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curs_slk(3)                     Library calls                    curs_slk(3)


NAME

       slk_init, slk_set, slk_wset, slk_refresh, slk_noutrefresh, slk_label,
       slk_clear, slk_restore, slk_touch, slk_attron, slk_attrset,
       slk_attroff, slk_attr_on, slk_attr_set, slk_attr_off, slk_attr,
       slk_color, extended_slk_color - curses soft label key routines


SYNOPSIS

       #include <curses.h>

       int slk_init(int fmt);

       int slk_set(int labnum, const char *label, int align);
       int slk_wset(int labnum, const wchar_t *label, int align);

       char *slk_label(int labnum);

       int slk_refresh(void);
       int slk_noutrefresh(void);
       int slk_clear(void);
       int slk_restore(void);
       int slk_touch(void);

       int slk_attron(const chtype attrs);
       int slk_attroff(const chtype attrs);
       int slk_attrset(const chtype attrs);
       int slk_attr_on(attr_t attrs, void *opts);
       int slk_attr_off(const attr_t attrs, void *opts);
       int slk_attr_set(const attr_t attrs, short pair, void*opts);
       /* extension */
       attr_t slk_attr(void);

       int slk_color(short pair);
       /* extension */
       int extended_slk_color(int pair);


DESCRIPTION

       These functions manipulate the soft function key labels that some
       hardware terminals support.  For those terminals that do not have soft
       labels, curses takes over the bottom line of stdscr, reducing its
       vertical size and the value of LINES by one.  By default, curses uses
       eight labels of up to eight characters each.

       ncurses furthermore supports a mode comprising twelve labels of up to
       five characters each, following a convention associated with the IBM
       PC/AT keyboard.  ncurses simulates this mode by taking over up to two
       lines at the bottom of the screen; it does not try to use any hardware
       support for this mode.

   Initialization
       slk_init must be called before initscr or newterm.  If initscr
       eventually uses a line from stdscr to emulate the soft labels, then fmt
       determines how the labels are arranged on the screen.

       0  indicates a 3-2-3 arrangement of the labels.

       1  indicates a 4-4 arrangement

       2  indicates the PC-like 4-4-4 mode.

       3  is again the PC-like 4-4-4 mode, but in addition an index line is
          generated, helping the user to associate each label with its
          numbered function key.  LINES and the vertical size of stdscr are
          further reduced.

   Labels
       Populate the labels with normal strings (slk_set) or wide-character
       strings (slk_wset).  Each function takes three parameters.

       labnum  is the label number, from 1 to 8 (12 if fmt in slk_init is 2 or
               3);

       label   is be the string to put on the label, up to eight (five if fmt
               in slk_init is 2 or 3) characters in length.  A empty string or
               a null pointer sets up a blank label.

       align   is 0, 1, or 2, aligning label to the left, center, or right,
               respectively, within the 8 (5) character cells housing it.

       slk_label obtains the string assigned to label number labnum, with any
       leading and trailing blanks stripped.

   Screen Updates
       slk_refresh and slk_noutrefresh affect the soft key label lines as
       wrefresh and wnoutrefresh do the curses window.

       The slk_clear routine clears the soft labels from the screen.

       The slk_restore routine restores the soft labels to the screen after a
       slk_clear has been performed.

       The slk_touch routine forces all the soft labels to be output the next
       time a slk_noutrefresh is performed.

   Video Attributes
       The slk_attron, slk_attrset, slk_attroff, and slk_attr routines
       correspond to attron, attrset, attroff, and attr_get, respectively.
       They have an effect only if soft labels are simulated on the bottom
       line of the screen.  The default highlight for soft key labels is
       A_STANDOUT (as in System V curses, which does not document this fact).

   Colors
       The slk_color routine corresponds to color_set.  It has an effect only
       if soft labels are simulated on the bottom line of the screen.

       Because slk_color accepts only short (signed 16-bit integer) values,
       this implementation provides extended_slk_color, which accepts an int
       value of at least 32 bits.


RETURN VALUE

       Routines that return an integer return ERR upon failure and OK (SVr4
       specifies only "an integer value other than ERR") upon successful
       completion.

