diff --git a/WINGs/NEWS b/WINGs/NEWS
index baa088c3..6cec3432 100644
--- a/WINGs/NEWS
+++ b/WINGs/NEWS
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ wmessage converted from function to wrapper macro
 wwarning converted from function to wrapper macro
 wfatal converted from function to wrapper macro
 wsyserror converted from function to wrapper macro
-wsyserrorwithcode converted from function to wrapper macro
+wsyserrorwithcode removed
 wmkdirhier ADDED
 wrmdirhier ADDED
 wmalloc0 REMOVED
diff --git a/WINGs/WINGs/WUtil.h b/WINGs/WINGs/WUtil.h
index a118f14f..357ff4a7 100644
--- a/WINGs/WINGs/WUtil.h
+++ b/WINGs/WINGs/WUtil.h
@@ -169,19 +169,16 @@ waborthandler* wsetabort(waborthandler* handler);
 enum {
 	WMESSAGE_TYPE_MESSAGE,
 	WMESSAGE_TYPE_WARNING,
-	WMESSAGE_TYPE_FATAL,
-	WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERROR,
-	WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERRORWITHCODE
+	WMESSAGE_TYPE_ERROR,
+	WMESSAGE_TYPE_FATAL
 };
 
-#define wmessage(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_MESSAGE, NULL, fmt, ## args)
-#define wwarning(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_WARNING, NULL, fmt, ## args)
-#define wfatal(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_FATAL, NULL, fmt, ## args)
-#define wsyserror(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERROR, NULL, fmt, ## args)
-#define wsyserrorwithcode(errno, fmt, args...) \
-	__wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERRORWITHCODE, &errno, fmt, ## args)
+#define wmessage(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_MESSAGE, fmt, ## args)
+#define wwarning(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_WARNING, fmt, ## args)
+#define werror(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_ERROR, fmt, ## args)
+#define wfatal(fmt, args...) __wmessage( WMESSAGE_TYPE_FATAL, fmt, ## args)
 
-void __wmessage(int type, void *extra, const char *msg, ...) __attribute__((__format__(printf,3,4)));
+void __wmessage(int type, const char *msg, ...) __attribute__((__format__(printf,2,3)));
 
 char* wfindfile(char *paths, char *file);
 
diff --git a/WINGs/error.c b/WINGs/error.c
index c2c17533..3263dca6 100644
--- a/WINGs/error.c
+++ b/WINGs/error.c
@@ -20,7 +20,6 @@
 
 #include "wconfig.h"
 
-#include <errno.h>
 #include <stdarg.h>
 #include <stdio.h>
 #include <stdlib.h>
@@ -31,7 +30,7 @@
 
 extern char *_WINGS_progname;
 
-void __wmessage(int type, void *extra, const char *msg, ...)
+void __wmessage(int type, const char *msg, ...)
 {
 	va_list args;
 	char *buf;
@@ -56,40 +55,28 @@ void __wmessage(int type, void *extra, const char *msg, ...)
 	buf = wmalloc(linemax);
 
 	fflush(stdout);
-	/* message format: <wings_progname>: <qualifier>: <message>[: <extra info>]"\n" */
+	/* message format: <wings_progname>: <qualifier>: <message>"\n" */
 	snprintf(buf, linemax, "%s: ", _WINGS_progname ? _WINGS_progname : "WINGs");
-	va_start(args, msg);
 	switch (type) {
-		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_WARNING:
-			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				_("warning: "));
-			vsnprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				msg, args);
-		break;
 		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_FATAL:
-			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				_("fatal error: "));
-			vsnprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				msg, args);
+			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1, _("fatal error: "));
+		break;
+		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_ERROR:
+			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1, _("error: "));
+		break;
+		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_WARNING:
+			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1, _("warning: "));
 		break;
-		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERROR:
-		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERRORWITHCODE:
-			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				_("error: "));
-			vsnprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				msg, args);
-			snprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1,
-				": %s", type == WMESSAGE_TYPE_WSYSERROR ?
-				    strerror(errno) : strerror(*(int *)extra));
 		break;
 		case WMESSAGE_TYPE_MESSAGE:
 			/* FALLTHROUGH */
-		default:
+		default:	/* should not happen, but doesn't hurt either */
 			strncat(buf, ": ", linemax - strlen(buf));
-			vsnprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1, msg, args);
 		break;
 	}
 
