Flickering mouse pointer is only on Sarpi i.e. Slackware ARM on Raspberry pi
by resolver from LinuxQuestions.org on (#55HK2)
Hi folks,
I tested Raspian 32-bit and 64-bit to see whether the Flickering Mouse Pointer issue exists there and it doesn't. So I am only seeing it at present on Sarpi 32-bit. I haven't tried the 64-bit kernel. My hardware is a Raspberry pi 4 8GB.
To review:
By "flicker" I mean the mouse pointer is undrawn, then some window is updated, then the pointer is redrawn, so the mouse pointer momentarily and visibly disappears. This undraw/redraw operation should not be done of course-- X was designed so that it would never be necessary, even when the mouse pointer is directly on top of some graphics that are being changed.
But with Sarpi 32-bit the flicker is frequent.
It's most noticeable when I play a video, which causes the mouse pointer to flicker so fast that it appears 50% transparent.
But it also flickers whenever the time/date panel updates, or the Weather Update panel, or any window is updated really.
For instance if a mouse pointer is on the desktop, a window on the other side of the display that is updating itself should not cause the mouse pointer to flicker and yet it does.
And there is often a series of flickers that follow something like typing "ls" in a terminal window.
The flickering occurs also when I disconnect the USB mouse and keyboard.
I downloaded the X packages from ftp.arm.slackware.com but Stuart the Slackware ARM maintainer says this phenomenon doesn't happen on the Orange Pi running the same code.


I tested Raspian 32-bit and 64-bit to see whether the Flickering Mouse Pointer issue exists there and it doesn't. So I am only seeing it at present on Sarpi 32-bit. I haven't tried the 64-bit kernel. My hardware is a Raspberry pi 4 8GB.
To review:
By "flicker" I mean the mouse pointer is undrawn, then some window is updated, then the pointer is redrawn, so the mouse pointer momentarily and visibly disappears. This undraw/redraw operation should not be done of course-- X was designed so that it would never be necessary, even when the mouse pointer is directly on top of some graphics that are being changed.
But with Sarpi 32-bit the flicker is frequent.
It's most noticeable when I play a video, which causes the mouse pointer to flicker so fast that it appears 50% transparent.
But it also flickers whenever the time/date panel updates, or the Weather Update panel, or any window is updated really.
For instance if a mouse pointer is on the desktop, a window on the other side of the display that is updating itself should not cause the mouse pointer to flicker and yet it does.
And there is often a series of flickers that follow something like typing "ls" in a terminal window.
The flickering occurs also when I disconnect the USB mouse and keyboard.
I downloaded the X packages from ftp.arm.slackware.com but Stuart the Slackware ARM maintainer says this phenomenon doesn't happen on the Orange Pi running the same code.