lcdproc/docs/LCDd.8.in

.TH LCDd 8 "14 May 2009" LCDproc "LCDproc suite"

.SH NAME
LCDd - LCDproc server daemon

.SH SYNOPSIS
.B LCDd
[\fB\-hf\fP]
[\fB\-c\fP \fIconfig\fP]
[\fB\-d\fP \fIdriver\fP]
[\fB\-i\fP \fIbool\fP]
[\fB\-a\fP \fIaddr\fP]
[\fB\-p\fP \fIport\fP]
[\fB\-u\fP \fIuser\fP]
[\fB\-w\fP \fItime\fP]
[\fB\-r\fP \fIlevel\fP]
[\fB\-s\fP \fIbool\fP]

.SH DESCRIPTION
\fBLCDd\fP is the server part of LCDproc, a deamon which listens to a certain port (normally 13666)
and displays information on an LCD display.  It works with several types
and sizes of displays.
.PP
Most settings of \fBLCDd\fP are configured through its configuration file
\fI@SYSCONFDIR@/LCDd.conf\fP, some of them can be overriden using command line options.
Before running \fBLCDd\fP you should carefully
read through that file and modify everything neccessary according to your needs.
Otherwise you might encounter \fBLCDd\fP not running properly on your system.
.PP
To make full use of \fBLCDd\fP, a client such as lcdproc(1), lcdexec(1), or lcdvc
is required.

.SH OPTIONS
Available options are:
.TP
.B \-h
Display help screen
.TP
.B \-c \fIconfig\fP
Use a configuration file other than \fI@SYSCONFDIR@/LCDd.conf\fP
.TP
.B \-d \fIdriver\fP
Specify a driver to use (output only to first), overriding
the \fBDriver\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-f
Run in the foreground, overriding the \fBForeground\fP parameter
in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
The default, if not specified in the config file, is to
daemonize \fBLCDd\fP as it is intended to operate in the background.
.TP
.B \-i \fIbool\fP
Tell whether the to enable (\fI1\fP) or disable (\fI0\fP) showing the LCDproc
server screen in n the screen rotation, overriding \fBServerScreen\fP
in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-w \fIwaittime\fP
Time to pause at each screen (in seconds), overriding the
\fBWaitTime\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-a \fIaddr\fP
Bind to network address \fIaddr\fP, overriding the
\fBBind\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-p \fIport\fP
Listen on port \fIport\fP for incoming connections, overriding the
\fBPort\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-u \fIuser\fP
Run as user \fIuser\fP, overriding the
\fBUser\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-s \fIbool\fP
Output messages to syslog (\fI1\fP) or to stdout (\fI0\fP), overriding the
\fBReportToSyslog\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.
.TP
.B \-r \fIlevel\fP
Set reporting level to \fIlevel\fP, overriding th
\fBReportLevel\fP parameter in the config file's \fB[Server]\fP section.

