Midnight Commander

[william]

I decided to get familiar with mc so I've installed its latest rpm version. I've started reading the manual, but haven't noticed any instructions to get trans effect. I know trans is possible with mc, but how to get it to work? Do I have to use a specific terminal, like xterm or it works with Eterm or Aterm?

[Crashdamage]

I use Midnight Commander in transparent mode, but it's a little tricky. First, not all MC rpms are compiled to support transparency, so make sure you use one that does. I use this one:

 

mc-4.6.0-1.i386.rpm

 

Kind of a generic rpm I got someplace. I can't remember for sure now, but probably from here:

 

http://rpmfind.net/linux/RPM/

 

Dependencies aren't much of a problem with MC, so that rpm will probably work with almost any rpm-based version of Linux. After you install, do $ man mc and scroll to the "Colors" section, it's towards the end. Do some reading, it will tell you more there than I can here. Since MC is a text app it will run fine without X at all, even in color, but to get transparency you'll need to start MC in a variety of Xterm that supports transparency. I like aterm much better than anything else. MC will need a rather long initiation string that opens a terminal with MC in it with the correct options, sets your colors and the background to default (transparent). I run Fluxbox, so I wrote this line in my Flux menu entry for MC:

 

[exec] (Midnight Commander) {aterm -fg 15 -bg 8 -cr 6 -pr 1 -tr +sb -sh 60 -geometry 120x40-10-25 -e mc -C base_color=

normal=lightgray,default:errors=yellow,red:reverse=lightgray,default,red:gauge=b

lue:normal=cyan,default:selected=yellow,

default:marked=lightgray,default:markselect=white,default:input=lightgray,blue:d

normal=lightgray,default:dfocus=yellow,d

efault:dhotnormal=white,default:dhotfocus=brightred,default:menu=green,default:m

enusel=brightgreen,default:menuhot=cyan,

default:menuhotsel=brightcyan,default:helpnormal=lightgray,default:helpitalic=wh

ite,default:helplink=green,default:helps

link=brightgreen,default:directory=green,default:executable=red,default:link=bri

ghtblue,default:stalelink=blue,default:d

evice=brown,default:special=magenta,default:core=brightred,default}

 

A little lengthy, like I said. If you don't use Flux, no problem this can still be used from a KDE icon or whatever with some editing of the Flux menu-related stuff. Gives you the idea anyway. These are of course my color choices, so adjust to suit if you use that line.

 

Midnight Commander just rocks. Like emacs, it'll do way more than you'll ever need or have time to learn. All kinds of stuff you might not think it would, from email and usenet (never tried that) to of course, just about any kind of file manipulation you'll ever think of. The manual has all kinds of stuff in there. Very fast and rock-stable. It has never crashed for me, not a burp. Once you get used to it those GUI Windoze-wannabe style file managers are weak. And in a transparent window, it just looks great! Totally freaks Windoze lusers...

[william]

  [exec] (Midnight Commander) {aterm -fg 15 -bg 8 -cr 6 -pr 1 -tr +sb -sh 60 -geometry 120x40-10-25 -e mc -C base_color=

normal=lightgray,default:errors=yellow,red:reverse=lightgray,default,red:gauge=b

lue:normal=cyan,default:selected=yellow,

default:marked=lightgray,default:markselect=white,default:input=lightgray,blue:d

normal=lightgray,default:dfocus=yellow,d

efault:dhotnormal=white,default:dhotfocus=brightred,default:menu=green,default:m

enusel=brightgreen,default:menuhot=cyan,

default:menuhotsel=brightcyan,default:helpnormal=lightgray,default:helpitalic=wh

ite,default:helplink=green,default:helps

link=brightgreen,default:directory=green,default:executable=red,default:link=bri

ghtblue,default:stalelink=blue,default:d

evice=brown,default:special=magenta,default:core=brightred,default}

I will include these lines to my menu file, running flux too.

As soon as I get home I will try that trick and let you know .....

 

Thank you very much Crashdamage.

[Crashdamage]

Hey, no problem, just glad to help. Jeez, I've sure gotten plenty of help here, so time to give back a little when I can.

 

BTW, using that setup even the pull-down menus come up transparent - pretty cool...

[william]

Crash.

Running the same mc version of yours. MC got a cool interface here , a pretty one, sure you can imagine, working like a charm.

I've been using Eterm instead aterm. I include only the lines that load mc but keeping the same look as my default terminal.

I will take a look at the man to see how to change (which session of the command line?) the blue color in the left window under directory tree, cause only the invisible files above it get a complete tranparent effect?!?

 

Thanks again!!

[Crashdamage]

"Running the same mc version of yours. MC got a cool interface here, a pretty one, sure you can imagine, working like a charm."

 

Thanks, I like the colors pretty well on dark backgrounds. I should work up another version for light ones.

 

"...using Eterm instead aterm."

 

You really ought to try aterm. Does everything eterm does on far less (as in almost none) system resources. Check it out:

 

http://aterm.sourceforge.net/

 

"...see how to change (which session of the command line?) the blue color in the left window under directory tree, cause only the invisible files above it get a complete tranparent effect?!? "

 

Sorry, I'm not sure what you mean...do you have some solid blue background area lower left side? If you do have a solid color area, maybe you have a typo in your menu line? If not, opening it in an aterm with the exact string I posted and see what happens. With that menu line, I have 100% transparency except for red error boxes, but that's on purpose.

[bvc]

Does everything eterm does

not quite :wink: ...it doesn't do fx fonts :wink:

[william]

It was a typo. Now its Ok with Eterm.