Index: chapter.sgml =================================================================== RCS file: /home/dcvs/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/boot/chapter.sgml,v retrieving revision 1.65 diff -u -r1.65 chapter.sgml --- chapter.sgml 30 May 2006 23:08:23 -0000 1.65 +++ chapter.sgml 29 Nov 2008 14:36:17 -0000 @@ -507,6 +507,195 @@ + + + + + + Joseph J. + Barbish + Contributed by + + + + + Boot Time Splash Screens + + &os; has a feature to allow the display of a splash + screen in place of showing boot messages. This makes + for a clearer visually experience getting to the legacy + virtual console text login prompt and/or the X Display Manager + graphical login screen. + + There are 2 basic environments available in &os;. The + first is the default legacy virtual console text command line + environment. After the system finished booting, a virtual + console text login prompt is presented. The second + environment is the X11 Desktop graphical environment. After + X11 and one of the graphical + desktop environments, such as + GNOME, + KDE, or + XFce are installed, the X11 desktop + can be launched from the command line by using the + startx command. + + Some X11 users may select not to stop + at the virtual console login prompt at boot time, but go + directly to the X11 desktop display manager's graphical login + screen. Popular choices are XDM, + the display manager of &xorg;, gdm + for GNOME, and + kdm for + KDE, but any other display manager + found in the Ports Collection could be used. These display + managers basically provide a graphical login screen in place + of the default legacy virtual console text login prompt, and + after a successful login, put the user in a graphical + desktop. + + In the virtual console text command line environment, the + splash screen would hide all the boot probe messages and task + startup messages before displaying the login prompt. + + In X11 environment, the users would get a visually clearer + system start up experience resembling something closer to what + a (µsoft; &windows; or non-unix type system) user would + experience. + + + Splash Screen Function + + The splash screen function only supports + 256-color bitmap (.bmp) or ZSoft + PCX (.pcx) files. + In addition, the splash image files must have a resolution + of 320 by 200 pixels or less to work because that is the + default video support &os; provides. Note that, a 320x200 + splash screen image will be displayed as a + small block in the center of a solid white background + screen. + + To support larger video resolutions up to the maximum of + the video card is, activate the VESA + support included in &os; by loading the + VESA module during system boot, or adding + a VESA kernel configuration option and + building a custom kernel (for more information, see ). The VESA + support gives users the ability to display a splash + screen image that fills the whole display + screen. + + While the splash screen is being + displayed during the booting process any keyboard key can be + hit to return to the boot message display. + + The splash screen defaults to becoming a + screen saver. After a time period of non-use the screen + will change to the splash screen and cycles + through steps of changing intensity of the image, from + bright intensity to a very dark intensity and over again. + This default splash screen (screen saver) + behavior could be overridden by adding a + saver= line to + /etc/rc.conf. Option + saver= has several built-in screen savers + to choose from, such as saver="warp". + This is the default splash screen screen + saver and in /etc/rc.conf, the + saver= option only applies to virtual + consoles. It has no effect on X11 desktop display + managers. + + At boot time with the splash screen + enabled a few boot loader messages still could be seen leading + up to and including the boot options menu and the timed wait + count down prompt before the splash screen is + displayed. + + Sample splash screen files can be downloaded from the + gallery at . + + + + Enabling the Splash Screen Function + + The splash screen + (.bmp) or (.pcx) + file has to be placed in the /boot directory. + + For default boot display resolution (256-color, 320 by + 200 pixels, or less), edit + /boot/loader.conf so it contains the + following: + + splash_bmp_load="YES" +bitmap_load="YES" +bitmap_name="/boot/splash.bmp" + + For larger video resolutions up to the maximum of the + video card, edit /boot/loader.conf so + it contains the following: + + vesa_load="YES" +splash_bmp_load="YES" +bitmap_load="YES" +bitmap_name="/boot/splash.bmp" + + The above assumes that + /boot/splash.bmp + is used for splash screen. When a PCX + file desired, use these statements plus the + vesa_load="YES" statement depending on + the resolution. + + splash_pcx_load="YES" +bitmap_load="YES" +bitmap_name="/boot/splash.pcx" + + It is not restricted to use splash as + file name, it can be named anything as long as it has type of + BMP or PCX, such as + splash_640x400.bmp + or + blue_wave.pcx. + + There are 2 another possible interesting + loader.conf options. + + + + beastie_disable="YES" + + + This will stop the boot options menu from being + displayed, but the timed wait count down prompt will + be still present. Even with the display of the boot + options menu disabled, entering an option selection at + the timed wait count down prompt will enact the + corresponding boot option. + + + + + loader_logo="beastie" + + + This will replace the default words + &os; which are displayed to the right + of the boot options menu with the colored beastie logo + like releases in the past had. + + + + + For more information, please see the &man.splash.4;, + &man.loader.conf.5;, and &man.vga.4; manual pages. + +