.SS SUPPORTED DRIVERS
Currently supported display drivers include:
.TP
.B bayrad
BayRAD LCD modules by EMAC Inc.
.TP
.B CFontz
CrystalFontz CFA-632 and CFA-634 serial LCD displays
.TP
.B CFontz633
CrystalFontz CFA-633 serial/USB LCD displays
.TP
.B CFontzPacket
CrystalFontz CFA-631, CFA-633 and CFA-635 serial/USB LCD displays
.TP
.B curses
Standard video display using the (n)curses library
.TP
.B CwLnx
serial/USB displays by Cwlinux (http://www.cwlinux.com)
.TP
.B ea65
VFD front panel display on Aopen XC Cube EA65 media barebone
.TP
.B EyeboxOne
LCD display on the EyeboxOne
.TP
.B g15
LCD display on the Logitech G15 keyboard
.TP
.B glcdlib
graphical LCDs supported by graphlcd-base
.TP
.B glk
Matrix Orbital GLK Graphic Displays
.TP
.B hd44780
Hitachi HD44780 LCD displays.
This driver supports the following sub-drivers (a.k.a. \fIconnection types\fP):
.RS
.TP
.B 4bit
LCD 4bit-mode, connected to a PC parallel port
.TP
.B 8bit
LCD 8bit-mode, connected to a PC parallel port
.TP
.B serialLpt
LCD in 4bit-mode through a 4094 shift register
.TP
.B winamp
LCD in 8bit-mode using \fIWinAmp\fP-wiring, connected to a PC parallel port
.TP
.B picanlcd
LCD driven by a PIC-an-LCD chip/board by Dale Wheat, connected to a serial port
.TP
.B lcdserializer
LCD driven by a PIC16C54-based piggy-back board, connected to a serial port
.TP
.B los-panel
LCD driven by an Atmel AVR based board, connected to a serial port
.TP
.B vdr-lcd
???, connected to a serial port
.TP
.B vdr-wakeup
VDR-Wake module by Frank Jepsen (http://www.jepsennet.de/vdr/)
.TP
.B pertelian
Pertelian X2040 module (http://pertelian.com/)
.TP
.B lis2
LIS2 from VLSystem (http://www.vlsys.co.kr), connected to USB
.TP
.B mplay
MPlay Blast from VLSystem (http://www.vlsys.co.kr), connected to USB
.TP
.B bwctusb
USB-to-HD44780 converter by BWCT (http://www.bwct.de)
.TP
.B lcd2usb
Till Harbaum's open source/open hardware LCD2USB (http://www.harbaum.org/till/lcd2usb/)
.TP
.B uss720
USS-720 USB-to-IEEE 1284 Bridge (Belkin F5U002 USB Parallel Printer Adapters)
.TP
.B i2c
LCD in 4-bit mode driven by PCF8574(A) / PCA9554(A), connected via I2C bus
.TP
.B ftdi
USB connection via a FTDI FT2232D chip in bitbang mode
.TP
.B ethlcd
TCP connection using open source/open hardware ethlcd (http://manio.skyboo.net/ethlcd/)
.TP
.B usblcd
LCD device from Adams IT Services (http://www.usblcd.de/)
.RE
.TP
.B i2500vfd
140x32 pixel VFD Display of the Intra2net Intranator 2500 appliance
.TP
.B icp_a106
ICP A106 alarm/LCD board in 19" rack cases by ICP
.TP
.B imon
iMON IR/VFD modules in cases by Soundgraph/Ahanix/Silverstone/Uneed/Accent
.TP
.B imonlcd
iMON IR/LCD modules in cases by Soundgraph/Ahanix/Silverstone/Uneed/Accent/Antec
.TP
.B irtrans
IRTrans IR/VFD modules in cases by Ahanix (e.g. MCE303) and possibly others
May require irserver (http://www.irtrans.de/en/download/linux.php) to be running for connectivity.
.TP
.B IOWarrior
Code Mercenaries IOWarrior
.TP
.B irman
IrMan infrared (input)
.TP
.B joy
Joystick driver (input)
.TP
.B lb216
LB216 LCD displays
.TP
.B lcdm001
kernelconcepts.de 20x4 serial LCD displays
.TP
.B lcterm
serial LCD terminal from Helmut Neumark Elektronik (http://www.neumark.de)
.TP
.B lirc
Infrared (input)
.TP
.B lis
L.I.S MCE 2005 20x2 VFD (http://vlsys.co.kr)
.TP
.B MD8800
VFD displays in Medion MD8800 PCs
.TP
.B ms6931
MSI-6931 displays in 1U rack servers by MSI
.TP
.B mtc_s16209x
MTC_S16209x LCD displays by Microtips Technology Inc
.TP
.B MtxOrb
Matrix Orbital displays (except Matrix Orbital GLK displays)
.TP
.B mx5000
LCD display on the Logitech MX5000 keyboard
.TP
.B NoritakeVFD
Noritake VFD Device CU20045SCPB-T28A
.TP
.B picolcd
Mini-box.com USB LCD (PicoLCD 20x4 & picoLCD 20x2)
.TP
.B pyramid
LCD displays from Pyramid (http://www.pyramid.de)
.TP
.B sed1330
SED1330/SED1335 (aka S1D13300/S1D13305) based graphical displays
.TP
.B sed1520
122x32 pixel graphic displays based on SED1520 controllers
.TP
.B serialPOS
Driver for Point Of Sale ("POS") devices using various protocols (currently AEDEX only)
.TP
.B serialVFD
Text VFDs of various manufacturers, see LCDproc user-documentation for further details.
.TP
.B shuttleVFD
Shuttle VFD (USB-based)
.TP
.B sli
Wirz SLI driver (unknown)
.TP
.B stv5730
STV5730A on-screen display chip
.TP
.B SureElec
LCD devices from SURE electronics  (http://www.sureelectronics.net)
.TP
.B svga
VGA monitors using svgalib
.TP
.B t6963
Toshiba T6963 based LCD displays
.TP
.B text
Standard "hard-copy" text display
.TP
.B tyan
LCD module in Tyan Barebone GS series
.TP
.B ula200
ULA-200 device from ELV (http://www.elv.de)
.TP
.B xosd
On Screen Display on X11
.PP
Multiple drivers can be used simultaneously; thus, for example, a Matrix Orbital display (MtxOrb driver)
can be combined with an infrared driver (irmanin driver).

