Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!uupsi!sunic!liuida!prosys!ath From: ath@prosys.se (Anders Thulin) Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.programmer Subject: TCXL problems (was: shareware C graphical windowing library needed) Message-ID: <694@helios.prosys.se> Date: 1 Jan 91 11:13:22 GMT References: <5153@trantor.harris-atd.com> <688@helios.prosys.se> <1990Dec27.181940.6338@aplcen.apl.jhu.edu> <689@helios.prosys.se> <691@helios.prosys.se> Organization: Telesoft AB, Teknikringen 2A, S-583 30 Linkoping, Sweden Lines: 42 In article ecollins@nmsu.edu (Edward Collins) writes: > >I dowloaded TCXL551.ZIP from WSMR the other day and was able to build >the demo with turbo c/c++. The include file shows up missing because >of a typing error in the demo( i assume ). The file I miss is <_TcxlVid.h>. It is used in the demo, and for all I know the file should be there, because the reference manual references it as well. But I'll try without the underscore. >Although I didn't spend much time with it, the package looks like a >very complete text based toolkit with support for windows, menus, ems, >mouse, string handling, etc. I don't remember seeing any support for >graphics mode. It seems rather complete, and it could probably be updated to be even better. I'm begining to find it a bit irritating, though. It only seldom provides a mechanism for doing things, but rather a policy of how to do it: Help window titles can only be "Help", window borders can only be 5 standard types, menus can't be made to work after the MOTIF Style Guide, etc. Most of these things are probably easy to fix once you have the source code, though. The documentation doesn't look too good either. There's much of it, but it isn't complete, nor easy to use, mostly due to lack of an index. Take the menu package. There is no description in the reference manual of what the MNU_xxx flags to the MnuEnd(), or the ITM_xxx flags to the MnuItm() call do. I could only find a short comment in the include file, which wasn't much help. Guessing often works, though. The problems begin whan you can't guess... Again, I suppose source code is necessary to use it. In all fairness, though, TCXL 5.5 is probably in transition. It has changed since CXL 5.2, and several bugs have been fixed. I suspect it will be a lot better when it has stabilized a bit more. -- Anders Thulin ath@prosys.se {uunet,mcsun}!sunic!prosys!ath Telesoft Europe AB, Teknikringen 2B, S-583 30 Linkoping, Sweden