Conky unreadable

christopherisnow · 2018-05-23 20:13:25

I'm sorting out some Conky kinks after a Helium install...

The default .conkyrc worked fine until I added/edited a couple lines at the end:

S Y S T E M    I N F O
${hr}
Host:${alignr}${nodename}
Uptime:${alignr}${uptime}
RAM:$alignr${mem} / ${memmax}
Swap usage:${alignr}${swap} / ${swapmax}
ROOT usage:$alignr${fs_used /} / ${fs_size /}
HOME usage:$alignr${fs_used /home} / ${fs_size /home}
CPU Average:${alignr}${cpu cpu0}%
#
# Weather information from openweathermap.org can be displayed in conky by
# using the script $HOME/.config/conky/scripts/bunsenweather.sh. The openweathermap
# service requires registration in order to receive an API Key, which has to be
# added to bunsenweather.sh. For further info see this script and the following thread:
# https://forums.bunsenlabs.org/viewtopic.php?id=2060
#
# Calling bunsenweather.sh from conky works by using
# ${execpi <t> /path/to/bunsenweather.sh "yourlocation"}
# where <t> is the update interval. If "yourlocation" is not defined, the script
# sets geolocation based on your IP adress using the website ipinfo.io.
#
#W E A T H E R
#${hr}
#${execpi 600 $HOME/.config/conky/scripts/bunsenweather.sh}

S H O R T C U T    K E Y S
${hr}
Alt + Shift${alignr}DE/ES Keyboard
Alt + F2${alignr}Run Dialog
Alt + F3${alignr}Alt Menu
Super${alignr}Main Menu
Super + o${alignr}Mailspring
Super + Tab${alignr}Client Menu
Super + t${alignr}Terminal
Super + f${alignr}File Manager
Super + e${alignr}Editor
Super + m${alignr}Media Player
Super + w${alignr}Web Browser
Super + h${alignr}Task Manager
Super + l${alignr}Lock Screen
Super + v${alignr}Volume Control
Super + x${alignr}Logout
PrtSc${alignr}Screenshot
]];

Now I get a barely readable mashup with a black background on boot:

9LIxW

When I enter `conky` from the terminal everything looks OK:

9LXmZ

Did I screw something up? How to fix? It's a minor detail but rather annoying to restart Conky everytime I boot up!

nore · 2018-05-24 02:45:34

christopherisnow wrote:

https://scrot.moe/image/9LIxW

This looks like you have two conky windows on top of each other, one pixel off and updated unsynchronously. Check your autostart file first.

edit: Which lines have you added? Looks like default .conkyrc at first sight.

Last edited by nore (2018-05-24 02:47:20)

christopherisnow · 2018-05-24 17:28:42

I changed/added these lines to a fresh, unmodified BL default .conkyrc:

ROOT usage:$alignr${fs_used /} / ${fs_size /}
HOME usage:$alignr${fs_used /home} / ${fs_size /home} 

[...]

Alt + Shift${alignr}DE/ES Keyboard
[...]
Super + o${alignr}Mailspring

The relevant lines in autostart read:

## Start the Conky session (the default conkyrc will run if no sessions have been set)
bl-conky-session --autostart &

Last edited by christopherisnow (2018-05-24 17:38:11)

Head_on_a_Stick · 2018-05-24 18:10:12

Do you see any errors if you run the autostart line from a terminal window?

christopherisnow · 2018-05-24 21:14:13

no errors running `bl-conky-session --autostart` from the terminal.

PackRat · 2018-05-24 22:15:46

This may be a conky bug. I have the same issue; usually when I restart the window manager to change the theme or update key bindings etc...

The conky window doesn't refresh corectly so I have to kill and restart it. Only time I had the issue at startup was with Xfce, so I think the compositor is also an issue.

You can try adding a sleep time to the conky command and making it the last entry in autostart so it goes last.

tknomanzr · 2018-05-24 22:45:13

You can see your running Conkys under:
Preferences => Conky => Edit Conkys => Running Conkys.

