
Xfce bug: “default desktop screen causes damage to monitor” - felipebueno
https://bugzilla.xfce.org/show_bug.cgi?id=12117
======
kawsper
The bugtracker seems to be taking a nap, omgubuntu have a summary of the "bug"
here: [http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2017/03/xfce-wallpaper-cat-
bug](http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2017/03/xfce-wallpaper-cat-bug)

~~~
Kristine1975
_> The bugtracker seems to be taking a nap_

Sounds like it's a cat. No wonder the bug won't be fixed then.

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mathw
Very strange. Neither of my cats have ever paid the slightest bit of attention
to the contents of any screen on any device I own. Yet I know people whose
cats like to watch television, so there's some thing going on where some cats
see screen images as significant and others don't. I should go looking for
info on that!

In any case, I don't see how this is XFCE's problem. Just change the
wallpaper.

~~~
sillysaurus3
Cat eyes have a different refresh rate than human eyes. Some cats can see
monitors just clearly enough to make out what's on the screen. Others see
flicker. The color gamut is different too.

~~~
lomnakkus
I can see this being a thing with CRTs (which basically 'flicker' constantly),
but LCDs?

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inlineint
Some LCD displays use flicker to set backlight LED brightness.

~~~
lomnakkus
Dang, TIL, I guess... but I don't see how that relates to the OPs hypothetis
about cat vision. A phrase I never thought I'd be uttering here, or...
anywhere, really.

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woliveirajr
I remember my early days of computers (not as old as some folks here, I know)
when there was an intense debate on whether a software could cause damage to
some hardware.

I remember programing a small .asm that would move the head of a floppy to a
farther point and it stoped working. Probably not all models would fail, but
one particular brand did.

Then a intense debate followed that I was wrong. Never talked about it again.

Fast-forward, now we have news that nuclear programs had malfunctions caused
by cyber-attacks. Ok, not exactly the same "software doesn't damage hardware"
we talked back then, but...

I'm willing to consider that using software to make some catware cause damages
to the hardware should be acceptable too :D

~~~
Kristine1975
_> when there was an intense debate on whether a software could cause damage
to some hardware._

A more recent debate (TL;DR: yes, software can cause damage to hardware):
[https://superuser.com/questions/313850/](https://superuser.com/questions/313850/)

~~~
Breakthrough
As the person who wrote the accepted answer to that question, I'm flattered to
see it linked here. (I'm also a bit embarrassed at reading some of my older
rambling-style writing, but nothing beats experience :)

While my forray into malicious floppy disks didn't end with physical damage, I
did manage to make one similar to DBAN. If you booted the computer with the
floppy inserted, all drives would be formatted instantly, without any user
input.

Fortunately, even in highschool​ I realized they probably imaged the school
machines anyways. Probably...

~~~
woliveirajr
Mine answer is there too but with much less points, the kill FDD thing :)

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terrywang
Long story short: the so-called bug -> monitor damage is not caused by code
but cat - obviously NOT `/usr/bin/cat` ;-)

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dnel
even if it was, all is forgiven /usr/bin/cat is too cute to be angry with

------
davidddavidson
Try Ratpoison
([http://www.nongnu.org/ratpoison/](http://www.nongnu.org/ratpoison/)) to get
rid of the mice.

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dexen
Archived, as the bugzilla seems to be overloaded right now:
[http://archive.is/s5HMf](http://archive.is/s5HMf)

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PleaseHelpMe
I suggest the patch here: [http://imgur.com/5s2hM0p](http://imgur.com/5s2hM0p)

~~~
dnel
In my house, that would likely result in graphical distortion due to slobber

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pleasecalllater
I think those cats need some upgrade. If they are not compatible with XFCE
that's rather not XFCE's fault.

~~~
Kristine1975
What's easier to change? Even a single cat or XFCE?

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gargravarr
Slashdot effect on the Xfce bugtracker...

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jasonkostempski
No one is viewing it due to irrelevance?

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peter_retief
Gosh I use Xfce when on desktop mode, reminds me it's time to get a kitten
again

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secult
Hacker News clearly knows how to DDoS websites.

~~~
NuDinNou
And reddit. It was a top post recently
[https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/60rzjn/my_cat_was_fo...](https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/60rzjn/my_cat_was_fooled_by_xfce/)

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kwhitefoot
April 1st early this year?

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noir_lord
Can't reproduce on modern hardware (4 Year Old Black Female Cat, 4 Year Old
Black Male Cat).

status:Wont Fix

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ishitatsuyuki
Heh, it's not April yet ;)

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Qantourisc
Soon it will get a new licence: we are not responsible for cat damage.

~~~
Kristine1975
And then ship a malicious /usr/bin/cat.

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Maskawanian
Just change the background? I don't think XFCE should change because cats are
attacking monitors.

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synrst
Really? Don't you think they have a responsibility to all thier cat owning
users? It must be close to 100%!

