::X Window System
::concepts
Server::xfree System::display Window::client Window::computer Title::software System::protocol
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The X Window System (X11, X, and sometimes informally X-Windows) is a windowing system for bitmap displays, common on UNIX-like computer operating systems.
X provides the basic framework for a GUI environment: drawing and moving windows on the display device and interacting with a mouse and keyboard. X does not mandate the user interface — this is handled by individual programs. As such, the visual styling of X-based environments varies greatly; different programs may present radically different interfaces.
X originated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1984. The protocol version has been X11 since September 1987. The X.Org Foundation leads the X project, with the current reference implementation, X.Org Server, available as free and open source software under the MIT License and similar permissive licenses.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
X Window System sections
Intro Purpose and abilities Software architecture Principles User interfaces Implementations Limitations and criticism Competitors History Future directions Nomenclature Release history See also Notes References External links
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