!!! FYI:
This script was written for my own needs (extending Xubuntu desktop with external
display) during one evening, so it's not very configurable. Most important
facts are:
- it handles only two displays (I don't need more ;) ),
- they are aligned to the bottom by default
- script can crash because of improper parameters etc. - there are some defaults
or validation provided by argparse, but it's definitely not enough to be proud
of how it works
- you can use it in any way you need, as long as it stays free: you can even
print it and feed your dog with it if you want to ;)
- I did a few tests on my own computer with HDMI and VGA external display and
everything was OK, but just in case: you use it on your own risk ;)
*** Example:
1. There are two displays - LVDS1 and HDMI1:
michal@laptop:~/displaymanager$ xrandr
Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 1366 x 768, maximum 8192 x 8192
LVDS1 connected 1366x768+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 293mm x 164mm
1366x768 60.0*+ 40.0
1360x768 59.8 60.0
1024x768 60.0
800x600 60.3 56.2
640x480 59.9
VGA1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
HDMI1 connected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
1920x1080 60.0 +
1280x1024 75.0 60.0
1152x864 75.0
1024x768 75.1 60.0
800x600 75.0 60.3
640x480 75.0 60.0
720x400 70.1
DP1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
2. We want to have desktop like this with LVDS1 as primary:
,-----------------------.
| |
,---------------.| |
| || HDMI1 |
| LVDS1 || |
| || |
'---------------''-----------------------'
Displays need to be aligned this way because the bottom of the primary screen
has to be accessible for user to access the menu.
3. The solution is (verbose is - obviously - optional):
./displaymanager.py -m dual -i "LVDS1;1366x768;60" -e "HDMI1;1920x1080;60" --verbose
"LVDS1;1366x768;60" means:
- display name: LVDS1
- resolution: 1366x768
- refresh rate: 60 Hz
Analogically for HDMI1.
4. Before (or after) unplugging the external monitor the default state can be
restored with:
./displaymanager.py -m single -i "LVDS1;1366x768;60" -e "HDMI1" --verbose
The '-e' parameter is needed only for turning the display off - there's no need
to provide other details like resolution. It works ONLY for external display and
ONLY when switching to 'single' mode.
5. Check ./displaymanager.py -h for a bit (really a little bit) more details and info.
Tip 1: If you want to have external on the right, use: -o "EI" (default is "IE")
Tip 2: using '--verbose' together with '--dryrun' makes it most useful to learn how
it works.
Author:
Michał Michalski <displaymanager@michalski.im>
http://devblog.michalski.im
https://github.com/regispl
Feel free to contact me with a feedback.