HDS ViewStation System Administrator's Guide

A Hypertext Document


HDSshare Client Manual Page and Usage

HDSshare Manual Page
This client is available with HDSware version 3.2. You must use the special configuration files /HDSware/hds-fx/config/config.ext (or /HDSware/hds-fx/con fig/config.ext.dsk) and /HDSware/hds-fx/config/clients.fx in order the hdsshare client.

NAME
hdsshare - a simple multi-headed ViewStation

SYNTAX
hdsshare [ toolkit options ] [ -nobuttons ] [ -md ] -rd RemoteDisplay [ -rd Remote Display ... ]

DESCRIPTION
This Motif utility is used to logically control multiple X servers from one X server's keyboard and mouse, and switch between X servers. This utility requires the XTrap extension to be running on both the master X server and on all remote (slave) X servers.

OPTIONS
-no buttons
Do not use Motif buttons to hop the cursor from one display to another. If this option is specified, the -md option must also be present to identify the left-right order of the displays.

-md
This option enables automatic cursor hopping by moving the cursor to the left or right edge of the screen. The displays are assumed to be physically ordered from left to right in the same order that they are given on the command line. The -md option is a place holder for the master display's position in the display order. For example,
hdsshare -rd slave1:0 -rd slave2:0 -md -rd slave:0
specifies that the order of the display screens, from left to right, is slave1, slave2, the master display, and then slave3.

-rd RemoteDisplay
Specified in the same manner as the control display, for each remote display.

Example usage
hdsshare -rd remote:0
hdsshare -display local:0 -rd remote:0 -md
hdsshare -nobuttons -md -rd near:0 -rd far:0


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Similar to functionality of "xhydra" by Robert Chesler, but developed independently before the author was aware of xhydra.

SEE ALSO
X(1), xtrap(1)

Using the HDSshare Client
HDSshare is a local ViewStation client that lets you share a keyboard and mouse between several ViewStations. This is sometimes convenient where ViewStations are used without their own input devices (such as process control installations or in isolated environments such as clean rooms, etc.).

Starting HDSshare
HDSshare is included with the HDSperx clients in the HDSware 3.2 distribution but is not included as a default client on the HDSperx menu. You must make two entries to the clients configuration file in order to run HDSshare.

Make these changes in the /HDSware/hds-fx/config/clients.config file:
1. Load the Xtrap downloadable extension: Your line should look like this (this may vary slightly by HDSware version)
hds.serverExtensions: /FXUtilities/hds-fx/extensions/MIT-SHM /FXUtilities/hds-fx/extensions/DEC-XTRAP (use a single line for the extensions, use a space between entries)

2. Add a line for the HDSshare client:
hds.client.hdsshare.path: /FXUtilities/hds-fx/bin/hdsshare

3. Reboot ALL of the HDSshare ViewStations so the server extension is loaded on each.

Refer to the hdsshare man page for details of HDSshare operation. HDSshare requires that the Xtrap extension be running on all of the ViewStations controlled by HDSshare, so they should all use this clients.config file and all be rebooted with the extension.

Start HDSshare from the ViewStation's Console window
You must specify one or more remote displays for HDSshare to manage. Suppose your ViewStation is named "hds40" and you want to control ViewStations named "hds42" and "hds46". In the Console window enter:
hdsshare -rd hds42:0 -rd hds46:0 &
which gives you three name tiles (hds40, hds42, and hds46) in the HDSshare window. Note that HDSshare should run in the background.

The local ViewStation is the default controller; you can also specify another ViewStation as the controller with the -display argument:
hdsshare -display local:0 -rd remote1:0 -rd remote2:0 -rd remote3:0 &

HDSshare Operation
When HDSshare starts, it puts up a window with a name tile for the local display and for each remote ViewStation display you've specified. You can use the keyboard and mouse for any of those displays just by moving your local mouse to the appropriate tile and clicking on it.

This moves the mouse and keyboard control to the remote ViewStation's monitor screen (which may be on your desktop or may be viewable through a clean-room window, etc.). It is just as if the keyboard and mouse were connected to the remote ViewStation base. It is not necessary for the remote display to have either a key board or a mouse; if they are present, the HDSshare display overrides their function when it has control.

The HDSshare window with its name tiles appears on the new display so you can go to any other HDSshare ViewStation from the new display.

If you use the -nobuttons command line option, HDSshare doesn't put up tiles for each display but allows you to move the cursor smoothly from one display to another as if they were a single screen. If you use the -nobuttons option, you must use the -md option to locate the master display; the other displays are assumed to be left-to-right as they appear on the command line.
For example the command line:
hdsshare -nobuttons -rd slave1:0 -rd slave2:0 -md -rd slave3:0&
specifies the physical arrangement as slave1, slave2, master, slave3. In this example you move the cursor from one display to another without use of the name tiles.

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