       X/Open Curses defines no error conditions.

       In this implementation

          slk_attr
               returns the attribute used for the soft keys.

          slk_attroff, slk_attron, slk_clear, slk_noutrefresh, slk_refresh,
          slk_touch
               return an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not
               initialized.

          slk_attrset
               returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not
               initialized.

          slk_attr_set
               returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not
               initialized, or the color pair is outside the range
               0..COLOR_PAIRS-1.

          slk_color
               returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not
               initialized, or the color pair is outside the range
               0..COLOR_PAIRS-1.

          slk_init
               returns an error if the format parameter is outside the range
               0..3.

          slk_label
               returns NULL on error.

          slk_set
               returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not
               initialized, or the labnum parameter is outside the range of
               label counts, or if the format parameter is outside the range
               0..2, or if memory for the labels cannot be allocated.


NOTES

       Most applications would use slk_noutrefresh because a wrefresh is
       likely to follow soon.


EXTENSIONS

       X/Open Curses documents the opts argument as reserved for future use,
       saying that it must be null.  This implementation uses that parameter
       in ABI 6 for the functions which have a color pair parameter to support
       extended color pairs.

       For functions which modify the color, e.g., slk_attr_set, if opts is
       set it is treated as a pointer to int, and used to set the color pair
       instead of the short pair parameter.


PORTABILITY

       X/Open Curses, Issue 4 describes these functions, with some differences
       from SVr4 curses:

       o   X/Open added functions like the SVr4 attribute-manipulation
           functions slk_attron, slk_attroff, and slk_attrset, but which use
           attr_t parameters (rather than chtype), along with a reserved opts
           parameter.

           Two of these new functions (unlike the SVr4 functions) have no
           provision for color: slk_attr_on and slk_attr_off.

           The third function (slk_attr_set) has a color pair parameter.

       o   It added const qualifiers to parameters (unnecessarily), and

       o   It added slk_color.

       Although slk_start is declared in the curses header file, it was not
       documented by SVr4 other than its presence in a list of libtermlib.so.1
       symbols.  Reading the source code (i.e., Illumos):

       o   slk_start has two parameters:

           o   ng (number of groups) and

           o   gp (group pointer).

       o   Soft-key groups are an array of ng integers.

       o   In SVr4, slk_init calls slk_start passing a null for gp.  For this
           case, slk_start uses the number of groups ng (3 for the 3-2-3
           layout, 2 for the 4-4 layout) which slk_init provided.

           If ng is neither 2 or 3, slk_start checks the terminfo fln
           (label_format) capability, interpreting that as a comma-separated
           list of numbers, e.g., "3,2,3" for the 3-2-3 layout.

           Finally, if there is no fln capability, slk_start returns ERR.

       o   If slk_start is given a non-null gp, it copies the ng elements of
           the group of soft-keys, up to 16.

           If there are more than 16 elements, slk_start returns an error.

       o   The format codes 2 and 3 for slk_init were added by ncurses in
           1996.  PDCurses 2.4 added this feature in 2001.

       The function slk_attr was added by ncurses in 1996.

       X/Open Curses does not specify a limit for the number of colors and
       color pairs which a terminal can support.  However, in its use of short
       for the parameters, it carries over SVr4's implementation detail for
       the compiled terminfo database, which uses signed 16-bit numbers.  This
       implementation provides extended versions of those functions which use
       int parameters, allowing applications to use larger color- and pair-
       numbers.


HISTORY

       SVr3 introduced these functions:
         slk_clear
         slk_init
         slk_label
         slk_noutrefresh
         slk_refresh
         slk_restore
         slk_set
         slk_touch

       SVr4 added these functions:
         slk_attroff
         slk_attron
         slk_attrset
         slk_start

       X/Open Curses added these:
         slk_attr_off
         slk_attr_on
         slk_attr_set
         slk_color
         slk_wset


SEE ALSO

       curses(3X), curs_attr(3X), curs_initscr(3X), curs_refresh(3X),
       curs_variables(3X)

ncurses 6.5                       2024-04-20                      curs_slk(3)

ncurses 6.5 - Generated Wed May 1 14:10:03 CDT 2024
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