[H-GEN] Virtual screen sizes in XFree86

[Paul Gearon]

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In article <39B5FE0F.755B4B66 at uq.net.au>, Frank Brand <fbrand at uq.net.au>
wrote:
>> but I want some way to do it that's dynamic (like changing graphics
>> resolutions is). Besides, these people have just come from windoze...
>> they want to use gdm to log in.
> 
> You have a couple of options provided they dont want to change colour
> depth on the fly

Ummm, I probably wasn't clear, but that's EXACTLY what I'm asking to do. 
However, I gave it a little thought (which I should have done in the first
place) and realise that it can't be done.

> (generally this is not done in windows either...you
> usually need to restart you computer if you change colour depth).

You mustn't have tried changing colour depth in windoze recently.  I'd
applaud you for not running windows at all, except the thread about your
modem problems says otherwise.  :-)

Don't get me wrong... I saw a program try and print an image on a windoze
box recently.  It failed, and made the recommendation that the user REBOOT
the computer and try again!!!!  The scary thing was that this actually
worked.  Is it just me, or do others find this unnacceptable?  :-)

Part of the reason that windoze doesn't reboot for the colour change
thingy is that images in windoze use pallettes even when in 24bit colour
mode.  This allows the system to remap colours at any time (not always a
good thing, but I guess it's useful for changing colour maps on the fly).

-- 
Regards, 
Paul Gearon
pag at PISoftware.com

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum
immane mittam.
(Translation from latin: "I have a catapult. Give me all the money,
or I will fling an enormous rock at your head.")

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