.SH INVOCATION
.RS
.I LCDd -d MtxOrb -d joy
.RE
The invocation example above will start \fBLCDd\fP reading its configuration from the
default configuration file \fI@SYSCONFDIR@/LCDd.conf\fP but overriding the drivers
specified therein with the Matrix Orbital driver and the Joystick input driver.

.SH LCDPROC CLIENT-SERVER PROTOCOL
There is a basic sequence:
.TP
1. Open a TCP connection to the LCDd server port (usually 13666).
.TP
2. Say "hello"
.TP
3. The server will return some information on the type
of display available.
.TP
4. Define (and use) a new screen and its widgets.
.TP
5. Close the socket when done displaying data.
.PP

.SS CLIENT COMMANDS
There are many commands for the client to send to the LCDd server:
.TP
.B hello
This starts a client-server session with the LCDd server; the
server will return a data string detailing the type of display
and its size.
.TP
.B client_set -name \fIname\fP
Set the client's name.
.TP
.B screen_add \fI#id\fP
Add a new screen to the display.
.TP
.B screen_del \fI#id\fP
Remove a screen from the display.
.TP
.B screen_set \fI#id\fP [\fB-name\fI "name"\fP] [\fB-wid\fI width\fP] [\fB-hgt\fI height\fP] [\fB-priority\fI prio\fP] [\fB-duration\fI int\fP] [\fB-timeout\fI int\fP] [\fB-heartbeat\fI mode\fP] [\fB-backlight\fI mode\fP] [\fB-cursor\fI mode\fP] [\fB-cursor_x\fI xpos\fP] [\fB-cursor_y\fI ypos\fP]
Initialize a screen, or reset its data.
.TP
.B widget_add \fI#screen #id type\fR [\fB-in \fI#frame\fR]
Add a widget of type \fItype\fP to screen \fI#screen\fR.
.TP
.B widget_del \fI#screen #id\fR
Delete widget \fI#id\fR from screen \fI#screen\fR.
.TP
.B widget_set \fI#screen #id data\fR
Set the data used to define a particular widget \fI#id\fR on screen
\fI#screen\fR.

.SS HEARTBEAT MODES
Valid heartbeat mode values (for the \fBscreen_set\fR command) are:
.TP
.B on
Display pulsing heart symbol.
.TP
.B off
No heartbeat display.
.TP
.B open
Use client's heartbeat setting. This is the default.

.SS BACKLIGHT MODES
Valid heartbeat mode values (for the \fBscreen_set\fR command) are:
.TP
.B on
Turn backlight on.
.TP
.B off
Turn backlight off
.TP
.B toggle
Turn backlight off when it is on and vice versa.
.TP
.B open
Use client's backlight setting. This is the default.
.TP
.B blink
Blinking backlight
.TP
.B flash
Flashing blacklight

.SS Priorities
Valid priority settings (used in the \fBscreen_set\fR command) are as follows:
.TP
.B input
The client is doing interactive input.
.TP
.B alert
The screen has an important message for the user.
.TP
.B foreground
an active client
.TP
.B info
Normal info screen, default priority.
.TP
.B background
The screen is only visible when no normal info screens exists.
.TP
.B hidden
The screen will never be visible.
.PP
For compatibility with older versions of clients a mapping of numeric
priority values is also supported:
.TP
.B 1 - 64
foreground
.TP
.B 65 - 192
normal
.TP
.B 193 - (infinity)
background
.PP
An example of how to properly use priorities is as follows:
.PP
Imagine you're making an mp3 player for lcdproc.  When the
song changes, it's nice to display the new name immediately.
So, you could set your screen's priority to \fBforeground\fP, wait for
the server to display (or ignore) your screen, then set the
screen back to \fBnormal\fP.  This would cause the mp3 screen to
show up as soon as the one on screen was finished, then
return to normal priority afterward.
.PP
Or, let's say your client monitors the health of hospital
patients.  If one of the patients has a heart attack, you
could set the screen priority to \fBalert\fP, and it
would be displayed immediately.  It wouldn't even wait for
the previous screen to finish.  Also, the display would stay
on screen most of the time until the user did something about it.

