Linux mode setting, from the comfort of OCaml
6 days ago
- #Linux
- #OCaml
- #KMS
- Linux provides the KMS (Kernel Mode Setting) API for configuring display settings, used by Wayland compositors and other programs.
- libdrm-ocaml simplifies the verbose C API, allowing interactive exploration of KMS in a REPL.
- The post covers querying hardware, configuring monitors, and rendering 3D animations with KMS.
- Setup instructions are provided for both Nix and opam users to follow along with the examples.
- Key concepts include CRTCs, framebuffers, connectors, and encoders in the KMS API.
- The post demonstrates both non-atomic and atomic mode setting for configuring displays.
- Debugging tips include enabling KMS debug messages via sysfs.
- The OCaml bindings for libdrm simplify the API and reduce noise compared to C.
- The work was sponsored by the OCaml Software Foundation.