I have run x11 in 16-color and 256-color mode, but it was not fun. The palette w...

p_l · 2026-01-21T10:15:52 1768990552

Fun thing - SGI specifically used 256 color mode a lot, to reduce memory usage even if you used 24bit outputs. So long as you used defaults of their Motif fork, everything you didn't specifically request to use more colors would use 256 color visuals which then were composited in hardware.

actionfromafar · 2026-01-21T09:56:07 1768989367

Much better to stick to 1 bit per pixel. :-)

Like in Sun SPARCStation ELC. No confusing colors or shades.

zozbot234 · 2026-01-21T10:04:25 1768989865

1bpp (at low resolution) is still relevant today on epaper screens, though some of them now allow for shades of grey or even color.

t-3 · 2026-01-21T10:44:59 1768992299

Most aren't all that low res either... 300dpi is standard.

b112 · 2026-01-21T10:17:11 1768990631

But what if it's a UTF8 bit? Then it'd be 2 bits.

Which proves time travel exists, all those "two bits" references in old Westerns.