The nice thing about "Linux" is, that the more you use it, the more you learn about it :)
I think the "cmatrix" screen saver is a "root window" type screensaver, i.e. when it runs, it dumps the "output" to a "root window", which, I think is the "boot window" that "us" Knoppix, and Kanotix, users see during the boot process. My "significant other" tried to install some "neato" screen saver once, and when she tried to run it, it appeared not to do anything, it also didnt show up as available screensaver in either KDE's screensavers, nor XScreensavers. But, this screensaver was able to "apt-get" it, and run it from a Konsole (command line).
Upon investigation of the screen saver she was installing, the description had stated it "displays on the root window", even though the description of "cmatrix" doesnt really say this, I think it is doing the same thing...
root@neo:/home/gblusr/Installs/Fonts# apt-cache show cmatrix
Package: cmatrix
Version: 1.2a-2
Priority: optional
Section: misc
Maintainer: Edward Betts <
[email protected]>
Depends: libc6 (>= 2.3.2.ds1-4), libncurses5 (>= 5.4-1)
Recommends: console-tools
Suggests: cmatrix-xfont
Architecture: amd64
Filename: pool/unstable/main/amd64/c/cmatrix/cmatrix_1.2a-2_amd64.deb
Size: 17150
MD5sum: 74c9720338a5c9c2e2857d853c35c196
Description: Console Matrix simulates the display from "The Matrix"
It is based on the screensaver from the movie's website. It works with
terminal settings up to 132x300 and can scroll lines all at the same rate
installed-size: 112
If you really want a "matrix" screen saver, my best suggestion is the XScreensaver modules, and program. It has two of them, one is the "standard" matrix console, with the text scrolling down your screen, and the other, which is for 3D "GLX" rendering, it does a 3D version of the same display. My "usual" installs of the XScreensaver packages is: xscreensaver, xscreensaver-gl, rss-glx -=- which is the "main" screensaver program, the "standard" xscreensaver modules for "Open GL", and the last one is "Really Slick GL" x screensavers modules. You can do a apt-cache show [package] to get the full descriptions on any package that you want to install, this also will show what, if any, packages the [package] will want to recommen, and suggest.
Again, I hope this helps,
Ms. Cuddles
-=- Sometimes, when saving the "known" Universe from evil attacking spawn, you gotta take a bathroom break -=-