Re: Input line editing

[der Mouse <mouse%Rodents-Montreal.ORG@localhost>]

> In your new system, if I understand, sh/csh/ksh could immediately
> begin to benefit from a generic line editing facility provided by the
> tty (as in the NEWCONS:) case without even having to be adapted to
> use the libreadline wrapper?

Right.  Anything that reads line-oritented input can.

If it wants anything more than generic input line editing (whatever
that ends up meaning), though, it will need to use _something_ to
interface to it, either the native interface or one of the library
stubroutine glue layers.  My own shell is an exmaple; it has a way to
take a shell variable name in the line editor and replace it with the
contents of that shell variable.  Another example might be
application-context-dependent completion - ftp(1), for example, might
want to complete command names as the first word on a line but file
names elsewhere (and it may want to draw a distinction between local
filenames and remote filenames); if it were to be converted to this
paradigm it would have to be editing-aware enough to communicate the
necessary bits to the editing code.

Conversely, anything that turns off ICANON won't be bothered by the new
facilities, so an ftp(1) that already has its own code for that stuff
can continue to use it.  This may annoy users who expect the per-user
uniformity the new way provides, but it may be welcomed by people
already accustomed to the facilities already provided, too....

Ah, ideas and plans.  Now I just need the round tuits. :)

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