Also, be aware that if you use the Conky Chooser it is possible to get a similar Conky to the default running. If you think one is underneath the other, ALT-Right Click to drag them around the desktop.

hhh · 2018-05-25 00:05:13

tknomanzr wrote:

ALT-Right Click to drag them around the desktop.

Yes, if you are using the default setting of window_type = 'normal'. I always switch that to 'desktop', which disables click/drag but also disables conky disappearing when you shortcut to "Show Desktop" (W+d).

christopherisnow · 2018-05-26 10:58:27

There were definitely two instances running at the same time. I checked this by clicking and dragging as @BL Die Hard suggested. Where did the second one come from? I didn't create a new .concyrc, just edited the default one as described above.

I moved

## Start the Conky session (the default conkyrc will run if no sessions have been set)
(sleep 6s && bl-conky-session --autostart) &

to the end of my autostart file as @PackRat suggested and that made things mostly better -- only one instance running now.

But there is still a gray box around the conky output that I'd like to get rid of and have no idea where it came from. If someone can help me with this, I'd consider the topic solved.

Head_on_a_Stick · 2018-05-26 15:18:24

christopherisnow wrote:

Where did the second one come from?

Check the full command line:

pgrep -a conky

Perhaps also post the full content of the autostart file:

grep -v '^#\^$' ~/.config/openbox/autostart

PackRat · 2018-05-26 23:54:11

christopherisnow wrote:

Where did the second one come from? I didn't create a new .concyrc, just edited the default one as described above.

I think that's the bug in conky 1.10 (whatever the current version is). When you edit the file, conky normally does a restart when the conkyrc is saved, but sometimes it doesn't quit the existing instance then restart, it just restarts so the user ends up with two conky instances running.

But I don't know if it's dependant on something else running - like compton or xfce's native window compositor.

Last edited by PackRat (2018-05-26 23:55:30)

DeepDayze · 2018-05-27 00:48:26

PackRat wrote:

christopherisnow wrote:
Where did the second one come from? I didn't create a new .concyrc, just edited the default one as described above.
I think that's the bug in conky 1.10 (whatever the current version is). When you edit the file, conky normally does a restart when the conkyrc is saved, but sometimes it doesn't quit the existing instance then restart, it just restarts so the user ends up with two conky instances running.
But I don't know if it's dependant on something else running - like compton or xfce's native window compositor.

I had this problem so I just killall the conky sessions then restart the conky from the conky chooser.

christopherisnow · 2018-05-27 15:50:04

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

christopherisnow wrote:
Where did the second one come from?
Check the full command line:
pgrep -a conky

output is

3970 conky

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

Perhaps also post the full content of the autostart file:
grep -v '^#\^$' ~/.config/openbox/autostart

output is

## Openbox autostart
## ====================
## When you login to your BunsenLabs Openbox session, this autostart script
## will be executed to set-up your environment and launch any applications
## you want to run at startup.
##
## Note: some programs, such as 'nm-applet' are run via XDG autostart.
## Run
## /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/openbox-xdg-autostart --list
## or
## /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/openbox-xdg-autostart --list
## to list any XDG autostarted programs.
##
## More information about this can be found at:
## http://openbox.org/wiki/Help:Autostart
##
## If you do something cool with your autostart script and you think others
## could benefit from your hack, please consider sharing it at:
## http://forums.bunsenlabs.org (registration required)
##

### SETTINGS START

## Turn on/off system beep.
xset b off

## Set keyboard settings - 250 ms delay and 25 cps (characters per second) repeat rate.
## Adjust the values according to your preferances.
xset r rate 250 25

## Add keyboard mapping.
#xmodmap -e "keysym Insert = Multi_key"

## Disable CapsLock
#setxkbmap -option ctrl:nocaps
# alternative: use as compose key
#setxkbmap -option compose:caps

# Alias Super key to Super+Space for single-key menu.
# See 'man xcape' for other possibilities.
xcape -e 'Super_L=Super_L|space'

