It will offer you the ability to use default options or start with an empty config.

If you install i3 via your existing distro then when you log in you will see a setup wizard.

If you use a distro like Manjaro i3 then when you log in you will have a working environment. It also uses extensive keyboard shortcuts for navigation.ĭepending on how you install i3 you may need to set up some basic configuration. i3 is a tiling window manager which is much lighter on resources than an environment such as Gnome. Last week I shared the fact that I have migrated over to i3wm (i3) from a full desktop environment. Volume.sh is a simple script that change audio levels using amixer:įinally, with a little change on i3status.Navigating & Using i3 Window Manager 15 January 2019 More simple! Without any other plugin/applet, you can rebind volume control keys in i3 configuration file:īindsym XF86AudioRaiseVolume exec ~/.bin/volume.sh upīindsym XF86AudioLowerVolume exec ~/.bin/volume.sh downīindsym XF86AudioMute exec ~/.bin/volume.sh mute So, now you can map power button in i3 config:īindsym -release XF86PowerOff mode '$mode_power' Further, closing the lid put the system in sleep. Now, pressing power button doesen't triggers system shutdown, that allows to rebind the key in i3 configuration. In /etc/systemd/nf, set the HandlePowerKey to ignore, HandleLidSwitch to suspend and restart systemd-logind. In order to rebind the power button, a small change on systemd configuration is required. In other laptops, i use a simple script that writes directly on /sys/class/backlight.

In my configuration i don't use any external power management tool/applet (like the most used xfce4-power-manager): the brightness keys of my Dell works also without any software.

Some readers asked me more information about my i3 configuration, expecially regarding some laptop features such as keys binding for screen brightness and volume control. In a previous post I've explained the setup of my 'ultra geek' laptop: a cheap Dell with Debian, a minimal graphical interface ( i3) and a small subset of light applications.

I3 window manager