I did a “which xterm” in the terminal app and it returned /opt/X11/bin/xterm. 
When I launch an xterm from terminal.app and then do “which xterm” in the xterm 
window, I get the same answer. Both apps are able to successfully launch an 
xterm.

I also followed your advice about using "xterm -display `launchctl getenv 
DISPLAY`” to see what happens and the answer is not much. It produces an xterm 
like normal with no errors or other messages appearing.

In comparing my laptop, where it works like normal, and my desktop, where it 
doesn’t, I do see one difference. Not sure if it matters. On my laptop, when I 
launch a new xterm, it brings up this message:

The default interactive shell is now zsh.
To update your account to use zsh, please run `chsh -s /bin/zsh`.
For more details, please visit https://support.apple.com/kb/HT208050.
bash-3.2$

I do not see this on my desktop where the trouble is occurring. There, I just 
get the linux prompt. When I do “echo $0” on my laptop, the xterm window shows 
bash. But the xterm window on my desktop shows zsh. I’m not familiar with zsh, 
is it possible there’s a init file for zsh that could be the source of the 
problem?

On Jun 18, 2025, at 8:36 PM, [email protected] wrote:

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Today's Topics:

  1. Re: xterm fails (Ren? J.V. Bertin)
  2. Re: X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 9 (David L Chopp)
  3. Re: xterm fails (Paul Gilmartin)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 21:58:35 +0200
From: Ren? J.V. Bertin <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: xterm fails
Message-ID: <8011779.FQhnAq9gjR@bola>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

On Wednesday June 18 2025 13:43:53 Tom Lane wrote:

$ echo $DISPLAY
/private/tmp/com.apple.launchd.m048HRnCwY/org.xquartz:0

I *think* that a DISPLAY variable of that type should be visible via `launchctl 
export` (or `launchctl getenv DISPLAY`).

If so, the most informative thing to do would be to

- launch XQuartz
- open a Terminal.app window
- in there, set DISPLAY as it should and launch xterm. Or use `xterm -display 
`launchctl getenv DISPLAY``.


This is the only way to catch any error output from xterm (or the libraries it 
uses) itself.

(I hate those stupid DISPLAY values; I can't remember how I managed but mine is 
a simple ":0.0" on my local host, and I can connect remotely to it remembering 
only the ZeroConf hostname. Yeah, I know, ssh tunneling and all that, but why 
bother on your own LAN.)


------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 21:08:51 +0000
From: David L Chopp <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 9
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

In my case, from a terminal app, echo $DISPLAY gives

/private/tmp/com.apple.launchd.UgncRwaiWo/org.xquartz:0

I get the same thing from within an xterm app. Also, if create an xterm from 
terminal, that will bring up XQuartz as the app in the menu, and it does show 
terminal as an option under the Applications menu, but the command-N is grayed 
out (though the menu item ?Terminal? is not grayed out). Incidentally, for the 
person that said the menu option is no longer there, there?s also a ?Customize? 
menu option under Applications. If you open that up, it lets you add X-window 
commands to the menu. In my case, it shows Terminal/xterm/n. To test it out, I 
added Clock/xclock/ and I could launch the clock from the menu. Sadly, removing 
the xterm option and then adding it back in didn?t solve the problem.

On Jun 18, 2025, at 2:00?PM, [email protected] wrote:

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Today's Topics:

 1. Re: X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 8 (David L Chopp)
 2. Re: xterm fails (Paul Gilmartin)
 3. Re: xterm fails (Tom Lane)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 14:48:51 +0000
From: David L Chopp <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 8
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

All good questions. From the terminal app, I can run xlogo, xterm, xclock 
successfully. One thing I do notice is that from the XQuartz menu if I try to 
create a new xterm, it seems like it tries to create a new window, but it?s 
immediately gone again. It?s only a flicker, so hard to say if that?s true. 
From the xterm window I can also create a new xterm.

On Jun 17, 2025, at 2:00?PM, [email protected] wrote:

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Today's Topics:

1. xterm fails (David L Chopp)
2. Re: xterm fails (Paul Gilmartin)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2025 14:53:36 +0000
From: David L Chopp <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: xterm fails
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

I?ve run into an issue with Xquartz. After a recent reboot I can no longer get 
a terminal window to appear using XQuartz. The X windows seems to be working, I 
can use the terminal app and remote log in to a linux machine and pop up a 
local window, but I just can?t bring up a terminal locally. It?s not horrible, 
I can use the terminal app instead locally, just wondering if there?s any other 
nasty surprises in store for me. I should mention, this is on a Mac Mini M1 
running OSX 15.5. I also have a MacBook Pro running the same OS and XQuartz 
works normally there, so I don?t think it?s related to the OS version.  Thanks 
for any ideas?

Dave

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things
~Henri Poincare

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Chopp
Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
Northwestern University
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (847)-491-8391
Fax: (847)-491-2178
Homepage: http://people.esam.northwestern.edu/chopp
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2025 09:50:51 -0600
From: Paul Gilmartin <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: xterm fails
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

On 6/17/25 08:53, David L Chopp via X11-users wrote:
I?ve run into an issue with Xquartz. After a recent reboot I can no longer get 
a terminal window to appear using XQuartz. The X windows seems to be working, I 
can use the terminal app and remote log in to a linux machine and pop up a 
local window, but I just can?t bring up a terminal locally. It?s not horrible, 
I can use the terminal app instead locally, just wondering if there?s any other 
nasty surprises in store for me. I should mention, this is on a Mac Mini M1 
running OSX 15.5. I also have a MacBook Pro running the same OS and XQuartz 
works normally there, so I don?t think it?s related to the OS version.  Thanks 
for any ideas?
...
On both wystems:
o What terminal client?  xterm?
o What does "type xterm" show?
o Same for other clients: xlogo, xclock, ...
o do they work?

