docs(readme): split games into direct scanout, VRR and tearing; clarify drawing primitives (#128)

commit: 4dbf8d4d89481ff7a0ec5f2b8744f3767aa7fd0e
author: bnema · 18d ago · 2026-10-04 04:33 UTC
committer: GitHub · 18d ago · 2026-10-04 04:33 UTC
parent: 014854e
signature: GPG UnverifiedB5690EEEBB952194 The key is unknown

1 file · +4 -2

M README.md +4 -2


@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
18	18
19	19		I wanted a compositor I would never have to think about. It takes the newest Wayland protocols and kernel features as they land, gives games the whole GPU, and otherwise stays out of sight.
20	20
21		-	It is small on purpose, and it will stay small. No blur, no shadows, no rounded corners, no themes, no bar, no wallpaper. If you want them, bring your own: any layer-shell client works. The only motion is a touchpad swipe that follows your fingers, and a brief pulse on the window you just focused, which you can turn off. Anything else that costs a frame is left out. About 40–80 MB of RAM with two 4K monitors, and almost no CPU while the screen does not change.
	21	+	It is small on purpose, and it will stay small. Drawing is kept to simple primitives: no blur, no shadows, no rounded corners, no themes, no animated transitions or effects. There is no built-in bar or wallpaper either; for those, bring your own: any layer-shell client works. The only motion is a touchpad swipe that follows your fingers, and a brief pulse on the window you just focused, which you can turn off. Anything else that costs a frame is left out. About 40–80 MB of RAM with two 4K monitors, and almost no CPU while the screen does not change.
22	22
23	23		## OK, but why Go?
24	24

@@ -58,7 +58,9 @@ A full build takes seconds, and tests, race detection, profiling and formatting
58	58
59	59		## Features
60	60
61		-	- Games. Fullscreen is exclusive: nothing is drawn above a fullscreen window but a locker, so it is scanned out directly, with tearing and VRR when the client asks for them. Wine runs natively on Wayland; Steam and other X11 clients run through xwayland-satellite. See [the performance path](#the-performance-path).
	61	+	- Games. A fullscreen window is scanned out directly: its buffer goes to the display without a composition pass. Wine runs natively on Wayland; Steam and other X11 clients run through xwayland-satellite. See [the performance path](#the-performance-path).
	62	+	- VRR. Variable refresh rate turns on while a fullscreen window covers the output, so the display follows the game's frame rate. On by default (`render.vrr`).
	63	+	- Screen tearing. A game in direct scanout that asks for tearing gets it, for the lowest input latency. On by default (`render.tearing`).
62	64		- Explicit sync. On by default for every client, with no flag to set. Client fences go straight to the GPU and to KMS, so frames are shown when they are ready, without implicit-sync stalls.
63	65		- HDR. HDR10 output on capable displays. HDR clients (games, browsers, video players) are shown at full range; SDR content is shown at a configured brightness.
64	66		- Column tiling. Columns scroll to the right, as in PaperWM and Niri, or stay on screen and split, as in Sway. Per output or per workspace.

 I wanted a compositor I would never have to think about. It takes the newest Wayland protocols and kernel features as they land, gives games the whole GPU, and otherwise stays out of sight.
-It is small on purpose, and it will stay small. No blur, no shadows, no rounded corners, no themes, no bar, no wallpaper. If you want them, bring your own: any layer-shell client works. The only motion is a touchpad swipe that follows your fingers, and a brief pulse on the window you just focused, which you can turn off. Anything else that costs a frame is left out. About 40–80 MB of RAM with two 4K monitors, and almost no CPU while the screen does not change.
+It is small on purpose, and it will stay small. Drawing is kept to simple primitives: no blur, no shadows, no rounded corners, no themes, no animated transitions or effects. There is no built-in bar or wallpaper either; for those, bring your own: any layer-shell client works. The only motion is a touchpad swipe that follows your fingers, and a brief pulse on the window you just focused, which you can turn off. Anything else that costs a frame is left out. About 40–80 MB of RAM with two 4K monitors, and almost no CPU while the screen does not change.
 ## OK, but why Go?
 ## Features
-- **Games.** Fullscreen is exclusive: nothing is drawn above a fullscreen window but a locker, so it is scanned out directly, with tearing and VRR when the client asks for them. Wine runs natively on Wayland; Steam and other X11 clients run through xwayland-satellite. See [the performance path](#the-performance-path).
+- **Games.** A fullscreen window is scanned out directly: its buffer goes to the display without a composition pass. Wine runs natively on Wayland; Steam and other X11 clients run through xwayland-satellite. See [the performance path](#the-performance-path).
+- **VRR.** Variable refresh rate turns on while a fullscreen window covers the output, so the display follows the game's frame rate. On by default (`render.vrr`).
+- **Screen tearing.** A game in direct scanout that asks for tearing gets it, for the lowest input latency. On by default (`render.tearing`).
 - **Explicit sync.** On by default for every client, with no flag to set. Client fences go straight to the GPU and to KMS, so frames are shown when they are ready, without implicit-sync stalls.
 - **HDR.** HDR10 output on capable displays. HDR clients (games, browsers, video players) are shown at full range; SDR content is shown at a configured brightness.
 - **Column tiling.** Columns scroll to the right, as in PaperWM and Niri, or stay on screen and split, as in Sway. Per output or per workspace.