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https://github.com/isomerc/nicotine

A high performance multiboxing tool for x11 and Wayland Linux systems inspired by EVE-O Preview for Windows
https://github.com/isomerc/nicotine

eveonline linux multiboxing x11

Last synced: 20 days ago
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A high performance multiboxing tool for x11 and Wayland Linux systems inspired by EVE-O Preview for Windows

Awesome Lists containing this project

README 

          


  Nicotine Logo




# Nicotine 🚬



High-performance EVE Online multiboxing tool for Linux (X11 & Wayland) and Windows.






### 💬 [**Join the Nicotine Discord**](https://discord.gg/N82KJcS47f) 💬






[Illuminated is recruiting!](https://illuminatedcorp.com)



## Features



- **Instant client cycling** with mouse buttons (forward/backward) or targeted switching (jump to client N)

- **Live preview windows** per EVE client — XComposite + XRender on Linux, DWM thumbnails on Windows

- **List display mode** — compact roster window as an alternative to per-client previews

- **Config panel** for character order, per-character jump hotkeys, preview sizing, and display mode

- **Daemon architecture** for near-zero-latency window switching

- **Auto-stack windows** to perfectly center multiple EVE clients

- **Drag-to-position with snap-to-dock** on previews and the list window; lockable layout for play

- **Multi-compositor support** — X11, KDE Plasma (Wayland), Sway, Hyprland

- **Minimize inactive clients** — optional, reduces resource usage when cycling away



## Roadmap

- Comprehensive documentation

- More configuration options



## Quick Install



### One-Line Installer (Recommended)



```bash

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/isomerc/nicotine/master/install-github.sh | bash

```



Then restart your terminal and run:

```bash

nicotine start    # Automatically runs in background

```



### From Source



```bash

git clone https://github.com/isomerc/nicotine

cd nicotine

./install-local.sh

```



Then restart your terminal and run:

```bash

nicotine start    # Automatically runs in background

```



## Usage



### Basic Commands



```bash

nicotine start          # Start everything (daemon + overlay)

nicotine stop           # Stop all Nicotine processes

nicotine stack          # Stack all EVE windows

nicotine forward        # Cycle to next client

nicotine backward       # Cycle to previous client

nicotine 1              # Jump to client 1

nicotine 2              # Jump to client 2

```



### Targeted Cycling



By default, `nicotine 1`, `nicotine 2`, etc. use window detection order. To define your own order, create `~/.config/nicotine/characters.txt`:



```

Main Character

Alt One

Alt Two

```



Each line is a character name (without "EVE - " prefix). Line 1 = target 1, line 2 = target 2, etc. Bind these commands to hotkeys in your desktop environment for quick access.



### Mouse Bindings



**Native Support (Works on X11 & Wayland):**



Nicotine has built-in mouse button detection that works universally across all display servers and compositors



**Quick Setup:**

1. Add your user to the `input` group:

   ```bash

   sudo usermod -a -G input $USER

   ```

2. **Log out and log back in** (required for group membership to take effect)

3. Start Nicotine - mouse buttons work automatically!



**Configuration:**

Edit `~/.config/nicotine/config.toml` to customize:

```toml

enable_mouse_buttons = true

forward_button = 276   # Button 9 (forward/side button)

backward_button = 275  # Button 8 (backward button)

mouse_device_name = "" # Optional takes priority over mouse_device_path, use evtest to find name of the device

mouse_device_path = "/dev/input/event3" # Optional and not created on first run, find the correct device with evtest

```

If using mouse_device_name the string must be na exact match, you can list your devices with evtest.



```

$ sudo evtest

...

/dev/input/event16:     Logitech PRO X

...

```

In `~/.config/nicotine/config.toml` set



```

mouse_device_name = "Logitech PRO X"

```



Device is configuration priority order is:

1. Name

2. Path

3. Autodetect



**Common button codes:**

- `275` = BTN_EXTRA (button 8, backward)

- `276` = BTN_SIDE (button 9, forward)

- `277` = BTN_FORWARD

- `278` = BTN_BACK



**Find your button codes:**

```bash

sudo evtest  # Select your mouse, then click buttons to see their codes

```



**Troubleshooting:**

- Verify group membership: `groups | grep input`

- Check permissions: `ls -l /dev/input/event*`

- Disable if needed: `enable_mouse_buttons = false` in config



### Keyboard Bindings



**Quick Setup:**

1. Add your user to the `input` group:

   ```bash

   sudo usermod -a -G input $USER

   ```

2. **Log out and log back in** (required for group membership to take effect)