+	va_start(args, msg);
+	vsnprintf(buf + strlen(buf), linemax - strlen(buf) - 1, msg, args);
 	va_end(args);
 
 	strncat(buf, "\n", linemax - strlen(buf));
diff --git a/WINGs/findfile.c b/WINGs/findfile.c
index 9aad1d74..fa770bc8 100644
--- a/WINGs/findfile.c
+++ b/WINGs/findfile.c
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ char *wgethomedir()
 
 	user = getpwuid(getuid());
 	if (!user) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not get password entry for UID %i"), getuid());
+		werror(_("could not get password entry for UID %i"), getuid());
 		return "/";
 	}
 	if (!user->pw_dir) {
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ static char *getuserhomedir(const char *username)
 
 	user = getpwnam(username);
 	if (!user) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not get password entry for user %s"), username);
+		werror(_("could not get password entry for user %s"), username);
 		return NULL;
 	}
 	if (!user->pw_dir) {
@@ -175,7 +175,7 @@ char *wexpandpath(char *path)
 
 error:
 	errno = ENAMETOOLONG;
-	wsyserror(_("could not expand %s"), origpath);
+	werror(_("could not expand %s"), origpath);
 	/* FIXME: too many functions handle a return value of NULL incorrectly */
 	exit(1);
 }
diff --git a/WINGs/proplist.c b/WINGs/proplist.c
index 593112f3..2329e178 100644
--- a/WINGs/proplist.c
+++ b/WINGs/proplist.c
@@ -1496,14 +1496,14 @@ WMPropList *WMReadPropListFromFile(char *file)
 	f = fopen(file, "rb");
 	if (!f) {
 		/* let the user print the error message if he really needs to */
-		/*wsyserror(_("could not open domain file '%s' for reading"), file); */
+		/*werror(_("could not open domain file '%s' for reading"), file); */
 		return NULL;
 	}
 
 	if (stat(file, &stbuf) == 0) {
 		length = (size_t) stbuf.st_size;
 	} else {
-		wsyserror(_("could not get size for file '%s'"), file);
+		werror(_("could not get size for file '%s'"), file);
 		fclose(f);
 		return NULL;
 	}
@@ -1516,7 +1516,7 @@ WMPropList *WMReadPropListFromFile(char *file)
 
 	if (fread(pldata->ptr, length, 1, f) != 1) {
 		if (ferror(f)) {
-			wsyserror(_("error reading from file '%s'"), file);
+			werror(_("error reading from file '%s'"), file);
 		}
 		plist = NULL;
 		goto cleanup;
@@ -1567,7 +1567,7 @@ Bool WMWritePropListToFile(WMPropList * plist, char *path)
 
 #ifdef  HAVE_MKSTEMP
 	if ((fd = mkstemp(thePath)) < 0) {
-		wsyserror(_("mkstemp (%s) failed"), thePath);
+		werror(_("mkstemp (%s) failed"), thePath);
 		goto failure;
 	}
 	mask = umask(0);
@@ -1578,21 +1578,21 @@ Bool WMWritePropListToFile(WMPropList * plist, char *path)
 	}
 #else
 	if (mktemp(thePath) == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("mktemp (%s) failed"), thePath);
+		werror(_("mktemp (%s) failed"), thePath);
 		goto failure;
 	}
 	theFile = fopen(thePath, "wb");
 #endif
 
 	if (theFile == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("open (%s) failed"), thePath);
+		werror(_("open (%s) failed"), thePath);
 		goto failure;
 	}
 
 	desc = indentedDescription(plist, 0);
 
 	if (fprintf(theFile, "%s\n", desc) != strlen(desc) + 1) {
-		wsyserror(_("writing to file: %s failed"), thePath);
+		werror(_("writing to file: %s failed"), thePath);
 		wfree(desc);
 		goto failure;
 	}
@@ -1601,7 +1601,7 @@ Bool WMWritePropListToFile(WMPropList * plist, char *path)
 
