Configuration files

Sixpack uses a configuratin file called sixpack.rc or .sixpack.rc - usually these are stored in /etc/sixpack.rc and in ˜/.sixpack.rc The dot file in the user's home directory takes precedence over the global configuration file. In addition, sixpack recognizes some Xresource options. The defaults for some of them are usually stored in a file called SIXPACKDIR/Bib where SIXPACK dir is the directory Sixpack wa sinstalled to.

sixpack.rc

The most current information of how to configure Sixpack is always inside the sample configuration file that comes with sixpack. It is fairly well documented.

The sixpack configuration file sixpack.rc is simply a list of configuration variables and their value like this:

VARIABLE = value
  

Comments are marked by the hash mark '#', and can occur anywhere in the line. To continue a value across several lines, use the backslash, the one going from top-left to bottom-right '\'. Thus this is legal:

VARIABLE = a very very very very \ #see how long this can get
very very very \ # these comments will not be part of the
long value       # value!
  

Here is a list of all current variables in sixpack.rc:

CONV defines where the bp conversion program is stored.

CONV = /usr/local/bin/bibconv
  

place where bp was installed can also be set as an environment variable:

BPHOME = /usr/local/lib/bp
  

Editor this will be taken from the environment variable EDITOR, if it exists. It is used for editing entries in the command line mode.

EDITOR = /usr/bin/vim -f
EDITOR = /usr/bin/jed
  

GREP - where the grep command is.

GREP = /bin/grep
  

USERNAME is needed only if Sixpack can not determine it on its own. It is used for commenting the bibtex files produced.

USERNAME = Michael Lachmann

  

Path to wget. This is optional. If not defined, importing from URL isn't possible.

WGET = /usr/bin/wget
  

extension to use for backup files:

# BACKUPEXT = .bak #default
BACKUPEXT = ~

  

Directory in which papers are stored - this is for the 'file' field in entries. Files will be taken from that directory when viewing articles with an external viewer.

PAPERS = ~/papers

  

Place where pixmaps were installed:

PICSDIR = /usr/local/lib/pix
  

Place where docs were installed:

SIXDOC = /usr/local/lib/sixpack/doc

  

File which contains the default sixpack X11 resources:

BIBXRESFILE = /usr/local/lib/sixpack/Bib
  

Temporary file prefix - if not set, it will default to /tmp/$USER

# TMP = /tmp/dirktest

  

Format of display in the list window. The format for the value is a comma seperated list of names of fields to be shown, followed by collon, followed by a number showing how many chars of that field to show.

#DISPLAYLINE = au:17,ti:88  #this is the default.
  

PIDFILE stores the pid of the current process - for communication with bib-remote.

PIDFILE = ~/.sixpack.pid
  

To communicate with LyX, LYXPIPE has to be defined. The following is the default:

LYXPIPE = ~/.lyx/.lyxpipe.in 
 
  

Place where history is stored and its length

HISTORYFILE = ~/.sixpack.his
HISTORY = 500
  

How many recent files appear in the 'File->Recent' menu

RECENTFILES = 5
  

# If an entry contains a line file=filename, by pressing ctrl-v, or the leftmost button, the file will be shown for viewing. You can define handlers for various extensions. The variable

MISCHANDLE = /bin/echo no handler for file %s
  

holds the action to be done for an unrecognized type. To define a handler for an extension, add a variable with the name EXHANDLE.ext as in:

EXTHANDLE.pdf = xpdf   #this will handle pdf
EXTHANDLE.ps = gv -antialias
EXTHANDLE.ps.gz = zcat %s | gv - 
EXTHANDLE.tar.gz = view_article
EXTHANDLE.dvi = xdvi
EXTHANDLE.html = netscape-remote -remote "openFILE(%s)"
  

URLHANDLE determines how to view URLs, as in the field 'url':

URLHANDLE = netscape-remote -remote "openURLNewWindow(%s)"
# view them with konqueror:
#URLHANDLE = kfmclient openURL %s
  

Help files are opened with the URLHANDLE programs, unless HELPHANDLE is defined. If it is then that program openes help files.

#HELPHANDLE = khelpcenter %s
 
  

Should balloons be displayed? Default is on

# BALLOONHELP = N
 
  

CITEID format for automatically creating CITEIDs. See the explanation above for how they work.

#CITEID = Lachmann,98
CITEID = LACHMANN,1998
#CITEID = lachGEtal,98
#CITEID = Lachmann+,:,98
#CITEID = lacANDber,98
#more complicated: (here we use the title, drop common words)
#CITEID = LachG,98,feb,:,IntProCit
#more complicated:
#CITEID = GLach,98,feb,:,intrtoprod
 
  

Now, if we drop words from the title for the CITEID, we need to tell what words to drop. The following is te default. If you just use this, the field isn't needed.

#TITLEIGNORE = the of from in on to a 
  

Save a sixpack database on every bibtex file saved, so that the loading of a bibtex file is faster. The way it works is the following: every time you save a bibtex file from the File->Save database menu, another file called filename.bib.bref is created that holds the file in sixpack native format. Then on the next load, Sipack will load the database off the native format, unless the bib file is newer. BIBWITHREF determines if this should be done.

BIBWITHBREF = 1
  

Xresources

Sixpack can be configured with different Xresources. They are mostly handled by perl/Tk, and can also be given on the command line. Here are the contents of Bib,which contain some of these resources:

Bib.geometry: 692x729+1+1
! Bib*background: yellow
! Bib.listFrame*background: grey70
! Bib.entryFrame*background: grey70
 
 
!!! The following don't work
! Bib.menu*background: yellow
! Bib.menu*foreground: yellow
! Bib.menuFile*background: yellow
 
! Bib.newFrame*background: yellow
! Bib.queryFrame*background: yellow
! Bib.mainFrame*background: yellow
!!! end of the things that don't work...
 
 
! Bib.logWindow*background: red
! Bib.databaseWindow*background: red
! Bib.queryWindow*background: red
 
Bib.balloon*background: orange
Bib.font: 7x13
! sliderwidth
Bib.sliderWidth: 11
Bib.background1: grey90
! highlighted item and status bar
Bib.background2: #00004f
! ERROR background of status bar
Bib.background3: red4
! select
Bib.background4: blue3
Bib.foreground1: blue3  
Bib.foreground2: brown4
! required fields
Bib.foreground3: red
! optional fields
Bib.foreground4: green4
! other fields
Bib.foreground5: black
! highlighted item and status bar
Bib.foreground6: yellow
Bib.foreground7: white