.SS WIDGET TYPES
Widgets can be any of the following:
.TP
.B string
A text string to display (as is).
.TP
.B hbar
A horizontal bar graph.
.TP
.B vbar
A vertical bar graph.
.TP
.B title
A title displayed across the top of the display, within a banner.
.TP
.B icon
A graphic icon.
.TP
.B scroller
A scrolling text display, scrolling either horizontally or vertically.
.TP
.B frame
A \fIcontainer\fR to contain other widgets, permitting them to be refered to
as a single unit.  A widget is put inside a frame by using the -in \fI#id\fR
parameter, where \fI#id\fR refers to the id of the frame.
.TP
.B num
Displays a large decimal digit
.PP
Widgets are drawn on the screen in the order they are created.

.SS SETTING WIDGET DATA
In the \fBwidget_set\fR command, the \fIdata\fR argument depends on which widget is being
set.  Each widget takes a particular set of arguments which defines its form and behavior:
.TP
.B string \fIx y text\fP
Displays \fItext\fP at position (\fIx\fP,\fIy\fP).
.TP
.B title \fItext
Uses \fItext\fP as title to display.
.TP
.B hbar \fIx y length\fP
Displays a horizontal bar starting at position (\fIx\fP,\fIy\fP) that is \fIlength\fP pixels wide.
.TP
.B vbar \fIx y length\fP
Displays a vertical bar starting at position (\fIx\fP,\fIy\fP) that is \fIlength\fP pixels high.
.TP
.B icon \fIx y name\fP
Displays the icon \fIname\fP at position (\fIx\fP,\fIy\fP).
.TP
.B scroller \fIleft top right bottom direction speed text\fP
The \fItext\fR defined will scroll in the direction defined.  Valid directions
are \fBh\fR (horizontal) and \fBv\fR (vertical).  The speed defines how many
"movements" (or changes) will occur per frame.  A positive number indicates
frames per movement; a negative number indicates movements per frame.
.TP
.B frame \fIleft top right bottom wid hgt dir speed\fP
Frames define a visible "box" on screen,
from the (\fIleft\fR, \fItop\fR) corner to the
(\fIright\fR, \fIbottom\fR) corner.  The actual data may be bigger,
and is defined as \fIwid\fR (width) by \fIhgt\fR (height); if it is
bigger, then the frame will scroll in the direction (\fIdir\fR)
and \fIspeed\fR defined.
.TP
.B num \fIx int\fP
Displays large decimal digit \fIint\fP at the horizontal position \fIx\fP,
which is a normal character x coordinate on the display.
The special value 10 for \fIint\fP displays a colon.

.SH BUGS
If \fBLCDd\fP seems not to work as expected, try to run it in the foreground
with reporting level set to maximum and reporting to stderr.
This can be achieved without changes to the config file by using the
command line:
.RS
.I LCDd -f -r 5 -s 0
.RE

.SH FILES
\fB@SYSCONFDIR@/LCDd.conf\fR, LCDd's default configuration file

.SH SEE ALSO
lcdproc-config(5),
lcdproc(1),
lcdexec(1)

.SH AUTHOR
LCDd was originally written by William Ferrell (wwf@splatwerks.org) and
Scott Scriven (scriven@cs.colostate.edu).

Since that time various people have contributed to LCDproc.

The newest version of LCDd should be available from here as part of the lcdproc package:

                http://www.lcdproc.org/

.SH LEGAL STUFF
The lcdproc package is released as "WorksForMe-Ware".
In other words, it is free, kinda neat, and we don't guarantee that it will do
anything in particular on any machine except the ones it was developed on.
.PP
It is technically released under the GNU GPL license (you should have received the file,
"COPYING", with LCDproc) (also, look on http://www.fsf.org/ for more information),
so you can distribute and use it for free -- but you must make the source code freely
available to anyone who wants it.
.PP
For any sort of real legal information, read the GNU GPL (GNU General Public License).
It's worth reading.