 	(void)fsync(fileno(theFile));
 	if (fclose(theFile) != 0) {
-		wsyserror(_("fclose (%s) failed"), thePath);
+		werror(_("fclose (%s) failed"), thePath);
 		goto failure;
 	}
 
@@ -1609,7 +1609,7 @@ Bool WMWritePropListToFile(WMPropList * plist, char *path)
 	 * real file.  Also, we need to try to retain the file attributes of
 	 * the original file we are overwriting (if we are) */
 	if (rename(thePath, path) != 0) {
-		wsyserror(_("rename ('%s' to '%s') failed"), thePath, path);
+		werror(_("rename ('%s' to '%s') failed"), thePath, path);
 		goto failure;
 	}
 
@@ -1679,7 +1679,7 @@ int wmkdirhier(const char *path)
 		strncpy(buf, thePath, p);
 		if (mkdir(buf, 0777) == -1 && errno == EEXIST &&
 		    stat(buf, &st) == 0 && !S_ISDIR(st.st_mode)) {
-			wsyserror(_("Could not create component %s"), buf);
+			werror(_("Could not create component %s"), buf);
 			wfree(thePath);
 			return 0;
 		}
diff --git a/WINGs/wcolorpanel.c b/WINGs/wcolorpanel.c
index e18278ee..91545dd0 100644
--- a/WINGs/wcolorpanel.c
+++ b/WINGs/wcolorpanel.c
@@ -1144,7 +1144,7 @@ static void readConfiguration(W_ColorPanel * panel)
 
 	if (stat(panel->configurationPath, &stat_buf) != 0) {
 		if (mkdir(panel->configurationPath, S_IRWXU | S_IRGRP | S_IROTH | S_IXGRP | S_IXOTH) != 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("Color Panel: Could not create directory %s needed"
+			werror(_("Color Panel: Could not create directory %s needed"
 				    " to store configurations"), panel->configurationPath);
 			WMSetPopUpButtonEnabled(panel->customPaletteMenuBtn, False);
 			WMSetPopUpButtonEnabled(panel->colorListColorMenuBtn, False);
@@ -2955,7 +2955,7 @@ static void customPaletteMenuNewFromFile(W_ColorPanel * panel)
 			WMRunAlertPanel(scr, panel->win, _("File Error"),
 					_("Invalid file format !"), _("OK"), NULL, NULL);
 			if (i != 0) {
-				wsyserror(_("can't remove file %s"), tmp);
+				werror(_("can't remove file %s"), tmp);
 				WMRunAlertPanel(scr, panel->win, _("File Error"),
 						_("Couldn't remove file from Configuration Directory !"),
 						_("OK"), NULL, NULL);
@@ -3031,7 +3031,7 @@ static void customPaletteMenuRename(W_ColorPanel * panel)
 		}
 
 		if (rename(fromPath, toPath) != 0)
-			wsyserror(_("Couldn't rename palette %s to %s\n"), fromName, toName);
+			werror(_("Couldn't rename palette %s to %s\n"), fromName, toName);
 		else {
 			WMRemovePopUpButtonItem(panel->customPaletteHistoryBtn, item);
 			WMInsertPopUpButtonItem(panel->customPaletteHistoryBtn, item, toName);
@@ -3078,7 +3078,7 @@ static void customPaletteMenuRemove(W_ColorPanel * panel)
 			WMRemovePopUpButtonItem(panel->customPaletteHistoryBtn, item);
 
 		} else {
-			wsyserror(_("Couldn't remove palette %s\n"), tmp);
+			werror(_("Couldn't remove palette %s\n"), tmp);
 		}
 
 		wfree(tmp);
@@ -3347,14 +3347,14 @@ static int fetchFile(char *toPath, char *srcFile, char *destFile)
 
