Conky - A Full Guide

<h1>About Conky</h1> <strong>Conky</strong> is a light-weight <strong>system monitor</strong> for <strong>X</strong>, which <em>display</em> any information on your <strong>desktop</strong>.  <strong>Conky</strong> is licensed under the <strong>GPL</strong> and runs on <strong>Linux</strong> and <strong>BSD</strong>. Working with <strong>Conky </strong>is similar to making a <strong>desktop gadget</strong>. It <em>creates</em> a <strong>window</strong>, which can be <em>disguised</em> by being made <strong>transparent</strong>. People use <strong>Conky</strong> to draw various things, often involving computer information such as: how much battery on your laptop is remaining, or what time it is. It makes for a <em>useful</em> and <em>customizable </em><strong>desktop gadget</strong>. This <strong>guide</strong> contains information on <em>setting up</em> and <em>using</em> <strong>Conky</strong>. <h1>Installing Conky</h1> The <code>conkey-all</code> package has everything you need to get going with <strong>Conky</strong>. <h2>From Terminal</h2> Open <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/wiki/terminology/">Terminology</a> and <em>run</em> the following commands <pre>sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install conky-all</pre> <h2>From Synaptic Package Manager</h2> <em>Open</em> the <strong>Synaptic Package Manager</strong> (<em>Main Menu &gt; Applications &gt; System Tools &gt; Synaptic Package Manager</em>). <em>Search</em> for and <em>install</em> the <code>conky-all</code> package. <h1>Create a Conkey Configuration File</h1> To <em>configure</em> <strong>Conky</strong> - first, you need to <em>copy</em> the "system wide" <strong>configuration</strong> to a<strong> local copy</strong>, which you can then <em>modify</em> using <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/terminology/">Terminology</a>. <em>Run</em> this command: <pre>cp /etc/conky/conky.conf ~/.conkyrc</pre> You will need to <em>reboot</em> for <strong>Conkey</strong> to <em>pick up</em> and <em>start using</em> your <strong>local configuration file</strong>. <pre>sudo reboot</pre> <h1>Enable Conky to Start at Boot</h1> <em>Read up</em> on <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/personal-application-launchers/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">making a personal application launcher</span></a>, which has general instructions on how to <em>create</em> a <code>.desktop</code> file and then <em>run</em> that file at <strong>startup</strong>. There's a specific <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/personal-application-launchers/#Example_2_Now_You_Try_8211_Launching_Conky">example (<em>#2</em>)</a> for <strong>Conky</strong>. After <em>creating</em> the <strong>launcher</strong>, <em>restart</em> the <strong>Moksha Desktop </strong>(<em>Main Menu &gt; About Operating System &gt; Restart Moksha</em>) We are now ready to <em>add</em> the <strong>Conky Application Launcher</strong> to <strong>System Startup</strong> (<em>Main Menu &gt; Settings &gt; Settings Panel).</em> <em>Maximize</em> the <strong>settings window</strong>, then <em>select</em>: <em>Apps &gt; Startup Application</em>. With the <strong>Startup Applications</strong> window open, <em>switch</em> to the <strong>Applications tab</strong> and <em>scroll</em> through the list to find "Conky System Monitor", <em>highlight</em> and <em>click</em> <code>Add</code> followed by <code>Apply</code> and <code>Close</code> <h1>Conky Transparency</h1> Is your <strong>Conky</strong> <em>not running</em> with a <strong>transparent background</strong>?  You can fix that by <em>installing</em> the following <strong>module</strong>: <pre>sudo apt install moksha-module-compton</pre> After <em>installing</em> the above, you will need to <em>enable</em> the module <strong>Compton Mod</strong><em>. </em>To do so, <em>open</em> the <strong>Module Settings</strong> (<em>Main Menu &gt; Settings &gt; Modules</em>) and <em>enable </em><strong>Compton Mod</strong> <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/trial/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/comptonmod.png?x77783&amp;x77783&amp;x55737"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-3916" src="https://www.bodhilinux.com/trial/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/comptonmod.png?x77783&amp;x77783&amp;x55737" alt="Compton Mod" width="150" height="160" /></a> <h2>Adjusting Configuration for Transparency</h2> If your <strong>Conky</strong> configuration is not transparent, you may need to adjust its code to have the following: <pre>own_window = true, own_window_argb_value = 0, own_window_argb_visual = true, own_window_transparent = yes, own_window_type = desktop, </pre> It is important that other settings do not conflict with these. For instance, a line written as <pre>own_window_argb_visual = false</pre> should be <em>removed</em> or <em>commented out</em> with a <code>#</code>. <pre># own_window_argb_visual = false</pre> <h2>Removing Drop Shadow</h2> <em>Edit</em> <code>conky.config</code> and <em>add</em> the following: <pre>draw_shades = false</pre> <h2>Root Desktop</h2> <strong>Conky</strong> draws on the <strong>root desktop</strong>.  If you <em>change</em> the <strong>background</strong> of the <strong>root desktop</strong> to match your <strong>actual desktop's background</strong>, then it will blend in perfectly. <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/">Bodhi Linux Home</a> <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/wiki/">Bodhi Linux – Wiki Home Page</a> <a href="https://www.bodhilinux.com/w/bodhi-linux-how-to/">Bodhi Linux – Wiki Table of Contents</a>