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I develop Lunar (https://lunar.fyi/ https://lunar.fyi/) for controlling monitors on Mac and stumbled upon this gem for Linux which I wanted to share with you.

by alin23 4y ago

I develop Lunar (https://lunar.fyi/ https://lunar.fyi/) for controlling monitors on Mac and stumbled upon this gem for Linux which I wanted to share with you. I regularly get asked to recommend something similar to Lunar for Linux and Windows and while there's TwinkleTray for Windows, I didn't have a good recommendation for Linux. Glad this finally exists! A lot of people also use MonitorControl for Mac and might be curious what's the difference between it and Lunar. I have a comparison table here for those people: https://lunar.fyi/lunar-vs-monitorcontrol https://lunar.fyi/lunar-vs-monitorcontrol

ChuckNorris89 4y ago
>there's TwinkleTray for Windows For Windows I fiind ClickMonitorDDC[1] is a great app as it has more configuration options, and also lets you control other parameters such as volume, contrast, RGB, color profiles, etc., and also lets you control these individually via the mouse wheels scrolling over the tray icons, which for me is a must have UX wise. [1] https://github.com/chrismah/ClickMonitorDDC7.2 https://github.com/chrismah/ClickMonitorDDC7.2
- alin23 4y ago
  Yes, that one is really good as well and I recommend it for more advanced use cases like setting manufacturer specific VCPs (e.g. E9 to 36 for PBP on Dells etc.) But most people ask me for a Lunar alternative which by that they mean a pretty UI with some adaptive or automated brightness. That's why I usually recommend TwinkleTray.
Garcia98 4y ago
gddccontrol has been around for ages on Linux and it's not exclusive to a single desktop environment (and I'm sure there's a plethora of alternatives, but that's just the one I use).
- ChuckNorris89 4y ago
  >gddccontrol has been around for ages on Linux Linux has many such apps, but many are just CLI based, or buggy/janky GUIs, or just don't work at all, depending on what HW/OS you run. Having a great looking app the integrates seamlessly into your DE and justworks(TM)(hopefully) is big step in the linux world. >but gddccontrol has a GUI, has been supported since 2004 and works fine in 2023 @Garcia98 gddccontrol GUI might have existed since whenever, and maybe it works fine for you, but for me it has been extremely buggy on Ubuntu 22.04 to the point it is unusable so I welcome other similar apps if they improve my experience. Therefore I don't get your outrage on people promoting this other app. You are free to keep using gddccontrol, the existence of other similar apps doesn't mean gddccontrol will stop working for you.
  - Garcia98 4y ago
    Sure, but gddccontrol has a GUI, has been supported since 2004 and works fine in 2023, that's why I find it a bit odd that he didn't know what to recommend to Linux users until now.
    - alin23 4y ago
      I knew about gddccontrol, it's just not what people were looking for when they were asking me about an alternative to Lunar. I obviously gave them any alternative I could find, but all the responses I got were that a simpler easily reachable UI and keyboard shortcuts for changing brightness were what they expected.
    - pohuing 4y ago
      Maybe because it's discoverability is bad. I've been looking for something to control screen brightness because I wanted to give Linux another shot, so this random post was a lucky find. If I look for this topic on ddg I either find a Ubuntu wiki entry(not really relevant to me on suse with KDE), the arch Wiki which focuses solely on technical details and clis. The first ten articles are clis, a lot of them truly strange ones like writing magic numbers into random system files. Not a single mention of gddc tho, and the manpage is not a very good advertisement either...
