #defines

I am assuming that they were commented for a reason.  Unfortunately the details given in the code are quite vague and were written before I began working on the code.  In any case, it isn't simply a matter of uncommenting a few defines, changes to the Settings dialog would be required so that it can reflect the availability of true transparency - comments from other users suggest that some people would prefer Konsole's "transparency hack" over true transparency.

Konsole is part of the kdebase 3.5.x module which is currently frozen for new features, unless those new features have been shipped and tested as part of a separate release and are included in KDE 4.  The current KDE 4 build of Konsole doesn't have true transparency yet.

It is possible for packagers to modify the code and make a version of Konsole with this transparency available for those who want to install it, but I would strongly dissuade distributions from doing so in the versions of Konsole they ship as part of their release.

> With Beryl and Compiz out and about, people want this functionality

I don't deny that people would like proper transparency in Konsole, but it is worth pointing out that there are other bug reports with more votes.

Aesthetically speaking there is a lot that can be done to improve Konsole before adding true transparency.  Removing the frame which surrounds the terminal for a start.
Comment 5 Emilio Scalise 2006-12-12 20:23:05 UTC
It's seem that we have only a simple thing to do: use gnome-terminal 2.16 or a recent version of xfce terminal. They work very well with true trasparency.
Comment 6 Robert Knight 2006-12-12 22:18:05 UTC
If anyone wants to help speed up the process of getting this feature into Konsole, here is what they would need to do:

- Download the source package of Konsole for your distro
- Uncomment the relevant defines in the code (they are in konsole/konsole/main.cpp if I remember correctly) 
- Build the code and test it in a composite and non-composite environment, test it with the various combinations of Konsole background settings and colour schemes that are possible.
- Report back in this bug report with your findings
- Better yet, build a package for your distro so that everyone who wants this feature can have it.

Not very much C++ knowledge is needed to do this, although you need to know how to download and build packages from source for your distro.
Comment 7 kaouete 2007-02-08 13:14:05 UTC
Hi,

for people interested, there is a kubuntu package and instruction to make a ebuild for gentoo on this page : http://kde-apps.org/content/show.php?content=48303

(the patch on this page fix the 1-pixel-border-bug too)
Comment 8 Robert Knight 2007-05-08 00:19:38 UTC
*** Bug 142128 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 9 Robert Knight 2007-06-02 16:54:18 UTC
Implemented in KDE 3.5.7 via the "--real-transparency" command-line flag and in KDE 4 out of the box.