 	RETRY( src = fopen(srcFile, "rb") )
 	if (src == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("Could not open %s"), srcFile);
+		werror(_("Could not open %s"), srcFile);
 		return -1;
 	}
 
 	dstpath = wstrconcat(toPath, destFile);
 	RETRY( dst = fopen(dstpath, "wb") )
 	if (dst == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("Could not create %s"), dstpath);
+		werror(_("Could not create %s"), dstpath);
 		wfree(dstpath);
 		RETRY( fclose(src) )
 		return -1;
diff --git a/WPrefs.app/Appearance.c b/WPrefs.app/Appearance.c
index 9107514d..faf3438d 100644
--- a/WPrefs.app/Appearance.c
+++ b/WPrefs.app/Appearance.c
@@ -395,7 +395,7 @@ static void dumpRImage(char *path, RImage * image)
 
 	f = fopen(path, "wb");
 	if (!f) {
-		wsyserror(path);
+		werror(path);
 		return;
 	}
 	fprintf(f, "%02x%02x%1x", image->width, image->height, channels);
@@ -404,7 +404,7 @@ static void dumpRImage(char *path, RImage * image)
 
 	fsync(fileno(f));
 	if (fclose(f) < 0) {
-		wsyserror(path);
+		werror(path);
 	}
 }
 
@@ -1027,7 +1027,7 @@ static void deleteTexture(WMWidget * w, void *data)
 	WMReleasePropList(titem->prop);
 	if (titem->path) {
 		if (remove(titem->path) < 0 && errno != ENOENT) {
-			wsyserror("could not remove file %s", titem->path);
+			werror("could not remove file %s", titem->path);
 		}
 		wfree(titem->path);
 	}
@@ -1572,7 +1572,7 @@ static void createPanel(Panel * p)
 
 	if (access(panel->fprefix, F_OK) != 0) {
 		if (mkdir(panel->fprefix, 0755) < 0) {
-			wsyserror(panel->fprefix);
+			werror(panel->fprefix);
 			ok = False;
 		}
 	}
@@ -1582,7 +1582,7 @@ static void createPanel(Panel * p)
 		panel->fprefix = tmp;
 		if (access(panel->fprefix, F_OK) != 0) {
 			if (mkdir(panel->fprefix, 0755) < 0) {
-				wsyserror(panel->fprefix);
+				werror(panel->fprefix);
 			}
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/WPrefs.app/MouseSettings.c b/WPrefs.app/MouseSettings.c
index 418680e2..ff1a5d1e 100644
--- a/WPrefs.app/MouseSettings.c
+++ b/WPrefs.app/MouseSettings.c
@@ -656,7 +656,7 @@ static void storeCommandInScript(char *cmd, char *line)
 	if (!f) {
 		f = fopen(path, "wb");
 		if (!f) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not create %s"), path);
+			werror(_("could not create %s"), path);
 			goto end;
 		}
 		fprintf(f, "#!/bin/sh\n");
@@ -671,7 +671,7 @@ static void storeCommandInScript(char *cmd, char *line)
 		tmppath = wstrconcat(wusergnusteppath(), "/Library/WindowMaker/autostart.tmp");
 		fo = fopen(tmppath, "wb");
 		if (!fo) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not create temporary file %s"), tmppath);
+			werror(_("could not create temporary file %s"), tmppath);
 			wfree(tmppath);
 			goto end;
 		}
@@ -704,7 +704,7 @@ static void storeCommandInScript(char *cmd, char *line)
 		fclose(fo);
 
 		if (rename(tmppath, path) != 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not rename file %s to %s\n"), tmppath, path);
+			werror(_("could not rename file %s to %s\n"), tmppath, path);
 		}
 		wfree(tmppath);
 	}
diff --git a/WPrefs.app/Themes.c b/WPrefs.app/Themes.c
index b42c4957..3606e389 100644
--- a/WPrefs.app/Themes.c
+++ b/WPrefs.app/Themes.c
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ static pid_t downloadFile(WMScreen * scr, _Panel * panel, char *file)
 
 	pid = fork();
 	if (pid < 0) {
-		wsyserror("could not fork() process");
+		werror("could not fork() process");
 