**Configuration:**

Edit `~/.config/nicotine/config.toml` to customize:

```toml

enable_keyboard_buttons = true

forward_key = 15  # TAB Key

backward_key = 15  # TAB Key - modifier_key applied if set in config

keyboard_device_path = None # Device path /dev/input/eventX (OPTIONAL but you may need to set this if keybinds don't work)

modifier_key = None # You will have to add this if you want a modifier key for backward cycling

```



**Common button codes:**

- `15` = KEY_TAB (TAB Key)

- `42` = LEFT_SHIFT



**Find your button codes:**

```bash

sudo evtest  # Select your keyboard, then click buttons to see their codes

```



**Troubleshooting:**

- Make sure you've enabled keyboard buttons: `enable_keyboard_buttons = true` in config

- Check for other device events, sometimes keyboards will have multiple events but only one is handling inputs

```bash

cat /proc/bus/input/devices | grep -B 5 "kbd" | grep -E "Name|Handlers"

sudo evtest /dev/input/eventX # Replace X with the correct event number i.e event11

```



### Config Panel & Previews



`nicotine start` opens the config panel and spawns one preview window per running EVE client. The panel has four sections: **Display Mode** (Previews vs List), **Cycle Order** (character list + per-character jump hotkeys), **Keyboard Hotkeys**, and **Preview Windows** (size sliders, show/hide toggle). Changes apply live; saves debounce to disk.



Previews and the list window:

- **Left-click-drag** to reposition; edges snap to adjacent windows

- **Click without drag** on a preview to foreground that EVE client

- **Lock positions** in the panel to freeze the layout during play



## Configuration



Config file: `~/.config/nicotine/config.toml`



Auto-generated on first run. Key settings:



```toml

display_width = 1920

display_height = 1080

panel_height = 0           # Set this if you have a taskbar/panel

eve_width = 1037           # ~54% of display width

eve_height = 1080

show_previews = true       # Spawn preview windows (false = daemon-only)

preview_width = 320        # Preview window width in px

preview_height = 180       # Preview window height in px

display_mode = "Previews"  # "Previews" or "List"

positions_locked = false   # Disable drag on previews + list

enable_mouse_buttons = true

forward_button = 276       # Button 9

backward_button = 275      # Button 8

minimize_inactive = false  # Minimize clients when cycling away (saves resources)

```



Per-character jump hotkeys live under `[character_hotkeys."Name"]` with `vk` and optional `modifier`; the config panel writes them for you.



## Architecture



- **Daemon mode**: Maintains window manager connection and state in memory for instant cycling

- **Unix socket IPC**: ~2ms command latency (vs ~50-100ms process spawning)

- **Non-blocking activation**: Fire-and-forget window switching

- **Native mouse support**: Direct evdev access for universal mouse button detection



## Requirements



### Display Server Support



Nicotine supports both **X11** and **Wayland** (compositor-dependent):



- **X11** - Full support (all features)

- **Wayland - KDE Plasma** - Full support via wmctrl (XWayland)

- **Wayland - Sway** - Full support via swaymsg

- **Wayland - Hyprland** - Full support via hyprctl

- **Wayland - GNOME** - Not supported (restrictive APIs)



### Dependencies



**Required:**

- **wmctrl** - Window management on X11 and KDE Plasma Wayland



**Wayland-specific (compositor tools):**

- **KDE Plasma:** wmctrl (uses XWayland compatibility)

- **Sway:** swaymsg (included with sway)

- **Hyprland:** hyprctl (included with hyprland)



**Install:**

```bash

# Arch

sudo pacman -S wmctrl



# Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt install wmctrl



# Fedora

sudo dnf install wmctrl

```



For **mouse button support**, add yourself to the `input` group (see Mouse Bindings section).



## Wayland Support & Known Limitations



**What works:**

- Mouse buttons (native evdev support, no external tools needed)

- Window detection and cycling (all supported compositors)

- Window stacking (KDE/Sway/Hyprland)

- Preview windows (XComposite + XRender via XWayland)

- Auto-detection of display server and compositor



**Limitations:**

- GNOME not supported (restrictive window management APIs)



## Building from Source



```bash

# Install Rust

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh



# Build

cargo build --release



# Binary at: target/release/nicotine

```



## License



See [LICENSE](LICENSE.md)