scocolor(X) 06 January 1993 scocolor(X) Name scocolor - change window colors in the SCO Open Server GUI Command syntax scocolor [Xtoptions] Desktop syntax Double-click on the Color icon. (The default location of the Color icon is the Controls panel.) Description The colors for the frames and backgrounds of all SCO Open Server windows are defined by the current color palette. This palette assigns specific colors to the window components, including backgrounds, text, frame sha- dows, scrollbar troughs, and highlighting. The clients or applications running inside Open Server windows may also support the current palette (see ``Applications support'' below). The use of a common palette ensures a unified look and facilitates color-coded identification of the active window (the one with the input focus). Users can customize Open Server colors by changing the current palette with scocolor, known to Desktop users as the Color control. They can select predefined palettes from a list, or create their own palettes. Special palettes are provided to support grayscale monitors and DOS pro- grams. Command options scocolor supports the standard Xt options. Desktop options When invoked, the Color control displays a palette selection panel, from which the user can select, add, delete, and edit palettes. If the user chooses to edit a palette, a color selection panel pops up. The color selection panel is modeless to facilitate editing (users can keep both panels up and move back and forth between them). The name of the palette being edited appears at the top of the color selection panel. On the palette selection panel: Select palette Clicking on a palette name in the list makes it the current palette. All windows will immediately take on the colors of that palette. Add palette Add palette creates a new palette with the colors of the current palette. The user is prompted for a palette name. Delete palette Delete palette removes a selected palette from the list. Only user- defined palettes can be deleted; selecting one of the palettes supplied with Open Server disables the Delete palette button. Exiting with Cancel restores deleted palettes. Edit palette The color buttons to the right of the palette list define the component colors of the selected palette. Clicking on one of these buttons brings up the color selection panel, from which a new color can be assigned to the window element represented by the button. The window with the input focus is identified with the ``Active window,'' ``Active foreground'' and ``Active top shadow'' colors. The Desktop and scrollbar and slider control troughs use the ``Alternate background'' color. When clicked on, buttons are outlined with the ``Highlight'' color. The bottom shadows are always black. Text appears in the ``Fore- ground'' color. Only user-defined palettes can be edited with the Color control (see the Graphical Environment Administrator's Guide for information about editing these files). Color prompts for a new palette name if the user attempts to save changes to one of the palettes supplied with Open Server. The new palette inherits the colors of the supplied palette, along with the user's changes. On the color selection panel: Select color Clicking on a color name in the list temporarily adds it to the current palette. All windows will immediately reflect the change. Apply or OK saves the change (OK closes the color selection panel, Apply leaves it up for additional palette editing). Mix color Instead of selecting colors from the list, the user can mix colors with the slider controls. The color is displayed as it is mixed, and can be saved as part of a user-defined palette with Apply or OK. Mixed colors cannot be assigned names. Numbers above each slider indicate the precise position of the slider. Color model The Color model button above the mixing sliders allows the user to choose between an RGB color model (in which the sliders control the amount of red, green, or blue) or an HSV color model (in which the sliders control hue, saturation, and value). RGB is the default. Hardware support The Color control requires an X server that supports at least 16 colors or grayscales. Only PseudoColor and grayscale visual X servers are sup- ported. Video graphics cards which do not support high resolution color may change color in steps, rather than smoothly, when color mixing sliders are moved. Color palettes are automatically mapped to grayscale monitors. Because this might not always yield optimal results, several grayscale palettes are provided. On X servers which only support 16 colors (or grayscales), DOS programs using the DOS Services may produce unreadable screens or distorted colors. This will not occur if the server supports 256 colors, if the DOS window is zoomed to fill the whole screen, or if the supplied ``DOS Primary Colors'' palette is selected. Applications support The colors of all Open Server window frames and backgrounds are defined by the current palette, regardless of whether the application running inside a window supports the Open Server palette mechanism. For an application to support Open Server palettes inside its window, it must replace actual color names with the palette resource variable, and it must be compiled with version 4.0 (or later) of the SCO Open Server Development System. The palette resource variables are: scoBackground scoAltBackground scoForeground scoTopShadow scoActiveBackground scoActiveForeground scoActiveTopShadow scoHighlight The user-configurable colors are limited to eight because Open Server must run on 16-color (or grayscale) servers. Open Server applications that make use of additional colors must observe the same limitation. Because the palette manager allocates eight color cells and the server takes two more (black and white), six color cells are available for applications on a 16-color server, and 246 are available on a 256-color server. Errors Unsupported display If the Color control is invoked on an X server that supports less than 16 colors or grayscales, or on an unsupported visual X server, the error message The Color control will not work with this display. is displayed. No palette daemon scosession must be running before the Color control is invoked. In addi- tion, the scosession resource, enablePalette, must be set to True. If either of these conditions is not satisfied, the error message Color palette daemon not installed. is displayed. Palette name too long If a user attempts to enter a palette name longer than 80 characters, the Color control will beep and refuse to accept more characters. Duplicate palette name If a user enters a name for a new palette which is identical to the name of an existing palette, the error message There already is a palette with that name. is displayed. Editing supplied palette The palettes supplied with Open Server cannot be edited by users. If a user attempts to change a color in one of the supplied palettes, Color will ask the user for a name for a new palette. The new palette will inherit the colors of the supplied palette, along with the user's changes. Resources You can customize some characteristics of the Color control by editing your personal X resource file (which also contains your preferences for other X clients): $HOME/.Xdefaults-hostname where $HOME represents your home directory and hostname is the name of the computer. If this file does not exist, create it. Some of the more useful resources are listed here. For guidelines on how to modify the resources, see the Graphical Environment Administrator's Guide. Palette selection panel labels *title specifies the palette selection panel title. Default: Color *pal_label.labelString specifies the label above the color buttons. Default: Current colors *palette_item1*labelString specifies the label for the background color button. Default: Background *palette_item7*labelString specifies the label for the alternate background color button. Default: Alternate background *palette_item2*labelString specifies the label for the foreground color button. Default: Foreground *palette_item3*labelString specifies the label for the top shadow color button. Default: Top shadow *palette_item4*labelString specifies the label for the active window frame color button. Default: Active window *palette_item5*labelString specifies the label for the active window foreground color button. Default: Active foreground *palette_item6*labelString specifies the label for the active window top shadow color button. Default: Active top shadow *palette_item8*labelString specifies the label for the highlight color button. Default: Highlight Color selection panel labels *editor_form.label.labelString specifies the label above the color list. Default: Select color *model_menu*labelString specifies the color model button label. Default: Color model: Pop-up messages *newpal_form.label.labelString specifies the message for the new palette dialog box. Default: Enter a name for the new palette: *exists_form*messageString specifies the message for the duplicate palette name dialog box. Default: There already is a palette with that name. *notPseudo specifies the message for the unsupported visual X server dialog box. Default: The Color control will not work with this display. *sess_error specifies the message for the no palette daemon dialog box. Default: Color palette daemon not installed. *questionLabel.labelString specifies the message for the cancel after changes dialog box. Default: Discard changes? See also scosession(X), Xtoptions(X) For instructions on using common window controls, see the User's Guide.