X11 is the graphical user interface most widely used on Linux operating systems. My slides and video demo for a short talk given at the Philadelphia area Linux Users Group (PLUG) on March 2nd are on-line. The slides briefly cover xrandr (which can also be used to set the screen resolution), xset, xwd / xwud, xdotool, and xautomation including xte. You can get the slides and watch the video at my page on Automating X11 Keystrokes.
Slides for my talk on “Automating X11 Keystrokes”
Posted by CJ Fearnley
CJ Fearnley was an early leader in the adoption and implementation of
Linux and Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in Philadelphia. In 1993,
he recognized the emerging value of the Linux operating system. Through
his leadership position in the Philadelphia Area Computer Society (PACS),
he began introducing Linux to organizations in the Greater Philadelphia
region. At PACS, he organized monthly presentations on Linux and FOSS
and wrote 29 columns in the organization's print periodical, The
Databus. He then founded and helped build Philadelphia's premiere
Linux user group, the Philadelphia area Linux User Group (PLUG), where
he continues to facilitate its first Wednesday meetings. After helping
to establish a community and culture for Linux and FOSS in Philadelphia,
CJ started building his first company, LinuxForce, to be the ``go-to''
firm for organizations wanting to realize the promise and power of Linux.
LinuxForce is a leading technology services provider
specializing in the development, implementation, management and support
of Linux-based systems, with a particular expertise in Debian GNU/Linux.
LinuxForce provides remote Linux systems management services to clients
including The Franklin Institute Science Museum, and the Aker Philadelphia Shipyard.
CJ is a member of the Buckminster Fuller Institute, the Synergetics
Collaborative (SNEC), the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), IEEE (Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers), and the
IEEE Technology Management Council. He received his BA in Mathematical
Sciences and Philosophy from Binghamton University in 1989 where he
was a Regents Scholar and has done graduate work at Drexel University.
CJ was named to the Philadelphia Business Journal's 2006 ``40 Under 40''
list as one of the region's most accomplished young professionals.
View all posts by CJ Fearnley
I didn’t find xte when I needed to record and playback mouse movements — likely because it’s packaged as xautomation with some other tools. I did have reasonable success with xnee. One trick when using xnee was that I was having to “zero” the mouse between clicks by clicking in the upper left corner of my screen. (Actually it was two clicks, as that action would open my Gnome menu, so click again to close.) I’m guessing that mouse acceleration was messing with the cursor placement.
The script xnee produces isn’t very approachable, lots of numerical coding for movement and placement, so I doubt it could be scriptable as simply as xte seems to be.