 		WMRunAlertPanel(scr, GetWindow(panel), _("Error"),
 				"Could not start download. fork() failed", _("OK"), NULL, NULL);
diff --git a/WPrefs.app/WPrefs.c b/WPrefs.app/WPrefs.c
index 231a3ef9..4ab74126 100644
--- a/WPrefs.app/WPrefs.c
+++ b/WPrefs.app/WPrefs.c
@@ -675,7 +675,7 @@ static void loadConfigurations(WMScreen * scr, WMWindow * mainw)
 		wfree(command);
 	}
 	if (!file || !fgets(buffer, 1023, file)) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not extract version information from Window Maker"));
+		werror(_("could not extract version information from Window Maker"));
 		wfatal(_("Make sure wmaker is in your search path."));
 
 		WMRunAlertPanel(scr, mainw, _("Error"),
@@ -719,7 +719,7 @@ static void loadConfigurations(WMScreen * scr, WMWindow * mainw)
 		wfree(command);
 	}
 	if (!file || !fgets(buffer, 1023, file)) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not run \"%s --global_defaults_path\"."), path);
+		werror(_("could not run \"%s --global_defaults_path\"."), path);
 		exit(1);
 	} else {
 		char *ptr;
diff --git a/src/defaults.c b/src/defaults.c
index 5adb4e2e..6efd48e6 100644
--- a/src/defaults.c
+++ b/src/defaults.c
@@ -2667,7 +2667,7 @@ static int setWorkspaceSpecificBack(WScreen * scr, WDefaultEntry * entry, WMProp
 			return 0;
 
 		if (pipe(filedes) < 0) {
-			wsyserror("pipe() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
+			werror("pipe() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
 
 			WMReleasePropList(value);
 			return 0;
@@ -2675,11 +2675,11 @@ static int setWorkspaceSpecificBack(WScreen * scr, WDefaultEntry * entry, WMProp
 
 		pid = fork();
 		if (pid < 0) {
-			wsyserror("fork() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
+			werror("fork() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
 			if (close(filedes[0]) < 0)
-				wsyserror("could not close pipe");
+				werror("could not close pipe");
 			if (close(filedes[1]) < 0)
-				wsyserror("could not close pipe");
+				werror("could not close pipe");
 
 		} else if (pid == 0) {
 			char *dither;
@@ -2687,24 +2687,24 @@ static int setWorkspaceSpecificBack(WScreen * scr, WDefaultEntry * entry, WMProp
 			SetupEnvironment(scr);
 
 			if (close(0) < 0)
-				wsyserror("could not close pipe");
+				werror("could not close pipe");
 			if (dup(filedes[0]) < 0) {
-				wsyserror("dup() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
+				werror("dup() failed:can't set workspace specific background image");
 			}
 			dither = wPreferences.no_dithering ? "-m" : "-d";
 			if (wPreferences.smooth_workspace_back)
 				execlp("wmsetbg", "wmsetbg", "-helper", "-S", dither, NULL);
 			else
 				execlp("wmsetbg", "wmsetbg", "-helper", dither, NULL);
-			wsyserror("could not execute wmsetbg");
+			werror("could not execute wmsetbg");
 			exit(1);
 		} else {
 
 			if (fcntl(filedes[0], F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) < 0) {
-				wsyserror("error setting close-on-exec flag");
+				werror("error setting close-on-exec flag");
 			}
 			if (fcntl(filedes[1], F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) < 0) {
-				wsyserror("error setting close-on-exec flag");
+				werror("error setting close-on-exec flag");
 			}
 
 			scr->helper_fd = filedes[1];
diff --git a/src/dialog.c b/src/dialog.c
index 9fa34245..1d46539b 100644
--- a/src/dialog.c
+++ b/src/dialog.c
@@ -1551,7 +1551,7 @@ int wShowCrashingDialogPanel(int whatSig)
 
