Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcsun!unido!mikros!mwtech!martin
From: martin@mwtech.UUCP (Martin Weitzel)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.i386
Subject: Re: ISC UNIX 2.2 & tape drive
Keywords: the usual tape problem
Message-ID: <852@mwtech.UUCP>
Date: 24 Jul 90 15:36:52 GMT
References: <8688@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu> <1990Jul23.011636.14224@virtech.uucp>
Reply-To: martin@mwtech.UUCP (Martin Weitzel)
Organization: MIKROS Systemware, Darmstadt/W-Germany
Lines: 39

In article <1990Jul23.011636.14224@virtech.uucp> cpcahil@virtech.UUCP (Conor P. Cahill) writes:
[some lines deleted]
>
>Experiments with tape drives and console output have shown that if you have
>scrolling output on your console it will cause the tape drive output to 
>pause momentarily and restart.  This has a very bad effect on the throughtput
>of your tape output, so you should not use any of the aformentioned commands
>with the verbose flag set (unless you redirect the verbosity into a file).

Very true.

If scrolling of the console screen is the problem, here is some
workaround% which would keep the tape streaming.

# ---------------------------------------------------------------
some backup-program in verbose mode |
awk '
BEGIN {
	CSI  = sprintf("%c[", 27)
	HOME = CSI "H"
	CTEOS= CSI "J"
}
NR % (lines - 3) == 1 {
	printf(HOME "Backup in progress ..." CTEOS);
}
{
	printf("\n%-5d: %s", NR, $1);
}
END {
	printf("\n... DONE (%d files)\n", lines);
}
' lines="${LINES:-25}" -
# ---------------------------------------------------------------

%: Yes, yes I know all what you want to comment on it and I promise
I'll write it in C and with curses and make it more portable ...
some day  1/2:-)
-- 
Martin Weitzel, email: martin@mwtech.UUCP, voice: 49-(0)6151-6 56 83