You might generally prefer that your computer’s screen turns off after 10 to 15 minutes of inactivity – at least I know I do. Every now and then it happens that you are doing something – like watching a movie- which makes automatic screen blanking anything but great. Luckily, disabling the auto blanking is quite easy. For a one time disabling just open up a terminal client and place the following command in it:

xset -dpms s off

The command disables screen blanking but it will be enabled again once you exit and return to a new desktop session.

To make changes more permanent just add the following line to your .xinitrc or autostart file(s)

xset -dpms s off &

Tip. By replacing off with on (or just deleting the xset line) you will be turning your screen’s energy saving features back as they were. Also, check xset manual pages for more information if needed (type man xset in a terminal client).

Note. Depending on your window manager you might need to delete the & mark. Window managers like Fluxbox, Openbox and many others do however require the & mark when it comes to autostarting programs/commands.