3

I am trying to achieve the setup described by Roman in this thread: Drawing over the desktop (I'm trying Option 2, using Ardesia with xcompmgr)

I really could use this solution to make instructional videos for my chemistry class (I'm a teacher). I have installed xcompmgr and ardesia (according to Roman's solution), but when I run ardesia I get a blank grey toolbar (without the icons showing that are supposed to be there). The buttons on the toolbar--although not visible--do work (the pen cursor shows up when I click pencil, the colors change properly, etc.), but nothing happens when I try to write anything. I have also tried using compton instead of xcompmgr. I am running lubuntu 13.10 [UPDATE: 14.04]. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as this would really be a killer tool for making videos for my class. Thanks.

[UPDATE]: Upon further investigation, others seem to be having this issue with the latest version of Ardesia (1.1-1), and recommended trying the penultimate verison (1.0-1). I tried this, and while it gives slightly better results (the toolbar icons show up, annotating with text works but disappears after a few seconds, pen drawing is still impossible), this is still far from being usable. I'd still appreciate any help. Thank you.

[UPDATE 2]: As a test, I ran a ubuntu (not lubuntu) live CD, installed ardesia on it, and ran it using compiz. This worked perfectly, but I have no interest in making the switch to ubuntu. So, I then tried installing compiz on my lubuntu system and using that with ardesia, but achieved the same failing results. Still trying to figure out what the issue might be (perhaps a problem with openbox?). I'm really no expert here, but I'm trying anything I can, and I'd really love any help that people could provide. Thank you.

[UPDATE 3]: Upon trying the suggestion in the comments by @fossfreedom, I got the following error from ardesia:

I then tried it a few more times, and I got it to not break down once, but it still wouldn't draw. Perhaps of note: sometimes when I quit aredsia, the drawing that I tried to do flashes briefly before the program closes. Not sure what this could mean, but I think it shows that it's not totally broken...

Community
  • 1
OpenSourceFTW
  • 181

2 Answers2

1

  1. Downgrade Ardesia to version 1.0-1

  2. Launch an alternative window manager (xfwm4 is a light one used in Xubuntu):

    xfwm4 --replace --sm-client-disable &

  3. Run xfwm4-tweaks-settings → Compositor → Check Enable Display Compositing

enable composite for xfwm4

Notes:

  1. Some combination may not work, it's may be worth to try:

    • Compile it from source.
    • Other compositor in combination with xfwm4: xcompmgr -c , compton -c or cairo-compmgr

  2. For permanent settings, replace openbox with xfwm4 in .config/lxsession/Lubuntu/desktop.conf:

    [Session]
windows_manager/command=xfwm4

    Using separate compositor, add a composite manager command to .config/lxsession/Lubuntu/autostart, Example:

    compton -c --backend glx
user.dz
  • 49,176
0

I used Ubuntu 14.04 for testing with Ardesia from source repository.

  • Ardesia 1.1-1 from Repo gets SEGFAULT.
  • Ardesia from source with default openbox, flash my drawing for second before closing.

(In VBox with fresh Lubuntu, only Ardesia 1.0-1/Precise pre-build worked for me)

  1. Install compiz and ccsm

    sudo apt-get install compiz compizconfig-settings-manager metacity

  2. Open CCSM:

    • General category → Enable Composite , Gnome Compatibility & OpenGL
    • Effects → Enable Window Decoration
    • Window Management → Enable Move Window, Resize Window (as minimum, you can enable any option you want)

    Other way, I have exported my Compiz settings

    • Create a text file, add these to it (skipped defaults):

      [core]
s0_active_plugins = core;composite;opengl;decor;gnomecompat;resize;move;

[composite]
s0_refresh_rate = 50

      Or my full settings export here.

    • CCSM → Preferences → Import

  3. Run compiz

    compiz --replace &

  4. Run Ardesia

enter image description here

user.dz
  • 49,176