Installation

Installing blocklets is usually very straight forward. Most blocklets, including the core blocklets are scripts. That is, they are directly executable given the executable permission bit.

The core blocklets are installed in /usr/libexec/i3blocks/ by default. This places them beyond reach of your editorial prowess. Access to this folder is restricted to root for most actions beyond reading and executing scripts. For this reason, many would encourage you to copy this folder's contents to a location within your home folder. Notable examples include:

• ~/bin/
• ~/bin/i3blocks/
• ~/.local/share/i3blocks/
• ~/.config/i3blocks/blocklets/

Any folder is perfectly alright. This is entirely a matter of personal preference.

When it comes to installing a contrib blocklet, most follow the exact same methodology. First, you must obtain a copy of the script. The simplest way to do this is by downloading the entire repo zip file. To do so, open https://github.com/vivien/i3blocks/archive/$VERSION.zip in your browser replacing $VERSION with your desired version. For example, if you are running i3blocks version 1.5, you would change $VERSION.zip to 1.5.zip. If you are running the latest GitHub version of i3blocks, you would change $VERSION.zip to master.zip.

Next unzip the file and change into the directory of the blocklet you wish to install.

Now, there are typically two approaches blocklets will take when it comes to being used. Regardless, always just double check the README.md for a section called Installation. If this section exists, note anything they tell you regarding special installation needs for the blocklet.

The first approach is a script that is ready to run. These will have the execution permission set on them and their directory will not include a file called Makefile. To install these, just copy the script to your preferred blocklet directory and then reference the blocklet's README.md for information on using them in your i3blocks config.

The second approach is a source file that requires building to be executable. You will note the lack of an executable file and the inclusion of a file called Makefile. This is often the case for a blocklet written in a language such as C or Go. These files require compiling to be used. To build the blocklet, you must type make while inside the directory. This will execute a set of predefined commands to build the executable. At the end of this, the directory may contain many new files. The only file you need to worry about is the executable that should have the same name as the blocklet's directory. As before, just copy the script to your preferred blocklet directory and then reference the blocklet's README.md for information on using them in your i3blocks config.

REMEMBER: Always follow instructions in the 'Installation' section of the README.md file if it exists.