Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!sdd.hp.com!news.cs.indiana.edu!news.nd.edu!mentor.cc.purdue.edu!mace.cc.purdue.edu!abe
From: abe@mace.cc.purdue.edu (Vic Abell)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.aix
Subject: AIX 3.1, info -a and arrow keys
Keywords: ESCDELAY
Message-ID: <6865@mace.cc.purdue.edu>
Date: 21 Feb 91 20:32:44 GMT
Organization: Purdue University
Lines: 25

If you're having trouble making info -a accept VT100 arrow key sequences
via a network connection from a remote terminal emulator (mine is a NeXT
work station with the Stuart 2.0 emulator), try setting the ESCDELAY
environment variable.

	% setenv ESCDELAY=1250
or
	$ ESCDELAY=1250; export ESCDELAY

This works around a bug in info or curses that keeps one or the other
from waiting a suitable amount of time after an ESC to see if it is the
head of a sequence ("ESC [ C" is a VT100 right-arrow).  This is a problem
for me, because my NeXT software sends the ESC in one TCP/IP packet and
the `[' and `C' together in a subsequent one.  Without the ESCDELAY, info
would sometimes see the three characters as a right arrow, and at other
times see the ESC by itself as a cancellation of the menu access (via ^O).

The delay is apparently specified in milliseconds.  IBM suggested 1000,
but I found a slightly larger value more reliable.  Your mileage may vary.

My compliments to the local IBM technical rep - Ross Aiken - for locating
the ESCDELAY workaround shortly after I was able to explain the cause of
the problem.

Via Abell <abe@mace.cc.purdue.edu>


Brought to you by Super Global Mega Corp .com