dwm - dynamic window manager

This is my version of dwm - an extremely fast, small, and dynamic (tiling) window manager for X. I chose dwm over other tiling window managers because its defaults work really well for me, so I don't have to patch it much.

Floating	Browser/Terminal Split

Clean

I am utilizing a customized iteration of dwmblocks to showcase pertinent information, including the current kernel version. These scripts are both straightforward and sophisticated; an icon signals the need for a system reboot, and a small + icon indicates the availability of upgraded packages, particularly if there's a newer kernel version among them. Additionally, the weather script employs IP-based location detection and leverages Nerd Fonts to present aesthetically pleasing glyphs:

For me, the greatest feature of tiling window managers like dwm is the ability to modify how my windows are displayed using my keyboard - fullscreen, side by side, stacked, and even floating windows are possible. See also "keybindings".

install

I would recommend having some basic knowledge of Linux before trying out dwm (or any other tiling window manager). However, the installation process is simple. I have written down a list of dependencies for my system, so if you want to use my setup, make sure you have those packages installed.

Arch (btw)

Dependencies

I also use my own version of st (simple terminal), but you can choose another one if you prefer. Just make sure you have configured it in your config.h file accordingly.

pacman -S base-devel git dmenu libpulse playerctl dunst feh libx11 libxft xorg-server xorg-xinit libxinerama neovim ttf-meslo-nerd pacman-contrib terminus-font jq

Clone from this repo

git clone https://github.com/dme86/dwm.git

Modify xinit

echo "exec dwm" > ~/.xinitrc

build dwm

cd dwm/
make install

build dwmblocks

cd dwm/dwmblocks-async
make dwmblocks
make install

Run startx to start dwm incl dwmblocks.

patching

The defaults of dwm suit me really well, and I only use a few patches. Patching dwm is quite straightforward. I download the diff file into my patch folder and apply it using, for example:

patch < patches/dwm-pertag-6.2.diff

Usually, the patch should work OOTB. If not, you have to fix it. If you want to remove a patch that didn't work, you can do it using, for example:

patch -R < patches/dwm-pertag-6.2.diff`

You need to recompile dwm after applying or removing a patch.

pacman hooks

I've configured a PostTransaction hook on Arch:

/etc/pacman.d/hooks/dwmblocks.hook:

[Trigger]
Operation = Upgrade
Type = Package
Target = *

[Action]
Description = Restarting dwmblocks after upgrade...
When = PostTransaction
Exec = /bin/sh -c "/usr/bin/pkill -RTMIN+25 dwmblocks && /usr/bin/pkill -RTMIN+24 dwmblocks"

It reloads the update indicator script inside the statusbar after pacman -Syu. To use it like this you need to configure HookDir = /etc/pacman.d/hooks/ in your /etc/pacman.conf.

intercepting notebook charging events on arch linux with dunstify

To intercept the charging event of your notebook on Arch Linux and use dunstify to show a notification, you can follow these steps:

Install acpid if it's not already installed:

sudo pacman -S acpid

Start the acpid daemon and enable it to start at boot:

sudo systemctl start acpid.service
sudo systemctl enable acpid.service

Change /etc/acpi/handler.sh to your needs, eg:

#!/bin/bash

case "$1" in
    ac_adapter)
        case "$2" in
            AC|ACAD|ADP0)
                case "$4" in
                    00000000)
                        # AC adapter unplugged
                        ;;
                    00000001)
                        # AC adapter plugged in
                        DISPLAY=:0 dunstify "Notebook is charging"
                        ;;
                esac
                ;;
        esac
        ;;
esac

Reload acpid to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl reload acpid.service

wallpapers

My wallpapers are stored inside $HOME/.wallpapers - just clone them from github. In my setups i'm using those two lines of bash to choose an wallpaper from that folder and set it via feh as a background:

img=(`find ~/.wallpapers/ -name '*' -exec file {} \; | grep -o -P '^.+: \w+ image' | cut -d':' -f1`)
feh --bg-scale "${img[$RANDOM % ${#img[@]} ]}"

It depends from where you have to call this script. On systems with a login manager i would put it inside ~/.xprofile. If you don't use a display manager you can put it inside ~/.xinitrc.

multi-monitor setups

I often use multiple monitors and there fore autorandr, which enables me to automatically hot-plug external displays.

keybindings

I mostly use dwm defaults here because I'm used to them, and I like the workflow out of the box. However, you're free to figure out what works best for you.

Key	Description
Shift + Ctrl/Strg + Enter	Start Terminal st
Alt/opt + y	Open/Close Scratchpad
Alt/Opt + p	Open dmenu
Alt/Opt + j or k	Switch window focus
Alt/Opt + Enter	Switches the primary window with stack
Alt/Opt + t	Change the layout to tiling (dwm default)
Alt/Opt + m	Change the layout to monocle so the windows will be maximized
Alt/Opt + Shift + Space	Toggle floating mode on the active window. Alt/Opt + right mouse key for resizing, Alt/Opt + left mouse key for moving the window
Alt/Opt + h or l	Changes the ratio between the primary and stack correspondingly
Alt/Opt + 1 or 2 or 3 or ...	Switch workspace
Shift + Alt/Opt + 1 or 2 or 3 or ...	Move active window to another workspace
Shift + Alt/Opt + c	Close window
Alt/Opt + b	Hide/Show titlebar
Alt/Opt + , or .	If you are using multiple displays those commands will change the focussed monitor. I recommend arandr if you have a multi-monitor setup.
Alt/Opt +	Increase Gap-size. tiling mode only
Alt/Opt -	Decrease Gap-size. tiling mode only