### TOUCHPAD: comment out the next two entries if you don't have one

## Configure touchpad. See 'man synaptics' for more info.
## (Now might be using libinput instead of synaptics.)
synclient VertEdgeScroll=1 HorizEdgeScroll=1 TapButton1=1 2>/dev/null

## Disable touchpad while typing
syndaemon -i .5 -K -t -R -d &

### TOUCHPAD END

### SETTINGS END

## GNOME PolicyKit authentication
/usr/lib/policykit-1-gnome/polkit-gnome-authentication-agent-1 &

## Set a wallpaper
nitrogen --restore

## Compton
## NOTE: composition must be started before tint2
bl-compositor --start

## Start the tint2 session (the default tint2 will run if no sessions have been set)
bl-tint2-session

## Volume control for systray
pnmixer &

## Start Clipboard manager
clipit &

## bl-welcome - post-installation script, will not run in a live session and
## only runs once. Safe to remove.
(sleep 10; bl-welcome --firstrun) &

## bl-fortune - have the system come up with a little adage (not yet enabled)
#(sleep 120; bl-fortune) &

## Start Tomboy
tomboy &

## Keyboard switch
setxkbmap -option "grp:switch,grp:shifts_toggle,grp_led:scroll" -layout "de,es" & (sleep 5s && xxkb) &

## Redshift
(sleep 10; redshift -l 55.7:12.6 -t 5500:3500) &

##Dropbox
~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd &

## Start the Conky session (the default conkyrc will run if no sessions have been set)
(sleep 6s && bl-conky-session --autostart) &

Head_on_a_Stick · 2018-05-27 16:01:42

christopherisnow wrote:

output is
3970 conky

Then there is only one conky running and it seems to be reading from ~/.conkrc (although I'm not completely sure about that).

unklar · 2018-05-27 18:49:21

HoaS wrote:

3970 conky
Then there is only one conky running and it seems to be reading from ~/.conkrc (although I'm not completely sure about that).

But there is no path to this Conky

e.g.

pgrep -a conky
794 conky -c /home/unklar/.conkyrc

Head_on_a_Stick · 2018-05-27 19:09:50

unklar wrote:

But there is no path to this Conky

If the path is not called explicitly then conky reads from ~/.conkyrc (if that file exists), here is the output from my Debian stable system running the BL-He ~/.conkyrc:

empty@hegel:~ $ pgrep -a conky
3715 conky
empty@hegel:~

Having said that, I don't really understand our bl-conky-session abstraction and that may be confusing the issue.

johnraff · 2018-05-28 02:54:46

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

If the path is not called explicitly then conky reads from ~/.conkyrc (if that file exists),

That still seems to be the case, but it will first look for ~/.config/conky/conky.conf which is the preferred location now. (see man conky)

We have to change our default conky config file names and paths, at least by Lithium: conkyrc looks to be obsolete.

#1 2018-05-23 20:13:25

Conky unreadable

#2 2018-05-24 02:45:34

Re: Conky unreadable

#3 2018-05-24 17:28:42

Re: Conky unreadable

#4 2018-05-24 18:10:12

Re: Conky unreadable

#5 2018-05-24 21:14:13

Re: Conky unreadable

#6 2018-05-24 22:15:46

Re: Conky unreadable

#7 2018-05-24 22:45:13

Re: Conky unreadable

#8 2018-05-25 00:05:13

Re: Conky unreadable

#9 2018-05-26 10:58:27

Re: Conky unreadable

#10 2018-05-26 15:18:24

Re: Conky unreadable

#11 2018-05-26 23:54:11

Re: Conky unreadable

#12 2018-05-27 00:48:26

Re: Conky unreadable

#13 2018-05-27 15:50:04

Re: Conky unreadable

#14 2018-05-27 16:01:42

Re: Conky unreadable

#15 2018-05-27 18:49:21

Re: Conky unreadable

#16 2018-05-27 19:09:50

Re: Conky unreadable

#17 2018-05-28 02:54:46

Re: Conky unreadable

Board footer