Linux

10022 readers

485 users here now

A community for everything relating to the GNU/Linux operating system (except the memes!)

Also, check out:

Original icon base courtesy of lewing@isc.tamu.edu and The GIMP

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

Ategon@programming.dev

anzo@programming.dev

dwraf_of_ignorance@programming.dev

138

GNOME 50 Ends the X11 Era After Decades (linuxiac.com)

submitted 21 hours ago by cm0002@toast.ooo to c/linux@programming.dev

37 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Although Wayland has been GNOME’s default session since 2016, X11 has continued to linger in the codebase—until now. That changed with the recent merging of two PRs (here and here), which completely removed the X11 codebase from both Mutter, GNOME’s default window manager and compositor, as well as the GNOME Shell itself.

In other words, the GNOME project is finally closing one of the longest chapters in Linux desktop history. With the upcoming GNOME 50 release, scheduled for mid-march 2026, the desktop environment will officially drop support for the native X11 session, making Wayland the sole display system moving forward.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] popcornpizza@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 points 15 hours ago

I wasn't specific enough, but I meant programmatically. In X11 we have stuff like xprop and xdotool. I can see where my mouse is, which window is underneath, activate or focus a window, etc. I mean these things in code, not visually on the desktop.

Wayland considers these things "security risks", and I get it, but at the same time... customization of my own OS is what drove me to Linux. 🤷🏻‍♂️

For example: A while ago I tinkered with easystroke plus a custom script using xprop + xdotool. The way it worked (easystroke does this natively, but I just wanted to learn how to do it myself, and the GUI is a bit clunky anyway) is that you assign a stroke/gesture, and execute your script with parameters. The script verifies where the mouse is at execution by grabbing window info with xprop, and runs a different command depending on that (more often than not, using xdotool to send keys). So if I do a flick upwards, the script sees Firefox in the background and sends CTRL+T to the window. A new tab is opened. But if VSCodium is in the background of the mouse, I send CTRL+N instead, to open a new text file (tab).

Unless something has drastically changed in the past few months, it's my understanding that none of that is possible with Wayland, and now it's up to the DEs (or whatever else) to come up with something that gives window info.