 	scr = WMCreateScreen(dpy, screen_no);
 	if (!scr) {
-		wsyserror(_("cannot open connection for crashing dialog panel. Aborting."));
+		werror(_("cannot open connection for crashing dialog panel. Aborting."));
 		return WMAbort;
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/icon.c b/src/icon.c
index fb989064..fc8d45af 100644
--- a/src/icon.c
+++ b/src/icon.c
@@ -448,7 +448,7 @@ static char *getnameforicon(WWindow * wwin)
 
 	if (access(path, F_OK) != 0) {
 		if (mkdir(path, S_IRUSR | S_IWUSR | S_IXUSR)) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not create directory %s"), path);
+			werror(_("could not create directory %s"), path);
 			wfree(path);
 			wfree(suffix);
 			return NULL;
@@ -457,7 +457,7 @@ static char *getnameforicon(WWindow * wwin)
 	strcat(path, "/CachedPixmaps");
 	if (access(path, F_OK) != 0) {
 		if (mkdir(path, S_IRUSR | S_IWUSR | S_IXUSR) != 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not create directory %s"), path);
+			werror(_("could not create directory %s"), path);
 			wfree(path);
 			wfree(suffix);
 			return NULL;
diff --git a/src/main.c b/src/main.c
index 7c56cd90..7ed77a77 100644
--- a/src/main.c
+++ b/src/main.c
@@ -309,7 +309,7 @@ void Restart(char *manager, Bool abortOnFailure)
 		wfatal(_("failed to restart Window Maker."));
 	} else {
 		execvp(prog, argv);
-		wsyserror(_("could not exec %s"), prog);
+		werror(_("could not exec %s"), prog);
 	}
 	if (abortOnFailure)
 		exit(7);
@@ -388,10 +388,10 @@ void ExecuteShellCommand(WScreen * scr, char *command)
 		setsid();
 #endif
 		execl(shell, shell, "-c", command, NULL);
-		wsyserror("could not execute %s -c %s", shell, command);
+		werror("could not execute %s -c %s", shell, command);
 		Exit(-1);
 	} else if (pid < 0) {
-		wsyserror("cannot fork a new process");
+		werror("cannot fork a new process");
 	} else {
 		_tuple *data = wmalloc(sizeof(_tuple));
 
@@ -517,7 +517,7 @@ static void execInitScript()
 
 	if (file) {
 		if (system(file) != 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("%s:could not execute initialization script"), file);
+			werror(_("%s:could not execute initialization script"), file);
 		}
 		wfree(file);
 	}
@@ -535,7 +535,7 @@ void ExecExitScript()
 
 	if (file) {
 		if (system(file) != 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("%s:could not execute exit script"), file);
+			werror(_("%s:could not execute exit script"), file);
 		}
 		wfree(file);
 	}
@@ -754,7 +754,7 @@ static int real_main(int argc, char **argv)
 	}
 
 	if (fcntl(ConnectionNumber(dpy), F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) < 0) {
-		wsyserror("error setting close-on-exec flag for X connection");
+		werror("error setting close-on-exec flag for X connection");
 		exit(1);
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/misc.c b/src/misc.c
index f89cd71b..9041e10e 100644
--- a/src/misc.c
+++ b/src/misc.c
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ static char *username(void)
 
 		user = getpwuid(getuid());
 		if (!user) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not get password entry for UID %i"), getuid());
+			werror(_("could not get password entry for UID %i"), getuid());
 			return NULL;
 		}
 		if (!user->pw_name) {
@@ -1013,7 +1013,7 @@ void SendHelperMessage(WScreen * scr, char type, int workspace, char *msg)
 		strcpy(&buffer[i], msg);
 
 	if (write(scr->helper_fd, buffer, len + 4) < 0) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not send message to background image helper"));
+		werror(_("could not send message to background image helper"));
 	}
 	wfree(buffer);
 }
diff --git a/src/monitor.c b/src/monitor.c
index 16d6c757..e64d8a04 100644
--- a/src/monitor.c
+++ b/src/monitor.c
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ int showCrashDialog(int sig)
 		XCloseDisplay(dpy);
 		dpy = NULL;
 	} else {
-		wsyserror(_("cannot open connection for crashing dialog panel. Aborting."));
+		werror(_("cannot open connection for crashing dialog panel. Aborting."));
 		crashAction = WMAbort;
 	}
 
