i3 FAQ - Individual question feedhttps://faq.i3wm.org/questions/Frequently asked questions and answers about the i3 window managerenCopyright i3, 2012Sun, 14 Jun 2015 09:00:48 +0000How do I start i3?https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/ So, this is a bit embarrassing, but, uh, how do I actually start i3? I downloaded the i3 package for fedora just to try it out, and I can't find anything about how to actually start it. I tried "i3", and it just says "cannot open display".Sun, 14 Jun 2015 07:43:51 +0000https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/Comment by Airblader for <p>So, this is a bit embarrassing, but, uh, how do I actually start i3? I downloaded the i3 package for fedora just to try it out, and I can't find anything about how to actually start it. I tried "i3", and it just says "cannot open display".</p> https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?comment=6127#comment-6127Are you running some other window manager / desktop environment currently?Sun, 14 Jun 2015 08:29:06 +0000https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?comment=6127#comment-6127Answer by Airblader for <p>So, this is a bit embarrassing, but, uh, how do I actually start i3? I downloaded the i3 package for fedora just to try it out, and I can't find anything about how to actually start it. I tried "i3", and it just says "cannot open display".</p> https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?answer=6128#post-id-6128Assuming no other window manager / desktop envrionment is running: if you just start "i3" from the TTY, it will tell you that it cannot open the display because the X server is not yet running. The easiest way to get started is to edit (or create, if misisng) `~/.xinitrc`. If it didn't exist, simply put `exec i3` in there. If it exists, check the bottom for some `exec` call, comment it out and put `exec i3` instead. Once the file is saved, run `startx` from the TTY. This will start an X server, read the file and then start i3. Sun, 14 Jun 2015 08:30:56 +0000https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?answer=6128#post-id-6128Comment by QBWR for <p>Assuming no other window manager / desktop envrionment is running: if you just start "i3" from the TTY, it will tell you that it cannot open the display because the X server is not yet running.</p> <p>The easiest way to get started is to edit (or create, if misisng) <code>~/.xinitrc</code>. If it didn't exist, simply put <code>exec i3</code> in there. If it exists, check the bottom for some <code>exec</code> call, comment it out and put <code>exec i3</code> instead.</p> <p>Once the file is saved, run <code>startx</code> from the TTY. This will start an X server, read the file and then start i3. </p> https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?comment=6130#comment-6130That got it working, thanks. Now I'm going to have to start playing around with it.Sun, 14 Jun 2015 09:00:48 +0000https://faq.i3wm.org/question/6126/how-do-i-start-i3/?comment=6130#comment-6130