janjones 4y ago
> there's TwinkleTray for Windows There is also Monitorian for Windows: https://github.com/emoacht/Monitorian https://github.com/emoacht/Monitorian
lloeki 4y ago
I've user Lunar for quite a while, then moved to MonitorControl, and am now on BetterDisplay, which notably includes DDC/CI over the M1 HDMI ports. Also its ability to fake screens of arbitrary resolutions e.g for headless machines is solid gold. https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay
- alin23 4y ago
  Yes, BetterDisplay got DDC support on HDMI M1 soon after its dev learned that I added it in Lunar: https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/issues/1361 https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/issues/1361 I’m friends with Istvan (the BetterDisplay dev) from the time he was a Lunar user, and we usually share implementation details for non-Pro features.
  - lloeki 4y ago
    I must concur with sibling comment by sausajez, and say thank you for sharing knowledge and code between the "competing" projects! I feel like everyone is better off this way.
- sausajez 4y ago
  Can I just say... such a healthy way to help the ecosystem but retain distinguishing features
nierro 4y ago
There is also Clight (https://github.com/FedeDP/Clight https://github.com/FedeDP/Clight) if you want automatic backlight adjusting given ambient brightness. It supports external monitors through ddcutil C library and has many more features to offer. Disclaimer: i am its creator ;)
- nierro 4y ago
  It is Linux only btw.
- miduil 4y ago
  I've tried setting up clight on various occasions and now gave it a shot again, whilst I appreciate all the documentation I'm still struggling to get it working on NixOS with swaywm on a laptop. I'm primarily interested in adjusting screen brightness based on my webcam. I'm already using redshift/gammastep.
  - nierro 4y ago
    Uh that's sad! There is actually an issue opened about NixOS; but, since I am not using it, it's pretty hard for me to debug. If you want some help you can comment on that issue though!
    - miduil 4y ago
      Thanks! Totally overlooked that. I've managed getting through the first hurdles last night, I'll leave some more feedback on GitHub :).
inconceivable 4y ago
random question for you: i have a sony oled display that auto-dims on low color change activity (this is impossible to disable - believe me, i've tried, even in the diagnostics menu). do you have any idea how this could possibly be circumvented? Thanks!
- alin23 4y ago
  That is an ABL or Automatic Brightness Limiter and it’s one of the things that’s messing Lunar’s brightness Sync algorithm because the max brightness is constantly changing. It might be possible to disable from the monitor hidden service menu, if you can find a way to enter it. But it will also greatly decrease the lifespan of the diodes as OLEDs are not made to go so long with high brightness and heat. If the monitor does not provide such an option, there is no way to circumvent this as the function is embedded in the monitor firmware.
  - inconceivable 4y ago
    thanks for the info. i also tried in the hidden service menu, no dice. psa to all others out there, just watch out for this feature in oleds if it's a dealbreaker. otherwise i love this display as a monitor. for me it's not that big of a deal for the price i paid. btw even my studio monitor speakers do this with no ability to disable... seems like a trend in major electronics these days.