@@ -98,16 +98,16 @@ int MonitorLoop(int argc, char **argv)
 		pid = fork();
 		if (pid == 0) {
 			execvp(child_argv[0], child_argv);
-			wsyserror(_("Error respawning Window Maker"));
+			werror(_("Error respawning Window Maker"));
 			exit(1);
 		} else if (pid < 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("Error respawning Window Maker"));
+			werror(_("Error respawning Window Maker"));
 			exit(1);
 		}
 
 		do {
 			if ((exited = waitpid(-1, &status, 0)) < 0) {
-				wsyserror(_("Error during monitoring of Window Maker process."));
+				werror(_("Error during monitoring of Window Maker process."));
 				error = True;
 				break;
 			}
diff --git a/src/rootmenu.c b/src/rootmenu.c
index fba8ee26..b193cffc 100644
--- a/src/rootmenu.c
+++ b/src/rootmenu.c
@@ -636,7 +636,7 @@ static void constructMenu(WMenu * menu, WMenuEntry * entry)
 				if (first < 0)
 					first = i;
 			} else {
-				wsyserror(_("%s:could not stat menu"), path[i]);
+				werror(_("%s:could not stat menu"), path[i]);
 				/*goto finish; */
 			}
 
@@ -644,7 +644,7 @@ static void constructMenu(WMenu * menu, WMenuEntry * entry)
 		}
 
 		if (first < 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("%s:could not stat menu:%s"), "OPEN_MENU", (char *)entry->clientdata);
+			werror(_("%s:could not stat menu:%s"), "OPEN_MENU", (char *)entry->clientdata);
 			goto finish;
 		}
 		stat(path[first], &stat_buf);
@@ -1082,7 +1082,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuFile(WScreen * scr, char *file_name)
 			wfree(args);
 			file = popen(command, "r");
 			if (!file) {
-				wsyserror(_("%s:could not open/preprocess menu file"), file_name);
+				werror(_("%s:could not open/preprocess menu file"), file_name);
 			} else {
 				cpp = 1;
 			}
@@ -1093,7 +1093,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuFile(WScreen * scr, char *file_name)
 	if (!file) {
 		file = fopen(file_name, "rb");
 		if (!file) {
-			wsyserror(_("%s:could not open menu file"), file_name);
+			werror(_("%s:could not open menu file"), file_name);
 			return NULL;
 		}
 	}
@@ -1127,7 +1127,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuFile(WScreen * scr, char *file_name)
 #ifdef CPP
 	if (cpp) {
 		if (pclose(file) == -1) {
-			wsyserror(_("error reading preprocessed menu data"));
+			werror(_("error reading preprocessed menu data"));
 		}
 	} else {
 		fclose(file);
@@ -1178,7 +1178,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuPipe(WScreen * scr, char **file_name)
 			wfree(args);
 			file = popen(command, "r");
 			if (!file) {
-				wsyserror(_("%s:could not open/preprocess menu file"), filename);
+				werror(_("%s:could not open/preprocess menu file"), filename);
 			} else {
 				cpp = 1;
 			}
@@ -1190,7 +1190,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuPipe(WScreen * scr, char **file_name)
 		file = popen(filename, "rb");
 
 		if (!file) {
-			wsyserror(_("%s:could not open menu file"), filename);
+			werror(_("%s:could not open menu file"), filename);
 			return NULL;
 		}
 	}
@@ -1297,7 +1297,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuDirectory(WScreen * scr, char *title, char **path, char *c
 
 			buffer = malloc(strlen(path[i]) + strlen(dentry->d_name) + 4);
 			if (!buffer) {
-				wsyserror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[i]);
+				werror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[i]);
 				break;
 			}
 
