hilbert(6)

hilbert6

3d hilbert fractal.

Usage

hilbert [--display host:display.screen] [--visual visual] [--window] [--root] [--window-id number] [--delay number] [--speed ratio] [--depth number] [--spin] [--wander] [-2d] [-3d] [--closed] [--open] [--max-depth number] [--thickness ratio] [--wireframe] [--fps]

Overview

This draws the recursive Hilbert space-filling curve, in both 2D and 3D variants. It incrementally animates the growth and recursion to the maximum depth, then unwinds it back.

The Hilbert path is a single contiguous line that can fill a volume without crossing itself. As a data structure, Hilbert paths are useful because ordering along the curve preserves locality: points that close together along the curve are also close together in space. The converse is often, but not always, true. The coloration reflects this.

Options

--visual visual

Specify which visual to use. Legal values are the name of a visual class, or the id number (decimal or hex) of a specific visual.

--window

Draw on a newly-created window. This is the default.

--root

Draw on the root window.

--window-id number

Draw on the specified window.

--delay number

Per-frame delay, in microseconds. Default: 30000 (0.03 seconds.).

--speed number

How fast the animation should run. Less than 1 for slower, greater than 1 for faster.

--max-depth number

Max depth to descend. Default: 5, which peaks at around half a million polygons.

--spin

--no-spin Whether to rotate the object. Default: true.

--wander

--no-wander Whether to wander the object around on the screen. Default: false;

-2d

-3d Whether to draw the 2D or 3D variant. Default: random.

--closed

--open Whether to draw the open or closed-path variant. Default: random.

--thickness ratio

How thick the lines should be. Default: 0.25.

--wireframe

Render in wireframe instead of solid.

--fps

Display the current frame rate, CPU load, and polygon count.

Environment

DISPLAY

to get the default host and display number.

XENVIRONMENT

to get the name of a resource file that overrides the global resources stored in the RESOURCE_MANAGER property.

XSCREENSAVER_WINDOW

The window ID to use with --root.

Author

Jamie Zawinski.

From xscreensaver 6.15-1 in Arch Linux 2026-11-01. Parsed by carta from the page's man source.