by alin23 4y ago

ChuckNorris89 4y ago

>there's TwinkleTray for Windows For Windows I fiind ClickMonitorDDC[1] is a great app as it has more configuration options, and also lets you control other parameters such as volume, contrast, RGB, color profiles, etc., and also lets you control these individually via the mouse wheels scrolling over the tray icons, which for me is a must have UX wise. [1] https://github.com/chrismah/ClickMonitorDDC7.2 https://github.com/chrismah/ClickMonitorDDC7.2

alin23 4y ago
Yes, that one is really good as well and I recommend it for more advanced use cases like setting manufacturer specific VCPs (e.g. E9 to 36 for PBP on Dells etc.) But most people ask me for a Lunar alternative which by that they mean a pretty UI with some adaptive or automated brightness. That's why I usually recommend TwinkleTray.

Garcia98 4y ago

gddccontrol has been around for ages on Linux and it's not exclusive to a single desktop environment (and I'm sure there's a plethora of alternatives, but that's just the one I use).

ChuckNorris89 4y ago
>gddccontrol has been around for ages on Linux Linux has many such apps, but many are just CLI based, or buggy/janky GUIs, or just don't work at all, depending on what HW/OS you run. Having a great looking app the integrates seamlessly into your DE and justworks(TM)(hopefully) is big step in the linux world. >but gddccontrol has a GUI, has been supported since 2004 and works fine in 2023 @Garcia98 gddccontrol GUI might have existed since whenever, and maybe it works fine for you, but for me it has been extremely buggy on Ubuntu 22.04 to the point it is unusable so I welcome other similar apps if they improve my experience. Therefore I don't get your outrage on people promoting this other app. You are free to keep using gddccontrol, the existence of other similar apps doesn't mean gddccontrol will stop working for you.
- Garcia98 4y ago
  Sure, but gddccontrol has a GUI, has been supported since 2004 and works fine in 2023, that's why I find it a bit odd that he didn't know what to recommend to Linux users until now.
  - alin23 4y ago
    I knew about gddccontrol, it's just not what people were looking for when they were asking me about an alternative to Lunar. I obviously gave them any alternative I could find, but all the responses I got were that a simpler easily reachable UI and keyboard shortcuts for changing brightness were what they expected.
  - pohuing 4y ago
    Maybe because it's discoverability is bad. I've been looking for something to control screen brightness because I wanted to give Linux another shot, so this random post was a lucky find. If I look for this topic on ddg I either find a Ubuntu wiki entry(not really relevant to me on suse with KDE), the arch Wiki which focuses solely on technical details and clis. The first ten articles are clis, a lot of them truly strange ones like writing magic numbers into random system files. Not a single mention of gddc tho, and the manpage is not a very good advertisement either...

janjones 4y ago

> there's TwinkleTray for Windows There is also Monitorian for Windows: https://github.com/emoacht/Monitorian https://github.com/emoacht/Monitorian

lloeki 4y ago

I've user Lunar for quite a while, then moved to MonitorControl, and am now on BetterDisplay, which notably includes DDC/CI over the M1 HDMI ports. Also its ability to fake screens of arbitrary resolutions e.g for headless machines is solid gold. https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay

alin23 4y ago
Yes, BetterDisplay got DDC support on HDMI M1 soon after its dev learned that I added it in Lunar: https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/issues/1361 https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/issues/1361 I’m friends with Istvan (the BetterDisplay dev) from the time he was a Lunar user, and we usually share implementation details for non-Pro features.
- lloeki 4y ago
  I must concur with sibling comment by sausajez, and say thank you for sharing knowledge and code between the "competing" projects! I feel like everyone is better off this way.
sausajez 4y ago
Can I just say... such a healthy way to help the ecosystem but retain distinguishing features

nierro 4y ago

There is also Clight (https://github.com/FedeDP/Clight https://github.com/FedeDP/Clight) if you want automatic backlight adjusting given ambient brightness. It supports external monitors through ddcutil C library and has many more features to offer. Disclaimer: i am its creator ;)

nierro 4y ago
It is Linux only btw.
miduil 4y ago
I've tried setting up clight on various occasions and now gave it a shot again, whilst I appreciate all the documentation I'm still struggling to get it working on NixOS with swaywm on a laptop. I'm primarily interested in adjusting screen brightness based on my webcam. I'm already using redshift/gammastep.
- nierro 4y ago
  Uh that's sad! There is actually an issue opened about NixOS; but, since I am not using it, it's pretty hard for me to debug. If you want some help you can comment on that issue though!
  - miduil 4y ago
    Thanks! Totally overlooked that. I've managed getting through the first hurdles last night, I'll leave some more feedback on GitHub :).

inconceivable 4y ago

random question for you: i have a sony oled display that auto-dims on low color change activity (this is impossible to disable - believe me, i've tried, even in the diagnostics menu). do you have any idea how this could possibly be circumvented? Thanks!

alin23 4y ago
That is an ABL or Automatic Brightness Limiter and it’s one of the things that’s messing Lunar’s brightness Sync algorithm because the max brightness is constantly changing. It might be possible to disable from the monitor hidden service menu, if you can find a way to enter it. But it will also greatly decrease the lifespan of the diodes as OLEDs are not made to go so long with high brightness and heat. If the monitor does not provide such an option, there is no way to circumvent this as the function is embedded in the monitor firmware.
- inconceivable 4y ago
  thanks for the info. i also tried in the hidden service menu, no dice. psa to all others out there, just watch out for this feature in oleds if it's a dealbreaker. otherwise i love this display as a monitor. for me it's not that big of a deal for the price i paid. btw even my studio monitor speakers do this with no ability to disable... seems like a trend in major electronics these days.