@@ -1306,7 +1306,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuDirectory(WScreen * scr, char *title, char **path, char *c
 			strcat(buffer, dentry->d_name);
 
 			if (stat(buffer, &stat_buf) != 0) {
-				wsyserror(_("%s:could not stat file \"%s\" in menu directory"),
+				werror(_("%s:could not stat file \"%s\" in menu directory"),
 					  path[i], dentry->d_name);
 			} else {
 				Bool isFilePack = False;
@@ -1369,7 +1369,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuDirectory(WScreen * scr, char *title, char **path, char *c
 			length += strlen(command) + 6;
 		buffer = malloc(length);
 		if (!buffer) {
-			wsyserror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[data->index]);
+			werror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[data->index]);
 			break;
 		}
 
@@ -1408,7 +1408,7 @@ static WMenu *readMenuDirectory(WScreen * scr, char *title, char **path, char *c
 
 		buffer = malloc(length);
 		if (!buffer) {
-			wsyserror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[data->index]);
+			werror(_("out of memory while constructing directory menu %s"), path[data->index]);
 			break;
 		}
 
@@ -1501,13 +1501,13 @@ static WMenu *configureMenu(WScreen * scr, WMPropList * definition)
 		}
 
 		if (!path) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not find menu file \"%s\" referenced in WMRootMenu"), tmp);
+			werror(_("could not find menu file \"%s\" referenced in WMRootMenu"), tmp);
 			wfree(tmp);
 			return NULL;
 		}
 
 		if (stat(path, &stat_buf) < 0) {
-			wsyserror(_("could not access menu \"%s\" referenced in WMRootMenu"), path);
+			werror(_("could not access menu \"%s\" referenced in WMRootMenu"), path);
 			wfree(path);
 			wfree(tmp);
 			return NULL;
diff --git a/src/screen.c b/src/screen.c
index 2190bf0f..79669183 100644
--- a/src/screen.c
+++ b/src/screen.c
@@ -1010,7 +1010,7 @@ void wScreenSaveState(WScreen * scr)
 		str = wdefaultspathfordomain(buf);
 	}
 	if (!WMWritePropListToFile(scr->session_state, str)) {
-		wsyserror(_("could not save session state in %s"), str);
+		werror(_("could not save session state in %s"), str);
 	}
 	wfree(str);
 	WMReleasePropList(old_state);
diff --git a/util/getstyle.c b/util/getstyle.c
index 577554b1..5f5523cb 100644
--- a/util/getstyle.c
+++ b/util/getstyle.c
@@ -201,13 +201,13 @@ void copyFile(char *dir, char *file)
 
 	RETRY( dst = fopen(dstpath, "wb") )
 	if (dst == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("Could not create %s"), dstpath);
+		werror(_("Could not create %s"), dstpath);
 		goto err;
 	}
 
 	RETRY( src = fopen(file, "rb") )
 	if (src == NULL) {
-		wsyserror(_("Could not open %s"), file);
+		werror(_("Could not open %s"), file);
 		goto err;
 	}
 
diff --git a/util/wmsetbg.c b/util/wmsetbg.c
index 8f7638db..f12c26bc 100644
--- a/util/wmsetbg.c
+++ b/util/wmsetbg.c
@@ -883,7 +883,7 @@ void helperLoop(RContext * rc)
 
 		/* get length of message */
 		if (readmsg(0, buffer, 4) < 0) {
-			wsyserror("error reading message from Window Maker");
+			werror("error reading message from Window Maker");
 			errcount--;
 			if (errcount == 0) {
 				wfatal("quitting");
@@ -897,7 +897,7 @@ void helperLoop(RContext * rc)
 
 		/* get message */
 		if (readmsg(0, buffer, size) < 0) {
-			wsyserror("error reading message from Window Maker");
+			werror("error reading message from Window Maker");
 			errcount--;
 			if (errcount == 0) {
 				wfatal("quitting");