(For me, on one MBP, Xquartz works on two accounts, but crashes on a third.

--
gil



------------------------------

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------------------------------

End of X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 8
****************************************

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I used to love mathematics for its own sake, and I still do, because it allows
for no hypocrisy and no vagueness.... ~Stendhal

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Chopp
Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
Northwestern University
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (847)-491-8391
Fax: (847)-491-2178
Homepage: http://people.esam.northwestern.edu/chopp
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------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 11:19:59 -0600
From: Paul Gilmartin <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: xterm fails
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

On 6/18/25 08:48, David L Chopp via X11-users wrote:
All good questions. From the terminal app, I can run xlogo, xterm, xclock 
successfully. One thing I do notice is that from the XQuartz menu if I try to 
create a new xterm, it seems like it tries to create a new window, but it?s 
immediately gone again. It?s only a flicker, so hard to say if that?s true. 
From the xterm window I can also create a new xterm.

On macOS 15.5 (24F74); XQuartz 2.8.5 (xorg-server 21.1.6)
I see no Terminal option in the XQuartz menubar pulldown.
I installed from the website, not with a package manager.
Is $DISPLAY propagated?
Are permissions set in ~/.ssh?

On 6/17/25 08:53, David L Chopp via X11-users wrote:
I?ve run into an issue with Xquartz. After a recent reboot I can no longer get 
a terminal window to appear using XQuartz. The X windows seems to be working, I 
can use the terminal app and remote log in to a linux machine and pop up a 
local window, but I just can?t bring up a terminal locally. It?s not horrible, 
I can use the terminal app instead locally, just wondering if there?s any other 
nasty surprises in store for me. I should mention, this is on a Mac Mini M1 
running OSX 15.5. I also have a MacBook Pro running the same OS and XQuartz 
works normally there, so I don?t think it?s related to the OS version.  Thanks 
for any ideas?
 ...
On both wystems:
o What terminal client?  xterm?
o What does "type xterm" show?
o Same for other clients: xlogo, xclock, ...
o do they work?

(For me, on one MBP, Xquartz works on two accounts, but crashes on a third.


--
gil



------------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 13:43:53 -0400
From: Tom Lane <[email protected]>
To: Paul Gilmartin via X11-users <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: xterm fails
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

Paul Gilmartin via X11-users <[email protected]> writes:
On macOS 15.5 (24F74); XQuartz 2.8.5 (xorg-server 21.1.6)
I see no Terminal option in the XQuartz menubar pulldown.

I assume the OP is talking about launching Apple's Terminal app
from the Finder.

Is $DISPLAY propagated?

Yeah, that is a good question.  On my working setup, I see

$ echo $DISPLAY
/private/tmp/com.apple.launchd.m048HRnCwY/org.xquartz:0

in either Terminal or an xterm window.  (The random-number part
of that no doubt changes when Xquartz is relaunched.)  I'd suggest
verifying that you see something similar, and that your directory path
and pipe file are readable by whichever user you're running as.

Another thing to check is whether xterm (which is in /opt/X11/bin/
if you installed Xquartz normally) is in your $PATH.  A plausible
theory perhaps is that /opt/X11/bin is in $PATH in Terminal but not
so in the environment Xquartz is running in.  Or maybe you've got
a different set of X11 binaries courtesy of MacPorts or Homebrew,
and they aren't talking to Xquartz for some reason.

Are permissions set in ~/.ssh?

Hmm, I don't think ssh should be involved here ... but who knows.

regards, tom lane


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------------------------------

End of X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 9
****************************************

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mathematical reasoning may be regarded rather schematically as the exercise of 
a combination of two facilities, which we may call intuition and ingenuity.
~Alan Turing

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Chopp
Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
Northwestern University
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (847)-491-8391
Fax: (847)-491-2178
Homepage: http://people.esam.northwestern.edu/chopp
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------------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 2025 19:36:24 -0600
From: Paul Gilmartin <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: xterm fails
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

On 6/17/25 08:53, David L Chopp via X11-users wrote:
I?ve run into an issue with Xquartz. After a recent reboot I can no longer get 
a terminal window to appear using XQuartz. The X windows seems to be working, I 
can use the terminal app and remote log in to a linux machine and pop up a 
local window, but I just can?t bring up a terminal locally. It?s not horrible, 
I can use the terminal app instead locally, just wondering if there?s any other 
nasty surprises in store for me. I should mention, this is on a Mac Mini M1 
running OSX 15.5. I also have a MacBook Pro running the same OS and XQuartz 
works normally there, so I don?t think it?s related to the OS version.  Thanks 
for any ideas?
    ...

    Launching XQuartz from Dock:
    xterm is a tracked alias for /opt/X11/bin/xterm

    Launching xterm from Terminal.app:
    xterm is a tracked alias for /usr/X11R6/bin/xterm

Apparently in the former case XQuartz sets $PATH;
in the latter case, $PATH is inherited from Terminal's shell.

--
gil



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------------------------------

End of X11-users Digest, Vol 22, Issue 10
*****************************************

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

God does not care about our mathematical difficulties; He integrates
empirically.  ~Albert Einstein

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Chopp
Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
Northwestern University
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (847)-491-8391
Fax: (847)-491-2178
Homepage: http://people.esam.northwestern.edu/chopp
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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