Full Screen Terminal in OS X

I've often used WriteRoom for distraction-free text editing, but I've often wanted the same full-screen experience with Terminal.app. While Terminal.app does not support this behavior, one can create a reasonable approximation using X11.app and xterm. Here is how to set it up:

Open up the X11.app plist using the Property List Editor.app:

		
 > open -a /Developer/Applications/Utilities/Property\ List\ Editor.app ~/Library/Preferences/org.x.X11.plist

Make the following edits:

apps_to_run: we don't want multiple xterms to start, so we need to suppress the default behavior of X11.app. Replace the inital start of xterm with a dummy command like "logger -s 'this is a dummy command for x11 startup'" (you must have some command defined here, or X11.app will default to starting an xterm instance)
login_shell: set this entry to /bin/bash. This has no impact on the full screen behavior of xterm, but I personally prefer /bin/bash over /bin/sh and it is the default shell of Terminal.app.
rootless: un-checking this box makes X11.app use full screen mode (this is the same behaviour as selecting "full screen" from the Preferences tab in X11.app). To toggle out of this mode use Command-Option-A

Next, set up a .xinitrc file to launch an xterm instance at the launch of X11.app, specifying the default size of the window. (Note the settings listed here are specific to my 15'' MacBook Pro with the default font and font-size.):

	
 > echo 'exec xterm -geometry 239x69' > ~/.xinitrc

Restart X11.app and you should find yourself with a fullscreen terminal session. (Remember, to toggle out of full screen mode, use Command-Option-A)

Additional .xinitrc configurations:

Setting colors: append -fg <color> -bg <color> to the xterm invocation in .xinitrc (i.e. -fg green -bg black )
Turn off audio and visual bell: put xset -b at start of .xinitrc